India warns of new war over disputed Kashmir

The commander of India’s army in the disputed Kashmir province has warned that his country could declare war on Pakistan if Islamic militants keep fighting for freedom from Indian rule.

Lt Gen RK Nanvatty, the head of the Indian army’s northern command, said the situation in Kashmir at the moment is similar to the one that existed before the 1965 India-Pakistan war.

Nanvatty commands more than half a million soldiers in Kashmir, a largely Muslim province in Hindu-dominated India.

Around a dozen Islamic militant groups have been fighting for independence in Kashmir for the past 12 years, while India and Pakistan have already fought two wars, in 1965 and 1971, over the Himalayan province.