16 August 2022
16 August marks the 76th anniversary of Direction Action Day.
On this day in 1946, thousands of Hindus were killed in Calcutta, Howrah, Noakhali, Metiaburz, Kidderpore, Ballyganj, Mominpur, and many other parts of Bengal.
Direction Action Day was the catalyst for the disintegration of Bharat into India and Pakistan.
The Muslim League had met in Bombay on 29 July 1946 and declared that 16 August 1946 was to be observed as Direction Action Day in furtherance of its avowed aim of creating the independent Islamic State of Pakistan out of India.
The call triggered violent attacks on Hindus by Muslims, with some Hindus retaliating in the ensuing riots.
It was a systematic campaign against Hindus and included organised rapes of Hindu women, abductions and forced conversions of Hindus in some parts of Bengal.
The movement gained support among a cross-section of Indian Muslim intellectuals, youth and masses.
Here are some excerpts of Direct Action Day propaganda that was being circulated in 1946:
Source: Muslim Politics in Bengal 1937-1947 by Shila Sen
Source: The Great Calcutta Killings and Noakhali Genocide by Dinesh Chandra Sinha and Ashok Dasgupta
Source: The Great Calcutta Killings and Noakhali Genocide by Dinesh Chandra Sinha and Ashok Dasgupta
This leaflet was issued by a front organisation of the Muslim League: (source: The Great Calcutta Killings and Noakhali Genocide by Dinesh Chandra Sinha and Ashok Dasgupta)
Some other leaflets being circulated at the time included the following:
Source: The Great Calcutta Killings and Noakhali Genocide by Dinesh Chandra Sinha and Ashok Dasgupta
