Migration, Memory, and Violence: Reassessing the Human Impact of the 1947 Partition

Author(s) : Muhammad Rizwan Majeed, Dr. Imran Ali, Muhammad Imran Majeed

Abstract:

The partition of British India in the year 1947 was one of the most important and hurtful events in the South Asian history that led to the birth of India and Pakistan. Among the principal points of partition that are analyzed in this article are the separation of state property between two new states that were created, mass migration and communal violence. The research methodology is qualitative in historical research and involves reference to secondary literature on the topic as well as primary data in the form of official papers, governmental reports, and contemporary records. This paper explores the role of the rush political move of dividing the subcontinent in the migration of one of the largest migrations in modern history where millions of Muslims fled to Pakistan and Sikhs and Hindus fled to India. The migratory process was characterized by a lot of communal violence which entailed murder, kidnappings and severe social unrest. The paper provides a comprehensive insight into the complex institutional and humanitarian effects of the partition by focusing on the administrative challenges in distributing the governmental systems of British India, military bases, and financial resources of the country.