The small booklet captures the chaos and confusion felt during the Partition of Punjab. I could feel the disbelief and denial of the common people when faced with the horrible choice of giving up everything. In fact if you happen to be belong to the wrong religion in the new Pakistan you had no hope of living in the country as you lost your property by a government decree. So the seed of hatred against Hindus had been sawed by the government of Pakistan right from its birth. No wonder most migrated Hindus hated Pakistan like anything.
Unfortunately the process of deamonization of various minorities still continues with the prosecution of Ahmedi’s based on religion and Bengalis based on race, but I digress. The book is a tribute to the author’s childhood spent around the town of Daska. The small chapters narrate life as he remembered it before Partition, made up of all communities under the British masters of India. The author’s life revolved around Hindu and Sikh religious holidays with occasional mention from Muslims among their midst.
The author’s journey back to his beloved Daska proved to be an anti-climax, as many fantasies do when reality bites.
No comments:
Post a Comment