THE PARTITION OF BENGAL

By

Minahil Javed

Contents: Introduction Background Reasons for Partition Political Crises Anti Partition Movement Spread of the Movement Reaction of the British government Reunification and Aftermath Significance of the Movement Strength to the National Movement

INTRODUCTION

The decision to effect the Partition of Bengal was announced in July 1905 by the Viceroy of India, Lord Curzon. The partition took place in 16 October 1905 and separated the largely Muslim eastern areas from the largely Hindu western areas. The partition animated the Hindus and led the Muslims to form their own national organization on communal lines. Bengal was reunited in 1911 in an effort to both appease the Bengali sentiment and have easier administration but it caused resentment among the Bengali Muslims who thought that they benefited from the partition and the resentment lasted until the end of the British rule which ended with the partition of Bengal in 1947.

BACKGROUND The provincial state of Bengal had an area of 189,000 miles2 and a

population of nearly 8 crores (80 million).  With the growing efforts of the Indian National Congress to secure

the independence of India, Lord Curzon decided to address both these problems by partitioning Bengal into two entities, which would result in a Muslim-majority in the eastern half, and a Hindu-majority in the western half.

This he hoped would reduce the administrative pressures as well divide the population on religious grounds, quelling the Indian Independence Movement.

Partition of BENGAL

Reasons for Partition The partition took place in Bengal in 1905, because of some main

purposes.Firstly, because of vastness of the province, the British viceroy Lord Curzon parted Bengal. The overall population of this province was 85 million people. It was very difficult for the present Governor to control such a large population and that is why Bengal was divided into East Bengal and West Bengal. 

Secondly, because of the difference of religions of both Hindus and Muslims, both the parties were not ready to live together on one land and were very disrespectful for each other. There was a strike of anger among the two nations and that is why Bengal was parted so that the peace could be maintained in the province.

Thirdly, because of the political reasons as the east Bengal was dominated by the Muslims and the west Bengal by the Hindus.

POLITICAL CRISES

Partition sparked a major political crisis along religious lines. Hindu resistance exploded as the Indian National Congress began the Swadeshi movement that included boycotting British goods and public institutions, meetings and processions, forming committees, propaganda through press, and diplomatic pressure. Hitherto untouched sections of Indian society participated in these movements, providing base for later movements. Richness of the movement extended to culture, science and literature. Masses were educated for a bolder form of politics and colonial hegemony was undermined. The Muslims in East Bengal hoped that a separate region would give them more control over education and employment, hence, they opposed those movements.

Anti-Partition Movement The Anti-Partition Movement was the work of the entire national

leadership of Bengal and not of any one section of the movement. Its most prominent leaders at the initial stage were moderate leaders like

Surendranath Banerjea and Krishna Kumar Mitra; militant and revolutionary nationalists took over in the later stages.

The Anti-Partition Movement was initiated on 7 August 1905. And that day a massive demonstration against the partition was organised in the Town Hall in Calcutta. 

The partition took effect on 16 October 1905. The leaders of the protest movement declared it to be a day of national mourning throughout Bengal. It was observed as a day of fasting. There was a hartal in Calcutta. People walked barefooted and bathed in the Ganga in the early morning hours.

The streets of Calcutta were full of the cries of 'Bande Mataram' which overnight became the national song of Bengal 

Anti-Partition Movement

Reaction of the British Government

1) British Government was shaken but it reacted sharply.

2) Protestors were arrested and sent to jails.

3) Peaceful and non-violent were subjected to lathi charges.

4) Educational institutions were warned.

5) Several leaders were arrested and deported.

6) Thus the movement lost its momentum.

Reunification Due to these political protests, the two

parts of Bengal were reunited in 1911. A new partition which divided the province on linguistic, rather than religious grounds followed, with the Hindi, Oriya and Assamese areas separated to form separate administrative units: Bihar and Orissa Province was created to the west, and Assam Province to the east.

The administrative capital of British India was moved from Calcutta to New Delhi as well.

Aftermath In 1909, separate elections were established for Muslims and Hindus.

With separate electorates, distinctive political communities developed, with their own political agendas. Muslims, too, dominated the Legislature, due to their overall numerical strength of roughly twenty eight to twenty two million. Nationally, Hindus and Muslims began to demand the creation of two independent states, one to be formed in majority Hindu and one in majority Muslim areas.

In 1947, Bengal was partitioned for the second time, solely on religious grounds, as part of the Partition of India following the formation of the nations India and Pakistan. In 1955, East Bengal became East Pakistan, and in 1971 became the independent state of Bangladesh after a successful war of independence with West Pakistan.

Significance • The partition left a significant impact on the people of Bengal as well

as the political scene of the Indian Subcontinent. After the annulment of the partition, the people of East Bengal were immersed into disappointment and anger. This event also created a sense of political awareness among the Muslims of East Bengal. To mollify the people of East Bengal, Lord Curzon declared that a university as a centre of excellence would be established in Dacca (which would later be named as University of Dhaka) and formed a committee in this regard consisting Khwaja Salimullah, A. K. Fazlul Huq and others. The decision was severely criticized by some Hindu leaders in West Bengal. The most significant impact of this event was greater communal dissonance between the Hindus and Muslims of Bengal.

Bengal Today

Bengal is one of the most densely populated regions on Earth,with an estimated population of more than 250 million people.

In the southern part of the delta lies the Sundarbans, the world's largest mangrove forest and home of the Bengal tiger. 

The Bengal region has a rich literary and cultural heritage.

We learn a lot from

HISTORY that is our

past and the better we

are prepared for the

future.

Subject History

7 A:

CAPTAIN: MINAHIL JAVED

TEAM: HAMNA, NEEHA, ALIZA, KOHAIBA AND ZAINAB.