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The Burden of Refuge:
The Sindhi Hindus of Gujarat
Though the primary focus of Kothari’s book is to study the effect of the migration of Hindus over three generations, most especially of the ones who chose to make their home in Gujarat, she puts their plight in its proper perspective by tracing the fortunes of the community from the middle of the 19th century in the Sindh province of Pakistan. Since their roots were nurtured there, they developed a unique identity of their own, which set them apart from the Hindus of the subcontinent. Unlike their brethren, they believed in one God and did not observe the caste system. They also absorbed the influence of Islam, Sikhism, and Sufism, and shared music and folklore with their Muslim brethren. Owing to this their identity was more cultural and less religious. In the political mix that shook the subcontinent during British times, the quiet and peaceful co-existence of the Sindhis was disturbed by the divisive policies of the British, the rise of the Muslim League, the influence of the Congress Party, and, finally, the activities of the RSS. Kothari provides elaborate minutae on all of these and their negative effect on the relationship between the Hindus and Mulisms. Although the Sindhi Hindus did not face the kind of communal violence that fell to the share of Punjabi and Bengali Hindus, the Muslims did take advantage of the changed situation to instill fear among them, which forced quite a large number of them to leave their homes. Kothari’s account combines details from known written sources with information she gathered. She interviewed the Hindus that migrated to India and their children and grandchildren, the Hindus who stayed back in Pakistan; and, the Muslims who were a historical witness to the migration of Hindus. Interviews of the older people in particular are quite moving. The book focuses on the painful aspects of the Sindhis’ flight from their land, their anxieties and fears, their economic deprivation, the sufferings they had to undergo in makeshift shelters, and the hostility they had to face from the local people in their new location. For the locals considered them neither Hindus nor the other, but untouchables and outsiders. Their cultural markers — their dress, their food habits, their language, and their clear affinity with Muslims — made them suspect in the eyes of Indian Hindus. Because the Sindhis were mostly traders, they tried to establish businesses wherever they went by resorting to ways and means that were not liked by the local traders. The combined effect of their presence and their ways was that they were forced to adapt themselves to the changed environment by changing themselves, a tendency that became more and more pronounced in the second and third generation of Sindhis. They gave up their language, changed their style of dress and living, and made sure that they looked and behaved like the local Hindus. Since the Muslims were responsible for their flight to India, and thus, the primary cause of their troubles, they also developed strong anti-Muslim feelings. Kothari shows that during the recent riots in Gujarat, violence against the Muslims was quite pronounced in the pockets dominated by Sindhi Hindus. Kothari’s book is a well-constructed narrative about the travails of a community that is already on the brink of losing its unique identity. Apart from telling a sad human story, she uses the plight of Sindhis and their changing life-style in India to address issues related to identity formation, the role of class and gender in it, and its fallout on a multicultural society. It is an interesting and useful read for scholars and laymen alike.
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