The Day India Burned

Last weekend I watched a BBC documentary on India's Partition titled "The Day India Burned" on YouTube. I was deeply touched and disturbed on the plight of people on all sides(Hindus, Muslims, Sikhs). The partition is considered as on of the largest human migrations, and the number varies from 12.5 million to 20 million. The number of deaths is between 200 thousand to over a million. Apart from these, millions were looted, women raped, people beaten up and forced conversions. So many people got affected because of the decision of few. And its a shame on those few for not planning on such a mammoth event and not taking care of the people they said they were fighting for. Also, it is a disgrace for the British empire for not thinking through on the partition and preparing a blue-print for it. A few more months of their troop deployment could have saved so many innocent lives.

At the same time, its bizarre to imagine what got into people's mind when they started this pandemonium. They went about committing these crimes in their neighborhood, their community, their cities. Shame to the leaders, political and religious, from both sides, who did not take enough actions to minimise the chaos.

Imagine being born in those times, not knowing whether you will live to see another tomorrow, enmity prevalent all over the streets, seeing your loved ones going through pain or all your wealth and materials being looted or burned in front of helpless you . How painful and difficult would it have been to leave your native place and move to a new one and in all probability being empty handed.

I am so lucky to have not seen any of the partition horrors and being born in a free democracy. I thank my previous generations to have come out of revulsion and building a strong and progressive nation.