Colonies Become Nations

Chapter 18

India: Move to Independence

• 1939 Britain commits India to fight in WWII without consulting India

• 350 million mostly Hindus in “The Indian National Congress Party” or Congress Party (the party of Gandhi)

• 100 million Muslims in the Muslim League which was led by Muhammad Ali Jinnah

• Muslim League did not want to be governed by Hindus

Freedom; Partition and Bloodshed

• WWII leaves Britain broke and wants to shed India

• 1947 Britain decided to partition India into separate nations—India for Hindus and Pakistan for Muslims

• Originally there was an East Pakistan and a West Pakistan

• As people tried to move to their new countries rioting and violence left one million dead.

Kashmir

• Both countries wanted this area• They fought• United Nations in 1949 arranged for India to

get 2/3 and Pakistan 1/3.• The countries still fight over this region today.

Nehru

Modern India

• August 15, 1947—India becomes the world’s largest democracy

• Jawaharlal Nehru elected first prime minister• Serves for 17 years• Was a popular and able leader• Organized non-aligned nations during Cold

War• Dies in 1964 and India has no strong leader

Indira Gandhi

Indira Gandhi

• 1966 Nehru’s daughter elected prime minister. She was reelected in 1980

• Sikhs wanted independent state.• Indira Gandhi’s government put down Sikh

violence by raiding the Golden Temple (a Sikh holy place) and killing 500 Sikhs

• Indira Gandhi’s Sikh bodyguards killed her in 1984

Rajiv Gandhi

• Indira’s son took over• He was killed by a bomb while campaigning in

1991

21st Century Challenges

• 1998 Atal Bihari Vajpayee elected prime minister

• India is set to become most populous nation by 2035

• It has poor relations with Pakistan• India and Pakistan both have nuclear weapons

and this is a great concern to the rest of the world.

Pakistan Copes with Freedom

• East and West Pakistan separated by 1000 miles.

• West Pakistan contained the central government

• East Pakistan felt left out.• March 26, 1971 East Pakistan declares itself the

new nation of Bangladesh.• The following civil war was stopped when

Indian troops helped Bangladesh win.

Instability

• Pakistan had little leadership after Muhammad Ali Jinnah dies shortly after independence

• In 1958 Ali Bhutto seized power after the civil war• 1977 Gen. Zia uses coup to remove and execute

Bhutto• Bhutto’s daughter, Benazir Bhutto was twice elected

prime minister but removed from office in 1996 by Nawaz Sharif.

• Bhutto left Pakistan but returned to run for office and was assasinated.

BenazirBhutto