Did the British Really Divide India to Rule?

Major General Mrinal Suman, AVSM, VSM,

PhD, commanded an Engineer Regiment on the Siachen
Glacier, the most hostile battlefield in the world. A highly
qalified officer !" #ech, MA !Pblic Administration$, MSc
!Defence Stdies$ and a Doctorate in Pblic Administration$ he
was also the #as% &orce 'ommander at Po%hran and was res(onsible for
designing and sin%ing shafts for the nclear tests of May )**+.
While studying Indian history in school days, one was
repeatedly told that the British resorted to divide and
rule policy to gain control over India.
The tone and tenor of such a description painted the British as unscrupulous
schemers who exploited the simple, trusting and gullible Indians. s a young
student one accepted the above statement at its face value without any !uestions
and grew up in the belief that we Indians are a highly united lot and our
sub"ugation was due to devious tric#s and policies of the British.
t a later stage, one started wondering why Indians let themselves be divided
by outsiders and why they could not foresee the result of their disunity. $adly,
the truth is that our approach, attitude and practices have always been directed
towards remaining disunited. The %aste system divided the society in distinct
segments. The presence of multiple religions, sects and sub&sects in the sub&
continent prevented social cohesion.
The much touted $wayamwar 'selection of spouse by a princess in an open
forum( is indicative of this deficiency and our total disregard for forging unity.
Whereas matrimony amongst the royals in the )urope has always been an
instrument of forging strategic alliances, $wayamwar invariably created more
enemies than friends. ll re"ected princes and #ings felt insulted, nursed a
grudge and waited for an opportunity to ta#e revenge to redeem their self&
esteem. *istory bears testimony to the fact that every $wayamwar was followed
by acrimony and internecine wars.
+everting to the role of the British, they never divided us to rule, simply
because they did not need to. We have always been and continue to be a divided
lot. ,ormation of states on linguistic basis was never attempted by the British.
The -andal %ommission was not constituted or implemented by them. .or was
the Babri -as"id demolished by the British. The current agitation in
-aharashtra has not been initiated by the )ast India %ompany. %aste based
reservations and !uota system, the prime splitter of the Indian body politic,
were not invented by the erstwhile rulers. .or are they preventing us from
enacting a uniform civil code.
The list is endless. We have a #nac# and penchant for generating innovative
issues to divide ourselves. We are doing our best to ensure that we remain
embroiled in petty bic#ering and internal dissentions.
To us, our region, religion, caste and sub&caste are more important. Worse, we
flaunt this narrow identity and give it precedence over nationalism. If after /0
years of independence, 1ashmir and the .orth )ast are still not emotionally
integrated with the country, the failure is ours.
2ndoubtedly, the politicians are the fountainhead of all fissiparous tendencies.
3ne does not have to be a visionary to predict the danger of abetting illegal
migration from Bangladesh for garnering votes. .orth Indians in -umbai are
not welcome but illegal Bangladeshis can stay. If political leaders can imperil
national security for the sa#e of power, they can stoop to any level.
$adly, they cannot be expected to change as they believe in the ends and not the
means employed. To them, vote ban# politics preclude letting countrymen stay
united. dditionally, spineless and politici4ed bureaucracy simply follows their
dictates and cannot be expected to deliver either.
Immense damage is also being inflicted on the unity of the country by the
media through its irresponsible and thoughtless reporting. ,or the sa#e of cheap
sensational news, petty vandals are given the coverage befitting a mass leader.
)very news item is reported with a religious, caste or creed slant 5 a dalit girl
molested in a 6elhi bus 'as if other women are not molested in 6elhi buses( or
church guard #illed 'in reality an argument between two security guards had
turned violent( or -uslim driver runs over a boy 'his being a -uslim is of no
relevance(.
It is obnoxious to see articles spelling out proportions of different castes in a
constituency and predicting victory of the candidate from the ma"ority caste,
thus promoting caste based politics.
The Way head7 If India continues to exist as a nation, credit will be due to
three institutions 5 the armed forces, the higher "udiciary and the )lection
%ommission. They are also the only hope.
s regards the armed forces, the nation owes its security, both external and
internal, to its apolitical nature and nationalism. It is a symbol of national
integration and a repository of best human values. It is an island of discipline
and orderly behaviour in a sea of chaos and anarchy. foreign observer
wondered whether India deserved such a fine organisation. 2nfortunately,
concerted efforts are being made to demean and demorali4e this shield between
cohesion and disintegration.
