Q12 of 18 Page 1

Analyse the distinctive aspects of the oral testimonies to understand the history of the partition of the British India.

OR


Examine the various events that led to the partition of British India.

The distinctive aspects of the oral testimonies to understand the history is as follows:


a. Oral testimonies describe the experiences of the people during the partition.


b. These testimonies enable the historians to write expressive text giving vivid information of the actual happenings.


c. The lives of people were changed completely as the partition was felt as a suffering and challenge.


d. The official documents provide information only on the political aspects whereas the oral testimonies show the live experiences of the poor and the powerless sections of the society.


e. Oral testimonies narrate the personal experiences of the people.


f. The trials and tribulations of the people who lived during the partition can be well understood from the oral testimonies.


Thus, the oral testimonies serve as the better source of information which enable the historians to widen their boundaries.


OR


The policies followed by the British led to the communal divisions among the Indians that eventually ended up in partition.


The following are the various events that led to the partition of British India:


a. Separate electorate was granted to Muslims in the year 1909 and the Muslims were allowed to form a separate league.


b. Several movements like the Cow movement, Tabligh and shuddi movements etc., paved way for the communal developments.


c. Indian National Congress was not ready to form a coalition government with the Muslim league after the 1937 general elections.


d. The Muslims demanded an autonomous province where the majority will be Muslims.


e. Mohammad Ali Jinnah represented the Muslim community along with the Muslim league and he adopted the two-nation theory.


f. The Quit India movement started by the Indian National Congress failed to win the co-operation of the Muslim community.


g. There was a series of communal clashes in the year 1946.


Because of all these reasons, Lord Mountbatten endorsed a plan to partition India with the Northwest and Eastern India with the Muslim population and the rest representing the Hindu population.


More from this chapter

All 18 →
10

Read the following passage and answer the question that follows:

Every citizen in a free state should be treated in a manner that satisfied not only his material wants but also his spiritual sense of the self-respect and the majority community has an obligation to try and understand the problems of the minorities and empathise with their aspiration.


How could a citizen of a free nation express his imbibed values of equality and social justice while dealing with the members of the minority community? Explain.

 11

“There was more to rural India than the sedentary agriculture.” Explain the statement in the context of Mughal Period.

OR


“Inspite of the limitations, the Ain-i-Akbari remains an extra ordinary document of its time.” Explain.

 13

Explain the system of land grants and trade from C. 600 BCE to 600 CE.

OR


Explain any four sources to reconstruct the history of Mauryas. Examine the system of Mauryan administration.

 14

Read the following excerpt carefully and answer the questions that follow:

A Tiger – Like Husband


This is a summary of a story from the Adi Parvan of the Mahabharatha:


The Pandavas had fled into the forest. They were tired and fell asleep; only Bhima, the Second Pandava, renowned for his prowess, was keeping watch. A man-eating Rakshasa caught the scent of the Pandavas and sent his sister Hidimba to capture them. She fell in love with Bhima, transformed herself into a lovely maiden and proposed to him. He refused. Meanwhile, the Rakshasa arrived and challenged Bhima to a wrestling match. Bhima accepted the challenge and killed him. The others woke up hearing the noise. Hidimba introduced herself, and declared the love for Bhima. She told Kunti; “I have forsaken my friends, my dharma and my kin; a good lady, chosen your tiger-like son for my man….whether you think me a fool, or your devoted servant, let me join you, great lady, with your son as my husband.”


Ultimately, Yudhishtra agreed to the marriage on condition that they would spend the day together but that Bhima would return every night. The couple roamed all over the world during the day. In due course, Hidimba gave birth to a Rakshasa boy named Ghatotkacha. Then the mother and son left the Pandavas. Ghatotkacha promised to return to the Pandavas whenever they needed him.


Some historian suggest that the term rakshasa is used to describe people whose practices differed from those laid down in the Brahmanical texts.


(i) How did the story from Adi Parvan play an important role in shaping the values and ethos of the society?


(ii) How was this story a unique example of exogamy?


(iii) How did Hidimba and Yudhishtra interpret dharma in their context?