From Colonial Communalism to Post-Colonial Ethnicity: The Enduring Legacy of Partition in Sindh

Abstract

This article traces the transformation of colonial “Partitionism” into post‑colonial ethnic conflict in Sindh, with Hyderabad city as the concentrated theatre of violence between 1985 and 1999. Drawing on census data, archival records, and oral testimonies, the study argues that the British ethnographic state’s strategy of dividing society along communal lines did not end with the 1947 Partition but was reframed into a lasting ethnic cleavage between Sindhis and Mohajirs. The mass arrival of Urdu‑speaking refugees created a demographic shock that Sindhi nationalism perceived as an outsider takeover, while state‑imposed official nationalism denied subnational recognition to both communities and failed to complete refugee rehabilitation. The rise of the MQM and JSQM institutionalised competing ethnic identities, embedding colonial communal templates into democratic politics. Hyderabad’s trajectory from interethnic harmony to the “small war” of 1990, the operations in Pakka Qila, and the persistent misery of un-rehabilitated Mohajir families demonstrate that partition remains an enduring structural condition, perpetuating cycles of grievance, exclusion, and bloodshed. The article conceptualizes partition as a long process that continues to shape belonging, citizenship, and everyday violence in Sindh. 

Keywords: Partition, Sindh, Hyderabad, Mohajir, Sindhi Nationalism, Ethnic Conflict