Who should Indian Muslims Vote?

The title should have been, who should Indians Vote? As the essay is not about Muslims, but Muslims are a part of it as much as Hindus, Dalits, Sikhs, Adivasis, Christians, Jains, Buddhists, Bahai's, Parsis and Jews.

Please review the following items; Ravish Kumar's appeal, Dr. Shariff’s latest research. Dalit Leaders call, Rajesh Khanna’s filmi speech and what kind of India does one want? 

India’s problem is like any other nations’ problem; the Majoritarian arrogance. A few among the majority feel threatened that their way of life is going to disappear. Their short-sighted solution is not dialogue, but showing other people their place or "Auqat" and sometimes resort to killing, maiming, harassing, lynching and raping, as if it will solve the problem, no, it does not, it will aggravate the situation further.

The best solution is hanging on to the values that gave India its stability, a growth economy, stability and a respectable place in the community of nations. We cannot exist by ourselves, we need consumers beyond our borders for us to thrive,  and we need to buy the things from others to grow, as we cannot produce them effectively.  We have a stable constitution, the constitution that guarantees every Indian to live his or her life as he or she chooses.  In simple words, every human is free to breathe, drink, eat, wear and believe whatever he or she wants.

The foreign direct investment poured into India because the investors felt safe with their investment. If they see the communal riots, lynching, harassment, discriminations against fellow Indians, they will pull out as they did in Apartheid South Africa. All of us will lose.

Muslims along with Dalits and Christians are in the most challenging situation, and I know the moderate majority of Hindus do not gloat over this; they want all to prosper and feel secure.

The smartness of Muslim, Dalit, and Christian leaders has not gotten anyone out of the ditches. Muslims being the second largest group in India need leaders who could lead the people in the right direction. The ugly rhetoric by some has created more barriers than the goodwill.  No more emotional slogans to deceive people in the heat of the moment, we need pragmatic solutions. 

Given the current situation, let’s collectively figure out how to get out of the mess and how we can handle the 2019 Elections for the good of all Indians.  Let’s look at becoming relevant again.

Let’s go with the idea of an ideal democracy and work our way towards it.

In such a democracy, Muslims don’t need anyone to represent them; the Christians don’t need a Christian to represent them, Dalits don’t need a Dalit to represent them, a Brahmin does not need to represent Brahmins, a Kashmiri Pandits does not need a Pandit to represent them. Similarly, no Adivasi, Sikh, Jain, Buddhist, Bahá’í, Zoroastrian, Jews and others need their own to represent them because the elected representative serves all people.  We need to nurture such individuals, India is blessed with too many good people.

Let me be clear; when Hindus, Muslim, Christians, Dalits, Sikhs and others are mentioned, I am talking about the majority of each group.  They mind their own business by taking care of food for their families, their children's education, healthcare, home,  and living a life of their own.  The troublemakers are a small percent of politically oriented men in each group; we should never use the phrases that Muslims, Hindus or Sikhs are wrong because that is false. 

We are all from Adam and Eve, and it is mentioned in Quran, Bible, and the Torah, and that makes all of us, the 7.5 billion of us, members of the same family.  I don't know if they believe in it, if they did, they would not treat another human any different. Neither the Muslims nor the Christians of India have expressed that thought boldly.

Swami Vivekananda also failed to communicate the idea of Vasudhaiva Kutumbukum to the people of India. Had he emphasized that we are all one people regardless of the color of the shirt or saree we wear, whether we eat roti with Pyaaz or Keema, whether we wear a topi,  turban, pallu, Hijab or whatever, we are still one people!   

Each group claims there is only one creator and they come to refer him as Eshwar, Allah, Yahweh, Jesus, Mahito, Ahura Mazda, Wahe Guru, Budhha, Mahavir and on and on.  However, when they are talking,  their mouths twist and say Hindu God, God of Israel, Muslims God or a Christian God,  what kind of talk is that? By the way, these are not majority of the people in any group, it is the tiny minority within each group. 

Muslim votes were rendered ineffective in the 2014 general elections. Muslims don’t need to blame anyone; instead, they need to find a way to become participants and contributors towards the well being of the nation.

