Train to Pakistan
Author: Khushwant Singh
Publication: Ravi Dayal Publishers / Penguin Books Pvt Ltd.,
Before getting into the book review its important to know about the author. Khushwant Singh was a senior Journalist, writer, lawyer, diplomat & Politician. He was a Member of Parliament (Rajya Shaba) during 1980s. His views on politics were from Liberal School of thought. He was honored with Padma Vibushan in 2007.
He's also known for his controversies, too. Returned Padma Bhusan during Golden Temple incident in 1980s. Openly praised the internal emergency announced by Ms. Indira Gandhi in 1970s. Many doesn't know the fact that he is a close friend of former PM Dr.Manmohan Singh. They had very close relationship that Khushwant Singh had financed Dr.MMS for the latter' election expenses during 1990s. Khushwant Singh passed away in 2014.
Lets get into the story. Train to Pakistan is a novel written by the author during 1950s based on the biggest human migration in the world history i.e., Partition of Indian and Pakistan in 1947.
The story shows the real tragedy of Partition through the eyes of a remote border village named 'Mano Majra'. Its a village mostly with Muslims and Sikhs. He depicts how peace the village was in the starting pages of the story. As it is a remote village, its mostly unaware of the happenings in the rest of the subcontinent, until a train with full of Sikh/Hindu dead bodies arrived at the village, from Pakistan who tried to cross the border to India.
The story moves though the eyes of a stranger who had came to the village on his way and Juggut Singh, who is a local gangster, he's in love with a Muslim girl. The story captures the government structure & functioning during the period, including how rude the Britishers in fueling the communal riot and how incompetent the local Magistrate & local Police w.r.t the powers to control the riots.
The partition saw a huge number of fatalities along both sides of the Radcliffe line (which separates Indian&Pakistan). Woman became the primary target of the rioters and many of them (unofficial figures say about 83,000 womens) were raped by the rioters. The author recorded the same without any bias.
He busted many myths about the communal riots and gave an ideal work on that, through his words,
“Muslims said the Hindus had planned and started the killing. According to the Hindus, the Muslims were to blame. The fact is, both sides killed. Both shot and stabbed and speared and clubbed. Both tortured. Both raped”
There were many speculations during the time, even today, that every Muslim wanted to go to Pakistan. He denied the same through these lines:
“What have we to do with Pakistan? We were born here. So were our ancestors. We have lived amongst [Sikhs] as brothers”
By showing the pre-cautionary steps taken by the local Magistrate to operate the train, with Muslims who wanted to cross the border and to reach Pakistan, in mid-night without light and without horn, author conveyed how inflammable the situation was. The extremists in Hindu religion planned for mid-night assault on Muslims, who were on their way to cross the border, as an revenge to the assault done against Hindus/Muslims. By the way the author conveyed that riot doesn't have religion-race-caste.
Juggut Singh tried to save his lover, whom he thought had left to Pakistan in the train. Novel completes with the following lines, which explains the result of his attempt to save her:
“The train went over him, and went on to Pakistan”
Rather than a novel its an important document which conveys the real tragedy of Partition. Everyone who loves history, must give it a read.
Dinesh
02.06.2020
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