Why was the partition of Bengal revoked?

The British Raj executed a territorial rearrangement of the Bengal Presidency during the First Partition of Bengal. The rearrangement divided the predominantly Hindu western portions from the predominantly Muslim eastern areas. It was announced by Lord Curzon, the viceroy of India at the time, on July 19 and put into effect on October 16 of the same year. It was reversed just six years later. The split was viewed by nationalists as a threat to Indian nationalism and a deliberate attempt to divide Bengal along religious lines, with the eastern portion having a Muslim majority and the western portion having a Hindu majority.

Background

Since 1765, Bengal, Bihar, and Orissa have been a unified province of British India. The province had been too big by 1900 for one administration to manage. Due to its isolation and weak communications, East Bengal had been overshadowed by West Bengal and Bihar. To create a new province with a population of 31 million, Curzon choose to combine Assam, which had been a part of the province until 1874, with 15 districts of East Bengal. The majority of the population was Muslim, and the capital was Dacca.

The Bengali nation would be split in two, rendering the Hindus of West Bengal, who dominated the majority of the country’s trade, professions, and rural life, a minority in a region that also included all of Bihar and Orissa. They saw the division as an effort to stifle Bengal’s nationalism, which was more advanced than anywhere else. Mass gatherings, rural unrest, and a swadeshi movement to forbid the import of British products were all part of the opposition to the division. Despite the protests, the partition was implemented, and the fierce opposition dissipated to establish a terrorist organization.

Reaction to Partition

1. After Curzon announced the split, there was severe political turmoil throughout the region.
2. This partition was seen as an insult to the motherland by many Bengalis.
3. This attempt to divide the province along racial and ethnic lines was opposed by the Indian National Congress.
4. The majority of Bengalis in the western region opposed the move, which would also have made them a linguistic minority in their own province.
5. Many Bengali Muslims applauded this action because they believed it would promote their political, economic, and educational goals.
6. In addition, Lord Curzon pledged to establish a university in Dhaka.
7. The rest of the nation generally objected to this division. The main goal of such a division was to sever relationships between the two communities and undermine national pride in the nation.
8. Long before the actual date of the division, there was a commotion. A day of sorrow was held on the day of the partition.
9. As a result of this divide, the Swadeshi and Boycott movements in the national fight were established.
10. People began to boycott British products that had flooded the Indian market and hurt the domestic sector.
11. The separation did succeed in dividing the nation along religious lines, and it even played a role in the founding of the Muslim League in 1906.

Annulment of Partition 

Due to strong political opposition, the split was pronounced unlawful in 1911. Instead of establishing new provinces along religious lines, linguistic divisions were made. Bihar and Orissa were created as the two provinces that made up Bengal. Assam was divided into a separate provinces. Incapable of quelling the demonstrations, the authorities decided to undo the divide. King George V proclaimed the incorporation of eastern Bengal into the Bengal Presidency on December 12, 1911, in the Delhi Durbar.

While Assam, Bihar, and Orissa were split, districts, where Bengali was spoken, remained unified. It is obvious that the transfer of the capital to New Delhi was made to provide the British colonial government with a firmer base. Bengal’s Muslims were astonished since they had assumed that the government would be willing to defend Muslim interests given East Bengal’s Muslim majority. The separation was initially opposed by Muslim leaders.

Aftermath

Prominent Muslims started to consider the emergence of the provinces with a majority of Muslims, Eastern Bengal and Assam, as beneficial. By moving the capital to a Mughal site, the British tried to placate Bengali Muslims who were angry about losing eastern Bengal. The division did not result in a racial divide between Bengal’s Hindus and Muslims notwithstanding its annulment.

Sample Questions

Question 1: What was the result of the 1905 Partition of Bengal?

Answer:

The province was split into West Bengal, which had a majority of Hindus, and East Bengal, which had a majority of Muslims. However, there are still sizeable minorities of Hindus in East Bengal and Muslims in West Bengal. Muslims supported the division since it would give them their own province, but Hindus opposed it.

Question 2: Who took the decision to partition Bengal?

Answer:

In July 1905, Lord Curzon, the Indian Viceroy at the time, announced the intention to divide the state of Bengal.

Question 3: When was the Bengal annulment announced?

Answer:

The division of Bengal was abandoned on December 12, 1911, in honour of His Majesty George V’s visit to Indo-Pakistan and the holding of Durbar in Delhi. For the states of Assam and Bengal, respectively, a Chief Commissioner and a Governor were chosen.