Why my grandfather waited till Aug 17, 1947 to leave Pakistan

“15 August 1947. The day we had been waiting for had finally arrived. Yet it was a day that produced mixed feelings among the people – joyous for some, sad for others.” This is how my grandfather Virendra, freedom fighter and author of the book Ve Inquilabi Din (The English version of the book is titled Destination Freedom), begins the final chapter of his memoirs. It's a feeling that would have resonated with countless others – there was jubilation that the country was finally attaining independence after years of oppressive British rule, but there was also the trauma of losing one’s home as millions were uprooted, not to mention the riots, mayhem and murder that were taking place on both sides as the country was being divided. Gurgaon resident and Virendra’s son Lalit Mohan was only six years old at the time. “We used to live in Lahore. But with the situation so tenuous, my mother, younger brother and I had already left for Subathu, a small hill station near Shimla , two months earlier, while some other members of our family had gone to Delhi. Only my father, his younger brother and a servant stayed back in our home in Lahore,” he says. The early days of August 1947 Prior to Partition, Hindus and Sikhs made up more than a third of Lahore’s population, but owned a major portion of the property in a city that was considered the heart of undivided Punjab. As India’s date with freedom, and partition, approached, many had already left Lahore for east Punjab (now part of India) and Delhi, abandoning their homes and most of their belongings as tensions grew over the city’s uncertain fate, even as the rioting and carnage continued unabated. medium85322927For those who chose to stay behind, those were terrifying days. Mohan recalls his father telling him, “Lahore had by then become a shadow of the vibrant city it once was. Hindu and Sikh houses and shops were set ablaze across the city. All one could see were flames over the Lahore skyline. Anyone trying to put the fires out was either killed or incapacitated. There was bloodshed all around.” In his memoirs, Virendra describes a particularly disturbing incident. “Large-scale migration had already started, but leaving the city wasn’t easy. People were being slaughtered by the hundreds on the way, even before they could reach the railway station. One day I was standing in front of my house when a truck laden with corpses, coming from the station side, drove past. It sent a chill down my spine. I also kept receiving anonymous phone calls telling me to leave the city, or else…” Mohan said his father hadn't left Lahore, waiting amidst the chaos, rioting and killings for a final decision on the fate of the city – whether Lahore would stay with India or go to Pakistan. He says his father was clear about one thing – even though Lahore had been his family’s home for several decades, no way could Pakistan be their country – if the city went to Pakistan. The evening of August 14, 1947 Pakistan came into being on August 14, 1947, one day before India. The Radcliffe Line that would demarcate the border of the two countries had still not been announced. Mohan recalls his father telling him that a deathly silence hung ominously over Lahore that evening. “At midnight, India’s freedom was to be announced. While that filled one with a sense of pride, but the atmosphere all around was enveloped with feelings of desolation and fear.” medium85322965Lahore was under curfew and no one could stir out. By then, almost half the city had already left. There was not a soul in the neighbourhood. The only sounds one could hear were of dogs barking, troops marching and fire engines wailing. Then on August 17 came the news that Lahore would be a part of Pakistan and Calcutta would stay in India. For Virendra, the announcement settled all doubts. There was no choice – he had to leave Lahore without any delay. (Many years later, veteran journalist and author late Kuldeep Nayar wrote in his book Scoop: Inside Stories from the Partition to the Present what Sir Cyril Radcliffe, chairman of the Boundary Commission, confessed to him: “I nearly gave you Lahore. But then I realised that Pakistan would not have any large city. I had already earmarked Calcutta for India.") The escape But while the decision had been made, the hazardous journey was yet to be planned. “My father still had his car and toyed with the idea of making a break for the Wagah border. But there was the huge risk of being waylaid on the way,” Mohan says. “Then he heard that the staff of Tribune, a newspaper organisation based out of Lahore, had arranged a military escort. He requested them to let them join their group. Thankfully, they agreed. So, my father locked up the house and all that was in it, packed a few clothes, and on August 21, 1947, almost a week after independence, left Lahore for India.” Freedom at last The scenes enroute were terrifying – houses on fire, dozens of corpses lying on the road. Partition had led to the biggest mass migration ever in the world's history and nearly a million are said to have perished in the ensuing mayhem and chaos. Virendra and the rest of the group were very fortunate to reach Amritsar safely. medium85322896And then almost instantly the mood shifted. Mohan recalls his father’s words. “The moment we crossed the Wagah border, all fear and depression seemed to simply vanish. The fact that we were finally on the soil of our own free country brought a strange sense of freedom.” A feeling that is captured in the concluding words of Virendra's memoirs. “It had been a fateful journey. At that moment, the riots, the arson, the genocide, the desolation and the fact that I had left my hometown forever, did not matter. What mattered was that a dream had come true.” Picture credit: From the writer's personal collectionThe story was first published on August 14, 2021Untitled Carousel 81629112