J&K’s 76th Accession Day: Marathon among slew of events to pay tributes to Maharaja Hari Singh

Our Correspondent

Jammu, October 26

Various social and political organisations on Thursday celebrated the 76th Accession Day of Jammu and Kashmir by paying tributes to the former ruler of the Union Territory, Maharaja Hari Singh.

It was on October 26, 1947, that Hari Singh signed the Instrument of Accession ceding the erstwhile state of J&K with India after tribal raiders and Pakistani Army launched an attack to annex the northernmost region of the country.

The Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BJYM) organised a marathon event, which started from the fourth Tawi bridge, traversing through the city, and culminated at the Maharaja Hari Singh Park.

BJYM president Arun Prabhat said the event serves as a celebration of the historic signing of the Instrument of Accession, “a defining moment that integrated the entire region of Jammu and Kashmir with the Union of India back in 1947”.

Tributes were also paid to Brig Rajinder Singh, who led a small number (around 100) of Dogra soldiers and stopped the Pakistani army and raiders from entering Kashmir and sacrificed his life during the fight.

Vikramaditya Singh, the grandson of Hari Singh, on X (formerly Twitter) wrote, “Greetings on J&K Accession Day. On this day in 1947, my grandfather, Maharaja Hari Singh, signed the Instrument of Accession with the Republic of India. Thereby becoming an integral part of India.”

The UT administration had announced a holiday on the occasion. Senior party leaders of the Bharatiya Janata Party held a programme at Maharaja Hari Singh Park to celebrate the day.

J&K BJP president Ravinder Raina said October 26 is as important for the residents of the UT as August 15. “The entire J&K, including the illegally occupied part by Pakistan and China, was made an inseparable part of India. The accession was completed without any condition by the Maharaja, but the NC and Congress propagated false narrative to conspire against the unity of nation for their own vested interests,” Raina said.

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