Scattered Fates - a novel on the second partition of India

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  As Moon approached Fort St. George, he heard loud chanting and shouting. Drums were beating, just like last night. As he drew closer, the noise became louder.

  Students carrying red and black flags had blocked the road to the building, raising slogans. Fully armored police were guarding the entrance. There were a few water tankers around. Some students had stones in their fists others were holding hockey sticks and cycle chains. He noticed Professor Subbaiah standing at the far end talking to a few students, and rushed towards him.

  ‘Sir. Professor Subbaiah. Excuse me sir!’ he shouted.

  ‘What are you doing here?’

  ‘Sir, there were no classes. The university is empty. What is happening?’

  ‘You were there at the meeting last night.You should know. Don’t disturb me now. I am busy.’

  ‘Sir, I could not understand a word yesterday.’

  ‘Oh, sorry, I forgot. It is not safe, there is going to be violence here, meet me in my office after lunch, I will explain everything to you. They have cheated us!’

  ‘Who has cheated us?’ Moon asked, still trying to get some information.

  ‘Shastri and the Congress; they want to make Hindi the national language. We will not tolerate it. Now go. It is not safe,’ Subbaiah said pushing him away.

  Shastri. Congress. Hindi. National language.

  Nothing made sense. He hurried back to the university, hoping to find someone who could explain all this, impatient to wait another two hours.

  Luckily, he spotted Professor Ganapathy seated in the shade on a bench in front of Senate Hall. He was supposed to teach his class a course in Development Economics next year, and they had only briefly been introduced at the fresher’s welcome party.

  He gingerly walked up and excused himself. ‘Good morning, sir.’

  ‘Hello. Mr. Choi from Corea, right?’

  ‘Moon sir, my first name is Moon-kyu, and everyone here calls me Moon. Also my family name is pronounced Choi like in pay not like toy.’

  ‘Yes. I remember now. Subbaiah was mentioning you in the morning. He was worried about your food, and sought information on Chinese restaurants nearby.’

  ‘That is very kind of him to remember sir, what with all this action here now.’

  ‘Oh, that?’ he said pointing towards the noise ahead. ‘Don’t worry. It will last only a few days. We had the same situation four months ago, before you joined. Nothing to worry about.’

  ‘What is happening, sir?’

  ‘It is all a political game. The anti-Hindi agitations are justified, but they are only helping some of our politicians to build their careers. They are taking the help of some popular movie stars to spread mistrust among Indians and sow hatred.’

  ‘I’m sorry sir, it is still confusing.’

  ‘No, no, no. I’m sorry. I forgot that you have no knowledge of India and this is your first time outside Corea, I will try to explain in a language that you can understand.’

  ‘Thank you sir.’

  ‘Let me see. How far back do you want me to go? OK, first some basic information,’ Ganapathy said, raising his index finger. ‘You know India was ruled by the British till 1947, right?’

  ‘Yes, just like we were ruled by the Japanese.’

  ‘The British were not as cruel as the Japanese, nevertheless, they did subdue our people. Many people forget that while the British gave orders to commit many atrocities, it were the Indians who worked for them that carried out these orders. In fact I would give more credit to the British for making India one entity. Before them, it was just a number of selfish princely states and of course the Mughal dynasty which controlled large parts of North India.’

  Moon nodded his head. He had perfected the art.

  ‘Now, take Europe. There are so many different countries, with different languages and culture, but in recent years, they are talking of a Federation of Europe.’

  Moon bowed his head respectfully. He recalled studying about the Treaty of Rome, signed by France, West Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg. It led to the creation of the European Economic Community in 1957.

  ‘Imagine that the European Federation expands to become one country, and includes dozens of other member states.’

  ‘That is not possible sir. They are so different from each other. They cannot even understand the others language, and they are constantly fighting. The two world wars were started by them.’

  ‘Exactly. India was in the same situation, till the British came. Only, now, there is no talk. It is a reality.’

  ‘I understand.’

  ‘So next, if Europe becomes one country, German is made the official national language and everyone is forced to learn it for national integration, do you think the others will keep quiet?’

