Rajiv Gandhi National University of Law, Punjab

English
Train to Pakistan
By Khushwant Singh

(GROUP 3)

Submitted to: Submitted By:

Dr. Tanya Mander Nishant Gaba
Assistant Professor of English Roll No. 19011
 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

On completion of this project it is my present privilege to acknowledge my

heartfelt gratitude and indebtedness towards my teachers for their valuable
suggestion and constructive criticism. Their precious guidance and unrelenting
support kept me on the right path throughout the whole project and very much
thankful to my teacher incharge and project coordinators for giving me this
relevant and knowledgeable topic.

I wish to express my sincere gratitude to my teacher Dr. Tanya Mander Ma’am

for their guidance and encouragement in carrying out this project work.

I also wish to express my thanks to my group members and my friends for their ideas
because of which this project became more captivating. I am also thankful to my
institution library for providing a broad range of books to learn more.

-Nishant Gaba
 Table of Contents

CH-1: INTRODUCTION.........................................................................................................4

1.1. About the Author ................................................................................................. 4

1.2. Introduction to the Book ...................................................................................... 4

CH-2 PLOT ............................................................................................................................. 5

CH-3 CHARACTERS ............................................................................................................ 6

3.1. Juggut Singh ....................................................................... ................................. 6

3.2. Iqbal …………… ........................................................................... ..................... 7

3.3. Hukum Chand ....................................................................................................... 7

3.4 Meet Singh...............................................................................................................8

3.5 Imam Baksh............................................................................................................8

CH-4 EXPOSITION ............................................................................................................. 8

CH-5 LANGUAGE, THEMES, SYMBOLS, MOTIFS ........................................................ 9

5.1. Themes .................................................................................................................. 9

5.2. Language ............................................................................................................. 9

5.3. Symbols ................................................................................................................10

5.4 Motifs ....................................................................................................................11

CH-6 CRITICAL APPRAISAL ............................................................................................11

CH-7 CONCLUSION ............................................................................................................13

CH-8 BIBLIOGRAPHY........................................................................................................ 13
CH-1: INTRODUCTION

“Morality is a matter of money. Poor people cannot afford to have morals. So they have religion”

1.1. About the Author

Khushwant Singh was an Indian author, lawyer, diplomat, journalist, and politician. His
experience in the 1947 partition of India inspired him to write Train to Pakistan in 1956, which
became the most well known novel. Khushwant Singh, like other novelists, explores social,
political, realities of contemporary Indian life. His masin concern is man and reality.
The setting of the first three novels, Train to Pakistan, I Shall Not Hear, the Nightingale and
Delhi is in the context of some historical framework. Khushwant Singh at the same time plays
the role of a writer as well historian. Khushwant Singh is himself is eye witness of the partition
of sub continent and the scene of partition is historical which left a dark effect on every heart.
Khushwant Singh portrays a social picture and religious behaviour of the people. As we find in
Train to Pakistan, the original pictures of the village Mano Majra before and after partition, the
love story of Nooran and Jugga, the greedy people, death and violence. Khushwant Sing depicts
the peaceful co-existence of Hindu, Muslim Sikh in a multi religion society. Khushwant Singh
has been conferred with many awards during his lifetime. He was conferred with the Padma
Bhushan award by the Government of India in 1974. But he returned this award in 1984 as
protest against Indian army as they had seized Golden Temple under the operation Blue Star. He
was manifested as ‘Honest Man of the Year’ by Sulabh International in the year 2000. He also
has many other honours to his name such as Punjab Rattan award by Government of Punjab in
2006, Padma Vibhushan (the second highest civilian award) by Government of India in 2007 etc.

1.2. Introduction to the Book

Khushwant Singh was India’s best-known writer and columnist. He was founder-editor of
Yojana and editor of the illustrated weekly of India, The National Herald and Hindustan Times.
Khushwant Singh is one of the most celebrated author of Subcontinent. Partition has left many
scars in the hearts of several Indians and those tragic days which still haunt the new India,the
memories of that tragic period still makes people shiver, are brought alive through a great novel
by Khushwant Singh. This story is set across during the time when India was butcherd into two
nations India and Pakistan. The present edition is released on the occasion of its 50Th anniversary
includes the heart-rending photographs contributed by Margaret Bourke-white. The images
provided him go very well with the inner sense of the story and show the intensity of partition
and the exodus of over a million immigrants, the largest in human history. It is well known that
the partition was carried out upon instigation of the British and based on communal lines. While
the politics behind this tragic incident is what is most talked about, this piece of fiction by the
author has attempted to bring forth the suffrings faced bycommoners.

