Doing research in a ‘conflict zone’: history writing and archival (im) possibilities in Jammu and Kashmir

ABSTRACT

This paper argues that in conflict zones like Jammu and Kashmir, the embodied stories of Kashmiris punctuate the past, often silenced by dominant Indian narratives. Narratives about certain key political events in the region's past co-exist with other forms of memory. Kashmiris weave these stories to make sense of the present, build connections to the past, and stake claims for the future. They build and nourish an archive based on lived experience, keeping a record of past wrongs. Novels, anecdotes and underground literature form part of this embodied archive, and provide a resource for recovering stories that remain silent in institutional archives which  serve the interests of power. These interests are visible through restrictions on access to institutional archives, and demonstrate the effects of power and the overall politics of archives.

KEYWORDS:

• Kashmir
• archives
• protests
• uprising
• movement
• conflict

Disclosure Statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

Notes

1. Personal communication with the staff.

2. After the arrest of the Prime Minister of Kashmir, Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah in 1953, his party the National Conference was banned by the government of India. His party workers later launched a new party called the Plebiscite Front to mobilise Kashmiris demanding the right to self-determination. For 22 years, this party dominated the political landscape of Kashmir. However, after Abdullah’s release and subsequent signing of the controversial accord with the government of India, he completely distanced himself from the politics of plebiscite.

3. The word Mulk is often difficult to translate into English. It is synonymously used in Urdu and Persian to describe a community or a country.