  ‘Of course not, there are only around 56 million people in West Germany, the population of the other countries combined must be much more.’

  ‘True, there are 52 million people in UK, 50 million in Italy, 45 million in France and 30 million in Spain. None of them would have had any incentive to learn German. But now, if they do not know, they will be discriminated in their own country. They will be forced to learn a new language and follow a new culture, just because the biggest ethnic group in the new country will be Germans.’

  Moon nodded.

  ‘Similarly, in India, out of the population of 440 million, only around 134 million speak Hindi as their mother tongue. That is just 30 percent of the population. If you add 23 million who speak Urdu, the Muslim’s language that is similar to Hindi, it becomes 36 percent.’

  ‘So you mean 74 percent of the Indian population does not speak Hindi or Urdu?’

  ‘Absolutely. Now, if you make Hindi the national language, the others have a legitimate right to be upset. They will be kept out of government jobs. They cannot write national competitive exams. They will be treated as inferior citizens in their own country.’

  ‘Yes sir, the same thing happened in Corea during Ilje sidae. In 1939, the Corean culture was quashed, and we were forced to speak Japanese, even take Japanese names. The use and study of Corean language, literature, and culture was banned.’

  ‘So you see, our central government, which is mostly made up of North Indians, wants to use the same methods that imperial Japan imposed on Corea. If they have their way, we might even have to convert our names, because they cannot pronounce it.’

  ‘I heard that there was some language issue, even before Independence. Is it something different?’ Moon interrupted.

  ‘No it is the same. Tamils began protesting against Hindi as early as 1938, during the time Japan was imposing Japanese on Coreans. The British had allowed for some devolution of powers in the Indian provinces. The Congress Party, which is ruling even now, made Hindi compulsory in schools. After protests, the order was withdrawn, but over the next ten years, they tried imposing Hindi many times, always unsuccessful.’

  ‘It seems like a reasonable agitation to me. Why are you against it now?’

  ‘As I told you, it has become a purely political issue. Before 1947 a popular leader Periyar convinced everyone that the South Indians should form their own nation and get independence from North Indian Aryans. The present leaders Anna and Karunanidhi have given a new twist to this demand saying that the Congress Party represents Brahmins seeking to impose Hindi, Hindu supremacy and caste hierarchies on our national identity. It is rubbish to bring caste into the equation. While they claim they are against the division of India, their actions show that they want to do just that.’

  Moon had heard about the caste system in India, it was even mentioned in his history textbook in school. He was pretty sure that Professor Ganapathy was a Brahmin.

  This is not the time to ask.

  ‘What happened in yesterday’s meeting?’

  ‘I was not there and have no clue. There is nothing in the newspapers, even Subbaiah did not mention anything to me in the morning. I came to give my lecture and sa
w the deserted campus.’

  ‘Professor Subbaiah was mentioning something about Shastri making Hindi the national language.’

  ‘Not again! Shastri promised us that English would continue to be an official language. He never breaks his promise and is a man of integrity, I don’t trust the DMK politicians; they must be spreading these rumors. Where did you meet Subbaiah?’

  ‘He is with students at the fort sir.’

  ‘Really, at the fort? Then it is more serious than I thought. Maybe there is some news on the radio, I have to talk to Damodaran in Delhi. Have to go home.’

  Ganapathy sprang up from his seat and hurried towards the residence quarters, leaving the confused exchange student grappling with half-baked information behind.

  I better go back to the hostel and ask Vinay, he must surely have more information.Why did he say I have to go back to Corea?

  Hoping to find his roommate still around, he walked at a brisk pace, sweating profusely in the humid weather, reaching in less than 10 minutes.

  Vinay was still sobbing and grunting in an alien language. He had just finished packing his bags.

  ‘Hello, where are you going?’ he asked, noticing the suitcase.

  ‘Home. Where else?’

  ‘Are you dropping out? It is only the beginning of the term.’

  ‘What is the use? Saala madrasis won’t allow us to study.’

  ‘Can you tell me what happened? I tried asking people, but there is no one in the university. Everyone has gone to the fort.’

