Monday, January 22, 2018

Importance of Unionist Party in Punjab in the Pre-Partition Period


Importance of Unionist Party in Punjab in the Pre-Partition Period

**********************************

Unionist party has acted in Punjab as the main political party in the pre-partition period. Here is given some information about this political party. This study material is useful for students of history and It has been taken from books on partition of Punjab. It is available here free of cost.

**************************

The Unionist party appeared on the political scene of Punjab in 1923 and with its demise in 1947, its total life span extended to about 24 years. In the decade preceding partition, it acted as the party in power. With partition of the province this party disappeared into anonymity with practically every individual remnant that survived its disintegration joining either the Muslim League or the Indian National Congress, a few left politics all together. 

The Unionist party became irrelevant under circumstances. The Unionist party played an important role in the life of Punjab during this most critical phase. In the last pre-partition decade, Punjab converted into a kind of boiling pot of caste, communal, ethnic, regionalistic and feudalistic politics. This party was deeply involve in it. Unionist party’s politics was collaborative with colonial rule. It opposed the proposal for  partition of Punjab. Sikander Hayat, Chhotu Ram and Khizr Hayat remained the most vocal critics of the idea of dividing Punjab on the basis of faith.

Punjab was a Muslim majority province in the Pre-partition period and the demographic spread of Muslim population was such that the Muslim League projected it as the basis of its theory for partition. Some of the districts in the western region of the province had up to 95 percent of Muslim population and likewise some eastern districts had upward of 95 percent of Hindu population. The Unionist party was amongst the most assertive opponents of the partition of India. 


***************************************

No comments:

Featured Post

Strategy for UGC, JRF/NET Examination in History Subject

Strategy for  University Grants Commission (UGC) Junior Research Fellowship/National Eligibility Test (NET) Examination in History Subject *...