J. Appl. Environ. Biol. Sci., 4(9S)1-6, 2014 © 2014, TextRoad Publication ISSN: 2090-4274 Journal of Applied Environmental and Biological Sciences www.textroad.com * Corresponding Author: Prof. Dr. Muhammad Iqbal Chawla, Department of History & Pakistan Studies University of the Punjab, Lahore – Pakistan 54590 Chawla_iqbal@yahoo.com The Punjab Disturbances of 1946-47: Revisited Prof Dr. Muhammad Iqbal Chawla Department of History & Pakistan Studies University of the Punjab, Lahore – Pakistan 54590 Received: September 12, 2014 Accepted: November 23, 2014 ABSTRACT In 1947, on the eve of Partition of India, a large scale killing, lootings of innocent citizens across the border took place which claimed lives of millions of people. According to an estimate almost more than two million people were killed, and almost another fifteen million, in addition, were forced to migrate from their homes. Much has been written about the communal violence in India, but in most of the literature, the British is blamed for igniting and encouraging disturbance for their imperial designs. In fact, despite British stern actions to address the law and order in India in the dying days of the Raj, the British Government failed to prevent the massacres, especially brutal and widespread in the Punjab, and in the rest of the country in general. The British was blamed for mishandling the communal matters which to some extent were true, but after the lapse of 67 years of partition of India, one can make an objective study of the Punjab disturbances that broke out in 1947. It is important, therefore, to analyze the dynamics of the communal violence in the Punjab and the factors that led to the tragic happening of communal violence. This paper attempts to understand how and why the disturbances in the Punjab took place and what efforts were made by the parties concerned to deal with it. The author intends to challenge this theory that these were the British who applied the Divide and Rule theory which resulted in the communal violence. This paper is significant to uncover the story on the basis of primary sources which will help fill an important gap in our existing historical literature. KEYWORDS: Muslims, Hindus, Sikhs, British, riots, 1 INTRODUCTION Partition of India was such an appalling episode of sub-continental history which is both hard to ignore and difficult to forget easily. That tragic act resulted in the displacement of 12.5 million people in the former British India and an estimated loss of life of close to one million. The violent nature of the partition created an air of mutual antagonism between the newly emerged states of India and Pakistan. The nature and severity of violence in united Punjab was different from other areas because of the magnitude of bloody riots and extensive bloodshed. The greatest forced human migration in history with its gory tales of massacres, looting, arson, rape, abduction of women and children and other acts of savagery was essentially that facet of a Punjabi tragedy which has left deep and seemingly inerasable imprints on the future course of South Asian history. Historians have been trying their best to investigate various aspects of this history. But much more research needs to be done to shed a clearer light on the dynamics of that cataclysmic event. Therefore, it aims to examine the pre-partition time-period that preceded the later genocide, violence and riots. The violence and the turmoil which occurred during the transfer of power of British India in August 1947 was the result of many factors. Though in some cases the violence against the other community was spontaneous, more often it was executed by well-trained and well-prepared militant organizations with clear objectives. The three main communities--Muslims, Hindus, and the Sikhs--all applied fear and violence as instruments of terror to win the war of succession in the Punjab. The main area of communal contention was Northern India in which certain parts of Punjab, some Princely States and Jammu were the main areas of attacks on the other community which was forced to flee to the other side of the newly-created border, Punjab especially, became a bloody battleground which left a permanent legacy of hatred between the successor states, India and Pakistan. There were clear indications that on the eve of the final transfer of power there could be widespread civil disturbances, but very few in India or in the United Kingdom had appraised its true dimensions. Thus, immediately after the June 3 announcement, which announced the termination of the British paramountcy in India, it began to turn ugly and very soon it became so wild and violent that some 1