Independence & Partition · 16 August 1946
Direct Action Day
The Muslim League called for 'Direct Action' to win Pakistan. Calcutta erupted in killings, followed by violence in Noakhali, Bihar and Punjab.
Causes
- Breakdown of the Cabinet Mission Plan
- Deep communal mistrust
Consequences
- Thousands killed in Calcutta in four days
- Gandhi walked through Noakhali to restore peace
- Partition came to seem unavoidable
Significance
Turned the Pakistan demand into a cycle of violence that shaped how independence came.
People
Sources
- Sekhar Bandyopadhyay, From Plassey to Partition (Orient BlackSwan, 2004)
- Bipan Chandra et al., India's Struggle for Independence (Penguin, 1988)