CH-2 PLOT

For quite a long time, India was governed by the British Empire. In any case, India anticipated its
autonomy from Britain by consenting to enable it to battle the Axis Powers in World War II.
After the war was finished, the British left in 1947 and partitioned the nation into two,
mainstream/Hindu India and Muslim Pakistan. Be that as it may, in spite of the way that
numerous Muslims lived in India and numerous Hindus lived in Pakistan, most Hindus lived in
India and Muslims in Pakistan.

At the point when the British pulled back, at that point, the individuals who were not in the
"ideal place" needed to escape to another nation. In the mid-year of 1947, ten million individuals
crossed what was known as "the segment." Due to religious and ethnic contempt, two million
individuals were murdered amid the encounters and horde viciousness that happened in the
tumult. Nearby specialists were quite recently assuming control from the British and had no
capacity to control the people. Prepare to Pakistan happens in the anecdotal town of Mano
Majra, which was close to the segment. Many border towns like Mano Majra contained
extraordinary religious decent variety, with Hindus, Muslims and Sikhs living next to each other.
Be that as it may, the British failed to assess these towns, thus extraordinary viciousness emitted
inside them. Interestingly, the creator demonstrates Mano Majra as keeping up its request, given
its relative seclusion. Be that as it may, Mano Majra had a prepare station that would in the long
run make it a focal point of contention.

The story starts with the burglary and murder of Lala Ram Lal, the main Hindu family around
the local area. The killers were a pack drove by Malli, who were searching for their old kindred
posse part and pioneer Juggut Singh, a Sikh hooligan of awesome stature, manufacture and with
a terrible notoriety. Amid the occasion of "dacoit", in any case, "Jugga" was having intercourse
with his sweetheart, Nooran, the girl of the town's Mullah (the interreligious adore was entirely
illegal). In the meantime, of the dacoit, Iqbal Singh, a knowledgeable, feminine agnostic,
however ethnic Sikh, touched base around the local area to arrange the laborers for the People's
Party of India. Malli and his pack attempt to stick the wrongdoing on Jugga, which brings about
the captures of both Iqbal and Jugga because of neighborhood doubts. They are captured because
of the requests of Hukum Chand, the local officer, to some degree in view of his doubts of the
two characters for autonomous reasons. While they are in jail, in any case, strife begins to ascend
in Mano Majra when a prepare loaded with Muslim bodies is conveyed to town and consumed
by troopers. Not long after, a gathering of warriors drops by to clear the Muslim portion of town
(the other half is Sikh) to Pakistan which drives Nooran to leave while Jugga is in prison in the
provincial capital of Chundunnugger.

After the Muslims are cleared, a nearby band of Sikhs comes to Mano Majra to throw together
hostile to Muslim assessment and damage the prepare that was taking the Muslims to Pakistan.
Chand, regularly undermined yet racked with blame over his own transgressions, discharges both
Iqbal and Jugga to stop the slaughtering, and in spite of Iqbal's mental self-portrait as a social
reformer and Jugga's mental self-portrait as a hooligan, Iqbal drinks himself into a trance while
Jugga gives his life devastating the rope the Sikh troopers had set up to throw Muslims on finish
of the prepare off to their passings.

CH-3 CHARACTERS

3.1 Juggut Singh

Juggut singh; also known as the Jugga is the peasant living in the village of the Mano Majra. He
is the son of the robber and murderer Alam Singh. He is introduced as the local gangster who is
responsible for wrongs which are committed during the night in the village most of the villagers
don’t like him because he has bought shame to the name of the village. He is one of the most
famous person in the village because of his actions and Juggut singh is the one of the tallest
person in the village with a heavy built body. He loves his mother very much and he is in love
with girl named Nooran she is the daughter of Imam baksh the priest at the mosque after falling
in love with Nooran; Jugga stopped his criminal activities. In past he use to rob with malli the
local badmash and his gang members but he later quitted his gang which was not accepted by the
malli after quitting the gang he stated farming on his land to earn his living but when the murder
of lala ram lal took place he was arrested due to bad past and he was not present at his house
when murder took place. This was not the first time when Jugga was arrested he has went to jail
many times due to which many policeman’s already knew him. Without Juggut singh the story of
the to Pakistan is in complete he is one of the most important character in the novel.

