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India, Short Essays

The Status of Punjabi after 1947

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Reorg of Punjab 1966
Reorganisation of East Punjab after 1966. © Pippa Virdee 

Punjabi is an Indo-European (or Aryan) language and is the native language of Punjab, a land divided between India and Pakistan. It has approximately 100 million speakers, largely in north India and Pakistan but it is also widely spoken amongst the Punjabi diaspora around the world.

The Partition in 1947 not only divided the province of Punjab but it also divided the language, and this has been the source of much tension in post-47 in both India and Pakistan. Being a phonetic language, Punjabi was/is written largely in three different scripts: the Persian script (sometimes referred as Shahmukhi) is used mostly in Pakistan; Sikhs use the Gurmukhi script and less common is the Devanagari script which is associated with Hindu Punjabis. Punjabi interestingly was never given official state patronage; this is true for the Mughal period, Ranjit Singh’s reign and also under the British. The preferred state or official language was Persian and Urdu. Farina Mir argues that part of the problem under the British colonial period was the plurality of the scripts used to write Punjabi; all three scripts (Indo-Persian, Gurmukhi, and Devanagari) were used but none of them dominated (Farina Mir, The Social Space of Language: Vernacular Culture in British Colonial Punjab, London: University of California Press, 2010).

It is not until after 1947 that Punjabi begins to get official state patronage, at least in India that is. It is officially recognised as one of the 22 official state languages in India. In West Punjab (Pakistan), Punjabi is confined largely to an informal language with no official status despite being spoken by the majority of people. And even though the number of Punjabi speakers in Pakistan has been declining over the decades, Punjabi is still the most widely spoken language. East Punjab after the Partition in 1947 was a fragmented province of its former self. It consisted of territory that was an amalgamation of divided Punjab, Patiala and East Punjab States Union (the former princely states), and the Hill States to the north of the province. By the 1950s, a Punjabi Suba (province) movement had started which hoped to create a Punjabi-language state, taking inspiration from the linguistic reorganisation taking place in other parts of India. This is eventually achieved in 1966, with the Punjab Reorganisation Act that created a new state of Haryana and also transferred territory (such as the Hill States) to Himachal Pradesh.

Leading up to this though was of course an enormous amount of discussion and political agitation, so, it is interesting to see some of the initial correspondence between Bhim Sen Sachar, Chief Minister of East Punjab and Jawaharlal Nehru, the Prime Minister of India and Nehru to Vallabhbhai Patel, the Deputy Prime Minister on the question of introducing Punjabi as the medium of instruction in schools. 

BS Sachar to Nehru, 9 July 1949 (JN SG 26-I):

‘In my letter [of] 13 May, I referred to the two outstanding demands of the Sikhs, namely (I) representation in services, and (II) Punjabi in Gurmukhi script as the medium of instruction and court language…No compromise on them was considered possible…since then, I have had informal discussions on the language controversy with the Governor, my colleagues, various leaders of public opinion and the general view of government is as below. Before the Partition, Ambala division, excepting Ropar and Kharar tehsils of the Ambala district, spoke Hindustani, while Punjabi was spoken in the rest of the Punjab, barring Kangra district. After it, nearly a million displaced persons from the West Punjab moved into the Ambala division and, therefore, it cannot now be said that all the people [there] speak Hindustani. Nevertheless, the distinction which held good before exists even now, to a lesser a degree. With the gradual elimination of English and Urdu from the province, the question [of] their [replacement] has assumed great importance…the present controversy is not over the language [Punjabi] spoken but the script [Devanagari or Gurmukhi] in which it should be written…The unanimous demand of the Sikhs is that Punjabi in Gurmukhi should be adopted all over the province as medium of instruction, as the official and court language. This would not be acceptable to Hindus in general and especially to the Hindustani-speaking region of the Ambala division and Kangra district of the Jullundur division. It will be unfair to force it on them…The best solution would be to recognise the province as consisting of two distinct linguistic regions, Punjabi and non-Punjabi. Government would agree to the following: (i) Punjabi in Gurmukhi should be the medium of instruction in the Punjabi-speaking region of the province, up to and including the 5th class; (ii) In the Punjabi-speaking region, Hindi should be compulsorily taught as a second language from the 4th class; (iii) Reversal of the same arrangement in the non-Punjabi region; (iv) English and Urdu should for the present continue as the official and court languages. There are differences of opinion on two points: (i) whether girls’ schools should be allowed the option; (ii) whether the existing boundaries of the Jullundur and Ambala divisions should be regarded as correctly [representative]. The Sikhs would not agree to distinguish girls’ schools from boys’ schools…whereas Hindus should be in favour of it…The Sikhs would include the whole of Jullundur division and the whole of Ambala district in the Punjabi-speaking region whereas Hindus would like to exclude Kangra district and three tehsils, Ambala, Naraingarh and Jagadhari, of the Ambala district from it…No agreement on [these] appears to be possible…would be grateful [for your] decision on them’.

