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Partition of India and Pakistan

Pair Activities
• Throughout this PowerPoint Lecture, there are
pair activities built in that you will be
completing with your partner next to the
slides on the lines.
• This is to help review key concepts, get you
thinking critically, and give opportunities for
clarification of main points.
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Cause and Effect: Partition of India

Long-Term Short-Term Effects Connections to


Causes Causes Today

Muslim conquest of World War II weakens Violence erupts as millions Continuing clash between
northern India in 1100s European colonial empires of Hindus and Muslims India and Pakistan over
cross the border between Kashmir
British imperialism in India Pressure from Indian India and Pakistan
nationalists increases Nuclear arms race as both
Nationalists organize the Gandhi is assassinated by India and Pakistan refuse
Indian National Congress Insistence by Muhammad Ali Hindu extremists to sign Non-Proliferation
in 1885 Jinnah and the Muslim League
India and Pakistan become Treaty
that Muslims have their own
Muslim nationalists form centers of Cold War rivalry
state
separate Muslim League in
1906 Rioting between Hindus and Establishment of the state
Muslims throughout northern of Bangladesh
India
Review: Religious Conflict and Partition
Religious Groups
• India had long had two main religious groups: Hindus, Muslims
• 1940, home to 255 million Hindus, 92 million Muslims
• Smaller numbers of Sikhs, Christians, Buddhists

Muslim Fears
• As hopes for Indian independence rose, so did religious tensions
• Some Muslims feared large Hindu population would dominate independent
democratic India, wanted separate nation to protect their rights

Muslim League
• Muhammad Ali Jinnah led Muslim League, worked for interests of India’s
Muslims
• 1940, Muslim League called for a partition, division of India, creation of separate
Muslim, Hindu countries
Pair Activity
• Next to each map, write down your
observations on the major locations
of Hindus and Muslims in South Asia
in 1909.
Map of Indian Subcontinent

Directions: Click
back and forth
quickly between
this slide and the
previous one.
Notice where
each group is
located.
Map of Indian Subcontinent
Task  Predict what will happen after the
British leave India (decolonization). Do this next
to this slide. Explain why.
British Views on Independence
Why Britain Agreed To Independence
• 1. WWII Left Britain Broke, Weak, Needing To
Rebuild---
– No additional resources for maintaining colonies
• 2. Labour Party Came to Power ---
– More sympathetic to Indian desire for self government.
– Had been against colonialism for a long time and
believed that other countries should rule themselves.
• 3. Sacrifices Made By India During WWII---
– Over 2 million Indians fought in WWII for the British
– India raised food for soldiers at expense of its own
population, (Great Bengali Famine took over 1 million
lives)
Britain Now Wants to Withdraw
 The aim of the British government was now to
have a peaceful and quick withdrawal from India.
 They did not want to be caught up in any violence
so any withdrawal and the future shape of India
would have to be negotiated with the two Indian
parties.
 They needed to get agreement from both, no
solution could be imposed as the British were too
weak to enforce it.
Independence, BUT?

• Britain agreed to grant India


independence by 1947 on one
condition: India had to have a
plan for dealing with the ongoing
religious issues between Hindus
and Muslims
Pair Activity

