ABSTRACT
This chapter begins with make-believe stories about the alleged relocation of the border in Hili. It will relate the contested local narratives of border-making with the larger scenario of partition. Taking a cue from Chatterji, I will argue that the Partition was a surgery in haste, creating dubious effects on ordinary lives. By weaving Hili people’s accounts into materials from the archive, I have made my case. Further, I will discuss the making of the borderland and nation/state in Hili, the consolidation of the border there over the decades, the issues of passport, Ansars, overzealous central and local administration, etc. The discussion will illustrate how the trivial incidents and characters from a small provincial locality like Hili got entangled with the big events and actors from the centre. Conversely, one may argue, it shows how a suspicious state or an enthusiastic nation had unfolded on a local matrix.
