New Delhi: A thematic exhibition on the Partition of India, one of the worst human tragedies in history, was on Monday inaugurated in the Parliament complex here by Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla. The exhibition titled -- Partition Horrors Remembrance Day August 14 -- has been hosted in the Parliament Library Building. It draws from archival records and historic images.
"Joined Hon @loksabhaspeaker Sh @ombirlakota, Union Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Sh @JoshiPralhad, MoS Sh @arjunrammeghwal and other dignitaries at the inauguration of the #PartitionHorrorsRemembranceDay exhibition today, in New Delhi," Union Culture Minister G Kishan Reddy tweeted.
Sources said, about 52 panels each in Hindi and English have been displayed as part of the exhibition organised by the Indira Gandhi Centre for the Arts (IGNCA), which is under the purview of the Culture Ministry. "The material for the exhibition has been drawn from multiple sources. Indian Council of Historical Research (ICHR) as a partnering agency has provided a lot of research material for the exhibition," a source told PTI. According to a poster on the exhibition, shared on the website of Azadi ka Amrit Mahotav, "The Partition of India in its most basic form is a story of unprecedented human displacement and human migration. It is story in which millions sought new homes in environment that were alien and restive".
"About 6 million non-Muslims moved out of what had become West Pakistan and another 6.5 million Muslims moved out from the Indian part of Punjab, Delhi, etc., into West Pakistan. In the east, an estimated 2 million non-Muslims moved out of East Bengal (Pakistan) and later in 1950 another 2 million non-Muslims moved into West (India) Bengal. It is estimated that about one million Muslims had moved moved out of West Bengal," the poster said.
Large-scale violence had preceded the actual Partition of India in 1947 into Dominion of India and Dominion of Pakistan. The new State of Pakistan was born on August 14, 1947 while India took birth as a free nation a day later, throwing off the yokes of colonialism and ending nearly 200 years of the British rule.
The poster also said that "the estimate of those killed has varied from 5,00,000 to over 10,00,000. The generally accepted figures stand at around 5,00,000". Prime Minister Narendra Modi on August 14 last year had announced that the day would be observed as the Partition Horrors Remembrance Day in the memory of the struggles and sacrifices of people.
"Partition's pains can never be forgotten. Millions of our sisters and brothers were displaced and many lost their lives due to mindless hate and violence. In memory of the struggles and sacrifices of our people, 14th August will be observed as Partition Horrors Remembrance Day," he had tweeted. One of the panels at the exhibition bear this tweet by Modi. "May the #PartitionHorrorsRemembranceDay keep reminding us of the need to remove the poison of social divisions, disharmony and further strengthen the spirit of oneness, social harmony and human empowerment," the Prime Minister had also tweeted. (PTI)
