Introduction
The 15th of August 1947 marked the end of one of the cruelest colonization in the history of the world. India has been a colony of Britain for more than 300 years, making it seem like a British property. British were so strong and a force to reckon with given the economic prosperity witnessed during the period of industrial revolution. India was organized into a strict caste system, which the British came to disorient as people of other races were regarded as untouchables. The presence of British and their oppressive rule made life complicated for Indians who were forced to have people of different caste intermingle. India’s journey to decolonization dates back to the early years of the 20th century after the First World War but eventual decolonization happened after the Second World War. There was wide-reaching decolonization from many regions of the world as the European nations were devastated by the two world wars to engage in the new face of the colonial war. This paper examines at how India attained independence and how breakdown in governability resulted from the partition.
Decolonization in India
The movement for independence gained momentum following the First World War when Mahatma Gandhi organized the first of the numerous passive-resistance campaigns to resist the oppressive rule of British in India. Gandhi helped popularize the Indian nationalism movement by organizing Indian people of like mind to join hands and overturn the British rule. Gandhi who was educated abroad promised in 1915 that he would not leave India again until he set his people free by undercutting the foundations of British rule in India. Gandhi appeared controversial at first and many people did not join in his plans of resistant acts. Gandhi consumed odd foods since he only ate nuts and fruits to sustain him, proclaiming hunger strike until India achieved independence. Gandhi went on hunger strike until India became independent. India’s prime minister believed in Gandhi to address the social and political systems in India as he regarded Gandhi as having a watchful eye on the internal dynamics (Rosen, 2012).
Movements of civil defiance led by Gandhi proliferated in the course of the interwar years from India to Great Britain. British kept on giving empty promises that they will give independence to India if India supported its war efforts. Gandhi and Nehru were the key leaders of the nationalist movement and led the ‘quit India’ campaign by calling on Indians to live through self-control. Gandhi asked the people to resist the political rule of the British and take part in social service locally by revolting against the government. Gandhi made a popular statement to reject British promises by asserting that if India was to receive self-government, India has to take it (Rosen, 2012). That meant that Indians had to engage in non-violent resistant acts of truth force of civil disobedience and non-cooperation.
British responded to Gandhi’s call for India self-rule by jailing him and hundreds of other nationalists. That accelerated the anti-British demonstrations and intensified the ‘Quit India’ campaign. The Indian national congress reluctantly accepted the creation of Pakistan to end the negotiations for independence and appease the Muslim league. The Bill of Independence took effect 15th august, 1947. The independence opened a period of religious turmoil that led to the deaths of thousands of people including Mahatma Gandhi who was assassinated by a Hindu nationalist for advocating for religious neutrality between Muslims and Hindus (Rosen, 2012).
Partition and Governability Breakdown
The declaration and operationalizing of the independence bill marked the onset of violence between Indians based on religious lines between Muslim and Hindu communities. The successful attainment of independence opened geographical and social wounds that are yet to heal to date. India was partitioned into two; India and Pakistan. The withdrawal of the British made portioning of India into majority-Muslim and majority-Hindu countries. The boundary was set at Kashmir which is ruled by India, yet has Muslim-majority, and the conflicts continue to date. The partition led to one of the most popular exoduses in history as of mankind whereby millions of Muslims trailed east and West Pakistan that is modern day Bangladesh while Sikhs and Hindus also trailed in millions in the reverse direction. Countless people lost their lives through the journey as sectarian violence broke out between Muslims on one side and Sikhs and Hindus on the other. A deadly civil war erupted among the communities who had coexisted for nearly a millennium, making governability of the newly acquired independent nearly impossible.
The border of Kashmir became a source of bloodbath. There were intense mass abductions, arson, massacres, savage sexual violence and forced conversions. Dalrymple (2015) of the New Yorker reports that the brutalities that ensued after the Indian partition were worse than the brutalities of the Nazi regime, especially regarding the plight of women. Their breasts were cut off, babies from pregnant women were hacked out and infants literally roasted on spits.
Conclusion
The partition of India was a defining moment for the twentieth century that was neither the start not the end as it continues to influence how populaces and governments in post-independent south Asia visualize their about their former, current and the future. Kashmir border became a pain point not only in the years after independence, but also in the present times. Kashmir continues to make headlines due to the ensuing conflicts, and governments that come in must give special attention to Kashmir.
