At 11 pm, on the night of August 14, 1947 the Constituent Assembly gathered at the Central Hall of Parliament for the birth of India’s freedom. Celebrations had started a day earlier. At exactly midnight, India became a free nation and Pandit Jawarharlal Nehru delivered his historic ‘Tryst with Destiny’ speech.
This day marked the beginning of a new chapter in India’s history and the end of 182 years of British rule. A cabinet of ministers was sworn in with Jawaharlal Nehru as the Prime Minister. Those present sang ‘Vande Mataram’ which later became the National Song of India. The celebrations ended well past midnight after a group of women, representing the women of India, formally presented the National Flag to the Assembly.
Mahatma Gandhi stayed away from celebrations and instead observed a 24-hour fast, offered prayers and spun khadi yarn. He said, “My way of celebrating great events such as today’s, is to thank God for it and therefore to pray.”
Gandhiji was upset at the Hindu-Muslim rioting that was taking place in the country and was in a sombre mood at the time.
Picture Credit : Google