Dr. Shariff’s latest report brings shame to our democracy. In the state of Karnataka alone 18 lakh Muslims are missing from the voter's list.  How significant that number is if that kind of research is done all over India?  Do we have caring Indians who can fund this research and work on registering the disenfranchised? A real democracy succeeds when all are participating. Let the funding come from the public and not the political parties as they would want a pound of flesh.

The political parties from BJP, Congress, JD, SP, AIDMK, Trinamool and other regional parties have their manifesto that they want Indians to subscribe.  It is time, we the people, the Indians of all hues develop our manifesto, not a Muslim or Christian manifesto, but an Indian proclamation for all Indians, and vote for those individuals who would subscribe to most of the items on the manifesto. 

Do we have a manifesto?

Together, let’s create one.

Let’s make a checklist and look to the candidates who would fit in, let’s not look to the parties, they have betrayed us before. It’s just not us; we appeal to all Indians to consider the grassroots list. Let’s make it meaningful again.

We can make a table for all the MP candidates across India, and publish a list where these candidates stand on issues critical to all Indians.

Does the candidate;

1. Stand up for any Indian when access to education is denied?

2. Stand up for any Indian when access to a job is denied?

3. Stand up for any Indian when access to housing is denied?

4. Stand up for the rights of individuals when they are violated?

5. Let's develop a comprehensive list - that benefits all Indians

We can develop a table for all the 545 contestants listed by the States in Alphabetical order; then across the columns, we will record the criteria and check mark the items that the candidates will commit to abide. 

 It should be our government by us for us, and they need our support. 

We need to vote those candidates who are clean and are willing to bring Indians together and not pit one Indian against the other. We don't need those guys, they are impregnated by the British mentality of divide and rule.

There are good individuals among BJP, Congress, BSP, JD, and other regional parties.   As Indians, we need to vote those candidates who are 1) Financially clean 2) Want to work on bringing Indians together and 3) subject themselves to investigation. If anyone is questionable, we need to disqualify them from our table until they prove they are clean.  Then we can expect the nation to move forward.

My appeal to BJP supporters is to seriously consider saving our democracy, we have the freedoms because that is the foundation laid by our founding fathers. Each one of you is a beneficiary of the great democracy created and nurtured in the last 70 years. Let's not give any party a landslide victory, let's deliberately provide a significant opposition to question the "mun-mani" raj by any party. If we do that, corruption will be checked; nepotism will be stopped, accountability of government will begin.  Let this be our government by us for us. 

Whether Congress or BJP, if you give them a majority, they will become arrogant and do things that are not good for the country. 

What do we have to lose by doing the right thing? 

Please write your comment in the comment section below for development of such a manifesto. This is not copyrighted; you can do it on your own or joins us in a team effort.

Articles Worth Reflecting: 

• Dr. Shariff’s Latest Research http://m.deccanherald.com/?name=http://www.deccanherald.com/content/667082/karnataka-elections-2018-ngo-says.html
  
• Ravish Kumar’s call  http://mikeghouseforindia.blogspot.com/2018/03/ravish-kumar-emotional-appeal-to-muslims.html
  
• Have Muslims stood up for the Oppressed? A Dalit Leaders call - http://mikeghouseforindia.blogspot.com/2018/03/have-muslims-stood-up-for-oppressed.html
  
• Rajesh Khanna’s movie speechhttps://www.facebook.com/krishna.thapa.5036459/videos/1356318007847508/?t=5
  
• What Kind of India do we want?http://mikeghouseforindia.blogspot.com/2018/01/indias-pluralistic-ethos.html
  
• Minorities Dilemma whether to support Congress by Naushad Khan
  http://mikeghouseforindia.blogspot.com/2018/03/minorities-in-dilemma-on-whether-to.html

Mike Ghouse is an Indian American committed to building cohesive societies where people can live without fear and prosper together.  His work is listed at www.CenterforPluralism.com and http://MikeghouseforIndia.blogspot.com

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Hindus maligning Muslims and Christians

Maligning Muslims and Christians

Our blog http://hatesermons.blogspot.com/  has responded to crazy statements from Noni Darwish, Wafa Sultan, Hannity, Riley, Spencer, Gabrielle, Geller and a whole lot of them. We have also responded to mindless Hindus and Muslims alike.

