It was one of the most unforgettable moments in the world history when India attained freedom from the British Raj in August 1947. However, the country had to pay an unexpectedly heavy price for the independence. With the independence, came the partition of British India into India and Pakistan. Under the guidance of freedom movement leaders, British India was divided into two independent countries namely, India and Pakistan. While many Indians celebrated to the occasion of freedom, several others suffered the wrath of one of the worst tragedies of the world – India-Pakistan partition.
With the demarcation of the geographical boundaries between the nations, the fate of millions of people was also divided on that fateful day. Thousands of people were left homeless between the bloodbath of the religious communities and slaughter of the mankind. The horrific magnitude of sufferings is definitely unimaginable. Take a look at some of the rare and unseen pictures that perfectly depicts the plight of the people during that eventful year of India-Pakistan partition.
1. Mahatma Gandhi meets the refugees from the minority group who were proceeding to Pakistan, gathered at a camp in New Delhi
2. Image of the ground being excavated for the dead bodies of people who have lost their lives in the battle of India-Pakistan partition
3. People creating chaotic political turbulence in the city by setting the vehicle ablaze
4. Thousands on board the “North West Railways” train to travel towards Pakistan. While traveling, many were butchered on the way
5. People have accommodated themselves on the train tops during their journeys
6. A scene from a day in September 1947, when millions of Muslims gathered at the camp to head towards Dot Purana Qila in Pakistan
7. Refugees belonging to Hindu community arrive at a dockyard in Mumbai to board a ship
8. Refugees traveling with their family and luggage during the partition
9. A young boy sitting on the stones in front of the refugee camps for the migrators
10. People carrying the load of what’s left in their family
11. Muhammad Ali Jinnah being sworn in as the first Governor-General of the Republic of Pakistan in 1947
12. Carcasses lying on the roads are being dumped into a truck for the process of cremation
13. Indian soldiers trying to silence their enemies by firing across the border during the first war after India-Pakistan partition
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14. Bodies of victims being burned
15. Officers biding a goodbye to the official train to the newly formed nation of Pakistan
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16. Mahatma Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru during a visit to the refugee camp in Haridwar in 1947
17. Mahatma Gandhi and Lord Mountbatten having a conversation over Indian independence in around 1947
18. Jawaharlal Nehru meeting the participants of Quit India Movement in 1942
19. Lord Mountbatten sworning in as the first Governor-General of Independent India on March 24, 1947
20. People walking barefoot on the tracks of the train during their migration
21. Refugees taking the sea route to migrate from one place to another
22. Participants of the Quit India Movement
23. Army men waiting in queue to fetch water during the war
24. Refugees from India at a camp during the India-Pakistan partition
25. Refugees taking cover inside a monument
Well, the shadows of the past will keep dangling on our lives. Nevertheless, Happy Independence Day!
