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Law in Contemporary Society
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From Cricket to Politics-- By AliAbid - 23 Feb 2024 (revised 08 Jun 2024) Thousands of people from South Asia are currently flooding into the streets of New York for the opportunity to support their nation in the T20 Cricket World Cup. This tournament is set to feature one of the greatest rivalries in sports, India vs. Pakistan. Although cricket is not native to South Asia, this region produces some of the greatest players and attracts the largest number of viewers worldwide. As with many idiosyncrasies particular to the region, the roots of this phenomenon trace back to British colonialism. Colonialism brought the Indian Subcontinent their favorite pastime, but it also brought about the very reason why the match between India and Pakistan is so contentious. The divisive strategies employed by the British embedded deep-rooted tensions between Hindus and Muslims and hostilities between Pakistan and India that persist to this day. South Asia's immense diversity in ethnicities, languages, and cultures has historically made unifying the region under one political system challenging. Before the British arrival, the Mughal Empire governed the region through a hierarchical structure, with the Mughal emperor being at the top. This structure involved various sovereigns ruling different parts of the empire. The issue with this system was that the sovereigns, local chieftains, and landowners often vied for more power, weakening the central authority. The lack of a centralized army further limited the Mughal Empire's ability to exert force and maintain control. Initially without ambitions of conquest, the British presence in South Asia started with the arrival of the British East India Company in the 1600s. However, by the mid-1700s, they had gained a stronghold in the prosperous region of Bengal. The company exploited its trade privileges and used military force to expand their control of the area. In 1756, the Mughal emperor granted the company formal sovereignty over Bengal. Under Lord Wellesley’s governance from 1798, the British expanded their rule across the subcontinent, quelling Indian revolts and consolidating their power. In 1858, the British Crown formally took over control from the company. The British employed a divide-and-rule strategy, implementing policies that exacerbated religious divisions between Hindus and Muslims. A key method the British systemized these divisions through was legal reforms. Warren Hastings, the first Governor-General of India, believed that distinct and separate codes of law existed for Hindus and Muslims. This belief led to the formalization of Hindu and Muslim civil law codes in the 1860s. These laws, though not newly invented, were rigidified and imposed without consideration for the local customs and traditional practices throughout Indian communities. The bifurcation of Indian society into religious categories has shaped contemporary Indian identities, fostering a sense of separation that had not previously existed. The cultural impact of these divisions became apparent in the late 1800s. This was exemplified by the literature such as the Bengali novelist Bankim’s writings depicting Hindus triumphing over oppressive Muslim rulers, while Muslim writers glorified Islamic history. Issues like that of cow protection further strained relations. As cows are sacred in Hinduism, whereas Islam has no similar religious reverence, there were issues of adherence to the animal between the two groups. This conflict intensified the view among Muslim leaders that their interests needed to be protected by exclusively Muslim organizations. This hope eventually came to fruition. Believing that the Indian National Congress failed to adequately represent Muslim interests, the All-India Muslim League was formed in 1906. The partition of Bengal in 1905 further exemplified the British strategy of divide and rule. Seemingly to weaken this strong and prideful region, they separated the land by religious lines, creating Eastern Bengal as predominantly Muslim and Western Bengal as predominantly Hindu. The rise of Indian nationalism and the weakening of the British Crown due to World War II bolstered the movement towards independence. The Muslim League, led by Muhammad Ali Jinnah, advocated for independent sovereign states for Muslims. They feared that Muslims would be marginalized in a unified India. This culminated in the formalization of the demand with the Lahore Resolution of 1940. The British countered with the Cabinet Mission Plan in 1946, aiming for a unified India with provinces based on religious majorities. The plan failed due to disagreements between the Indian National Congress and the Muslim League, leading to the Muslim League's official demand for a separate Pakistan. The party's call for Direct Action Day resulted in violent riots, with more than 4,000 deaths and 100,000 displaced in Kolkata alone. In 1947, the British sent Lord Mountbatten to India to oversee the transfer of power. The vague British proposals led to continued disagreements, resulting in Mountbatten’s plan for partition into two independent countries, India and Pakistan. Despite initial opposition, the Indian National Congress agreed to the partition due to the escalating violence. The Muslim League also agreed, leading to the independence of Pakistan on August 14, 1947, and India on August 15, 1947. The partition triggered one of the largest migrations in history, with around 15 million people moving between the new nations. This migration was accompanied by mass violence, with approximately one million people dying and countless others traumatized. The scars of partition continue to shape the relationship between India and Pakistan, fueling ongoing hostility and conflict. British colonial policies fostered an environment of distrust and conflict that persists today. The rigidification of religious identities and the creation of separate political and legal frameworks for Hindus and Muslims disrupted traditional customs and intensified communal tensions. The legacy of these policies is evident in the ongoing rivalry between India and Pakistan. The contentious cricket rivalry between the two nations serves as a microcosm of the broader historical and political tensions that continue to shape their relationship. As an aspiring future attorney, engaging in and researching this topic has influenced me to further inform myself about the root causes of injustices in America. I want to become a lawyer who is more aware of the social and historical factors that shape our legal system. Through that, I hope to be an advocate for the need of policies that promote unity.
Works Cited
Khan, Yasmin. The Great Partition: The Making of India and Pakistan. Yale University Press, 2017.
Metcalf, Barbara D., and Thomas R. Metcalf. A Concise History of Modern India. Cambridge University Press, 2012.
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