So, if most Kashmiris wanted to join Pakistan how is the call for independent Kashmir legitimate?
How so?
In the 1940-50's most Kashmiris supported joining Pakistan. Since then, union with Pakistan has become an even more unlikely and unrealistic goal than independence...not to mention the fact that Pakistan's decision to sponsor some very unpopular extremist organizations in Kashmir during the 90's has left a bad taste in a lot of people's mouths. To be honest, a lot of this mess is Pakistan's own creation...had the government simply sent the regular army in back in 1947, they could have swept past whatever was left of the Maharaja's army in a matter of days and taken control of the entire state, then quickly held a plebiscite and reaffirmed Pakistani rule over the entire region (a la India in Junagadh). Instead, they relied on the undisciplined Pathan lashkars, who were too busy looting, pillaging, and destroying Pakistan's image in the region to be bothered with actually overthrowing the Maharaja and establishing a solid base in Kashmir.
To simply sit around labeling us ingrates while failing to recognize your own government's massive blunders is silly.