Indian subcontinent gets freedom

1. Indian subcontinent gets freedom By: Jamie Wasemann and Adam Gram

2. A MOVEMENT TOWARD INDEPENDENCE • The British were in control of India for the past two centuries • 1939 – Indian resistance to the British Intensifies when Britain sends India’s forces into WW2 without government’s permission. • Indian leader Mohandas Gandhi has peaceful protest to stop cooperating with Britain. • India also had internal problems between Muslims and Hindus. • Two groups form: Congress party and Muslim League.

3. Congress party • India’s national political party • The Congress Party was composed mostly of Hindus • Focused more on Hindu interests

4. Muslim league • Was the competition of the Congress Party • Political party that focused for on Muslim beliefs. • Muhammad Ali Jinnah was the leader of the Muslim League. • He declared that the only thing that Hindus and Muslims have in common is being enslaved by the British.

5. Turmoil • Due to war debts, Britain was getting rid of distant colonies • Before Britain could hand the power over, there occurred a problem. Who would get the power – Hindus or Muslims? • Muslims and Hindus fought for power. • August 1946 – 4 days of fighting leaving 5,000 dead and 15,000 injured. • India got there independence on August 15, 1947. • They became the world’s largest democracy.

6. The formation of Pakistan • The solution was a partition – They had to divide India into separate Hindu and Muslim nations • The northwest and eastern regions became Pakistan – where most of the Muslims lived. • Pakistan had the majority of the population and was divided into two states – West Pakistan and East Pakistan .

7. Independence is granted • July 16, 1947 Pakistan and India are given their freedom from the British • Everything had to be divided • Millions of people had to decide where to go all at once • Another Religious group formed – The Sikhs • The 3 religious groups fought and killed each other. One million people died. • Gandhi was killed by a Hindu on Jan. 30, 1948. • Both Hindus and Muslims fought over a small region called Kashmir which they're s still fighting over today.

8. Independent India is unstable • Jawaharlel Nehru began the independent nation’s first prime minister. • He ruled for 17 years. He was popular with all the different groups. • He stood for democracy, unity and modernization. • When he died in 1964, no one was strong enough to take over the Congress Party. There were a series of rulers including his daughter, Indira and her son Rajiv Gandhi. • There were many – like the Sikh extremists who wanted to be independent. • In 1998, Atal Bihari Vajpayee won the election for prime minister of the Hindu Nationalist Party. India was very unstable. Their population was going to pass China by 2035. The country had a lot of social inequality and was constantly threatened by religious strife. Also, India had a tense relationship with Pakistan and they both became nuclear powers. This caused great international concerns since they were enemies.

9. Pakistan As a free country • West and East Pakistan were separated by 1000 miles of Indian land and had very different cultures and were enemies. • East Pakistan renamed itself Bangladesh • Bangladesh and Pakistan started a civil war. Over 1 million people died. • Bangladesh achieved independence. • Muhammad Ali Jinnah was the first governor-general of Pakistan. He died shortly after the independence. • After Jinnah, there was a long series of leaders that were overthrown by the military. • Sheik Mujibur Rahman became Bangladesh’s first prime minister. He was more interested in his own power and he was killed in August, 1975.

10. Bangladesh after the civil war • Bangladesh had a ruined economy after the war with Pakistan • They wanted a more democratic form of government. • Begum Khaleda Zia took over as prime minister in October of 2001. • Bangladesh had a lot of natural disasters like cyclones and tidal waves. Storms flooded the land, ruined crops and homes and took many lives. • Bangladesh is one of the poorest nations in the world. • The per capita income there is about $360 per year. • Sri Lanka is another newly freed country of the coast of India. They have 2 main ethnic groups – the Sinhalese and the Tamils. A militant group of Tamils have been fighting. A civil war continues today. • Many countries who won their independence have faced difficult challenges like India.

11. 3 QUESTIONS FOR THE FINAL Exam from 34.1 • Who became India’s first prime minister after they won their independence from Britain? • Jawaharlal Nehru • Begum Khaleda Zia • Benazir Bhutto • Atal Bihari Vajpayee • All of the following were challenges that Atal Bihari Vajpayee faced as leader of the Hindu Nationalist Party EXCEPT FOR? • A big population increase that will push India past China as the most populated nation by 2035. • The country had social inequality and was threatened by religious differences. • Both India and Pakistan became nuclear powers which caused international concern since they were enemies. • Other countries tried to overtake India and Pakistan since they had a weak military. • What did Muhammad Ali Jinnah say was the only thing that the Hindus and Muslims have in common? • Their culture • Their slavery to the British • Their friendship with the United States. • Their love of fine arts.

12. Works Cited • Beck, Black, Kreiger, Naylor, and Shabaka. World History Patterns of Interaction. Illinois: McDougal Littell, 2009. 997-1003. • MKGandhi. 1940. Wikipedia.org. 28 June 2007. Web. 15 May 2012. <http:// en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File: MKGandhi.jpg.> • Congress-Kerala. 12 May 2010. Mahamediaonline.org. Web. 15 May 2012. <http://mahamediaonline.com/newDetails.jsp?Id=25758&size=plus&cursize=2.> • Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah. 23 March 2012. The financial express-bd.com. Web. 15 May 2012. <www.thefinancialexpress- bd.com/more.php?news_id=124462.> • Jawaharlal Nehru on a 1989 USSR Commemorative Stamp. 1989. Wikipedia.org. Image. 15 May 2012. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jawaharlal_Nehru