Partition means the action or state of dividing or being divided into parts; especially with reference to a country with separate areas of government.
The Partition of India was something that occurred in 1947. On August 15th, 1947, Pakistan was created; leading to the split of what was then known as “British India” to become two separate countries now known as India and Pakistan. It was split into two countries whose borders were decided upon by the religious groups that were most prominent in the areas. The division of the country led to the displacement of millions of people. Many people fled their homes in fear of violence once they were suddenly in a new country. Many people became homeless overnight, and others had to decide whether they were willing to change their religion to stay where they now were living.
Although the Partition was originally conceived to prevent sectarian violence between the countries people, it instead sparked violence between religions, specifically Hindus and Muslims, and let to an even further division and dislike of each other. The Partition triggered riots, mass casualties, and a huge wave of migration due to people fleeing their countries. Millions of people moved to what they hoped would be a safer place for them and their families to live. It is estimated that between fourteen and sixteen million people were displaced, traveling by foot or train. Estimates of the number of deaths caused by this Partition range between 200,000 and 1,000,000. Not only were people killed in riots, etc., they were also killed by diseases that ravaged through refugee camps. Another crime that was very prominent during this time was the rape and abduction of women; it is estimated that this happened to around 100,00 women.
This violence was due to people having their religious identity and territory ripped away from them. It is also due to the fact that Britain was reluctant to use its troops to maintain law and order, so it was able to continue to be completely out of hand; instead of people putting a stop to it.
Sources:
https://theconversation.com/how-the-partition-of-india-happened-and-why-its-effects-are-still-felt-today-81766
https://www.gradesaver.com/interpreter-of-maladies/study-guide/the-partition-of-india-1947
Great post! Partition was mentioned several times, and though I did learn about it in school, it was good to have a refresher. Something I didn’t know before is that diseases killed many people in the camps and that so many women went missing.
This is a great post that helps me understand even more. I like how you mentioned the goal of partitions and how it turned out. I think its important to keep in mind that sometimes things change for the worse.
Thanks for this post. Being kicked out of your own country has to be one of the hardest challenges one can face in life. I feel that it would be hard to maintain an identity if you the country you once lived in no longer wants to associate with you. Also not being helped by the British certainly made matters worse.
Awesome post! I appreciate you mentioning the definition of partition early on. That can be a difficult topic to understand, but by providing an explanation early in the post, I was able to understand more complex ideas/ applications in the post. This post is very clear on explaining migration and acts of violence in result of the split of “British India”. Jhumpa Lahiri is British-Indian-American and it is useful to understand her background as we read her stories.
Thanks for your post! Your post tells the history of India being partitioned. This has a great correlation with the books we read this week. I agree with your thoughts. I think the partition of a country may not have a positive impact on the citizens, but more a negative impact. They split the citizens of a country that used to be, because of their different beliefs, and they need to face a new life. Therefore, the partition of a country is cruel to people.
Nice work! You gave us the idea of what is partition and your post about the history between India and Pakistan is really helpful to help us understand the partition. The main reason that caused partition between those two regions is the religious difference. The partition will have a huge impact on its citizens. I think this post will give us some background about this week’s module.
Hi! I really found your context presentation for this week really interesting! I had no idea that there was a Partition of ‘British India’ and the country split into India and to Pakistan. I also had no idea that these two countries had two different religions. It is so horrific many people have passed away due to the violence between these two countries. Since the violence was so out of control and several lives were put in danger, I definitely feel like Britain or someone, should have attempted to put a stop to it!
Hi! You did a great job on this context research presentation. I agree with your idea that the partition actually makes the situation between two religions even worse with the spark of violence. And this partition is cruel to the people because they have to make choices. And your post also makes a perfect link with the story we read this week. For example, Mr. Pirzada is a Muslim in the story “When Mr. Pirzada Came to Dine”. And Lilia is not understand why he is not an Indian because they use the same language and eat the same food. Nice work!
Hi!
I really enjoyed reading your post! I think it is very crazy that a country would decide to split based on the most prominent religion of the area. People should be free to choose their religion and not forced to believe in one. In my opinion, religion is something that is personal to you. It should not be a way to rule a country. Also, it saddens me that there were so many crimes at the time. The fact that women were being raped and abducted makes me sick to my stomach. No one should ever have to face this hardship. I am upset that Britain did not use their own forces to help stop the violence and crimes. Many lives could have been saved.
Thank you for letting me know about the stories behind it. This actually helps me to understand some of the stories even deeper. Now I can tell that the differences and conflicts happen for reasons. If I never know this, I might interpret these texts in a completely different way.
This is a very detailed post and it brought out a lot of information for me to understand throughout the novel and the multiple ideas that would be going through my mind. Especially, a cause and effect within the mix of it all, because presented in your work that separation was to prevent violence but it increased violence much more and created families who were in the middle suffer tremendously. Through this, it is needed to understand the effects of an action that could be blinded if not without the full aspect of different views.
Great sharing! You tell us about the relationship between India and Pakistan from a historical perspective. This allows me to better understand the meaning of partitions. I was very curious about this concept before, but you helped me understand the meaning of partition. And you also mentioned the unexpected harm caused by the colonists to the colonized.