Memory, Violence and Identity in the Partition Narrative

Abstract

This paper tries to examine the legacy of the partition of the Indian subcontinent, analysing the partition violence and trauma that continue to resurface in the forms of national animosity, communal strife, and identity displacement between India and Pakistan. By implying theories of cultural memory—such as Maurice Halbwachs' living and collective memory, Jan Assmann's communicative and cultural memory, and Pierre Nora's lieux de mémoire—the paper attempts to critique Indian historiographies and literary mediation of the partition that push aside or deny partition violence as an aberration of decolonization, arguing instead for its recognition as a collective responsibility to foster democratic maturity. By implying mnemohistory, the paper examines Khushwant Singh's canonical novel Train to Pakistan (1956) as a site of memory. This paper seeks to locate the constant denial of the partition as the poison fruit of external manipulation, which fails to achieve what it is intended to foster: peace and harmony. Taking responsibility for the partition violence as the collective failure of the communities can heal the wound for good. Employing Paul Ricoeur's mimesis framework, the paper explores how the text mediates pre- and post-partition identities, communal harmony, and violence, emphasizing the role of cultural memory in healing historical wounds. By comparing historiographies with literary mediation of the partition, the study advocates for active remembrance to prevent the recurrence of such atrocities, positioning India as a model of pluralistic democracy in the Global South, as Germany did in the context of the Holocaust.