  ‘Of course, no one wants to study, they only want to protest and eat idli-sambar, and what for? They do not want to learn Hindi. Ridiculous, it is our national language and they do not want to learn it.’

  ‘I heard that your Prime Minister gave his word that English will continue as the official language.’

  ‘Yes, he is a very weak man, a pygmy compared to Jawaharlal Nehru. A few stones are thrown and he backs down, I wish Indira was our Prime Minister.’

  ‘Who is Indira?’

  ‘Jawaharlal Nehru’s daughter; she is strong, smart and beautiful. Unlike Shastri, she has more guts to thrash these dark madrasis and put them in their place. She is Nehru’s blood, and should rightfully get the position.’

  ‘Vinay, if you hate the South Indians, why did you come here to study for your masters?’

  ‘No choice yaar, my dad is a kunjoos. Madras University gave me a full scholarship. I wanted to study in Delhi with all the other intellectuals, but he said I needed to experience different cultures. My foot.’

  ‘I heard that there are more intellectuals in South India, and there is also uncorrupted culture here, that is why I chose Madras University. I also had an admission offer from Delhi University.’

  ‘You chose this place over Delhi? Big mistake, my friend, these are all fake intellectuals from the backward caste.’

  ‘Anyway, what exactly is the situation here now?’

  ‘That Anna fellow said that Shastri is likely to make an announcement today. Hindi will be made the official language, and everyone has to learn the language if they want to be Indian. If they do not want to learn Hindi, then they can leave the country.’

  ‘That is very unfair.’

  ‘Unfair? This should have happened long ago, in 1947. More people speak Hindi in India than any other language. North Indians fought for our independence from Britain and sacrificed so many lives. South Indians did not do anything; they only wrote newspaper articles and hid behind their doors, folding their lungis.’

  ‘That can’t be true. I read that South Indians too fought against the British. Also, I am told that less than 40 percent of the population speaks Hindi.’

  ‘So what? We are the majority. Why should we make English the national language?’ Vinay retorted.

  Realizing that he was speaking to a North Indian prejudiced beyond redemption, Naga got up. At least he had the information he was looking for, but there were still some gray areas.

  ‘What did Anna ask the students to do?’

  ‘Complete boycott of classes, continue the agitation that was suspended in March, and if Shastri makes the announcement, South Indian states will break away from India. Just like the American civil war, when the North and South almost broke up.’

  ‘Isn’t that a bit farfetched?’

  ‘It is, but don’t worry, North India can easily thrash the madrasis. My country will never be divided, the army will break their backs.’

  ‘What are you going to do?’

  ‘I am leaving by the 2 ‘O clock train. Good excuse to get away from this hot and dirty city. You should also pack your bags, there will be a lot of violence.’

  ‘I don’t have any money for my return ticket. The University is paying my fees, and will give me my dues at the end of the term.’

  ‘Bad luck. Why don’t you ask your professors for a way out of this mess?’

  ‘I will do that, and hope to see you again after all this is over.’

  ‘I hope not. I am going to study in Delhi. My father can easily get me transferred, he just has to bribe someone.’

  ‘And you are OK with that?’

  ‘That is how it works here, I have no choice. Hey, you want to have lunch with me? I still have time for my train.’

  ‘Not in the hostel mess. Is there any North Indian restaurant close by? I want to try the food you eat.’

  ‘Sure, there are some good places in Triplicane, not far. I often go there to see Hindi movies at Star Talkies. Do you know in this damn city, there are only two cinemas Midland and Star which screen Hindi movies?’

  ‘Maybe that is because no one understands the language?’

  ‘You don’t need to understand Hindi to appreciate the movies. Have you seen Dev Anand’s Guide? It was released a few months ago. Madrasis cannot make movies like that,’ he said, humming a popular tune from the movie.

  ‘I read the book, written by a South Indian. Anyway, how far away is it?’

  ‘Just 10 minutes by walk.’

  They stepped out the hostel, and could hear loud chants coming from the direction of Fort.

  ‘Look at those useless fellows. Let’s go this way, there is a shortcut,’ Vinay smirked.

  As they made their way through narrow, congested lanes, Moon kept quite, lost in thoughts.