One Subodh Kumar on facebook posted denigrating stuff about Christianity and Islam while uplifting Hinduism. He forgot that his narration applies to Hindus as well as other religions.

Either he is blind or maligning others for whatever perceived gains he has on his mind.  He forgets that for every Muslim ass, there is a Christian, Hindu, Sikh, Jewish, Buddhist ass out there.  

Every religion is about bringing peace to an individual and peace with what surrounds him or her.  Religions are designed to create orderly societies. A small band of followers violate the very guidelines they are supposed to follow.


He forgot as many things about Hindus as he wrote about others. Let a Dalit marry a Brahman, let a Hindu marry a Muslim – all hell will break loose with the violence and extremism. One Dalit groom rode on the horse in a village and he was beaten up, a Dalit cannot be above ground level than others.  This week (December 18, 2017) in Gujarat  the dreadful treatment meted out to Dalits at Una and later at a Navratri dance festival where a Dalit was brutally murdered by a group of high caste boys for just watching the show.

Let a Dalit or a lower caste Hindu go to the regular temple and worship, not only will he get beaten but the temple will be washed 7 times.

Dalit villages have been burnt, Dalit women have been raped and hung on trees, Dalits boys have been murdered because the did well in schools while their master's upper caste Hindus sons did not do well in exams.

Muslim men have been lynched and harassed and killed.  Atheist writers have been murdered in broad day light, Christian Nuns have been raped, and Ghar ki bahu (daughter in law) is dosed in kerosene and burnt alive for not bringing enough dowries. Girls at birth are killed, honor killings are rampant.... 

Nearly 5000 Sikhs were murdered in a matter of 3 days, 2000 Muslims were murdered in Gujarat…

Is Hinduism a violent religion? No, it is not, it does not teach any of the above violent acts mentioned above. Hinduism is about being truthful just as other faiths. Painting other religions badly is not Hinduism, it is Hindutva.

A few Hindus commit that non-sense, just like a few Muslims, Christians and Jews do foul things. Hindutva is not Hinduism, Neocons are not Christianity, Islamism is not Muslims, Extremist of Zionism do not represent Jews, Buddhists in Burma do not represent Buddhism.  We have to be smart and focus on bad guys and not on their religion or the nation. 

For every Muslim ass, there is a Christian, Hindu, Jewish, Buddhist and other ass.

I have done extensive work on these subjects, and I welcome anyone to visit the tabs workshop, Festivals, Programs, Calendar, Wisdom…. At www.CenterforPluralism.com

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The following note was compiled by Subodh Kumar at facebook:

Very Interesting facts!

Christianity ….One Christ, One Bible Religion…

But the Latin Catholic will not enter Syrian Catholic Church.

These two will not enter Marthoma Church .

These three will not enter Pentecost Church .

These four will not enter Salvation Army Church.

These five will no enter Seventh Day Adventist Church .

These six will not enter Orthodox Church.

These seven will not enter Jacobite church.

Like this there are 146 castes alone for Christianity,

Each will never share their churches for fellow Christians!

How shameful..! One Christ, One Bible, One Jehova???

Now Muslims..! One Allah, One Quran, One Nabi....! Great unity?

Among Muslims, Shia and Sunni hate and kill each other in all Muslim countries.

The religious riots in most Muslim countries is always between these two sects.

The Shia will not go to Sunni Mosque.

These two will not go to Ahamadiya Mosque.

These three will not go to Sufi Mosque.

These four will not go to Mujahiddin mosque.

Like this it appears there are 13 castes in Muslims.

Killing/bombing/conquering/ massacaring/... each other!

American attack on Iraq was fully supported by all Muslim countries surrounding Iraq !

One Allah, One Quran, One Nabi....????

Hindus -

They have 1,280 Religious Books, 10,000 Commentaries, more than one lakh sub-commentaries for these foundation books, innumerable presentations of one God, variety of Aacharyas, thousands of Rishies, hundreds of languages.