Nehru to Patel, 22 July 1949 (JN SG 26-II):

‘Giani Kartar Singh came to see me this morning…on the language issue in East Punjab…I told him that there is no point in our considering the [matter] unless we knew that the parties concerned would abide by our decision…He said that an agreement had been arrived at between the Hindu and Sikh Ministers and the Governor agreed…(1) Punjabi in Gurmukhi, (2) two linguistic areas, (3) Punjabi compulsory from 1st-5th standard in Punjabi area, Hindi vice-versa, (4) from 4th standard upwards, the other language should be compulsory…There was no agreement on the delimitation of linguistic areas. More especially, the Pahari Ilaqa – Sikhs considered as Punjabi areas…another point was Hindus wanted option to be exercised in regard to languages, the Sikhs did not…I made it quite clear that our general policy was against compulsion in regard to choice of the mother-tongue…I further pointed that Bengali, Marathi, Gujarati were well-developed languages…He confessed that Punjabi was not suited for higher education [but] should be used up to the Matriculation… [But] that there was a great deal of feeling behind the Sikh demand…I think some facts have to be obtained about the linguistic divisions of the province but the issue is quite clear…If the Punjabis want two linguistic divisions, they might have them but I just do not see how we can do away with the option of a parent to decide which shall be the mother-tongue…’

These two letters provide a glimpse into the discussions taking place in 1949. However, the two letters from 1951 provide a different lens, especially the DAV College correspondence which is clear that the medium of instruction should be Hindi, despite the considerations of the State Language Policy. 

Jullundur City, 3 May 1951, DAV College Managing Committee (Bal Raj, President) To the managers of all the schools in the Punjab under the control of the DAV College Managing Committee (JN SG 92 II):

Please refer to the Punjab Education Department on the State Language Policy in the schools: it is [an] ill-conceived policy…I am to convey to you in very unmistakable language the views of the DAV College Managing Committee vis-a-vis this policy. Our schools should go ahead in their work undeterred by considerations of State Language Policy. To us, teaching of Hindi in our schools is a matter of supreme importance and on this point, there is to be no compromise. We would much rather let our schools face the consequences than submit to any direction from the Education Department, that weakens the position of Hindi in them. In case there is any trouble on this score from Education Department, the schools affected can rely on our fullest support, and we shall see to it that they do not suffer.

In our schools, Hindi will be the medium of instruction for all classes and Punjab will start as optional vernacular from V in place of IV as laid down by the Education Department because we consider its teaching in IV class too early. It should be clearly understood that Punjabi from V class will be optional i.e. only for those students, who would like to learn it. Provision should, however, be made for teaching in Punjabi medium for students coming from outside, and effort should be made to switch them on to Hindi medium as early as possible.

It is just possible that the Local Bodies’ Schools or Khalsa Schools might not make provisions for teaching in Hindi medium on grounds of non-availability of suitable Hindi teaching personnel or lack of demand for Hindi medium on part of students or that Hindi students might be persuaded to receive instruction in Punjabi rather than in Hindi. Proper vigilance will have to be exercised over these schools, and in case they do not implement the state policy, they should be brought to our notice to be reported to the Education Department.

A strong public opinion will have to be created in your area in favour of Hindi, so that students wishing to be taught in Hindi medium declare fearlessly their desire to be taught in this medium, undeterred by the local influence or pressure from teachers, not well disposed towards this medium.

Amritsar, 21 July 1951, The Shiromani Gurdwara Parbanbhak Committee (Kartar Singh, Publicity Secretary) To Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru JN SG 92 (II)

Enclose herewith a copy of the [above] letter…A perusal of this document will reveal to you which way the wind blows in those quarters. On the one hand, the Hindu schools are exhorted to go ahead in their work of shutting their doors to Panjabi “undeterred by considerations of State Language Policy” and not to “submit to any direction from the Education Department”. On the other hand, the Local Bodies’ Schools and the Khalsa Schools are to be compelled to make all arrangements for the teaching of Hindi in accordance with the State Language Policy. The attitude…is not only one of flagrant defiance of the government’s orders, but is also calculated to accentuate communal bitterness and vitiate the general atmosphere in the province. Due notice be taken of such anti-national and subversive attitude and activity as is being exhibited by these people.

