Jammu and Kashmir’s Instrument of Accession

Jammu and Kashmir’s Instrument of Accession was the legal document through which Maharaja Hari Singh acceded the State to the Dominion of India. It accepted Dominion authority only over subjects specified in its Schedule, rather than transferring all governmental powers or the State’s entire sovereignty.

Legal operation of accession

Maharaja Hari Singh executed the Instrument on 26 October 1947, and Governor-General Lord Mountbatten accepted it on 27 October 1947. Made under Section 6 of the Government of India Act, 1935, it authorised the Dominion Legislature and other Dominion authorities to exercise specified functions concerning Jammu and Kashmir.

Subjects transferred to Dominion authority

The Schedule placed four groups of matters within Dominion legislative competence:

• Defence covered the armed forces, military operations, cantonments, arms, ammunition and explosives.
• External affairs covered diplomacy, treaties, extradition, immigration, emigration, expulsion, foreign pilgrimages and naturalisation.
• Communications covered posts, telegraphs, telephones, wireless, broadcasting, federal railways, maritime and air navigation, major ports and related transport regulation.
• Ancillary matters covered elections to the Dominion Legislature, offences against Dominion laws, inquiries, statistics and limited court jurisdiction connected with the transferred subjects.

Limits of the transfer

The Instrument preserved the ruler’s authority over matters not transferred. Under Clause 7, accession did not commit the State to accepting any future Constitution of India; under Clause 8, the ruler’s sovereignty and existing powers continued except to the extent affected by the Instrument.

• The Instrument could not be varied by amending the Government of India Act unless the ruler accepted the change through a supplementary instrument.
• Dominion legislation could not compulsorily acquire State land directly; the ruler was to arrange acquisition for Dominion purposes under the Instrument’s terms.