Partition of India

The partition of India in 1947 was the division of British India into two independent countries, the Union of India and Dominion of Pakistan. This big change created two new nations: today, the Union of India is the Republic of India, and the Dominion of Pakistan became the Islamic Republic of Pakistan and the People's Republic of Bangladesh. The division was based on where most people followed the Hindu, Sikh, or Muslim faiths, splitting two big areas called Bengal and the Punjab.

Many people had to move from one side to the other, which caused big challenges and sadness. Even though the leaders worked hard to make things fair, the partition left a lasting effect on the relationship between India and Pakistan. This event marked the end of British rule in the area, known as the British Raj, and gave birth to two new self-governing countries on August 15, 1947. The story of partition is important to understand the history and ties between these nations today.

Background

The partition of India in 1947 was the division of British India into two independent states: the Union of India and the Dominion of Pakistan. This division was based on religious differences, with areas having Muslim majorities forming Pakistan, and areas with Hindu and Sikh majorities forming India. The partition led to the creation of the modern Republic of India, the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, and later the People's Republic of Bangladesh.

The idea of separating India into different regions based on religion began to gain support in the early 1900s. After years of discussion and tension between different groups, the British government decided to end its rule in India. In 1947, leaders from both sides agreed to divide the country. This decision was made to prevent further violence and allow each group to govern itself. The partition was completed quickly, and on August 14, 1947, Pakistan became independent, followed by India on August 15, 1947.

Geographic partition, 1947

At a press conference on 3 June 1947, Lord Mountbatten announced that India would become independent on 14 August 1947. He also explained how British India would be divided into two new countries. This plan was called the "Mountbatten Plan" or the "3 June Plan".

The plan said that people in Punjab and Bengal would vote to decide if their areas should be divided. Some other areas like Sind, Baluchistan, North-West Frontier Province, and Sylhet would also decide their futures. A boundary commission would be created if these areas chose to split apart. The leaders of India accepted this plan on 2 June. The plan created two new countries: the Dominion of India (mostly Hindu areas) and Pakistan (mostly Muslim areas). The border between them, called the Radcliffe Line, was decided later.

Independence, migration, and displacement

When India and Pakistan became separate countries in 1947, many people had to move to find safety. This was a big surprise because no one thought people would need to leave their homes. Most people thought religious minorities could stay where they were. However, in the area called Punjab, violence made it necessary for people to move.

Before the partition, India had about 390 million people. After the partition, India had about 330 million people, and Pakistan had about 60 million people split between two areas. About 14.5 million people moved across the new borders to live where their religious group was the majority. Many leaders had different ideas about whether everyone should move. Some believed moving everyone would bring peace, while others thought people of all religions should live together. Because of this, not everyone moved, which led to challenges in the years that followed.

Regions affected by partition

The partition of India in 1947 split the area into two new countries, India and Pakistan. This division caused many people to move from one side to the other, leading to big changes in where people lived.

The province of Punjab was divided, with the western part becoming part of Pakistan and the eastern part part of India. Many people had to leave their homes because of fears and conflicts. In Bengal, the division created West Bengal in India and East Bengal in Pakistan, which later became Bangladesh. These changes led to many people moving, with millions of Hindus moving to India and Muslims moving to Pakistan.

Resettlement of refugees: 1947–1951

Resettlement in India

According to the 1951 Census of India, 2% of India's population were refugees (1.3% from West Pakistan and 0.7% from East Pakistan).

The majority of Hindu and Sikh refugees from West Punjab were settled in Delhi and East Punjab (including Haryana and Himachal Pradesh). Delhi received the largest number of refugees for a single city, with the population of Delhi showing an increase from under 1 million (917,939) in the Census of India, 1941, to a little less than 2 million (1,744,072) in the 1951 Census. The incoming refugees were housed in various historical and military locations such as the Purana Qila, Red Fort, and military barracks in Kingsway Camp (around the present Delhi University). The latter became the site of one of the largest refugee camps in northern India, with more than 35,000 refugees at any given time besides Kurukshetra camp near Panipat. The campsites were later converted into permanent housing through extensive building projects undertaken by the Government of India from 1948 onwards. Many housing colonies in Delhi came up around this period, like Lajpat Nagar, Rajinder Nagar, Nizamuddin East, Punjabi Bagh, Rehgar Pura, Jangpura, and Kingsway Camp. Several schemes such as the provision of education, employment opportunities, and easy loans to start businesses were provided for the refugees at the all-India level. Many refugees were also settled in Cities of Western and Central Uttar Pradesh. A Colony consisting largely of Sikhs and Punjabi Hindus was also founded in Central Mumbai's Sion Koliwada region, and named Guru Tegh Bahadur Nagar.

Hindus fleeing from East Pakistan (now Bangladesh) were settled across Eastern, Central and Northeastern India, many ending up in neighbouring Indian states such as West Bengal, Assam, and Tripura. Substantial number of refugees were also settled in Madhya Pradesh (incl. Chhattisgarh) Bihar (incl. Jharkhand), Odisha and Andaman islands (where Bengalis today form the largest linguistic group)

Sindhi Hindus settled predominantly in Gujarat, Maharashtra, and Rajasthan. Substantial numbers, however, were also settled in Madhya Pradesh, A few also settled in Delhi. A new township was established for Sindhi Hindu refugees in Maharashtra. The Governor-General of India, Sir Rajagopalachari, laid the foundation for this township and named it Ulhasnagar ('city of joy').