  Hope Professor Subbaiah comes to his office. He is my last hope to get out of here.

  ‘Moon, although we are roommates, we never spent time together. You never sleep in our room, any problem?’

  ‘No, just that I chat with my friends till late in the night, and don’t want to disturb you.’

  ‘Those Northeast guys, eh? They are fun fellows, always singing and dancing. They have no problem with Hindi, but they eat beef, which is very unholy,’ Vinay said, dodging a stray cow on the street to avoid touching it.

  The next sight completely puzzled Moon.

  Spotting a garbage dump near the road, Vinay suddenly stopped, tugged at a string from under his shirt, pulled it around his left ear, and unbuttoned his trouser. With a deep sigh, he then relieved himself.

  Ghe Shiki.

  ‘Couldn’t stop the pressure,’ Vinay said sheepishly approaching him, wiping his hand on the trouser.

  ‘Why did you pull that string over the ear? What is it?

  ‘It is the sacred thread. We call it Janeu. Only the Brahmins can wear it. I pulled it over my ear so it is not polluted. We are also not supposed to speak while doing it.’

  ‘Is it a North Indian thing?’

  ‘No. All Hindu Brahmins have to wear the Janeu. As per vedic rules, a brahmachari should wear one thread, married men should wear two threads and men whose parents have passed away should wear 3 threads.’

  ‘What does the thread stand for?’

  ‘Each thread has three strings tied in a knot. They denote the Hindu Trinity of Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva. Of course, different people have different interpretations.’

  ‘So if a man wears this thread he can be iden
tified as a Brahmin?’

  ‘Right, it protects him from all the evil eyes of the lower castes. A Brahmin is the superior caste and was appointed by Brahma to rule over other lower castes. It is sad that everyone is attacking this ancient system, and they are introducing so many new laws. They are just jealous of our superiority.’

  Moon understood that the caste system was a complex and outdated system that divided people on the basis of their occupation. He also read that the Indian government had outlawed this practice, but the people were not ready to let go. It was however the first time that he heard a defense of this system.

  ‘How do you know your God appointed Brahmins to rule?’

  ‘It is mentioned in the Vedas, our oldest sacred book written 1500 years before Jesus Christ was born. You can read it if you doubt me.’

  ‘Maybe it was written by Brahmins.’

  ‘Aren’t you a Buddhist?’ Vinay asked ignoring his statement.

  ‘No, I have no religion.’

  ‘What do you mean no religion? Everyone has a religion. I was born a Hindu and will die a Hindu.’

  ‘In Corea, no one cares what our parents religion is. Every individual has a right to choose his own faith.’

  ‘That is impossible.’

  ‘No. I am not lying.’

  ‘How can you have no religion? I don’t believe you.’

  By now Moon was getting really exasperated, wanting to give him a tight slap, turn around and leave, but he was hungry and spotted a restaurant ahead.

  So glad this guy is leaving town soon.

  ‘Is that the restaurant?’ he pointed ahead.

  ‘Wrong, this street is littered with idli-sambar and halal restaurants. Our place is just behind that building, the best vegetarian food in Madras. It is owned by a pure Brahmin from Allahabad, he is also a Sharma, belongs to my sub-caste.’

  ‘Vegetarian? I could do with some pork or beef.’

  ‘This is not England. You don’t get pork and beef here, tauba, tauba.’

  ‘What about chicken?’

  ‘Don’t worry it won’t be like that sambar you get in the mess. Brahmins are not supposed to eat non-vegetarian, I do not even eat onion and garlic. The food here is strictly made according to the Vedic traditions, very healthy and delicious. There is our restaurant.’

  It was dingy and dark, mostly empty with just two other customers seated on a table, a shaggy young boy digging the dirt from his nails with a matchstick and a pot-bellied old man sitting at the counter.

  They took a corner table, and without asking, Vinay shouted out an order to the boy, who returned immediately with some strange smelling dishes.

  Seem like leftovers from yesterday.

  ‘No rice?’ Moon enquired.

  ‘No, we don’t eat rice. We eat roti. Rice makes you lazy and dimwitted, like all the madrasis. We eat wheat which keeps us strong and active.’

