akanksha kumar | University of Delhi (original) (raw)
Papers by akanksha kumar
Dr. Akanksha Kumar , 2024
My latest article explores the role of tribes during the partition of India. Among the many refug... more My latest article explores the role of tribes during the partition of India. Among the many refugees, a significant number of tribes migrated to West Punjab and Delhi following the partition. This paper attempts to include their history in the narrative of India's partition, utilizing oral history to do so. It also traces how some of these tribes were labeled as 'criminal tribes' during the colonial period. In newly independent India, their identity was impenetrable and complex in the whole process of scheduling.
IHC proceedings , 2011
JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, a... more JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact support@jstor.org.
International Journal of Social Science and Economic research, 2019
Caste is an integral part of Indian society, this understanding cannot be overlooked when dealing... more Caste is an integral part of Indian society, this understanding cannot be overlooked when dealing with discourses on the oppressed, marginalised and excluded. Historians and scholars have engaged with the socio-political and economic impact of partition on the sub-continent ever since the sub-continent was divided. Refugees, especially those from the marginalised sections of society namely dalits, have recently been a topic of discussion and exploration when interrogating partition of India, 1947 and its aftermath. Menon, Bhasin, Butalia and Karuna Chanana have exactly done that on the gendered naratives of partiton refugees through personal interviews and so have traced the histories of woman refugees from Punjab.
However, the present paper intends to tell a different story while archival records have been used in the paper to weave the story of how, when and if all Dalit refugees migrated to the East, post Partition, oral history has been used a tool to explore the experiences of the hitherto ignored history of the Dalit refugee with reference to the Partition of India, 1947 ( in this case Punjab and Delhi).
The paper studies a Dalit refugee colony of Jalandhar Punjab where a large number dalit refugees belonging to Megh community, evacuated from Sialkot by the Indian government were resettled at this colony (Bhargava Camp Jalandhar). The paper will study the experiences of surviving dalit refugees of this colony, through oral history. Lastly, the paper is therefore an attempt to include the history of these refugees who have till now largely been outside the paradigm of the largest migration of history.
Journal of Studies in History and Culture , 2016
The partition of the Indian sub-continent in 1947 and its socioeconomic impact has engaged the at... more The partition of the Indian sub-continent in 1947 and its socioeconomic impact has engaged the attention of historians and scholars ever since the sub-continent was divided. When speaking of partition violence, women and gendered aspect of partition cannot be ignored. Women were central to partition and violence, questions of 'honour', rivalry and abduction all resulted in violence against women. Ritu Menon, Kamla Bhasin, Urvashi Butalia and Karuna Chanana have exactly done that on the gendered narratives of Partition refugees, through personal interviews and so have traced the histories of woman refugees from Punjab. However, the present paper tends to probe into an area largely unexplored. In similarity with the exploration of gender and partition through personal interviews, the present paper attempts to explore the question of dalits and their position during parition. Where Menon and Bhasin explore the gendered experiences of Parition, Butalia included the experiences of untouchables, childeren and orphans during partition. Ravinder Kaur makes a similar attempt by studying the parition experince of untouachable migrants of Delhi. Based on oral history and government reports, the paper will look at the position of dalits during partition. Were they victims of communal violence? What led to the migration of dalits from West Punjab and Pakistan to Delhi and Punjab? The first part of the paper would look at incidents of violence and fear among dalits through the study of East Punjab government reports and evacuation records….
Based on my research on Caste and Partition. published in the Hindu on 18th October, 2013.
Books by akanksha kumar
Dr. Akanksha Kumar , 2024
My latest article explores the role of tribes during the partition of India. Among the many refug... more My latest article explores the role of tribes during the partition of India. Among the many refugees, a significant number of tribes migrated to West Punjab and Delhi following the partition. This paper attempts to include their history in the narrative of India's partition, utilizing oral history to do so. It also traces how some of these tribes were labeled as 'criminal tribes' during the colonial period. In newly independent India, their identity was impenetrable and complex in the whole process of scheduling.
IHC proceedings , 2011
JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, a... more JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact support@jstor.org.
International Journal of Social Science and Economic research, 2019
Caste is an integral part of Indian society, this understanding cannot be overlooked when dealing... more Caste is an integral part of Indian society, this understanding cannot be overlooked when dealing with discourses on the oppressed, marginalised and excluded. Historians and scholars have engaged with the socio-political and economic impact of partition on the sub-continent ever since the sub-continent was divided. Refugees, especially those from the marginalised sections of society namely dalits, have recently been a topic of discussion and exploration when interrogating partition of India, 1947 and its aftermath. Menon, Bhasin, Butalia and Karuna Chanana have exactly done that on the gendered naratives of partiton refugees through personal interviews and so have traced the histories of woman refugees from Punjab.
However, the present paper intends to tell a different story while archival records have been used in the paper to weave the story of how, when and if all Dalit refugees migrated to the East, post Partition, oral history has been used a tool to explore the experiences of the hitherto ignored history of the Dalit refugee with reference to the Partition of India, 1947 ( in this case Punjab and Delhi).
The paper studies a Dalit refugee colony of Jalandhar Punjab where a large number dalit refugees belonging to Megh community, evacuated from Sialkot by the Indian government were resettled at this colony (Bhargava Camp Jalandhar). The paper will study the experiences of surviving dalit refugees of this colony, through oral history. Lastly, the paper is therefore an attempt to include the history of these refugees who have till now largely been outside the paradigm of the largest migration of history.
Journal of Studies in History and Culture , 2016
The partition of the Indian sub-continent in 1947 and its socioeconomic impact has engaged the at... more The partition of the Indian sub-continent in 1947 and its socioeconomic impact has engaged the attention of historians and scholars ever since the sub-continent was divided. When speaking of partition violence, women and gendered aspect of partition cannot be ignored. Women were central to partition and violence, questions of 'honour', rivalry and abduction all resulted in violence against women. Ritu Menon, Kamla Bhasin, Urvashi Butalia and Karuna Chanana have exactly done that on the gendered narratives of Partition refugees, through personal interviews and so have traced the histories of woman refugees from Punjab. However, the present paper tends to probe into an area largely unexplored. In similarity with the exploration of gender and partition through personal interviews, the present paper attempts to explore the question of dalits and their position during parition. Where Menon and Bhasin explore the gendered experiences of Parition, Butalia included the experiences of untouchables, childeren and orphans during partition. Ravinder Kaur makes a similar attempt by studying the parition experince of untouachable migrants of Delhi. Based on oral history and government reports, the paper will look at the position of dalits during partition. Were they victims of communal violence? What led to the migration of dalits from West Punjab and Pakistan to Delhi and Punjab? The first part of the paper would look at incidents of violence and fear among dalits through the study of East Punjab government reports and evacuation records….
Based on my research on Caste and Partition. published in the Hindu on 18th October, 2013.