Sikh Restitution: Martyrdom of Juggut Singh
In Khushwant Singh’s Train To Pakistan M.A.Jenefair (17/PELA/018)
Criticized as presenting “at best a successful re-creation of the event of Partition in terms of the evocation of atmosphere, the historical details and the authenticity of the locale” that is also a “work of superior journalism” (Belliappa 1), Khushwant Singh’s Train To Pakistan is his first noteworthy literary work. Singh’s narrative in his novel is “quite a departure from the predominant narratives of the day that presented a heroic, romanticized narrative of the struggle for India’s independence” as Jaspreet K.Gill says in his essay. His reaction to the partition is “cynical, satirical and rooted in anger” (K.Gill,64) that should have been expressed at the enormous amount of lives that was lost and could have been prevented. Born in 1915 and lived in Lahore, Punjab Singh had first-hand experience with the events that followed the partition of India, which should have been “the joyful culmination of decades of anti-British struggle [and instead] became a shameful debacle as Muslims, Hindus and Sikhs turned on each other in a fury of religious bigotry” (Brians 47-8). Though he was fortunate
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Once again Singh was a direct witness to the horrific event – the 1984 anti-Sikh riots. “Popular media representations of the Sikh tradition flash the image of a ….. negative icon symbolizing religious violence and separatism”(Bhogal 107). Just as blacks were termed as “beasts” for the work of few blacks who practiced violence, they same happened to the Sikhs who were painted as “terrorists” for the barbaric acts of few Sikhs engaged in the Khalistan
...changed after the World Trade Center towers collapsed. Sikh truck drivers have reported people violently cutting them off and calling them "ragheads." Congregants at Gurdwara Sahib in Fresno had racist graffiti spray painted on their temple. However, "With the passage of time, people have become informed about Sikhs, and the situation has much improved," says Amrik Singh Virk, temple secretary at the Sikh Center of the Pacific Coast in Selma. (Orozco) Unfortunately this change took three years in the Fresno community for the public to finally realize not all Sikhs are terrorists. Although the racial tension has eased with the passage of time,"It has gotten a little better, but, as a minority group, we're still smarting," says Poonia, a Fresno doctor. "There still is ignorance, misunderstanding and prejudice. Color lines have eroded, but they have not been eliminated."
Finally, Puar uses the misguided attacks on the Sikh community within the US to show how the body of the “terrorist” the locus of the use of power, is utilized. To illustrate, Sikh men, following the 9/11 attacks were singled out in hate crimes for wearing Turbans, their bodies were assaulted for simply being different. Puar notes the slur “monster-terrorist-fag” to note the interconnected nature of sexuality and power and the consequences for the “queered body” that are similar, if not identical to the attacks on queered “native” sexual groups.
In many eyes, Sikhs obtained their revenge by ending Gandhi’s life. Today, Manny sees that Prime Minister Gandhi had the resources and authority to carry out the attack in another way. There was no need to kill numerous innocent Sikhs, especially on a holiday when the temple was highly occupied. Above all, there was no validation for disrespecting and destroying the Golden Temple, which is often equated as the Mecca for Muslims. Ultimately, in the opinion of Manny, a Sikh with both religious and military insight, Blue Star Operation was not worth it. The costs of this controversial event far outnumber the benefits.
The Causes of Indian Independence in 1947 In 1947 India was declared an independent country from Britain, after years of peaceful and violent protests, pressure from all sides, and numerous promises. Not only this, but Pakistan was also formed by partitioning the country into two, providing a separate homeland for the Muslims of India. Although independence was greeting with relief from all, partition came with riots, millions of murders and a hatred between countries that has not healed up even by today. The word "inevitable" in the essay title implies something which was almost 'destined' to happen from the beginning, and the course of action could not be averted under any circumstances. In this essay I will divide up the causes of independence and partition into long term, medium term and short term.
James, Lawrence. Raj: The Making and Unmaking of British India. New York: St. Martin's, 1998. Print.
Violence like this is very common. Also, they have had their fare share of discrimination. According to The Sikh Coalition many have reported employment discrimination. Sikh Awareness.(2010). Retrieved from http://www.sikhcoalition.org/ .Most recently, Frank Singh was called a terrorist and fired by an AutoZone ...