If an Indian citi4en still respects law and believes in its fairness, the credit is
entirely due to the independence and pro&activity displayed by the higher
"udiciary. *aving been let down by the 8arliament and the executive, people
loo# at the "udiciary as their sole hope. Therefore, it must step forward to
shoulder additional responsibility, opinion of conservative constitutional experts
not withstanding.
,irst, anyone promoting hatred between communities or underta#ing divisive
actions should be punished for anti&national activities or even treason9sedition,
as internal dissentions are the start point of all civil strife.
$econd, the cost of all damages caused to public and private property must be
recovered from the leaders of the vandali4ing mobs with deterrent
imprisonments. In case of fatalities, they should be charged with murder.
Third, any government found abetting disorder, both through overt support or
tacit inaction, should not be allowed to stay in power.
,ourth, a blan#et ban should be put on all religious processions and use of
loudspea#ers in religious places. In a secular country where religion is a highly
emotive issue, it is best to shift all religious activities from public domain to
private domain.
The )lection %ommission can play an extremely important role with its
constitutional powers. ny party that does not swear by the integrity of the
country and e!uality of all citi4ens should be banned. $imilarly, any party that
promotes hatred amongst various segments of Indian society on any grounds
whatsoever must be proscribed. )ven religion&based parties which disallow
followers of other religions as its members should have no place in a secular
country.
It is the duty of the )lection %ommission to ensure that political parties are not
allowed to play vote ban# politics at the cost of national cohesion. ll
defaulting parties and their leaders must be handed out exemplary punishment,
debarred from standing in elections and their political careers sealed.
The British controlled the whole of Indian peninsula with a maximum of /0,000
troops. Today every state has a police force of more than that strength and yet
divisive forces are rampant. If India has to survive and prosper as a united
nation, it is time corrective action is ta#en.
:et us not force the next generation to rewrite the history boo#s to say that
India can remain united only when sub"ugated by a foreign power or that an
independent India is always a divided India.
(Major General Mrinal Suman, (retd) AVSM, VSM, PhD directs the Defence
Acquisition Management Course for Confederation of Indian Industr and
heads its Defence !echnical Assessment and Ad"isor Ser"ice# A $rolific
%riter, he is often consulted & $olic ma'ers and the Parliamentar
Committee on Defence, and is regularl in"ited to address "arious industrial
cham&ers in India and a&road#!he "ie%s e($ressed here are his o%n#)
Article courtesy: Indian Defence Review
Major General Mrinal Suman, AVSM, VSM,
PhD, commanded an Engineer Regiment on the Siachen
Glacier, the most hostile battlefield in the world. A highly
qalified officer !" #ech, MA !Pblic Administration$, MSc
!Defence Stdies$ and a Doctorate in Pblic Administration$ he
was also the #as% &orce 'ommander at Po%hran and was res(onsible for
designing and sin%ing shafts for the nclear tests of May )**+.
While studying Indian history in school days, one was
repeatedly told that the British resorted to divide and
rule policy to gain control over India.
The tone and tenor of such a description painted the British as unscrupulous
schemers who exploited the simple, trusting and gullible Indians. s a young
student one accepted the above statement at its face value without any !uestions
and grew up in the belief that we Indians are a highly united lot and our
sub"ugation was due to devious tric#s and policies of the British.
t a later stage, one started wondering why Indians let themselves be divided
by outsiders and why they could not foresee the result of their disunity. $adly,
the truth is that our approach, attitude and practices have always been directed
towards remaining disunited. The %aste system divided the society in distinct
segments. The presence of multiple religions, sects and sub&sects in the sub&
continent prevented social cohesion.
The much touted $wayamwar 'selection of spouse by a princess in an open
forum( is indicative of this deficiency and our total disregard for forging unity.
Whereas matrimony amongst the royals in the )urope has always been an
instrument of forging strategic alliances, $wayamwar invariably created more
enemies than friends. ll re"ected princes and #ings felt insulted, nursed a
grudge and waited for an opportunity to ta#e revenge to redeem their self&
esteem. *istory bears testimony to the fact that every $wayamwar was followed
by acrimony and internecine wars.
+everting to the role of the British, they never divided us to rule, simply
because they did not need to. We have always been and continue to be a divided
lot. ,ormation of states on linguistic basis was never attempted by the British.
The -andal %ommission was not constituted or implemented by them. .or was
the Babri -as"id demolished by the British. The current agitation in
-aharashtra has not been initiated by the )ast India %ompany. %aste based
reservations and !uota system, the prime splitter of the Indian body politic,
were not invented by the erstwhile rulers. .or are they preventing us from
enacting a uniform civil code.