Videos

India News Review 82

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Produced by the Films Division, Ministry of Information & Broadcasting, these short news reviews by the Government of India give us a glimpse of old India. Produced one-year after Partition/Independence, the review shows Pandit Nehru in Karachi, messages of inter-communal harmony, tolerance and equality at the Urs of Ajmer Sharif Dargah, elephant diplomacy in the US, dance, theatre and hockey matches.

 

India, Short Essays

2 Nov 84.

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BBC Details Incidents. London BBC World Service 0015 2 Nov 84

[From “Radio Newsreel” program]

The outburst of anger against the Sikh community in India following the assassination of Mrs Gandhi by two Sikhs of her bodyguards has claimed about 150 lives and left more than 1,000 people injured. Mob vengeance took its tool in a number of centres and curfews have been imposed, including one in the capital, Delhi. Tim Llewelyn saw the violence there.

It was the worst day of violence in Delhi’s recent history. No area was spared – rich, poor, residential, commercial. Angry youths acting without apparent organisation gathered on the streets attacking Sikh stores, taxis, homes, and Sikhs themselves. Usually, they burned or looted whatever they could lay their hand on, twice Sikhs themselves and in one case, lynching two adults near a Sikh temple, then setting the corpses alight. Cars were attacked and burned because the mob in India identifies the Sikhs with the car and the taxi. Sometimes – but not always – the police intervened, and I watched the security forces with bayonets fixed rescue the man whose house was being put to the torch by the angry crowds of youths. A number of Sikh temples were surrounded and threatened but mostly escaped damage. They were often defended by Sikhs themselves brandishing their medieval weapons – swords and staves and spears. The prime minster, Rajiv Gandhi, has ordered that the violence must not be repeated. There are indefinite curfews in 30 towns and cities, including Delhi and parts of Calcutta.

 

52 Killed in Bihar. Paris AFP 0759 2 Nov 84

At least 52 people were today reported killed in Bihar state, bringing the nationwide death toll in the anti-Sikh violence sparked by Prime Minister Indira Gandhi’s murder by two Sikh bodyguards to about 200.

The PTI said the 52 deaths took place in Bokaro, in the northeastern state of Bihar, where police fired on rioters. Security forces were under order to shoot on sight anyone committing violence.

PTI said another 50 people were wounded in Bokaro.

Meanwhile in New Delhi, a dozen bodies were found in an express train which arrived from Ludhiana in the predominantly Sikh of Punjab early today, station officials reported. They gave no further details.

 

Death Toll Reaches 227. Paris AFP 1005 GMT 2 Nov 84

Fresh outbreak of sectarian violence rocked New Delhi and other Indian towns today as the death toll in the anti-Sikh backlash sparked by the assassination of Prime Minister Indira Gandhi soared to 227.

In East Delhi, Hindu mobs defied shoot-on-sight orders and Army and paramilitary troops to set fire to a cinema, police said. They also reported mob violence in two localities in south Delhi.

Police confirmed that 70 people had been killed in the capital since Mrs Gandhi was gunned down outside her home on Wednesday by two Sikh members of her bodyguard.

Bihar in the north-east, Uttar Pradesh in the north and Madhya Pradesh in central India were reported to be the worst hit among a dozen states reeling under the wave of violence, despite repeated calls by Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi over the radio for calm.

The reports said that 92 people had so far been killed in Bihar, with 35 dead in Uttar Pradesh and 30 dead in Madhya Pradesh. Other casualties were reported in the western coastal state of Maharashtra.

The worst incidents occurred in Bihar state, where at least 52 people were killed as Hindus sought to revenge Mrs. Gandhi’s murder, the PTI reported.

The incidents took place in the steel town of Bokaro, PTI said, adding that the state authorities had issued security forces with shoot-on-sight orders to quell further violence. PTI said another 50 people were wounded.

Police Deputy Inspector-General Y.N. Srivastava told PTI that police in Bokaro opened fire on rival Sikh and Hindu mobs, killing one person and injuring two. Riot police were patrolling the streets.

Newspapers earlier reported other slayings in the industrial town of Ranchi as well as Hazaribagh, Arrah and Daltongaj, also in Bihar state.

An indefinite curfew was reportedly imposed on Ujjain in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh following a number of cases of arson and looting, while angry mobs violated curfew restrictions in nearby [words indistinct].

Trains arriving here from the Punjab reportedly carried bodies of people believed to have been lynched by crowds en route to the capital for Mrs Gandhi’s funeral tomorrow,

Eye witnesses and railway officials said they saw six bodies lying on New Delhi railway platform.

Other eye witnesses said that as many as 18 bodies were found in a train that ran between two Punjabi towns of Bhatinda and Ferozepur.

Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi broadcast repeated radio calls for an end to the orgy of violence, but with little effect.

 

Death Toll Climbs. Paris AFP 1308 2 Nov 84

Thirty more people were killed in inter communal violence in New Delhi today, officials said, as the [word indistinct] nationwide death toll in violence sparked by the murder of Indira Gandhi climbed past 300.

A total of 100 people, including some reportedly burned alive in [word indistinct] New Delhi, have been killed in the capital since the prime minister was gunned down by Sikh bodyguards on Wednesday.

Police reportedly opened fire to separate Hindus and Sikhs clashing in a village in west Delhi. The groups exchanged fire, leaving some people dead before police intervened.

A toll compiled from official and unofficial sources and quoted by Indian news agencies put the dead at more than 300 nationwide.

 

Source: all daily reports are from the Foreign Broadcast Information Service Archive.

India, Videos

Bhakra Nangal Dam

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Located in Bilaspur, Himachal Pradesh, Bhakra Dam is one of the largest dams in India. Construction of the dam started soon after independence in 1948 and it was opened in 1963. Agreement for the project had been signed before independence in 1944 by the Punjab Revenue Minister, Sir Chhotu Ram and the Raja of Bilaspur. However, the idea behind the project was suggested around 1910 by the British. My father worked on the dam during its construction and lived in Nangal for ten years. The dam is unequivocally the dream of modern India that Jawaharlal Nehru had imagined.

This 20 minute documentary is made by Films Division which was a production house for the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Government of India. Established in 1948, it regularly made documentary films.

India, Short Essays

70 years ago: extracts of the Sunderlal Report, Hyderabad 1948.

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Nizam Patel
The Nizam of Hyderabad receiving Sardar Patel after Operation Polo

sunderlal
Extract from the Sunderlal Report

Operation Polo is the code name of Hyderabad “police action” in September 1948. On Day 5 of this operation, 17 September 1948, the Nizam announced a ceasefire which ended the armed action. The operation led to massive communal violence and violations by the police. This prompted Jawaharlal Nehru to appoint a commission, led by Pandit Sunderlal, to investigate the situation. The findings of the report remained buried until 2013 when it was finally released and was accessible from Nehru Memorial Museum and Library (New Delhi).

Subject File No. 2. Sunderlal Papers, NMML.

We were asked by the Government of India to proceed to Hyderabad state on a goodwill mission and beg to submit our report. The delegation consisting of Pandit Sunderlal, Qazi Abdul Ghaffar and Maulana Abdulla Misri arrived in Hyderabad on 19th November and left for Delhi on 21st December 1948. During this period, we toured through 9 out of the 16 districts of the state, visiting 7 district headquarters, 21 towns and 23 important villages. In addition, we met over 500 people from 109 villages which we had not visited. Further, 31 public meetings and 27 private gatherings…were addressed by the members of the Mission.

At all these meetings, the main problem discussed was that of the creation and maintenance of cordial relations between the communities. Appeals were made to the people to forget the past and to work unremittingly for the establishment of peace and harmony amongst themselves….special emphasis was laid on the objective which was the established of a secular government…Ours was not a commission of investigation or enquiry into events proceeding of following the police action…All the same we feel it our duty to bring to your notice what we saw and gathered in our two weeks.

Killing and Looting

Hyderabad State has 16 districts comprising nearly 22,000 villages. Out of them only three districts remained practically free of communal trouble which affected the state during first the activities the Razakars and then during the reprisals that followed the collapse of that organisation. In another four districts the trouble had been more serious but nothing like the havoc that overtook the remaining eight. Out of these again the worst sufferers have been the districts of Osmanabad, Gulbarga, Bidar, and Nanded, in which four the number of people killed during and after the police action was not less than 18,000. In the other four districts viz Aurangabad, Bir, Nalgonda and Medak, those who lost their lives numbered at least 5,000. We can say at a very conservative estimate that in the whole state at least 27,000 to 40,000 people lost their lives during and after the police action. It is a significant fact that the four worst affected districts had been the main strongholds of Razakars and the people of these districts had been the worst sufferers at the hands of the Razakars. In the town of Latur, the home of Qasim Razvi, which had been a big business centre, with rich Kuchchi Muslim merchants, the killing continued for over 20 days. Out of a population of about 10,000 Muslims there, we found barely 3,000 still in the town.

