The Partition Bond
A Novel
Musaret Siddiqi
2021, Pb, 313pp.
ISBN-10: 9789382337478
ISBN-13: 9789382337478
Publisher: Promilla / BSA
Price: ₹ 495.00 (Outside India: US $7.00)
Fictition/Novel


The Book

Summer 1946. Jullundur (last Punjab). Akbar, a devoted landlord finds himself in the midst of political and religious upheaval, spurred by the Muslim demand for a separate homeland (Pakistan). With partition on the horizon and facing an unknown boundary line, Akbar laments the fate of the land that he holds so dear. As he ponders existence as a refugee, a chance encounter with a forgotten treasure empowers him to make peace with his destiny.

Spring 1807, Kashmir. Young Amit dreams of restoring his ancestral trading house in Srinagar to its former glory and marrying his betrothed in Lahore. Forced into exile in Punjab under a false Muslim identity, he is anxious to return home.

Must he remain a refugee, forever? The Partition Bond weaves itself through these two stories separated in time yet secured by destiny.


The Author

Musaret Siddiqi was born in Lahore in 1955 and graduated from the Punjab University where she studied history. Her subsequent career as a chartered accountant culminated in a passionate contribution to the development of microfinance services in Pakistan, aimed at empowering grassroot enterprises, with a focus on women.

Inspired by her mother’s tales of her lost homeland in East Punjab, she spent several years researching the pre-partition era of Punjab and 18th/19th century Kashmir, at the British Library in London. For an understanding of the sacred texts of India, originating in Punjab with the Rig Veda, she pursued a study programme at the Oxford Centre for Hindu Studies.

She lives in London. Admittedly, it was the city’s distinctive spirit which gave her the courage to face the truth and write from the heart.


Contents

PART ONE – HOME 1
1. Summer of 1946 3
2. The Kingly Village : Desaan Da Raja 30
3. Wedding 44
4. The Heat is On 64
5. Fall of Kingly Village 131
6. The Wagah Journey 147
7. Lahore, 18 Jail Road 165
PART TWO – GRACE 175
1. The Lost Paradise : Kashmir (1807-1809) 177
2. Born to Be Alive in Lahore 209
3. The Unrivalled Plains 243
4. The Homecoming 278
Author’s Note 309