LAHORE: Speakers at a seminar on a book, titled The Punjab Bloodied, Partitioned and Cleansed, were of the view that the history of Partition has been distorted for nationalist purposes in India and Pakistan.

The seminar was organised by the Quaid-i-Azam Political Science Society of Government College University (GCU) on Friday. The book has been authored by Sweden’s Stockholm University Prof Dr Ishtiaq Ahmed and sheds light on the events of Partition through secret British reports and oral history. The event marked launch of the second edition of the book, which coincides with the 70th anniversary of Partition.

GCU Vice Chancellor Prof Dr Hassan Amir Shah and Prof Ahmed were also present on the occasion and responded to questions about the book.

IT University assistant professor Dr Yaqoob Bangash said a bloody movement or process of cleansing society from minorities had started during Partition and had not stopped, but had taken the form of a sectarian movement over time.

GCU Political Science Department Chairman Prof Dr Khalid Manzoor Butt said that use of religion in politics always leads to intolerance. He said that religious and sectarian intolerance had become the biggest challenge for Islamic world, adding that only the government’s version was being taught to students.

Dr Ali Usman Qasmi said Partition had resulted in the biggest forced migration in history and as many as 14 million people, including 10 million from Punjab, were forcefully evicted. He also talked about violence against women in 1946-47. “Although historians have failed to narrate the violence, but some masterpieces of Urdu literature have highlighted the women’s experiences during Partition,” he concluded.

Urdu fiction writer Dr Saima Iram and Punjabi literature critic Prof Dr Muhammad Saeed Khawar talked about diversity in the book. Two witnesses of Partition, Rana Muhammad Azhar Khan and Sheikh Hameed Ali Tanveer, also shared their stories.

Published in Dawn, February 3rd, 2018

Opinion

Editorial

Genocide resumes
Updated 19 Mar, 2025

Genocide resumes

It appears that Palestinian people will again be left defenceless in the face of merciless brutality.
Strength in unity
19 Mar, 2025

Strength in unity

WILL it count as an opportunity lost? Given the sharp escalation in militant violence in recent weeks, some had ...
NFC weightage
19 Mar, 2025

NFC weightage

THE NFC Award has long been in need of an overhaul. The government’s proposal to bring down the weightage of...
A new direction
Updated 18 Mar, 2025

A new direction

While kinetic response may temporarily disable violent actors, it will not address underlying factors providing ideological fuel to insurgencies.
BTK settlement
18 Mar, 2025

BTK settlement

WHEREVER the money goes, controversy follows. The PMLN-led federal government, which recently announced that it will...
Sugar crisis
18 Mar, 2025

Sugar crisis

GREED knows no bounds. But the avarice of those involved in the sugar business — from manufacturers to retailers...