Muslims of Surma-Barak Valley in the Partition of 1947

International Journal of Advanced Science and Technology Vol. 29, No. 7, (2020), pp. 14645 - 14651 Muslims Of Surma-Barak Valley In The Partition Of 1947 Dr. Mahbubur Rahman Laskar Email. – [email protected] Few events have been more important to the history of modern South Asia than the partition of subcontinent in to India and Pakistan in 1947. Whether partition was inevitable or was there any alternative, has been a matter of debate since independence. Partition of India in 1947 was not a sudden event or occurrence, but certain forces, elements and agencies generated the situation that made Partition inevitable. Surma-Barak Valley presently constituted the three districts of Barak Valley viz. Cachar, Karimganj and Hailakandi and broader Sylhet presently constituted with Habiganj, Sunamganj, Maulabi Bazar and Sylhet districts of Bangladesh, which was a part of Assam sub-division faced this division. Physical division took place in the eastern and western side of the Indian sub continent. Sylhet was separated from the rest of the province and attached with the East Pakistan. Of course political leaders and parties commanded the matter and they tried to approach the Muslim masses to bring under their respective banner. They too used religious leaders and religion symbolically to get the mass support in the referendum. Muslim of Surma-Barak valley, thus were divided broadly in to two groups – one is under Jamiat Ulema Hind, allied of Indian National Congress and the other under Muslim League. Dialogues, songs, poems were composed by both the groups to convince the people and to raise the sentiment of the other section of Muslim. So, the issue of the partition of the country led to the contradictory stands of the Muslims of Surma-Barak Valley. There is no doubt that literary representation of the events in the wake of partition provides an alternative discourse supplementing the stories based on archival research. The history of partition is also the partition of history of communities. We apparently created a legitimate space for the two nation theory were the ‘cultural differences’ between the two communities which, though living side by side for generations, appear to have remain clearly separate from one another. This is, however, not to suggest that Hindu-Muslim separate identities owed only to existential cultural differences; instead they were also rooted in colonialism and the economic changes of the decades proceeding the transfer of power. What is emphasized is the fact that the ‘distinct’ Hindu Muslim identities were not just products of ‘Divide and Rule’, but were created by communities themselves on the strength of inherited cultural resources and invented traditions. Thus the emergence of the Hindus and the Muslims as distinct political communities was historically conditioned. What was seriously questioned in these creative writings was the displacement and dispossession of the innocent victims who failed to reconcile to the changed environment when separate homelands were created for separate communities which had so far co- existed. The Lahore Resolution of 1940 made the political situation of India so tensed that the Muslim League and its supporters to a large extent advanced their claim for separate homeland for the Muslim i.e. Pakistan. The conflict and contrast between the nationalist and the communalist group particularly between the two Muslim groups on question of Pakistan was a everyday phenomena. Under such circumstance the election to the central and provincial legislatures of India (1946) appeared as a great challenge to both the groups to show their strength and justify their position.1 In the election campaign, the nationalist advocated for India’s unity, integrity and independence while the communalist group stood for the public mandate on the issue of Pakistan. On the eve of the 1946 election to the provincial legislature, the nationalist Muslim organizations unitedly formed All India Muslim Parliamentary Board. In Assam Muslim Parliamentary Board was formed with Maulana Bashir Ahmed as President and Muzzamil Ali and Dr. Murtuza Choudhury as Secretary.2 It was spearheaded the campaign of the nationalist group under J. Nehry, Hussain Ahmed Madani and others. Local nationalist Muslim leaders Gulam Sabir Khan, Sabir Khan, Sabid Raja Mazumder, Hurmat Ali Barlaskar, Nurul Hoque, Formuz Ali, 14645 ISSN: 2005-4238 IJAST Copyright ⓒ 2020 SERSC International Journal of Advanced Science and Technology Vol. 29, No. 7, (2020), pp. 14645 - 14651 Maulana Abdul Jalil Choudhury, Maulana Ibrahim Ali Chautali, Maulana Moshaid Ali and others accompanied them.3 The Communalist group of Muslims also brought central figures of the Muslim League like Maulana Shah Sharif, Maulana Mohammad Ishaque, Maulana Muslim Uddin, Maulana Abdul Karim and others for the campaign in favour of Pakistan.4 It was not the nationalist Hindus but the nationalist Muslim became the target of the communalist Muslim in each and every subdivision of Asssam. On the arrival of the Maulana Madani at