MCQ Detailed View

The Radcliffe Line is the boundary line demarcating the borders between India and Pakistan at the time of the Partition of British India in August 1947. It was named after Sir Cyril Radcliffe, a British lawyer who had never been to India before being tasked with chairing the Boundary Commissions for Punjab and Bengal. The line was created in an extremely short period of about five weeks and was meant to divide the Muslim-majority areas from Hindu- and Sikh-majority areas in the provinces of Punjab and Bengal.

The line officially came into effect on 17 August 1947, two days after the independence of Pakistan (14 August) and one day after the independence of India (15 August). In the west, it separated the Punjab province into West Punjab (Pakistan) and East Punjab (India), while in the east it divided Bengal into East Bengal (Pakistan, later Bangladesh) and West Bengal (India).

The announcement of the boundary sparked massive migration, as millions of people crossed the borders in both directions to join their respective religious communities. Unfortunately, the process was accompanied by widespread communal violence, resulting in the deaths of hundreds of thousands and displacement of over 14 million people, making it one of the largest mass migrations in human history.

The Radcliffe Line not only defined the initial borders but also laid the groundwork for decades of geopolitical tension between India and Pakistan. Certain areas such as Gurdaspur, Ferozepur, and parts of the Chittagong Hill Tracts were particularly controversial and remain points of historical debate regarding fairness and political influence over the decision.

Today, in the western sector, the Radcliffe Line forms the basis of the India-Pakistan border in Punjab and parts of Rajasthan. In the east, the line ceased to exist after the creation of Bangladesh in 1971, but its historical impact remains significant. It stands as a reminder of the complex political and human dimensions involved in the birth of two nations.