Karachi: Ali Hasan Baqai and Abid Hasan Baqai, brothers who were separated by India’s and Pakistan’s partition 75 years ago, speak with their families via video conference. Their words and tears bond them, but there is no chance of a reunion.
Three-quarters of a century after their countries were created with in rupture of independence from British-ruled India in 1947, thousands of families, like the Baqai brothers, are still divided.
Abid Hasan, the younger brother in New Delhi, “I felt like I can’t touch them. Ali Hasan’s presence in Karachi was welcome, but nothing could compare to “a hug, a touch, shaking hands, or talking to them” in person.Muslim-majority On Sunday, the majority-Hindu foe Pakistan celebrates its independence; on Monday, India does the same.
The older brother visited New Delhi eight years ago, which was the last time the Baqai families saw each other. The two families’ subsequent applications for visas have been turned down on both sides, according to the brothers.
Since their independence, Pakistan and India have fought three wars, two of which were sparked by India’s control of Jammu and Kashmir.
As its empire began to decline following World War Two, Britain partitioned the two to create new nations, which resulted in massive sectarian migration in both directions that was marked by bloodshed and violence.