Still they all go to All TEMPLES and they are peaceful and tolerant and seek unity with others by inviting them to worship with them whatever God they wish to pray for!

*Be very proud to be a HINDU*

Congratulations Mr. Narenda Modi

Narendra Modi
SUMMARY OF ARTICLES WRITTEN IN 2014
http://mikeghouse.net/Articles/Narendra-Modi-India.asp
 

Congratulations Mr. Narendra Modi!
CAVEAT EMPTOR -PLEASE READ THE DISCLOSURE AT BOTTOM

A few Muslims and Christians may find it difficult to read the phrase, “Congratulations Mr. Modi”- they feel a sense of betrayal in congratulating the “Butcher of Gujarat” or Hindutva forces that “raped the Nuns”.  The Muslim-Christian apprehensions are indeed legitimate and need to be addressed,  and I hope Mr. Modi will take this up and bring a closure to this.  

On his part, Mr. Modi has made statements to include every Indian, "sab ka sath, sab ka vikas" - i.e., together, everyone's prosperity.  I hope and pray that he will stand by his words. Meanwhile, we have to move forward. 

The time to argue and challenge was lost on May 12, 2014. Whatever needed to be done should have been done at the ballot, and the Modi won the ballot.  An overwhelming majority of Indians chose to trust his words about inclusive development, and on his part,  he has stayed away from communalizing the elections process, which invariably appealed to the voters. We have to honor the verdict of the people of India, and it does not mean we cannot differ and continue to seek redressing the injustices to fellow Indians, but rather work as a team to solve the problems of the nation and uplift the common man, as opposed to spending our time in tearing each other apart with nothing to gain. 

The Dalits, Muslims and Christians have voted for Modi in similar percentages as the mainstream Hindu and other communities have, those are the hard numbers. Dalits have clearly abandoned their Rakhwala's (claimants and protectors) and voted for Modi. Likewise the good polls predicted Muslims could influence the outcomes for 222 MP's, and they did, not the congress or Samajawadi party, but Modi.  Congress and SP's should have won over 150 seats clearly if they had the Muslim and Dalit support, which they did not.  In fact, Modi has earned an inclusive mandate from all communities.  This needs to be dug deeper. We have to look at his statements in the last phase of the elections. In numerous interviews Mr. Modi has done what was needed to be done – articulate his vision for one India and inclusive growth.

The past has to come to an end, and for most Indians, it ended on May 16, and from the 17^th  a new era of action has begun. We have to go forward and focus on nation building . 

On my part,  I pledge to give my support in building a cohesive India, where no Indian is denied equal access, opportunity and justice to become a participant and a contributor to the overall growth of the nation, and more importantly no Indian has to live in fear of the other. I will be happy to part take in such efforts as needed, as my sacred duty to my motherland.   

A full op-ed is in the writing, and I hope to articulate the need to support Mr. Modi, while seeking redressing of justice for the victims of Gujarat Massacre. He also wants justice and will remain innocent until proven guilty of direct involvement.  

Congratulations Mr. Modi, the Indians have placed their trust in you, and now it is up to you to provide the leadership in building prosperity and bring cohesion to the children of India.

Mike Ghouse, is a Public Speaker, thinker and a writer committed to offer pluralistic solutions on issues of the day.

Thank you
Jai Hind



mike
Mike Ghouse
(214) 325-1916 text/talk

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Narendra Modi's speech on Good governance (5/19/14)

This is one of the best speeches Modi has delivered on good governance and a developmental economic model. Some may say that someone else may have written it, that is fine, but he has owned it by delivering it so eloquently and I hope he means every word of it. http://foundationforpluralism.blogspot.com/2014/05/narendra-modis-speech-on-good.html

US Policy on Modi needs to Change (5/16/14)

I do hope, President Obama puts his differences aside, and values the verdict of the people of India, it is not a simple majority, it is a huge majority. Let's give Modi a chance and trust our democracy and support him in his plans - as he has articulated it in his interview time and again. http://mikeghouseforindia.blogspot.com/2014/05/us-policy-on-india-and-modi-needs-to.html

