“If abdication of British responsibility at the time of transfer of power was callous, the speed with which it was done made it worse.”

Answer:

The transfer of power in 1947 ended British rule, but it was accompanied by Partition, communal violence and mass displacement. The British decision to leave quickly, without adequate preparation for boundary demarcation, security and population protection, made the tragedy worse.

Abdication of Responsibility

• Britain had ruled India for nearly two centuries but withdrew when communal tensions were at their peak.
• The colonial state failed to prevent violence in Punjab, Bengal and other regions.
• The British treated Partition increasingly as an administrative exit rather than a human crisis.
• Mountbatten advanced the date of transfer from June 1948 to August 1947, compressing the process dangerously.

Speed and Its Consequences

• The Radcliffe Award was announced only after independence, creating confusion and panic.
• Administrative division of army, police, assets and records was rushed.
• Millions crossed borders without proper protection, leading to massacres, abductions and refugee crises.

However, Indian political deadlock and communal polarisation also contributed to the crisis. Still, the speed of British withdrawal reflected callousness towards the human consequences of Partition. Thus, hurried transfer of power intensified the violence and disorder of 1947.