Question

Conclusion of partition of Bengal 1905

Answer 1

The first Partition of Bengal (Bengali: বঙ্গভঙ্গ) was a territorial reorganization of the Bengal Presidency implemented by the authorities of the British Raj in 1905. The partition separated the largely Muslim eastern areas from the largely Hindu western areas on 16 October 1905 after being announced on 19 July 1905 by Lord Curzon, the then Viceroy of India. The partition of Bengal however was ephemeral and Lord Curzon's move was rescinded six years later.


Map showing the partition of Bengal into the province of Bengal and the province of Eastern Bengal and Assam in 1905

Map showing the modern day nation of Bangladesh and Indian states of Bihar, Jharkhand, Orissa, Assam, Meghalaya, Arunachal Pradesh and parts of Nagaland and Manipur within the Province before division into Bihar and Orissa and Eastern Bengal and Assam
The Hindus of West Bengal, complained the division would make them a minority in a province that would incorporate the province of Bihar and Orissa. Hindus were outraged at what they saw as a "divide and rule" policy[1][2] (gaining and maintaining power by breaking up larger concentrations of power into pieces), even though Curzon stressed it would produce administrative efficiency. The ultimate motive remains questionable, as in two letters dated 7 February and 6 December 1904, Herbert Risley, Lord Curzon's Home Secretary, wrote, "Bengal united is a force, Bengal divided will go in different ways. That the Partition Plan is opposed by the Congress is its merit for us. Our principal motive is to weaken a united party against the government."[3] The partition animated the Muslims to form their own national organization along on communal lines. To appease Bengali sentiment, Bengal was reunited by Lord Hardinge in 1911, in response to the Swadeshi movement's riots in protest against the policy and they began an angry agitation, featuring belief among Hindus that East Bengal would have its own courts and policies.

Background