The bigger news of Modi is India wins (5/16/14)

The bigger news is that “India has won” as Modi has put it. An ordinary person has made it to the top, that is the sign of a true democracy, and it’s a positive motivation to the common Indian man – A chai wallah can make it so I one can make it too, if I have the dedication and commitment to do it. http://theghousediary.blogspot.com/2014/05/the-bigger-news-of-modi-win.html

India's Modi on His Best Behavior: Can We Trust Him? (5/9/14)

We criticize individuals with the idea of wanting them to reset their course and get back on the righteous path of justice, humility, truth and respect for every life. Here is an effort to invoke Mr. Modi to follow "rajdharma," or good governance. Democracy and pluralism (i.e., respecting the otherness of others) runs in our veins, so let's have faith in our system. If Mr. Modi fails us, we can dump him through ballot or a no-confidence vote, as we did with Indira Gandhi and Vajpayee. To attain greatness and a place in the annals of history, Mr. Modi has a lot more to prove than we can demand. Continued at Huffington Post - http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mike-ghouse/indias-modi-on-his-best-behavior-can-we-trust-him_b_5280892.html#es_share_ended

Time Magazine changed the Times man of the year (4/23/14)

TIME heeded to Mike's activism on the issue and has now removed the 6 million votes generated from Modi's autobots that were cast yesterday. In the final result now on display at the TIME 100 Poll page, Arvind Kajriwal has been declared the winner and Modi now has voted as the most disliked person in the list with the largest number of NO votes. http://time.com/73538/indian-politician-arvind-kejriwal-wins-time-100-readers-poll/

Modi, Kejriwal become Time's 'most influential' people thanks to dodgy poll and online fan club (4/23/14)

Dallas-based multi-faith peace activist Mike Ghouse says he did exactly that to confirm his suspicion, clicking several times from the same computer to record multiple votes. "This is a serious issue of integrity of the Time Magazine," he said in an email. "Can Time audit its computers to determine how many clicks have come from the same computer?" Obviously, the online battle has no bearing on reality. But the winner will take home the momentary bragging rights of being "elected" Time magazine's most influential person in the world, even though the more important verdict will come on May 16.  http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Modi-Kejriwal-become-Times-most-influential-people-thanks-to-dodgy-poll-and-online-fan-club/articleshow/34123215.cms

 

India's experiment with clean politics (3/13/2014)

Years ago, India ranked # 1 on the list of corrupt nations in the world, and today it is not. Despite the economic, social, cultural frictions we have, we are inherently a pluralistic democracy. http://theghousediary.blogspot.com/2014/03/indias-experiment-with-clean-politics.html

Modi's Nakshatras are not in his favor (12/23/13)

Narendra Modi's Nakshatras (stars) are not in his favor, and the Grahan (eclipse) is hovering over him like a dark shadow casting its Rahu Kala (inauspicious times). His run for the Prime Ministership is ashubh (unlucky) for the 2014 elections. We recommend him to withdraw from the race, finish the current term as the Chief Minister of the state and lay a solid foundation for the next run. http://www.opednews.com/articles/Narendra-Modi-s-Nakshatras-by-Mike-Ghouse-Anti-christian_Bharatiya-Janata-Party_Business_Congress-131227-999.html -  It was also published as an interview at Saudi Gazette. http://www.saudigazette.com.sa/index.cfm?method=home.regcon&contentid=20140227196984

India's future, Narendra Modi and moving forward (11/04/13)

Unfortunately, the majoritarian attitudes of a few harm India's harmony and adversely affect her prosperity. They harass, threaten and use violence to teach the minorities, women and the weak how to behave, and put them in their place. It is like letting the air out of one of the tires, hurting all of us in the end.

