It is impossible to understand the political and military history of either Pakistan and India without understanding their road to independence, their personalities and the events that shaped and created these two new nations. Recent events in Pakistan, with the assassination of former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto and the tradition of a military government, make this work a timely read, adding context to current events. For instance, the current leader of Pakistan, Gen. Pervez Musharraf, was among the millions who fled India for Pakistan in an atmosphere of horrific violence as borders solidified between the two newly created nations.

Khan weaves a historical narrative of like-minded groups bent on acquiring Indian independence from England. We see the early days of the Indian National Congress, created in the late nineteenth century and energized by Mahatma Gandhi upon his arrival from South Africa after World War I. Another major group described is the Muslim League, led by Muhammad Ali Jinnah, a British-trained lawyer. The book dispels the notion that civil war between Muslim, Hindu and Sikh was inevitable and discusses the gradual climate that polarized these groups, leading Muslim League leaders to call for a separate Pakistan.

As Khan describes it, the activities of the Indian National Congress were curtailed by World War II, when the British placed most of its leaders in prison. Upon the release of those leaders in 1945 and 1946, calls for independence were taken up by Indian troops who had served during the war. In Bombay (now Mumbai), the Indian Royal Naval mutinied, with ships opening fire on British landmarks in the city. The exit of British Prime Minister Sir Winston Churchill and the entrance of the Clement Attlee government signified a policy change towards granting Indian independence.

Keeping India intact involved negotiations between Muslims and Hindus, yet the Sikhs, another minority, felt left out, and the British starting in 1946 began downsizing its investment in Indian government infrastructure. One of the most glaring oversights was the 1946 Census, which was not done properly. Leaders were left to ascertain for themselves which populations would be part of India and which would be part of Pakistan.

The long-term future of Pakistan and India is dependent upon getting both nations to explore commonalities in culture, history and economics, leading to wider market opportunities and constructive exchanges between these two regional nuclear powers. The book indicates how difficult this will be by describing atrocities committed as whole populations migrated north or south based on religious identity, with mass murder, rape and the destruction of cities leaving a very problematic beginning to these two nations. As Khan points out, the scope of the heinous atrocities was built with hate mongering and rumors of fear between communities that previously co-existed for centuries with one another. This co-existence is not made easier by the presence of radical nationalists and religiously fundamentalist political parties in both India and Pakistan.

Understanding the partition of the Indian subcontinent is a key to understanding such issues as Kashmir and the way identity politics are manipulated by India and Pakistan. Khan’s book is an excellent start for those wanting to learn about the region and the modern states of Pakistan and India came to be.

Editor’s Note: Aboul-Enein writes for two U.S. Navy base papers, the Naval Training Center Great Lakes Bulletin and the Naval District Washington Waterline. He also maintains a regular column in the Air Force Base newspaper, the Bolling Aviator. Aboul-Enein wishes to thank his colleague Lt. Cmdr. Chap Godbey for his edits and insightful comments and also wishes to express appreciation to the Bolling Air Force Base Library.