Kulaura Railway Station in Sylhet from Calcutta, he was shown black flag bby the Muslim League activist.5 In many of his meetings, Muslim League supporters created disturbances. When Maulana Madani was delivering his lecture at Gobinda Park at Sylhet on December 13, 1945 about 100 League workers shouted with League slogans on the road.6 Assam provides an interesting chapter in India’s freedom struggle during its last phase for two important reasons. First, although the 3rd June announcement7 suggested the division of Assam, particularly the district of Sylhet, the province was partitioned only after the referendum in which majority of its population endorsed the separation. Although it was portioned after referendum but not on the basis of the result of referendum but according to decision of the Redcliff Commission. As the Muslims constituted an overwhelming majority in the district, the outcome of the plebiscite was more or less anticipated. A unique experiment in the context of colonialism, the referendum brought out interesting dimension of Hindu-Muslim communalism. Secondly, for the Muslims, the campaign during the referendum was a continuity of their movement opposing of Assam government since it had decided stringently to follow the controversial Line System in 19468. Muslim immigrants were instantly mobilized for the 1947 referendum and the campaigned gained momentum the time Maulana Abdul Hamid Khan Bhasani assumend leadership9. Several songs, poems were sung and recited in different places of the valley to mobilize the masses. One such song that appealed the Muslim masses in large extent was: Aamrato aar Aashame te taakbona- Aashamer julumer kota, jibon taakte bhulbona, Ghorbaari koto bhangilo Puria chai korilogo ……… Naa khaiya maanush morilo, dukhkhe poran baachena. Jhumma masjider kota Shunle laagle praner kota go ……….. Bhanglo masjid haati diya go, masjider chin raakhlona. Sylhete Alkas morilo Gulite shahid hoilo go.. Shahidi dorja pailo, pailo she behest khana…… Emon julum hoy jekhane Aamra taakbona shekane go…… Aamra taakbo Pakistane, Jhalim deshe roibona. Habib paagla khoi khaindia Kural baakse vote diya go.. Pakistan tulo godia noile paabe laanchona.”10 14646 ISSN: 2005-4238 IJAST Copyright ⓒ 2020 SERSC International Journal of Advanced Science and Technology Vol. 29, No. 7, (2020), pp. 14645 - 14651 (We shall no longer stay in Assam, so long life exists, we shall not forget the atrocities of Assam, So many houses have been torn down, so many burns to ashes. Men have died of starvation, the soul dies of sorrow. The tale of Jhuma masjid seems like the tale of the heart. Elephants have ravaged the masjid……nothing remains. A class of people have died in Sylhet, some have died in the bullet. Men have got the status of martyrs, they got the seat of heaven. ………... A place where such atrocities persist, no longer shall we stay in such place. We shall stay in Pakistan, no longer we shall stay in the land of atrocities. Says Habib the lunatic shedding tears of woe. Casting vote in the atrocities ballot box, Carve out the new Pakistan, else you will get only insult.) In Sylhet the League leadership demanded partition of Assam – unlike its counterpart in Bengal, which never endorsed the separation. With the announcement of the date for referendum, the League High Command constituted a committee comprising the important leaders of Bengal and their representative, Khaliquzzaman to mobilize Muslim support for Sylhet’s amalgamation with Pakistan. Presumably because the League was uncertain about the outcome of the referendum, Jinnah, who brouched the idea of the committee, preferred to organize the Muslims in the Surma valley from the very outset. The other significant feature of the Muslim mobilization was the nature of the local leadership that spearheaded the campaign. Jinnah choose Maulana Bhasani who became famous after his successful movement in Bhasani’s char instead of established provincial League leaders. Bhasani invested the misery of the Bengali Muslims with a religious connotation. By choosing mainly mosque compounds or those in the vicinity as the venues for his meetings, he undertook a campaign in which the religious terms also underlines the significance of his persona as a Pir.11 Not only did the Bhasani appeal to the religious sentiments of the people; the entire campaign was also organized in such a way as to gain maximum impact by drawing upon Islam. Mullahs from Bengal were brought in to go to the remote areas of the district. Village hats were the places where these Mullahs addresses the villagers.12 The common men who were influenced by them were raised slogan in many places “Urir jhar, jhingar jhar, Muslim League faria jhar”13, poems were composed and recited in many informal and formal meetings or gatherings. Son unishasaatchallisher-2, tisra Junete Bodolaat ghushana jan koila aie mote Sylheti Mushalman-2, Pakistan Jodi chahe bhai Vote diya proman khada koridibe taai, Ekhon joruri bodo-2, hoiya drodo voter Mushalman Kudal baakshe dibai vote hoiya ek pran.

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