New Delhi, May 18 (PTI) Delhi Education Minister Atishi on Thursday inaugurated at BR Ambedkar University a museum themed on the Partition and said the vested interest of a few destroyed the social fabric of the country in 1947. This is the second such museum after the Partition Museum of Amritsar located in the historic Town Hall. The opening coincides with International Museum Day.
After the inauguration of the museum, Atishi shared how her grandfather who was a clerk in the Government of India escaped Pakistan.
“My family is also a family of Partition survivors. My grandfather had to stay with his parents in Pakistan till the very last moment. My great-grandmother left for India on August 12. The train from Pakistan to India that my great-grandmother planned to take was left with no survivors. This was some divine intervention,” said Atishi.
“It is very easy to destruct the social fabric of the society with hatred but it takes hundreds of years to fill those wounds… the vested interest of some broke the social fabric of our country, and until today, lakhs of families are traumatised because of that vested interest. It is important for us to mull what kind of politics we are erecting,” she said.
The museum tells the story of the 1947 tragedy and represents the pain and trauma suffered by people on both sides of the border. It was opened at the Mughal-era Dara Shikoh Library building here on Thursday.
The library building is located in Delhi’s Kashmere Gate area. The museum will tell the story of the 1947 tragedy through interactive media.
On February 17, the then Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia visited the museum site and inspected the progress of the project.
The Deputy Chief Minister’s office had earlier said in a statement that the building of the historic library, built in 1637, was being converted into a 1947 Partition Museum by the Delhi government under the leadership of Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal.
“The second such museum in India, it will have seven galleries to explain the events leading up to the Partition, and Independence, migration, refugees, rebuilding homes, art, relationships and will also have a gallery of hope and courage,” it said.
The museum will also feature a “virtual reality experience”, donated belongings of people who witnessed the Partition, and a souvenir shop. The library will also serve as a cultural hub with exhibitions on different aspects of the city and its history.
The museum endeavours to depict the memories of the 1947 Partition as experienced by people, officials said.
The period transformed Delhi significantly and major parts of the national capital, including areas like Lajpat Nagar, C R Park and Punjabi Bagh, were established after the Partition.
The museum features seven customised galleries designed to explain all aspects of India’s Partition and the struggle for Independence to visitors. Witnessing the same rail coaches, ancient havelis, and replicas of refugee camps would be exciting and nostalgic for many, the statement had said.
Many people who witnessed the Partition have donated items such as clothes, utensils, books as well as belongings from refugee camps to the museum, officials said.
It has a special gallery dedicated to Sindh, the statement said.
The museum also includes a ‘Gallery of Hope and Courage’ which displays photographs, mementoes, and experiences of people revisiting their ancient properties and places in Pakistan, decades after the Partition.
The Dara Shikoh Library building was originally built in 1637 by Dara Shikoh, the eldest son of Mughal emperor Shah Jahan. After the death of Shikoh, this mansion was handed over to Bahadur Shah I, heir apparent of Aurangzeb.
“Sometime after his ascension, the property was handed over to Juliana Dias da Costa, a lady of Portuguese descent who played a prominent role in his court. Abul Mansur Mirza Muhammad Muqim Ali Khan (Safdarjung) bought the property very cheaply from the descendants of Juliana Dias da Costa and made it his residence,” the statement added.
Under the British rule, it served as a British Residency for David Ochterlony, Archibald Seton and Charles Metcalf. In the 20th century, the property was also used as a school, a polytechnic and lastly as the offices of the Delhi State Archaeology Department.
Thereafter, The Arts And Cultural Heritage Trust (TAACHT) was entrusted with the building under the ‘Adopt A Heritage’ scheme of the Centre, by the Department of Art, Culture and Language, to set up the Partition Museum. PTI VA CK
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