To underscore the pain and suffering of partition between India and Pakistan, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on Saturday, announced August 14 as the Partition Remembrance Day, a day before the 75th Independence Day. August 14 is observed as Independence Day by India’s neighboring country Pakistan.
Prime Minister Modi took Twitter to share the announcement. His tweet read, “Partition’s pains can never be forgotten. Millions of our sisters and brothers were displaced and many lost their lives due to mindless hate and violence. In memory of the struggles and sacrifices of our people, 14th August will be observed as Partition Horrors Remembrance Day.”
“May the #PartitionHorrorsRemembranceDay keep reminding us of the need to remove the poison of social divisions, disharmony and further strengthen the spirit of oneness, social harmony and human empowerment,” PM further wrote.
Prime Minister reminded that one should keep the social divisions at a bay and should encourage the spirit of oneness.
Prime Minister was supported by many politicians, Amit Malviya tweeted that we better learn from history before we bury the past. He wrote, “Approx 2 mn people were killed and close to 20 mn displaced. It is befitting that we have #PartitionHorrorsRemembranceDay.
We should let the ‘dead past bury its dead’, as the poet Longfellow urged, but we better learn from history before we bury the past. India needs to heal.”
Darshana Jardosh tweeted, “We shall observe 14th August as the #PartitionHorrorsRemembranceDay. It will keep reminding us of the need to remove the poison of social divisions and disharmony. Partition was the most barbaric event in our history.”
Why India was carved into two dominances?
India was divided by Sir Cyril Radcliffe, a British lawyer.
Also Read: Explained: Why August 15 was chosen as Independence Day?
Pakistan is divided as Muslim dominated nation by the Britishers. Millions of people were migrated and lakhs were killed as large riots broke out. Punjab, West Bengal, and Bihar witnessed a large number of violence. The violent nature of the partition created an atmosphere of hostility and suspicion between India and Pakistan that affects their relationship to this day. The partition is the most bitter and painful memory for both nations.
The partition also witnessed the division of the British Indian Army, the Royal Indian Navy, the Indian Civil Service, the railways, and the central treasury.
The partition was outlined in the Indian Independence Act, 1947 and also marked the independence of both nations, the self-governance by both the nations was started at midnight of August 15, 1947.
The violence was fuelled by the announcement of the line of partition, The Radcliffe line. Describing the violence that accompanied the partition of India, historians Ian Talbot and Gurharpal Singh wrote, “There are numerous eyewitness accounts of the maiming and mutilation of victims. The catalog of horrors includes the disemboweling of pregnant women, the slamming of babies' heads against brick walls, the cutting off of the victim's limbs and genitalia, and the displaying of heads and corpses. While previous communal riots had been deadly, the scale and level of brutality during the Partition massacres were unprecedented.”
“Although some scholars question the use of the term 'genocide' concerning the partition massacres, much of the violence was manifested with genocidal tendencies. It was designed to cleanse an existing generation and prevent its future reproduction,” they further wrote.