 "Mahatma Gandhi with the last Viceroy, Louis Mountbatten and his wife Edwina in 1947. It was Mountbatten's arbitrary choice of date for the British withdrawal, announced at a press conference, that underlined the British government's systematic failur")
Seventy years ago this week, India and Pakistan became independent from the British Empire. The celebrations were cut short as the partition on religious lines ripped the subcontinent apart. Partition changed millions of lives, and the shape of the world, forever.
No one knows exactly how many were beaten, mutilated, tortured or raped in communal violence between Hindus, Sikhs and Muslims. The death toll has been estimated at 200,000 to two million. Between 10 million and 20 million people were displaced.
Who was to blame? Many in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh (which was East Pakistan until 1971) and Britain have asked that question.