• Which of the reasons for why


Britain agreed to independence
for South Asia do you think was
the greatest motivator and why?
Idea of Partition
Idea of Partition
• The Muslim League had been the first to
come up with the idea of partitioning
India and in 1940 presented a plan to the
INC to partition after independence.
• The INC rejected the plan because
Gandhi believed Hindus and Muslims
could work out their problems.
Jinnah’s and Muslim League’s Goal
• Concern was the in a united India the Hindus would
have the majority and dominate the government
• Afraid the Hindus would severely interfere with the
Muslim ways of living as per the Quran---that the
Hindus would take away their social and religious
freedom
• Was the consistent betterment of Muslims marked
by developments in all the spheres of life...”our
spiritual, cultural, and economic consonance with
own ideals and according to the genius of our
people.”
Indian Congress Party & Muslim League cannot
agree on 1 or 2 state solution
Gandhi on Partition
• “My whole soul rebels against the idea that
Hinduism and Islam represent two
antagonistic cultures and doctrines. To assent
to such a doctrine is for me a denial of God.”
• Pair Activity: What does Gandhi mean by this
quote? How does this relate to the issue of
partition?
Reasons for Partition
• 1. Ideological Divide: INC and Muslim League
could not agree on how the representative
government of independence India should be
based.
– Should a certain number of seats be set aside for
Muslims, Sikhs, etc…to ensure that the all the religions
were represented
– Should it just be completely open…which would mean
that since most of India was Hindu, almost all of the
government positions would be filled by Hindus and
not the other religious groups
Reasons for Partition
• 2. British Treatment of Hindus and Muslims:
– The British had followed a divide-and-rule policy in
India.
– Even in the census they categorized people according
to religion and viewed and treated them as separate
from each other.
– They had based their knowledge of the peoples of India
on the basic religious texts and the intrinsic differences
they found in them instead of on the way they
coexisted in the present.
– Encouraged Indians to see religion as the key defining
feature of their identity
Reasons for Partition
• 3. British Feared the Muslims:
–The British were still fearful of the
potential threat from the Muslims,
who were the former rulers of the
subcontinent, ruling India for over
300 years under the Mughal Empire.
–Since Jinnah and the Muslim League
pushed for two states, the British
went in that direction.
Reasons for Partition
• 4. Mistakes Made by INC:
–Congress made several mistakes in their
policies which further convinced the
League that it was impossible to live in a
undivided India.
–One such policy was the institution of the
"Bande Matram," a national anthem which
expressed anti-Muslim sentiments, in the
schools of India where Muslim children
were forced to sing it.
Reasons for Partition
• 5. Recent Riots and Acts of Violence:
– Calcutta Riots: Jinnah decided it was time to push for a
separate Muslim State by using mass (large groups of
people) protests.
– The 16th of August was to be Direct Action Day. – A
strike by Muslim workers and a meeting of 100,000
through the streets of Calcutta.
– It started when the Muslim League members asked the
Hindu business men to close their stores and the
Hindus retaliated.
– When the Hindu owners opened their stores they were
beaten and they fought back in their defense.
Reasons for Partition: Riots and
Violence Continued
 Jinnah had wanted a peaceful demonstration but
trouble flared up leading to three days and nights
of rioting and killing.
 6,000 killed, 20,000 injured, 100,000 homeless.
 The violence spread to other areas, Gandhi was
horrified and travelled to areas of conflict to call
for peace.
 This made any chance of togetherness and unity
between Muslims and Hindus seem impossible.
Pair Activity
• Rank in order of importance from
number one being most important to
number five being least the five
reasons for why Britain created two
nations in South Asia.
• Next to each ranking, explain your
thinking/why.
Work of Lord Mountbatten
Lord Mountbatten against the backdrop of the
count-down to Indian Independence
Lord Mountbatten – Vice-Roy
February 1947
• He was sent to get agreement on a one state
government within the British commonwealth.
• The British Prime Minister wanted Britain to
withdraw by June 1948.
• It was hoped a deadline would push the parties into
agreement.
Lord Mountbatten
• Developed a good relationship with Gandhi
and Nehru
• Did not have a good relationship with Jinnah
who felt that Mountbatten favored the Indian
National Congress
• After some time, Mountbatten became
convinced that a united India was impossible
Mountbatten’s Reasons for Two States
1. His first weeks in India showed him the gulf between
Hindus and Muslims could not be bridged.---riots in
Punjab and the North-West Province
2. Gandhi’s fasts and pleas could not stop the religious
violence
3. He realized that the violence of 1946 had left bitter scars
on the population.
4. Realized the Indian National Congress and Muslim
League would not agree on how to handle one state---
result in chaos
5. Realized that independence should be as soon as
possible and suggested August 28, 1947
The Mountbatten Plan
June 1947

 There were to be two separate states. ( India and


Pakistan)
 Pakistan was to be made up of two parts in the North
West and North East separated by 1000 miles.
 The Punjab and Bengal with their small Muslim
majorities were to be divided and parts given to each
State.
 The Muslim majority parts were to be given to
Pakistan.
Mountbatten Plan
• India would be made up of the old Raj ( British
controlled India).
• The Princely States could decide which
country they joined.
• Most decided to join India.
• The big problem was KASHMIR – A Muslim
majority state with a Hindu Ruler.
Mountbatten Plan
• Mountbatten had provided for the separate
state that the Muslim League had been
demanding but had not given them all of the
Punjab or Bengal.

• The date for withdrawal was brought forward


to 15th August 1947. ( 2 months later –
rushed?)
Pair Activity

•What do you think about


the Mountbatten Plan and
why?
•Do you think it was a good
plan? Why or why not?
How Was Partition Handled?
British Plan for Partition
• The British left much of the groundwork for India to
figure out.
• The British created the border between India and
Pakistan.
• Government facilities were to be split equally,
which did not happen.
• Individual communities could decide for themselves
which country they wanted to live in.
Englishman Cyril Radcliffe
draws the boundaries

