Abdul Haq and Mir Bostan have both been affected by the Partition of India. They come from Muslim families and the violence they witnessed has shaped their lives. Both Abdul and Mir had family who served in the British Army during the Second World War and who were able to sponsor their move to Britain.
Abdul was born into a Muslim family in the Punjab in 1940. He had two sisters and an older brother.
He was seven years old when India was partitioned. The Punjab was divided between India and Pakistan. Because they were Muslim, Abdul’s family had to abandon everything they owned and flee to Pakistan. His mother and sisters left first. Abdul and his father set out after them, but his father died during the journey. Abdul saw a great deal of violence at this time.
The first years after Partition were very difficult. His mother also died and he and his sisters had to live with relatives. Pakistan did not feel like home.
‘Very upset, very upset…because - no mother, no father, no money…I left everything in India.’
Abdul’s older brother was able to sponsor his immigration to Britain because he had served in the British Army during the Second World War. Abdul came to Leeds in 1961 and has lived there ever since. He has visited Pakistan several times, but he does not want to live there. He is happy to be in Britain.
‘I have seen plenty [of] problems in my life, over there you know in Pakistan, now I come to England, now I am quite happy.’
Abdul met Mir through the Leeds Muslim Pensioners Group. They have a lot in common.
Mir was also born into a Muslim family before the Partition, in Kashmir, in about 1931. There was fierce fighting there following Partition. Mir’s family was scattered by the violence and he was injured. He was in hospital for a long time. His family thought that he had died until he returned from hospital. The violence that he saw has had a powerful impact on him.
‘[A] person [has] no right to take the life of another person.’
Mir also feels strongly about India’s Partition. He recalls that the different religious groups were able to live peacefully before then.
‘We have been living in India…no fighting…we didn’t know which was Indian or which was Muslim.’
‘My life is in this country… this [is] my home now.’
Mir Bostan
Mir came to Britain in January 1952. He was also sponsored by a member of his family who had served in the British Army. He moved to Leeds and has lived there for over forty years. Mir does not have much family left in Kashmir. He still visits Pakistan but does not feel he belongs there. He is happy to be living in Britain.
‘I love English people, they are honest people…I love the country…my life is this country.’
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