Re: Why Muslim women were mutilated in Gujarat
That's really a spurious argument.
I don't think the average Muslim villager in UP or Kerala actively "chose" to remain in India because they believed in Congress any more than the average villager in Punjab or Sind "chose" Pakistan. You're implying that there was some sort of wholesale active rejection of the Pakistan movement...which no doubt did occur among the handful of Muslims who were active in the Congress Party, and likeminded individuals (Azad et al). On the same token, it's pretty well recognized that the majority of the Muslim middle class in what is now India did choose to leave and migrate to Pakistan. But to imply that it occurred on a national level, with the largely impoverished, apolitical Muslim masses "rejecting" the idea of Pakistan (or actively choosing the idea of Pakistan in Punjab, Sind, etc) is kinda silly.
In any case...even if we were to accept the concept, the fact remains that after Partition, more than 2/3 of the Muslims of the Subcontinent "chose" Pakistan.
I am grateful that you wrote this, it has clarified a number of things that many many other Pakistanis have been confused about. Hopefully after reading your post, they will stop accusing India and Hindus for muslim problems.
To extract here are the ones that I am talking about:
the only people you are willing to admit 'chose' Pakistan are then the middle-class that moved westward. Since the 'poor illiterate muslims' of whether Punjab, Sindh, Kerala or UP could not 'chose' because they can't afford to move, that would imply only a minority of people living in Pakistan actually chose to do so!
you have also made it clear that at least 'some' muslims have rejected Pakistan
since only the 'poor illiterate muslims' remained in India according to you, you have also clarified that it is not Indian or Hindu atrocity that has resulted in the average muslim in India being less well of than the average Hindu Jain Parsi or Christian but that they had a rotten deal handed to them by the Brits and the Moghul rulers preceding!
Of course we have learnt to overlook minor details such as Kerala which you cite, happens to be on the top of literacy rates in the sub-continent, not just India. Or that the 'impoverished apolitical massess' of muslims you refer to used to turn up in thousands to Mahathma Gandhi's meetings - it had to be the poor illiterate masses because according to you there were only a "handful of compliant muslims in Congress"!