Independence Day: 'Break Taj Mahal and send it to us', when Pakistan demanded strange things from India during partition in 1947
On the midnight of August 14-15, 1947, India got its Independence and first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru gave a speech 'Tryst with Destiny', which later became one of the most famous speeches in the world.
India had to do such a partition in which 1.4 crore people were displaced. Lakhs of people were killed and many other things were divided, including cash and property. The decision was to divide India into two countries – India and Pakistan. A British lawyer named Sir Cyril Radcliffe was assigned the task of drawing the boundaries of British India. At the same time, some historians say that Radcliffe simply 'drew a line on the map' and divided the country into two parts. So, the division of land was done. But there was one more difficult task left. This was the division of property. This included the army, money and cultural things.
How was the division done?
The division of property was not easy. Everything had to be divided into two parts. Like the weapons of the army, the money deposited in the government treasury and even the books in the libraries. All this was done very thoughtfully so that both the countries could get an equal share. India has been observing August 14 as 'Vibhajan Vibishika Smriti Diwas' (Partition Horrors Remembrance Day) since 2021 in memory of those who died during Partition. Some of the terms of the Partition approved by the Council were- Monetary and liquid assets (currency notes, coins, revenue stamps and gold reserves) were divided in the ratio of 82.5% for India and 17.5% for Pakistan.
How was assets divided?
Movable and non-liquid assets (tables, chairs, ink pots, blotting paper, books and even brooms inside government premises) were divided between India and Pakistan in the ratio of 80:20. Railway rolling stock and government vehicles were divided in proportion to the rail track and roadway inherited by each country.
Why were liquor and vehicles given to India?
According to a report, there were many other interesting aspects of the division of assets. Vehicles, clothes for government employees, wine cellars to store alcohol were given to India as Pakistan had become an Islamic republic after independence. At the same time, Quora and some media reports have said that some fundamentalist Maulanas of Pakistan wanted the Taj Mahal to be dismantled and sent to Pakistan because it was built by Islamic ruler and Mughal emperor Shah Jahan.
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