  Moon cringed as he saw the food laid out in front. There was some brown fluffy pancake like stuff, a bowl with brown ttong which looked even more disgusting than sambar, a lump of fried vegetables floating in oil, and a piece of raw mango stuck in gochujang. There was no way he could eat this.

  I can even tolerate rice with sambar now, no wonder he is so fat and dumb. Shikya.

  ‘Oh, I completely forgot, Professor Subbaiah wanted to meet me in his office. I am sorry, I have to rush.’

  ‘Are you sure? Fine, I can finish everything. Just pay me your share; one rupee.’

  Moon hurriedly placed a few coins on the table and fled. He made his way to the hostel mess, expecting to find it empty, with all the students protesting at fort.

  Arriving, fifteen minutes later, he was surprised to find it buzzing with activity; even protesting students cannot avoid lunch breaks. Looking around for familiar faces, he was disappointed. Andy and his other friends were still out watching Goldfinger.

  Moon chose a corner bench next to some local students who were arguing at the top of their voice. Relatively, it was the least noisy place in the entire room.

  They gave a quick glance as he bowed his head and continued their discussion, ignoring him.

  The rice and sambar tasted quite good today, and he actually enjoyed the taste. Maybe it was the rebound effect from the disgusting tin shed food that he just escaped. He silently finished his plate and fled again, this time to Professor Subbaiah’s office.

  The door was not locked, but it was closed shut from inside. He put his ear close to the door, and heard a radio. Taking a moment, he knocked on it hard.

  ‘Professor Subbaiah?’

  No response.

  He tried again, knocking harder. This time there was a click and the door opened.

  ‘Hello, Moon, I was expecting you.’

  ‘Sir, is everything under control?’

  ‘Not yet, this is a historic moment, you are lucky to be able to witness everything firsthand, and will never forget it.’

  ‘I don’t understand.’

  ‘At 2.30 our Prime Minister is going to address the nation, and make an announcement that will impact the future of India as one country.’

  ‘Sir, can you explain?’

  ‘You have been here for a month now. I am sure you know the anti-Hindi agitation.’

  ‘I have the basic information, Professor Ganapathy gave me the background in the morning.’

  ‘Ganapathy? He may have omitted some basic facts which he disagrees with.’

  ‘He explained about the agitation, but said that some political parties are taking advantage of it by making it a caste issue.’

  ‘He always argues that with me, but it is a historic fact. Brahmins, who are a minority run the Congress party, yet control all the power in India. They have manipulated the system to push the majority out of power. Ours is a self-respect movement trying to put a stop to this oppression.’

  ‘Isn’t that different from the language issue?’

  ‘No, it is all connected. It is very simple. I can understand the North Indian’s wanting to make Hindi the national language, they want to get all the jobs and benefits by keeping us out, but why do the Congress politicians from South India support this policy? It is all a Brahmin conspiracy.’

  That is possible. English or French politicians would never support German as the national language of Europe.

  ‘Maybe they are just following orders from their leaders.’

  ‘Exactly. If they are just doing that, then they have no right to represent us, we need leaders who understand our concerns and are not bothered about what their bosses say. You know our chief minister is from Madras, but he is trying to force this issue.’

  ‘I heard they promised to continue English as official language.’

  ‘Yes that was the promise Shastri made us, but there are other powerful politicians in the Congress party who want to sideline him, and are using the Hindi issue to become popular in their own constituencies. Anna got information that they may announce a new policy starting next month.’

  ‘Doesn’t Shastri have the final say?’

  ‘He is the most powerful man in India, but very simple and naïve, always in the shadow of Nehru who was a globally recognized statesman, the others can easily manipulate him, including Nehru’s own daughter who thinks it is her divine right to be Prime Minister.’

  ‘Isn’t India a democracy, where the people vote to decide?’

  ‘Yes, but because of illiteracy and poverty, it is a few powerful people who finally get to manipulate the end result and decide what is best for the rest of the country. They are using Hindi to weaken Shastri and gain control.’

  ‘Sir, excuse me, I just realized that you are using the family names for all North Indians, although you are against using family names.’