The 1984 Sikh Genocide, the demolition of Babri Masjid in 1992, burning of Hindu Passengers in Godhra and Massacre of Muslims in Gujarat in 2002, the rapes of Nuns, Dalits and destruction of Churches are among the ugly cruelties we have witnessed since independence in 1947. It is a shameful blot on the civility of our Mother; India. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mike-ghouse/indias-future-narendra-mo_b_4177079.html

Another 25 Pieces are written prior to it - they are all in Google search, http://MikeGhouseforIndia.blogspot.com and  Sulekha.com

How it all began:

I have been a severe critic of Mr. Modi, and have written and published articles ever since the Gujarat genocide. It started out with organizing a public demonstration against the riots in the first week of March 2002 in front of the old court house in Downtown Dallas.  This was followed by hosting events to show the horrors of the Massacre with Shabnam Hashmi and others to a program to commemorate the  Gujarat Genocide in a public forum on January 26, 2014 as a part of the 7^th annual Holocaust and Genocides event.  

Some of my fellow Hindu Indians (friends at one time)  in Dallas and on forums across the world started hating me and my presence without understanding that someone or the other has to speak up, and some of the hardcore Hindutva fanatics still do, they have clearly not understood the essence of democracy is to give voice to differing opinions and to stand up for the discriminated ones.   

Then some of the Muslims started hating me intensely for my endorsement of Vajpayee’s call to Muslims to join the BJP. We have to be engaged in the society – the answer is as simple as that. None of us can live in pens and expect the world to know us, and us to know others. Quran clearly calls the best one among us are those who "know" each other, knowledge leads to understanding and understanding to acceptance and appreciation of a different point of view - then comes the peace.

You and I have the freedom today because people have opposed and stood up against a singular way of thinking and shunning diversity.  Diversity of thought and expression is a necessity to build cohesive societies.

A lot of articles have been written since then, some preserved at Sulekha.com and at http://MikeGhouseforIndia.blogspot.com
 

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C A V E A T   E M P T O R

I have been critical of Mr. Modi ever since Gujarat Massacre took place in 2002, and have been an activist and written extensively about the policies to govern. I have consistently sought justice for the victims of Gujarat and restoration of their livelihood and recommended on building desegregated societies for the ultimate good of India, but rarely have I sought the pound of flesh. In the last two weeks, however, I have written optimistic notes about Mr. Modi, based on his interviews and his speeches.  In the coming 100 days, IF I see his actions match his good words, and he does some praischit as a part of the raj dharma, I will admire that human quality in him, and would believe that he has the potential to be become one of the visionaries of India like Pundit Jawaharlal Nehru who was instrumental in building a stable democracy, that his daughter could not undo. Because of my write ups, I continue to lose a few my friends and that is ok, I don't need friends like that. We have to learn to live with our differences, and my commitment remains  building cohesive pluralistic societies and I like the new found inclusive language of Modi.
 

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Mike Ghouse is a speaker, thinker and a writer on pluralism, politics, peace, Islam, Israel, India, interfaith, and cohesion at work place. He is committed to building a Cohesive America and offers pluralistic solutions on issues of the day at www.TheGhousediary.com. He believes in Standing up for others and a book with the same title is coming up. Mike has a strong presence on national and local TV, Radio and Print Media. He is a frequent guest on Sean Hannity show on Fox TV, and a commentator on national radio networks, he contributes weekly to the Texas Faith Column at Dallas Morning News; fortnightly at Huffington post; and several other periodicals across the world. His personal site www.MikeGhouse.net indexes all his work through many links.

http://mikeghouseforindia.blogspot.com/2013/08/potent-memories-from-divided-india.html

Its a difficult story of rape, murder and inhumanity in us.

I heard the sad story of migration first hand from Sunder Lal in 1972. That was the first time, I have had any contact with people from Pakistan in my 19 years of life. His story was a very sad one, his sister was killed on his way from Lahore, the old man cried, but he was not bitter about it, he accepted it as his Karma. He built a huge empire in Bangalore - Sunder Chemical Works, where I worked, and his Son Harbans Lal is my eternal friend - it was his encouragement and stoking that made me a writer. I owe my gratitude to him.

My friend Shri D. D. Maini was born and raised in Kasur near Lahore. His family walked part of the route, he was a young man out of high school then. Thank God, his family arrived in Delhi Safely without incidents.

