Why Do India and Pakistan Hate Each Other?

India and Pakistan have fought four major wars and have had continued lower level fighting since the countries were created in 1947. In order to understand why they hate each other, we need to know a little of their history. Both India and Pakistan used to be part of a single country under British colonial control: British India.

Map of British India

As you can see, British India also included other areas which are now separate countries too, like Myanmar (formerly Burma), Bhutan, and Bangladesh.

Before independence from the British, the Indian National Congress (who fought for independence) wanted to have one country for all Indians. But Muslims wanted to have a separate country so that they would not be a minority under Hindu rule. The British offered them a separate Muslim country in order to get their support during WWII. After the war when the British prepared to leave India, they tried to make the Muslims and Hindus accept a federation, but instead there was lots of fighting between the two factions and many people were killed. So, India and Pakistan were created through fighting, and bitterness and mutual blame continues to this day.

Might of India and Pakistan 1947 after partition

After partition, the leaders of each state could choose which country to join based on the wishes of their people. In Kashmir, the leader chose to remain independent from both countries, but was invaded by Muslim fighters. He requested the Indian army to come in to help him, and he escaped to India, while India took control of the territory. Since then, the fighting over Kashmir has been continuing to this day. This is one of the reasons for continued bad blood between the two countries.

Map of Kashmir

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