  ‘You are right, very sharp observation. In North India, everyone uses the family name to identify people, so unconsciously we also tend to use the family names when we refer to them. This is the kind of slimy cultural imperialism that I am against.’

/>   ‘What will happen if Shastri sticks to his promise?’

  ‘That is what we are waiting for.’

  ‘What if he backs down?’

  ‘We will relaunch our agitation; our party has already started discussions with other South Indian leaders for the future course of action. Although they did not join our movement earlier, we are convincing them this time,’ he said glancing at the clock.

  ‘You mean from the other states?’

  ‘Yes. Andhra, Mysore and Kerala. We should also be able to convince Pondicherry and Goa. If all of us agitate together, the other states like Bengal, Gujarat and Maharashtra may join. The Center will have no option but to keep English as the official language,’ Subbaiah said, turning the volume knob on his transistor.

  …. you were just listening the afternoon news. This is All India Radio. The time is 2.30 pm. We regret to inform you that due to unavoidable circumstances the address to the nation by Prime Minister Shri Lal Bahadur Shastriji has been postponed. We will let to you know the rescheduled time after confirmation. Please stand by for our next program Krishi Darshan.

  ‘Something is not right, definitely wrong,’ Subbaiah said.

  ‘Maybe he will give his speech in the evening. In my country, our Prime Minister always gives a radio broadcast either early in the morning or evening.’

  ‘You are right, 2.30 is not the right time to address the nation. Somehow, I still have a feeling that something bad is happening, maybe Ganapathy knows. Where did you see him in the morning?’

  ‘He was near Senate Hall, and went home saying that he has to talk to someone in Delhi.’

  ‘I better go to his house.’

  However, there was no need for that, as Ganapathy suddenly barged into the room, panting.

  ‘Subbaiah, Subbaiah, I have some news for you.’

  ‘Hello Ganapathy, I was just thinking of you.’

  ‘I talked to my brother-in-law, Damodaran, who works in the Ministry of Planning. You met him last summer.’

  ‘What did he say? Any news about the Hindi policy?’

  ‘Something even more shocking, there are rumors that Shastri will resign, and is going to submit his letter to President Radhakrishna today evening.’

  ‘What? Why?’

  ‘The Congress party has split; Indira Nehru has set up a rival party and has the support of 251 Congress MPs, only 110 are supporting Shastri. As you know, of the 494 seats, the Congress has 361, and it takes the support of only 247 MPs to form a government.’

  ‘What is the reason for this split?’

  ‘Hindi of course. The Indira coterie wants to make Hindi the national language which is opposed by Shastri.’

  ‘Wait, if I remember right, in the 1962 elections, there were around 96 Congress MPs from South India, 41 from Maharashtra, 22 from West Bengal, 16 from Gujarat… you mean some of non-Hindi MPs also want to impose Hindi?’

  ‘That is right.’

  ‘Shameful, truly shameful, they will do anything for power.’

  ‘Indira will be announced as the new Prime Minister today evening. She may make a statement about Hindi in her acceptance speech.’

  ‘Isn’t she a member of the Rajya Sabha? How can she become Prime Minister, she has never won an election?’

  ‘She doesn’t need to, the Constitution allows for our Prime Minister to be from the upper house. I am sure there will be many more Prime Ministers in the future, who are unelectable.’

  ‘Oh my God! If she announces that Hindi will become the sole national language there will be riots here, it will be worse than last time. Today’s demonstration was just a scare tactic, and we never expected this.’

  ‘Sir, should I go back to my country? Vinay was mentioning something about a civil war,’ Moon interrupted.

  ‘Who is Vinay?’

  ‘My roommate, he has decided to go back to his hometown in North India.’

  ‘Bullshit, we are all against another partition. You know India was already divided after independence. Millions died and it was traumatic. Once is enough, we love our country as much as the North Indians, although, we do hate this obsession with Kashmir.’

  ‘What if your leaders decide to fight for a separate country? Will you support them?’

  Subbaiah kept quiet, as Ganapathy shrugged his shoulders.

  No one knew what lay ahead.

  Whatever happens, happens for the good.