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THE GOLDSTONE
India's army grew from 200,000 in 1939 to 2.5 million in 1945, with Muslims making up about a third of the numbers at any one time. Most Muslim recruits came from what is now Pakistan.
"A SENSE OF PRIDE"
In all, 87,000 Indian army soldiers were killed in the war, according to the Commonwealth War Graves Commission.
Jahan's study, which focuses on 5,500 Indian army deaths in Italy, fascinates its audiences because it breaks down Muslim casualties according to recruitment areas within British India, and then traces links between today's British Pakistani communities and the areas where recruitment took place.
Young Muslims specially identify with Jahan's finding that of the 122 deaths of soldiers under 18 in Italy, 90 were Muslim. Among them were three 15-year-olds -- Amir Khan, from Attock, Gulab Khan, from Rawalpindi, and Mian Khan, from Kohat.
In a lecture at Oxford University in April, Jahan spoke of a "a pressing need to restore a sense of identity and self esteem for young British Muslims today".
"If more was known about the contribution of so many Muslim soldiers of the British Indian Army, it would help to restore a sense of pride, cement the social bonds of different communities in British society, and turn the idea of a shared heritage into a meaningful weapon against prejudice," he said.
The workshop was funded by a state programme called "Positive Futures" which supports local initiatives to help disengaged and vulnerable young people.
"A SENSE OF PRIDE"
In all, 87,000 Indian army soldiers were killed in the war, according to the Commonwealth War Graves Commission.
Jahan's study, which focuses on 5,500 Indian army deaths in Italy, fascinates its audiences because it breaks down Muslim casualties according to recruitment areas within British India, and then traces links between today's British Pakistani communities and the areas where recruitment took place.
Young Muslims specially identify with Jahan's finding that of the 122 deaths of soldiers under 18 in Italy, 90 were Muslim. Among them were three 15-year-olds -- Amir Khan, from Attock, Gulab Khan, from Rawalpindi, and Mian Khan, from Kohat.
In a lecture at Oxford University in April, Jahan spoke of a "a pressing need to restore a sense of identity and self esteem for young British Muslims today".
"If more was known about the contribution of so many Muslim soldiers of the British Indian Army, it would help to restore a sense of pride, cement the social bonds of different communities in British society, and turn the idea of a shared heritage into a meaningful weapon against prejudice," he said.
The workshop was funded by a state programme called "Positive Futures" which supports local initiatives to help disengaged and vulnerable young people.
