Partition 1947. Escape From Mirpur
This is a firsthand account of Krishnalal Bhagotra during the 1947 Pakistani invasion of Mirpur, Jammu & Kashmir. As the tensions flared and violence escalated, thousands of Hindus sought refuge in Mirpur. When Pakistani forces attacked from the surrounding hills, joined by local Muslims, defensive fronts were formed within the city.
While initially successful in deterring Pakistani advances, unexpected mortar fire and chaos caused the fronts to become ineffective. In the chaos, Krishnalal fled with his elderly father, carrying him on his shoulders.
My father Shri Jagannath Bhagotra was a moneylender at Mirpur. Mirpur was divided into two parts:one housed the Hindus, the other housed the musalmaans.
During 1947, just a few days before the Pakistani invasion, the Muslims from the settlement went away somewhere else. Hindus, from places where they were being looted/murdered, came to Mirpur for shelter. Thousands of Hindus came here.
Mirpur was lower in elevation, with hills overlooking it. Pakistanis gathered up there and from there they attacked the city. Local Muslims joined them.
In different places, we too built a front (morcha). At various locations we constructed these fronts. Our house was four stories high so we deployed a group there. I had a gun too. Adjacent to our house there was a Muslim mohalla.
We resisted hard and didn’t let the Pakistanis descend from the hills. They captured ‘Sidhi da Dheri’ and ‘Panchamurti di Pahadi’ hills. But, we did not let them come down into the city.
However, one day unexpectedly, they brought mortars to the hills and attacked us. We were caught off guard. How could we retaliate against the artillery shells?
While the bombarding was going on, they were advancing with gunfire. A stampede occurred in the city. People were fleeing wherever they could find a way. Everyone was afraid for their lives. People were leaving behind their houses and getting shot by bullets. All of our fronts proved to be ineffective.
In the afternoon, I left the front and came downstairs. My father could not walk, so my brother was carrying him on his shoulders while fleeing. There was no chance to call to them.
No one was in their right senses. People were panicking and running in all directions. I also took off running. After running three miles, I saw my father on my brother’s shoulders. Then I took him on my shoulders and started running. He was unconscious. While running, I had no idea where or when my brother disappeared. Both of my guns, were with me.
I stopped after running another three miles and set my father down. He regained consciousness and said, “Listen, my child, I cannot walk. For how long will you carry me on your shoulders? If we continue at this pace, then we will surely find ourselves in their custody. Instead, do this – take this gun and shoot me. If you survive, our family will live on.”
For a moment, I was devastated. But, there was no time to think. I closed my eyes and with a heavy heart, I shot him. Now, I was alone! Through forests and mountains, somehow I reached Akhnoor. From there, I followed a canal and reached Jammu. My elder sister used to live there. I managed to reach her home. We hugged and cried. Such was what the situation made me do!
Later, it came to my knowledge that Mirpur had immediately been occupied by the Pakistanis. That day they beat to death fifteen to twenty thousand Hindus.
From the accounts of Krishnalal Bhagotra, Jammu & Kashmir published in ‘फाळणी च्या वेदना’ (Sufferings of Partition), a special release on Partition Horrors’ Remembrance Day - 19 August 2022 published by the Marathi “सांस्कृतिक वार्तापत्र ”.
