How did ordinary people view Partition?
For ordinary people, partition was full of challenges and brought sufferings. The division was not a territorial division for them. It was also not a party politics of Congress and the Muslim League for them. But for the ordinary people, partition was a challenge for them. It brought misery and troubles to them. It meant death of their loved one, loss of property and wealth. Partition also uprooted them from their paternal land. People were forced to live in refugee camps. They were also forced to start their life once again from a new platform. So for ordinary people, partition was not a pleasant experience, but it was painful and full of sufferings.
How did women experience Partition?
How did the Congress come to change its views on Partition?
Why was British India partitioned?
Why is Partition viewed as an extremely significant marker in South Asian history?
What did the Muslim League demand through its resolution of 1940?
Examine the strengths and limitations of oral history. How have oral-history techniques furthered our understanding of Partition?
Why did some people think of Partition as a very sudden development?
What were Mahatma Gandhi’s arguments against Partition?
Why was the jotedar a powerful figure in many areas of rural Bengal?
Why did the mutinous sepoys in many places turn to erstwhile rulers to provide leadership to the revolt?
To what extent are census data useful in reconstructing patterns of urbanisation in the colonial context?
How did Mahatma Gandhi seek to identify with the common people?
What were the ideals expressed in the Objectives Resolution?
How did zamindars manage to retain control over their zamindaris?
Discuss the evidence that indicates planning and coordination on the part of the rebels.
What do the terms “White” and “Black” Town signify?
How was Mahatma Gandhi perceived by the peasants?
How was the term minority defined by different groups?
How did the Paharias respond to the coming of outsiders?
How did prominent Indian merchants establish themselves in the colonial city?
Why did the Santhals rebel against British rule?
On an outline map of the subcontinent, mark out the areas described in this chapter. Find out whether there were other areas where the Permanent Settlement and the ryotwari system were prevalent and plot these on the map as well.
On an outline map of India, trace the major rivers and hill ranges. Plot ten cities mentionedin the chapter, including Bombay, Calcutta and Madras, and prepare a brief note on why the importance of any two cities that you have marked (one colonial and one pre-colonial) changed in the nineteenth century.
Find out about the route of the Dandi March. On a map of Gujarat plot the line of the march and mark the major towns and villages that it passed along the route.Find out about the route of the Dandi March. On a map of Gujarat plot the line of the march and mark the major towns and villages that it passed along the route.
Examine any two sources presented in the chapter, choosing one visual and one text, and discuss how these represent the point of view of the victor and the vanquished.
To what extent were social relations transformed in the new cities?
What do private letters and autobiographies tell us about an individual? How are these sources different from official accounts?
What historical forces shaped the vision of the Constitution?