Wrong policies led to partition of India, says Hardeep Puri

New Delhi, Aug 14

Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri on Monday said the wrong policies of those in charge in 1947 led to the partition of India.

Speaking at an event here, organised on the occasion of the Partition Horrors Remembrance Day, Puri without naming anyone, said: "Wrong policies of those in charge led to the partition of India. My parents were victims of the ravages of this greatest human tragedy. Born in 1952, I grew up listening to how my father miraculously escaped the carnage and boarded the last Frontier Mail from Lahore."

“My parent and several other members of the family had to begin their lives from scratch,” he said.

"The Partition Horrors Remembrance Day will ensure that future generations never forget the pain and suffering of the countless people that were displaced and the millions that lost their lives due to the communal tensions (hate and violence) that occurred during that time."

"My blood boils when some ‘buddhijeevis' (intellectuals)’ who had earlier spread canards about jamun trees on Kartavya Path, suggest that we should not revisit horrors of partition now and that we should move on, letting bygones be bygones. Jews have not forgotten the holocaust."

"How can they even suggest that victims of genocides should forget their past? Instead, I suggest that they should also revisit the horrors of one of the world’s most savage human tragedies and introspect. Those who forget history will find that sooner or later, history will repeat itself."

On the occasion, the Minister also honoured 75 great personalities who faced the brunt of partition.

From 2021, every year on this day, Partition Horrors Remembrance Day is observed to recall the sacrifices and struggle of our people during the time of partition.