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The Partition of India
The Need for Peace between India and Pakistan
Speaker
Much has been written and debated about the partition of India and the creation of Pakistan. It cost more than one million Hindu, Muslim and Sikh lives and bequeathed a legacy of suspicion, hatred and hostility.
For many it was a blessing, for others a tragedy. For many it meant independence and freedom, for others loss of independence and change of the masters. It left millions traumatized. The violence unleashed before, during and after the independence movement keeps recurring in various forms – most notably, as religious extremism.
75 years on, the crisis on both sides of the border is deepening. The “two nations” are still struggling to define themselves as nations. Emergence of Bangladesh in 1971 as the third nation has challenged several myths. 75 years later, the negative fallout of that legacy is all there to see. It is time to bury the hatchet and build peace. Almost everyone agrees that a strong friendly relationship between these states is essential for their progress, welfare and security of their people.
Dr. Ahmed’s lecture will be followed by a Q&A with the audience.
Speaker
Ishtiaq Ahmed
Dr. Ishtiaq Ahmed is Professor Emeritus of Political Science at Stockholm University. He holds a PhD in Political Science from Stockholm University and was member of the Faculty in the Department of Political Science at Stockholm University during 1987 – 2010. He is Honorary Senior Fellow at the Institute of South Asian Studies (ISAS) in National University of Singapore, where he worked as Senior Research Professor during 2007-2010.
He has published several books with a special focus on the politics of South Asia discussed in context of regional and international relations. His latest publication being Jinnah: His Successes, Failures and Role in History (New Delhi: Penguin Viking, 2020) which won the English Non-Fiction Book Award for 2021 at the Valley of Words Literary Festival, Dehradun, India. He has also written Pakistan: The Garrison State, Origins, Evolution, Consequences (1947-2011) (Karachi: Oxford University Press, 2013) and, The Punjab Bloodied, Partitioned and Cleansed: Unravelling the 1947 Tragedy through Secret British Reports and First-Person Account (Karachi: Oxford University Press, 2012) which won the Best Non-Fiction Book Prize at the 2013 Karachi Literature Festival, the 2013 UBL-Jang Group’s Best Non-Fiction Book Prize at Lahore and the Best Book on Punjab Award from Punjabi Parchar at the Vaisakhi Mela in Lahore, 2016.
