“Without a shot being fired”
This is what Moon wrote: For over twenty-four hours riotous mobs were allowed to rage through this great commercial city unchallenged and unchecked. The finest bazaars were burnt to the ground without a shot being fired to disperse the incendiaries (i. e. those who stirred up conflict). The . . . District Magistrate marched his (large police) force into the city and marched it out again without making any effective use of it at all . . .
(a) How did Amritsar become a scene of bloodshed in 1947?
(b) Analyse the attitude of the soldiers and policemen in towards the mob?
(c) Interpret the reactions of the British administration to the law and order situation in Amritsar in March 1947.
OR
“A voice in the wilderness”
Mahatma Gandhi knew that his was “a voice in the wilderness” but he nevertheless continued to oppose theidea of Partition:
But what a tragic change we see today. I wish the daymay come again when Hindus and Muslims will donothing without mutual consultation. I am day and night tormented by the question what I can do to hasten the coming of that day. I appeal to the League not to regard any Indian as its enemy . . . Hindus and Muslims are born of the same soil. They have the same blood, eat the same food, drink the same water and speak the same language.
SPEECH AT PRAYER MEETING, 7 SEPTEMBER 1946, CWMG, VOL. 92, P. 13
(a) Highlight the concern of Mahatma Gandhi on the idea of partition.
(b) “Mahatma Gandhi knew that his voice was a voice in the wilderness”. Analyse the reasons behind it.
(c) How did Gandhiji try to restore communal harmony amongst the masses of India?
