The Oxford union held a debate on the motion “This house believes Britain owes reparation to her former colonies”. Speakers included Indian politician and writer Shashi Tharoor. The BBC published a summary of his views. He tried to prove that Britain‘s rise was financed by its loot and exploitation of India. Britain de-industrialized India and converted it into the world’s biggest purchaser of British products and India paid for the highly paid Britain civil servants, thereby paying for its own oppression. At the beginning of the 18th century, India’s share of the world’s economy was 23% by the time British departed it dropped to less than 4%.
Tharoor claims that Britain’s industrial revolution was built on the deindustrialization of India. The Indian textile industry was destroyed and replaced by manufacturing in England. They used India’s raw material and exported the finished products to India and the rest of the world. The hand loom weavers of Bengal had produced and exported the world’s most desirable fabrics, especially fine muslin.
British cut off the thumbs of the Indians weavers, broke their looms and imposed duties and tariffs on Indian clothes. They flooded India with the cheaper fabric from their steam mills. Weavers became beggars and the manufacturing collapsed. Dhaka was the center of muslin production. Its population fell by 90%. From a great exporter of finished products, India became an importer of the British produce; its share of world export fell from 27% to 2%.
Tharoor talked about ruthless and conniving British administrators like Robert Clive who justified all means no matter how deceptive, degrading or exploitative, to expand the British influence in India. In spite of this, British had the nerve to call him “Clive of India” when all he did was to loot India. His biggest contribution is that he popularized the Hindi word loot in Britain and got it included in the English dictionary.
As a result of ruthless exploitation of India by the British, 15 to 29 million Indians died from starvation. Four million Bengalis died in the great Bengal famine of 1943. This was the result of Winston Churchill’s deliberate ordering the diversion of food from starving Indian civilians to well supplied British soldiers and European stockpile. Even when he was informed of the massive tragedy, he showed a very callous, sarcastic and demeaning attitude.
Tharoor also talked about the Jallianwalla Bagh Massacre when hundreds of unarmed protesters were massacred in cold blood. This was the result of institutionalized racism, where no Indian was ever allowed to feel British; he was always a subject, never a citizen.
The Indian Railways was constructed for the convenience of the British and not to serve the Indian public. They were intended to help the British get around and above all to carry raw material to the ports to be shipped to Britain.
Tharoor also exposes the reality of the British aid to India. He points out that it is only 0.4%of India’s GDP .This is neither sufficient to make any significant difference nor it can be considered reparation.
India made a very big contribution to the world wars. In the First World War, India contributed more soldiers than Australia, Canada, New Zealand and South Africa combined. Two and a half million Indians fought for British forces in the Second World War.
In the end, Tharoor says that it is more important that Britain should uphold the principle of atonement and suggested that Britain can make a symbolic gesture like returning the KOHA-I-NOOR diamond which it took from India.
I want to add some of the atrocities, cruelties and humiliations which the British committed against the people of Punjab. The British annexed Punjab kingdom in 1849. Maharaja Daleep Singh was about 10 year old. He was forcibly separated from his mother Maharani Jind kaur after the first Anglo-Sikh war in 1846, when he was about 8; his mother was imprisoned and exiled. She was replaced by the British Resident. The British charged a 10 years old child for inciting the second Anglo-Sikh war even when he was under the care of the British Resident. They made it an excuse to take away his kingdom. He was converted into Christianity when he was below the age of 15 and was never allowed to return to Punjab. His sufferings did not end with his life. Even though he was reinitiated into Sikhism, yet he was not cremated and was buried as a Christian.
I want to remind Tharoor that the KOHA-I- NOOR diamond was taken away from Dalip Singh who as a child wore it over his elbow. I feel that the British should return the remains of Maharaja Dalip Singh to Punjab where those can be properly cremated. I raised this demand few years ago when I was the convener of the Maharaja Dalip Singh Memorial Committee which helped to restore the historical building at Bassian near Raikot, district Ludhiana, where Dalip Singh spent his last day in Punjab. Now many Sikhs in England have raised this demand.
Britain should also apologize for the massive carnage of 1947 in which more than a million Punjabis died, millions were uprooted and countless women were raped. This was the result of an ill- conceived policy as well as an inadequate and poor management of the British. Britain is afraid of apologizing because that can lead to a demand for reparation. However, Britain owes much more than reparation, we need atonement.
Dr. Sawraj Singh, MD F.I.C.S. is the Chairman of the Washington State Network for Human Rights and Chairman of the Central Washington Coalition for Social Justice. He can be reached at [email protected].