Substantial communities of Gujarati and Marathi Refugees who had lived in the cities of Sindh and Southern Punjab were also resettled in the cities of modern-day Gujarat and Maharashtra.

A small community of Hindus from Loralai, Balochistan was also settled in Jaipur. Today they number around 1,000.

Refugee camps

The list below shows the number of relief camps in districts of Punjab and their population up to December 1948.

Resettlement in Pakistan

The 1951 Census of Pakistan recorded that the most significant number of Muslim refugees came from the East Punjab and nearby Rajputana states (Alwar and Bharatpur). They numbered 5,783,100 and constituted 80.1% of Pakistan's total refugee population. This was the effect of the retributive on both sides of the Punjab where the Muslim population of East Punjab was forcibly expelled like the Hindu/Sikh population in West Punjab.

Migration from other regions of India were as follows: Bihar, West Bengal, and Orissa, 700,300 or 9.8%; UP and Delhi 464,200 or 6.4%; Gujarat and Bombay, 160,400 or 2.2%; Bhopal and Hyderabad 95,200 or 1.2%; and Madras and Mysore 18,000 or 0.2%.

So far as their settlement in Pakistan is concerned, 97.4% of the refugees from East Punjab and its contiguous areas went to West Punjab; 95.9% from Bihar, West Bengal and Orissa to the erstwhile East Pakistan; 95.5% from UP and Delhi to West Pakistan, mainly in Karachi Division of Sindh; 97.2% from Bhopal and Hyderabad to West Pakistan, mainly Karachi; and 98.9% from Bombay and Gujarat to West Pakistan, largely to Karachi; and 98.9% from Madras and Mysore went to West Pakistan, mainly Karachi.

West Punjab received the largest number of refugees (73.1%), mainly from East Punjab and its contiguous areas. Sindh received the second largest number of refugees, 16.1% of the total migrants, while the Karachi division of Sindh received 8.5% of the total migrant population. East Bengal received the third-largest number of refugees, 699,100, who constituted 9.7% of the total Muslim refugee population in Pakistan. 66.7% of the refugees in East Bengal originated from West Bengal, 14.5% from Bihar and 11.8% from Assam.

NWFP and Baluchistan received the lowest number of migrants. NWFP received 51,100 migrants (0.7% of the migrant population) while Baluchistan received 28,000 (0.4% of the migrant population).

The government undertook a census of refugees in West Punjab in 1948, which displayed their place of origin in India.

Data

Missing people

When India was divided into two countries in 1947, many families moved from one side to the other. Some people, especially in the Punjab area, disappeared during the move. Studies using old population records suggest that about 1.3 million Muslims who left western India did not make it to Pakistan. Similarly, around 0.8 million Hindus and Sikhs moving in the opposite direction also went missing. In total, it's believed that between 2 million and 3.2 million people disappeared because of the partition.

Rehabilitation of women

Further information: Violence against women during the Partition of India

During the difficult times of the partition, many women were taken from their homes during the riots. Both new governments promised to help bring these women back to their families. Many women were eventually returned, though some chose not to return because they were afraid their families would not accept them.

Some researchers have found that, in some ways, these events helped women gain more freedom. In places like Bengal, many women had to find work and take on new roles to support their families. This gave them more chances to be part of public life and even join important movements. In Punjab, women also found new opportunities for education and jobs, which helped change some old traditions.

Post-partition migration

After the partition of India in 1947, many families moved from one country to the other due to safety concerns. Muslims from India moved to Pakistan, while Hindus from Pakistan moved to India. These movements continued for many years, with people seeking safer places to live.

Many people changed where they lived during this time. For example, hundreds of thousands of Muslims moved from different parts of India to Pakistan in the years following 1947. Similarly, Hindus moved from Pakistan to India, especially during difficult times or conflicts. These movements affected the populations of both countries and created new communities in many areas.

Perspectives

Main article: Opposition to the Partition of India

The division of India in 1947 into two countries was very controversial and still causes tension today. Many British leaders, including the Viceroy Lord Mountbatten, were not happy about it. Some say he rushed the process and influenced the boundary line that separated the two new countries. The boundary was not decided until two days after the countries became independent, which caused problems.

Historians think that the British had to act quickly because they were worried about a big civil war. Law and order had already broken down many times, and there was a lot of violence. After World War II, Britain did not have enough resources to keep control. Some believe Mountbatten had to act fast because there were no good options left.

Over time, many people have shared different views on why the partition happened and who was responsible. Some say it was because of long-standing differences, while others think it was a plan by the British. Even today, people in India and Pakistan study these events to understand their shared history better.

Documentation efforts, oral history and legacy

In 2010, a non-profit organization in Berkeley, California and Delhi, India began collecting stories from people who lived through the partition of India. By June 2021, they had collected nearly 9,700 stories from people in 18 different countries. These stories are shared with universities and libraries in India and Pakistan.

In 2017, a museum in Amritsar, Punjab opened to show exhibits and documents about the partition. The museum shares videos and writings from people who experienced these events.

Many books, films, and artworks have been created to remember and understand the partition. These works explore the difficult times people faced and continue to be made today.

Main article: Artistic depictions of the Partition of India