(The Dominion
status is in between a colony and a sovereign state).
Other erstwhile
colonies of the British Empire like Canada, New Zealand, Australia, South
Africa etc. were also accorded the Dominion status at different points of time,
and were granted the freedom to self-govern but were still bound by their
allegiance to the crown. Some of them still have the British monarch as their
head of state, and some others like India, Pakistan, South Africa, etc. adopted
a Constitution and declared themselves to be Republics - where the head of
State is not a monarch but a representative of people of the Republic.
BUT NONE OF THESE
COUNTRIES OTHER THAN INDIA AND PAKISTAN, celebrate the day on which they became
Dominions as 'Independence Day'.
Canada, for eg.,
used to call it 'Dominion Day' and later renamed it to 'Canada Day'. Countries
such as New Zealand, Australia, South Africa etc. don't even commemorate the
day on which they became Dominions of the British Empire. South Africa
celebrates its 'Freedom Day' on the day on which the first post-Apartheid
elections were held.
Hopefully sooner
rather than later, when the masses realise this, the Independence day for the
republic of India, would be celebrated on the day when India became an
Independent Sovereign Republic with its constitution enacted, espousing
egalitarian ideals, even if at the time only on paper.
For more on
Dominion status, see -
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dominion_Day
15th August 1947
was the APPOINTED DAY for British India to be made into two separate Dominions.
The Appointed Day
(15th Aug1947) was the Dominion Day and..
The Republic Day (26th
Jan 1950) is the Independence Day.
On 25 Nov 1949, Dr
Ambedkar, in his last Parliamentary speech says,
"On 26th
January 1950 India *WILL BE* an independent country"
========================
Celebrating the
birth of India on 15th August, instead of 26th January is akin to celebrating birth
of a child on the day it was conceived instead of the day it was born.
The map of India and
Pakistan on 15th August, 1947 is on the left. The brown part is India, green
Pakistan, and white the princely states which were given the option to join
either India or Pakistan.
On 15th August,
1947, India and Pakistan were but a collection of non-contiguous stretches of
land that previously was part of British India - like a formless zygote. It was
only later when the 565-odd princely states, ruled by local rulers, acceded to
either India or Pakistan the whites in the map gradually disappeared and India
took shape.
And on 26th January,
1950, it was born.
To celebrate the
birth of India on 15th August, 1947 instead of 26th January, 1950 is akin to
celebrating the day on which a child is conceived instead of the day on which
it's born. (Thanks Goutham Maiyalagan for enlightening on Dominion status).
ALSO READ:
1. TRUTH ABOUT INDIAN INDEPENDENCE THAT HAS BEEN HIDDEN FROM THE MASSES FOR OVER SEVEN DECADES
3. Why are there so many Brahmin freedom fighters?
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