ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the causation of the transformation of the Muslim Conference into the National Conference and its subsequent impact on the politics of the state. Whereas it is a common assertion that the transformation was the brainchild of Prem Nath Bazaz and the process was accelerated by Pandit Nehru, I have shown with ample evidence, that the movement led by Sheikh Abdullah was secular from its very inception. Thus, while Bazaz and Nehru strengthened Abdullah’s hand in the process of conversion for their own vested interests, Abdullah saw in it an opportunity to free himself from the influence of Punjabi Muslim elite and also to neutralize the criticism of vocal non-Muslim Kashmiri Pundits. In this chapter, I have also traced the roots of discord between Abdullah and Mohammed Ali Jinnah from 1939 as against the year 1944, as most of the narratives would lead us to believe.
