The partition of India and Pakistan was a time of great turmoil. There was an overwhelming amount of violence and confusion at the time, 1947, when two new countries were born: Hindu-dominated India and Muslim-dominated Pakistan. Although there hadn't been much of any violent altercations between Muslims, Hindus, and Sikhs before this time, the partition brought a myriad of difficulties between the three groups with it. Because of the violence and tension between the different religious groups in India and Pakistan, many people (as much as eleven million) were forced to leave their homes and move to their respective country. This meant that Muslims would have to move to Pakistan, and Hindus to India.
India and Pakistan established their independence in August 1947, following a very lengthy nationalist struggle. In fact, this struggle lasted almost three decades. Thus, it set an important example for European empires endings up in other places. Sadly, the two nations’ independences triggered the largest mass migration in history -- around 10 million people. Even worse, around one million civilians lost their lives in the riots and fights that accompanied the migration. These altercations mostly occurred in the western region of Punjab, which had been split in half because of the border.
The consensus to split India into two different countries -- Pakistan (for Muslims) and India (for Hindus) -- is frequently said to be the result of issues between the elites of each nation. However, this assumption does not justify the ridiculous amount of violence that came with the migration. There is one probable justification for the disorder from splitting the two nations -- Great Britain’s swift evacuation of India following their sudden un...
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...urn lead to the Muslims being convinced that it would not be possible for them to prosper in an undivided nation following their freedom from the British’s colonial rule. They felt that their interests and goals would not be heard, but instead they would be quelled. For example, one of the Hindu’s policies which startled the Muslims was the attempt to enforce “Bande Matram,” a national anthem which, in the past, had been connected to anti-Islamic sentiment, including Indian schools where Muslim students were made to to sing it against their will.
Support for Great Britain was banned by the Hindus in the midst of World War 2, and conversely, the Muslims promised to completely support the British. Quite obviously, the British did end up favoring the Muslims because of their support -- they Muslim army was a very large and it would provide a substantial amount of help.
Thousands of years ago, Indian society developed into a complex system based on different classes. This system was known as the Caste System. It separated Indians into different castes based on what class were born into. As thousands of years went by, this system grew larger and became further complex (Wadley 189). This system caused frustration for the Indian citizens because they were receiving inequality. Not only did the inequality and separation of the Indian society frustrate the citizens of India, but the imperialism Britain had upon them as well. In the early 20th century, Indian nationalists wanted to take a stand against the British rule and make India independent. The British created unfair laws that created a nationalist movement
Glick, J, Schaffer, C. 1991. "The Indian Homeland." U.S. News and World Report. July 8, vol.111, n2, pg26 (6)
...ate, was cut divided into two in the western region by the newly established border. Major tensions have persisted among both Muslim and Sikh communities for years, which directly suffered most from the violence and land loss resulting from partition.
The Indian Independence Bill, which carves the independent nations of India and Pakistan out of the former Mogul Empire. The long-awaited agreement ended 200 years of British rule. The religious friction between Hindus and Muslims, which had delayed Britain’s granting of Indian independence after World War II, messed with Gandhi’s excitement. In the northern province of Punjab, (which was divided between Hindu-dominated India and Muslim-dominated Pakistan), hundreds of people were killed in the first few days after independence.
James, Lawrence. Raj: The Making and Unmaking of British India. New York: St. Martin's, 1998. Print.
Since the nineteenth century, the Islamic presence in Britain has expanded. Muslims were considered to be a cheap labour and this was profitable for Britain especially after World War II, when Britain needed to rebuild the economy. The majority of Muslims who came
The most threatening conflict between Hindus and Muslims is the province of Kashmir. This is where the decision to divide India into India and Pakistan seems to have been a terrible mistake. Kashmir, which is the only Muslim majority city in India, lies between the divided India and Pakistan. After India’s independence in the 1940’s, Kashmir had to choose to either unite with India or Pakistan. The Prince of Kashmir chose India but Pakistan invaded the province soon after and have occupied part of Kashmir since then. Controversy still surrounds the province today because naturally, Muslims want to control it. While many Muslims relocated to Pakistan and the Hindus to India, half of the Muslim population was left in India and their relations did not improve after being partially separated.