3.2 Iqbal
A political worker with no clear religious background, though Meet Singh and Hukum
Chand assume that he is Sikh, Iqbal comes to Mano Majra from Jhelum, Pakistan to raise
awareness about land reform and to encourage peasants to demand more political and economic
rights. He privately identifies himself as “comrade,” suggesting that he works for a Communist
organization. He is described a small, somewhat effeminate man and was educated in England.
He quickly becomes known in Mano Majra as a political agitator, a fact that the
subinspector uses against him to pin him for the murder and robbery of Lala Ram Lal. Upon his
arrest, Iqbal is falsely identified as a Muslim (called “Iqbal Mohammed”) who is working for the
Muslim League. The authorities’ invention of this affiliation makes Iqbal a prime suspect in the
murder of Ram Lal—Mano Majra’s wealthiest Hindu. Iqbal shares a jail cell with Juggut Singh,
who has also been falsely charged. Hukum Chand thinks that Iqbal is an intellectual of “the
armchair variety,” a description supported by the fact that Iqbal has contempt for the people
whom he was sent to help and is seemingly only interested in using them to pursue his own fame
and ambitions.

3.3 Hukum Chand

In the text, Hukum Chand’s part of the story does not focus on his job and what he does around
the town but, instead examines all of his daily problems and stresses. Alcohol becomes one of
the tools Hukum Chand uses in an attempt to escape his problems and stresses responsibilities.
Alcohol also enables him to commit many immoral things because he is under the influence,
even, “justify trysts with a teenage prostitute the same age as his deceased daughter. It becomes
apparent throughout the story that he is a man in moral conflict because of it,” Kushwant Singh
depicts this moral conflict uniquely by describing Hukum Chand with a dirty appearance. Which,
could be a use of symbolism to represent his immoral actions such as, his trysts with the young
prostitute. Kushwant Singh also uses Hukum Chand’s encounter with two geckos to display the
characters ethical issues.

3.4 Meet Singh

An old Sikh priest who privately admits that he joined the clergy only to avoid regular work.
Meet Singh is a friend of both Iqbal Singh and Imam Baksh—a relationship that is described as
having “an undercurrent of friendly rivalry.” Meet was born a peasant and lives off of earnings
from a small parcel of land that he leases out, as well as the offerings from the temple. He has no
wife or children. For a priest, he is not particularly learned in the Sikh scriptures nor is he a
gifted orator. Described as “short, fat, and hairy,” he is also unkempt and seldom wears a shirt,
instead donning only a pair of dirty shorts. He opposes the plot to kill the train of refugees
heading to Pakistan but finds that his role as an “old bhai” makes his protests futile.

3.5 Imam Baksh – Mullah of Mosque

A Muslim weaver and Nooran’s father, who is described as tall, lean, and bald. He is also blind,
serves as the mullah of the local mosque, and is friends with Meet Singh. Imam is often a subject
of pity, for his wife and son died “within a few days of each other,” but he is also respected by
many. He and Nooran plan to leave Mano Majra for Pakistan, and they are on the train that is the
site of an intended massacre plotted by a group of Sikh conspirators. Nooran avoids telling her
father that she is pregnant with Juggut’s baby, out of fear that he will either marry her off or
murder her.

CH-4 EXPOSITION

In the novel ‘Train to Pakistan’, there are many instances where law and literature intersect.
There was being many crimes committed in the story. These include murders, dacoity,
corruption, sexual violence etc. There were a lot of killings by Hindus and Muslims of each
other. A train full of dead bodies of refugees arrives from Pakistan which not only represents a
crime but a sin which cannot be forgiven. The main hero of the story i.e. Jugga is himself a bad
character who violates the laws very frequently. He is a robber and a murderer. In the story,
Malli & his gang committed robbery in the house of town moneylender and also murdered him.
So, here we come to see that material things in this world influence the minds of people so much
that they indulge in acts that destroy the rest of their life. There is a lot of corruption in the story
which is represented through the character of Hukum Chand, the district commissioner. He is a
corrupt official who doesn’t want Muslims to take much matter with them; so that he can take
benefits of all that. He also supports nepotism which may be charged as discrimination. Hukum
Chand is a man who is obsessed of women and uses sexual violence against a teenage Muslim
prostitute. These crimes should be awarded strictest punishment possible but people at high
positions like Hukum Chand makes misuse of their position and power to escape the liability.

