INDEBTED TO A SAVIOUR

VEER SINGH, 76, Shopkeeper, Nehs village, Nabha

Iwas six years old and was carried by my father and my pregnant mother when we migrated from Dhilli, a village in Narowal tehsil of Sialkot district. I remember a Muslim toughie who I used to call ‘mama’. People of the village feared him. He proved to be our saviour. We left Dhilli a month after Partition. While we were there, he would visit us frequently to ensure we were safe. I remember my grandfather and father’s younger brother were burnt alive after being beaten up. It may have been independence for many but for us it was just ‘halla’ (a scream/chaos).