During the Cold War, many regional conflicts occurred and were noted as the significant battles which later led to decolonization. One of the regional conflicts were India and Pakistan fighting for their independence. In 1947, India was released under Great Britain’s control and gained its independence. However, the country was divided between Muslims and Hindus, which share different religions. Muslims wanted church and state to become unified while Hindus wanted a separation of these two establishments. Since these two ethnic groups disagreed, it was difficult to create a new government. Therefore, India was divided into two nations: India for the Hindus and Pakistan for the Muslims. Hindus and Muslims were racing to the border in order to get to their nation state which led to killing 500,000 people due to rioting. Although, Mohandas Gandhi, an Indian National Congressman, wanted to obtain peace between these two religions. Pakistan refused the H...
The decision to grant independence to India was not the logical culmination of errors in policy, neither was it as a consequence of a mass revolution forcing the British out of India, but rather, the decision was undertaken voluntarily. Patrick French argues that: “The British left India because they lost control over crucial areas of the administration, and lacked the will and the financial or military ability to recover that control”.
Introduction In late 1947, the newly created states of India and Pakistan went to war over the valley of Kashmir. A United Nations brokered ceasefire divided the state into Indian and Pakistani controlled territories, and resolved that a referendum would be held in which the people of Kashmir would be able to choose to join either country. The referendum has not been held to date. India granted its portion of Kashmir a special status within its constitution, allowing for a great degree of self-autonomy.
In the book Train to Pakistan, author Khushwant Singh recalls the brutal and unfortunate times when Muslims were being forced out of Mano Majra. They, along with the Hindu and Sikh population, were living in relative peace. But when there had to be change, chaos ensued. There were several key individuals that shared the total responsibility of the expulsion of Muslims from Mano Majra; Even though some had purer motives than others, they all took stock in the unfortunate process.
“India and Pakistan: Tense Neighbours.” BBC. N.p., 16 Dec. 2001. Web. 15 May 2011. .
...tween the Hindus and Muslims, Jinnah felt that Muslims had no future in India (Overfield 216). With the end of British rule in 1947, not only did India gain its independence but also along with it was born an other country, Pakistan where Jinnah served as the first governor (Overfield 216). With the gain of India’s independence, Gandhi was shot the following year in 1948 by a Hindu zealot who resented his commitment to Hindu – Muslim harmony (Overfield 212).
...shown through Lenny’s point of view. Prior the partition, Lahore was a place of tolerance that enjoyed a secular state. Tension before the partition suggested the division of India was imminent, and that this would result in a religious. 1947 is a year marked by human convulsion, as 1 million people are reported dead because of the partition. Moreover, the children of Lahore elucidate the silences Butalia seeks in her novel. The silence of survivors is rooted to the nature of the partition itself; there is no clear distinction as to who were the antagonists. The distinction is ambiguous, the victims were Sikhs, Hindus, and Muslims, and moreover these groups were the aggressors, the violent. The minority in this communal violence amongst these groups was the one out-numbered. This epiphany of blame is embarked in silence, and roots from the embodiment of violence.
Until a child is eighteen years old, the parents have full responsibility. They provide a stable and loving environment for their children. As the leaders in a household, caring and loving parents also maintain the bonds that hold the family together. However, absence of loving parental guidance can create tension between family members. Anita Desai’s Clear Light of Day shows how war, specifically the partition of India, affects a particular family. The partition of Indian in 1947 created the separate countries of India and Pakistan, consequently ripping families apart. The partition, initiated by India’s independence from Britain, attempted to accommodate irreconcilable religious differences between Muslims and Hindus by forming the Islamic Pakistan. In Clear Light of Day, the Das children’s relationship with their parents causes lasting sibling conflict that mirrors this social and political upheaval of India.