71 YEARS AFTER MY WIFE’S GRANDPARENTS WERE UPROOTED FROM THE HAVELI, WE CROSSED WAGAH IN SEARCH OF HER ANCESTRAL HOME
On hearing our conversation, a little girl asked her mother, “Eh tan apne vangu hi bolde aa (They speak like us).” Her mother replied, “Yes, we are all the same. Only Partition separated us.”
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The pangs of Partition continue to haunt generations of Punjabis on both sides of the Radcliffe Line. Even those born after 1947 have grown up hearing the searing memories of ancestral places their parents and grandparents left behind in West Punjab, now in Pakistan. My wife, Tripta Kandhari, had long nursed a longing to visit the 19-room haveli her grandparents once owned in the historic Nankana Sahib town.
The ongoing 550th birth anniversary of Guru Nanak whetted her urge to rediscover her roots where the first Sikh Master was born. So, 71 years after her grandparents were uprooted from the haveli, we crossed the Wagah border on December 6. The caretakers of Gurdwara Janam Asthan were waiting for us as they were informed in advance by our host, Rai Azizullah Khan, the custodian of Sikh relic Ganga Sagar. Gurdwara Sahib granthi Daya Singh welcomed us at the gated entrance manned by armed police. We were provided lodging at Mata Tripta Niwas.
My wife couldn’t wait any longer and even before we could have a meal, she started telling Daya Singh, “I’ve come to find the haveli of my paternal grandparents. My grandmother, Raj Kaur, used to tell us that our haveli had 19 rooms and was located near the gurdwara. My grandfather, Kishan Chand, died there. He was known as Shah ji in the area. After Partition, our family migrated to India. My grandmother handed the keys of the haveli to the then granthi of Gurdwara Sahib, thinking the family would return after the communal riots.”
Daya Singh said most Sikh families residing in the area today came from Peshawar. He suggested we visit an old building behind Gurdwara Janam Asthan that resembled the description we had shared.
The next morning, we paid obeisance at Gurdwara Sahib, built at the birthplace of Guru Nanak Dev, at 5am and listened to kirtan. It felt like a lifetime ambition had been fulfilled.
During the day, we visited Nankana Sahib’s market and six other gurdwaras associated with the life of Guru Nanak Dev.
But all this while, my wife kept thinking about her ancestral haveli. Passing by the market in front of Gurdwara Sahib, we saw a deori (entrance) of an old building. We thought of stopping there but then changed our mind since there was hardly any space to park our vehicle due to the rush in the market. We decided to take a look at it on returning from our outing.
While having tea at the residence of Nankana Sahib’s prominent citizen Nazim Sahjad Mullik Khalid, we broached the topic. He said the old building we had seen at the market could be the haveli.
As we were making enquiries from shopkeepers nearby, the haveli owner, a middle-aged gentleman known as Shah ji, arrived and warmly welcomed us. “How many rooms are there in this building?” my wife asked. The owner counted 19. My wife’s face lit up. Shah escorted us inside the doublestoreyed building constructed with Nanakshahi bricks. Some family members residing in the building came into the courtyard.
In a choked voice, my wife continued sharing details of four shops in front and a godown meant for storing cotton at the back of the haveli. “My grandfather was a trader and used to deal in cotton,” she said.
The residents showed us around, lamenting the loss of lives and fortunes on both sides of the border due to Partition. Seven families now reside in the haveli. On hearing our conversation, a little girl asked her mother, “Eh tan apne vangu hi bolde aa (They speak like us).” Her mother replied, “Yes, we are all the same. Only Partition separated us.”
Baljit Balli , The writer is a Chandigarh-based senior journalist
e-mail : tirshinazar@gmail.com
Courtesy Hindustan Times , Chandigarh- December 21, 2018
Baljit Balli and Tripta Kandhari at a historic gurdwara at Nankana Sahib
Click to read in Punjabi :
Asin kiven labhi nankana sahib vikhe dadkian di haveli ..?
http://www.babushahi.com/punjabi/opinion.php?oid=2268