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University of Southampton Research Repository ePrints Soton Copyright © and Moral Rights for this thesis are retained by the author and/or other copyright owners. A copy can be downloaded for personal non-commercial research or study, without prior permission or charge. This thesis cannot be reproduced or quoted extensively from without first obtaining permission in writing from the copyright holder/s. The content must not be changed in any way or sold commercially in any format or medium without the formal permission of the copyright holders. When referring to this work, full bibliographic details including the author, title, awarding institution and date of the thesis must be given e.g. AUTHOR (year of submission) "Full thesis title", University of Southampton, name of the University School or Department, PhD Thesis, pagination http://eprints.soton.ac.uk UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHAMPTON SCHOOL OF HUMANITIES Centre for Imperial and Post-Colonial Studies Partition and Its Aftermath: Violence, Migration and the Role of Refugees in the Socio-Economic Development of Gujranwala and Sialkot Cities, 1947-1961 by Ilyas Ahmad Chattha Thesis for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy September 2009 I would like to dedicate this work to my family who gave me the confidence to try and Professor Ian Talbot my supervisor who guided me to a conclusion Abstract The partition of India in August 1947 was marked by the greatest migration in the Twentieth Century and the death of an estimated one million persons. Yet until recently (Ansari 2005; Talbot 2006) little was written about the longer term socio- economic consequences of this massive dislocation, especially for Pakistan. Even when the ‘human dimension’ of refugee experience rather than the ‘high politics’ of partition was addressed, it was not specifically tied to local case studies (Butalia, 1998). A comparative dimension was also missing, even in the ‘new history’ of partition. The thesis through case studies of the Pakistan Punjab cities of Gujranwala and Sialkot examines partition related episodes of violence, migration and resettlement. It draws on hitherto unexplored original sources to explain the nature, motivation and purpose of violence at the local level. It argues that the violence in both cities was clearly politically rather than culturally and religiously rooted. The problems of finding accommodation and employment as well as patterns of urban resettlement are also explored. The thesis shows how the massive shifts in population influenced and transformed the socio-economic landscape of the two cities. It also addresses wider issues regarding the relative roles of refugees and locally skilled craftsmen in rebuilding the cities’ economies following the migration of the Hindu and Sikh trading and commercial class. This analysis reveals that while partition represented a major disruption, continuities persisted from the colonial era. Indeed, Sialkot’s post-independence development owed more to the skill base it inherited than to the refugee influx. Contents List of Tables vi List of Maps and Illustrations vii Declaration of Authorship ix Preface and Acknowledgement x List of Abbreviations xiii Translations/Transliterations xiv Introduction 1 The Historiography of Partition Explanations of the Violence Definition The Study sites, Methodology and Sources Organization of Chapters Part 1 Contexts: Historical and Provincial 1. Colonial Inheritance: Life before Partition in Gujranwala and Sialkot 25 2. Violence, Migration and Resettlement: Broader Punjab Level Picture 93 Part II Locality, Partition Violence and Migration 3. Partition, Violence and Migration: Case Study of Gujranwala 125 4. Partition, Violence and Migration: Case Study of Sialkot 160 Conclusion Part III Locality and the Aftermath of Partition 5. Aftermath of Partition: Case Study of Refugee Resettlement and Development in Gujranwala 198 6. Aftermath of Partition: Case Study of Refugee Resettlement and Development in Sialkot 230 Conclusion Conclusion 282 Appendixes 293 Glossary 297 Bibliography 300 List of Tables Table Page Table 1.1 Composition of Urban Population in the district of Gujranwala Towns 44 Table 1.2 Composition of Population in Gujranwala District 45 Table 1.3 Composition of Population in Sialkot Suburbs, 1881-1891 54 Table 1.4 Composition of Population in Sialkot Town 69 Table 1.5 Religious Composition of Population in Sialkot Town/Cantonment Table 1.6 Values of Export Sports Goods before Partition 76 Table 1.7 Composition of Christian Population in Sialkot District 79 Table 1.8 Places of the Origin of Muslim Refugees in West Punjab 111 Table 1.9 Patterns of Refugee Resettlement in Pakistan, 1948 112 Table 1.10 Rehabilitation of Refugees in Rural and Urban Areas West Punjab Table 2.1 Annual Outputs of Sialkot’s Surgical Instruments 249 Table 2.2 Total Value of Export of Sporting- Goods, 1952-9 265 Table 2.3 Customer Countries of Sport Goods and Exported Amount in Rupees Table 2.4 Number of Jammu Kashmir