One could write an entire thesis on the subject, but I think it should suffice to say here that the proponents of the ‘two nation’ theory themselves are probably aware that it is not based on fact. If, at any point of time, interaction between the people of the two countries, especially the two Punjabs, is freed of all restrictions, the theory is likely to crumble completely. For one, the majority of the people of both Punjabs come from the same ethnic stock. Some of their ancestors chose to become followers of Islam, some of Sikhism or Christianity during the middle ages, while others chose Hinduism. A very large proportion of the population of both Punjabs is formed by the Jatts (like yours truly) who retain common surnames or last-names to this day. People of other castes are also likely to find that they share their surnames or last-names with many on the other side of the border, when they travel across it. Since Punjab happens to be the largest province of Pakistan, need one say more?

Having said that, I do realise and respect the fact that Pakistan is and has been a sovereign nation for the past six decades.

However, I think it is high time that commonalities be given as much importance, if not more, than the differences.

Sorry for the digression, but the first comment led me away from the main topic!

The author talks about how “heavily damned” the Indus River is and impliedly blames it on military rule in Pakistan. Pakistan has built only one dam on the Indus, which is Tarbela. What the military has to do with large dams is beyond comprehension as India built over 60 medium and large dams despite remaining under civilian rule since 1947. Another dam, Mangla has been built on the River Jhelum, which feeds the Indus. The drying up of the Indus downstream of Kotri is due to the diversion of water by India on the Rivers Ravi and Sultlej and the damning of these two rivers by India as well as irrigation by local farmers in Sindh downstream Kotri. Now India has begun diverting water from Chenab and Jhelum in Kashmir, both of which feed into the Indus.

As for the names of the two countries. The name “India” is a Western name (as it does not exist in Sanskrit or Urdu or any other official or unofficial language of India or Pakistan). Whereas the name “Pakistan” at least is an Urdu phrase with an Urdu meaning. The local name for Indus is “Sindh” and we already had a province by that name. So the name “Pakistan” has more roots in the local culture and ethos than the Western name “India”. This is evident by the fact that the suffix “-stan” is used in this region to denote a “land” – Hindustan, Afghanistan, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Krgyzstan, etc. India was either called “Bharat” or “Hindustan” and by adopting the official name “India”, it was the Indians who betrayed their history by adopting nomenclature used by Europeans, similar to the manner in which “Misr” became “Egypt”, “Urdan” became “Jordan” and “Sham” became “Syria”.

The author should read the “The Indus Saga” by Aitzaz Ahsan and she will realize that the history of the Indus Valley is not as intertwined with the history of mainland India as it may, at first, appear. In fact, the name “Indus Valley” was given to it by the Greeks, who, when they descended into this region from the Hindu Kush, thought they had entered a valley and, hence, proceeded southwards and largely kept a southward march.