Other Crimes

Almost everywhere, communal frenzy did not exhaust itself in murder, in which at some places even women and children were not spared. Rape, abduction, loot, arson, desecration of mosques, forcible conversions, seizure of houses and land, followed or accompanied the killing. The sufferers were Muslims who formed a hopeless minority in rural areas. The perpetrators of these atrocities were not limited to those who had suffered at the hands of Razakars, not to the non-Muslims of Hyderabad State. These latter were aided and abetted by individuals and bands of people, with and without arms, from across the borders, who had infiltrated through in the wake of the Indian army. We found definite indications that a numbers armed and trained men belonging to a well-known Hindu communal organisation from Sholapur and other Indian towns as also some local and outside communists participated in these riots and in some areas actually led the rioters.

The Army and the Police

Duty also compels us to add that we had absolutely unimpeachable and independent evidence to the effect that there were instances in which men belonging to the Indian army and also the local police took part in looting and even other crimes. During our tour we gathered, at not a few places, that soldiers encouraged, persuaded and in a few cases even compelled the Hindu mob to loot Muslim shops and houses. At one district town, the present Hindu head of the administration told us that there was a general loot of Muslim shops by the military…Complaints of molestation and abduction of girls, against Sikh soldiers particularly, were by no means rare…unfortunately there was a certain element in the army that was not free from communal feelings probably because some of them could not forget the atrocities committed elsewhere on their kith and kin. Before concluding this summary of atrocities committed we would like to affirm that we have not made any of the above statements lightly or without realising to the full our responsibility in making them…we are prepared to place before you all the relevant material collected.

The Razakar organisation, had in the Muslim mind stood as an effective barrier against the establishment of a Hindu Raj, the latter being synonymous to the average Hyderabadi Muslim with the demand by state Congress of a responsible government as it would in effect be based on the will of the Hindu majority. Barring a microscopic minority, the Muslim masses generally were unable to realise that their sufferings were the inevitable reprisals of the Hindu masses to the atrocities committed on the latter only a few weeks before by the Razakars, who had the active sympathy if not the actual support of practically every single Muslim in Hyderabad from the Nizam downwards. There were some exception of course, but it is doubtful if they number more than a few dozen. Such of them as dared to publicly oppose the Razakars’ activities paid heavily for their temerity. Even those Muslims who traced their happenings to their original cause, the Razakars, considered the police action as their immediate cause for which they held the Indian government responsible. Like the Razakars, the perpetrators of these crimes against the Muslim actively encouraged and nurtured the belief that they had the backing of the administration of the day.

Colour was lent to this belief by some actions and omissions of such people in authority as had been unable to purge their minds of the communal virus. The doubts and suspicions as regards the good faith and the absolute impartiality of the Indian government as between the Hindus and the Muslims, however baseless, were thus not the unnatural outcome of the indiscriminate sufferings of hundreds of thousands of Muslims in which tens of thousands lost their lives…in this campaign of retaliation at least a hundred were made to suffer for the sins of each guilty individual. Unfortunately, the conduct of some of the congressmen added to the distrust of the Muslim population…it was reported to us during our tour that at some places, persons claiming to be congressmen took the law in their own hands and adopted various devices of extracting money from panicky Muslims…such persons were going about approaching Muslims who had not left their homes or those who had returned extracting money from them against promises of so-called protection…Congressmen had auctioned cultivatable land left behind by Muslims on condition that half the crops were to be handed over to the Congress.

Doubts and suspicions in the minds of the literate Muslims were aggravated by yet another factor, namely the complaints of those who had been in state service before the police action and had lost their jobs. We have received a long list of names of persons dismissed, degraded, suspended or otherwise penalised in various departments…we are quite prepared to believe that some of these were men who could not be allowed to continue in the best interest of the administration but we have reasons to believe that a large number have suffered and are suffering for no fault of theirs. There may be cases of mere suspicion or false accusation. In fact, we have incontrovertible evidence of the innocence of some of these men. We are sure these men can be depended upon for their loyalty to the new regime. The fact also remains that these readjustments have landed a large number of Muslims families in considerable difficulties…the fact is that bitter experience has brought home to the Hyderabadi Muslims the dire consequences of communalism. Naturally they now want to live and let live. We believe that they would be perfectly happy and contented if they can be taken out of the present atmosphere of distrust and frustration.

Pakistan, Short Essays

The Final Resting Place: Gurdwara Kartarpur Sahib

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In March 2017, in an impromptu adventure, I had the opportunity to visit Kartarpur Sahib in Pakistan. It came amidst an amazing road trip, which took me from the Radcliffe line to the Durand Line (almost). The trip was full of surprises – monuments (old and new) in situ and people on the move – and their discussion, especially of religious spaces and their historical significance. During one of these conversation, Dr. Yaqoob Khan Bangash (ITU Lahore) asked why the Sikhs never demanded Kartarpur Sahib during the discussions of the 1947 Radcliffe Boundary Commission.

