In 1949, Karan Singh had just turned eighteen when he was appointed regent to Jammu and Kashmir, two years after his father Maharaja Hari Singh signed the Instrument of Accession merging the then independent state with India. For the next eighteen years Dr Singh remained at the helm of affairs, successively as Sardar-i-Riyasat and governor of the state. As Dr Singh’s political mentor, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru was a source of great strength for a young man who had shouldered large responsibilities.

Jammu and Kashmir 1949-1964 is a selection of 216 letters from the correspondence between Dr Singh and Pandit Nehru over a period of fifteen years. The teething problems of a fledgling country and a newly grafted state, the emerging conflicts between Pakistan and India, the Chinese aggression of 1962�these letters offer an unmatched ringside view of momentous events in Kashmir and the rest of India that unfolded after Independence, events that continue to resonate to this day. Apart from insights into the political situation of the period, they also provide unexpected glimpses into the personal lives and thoughts of Pandit Nehru and Dr Singh and reflect the deep regard and affection that the two shared.

Reproduced at the end of this book and published in its entirety for the first time is the memorandum submitted by Maharaja Hari Singh to President Rajendra Prasad in August 1952, which adds an invaluable perspective on the way the identity and future of Kashmir was shaped.

The biographical and explanatory footnotes that Dr Jawaid Alam has provided impose a narrative on a collection of letters and enrich the text, making it accessible to scholars and curious readers alike.