Since 1993, I have been in the Desi Community and started the Asian News Paper, the first Desi Paper that ran for about 7 years, and Asian News Radio commenced in 1996, the grand daddy of Fun Asia Radio. That is where I got to know the people of India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal and Sri Lanka, almost after the full Banvas.

I got to hear the painful stories of partition from both sides. There is a huge number of Indians who were born in Pakistan, and like wise there are many Pakistanis who born in India. Both people have had agonizing experiences.

Dr. Akbar Ahmed wrote a beautiful poem called Suspended, and I wrote the  review for the same. http://theghousediary.blogspot.com/2011/06/dr-akbar-ahmeds-poetry-suspended.html

Dallas has a reservoir of people who have the paritioin experience, both good and bad,   and I hope someone chronicles this for posterity.
I have a difficult suggestion for you: If you hear the stories without hatred for the other - Indians for Pakistanis and Pakistanis for Indians, you'll realize a great human in you full of compassion, kindness and understanding. You will feel good about yourselves. Try it.
Mike Ghouse
www.MikeGhouse.net

Potent Memories From a Divided India

By SOMINI SENGUPTA

Courtesy NY Times
Published: August 13, 2013

BERKELEY, Calif. — Growing up, Guneeta Singh Bhalla heard a terrifying story from her grandmother. In August 1947, as British India was being partitioned into independent India and Pakistan, her grandmother fled Lahore, in what was soon to become Pakistan, for Amritsar, in what was soon to become India. All around her was carnage. Clutching her three young children, she looked out the train window to see bodies strewed along the tracks. The memory haunted her until she died.

Enlarge This Image

Margaret Bourke-White/Time Life Pictures, via Getty Images

Sikhs migrating to a new homeland after the violent partition of British India in 1947.

For years afterward, Ms. Bhalla regretted not recording her grandmother’s story, and it spurred her to begin recording other people’s memories of that time. The project, known as the 1947 Partition Archive, has grown far bigger, far quicker than she ever imagined. Since its inception here two years ago, its dozens of volunteers have video-recorded 647 oral histories from more than seven countries and stored them digitally. It describes itself as “a people’s history” of that wrenching time.

“It’s something that’s been brewing in my mind since high school,” recalled Ms. Bhalla, a research physicist who is now 34, about the same age as her grandmother in 1947. “As I was growing up, it was always in the back of my head, and bothersome, as family members were passing.”

The partition, which carved up British India roughly along religious and political lines, uprooted over 10 million people. Hindus and Sikhs escaped to India; Muslims to Pakistan. Christians, Jews and Zoroastrians were left to choose where to live as minorities. The dead were difficult to count; estimates range from 250,000 to two million. No one knows how many were raped.

The oral history project is equally remarkable for being the first of its kind. As much as the partition hangs over the politics and psyche of the Indian subcontinent, there is no memorial — digital or analog — to mark it. This homegrown, volunteer-run project, directed from a few cubbies at the University of California here, is one of the first efforts to collect those memories. Now, because most of the partition’s witnesses are gone — most subjects are in their 70s and 80s — the project has taken on new urgency. At least 20 of the 100 people Ms. Bhalla has interviewed have died, she said. And so, with help from donors, the archive plans to dispatch 20 story gatherers this year to several cities in South Asia to collect stories while their tellers are still alive.

Video by 1947PartitionArchive

Radhika Kishin Chehnani on her move from Hyderabad, Sindh, Pakistan to Mumbai, India.

Many stories come from South Asians now living in the United States, though most are from those still living in India, Pakistan or Bangladesh, which was part of Pakistan until 1971. The accounts, once they start pouring out, are one to four hours long. They are told in Urdu and Punjabi, Hindi, Bengali and English.

Having spent the last two years collecting stories, the project is now planning to develop new ways to share them. Its Web site will soon feature a “story map” with migration routes, excerpts from individual accounts and a tool to help partition migrants connect online with one another.

