On 2 July 1972, in Shimla, Indira Gandhi and Zulfikar Ali Bhutto sign the Simla Agreement — the instrument governing India–Pakistan relations after the 1971 war and the creation of Bangladesh.

The agreement requires peaceful bilateral settlement of disputes, respect for the Line of Control in Jammu and Kashmir, and gradual normalisation of diplomatic and commercial ties.

Prisoners of war and occupied territories were to be returned under the understandings; the document became the baseline reference of post-1971 bilateral diplomacy.

Interpretations of the Line of Control and bilateral mechanisms remained contested, but the text stays a pillar of India–Pakistan relations law.

For South Asia, 2 July 1972 marks the formal commitment to avoid force and treat Kashmir in a bilateral framework.

The official text is published by India’s MEA / diplomatic archives.

The Simla Agreement of 2 July 1972 remains the milestone of bilateral India–Pakistan peace after 1971.

Image: Shimla; Wikimedia Commons. Cropped to 16:9.

Source consulted: Simla Agreement. Treaty text: Simla Agreement (MEA India).