The 15th of August 1947 marked the end of one of the cruelest colonization in the history of the world. India has been a colony of Britain for more than 300 years, making it seem like a British property. British were so strong and a force to reckon with given the economic prosperity witnessed during the period of industrial revolution. India was organized into a strict caste system, which the British came to disorient as people of other races were regarded as untouchables. The presence of British and their oppressive rule made life complicated for Indians who were forced to have people of different caste intermingle. India’s journey to decolonization dates back to the early years of the 20th century after the First World War but eventual decolonization happened after the Second World War. There was wide-reaching decolonization from many regions of the world as the European nations were devastated by the two world wars to engage in the new face of the colonial war. This paper examines at how India attained independence and how breakdown in governability resulted from the partition.
Decolonization in India
The movement for independence gained momentum following the First World War when Mahatma Gandhi organized the first of the numerous passive-resistance campaigns to resist the oppressive rule of British in India. Gandhi helped popularize the Indian nationalism movement by organizing Indian people of like mind to join hands and overturn the British rule. Gandhi who was educated abroad promised in 1915 that he would not leave India again until he set his people free by undercutting the foundations of British rule in India. Gandhi appeared controversial at first and many people did not join in his plans of resistant acts. Gandhi consumed odd foods since he only ate nuts and fruits to sustain him, proclaiming hunger strike until India achieved independence. Gandhi went on hunger strike until India became independent. India’s prime minister believed in Gandhi to address the social and political systems in India as he regarded Gandhi as having a watchful eye on the internal dynamics (Rosen, 2012).
Movements of civil defiance led by Gandhi proliferated in the course of the interwar years from India to Great Britain. British kept on giving empty promises that they will give independence to India if India supported its war efforts. Gandhi and Nehru were the key leaders of the nationalist movement and led the ‘quit India’ campaign by calling on Indians to live through self-control. Gandhi asked the people to resist the political rule of the British and take part in social service locally by revolting against the government. Gandhi made a popular statement to reject British promises by asserting that if India was to receive self-government, India has to take it (Rosen, 2012). That meant that Indians had to engage in non-violent resistant acts of truth force of civil disobedience and non-cooperation.
British responded to Gandhi’s call for India self-rule by jailing him and hundreds of other nationalists. That accelerated the anti-British demonstrations and intensified the ‘Quit India’ campaign. The Indian national congress reluctantly accepted the creation of Pakistan to end the negotiations for independence and appease the Muslim league. The Bill of Independence took effect 15th august, 1947. The independence opened a period of religious turmoil that led to the deaths of thousands of people including Mahatma Gandhi who was assassinated by a Hindu nationalist for advocating for religious neutrality between Muslims and Hindus (Rosen, 2012).
Partition and Governability Breakdown
The declaration and operationalizing of the independence bill marked the onset of violence between Indians based on religious lines between Muslim and Hindu communities. The successful attainment of independence opened geographical and social wounds that are yet to heal to date. India was partitioned into two; India and Pakistan. The withdrawal of the British made portioning of India into majority-Muslim and majority-Hindu countries. The boundary was set at Kashmir which is ruled by India, yet has Muslim-majority, and the conflicts continue to date. The partition led to one of the most popular exoduses in history as of mankind whereby millions of Muslims trailed east and West Pakistan that is modern day Bangladesh while Sikhs and Hindus also trailed in millions in the reverse direction. Countless people lost their lives through the journey as sectarian violence broke out between Muslims on one side and Sikhs and Hindus on the other. A deadly civil war erupted among the communities who had coexisted for nearly a millennium, making governability of the newly acquired independent nearly impossible.
The border of Kashmir became a source of bloodbath. There were intense mass abductions, arson, massacres, savage sexual violence and forced conversions. Dalrymple (2015) of the New Yorker reports that the brutalities that ensued after the Indian partition were worse than the brutalities of the Nazi regime, especially regarding the plight of women. Their breasts were cut off, babies from pregnant women were hacked out and infants literally roasted on spits.
Conclusion
The partition of India was a defining moment for the twentieth century that was neither the start not the end as it continues to influence how populaces and governments in post-independent south Asia visualize their about their former, current and the future. Kashmir border became a pain point not only in the years after independence, but also in the present times. Kashmir continues to make headlines due to the ensuing conflicts, and governments that come in must give special attention to Kashmir.
