Sibal: Let me show some myths portrayed here. 1. Parliament has plenary powers under constitution. It's actually the contrary. The power of parliament to make laws is limited by 370.
Sibal: The same thing Hyderabad. The ruler was Muslim, people wanted to join India. But he didn't want to join Pakistan. He wanted to be independent.
Sibal: The invasion took place and we got Hyderabad. Ultimately, we were left with Kashmir
Sibal: In this historical context, we must view that what happened in J&K was only to ensure that J&K becomes an integral part of India.
Sibal: Now Junagadh acceded to Pakistan. Somnath temple was in Junagadh, very dear to all of us. So, India wanted to invade, take over Junagadh. Mountbatten said you can't do that. This is foreign territory for you. So infiltrators was sent. They took over.
Sibal: There was no resistance. Then negotiations took place and Pakistan agreed to a plebiscite, knowing full well that such a referendum would happen in Kashmir also.
Sibal: Some had to merge into larger administrative units- so many princes did not have to merge because they were merged in larger units.
Sibal: Ultimately, who stood out? Hyderabad, Junagadh, Travancore, and Kashmir.
Sibal: J&K was only state in India where a special dispensation was made- for reasons which were domestic, for reasons which were international. So the argument that there should be uniformity is bereft of historical context.
Sibal: The whole process of 17 days was an entirely an asymmetric process. The idea was to get them to sign the IoA.
Sibal: Sardar Patel said that we'll only have with us communication, defence, external affairs. You're autonomous for the rest. That was the understanding.
Sibal: The Indian Independence Act was passed on July 18 1947. Originally, Independence was to be granted on May 1948 but the date was preponed to August 15 1947. So after the independence act, you had 12+17 days to complete process of signing all IoAs
Sibal: Constitution of J&K, like no other princely state in India was drafted after 1950.
Sibal: Pandit Nehru also had a distaste against rulers. That's why when invaders came, he first said release Sheik Abdullah...
Sibal: Sheikh Abdullah was dead against the ruler and was imprisoned. There was a popular movement in Kashmir against Hari Singh.