-Historian Lucy Chester


The Boundary Commission
• A boundary commission was set up
to draw up the borders in the Punjab
and Bengal.
• Cyril Radcliffe, a British civil servant,
was the chairman and had the final
say after getting advice from Muslim
and Hindu members.
Boundary Commission Problems
• Radcliffe had never been to India.
• He knew no-one in India.
• The British thought this would make him
unbiased.
• He had to work with out of date maps
and census figures.
• He had to produce a report in 37 days.
Radcliffe
• Did not know of short timetable until he arrived in
India on July 8, 1947
• He protested, but Mountbatten, Nehru, and Jinnah
were firm on the August 15, 1947 withdrawal date
• Hampered by the fact he was completely ignorant
on information and procedures on how to draw
boundaries
• He lacked any advisors on boundary-making
• He was biased in that he felt the process must
preserve the British interests
Mistakes
• Radcliffe operated on the assumption that
India and Pakistan would have good relations
after independence
• He repeatedly expressed hope that India and
Pakistan could work together to resolve some
of the most difficult infrastructure problems
created by the boundary
Mistakes
• Allotted 62% of the Punjab to India and 55% of the
population
• Radcliffe had been mandated by Mountbatten to
use religious demographics as his main focus in the
boundary-making
• But many believed Radcliffe focused more on
economic considerations as being more important
than the majority religions in areas
Mistakes
• The irrigation systems and other infrastructures of
Punjab and Bengal were build under one
administration
• They were never intended to be divided
• So the boundary line did not address the fact that
neither Pakistan nor India could operate the
infrastructure separate from each other
• It disrupted the Punjab’s road, telephone,
telegraph, and irrigation systems
Mistakes
• The new borders went through
villages, farms and even houses.
• Millions of Hindus or Muslims were
left on the wrong side of the border.
• They would not publish details of the
new borders until after
Independence, this increased
tensions.
Mistakes: Effects
• Pakistan: Provinces of Sind, Baluchistan,
North-West Frontier, West Punjab, and East
Bengal
• This means that East Pakistan was separated
by the rest of Pakistan by 1000 miles of Indian
territory
• Resulted in:
– 5 million Muslims in India
– 5 million Hindus in Pakistan
– Sikhs being ignored
Mistakes: Effects
• Uttar Pradesh: the heartland of Indian Muslims
was not included in Pakistan
• 90% of the subcontinent’s industry and taxable
income base remained in India including the
largest cities
• The economy of Pakistan was chiefly agricultural.
• Pakistan only received 17.5% of the former
government’s financial assets.
• Once the army was paid for, there was no money
left of economic development.
Pair Activity
• What is the message of the political
cartoon?
• How can you tell?
• Identify three examples from the
history of the partition that support
the message of the political cartoon.
When did the Partition occur?
The Partition occurred on August 14, 1947 and
August 15, 1947.
Basic Maps of the Partition

These two maps show how India was divided after gaining independence from the
British in 1947. The first shows India under British rule, before the partition. The
second shows how the region was divided after gaining independence and the
breakaway of East Pakistan (now Bangladesh) from West Pakistan (Pakistan today)
in 1971 through the Bangladesh Liberation War.
Effects
Effects
• During the split from India, there was a mass
migration of over 15 Million.
• The Muslims were going to Pakistan as the
Hindus were leaving for India.
• The creation of Pakistan was tumultuous,
resulting in chaos, riots, deaths & crimes
against humanity.
• This deepened the rift between Muslims
and Hindus.
Migrations
• Based on the 1951 census of displaced
persons, 7,226,000 Muslims went to Pakistan
from India.
• And 7, 249, 000 Hindus and Sikhs went to
India from Pakistan.
• All of this happened IMMEDIATELY after the
partition.
Migrations
• About 11.2 million or 78% of the population
transfer took place in the West, especially in the
Punjab region.
• 5.3 million Muslims moved from India to West
Punjab in Pakistan.
• 3.4 million Hindus and Sikhs moved from Pakistan
to East Punjab in India.
Refugee Trains in India 1947
Violence

• Partition left both India & Pakistan devastated socially &


economically.
• Some of the atrocities committed between the Muslims & Hindus
were widespread rape, pillaging & murder, bordering on genocide.
• This included the bombing of trains of immigrants by Hindus and
even filling trains full of the dismembered bodies & sending them
across the border into Pakistan.
Violence
• 600, 000 people were killed in Punjab alone
• It is estimated that another one million people
were killed
• 12 million people were left homeless
• Thousands were raped
Men, women and children who died in
the rioting were cremated on a mass
scale. Villagers even used oil and
kerosene when wood was scarce.
YouTube Clip
• The Partition of India: A New Divide
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wl41mFlFbVI
• Sarthak Garg
• Published on Feb 17, 2013
• Running Time of Ten Minutes
• The Partition of India: A New Divide---National History Day
Competition Entry in 2011.
Debate and Diplomacy: Successes, Failures and Consequences.
This documentary follows the movements that took place during
the British occupation of India and the path that led from the
British East India Company to the formation of what is now
Pakistan, Bangladesh and India. This documentary highlights the
debates and diplomatic efforts made in order to free India of the
bonds of the British and accentuates the successes, failures and
consequences of the decisions made.
YouTube Film: Have To Go To YouTube
To View
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=18Y_ZqH7iSI
• The Day India Burned – Partition---BBC Documentary 2007
• kishubhai
• Uploaded on Feb 4, 2012
• Running Time of one hour and 30 minutes
• Documentary about the effects of Britain's withdrawal from India in
1947 which triggered one of the biggest migrations in history. 15
million were displaced and more than a million lost their lives. The
story is told through the testimony of people who lived together for
centuries, but were forced out of their homes as one of the largest
and most ethnically diverse nations in the world was divided.
Dramatised reconstructions evoke some of the mistrust, violence
and upheaval that ensued.

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