The book He Almost Prevented Partition: The Life and Times of Dr. M.C. Davar, authored by Praveen Davar, is a fascinating publication throwing light on the manifold issues of division of India and creation of Pakistan on the basis of a retrograde two-nation theory flagging Hindus and Muslims as separate nations. 

The pages of the book are replete with ceaseless activities of M.C. Davar (Mehr Chand Davar) to unite Hindus and Muslims, fraternise the members of Muslim league and Indian National Congress and caution those  hellbent to dismember India in the name of Islam, that it would spell more harmful consequences for Muslims. Davar’s prescient observations have come true. 

Born in 1913 in Punjab, Davar, like many of his fellow Indians, was drawn to the freedom struggle at an early age. Even though he was a small boy when the Jallianwala massacre took place, the pain and agony it caused deeply agitated him. When he moved to Calcutta at the age of 18 to pursue a course on homeopathy, he joined the Seva Dal of Congress and met Subhas Chandra Bose, whose secular outlook and his stress of unity of Indians regardless of their religious creed moved him beyond measure. 

It was during his involvement in the freedom struggle that he shaped his outlook by the ideals of stalwart leaders such as Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru, Bhagat Singh and Maulana Azad. An unsung hero he played a key role to avert partition of India by upholding unity of people pursuing diverse modes of worship. Till his passing in 1977 he upheld those enduring values.

It is educative to note that Davar while engaging himself in the arduous quest to keep India united had a deeper understanding that the British rulers were determined to divide India someway or the other. Such startling facts are mentioned in page 75 of the book. Therein it is outlined that it was Mountbatten, the last Viceroy of India, who insisted on partition even as Jinnah was agreeable to the 40:40:20 formula. That insistence for dividing India, according to Davar, could be traced to a long drawn out British scheme framed 75 years back to dismember our country.

So, Davar’s efforts to keep a united India in the face of the 75-year-old conspiracy to cut it into two pieces certainly made him a heroic personality in the freedom struggle. 

It was Jawaharlal Nehru who once juxtaposed Davar’s homoeopathic and revolutionary background. Possibly Davar was a freedom fighter who had the unique distinction of being a homoeopathic doctor. He was in fact the pioneer of homeopathy in India and his high credibility as practitioner of homoeopathic medicine endeared him to some of the top leaders of Muslim League who benefitted from his treatment. 

Once Prime Minister of Bengal, Fazlul Haq’s daughter very severely suffered from some heart ailment and could not speak a word. Davar was requested by Haq to urgently treat her and save her life. The homoeopathic medicines administered to her by Davar worked miraculously and she could speak. An emotional Haq was relieved to see his only daughter uttering a few words. Slowly, she recovered. 

Haq attended an all party conference called by Davar and it was disapproved of by Jinnah. The deep persuasive impact of Davar on Haq was such that he who moved the Pakistan resolution in Lahore in 1940  talked of united India as the only solution and salvation for the country.

Nehru described the Lahore resolution for Pakistan as Muslim League’s “contempt for the country and… hymn for hatred.”

When Sir Sikandar Hayat Khan expressed his commitment to a united India, Davar organised an All-Religions Conference, presided over by Sir Syed Sultan Ahmed, a prominent Muslim leader. It was another fine instance of a confluential approach adopted by Davar to uphold the unity of faiths and communal harmony. 

Promotion of Hindu-Muslim unity and bridging the gulf between Congress and Muslim League remained central objectives of the Conference to keep India united and forestall its partition. Media coverage of the success of the conference in spelling out the essential unity of all religions inspired people and brought them together regardless of the faiths they followed.

The formation of the United Party of India (UPI) by Davar to work against the attempts to divide India and defend its unity constituted one of his stellar contributions during the freedom struggle. In all those dedicated activities of Davar, there was a deep impact of the worldviews of Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru and Netaji Subhas Bose who inspired him greatly to make India free and sustain its unity.

Apart from dedicating his life to keep India united, Davar also displayed a sensitive understanding of famines which were recurring in British India. It is fascinating to note that when Mahatma Gandhi was arrested during the Quit India movement and he suffered malaria in jail, M.G. Davar, like many other concerned Indians, appealed for Gandhi’s release. 

He gave an illuminating explanation why Gandhi should be released. Davar argued that “if Christ [Gandhi] is kept in jail any longer, the Bengal famine will not remain restricted to Bengal, such calamities will spread to other parts of India.” The reasoning he advanced for release of Gandhi echoed the utterances of many prominent leaders of the freedom struggle that famines were man-made disasters, not caused by absence of rain but by absence of democracy and free press. 

During the British rule in India, there was no democracy and of course, no independent mass media. So Davar’s stand that Gandhi’s release, among others, would prevent spread of famine assumes critical significance for our time which is marked by frequent man made disasters and incarceration of political leaders by powers that be.  

It is educative to note that Davar’s incessant strivings for Hindu-Muslim unity got reflected in what B.R. Ambedkar said in the Constituent Assembly in December 1946. He said:

“I suggest that another attempt may be made to bring about a solution of the dispute between the Congress and the Musim League. The subject is so vital, so important that I am sure it could never be decided on the mere basis of dignity of one party or the dignity of another party. When deciding the destinies of nations, dignities of parties ought to count for nothing. The destiny of the country ought to count for everything.”

The author of the book, Praveen Davar, is the son of M.C. Davar and in unearthing information from several documents available in the erstwhile Nehru Memorial Library and Museum, he has proved the arguments of his father that the British authorities scripted the Partition of India and blamed Congress leaders of that time for it.

The fascinating chapters give an account of M.C. Davar’s contributions for rehabilitations of refugees in post partition India and promotion of amity between India and Pakistan. It fructified the vision of Nehru who wrote in his book The Discovery of India:

“It is obvious that whatever be the future of India, even if there is regular partition, the different parts of India, will have to co-operate with each other, in a hundred different ways".

Davar worked for a united India but after the Partition, he dedicated himself for peace and harmony between India and Pakistan even as he had described the latter as a “forbidden fruit”.

S.N. Sahu served as officer on special duty to President of India K.R. Narayanan.

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