Some of those interviewed have never told their stories before, not even to their families. A Zoroastrian woman from Karachi recalls how her grandmother hid her Hindu maid from family members who wanted to convert her against her will. A Hindu man from a village near Lahore recalls surviving the train journey to India only because a Muslim man, a stranger, hid him in his first-class compartment; other Hindus on that same train were killed or wounded. A Muslim man from what is now Indian Punjab describes watching a mob stab his mother as she tried to protect her older son.

Video by 1947PartitionArchive

Ravi Chopra on his move from Sialkot, Punjab, Pakistan to Firozpur, Punjab, India.

Video excerpts from a handful of interviews can be viewed on the Web site. Streaming all of them, in their entirety, will cost more than the project now has: about $56,000 from community donations and a grant from the American India Foundation. Ms. Bhalla hopes that one day the stories can be housed by libraries or research centers worldwide.

Like Ms. Bhalla, most story collectors are two generations removed; many are Americans of South Asian descent. They have fanned out to mosques and temples across the United States to solicit accounts from elders, and recorded them on hand-held video cameras and smartphones. One volunteer, Farhana Afroz, flew from Fremont, Calif., where she lives now, to several cities in Bangladesh, where she was born, to collect stories, leaving her husband and children back home.

Volunteers are sometimes asked: Who are you? Why are you doing this? Their answer: Because we must not forget. They are backed by no government, which helps. The goal is to record oral histories without judgment or analysis — or, indeed, corroboration.

Their list of questions include: When did you first hear about the partition? Did you have to defend yourself against violence?

And: Did you help drive out people from your area?

Video by 1947PartitionArchive

Abdul Jabbar on his move from Meerut, Uttar Pradesh, India to Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan. 

In California, Ms. Bhalla came upon two men — one Sikh, one Muslim — who had spent their childhoods in neighboring villages in what is now the state of Punjab in India. Ali Shan, a Muslim who fled to Pakistan, was living in Fremont, south of here. Hardev Singh Grewal, a Sikh who remained in India, was living in neighboring Union City. Ms. Bhalla asked if they wished to meet. Of course, they said.

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Margaret Bourke-White/Time & Life Pictures via Getty Images

During the partition period in British India, Muslims pass the dead of a previous caravan and the bones of their buffaloes.

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Margaret Bourke-White/Time & Life Pictures via Getty Images

A Muslim woman being carried as her family flees her homeland.

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Margaret Bourke-White/Time & Life Pictures via Getty Images

Sikh refugees in 1947.

On a rainy Saturday evening, they shared samosas and tea at the Grewal home. Mr. Shan, 72, sat stiffly at first on a white leather sofa. For the first couple of hours, they reminisced about an annual fair in Jurrahan, where Mr. Shan once lived. They remembered the names of the local schools. As the evening wore on, the more difficult stories trickled out. Mr. Shan told Mr. Grewal how a mob stabbed his mother and brother before his eyes when he was 6 — and then how a man in that mob inexplicably took him home.

Mr. Grewal, 76, inched close to him, patted him on the shoulder. Mr. Shan’s eyes filled with tears. He kept going. He remained with the stranger’s family for months, he said, and then an uncle took him to Pakistan. Mr. Grewal kept his arm on Mr. Shan’s shoulder.

Mr. Grewal recalled that the elders of his village, Gujjarwal, barely four miles from Jurrahan, had offered to save its Muslims if they converted to Sikhism. “They meant well, but looking back, I don’t think it was a good thing,” Mr. Grewal told Mr. Shan.

Nor did it save them. They were attacked as preparations were under way for the conversion ceremony. Mr. Grewal had no idea how many were killed, only that there were enough bodies to fill ox carts and a mass grave. Mr. Grewal remembered, too, that his older brother had taken home three of his school friends, all Muslims who had been injured in the attack. They stayed in the Grewal home until they were fit enough to travel to Pakistan. He has no idea what became of them.

“Ali, I want to ask you,” Mr. Grewal finally ventured, “do you get nightmares?”

Mr. Shan shook his head: “As soon as I forgave the people who killed my family, I was a new man.”

Ms. Bhalla took it all in. This year she left a postdoctoral research fellowship at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory to devote herself full time to the project.

“Both survivor and citizen oral historian come away changed,” is how she put it.