refugees in West Punjab, 1952 268 vi Maps and Illustrations Map of the Punjab in 1947 xv Map of Gujranwala city in 1947 26 Map of Sialkot city in 1947 53 Map of Jammu and Kashmir in 1947 179 Ranjit Singh’s Birth Place in Gujranwala 29 The Tomb of Mahan Singh, in Gujranwala, Courtesy British Library Residence of Sardar Hari Singh Nalwa, in Gujranwala Gujranwala Sialkoti Gate in 1869, Courtesy British Library 35 Gujranwala Sialkoti Gate in 2007 Gujranwala Church founded in 1865, Courtesy British Library 36 Gujranwala Railway Station, which was built in 1861 Charan Singh’s former residence in Gujranwala 37 Banarasi Shah’s former residence in Gujranwala Shaiwala Teja Singh Temple in Sialkot 55 Gurdwara Baba-di-Bari in Sialkot Traditional Woodwork Architecture in Sialkot’s Kashmiri mohalla 56 Uberoi Ganda Singh’s former Mansion in Sialkot’s Paris Road A view of the Kashmiri Mohalla in Sialkot 57 Uberoi Cooperative Sports Limited in Sialkot’s Paris Road Former Hindu Rang Pura mohalla in Sialkot Sialkot Cathedral established in 1850 63 Sialkot Murray Church of Scotland founded in 1889 Sialkot Murray College, which the Church of Scotland founded in 1889 vii Nizamabad Railway Station on the Punjab North-Western Railway Track 146 Photos of Mohammad Ramzan and Mohammad Ali of Nizamabad 147 Photos of Abdul Islam Butt, Malik Abbas and Dr Lal 174 Photos of Kazim Shah and Khalid Anwar 210 Metal-Works in a Gujranwala factory 211 Aluminium Roller being prepared in a Gujranwala workshop Batala Steel Vessel General Store in Gujranwala’s Sialkoti Gate 228 Guffar Patiala Jewellers in Gujranwala’s Sarafa Bazaar Surgical Instruments being manufactured in a Sialkot Factory 261 Surgical Instruments being manufactured in a Sialkot home based Workshop Tennis rackets being manufactured in a Sialkot factory 262 Hockey sticks being manufactured in a Sialkot factory viii DECLARATION OF AUTHORSHIP I, ILYAS AHMAD CHATTHA declare that the thesis entitled: ‘Partition and Its Aftermath: Violence, Migration and the Role of Refugees in the Socio-economic Development of Gujranwala and Sialkot Cities, 1947-1961’ and the work presented in the thesis are both my own, and have been generated by me as the result of my own original research. I confirm that: . this work was done wholly or mainly while in candidature for a research degree at this University; . where any part of this thesis has previously been submitted for a degree or any other qualification at this University or any other institution, this has been clearly stated; . where I have consulted the published work of others, this is always clearly attributed; . where I have quoted from the work of others, the source is always given. With the exception of such quotations, this thesis is entirely my own work; . I have acknowledged all main sources of help; . where the thesis is based on work done by myself jointly with others, I have made clear exactly what was done by others and what I have contributed myself; . none of this work has been published before submission Signed: …Ilyas Chattha………………………………………… Date: ix Preface and Acknowledgements First and foremost, my greatest thanks go to Professor Ian Talbot, my research supervisor, whose critical scrutiny of my various drafts and exacting standards of scholarship have helped me to avoid many errors in argument, style and grammar. Without his encouragement, support and feedback, this study could not have been completed. In writing this thesis I have incurred enough debts to others to justify a brief but sincere acknowledgement of at least some of the people without whom this work would have proved an insurmountable obstacle. The idea of researching and pursuing this dissertation began when I was pursuing my MA (by research) degree in the university of Warwick in 2004 under the supervision of Professor David Hardiman. I would like to pay my personal tribute to David Hardiman, who aroused and quickened my interest in the subject and recommended me to Ian Talbot, a definite authority on the subject, for researching my PhD on the aftermath of the 1947 partition of the Indian subcontinent. My special thanks go to the Pakistan Higher Education Commission (HEC), Lahore University of Management Science (LUMS) and Southampton University for their partial financial support needed to undertake this project. The help that I received from my family at every stage of the writing of this dissertation has been indispensable. Time, money and encouragement given by my family have made the completion of this piece possible. I must acknowledge particularly my gratitude to the helpful staff and librarians of the Oriental and India Office Collection, Punjab Archive Lahore, National Document Centre and National Archive Islamabad, the district records Gujranwala x and Sialkot for their assistance in finding material for this thesis. In particular, I would like to thank Saleem-Ullah Khan, research coordinator at the National Documents Centre Islamabad, Abbas Chughtai, director at the Punjab Archive Lahore and Rana Abdul Hamid, settlement secretary at Farid Kot Record Room Lahore.