So, there are lot of laws that have been violated in the story and these laws are still violated by
many people every day in present times also. So, what we need is proper implementation of laws
and an efficient judicial system. The law-breakers should be given strictest possible punishment
to set example for others so that we can have a society of law- abiding citizens.

CH-5 THEME, LANGUAGE, SYMBOLS AND MOTIF

5.1 Theme

The theme of this novel is the partition of India and the accidents which took place at that time
and how the religious factors were influencing the situations and people influencing each other
to kill people partition took place on 15 August 1947. The result of this was that twelve million
people had to flee leaving their home; nearly half a million were killed. It is also on record that
over a hundred thousand women, young and old, were abducted, raped, mutilated. Thus,
thousands fled across the border seeking refuge and security. The natives were uprooted and it
was certainly a bad experience for them to give up their belongings and rush to a land which
does not belonged to them.

The harrowing and spine chilling events of 1947 had shaken the faith of the people in the innate
human beings. It had driven them into a state of wonder over what man has made of man. To
Khushwant Singh, this was a period of great disillusionment and crisis of values, a distressing
and disintegrating period of his life. The belief he had cherished all his life were shattered.

5.2 Language

Khushwant Singh has a prominent style of writing. Singh uses the language which gives novel a
realistic touch. He used simple language which seems too real, not fiction. He used nautical
language. It a first person narration written in British English. Novel is composed thirty one
chapters. Overall it is not a form of complex language; the sentence structure is very simple;
vocabulary used is not so flowery.

He used realistic language that reader thinks whatever happen is true. He uses many details to
make his novel realistic not imagination. From the starting of novel he uses dates and places
that makes an good impression on reader. he also uses form of autobiography in his novel. He
describes all the events in detail. Juggut singh is one of the main character of the story and there
are many other characters in the novel and author has been successfully portrayed all the
characters in the story.

5.3 Symbols

1. Antimony – Antimony symbolises the dangers and the pleasures posed by love. It is a
mineral which is very hazardous and falsely believed to be an ingredient in kohl- the
material that Nooran and teenage Muslim prostitute use to line their eyes. Before
committing dacoity at moneylender’s house, Malli and other robbers discuss Nooran- a
girl who looks innocent in the day but puts black antimony at night in her eyes, which
reflects the connection of antimony with lust and sin. Both women, too, like antimony in
their eyes, are associated with danger due to their being Muslim. So, the antimony
which both the women use marks them as, unwillingly, objects of sin and pleasure.

2. Railway Bridge – The railway bridge symbolises the connection of India with Pakistan,
which exists despite the fact that there is partition and religious hate. The bridge also
symbolises the negative and positive aspects of modernity. The bridge was built during
the colonial rule and is the only indication of western infrastructure in the tiny village of
Mano Majra, which does not have many roads. The goods and the passenger trains cross
it regularly which represents that the bridge is connection between Mano Majra and the
rest of the world. It is through this bridge that Mano Majra gets caught up in the
violence as a train full of dead-bodies of refugees comes to the village through this
bridge. In the end, this bridge is the site where Sikhs plan to attack the train having
Muslim refugees on board. Thus, the bridge is a symbol of religious stress between two
nations and also underlines their inherent bond.
 3. Bangles - Bangles are symbolic of ‘suhaag’ for Indian women. Bangles also symbolises
good luck for newly married women. As in the novel, the newly married daughter of
Hukum Chand, Sundari, wears bangles. But, while he was travelling in bus with his
husband Mansa Ram, they were pulled from a bus by mob of Muslims. She was raped
and his husband was killed in front of him. So, this incident undermines the bangles as a
symbol of good luck. In the beginning of the story, Malli and his companions threw
bangles for Jugga to wear. So, here bangles for them symbolises lack of strength and
courage. Bangles also represent association with Sikh religion. Meet Singh and Sub-
inspector assume that Iqbal is a Sikh because he wears a steel bangle that Sikh men wear
to show their faith in the religion. The author implies that anyone can wear the steel
bangle as an ornament, so, the wearing of steel bangle by Iqbal does not confirm that he
is a Sikh.