The list is endless. We have a #nac# and penchant for generating innovative
issues to divide ourselves. We are doing our best to ensure that we remain
embroiled in petty bic#ering and internal dissentions.
To us, our region, religion, caste and sub&caste are more important. Worse, we
flaunt this narrow identity and give it precedence over nationalism. If after /0
years of independence, 1ashmir and the .orth )ast are still not emotionally
integrated with the country, the failure is ours.
2ndoubtedly, the politicians are the fountainhead of all fissiparous tendencies.
3ne does not have to be a visionary to predict the danger of abetting illegal
migration from Bangladesh for garnering votes. .orth Indians in -umbai are
not welcome but illegal Bangladeshis can stay. If political leaders can imperil
national security for the sa#e of power, they can stoop to any level.
$adly, they cannot be expected to change as they believe in the ends and not the
means employed. To them, vote ban# politics preclude letting countrymen stay
united. dditionally, spineless and politici4ed bureaucracy simply follows their
dictates and cannot be expected to deliver either.
Immense damage is also being inflicted on the unity of the country by the
media through its irresponsible and thoughtless reporting. ,or the sa#e of cheap
sensational news, petty vandals are given the coverage befitting a mass leader.
)very news item is reported with a religious, caste or creed slant 5 a dalit girl
molested in a 6elhi bus 'as if other women are not molested in 6elhi buses( or
church guard #illed 'in reality an argument between two security guards had
turned violent( or -uslim driver runs over a boy 'his being a -uslim is of no
relevance(.
It is obnoxious to see articles spelling out proportions of different castes in a
constituency and predicting victory of the candidate from the ma"ority caste,
thus promoting caste based politics.
The Way head7 If India continues to exist as a nation, credit will be due to
three institutions 5 the armed forces, the higher "udiciary and the )lection
%ommission. They are also the only hope.
s regards the armed forces, the nation owes its security, both external and
internal, to its apolitical nature and nationalism. It is a symbol of national
integration and a repository of best human values. It is an island of discipline
and orderly behaviour in a sea of chaos and anarchy. foreign observer
wondered whether India deserved such a fine organisation. 2nfortunately,
concerted efforts are being made to demean and demorali4e this shield between
cohesion and disintegration.
If an Indian citi4en still respects law and believes in its fairness, the credit is
entirely due to the independence and pro&activity displayed by the higher
"udiciary. *aving been let down by the 8arliament and the executive, people
loo# at the "udiciary as their sole hope. Therefore, it must step forward to
shoulder additional responsibility, opinion of conservative constitutional experts
not withstanding.
,irst, anyone promoting hatred between communities or underta#ing divisive
actions should be punished for anti&national activities or even treason9sedition,
as internal dissentions are the start point of all civil strife.
$econd, the cost of all damages caused to public and private property must be
recovered from the leaders of the vandali4ing mobs with deterrent
imprisonments. In case of fatalities, they should be charged with murder.
Third, any government found abetting disorder, both through overt support or
tacit inaction, should not be allowed to stay in power.
,ourth, a blan#et ban should be put on all religious processions and use of
loudspea#ers in religious places. In a secular country where religion is a highly
emotive issue, it is best to shift all religious activities from public domain to
private domain.
The )lection %ommission can play an extremely important role with its
constitutional powers. ny party that does not swear by the integrity of the
country and e!uality of all citi4ens should be banned. $imilarly, any party that
promotes hatred amongst various segments of Indian society on any grounds
whatsoever must be proscribed. )ven religion&based parties which disallow
followers of other religions as its members should have no place in a secular
country.
It is the duty of the )lection %ommission to ensure that political parties are not
allowed to play vote ban# politics at the cost of national cohesion. ll
defaulting parties and their leaders must be handed out exemplary punishment,
debarred from standing in elections and their political careers sealed.
The British controlled the whole of Indian peninsula with a maximum of /0,000
troops. Today every state has a police force of more than that strength and yet
divisive forces are rampant. If India has to survive and prosper as a united
nation, it is time corrective action is ta#en.
:et us not force the next generation to rewrite the history boo#s to say that
India can remain united only when sub"ugated by a foreign power or that an
independent India is always a divided India.
(Major General Mrinal Suman, (retd) AVSM, VSM, PhD directs the Defence
Acquisition Management Course for Confederation of Indian Industr and
heads its Defence !echnical Assessment and Ad"isor Ser"ice# A $rolific
%riter, he is often consulted & $olic ma'ers and the Parliamentar
Committee on Defence, and is regularl in"ited to address "arious industrial
cham&ers in India and a&road#!he "ie%s e($ressed here are his o%n#)
Article courtesy: Indian Defence Review