Chapter 1, Dacoity, Section 1 Summary

The story begins in the summer of 1947, when communal riots broke out between Hindus and Muslims over the proposed split of India into a Hindu India and a Muslim Pakistan. Both sides were brutal to one another and refugees fled to their respective safe areas. Ten million people were in flight and a million died that summer. Only a few places of peace remained in the crossroads ,and one was the village of Mano Majra.

Mano Majra is a small village population by Sikhs and Muslims. The Sikhs are wealthy and few in number, owning all the land, while the Muslims are tenants of the Sikhs. There are a few others, such as Lala Ram Lal's family, which is Hindu. Mano Majra is known for its railway station, and a small group of merchants has grown up around it...