Kartarpur is located in Narowal District in Pakistani Punjab. It is about 120 kms/2 hours away from Lahore and is located only 3 kms from the Indo-Pakistan border by the river Ravi. Indeed, Dera Baba Nanak is located about 1 km from the border, on the other side, east of the river Ravi in Indian Punjab. Both are visible to each other on clear days. The Gurdwara is the historic location where Guru Nanak (1469-1539) settled and assembled the Sikh community after his spiritual travels around the world. It is on the banks of the River Ravi and even today there is a nomadic and unkempt, wilderness feel to the place. Guru Nanak spent eighteen years living in Kartarpur, during which he spent time preaching to a growing congregation; the appeal of Nanak spreading from nearby areas to beyond and drawing the first Sangat to the area. Many devotees remained and settled in Kartarpur, dedicating their lives to the mission of Nanak.

The informal led to the formal, with the establishment of the first Gurdwara (the house of the guru) being built circa 1521-2. Here, free communal dinning (langar) was started, feeding all those that came and the langar remains a defining feature of Sikhism – providing free food to everyone without any prejudice. The food is simple and usually vegetarian. It is not a feast, nor does it offend anyone due to their dietary preferences. Everyone, rich or poor, sits together; equal in the house of the guru.

However, for Sikhs, Kartarpur is an especially significant place, as it marks not only the beginnings of Sikhism but also the final resting place of the first guru. The original Gurdwara complex was washed away by floods of the river Ravi and the present-day building was built with donations from Bhupinder Singh (1891-1938), Maharaja of Patiala. More recently, the Government of Pakistan has been contributing to its maintenance. The most fascinating thing about Kartarpur is the appeal of the Gurdwara to all communities. Baba Nanak is revered as a Pir, Guru and Fakir alike.

My trip to Kartarpur was during the “off-season” period and so, mostly Muslims were visiting the shrine/Gurdwara to offer their duas/prayers. Legend has it that when Guru Nanak died, his Hindu and Muslim devotees disagreed about how his last rites should be performed: cremation or burial? During this ruckus, Nanak appeared as an old man before his devotees and, seemingly, suggested delaying the decision until the following day. The following morning, the shroud covering the body was found with flowers, in place of the body. These flowers were divided, with the Hindus cremating theirs, and the Muslims buried theirs. And so, in the courtyard of the Gurdwara is a shrine to symbolise this story. Outside the Sikh tourism that takes place, which is limited, this shrine is mostly frequented by Muslims.

In August 1947, Kartarpur was in Gurdaspur district, which had all (almost) been delineated to be in Pakistan, until the late, controversial changes to the boundary line, which meant that parts of Gurdaspur went to India. Thus, at the last minute, Kartarpur ended being in close proximity of the international border. After Partition, the Sikhs were negligible in their numbers in Pakistan and Kartarpur remained closed and abandoned for over fifty years. More recently, there have been attempts to get a connecting corridor between the communities in India and Pakistan today, but this has not materialised. Going back to the question of why Kartarpur never figured as a specific request before the Boundary Commission, perhaps part of the answer lies in the fact that Sikhs believe in reincarnation of the soul and, therefore, death of the body is not the end of life’s journey.

‘Corridor connecting India with Kartarpur Sahib Shrine in Pakistan ruled out’ by Ravi Dhaliwal:

http://www.tribuneindia.com/news/punjab/community/-corridor-connecting-india-with-kartarpur-sahib-shrine-in-pak-ruled-out/400962.html

‘Visit to Kartarpur Sahib (Pakistan)’ by Dalvinder Singh Grewal: https://www.sikhphilosophy.net/threads/visit-to-kartarpur-sahib-pakistan.49707/

‘How Nanak’s Muslim followers in Pakistan never abandoned Kartarpur Sahib, his final resting place’ by Haroon Khalid: https://scroll.in/article/857302/how-nanaks-muslim-followers-in-pakistan-never-abandoned-kartarpur-sahib-his-final-resting-place

Everyone’s Guru by Yaqoob Khan Bangash: http://tns.thenews.com.pk/everyones-guru/#.WxAxiakh3OQ

Partition, Short Essays

Two villages, two nations: Ganda Singh Wala-Hussainiwala

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The villages of Ganda Singh Wala and Hussainiwala are two villages divided by Cyril Radcliffe’s line. Rather counter-intuitively in these times of Hindu/Sikh India and Muslim Pakistan, Ganda Singh Wala is a village in Kasur District in Punjab, Pakistan, while Hussainiwala is its Indian counterpart, located 11 km away from Ferozepur city. Until the early 1970s, this was the primary border crossing between the two countries but it now only functions as a ceremonial border. Like Wagha-Attari, the now-primary border crossing between India and Pakistan, there is a daily Retreat Ceremony with the lowering of the national flag. There are, however, a few differences between the two ceremonies as Ganda Singh-Hussainiwala is generally not open to foreign tourists and is therefore more intimate with fewer attendees coming largely from the local area. The seating, especially on Ganda Singh side, is right next to the Pakistani Rangers and thus provides a spectacular viewing of this daily spectacle.