After the British empire separated itself from India, inner-country religious problems began to arise. The Muslims and Hindus of the liberated India released their pent up anger on each other and combusted into civil war right after they won the peaceful war against Great Britain. This war distressed Gandhi, who has insight into the unity of mankind, and encouraged him to go on a hunger strike until the brutality ceased. While on his near-death bed, he is approached by a Hindu who “killed a child” because the Muslims “killed [his] son,” and in response, Gandhi said that the way out of his “Hell is to “Find a [Muslim] child, a child whose mother and father have been killed and raise him as your own,” therefore the man would be able to see the equality in all religions. Throughout his entire life, Gandhi, though a Hindu, never prosecuted anyone for their religion and was able to see through everyone’s eyes as fellow brother’s and sisters, not enemies. This ability to empathize and recognize the general unity of the human population allowed Gandhi insight into the human
Sikhism is the 5th largest religion in the world, but many people don’t know about Sikhism. Many people mistake Sikhs for terrorists due to their turbans. Sikhism is a monotheistic religion originating from Punjab, India. Sikhs do not cut their hair, and proudly wear turban as part of their religious and cultural heritage. It’s been about 13 years since 9/11 attack happened, but its affects can still be seen in modern USA. There are still many cases reported every year of killing of innocent people that are mistaken as terrorists. The Sikh Coalition, the group created after the ill-fated 9/11, said that almost 900 incidents have been reported in which American Sikhs are bullied and killed since 9/11. Just after an hour of 9/11 attack, Sikhs in New York were harassed, assaulted and beaten with bats. In fact, Muslims and Hindus were also tortured and killed after 9/11, and till today there are cases of bullying Muslims, Hindus and Sikhs in almost the whole America. During the weekend of ill-fated 9/11, Balbir Singh Sodhi, an Arizona Sikh, was gunned down wh...
When Punjab became a Sikh majority state, then the Sikhs requested Punjab become a country called Khalistan. For example, according to sikhiwiki ”Jawaharlal Nehru reiterated Gandhi’s assurance to the Sikhs at the All India Congress Committee meeting in Calcuatta in 1946. He declared: The brave Sikhs of Punjab are entitled to special consideration. I see nothing wrong in an area and a set-up in the North wherein the Sikhs can experience the glow of freedom.” The promise was made by both Nehru and Gandhi but not delivered.
The most threatening conflict between Hindus and Muslims is the province of Kashmir. This is where the decision to divide India into India and Pakistan seems to have been a terrible mistake. Kashmir, which is the only Muslim majority city in India, lies between the divided India and Pakistan. After India’s independence in the 1940’s, Kashmir had to choose to either unite with India or Pakistan. The Prince of Kashmir chose India but Pakistan invaded the province soon after and have occupied part of Kashmir since then. Controversy still surrounds the province today because naturally, Muslims want to control it. While many Muslims relocated to Pakistan and the Hindus to India, half of the Muslim population was left in India and their relations did not improve after being partially separated.
The decision to grant independence to India was not the logical culmination of errors in policy, neither was it as a consequence of a mass revolution forcing the British out of India, but rather, the decision was undertaken voluntarily. Patrick French argues that: “The British left India because they lost control over crucial areas of the administration, and lacked the will and the financial or military ability to recover that control”.
In the book Train to Pakistan, author Khushwant Singh recalls the brutal and unfortunate times when Muslims were being forced out of Mano Majra. They, along with the Hindu and Sikh population, were living in relative peace. But when there had to be change, chaos ensued. There were several key individuals that shared the total responsibility of the expulsion of Muslims from Mano Majra; Even though some had purer motives than others, they all took stock in the unfortunate process.
Until a child is eighteen years old, the parents have full responsibility. They provide a stable and loving environment for their children. As the leaders in a household, caring and loving parents also maintain the bonds that hold the family together. However, absence of loving parental guidance can create tension between family members. Anita Desai’s Clear Light of Day shows how war, specifically the partition of India, affects a particular family. The partition of Indian in 1947 created the separate countries of India and Pakistan, consequently ripping families apart. The partition, initiated by India’s independence from Britain, attempted to accommodate irreconcilable religious differences between Muslims and Hindus by forming the Islamic Pakistan. In Clear Light of Day, the Das children’s relationship with their parents causes lasting sibling conflict that mirrors this social and political upheaval of India.
... Pakistan to surrender during the Indo-Pakistani War helped the Bengalis establish a sovereign state for themselves. The distribution of the racist pamphlets against the minorities showed Shiv Sena's chauvinistic and fascist regime. Indira Gandhi's corrupt government, socialist regime and her controversial scandals such as giving her son's company government money and the 1971 Nagarwala scandal were also revealed. All of these political events influenced the background of the novel and the characters’ everyday lives. .
Riot (2001), Shashi Tharoor’s third novel is set in the context of a fictitious riot that has resemblance to the riot that rocked Uttar Pradesh in 1989 as an aftermath of the Babri Masjid- Ram Janmabhoomi controversy. Tharoor unravels the history of communal India from the fictional context of the investigation of the death of a twenty-four year old idealistic American girl, Priscilla Hart, who was slain in India in the riot. From its premises, Tharoor also communicates his ideas “about ownership of history, cultural collision, religious fanaticism and the impossibility of knowing the truth” (