5.4 Motif
Juggut singh
Juggut singh can be termed as the motif in the story because he has played very
important role in the story of the novel he has been present in almost every part of the
story and he is also the main character of the story without him the novel would have
been incomplete. He was the person who failed the implementation of their plan made
by the people to kill Muslims who were leaving for the Pakistan in train. He got killed
in the implementation of his plan but the train successfully left for the Pakistan.
Train
The train can be symbolized as the motif because the whole schedule of the village was
based upon the timings of the trains which are arriving at the railway station the
complete village used to do their daily routine works like when to eat, sleep and do
other things which were notified by the timings of the trains. and train is present in
almost every part of the story.

CH-6 CRITICAL APPRAISAL

Train to Pakistan is a historical novel which is all about partition of country and situation in the
country at that time. There were riots between Hindus and Muslims and situation in the country
was adverse. In 1947, the partition of the country led to situation of communalism and terrorism
in the country. There were many evil customs in the society that were running rampant which
Khushwant Singh criticised through his spokesperson, Iqbal.

The story revolves around small town named Mano Majra which is about half miles away from
river Sutlej. In the village, Muslims and Sikhs are equal in number and there is only one Hindu
family which is of moneylender’s family. Moneylenders in the society were equivalent to
zamindars who were troubling needy and poor people. His house was like bait for robbers who
could find large sum of money in his house. So, robbers committed robbery in his house and
killed him

Khushwant Singh talks about conservative mentality and unhygienic conditions in the country.
He objects on people urinating and spitting everywhere in the country. He also objects on
people keeping sexual morality above everything else, it is depicted through Meet Singh who
complains of Christians going freely with other men and women, hinting at wife swapping.

There was lack of social justice in the country in that times which compelled people to enter the
world of crime. Unemployment was responsible to large extent for crimes. People resort to
stealing to fill u their stomachs and when they do so, the society labels them as criminals.
Nobody cares to know why that particular individual indulged in such an offensive activity.

Khushwant Singh has violently criticised the Indian administrative system. Laws are violated
by people themselves who have responsibility to protect them. The author criticises it through
the character of Hukum Chand, a district magistrate who is a corrupt man and gets promotions
and jobs for his relatives through foul means. But still he is admired by the people. It is the
tendency of Indians to oil a man who is at a high position irrespective of his character. Even in
his fifties, he listens to romantic music and flirts with the girl who is of his daughter’s age. The
author criticises the inveterate police system too. The police acts carelessly and irresponsibly.
Without real evidence, police puts Jugga and Iqbal behind the bars.

Khushwant Singh also proposes in his novel that independence does not mean much to the poor
and uneducated Indians. When Iqbal asks a villager about independence, he gets replied from
that villager that they will not get more land or more buffaloes. In the opinion of the villagers,
earlier it was Britishers who were exploiting them and now it will be rich and educated class
who would exploit us.
So, on critically analysing the novel, we get to know about the various social and religious
issues which are prevailing in the society. The author very well brings to the light various issues
existing in the society. The author succeeds in making readers aware of the issues but he fails to
suggest solutions to the problems which have been discussed in the text.

CH-7 CONCLUSION

Thus, the novel Train to Pakistan very well focuses on the pre and post Partition atmosphere.
The love of Hindu and Muslim religious people towards each other is also an ideal example of
humanity. Mano Majra is like the state of Eden before Partition. Khushwant Singh also known
as a master of art of characterization. He has portrayed very well the characters like Juggut
Singh, Hukumchand and Lambardar. Jugga is a combination of good, evil and humor. Though
at the very beginning he is labeled as 'Badmash no. ten', but he has not killed anyone or robbed
anywhere. Jugga is a victim of violence who lost his Nooran, and also stands as a symbol of
goodness & virtue. Jugga's scarification for the sake of the people of Mano Majra (Muslims) by
ending his life when the police authorities couldn't control or failed to control the mob of Sikhs.
Jugga has much concerned towards Nooran who is also going to Pakistan in the same train & to
save her life. According to the novelist, Jugga is the harbinger of peace and humanity who tries
to establish harmony between the two communities. Jugga sacrificed his life and finally succeed
in his plan of saving Nooran and others.

CH-8 BIBLIOGRAPHY

1. Train to Pakistan (50th Anniversary Edition) by Khushwant singh and Margaret Bourke-
White [265 Pages Edition]

2. https://www.academia.edu/38266738/A_Critical_Study_of_Train_to_Pakistan_by_Khu
shwant_Singh

3. https://rachelsolomonsite.wordpress.com/2018/03/25/hukum-chang-in-train-to-pakistan/

4. https://www.litcharts.com/lit/train-to-pakistan