The book titled ’’ Train to Pakistan’’ is set with the background of independent India in its infancy, left to have its own set of rules but with the bruises of separation of the Nation into India and Pakistan which was the result of the venom left behind by the ’Phirangis’ as put in those days for the tyrants i.e. the Britishers.
The book is written by one of the most eminent and learned man of all times who has been able to pen down the story in a clear and lucid at the same time not leaving any of the minute details, which would have not been the case for any of the amateur writers to author a book of such revealing raw and stinging truth.
The book involves several powerful characters all of which revolves around a small village named ’Mano Majro’ inhabited by the rural folks without any complications of communal discriminations or innuendoes. But the still and serene lives of the people of this was interrupted with the arrival of a train full of people, not looking forward to meet their near and dear ones instead was full of corpses of people brutally slashed not sparing anyone.
This ghastly incident led to the sowing of ugly seeds of communal discrepancies leading. It was very aptly described as to how the naïve and docile mindset of the simple village people was replaced by deathly and horrendous inclinations.
It didn?t take much time for the fire of indifference and enmity to flare up amidst the almost forgotten fact that , instead of fighting amongst, they should condemn the true convicts. But the whole mass was eventually and painfully divided into two, the raged Sikhs and the petrified Muslims.
The plot basically revolved around Hukum Chand, Iqbal singh, and Juggut Singh being the protagonists of the whole play. All this have been painted with mind boggling expertise and at the same time carrying the stipulated amount of emotion enough to be classified as a rhetorical saga.
The story opens with Juggut Singh going for a quick tryst with Nooran his lady love, and at the same time the sleeping village fell easy prey to the apathy of the notorious intruders leaving behind scars of their visit and a daunting feeling in the hearts of the villagers. But all this seemed to be mundane when the story unfolds the arrival of the train with bodies of sikhs in stacks.
Though there was absolutely harmony until then the whole village saw the implanting of the seeds of despise and sheer hatred among the same people who had once stood together against all the odds. It turns out to a tearful piece when one goes through the inhuman attribute of the ones in charge of the maintenance of law and order, be it the meted out to Juggut singh or Iqbal or of magistrate Hukum Chand?s voyeur with a harlot.
All of a sudden the peace and tranquility was pushed into oblivion. And it was really heart rending to see the display of utter bravado of Juggut Singh and saving the lives of thousands of innocent people, who did not have any inkling to the unseen misfortune that was to take place.
All this have been very well captured in succinct and down to earth rugged fashion by one of the most adroit author of all time.