The last months of French India were marked by what a French scholar in Pondicherry termed as 'ambiguity and illusion.' The ambiguity (admitted by Nehru in several letters) came from some local leaders who could not choose their camp. The 'illusion' was that many Pondicherians strongly believed they could continue to belong to two nations, two cultures, Indian and French.

The tragedy of the merger has perhaps been that this double sense of belonging was not translated into law. The treaty of transfer (or cession for the French) was probably drafted too quickly, without taking into account this dual belonging. One can regret it fifty years later, though soon the dual nationality scheme of the Government of India may repair this damage. But it was probably too early for a newly Independent India to accept this possibility.

During the last weeks before France took the decision to leave the establishments, there were few possibilities left for Paris to save the 'sinking boat:' one was evacuation without an agreement, the other was to 'refloat' the ship and defend it by force.

Delhi argued that France was bound by the Treaty of Paris of 1814 which stipulated that the French possessions could not be militarily defended. It was evoked by the Government of India after the landing of 50 armed police personnel in Pondicherry in June 1954. Fifty years later, the incident seems laughable. In any case, both solutions were not satisfactory for French self-respect.

Text: Claude Arpi; photograph: courtesy Claude Arpi