While restricted to mostly locals, there remains some jingoistic overtures around it; more palpable during tense times between the two countries. The ceremony lasting 40 minutes, is shorter than the Wagha-Attari version and has less of a fanfare and build-up. People loiter around, catching the opportunity to be close to Indian/Pakistani people and take photos of the Rangers and Indian BSF. According to Ferozepur district’s webpage (http://ferozepur.nic.in/html/indopakborder.html), there was no joint parade and retreat ceremony here until 1970. It was apparently, “Inspector General BSF, Ashwani Kumar Sharma, called upon both authorities to have joint retreat ceremony and since than it has become a tradition”. In 2005, there were discussions about opening this border crossing, to no avail. Today it is easy to forget that this was once a thriving check-point. In 1970, Paul Mason, while travelling the sub-continent, excitedly crossed the border from Ganda Singh to Hussainiwala. He recalls this experience in his travelogue, Via Rishikesh: an account of hitchhiking to India in 1970 (2005):

“In the morning we have little difficulty in locating the Ministry of the Interior and are supplied the necessary chits which give permission for us to travel along the restricted road to the border. For the sum of two rupees apiece we obtain bus seats and are soon headed off down the dusty track, but the trip is much longer than I expect and it is mid-afternoon before we arrive at the Pakistani customs of Ganda Singh Wala.

At the customs post on the Indian side of the border, a worryingly intelligent young woman who reminds me much of my elder sister Margaret deals me with. I do my best to conceal my anxiety about the concealed roll of banknotes. She eyes me carefully and exchanges a few words with me before turning to the next in line without first acquainting herself with the contents of my underpants.

We have made it to India! We are here in India! At last! Amazing, amazing, amazing!

I take a look at stamp in my passport; it states simply; ‘ENTRY 16-10-70 Hussainiwala Distt, Ferozepore’ – not even a mention of India! Oh well, we’re here, and that’s all that counts!

We follow the flow of other new arrivals along a path beside a wide still river [Sutlej]. There is also a disused railway track, which presumably used to connect the two countries.”

[See full account: http://www.paulmason.info/viarishikesh/viarishikeshch16.htm]

We see from Mason’s account of the simplicity through which he crossed the border with only a slight mention of Ganda Singh and Hussainiwala printed in his passport (pictures of the entry stamps are available on his website above). Today when crossing via the land route, there is a clear stamp with Attari (India) and Wagha (Lahore) in the passport. Mason also mentions the hundreds of cars left abandoned at the border because it was too costly to take them across. But, this was at least possible to do then; impossible today. Equally, the disused railway track lies there abandoned but remains as a reminder of the two broken halves.

Ferozepur, India is the land of martyrs and Hussainiwala is the site of the National Martyrs Memorial, where Bhagat Singh, Sukhdev and Rajguru were cremated on 23 March 1931. This is also the cremation place of Batukeshwar Dutt, who was also involved in bombing the Central Legislative Assembly with Singh. Bhagat Singh’s mother, Vidyawati, was also cremated here according to her last wishes. Interestingly, the spot of the memorial, which is only 1 km away from Hussainiwala and on the banks of the Sutlej river and built in 1968, was originally part of Pakistan. On 17 January 1961, it was returned to India in exchange for 12 villages near Sulemanki Headworks.

Read ‘Making of a Memorial’ by K. S. Bains, http://www.tribuneindia.com/2007/20070923/spectrum/main2.htm

-, ‘Shaheedon ki dharti’ in The Tribune: http://www.tribuneindia.com/1999/99jul03/saturday/regional.htm#3

See a short clip of the ceremony at Ganda Singh Wala: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vZR-eLVYo6s

From before and beyond the international border that divides them, there is a story that connects these villages. Majid Sheikh writes about the ‘Spiritual connect of two villages’ in Dawn and brings out their historic connections. To commemorate a highly decorated soldier, Risaldar Major Ganda Singh Dutt, the British had named this village after him, while the village Hussainiwala derived its name during colonial days from Pir Ghulam Husseini, whose tomb is now in the BSF headquarters. Today they exist as two halves of the same story.

