Political Legacies of Pre-1947 Sind

Abstract

The year 1947 has exercised such a strong influence over the way in which the recent history of South Asia is often viewed that, by dividing British India from the post-independence period so effectively, it has helped to obscure understandings concerning political continuity and change in the region. The implicit assumption that partition led to the creation of a new state with a new political identity and new sets of political characteristics conceals the fact that Pakistan inherited much from the geographical regions which comprised its territory. In the case of Sind, trends, which were already present by the decade preceding partition, successfully crossed the ‘1947 divide’ and did much to shape subsequent political events. This chapter, therefore, sets out to look at the origins of two such trends which have shaped the Sindhi political landscape in the years since independence: firstly, the involvement of local religious leaders or pirs in Sindhi politics; and, secondly, the growing awareness of a more distinct Sindhi ‘identity’ and nationalism.