State · 1947
Indian independence and Partition
Delhi, India
At midnight on 14–15 August 1947 British rule in India ended and two independent dominions, India and Pakistan, came into existence under the Indian Independence Act. The provinces of Punjab and Bengal were divided according to Muslim or non-Muslim majorities, and Partition displaced 12 to 20 million people along religious lines amid communal violence whose death toll is estimated at 200,000 to 2 million.
Why it mattered
Partition created the states that are today India, Pakistan and Bangladesh, and the contested accession of the princely state of Jammu and Kashmir became a lasting source of conflict between India and Pakistan.
Related
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