Read ‘Spiritual connect of two villages on both sides of the divide’ by Majid Sheikh: https://www.dawn.com/news/1379906

India, Short Essays

Ludhiana’s Clock Tower (Ghanta Ghar)

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© 2017 Pippa Virdee
© 2017 Pippa Virdee
© 2017 Pippa Virdee

Ghanta Ghar is one of the most iconic landmarks of Ludhiana city. It stands tall amongst the hap-hazard development of the industrial city. Previously it was the pride and the centre piece of the historic area of Chaura Bazaar, which was the hub of economic and political activity in the city. Located at the entrance of the commercial centre, the Clock Tower was and still remains a landmark in the city’s landscape. The railway station is conveniently located a short (walking) distance away from the Clock Tower, allowing for trade activity to flourish easily in the area. Apart from commercial activity Ghanta Ghar also attracts political activities, as it is a convenient location to hold political party protests and dharanas. Today the Clock Tower has receded into the background as a flyover dominates the urban landscape. Although, Ludhiana as a city has grown manifold since the Ghanta Ghar was built, and much of the commercial activity has moved to The Mall Road or Ferozepur Road, Chaura Bazaar still remains popular amongst old and new inhabitants. There is the old charm of the traditional sub-continental bazaar with its nooks and crannies. The narrow lanes, tucked away behind the wide and partial Chaura Bazaar, remain hidden gems for jewellery – gold, silver or artificial. And then there are the scrumptious aloo tikkis, gol guppas and chaats to satisfy the hungry shopper. It is a shame that the Ludhiana Municipal Corporation has not invested more in the city’s historic sites and made more of these places. But, this is part of a wider problem with preservation of heritage and history in the sub-continent.

The history of the Clock Tower, of course, evokes the British colonial heritage: Ghanta Ghar/Clock Tower was designed by the then-Municipal Chief Engineer of Amritsar, John Gordon. The design reflects the traditional European Gothic style and uses an interesting red brick, which is striking even amongst the colourful and vibrant Chaura Bazaar. Although the construction began in 1862, it was not officially inaugurated until 1906 by Sir Charles Montgomery, who was the Lieutenant Governor of Punjab, along with Diwan Tek Chand, Deputy Commissioner of Ludhiana.

Ludhiana actually came under British rule in 1835, when Rajah Sangat Singh died. The Gazetteer of Ludhiana District (Punjab Government, 1888) notes that it was under Sir Claude Wade (1823-38) and his successors that the town increased in its size and importance. Trade expanded, and Ludhiana became a centre for trade in grain, sugar, cloth. The small presence of Kashmiri weavers (approximately 8-10 families) expanded after the famine in 1833 to around 1,500-2,000 Kashmiris, who settled in the town. Following the Sutlej campaign (1845-1847), Ludhiana district was formed, and the civil offices were removed to the cantonment side of the city. In 1854-55, the Grand Trunk Road was metalled and realigned to its present position.

The opening of the Railway from Delhi to Lahore in 1870 undoubtedly gave a great stimulus to trade and commercial activity in Ludhiana. In addition, the number of shops and sarais along the Grand Trunk Road, facing the station were also growing. According to the Gazetteer, the new town to the south of Chaura Bazaar had all the hallmarks of being modern. The streets were wide and straight, and the houses and shops were uniformly designed, giving them a modern appearance. ‘The principal streets, the Chaura Bazaar and the Hazuri Sarak, were designed by Sir Claude Wade himself; and, one of his projects, the Iqbal Ganj, is a standing proof that he was rather too sanguine about the speedy development of the two for which he did so much’ (p. 216).

The population of town was modest compared to the 1.6 million people living in the city today. In 1868 Ludhiana had 39,983 (Males 21,701 and Females 18,282) and in 1881 this rose to, 44,163 (Males 24,685 and Females 19,478)

CENSUS REPORT 1881

Total Population – 44,168

Hindus – 12,969; Sikhs – 1,077; Jains – 752; Muslims – 29,045; and Others – 320

The population of Ludhiana started to grow, most likely with opening of the railway and consequently the establishment of the town a collecting centre for the grain traffic. But in 1878, there was a huge loss of life due to malaria fever following the monsoon season. It was estimated that around 6-7 per cent of the population died especially, ‘half-starved Kashmiris and others of the lower classes not having sufficient stamina’ (p. 217). According to the 1881 census, the town was overwhelming Muslim and indeed even in 1947, Ludhiana was a Muslim majority town. The city today is dominated by the Sikhs but there are still some remnants of a former history scattered around the city, like the Ghanta Ghar and Chaura Bazaar.