The novel Such a Long Journey by Rohinton Mistry is set in the city of Mumbai, India in 1971. The book explores the journey of a Parsi man named Gustad . Noble and his relationships with others as he goes through difficult times in his life. The book not only deals with Gustad's personal life journey, but it also explores the political context of that era. The battle between India and West Pakistan during the Bangladesh Liberation War that helped East Pakistan form its own sovereign state, the socialist and corrupt government of Indira Gandhi and the fascist Shiv Sena regime led by their leader ethnocentric, Bal Thackeray, influenced the background of the novel. growing tensions between East Pakistan and West Pakistan in 1971. After winning the 1970 elections, East Pakistan wanted to found its own country and secede from Pakistan. West Pakistan answered this question with “Operation Searchlight” which triggered the Bangladesh Liberation War (Malieckal, 77). The aim of Operation Searchlight was the extermination of all Bengalis. Dinshawji comments on this genocide when he says: “Bloody butchers, slaughtering left and right” (76). 3 million Bengalis died and 10 million decided to take refuge in India (Malieckal, 75-76). To pay for all these refugees, India introduced a refugee relief tax, which made life more difficult for the people. India joined the war after military planes bombed West Pakistan. In the novel, Gustad covers his windows with black paper and builds an air raid shelter under his bed to keep his family safe during the war (347). After 13 days of fighting, the Indo-Pakistani War ended with Pakistan surrendering and the Bengalis creating their own nation. In 1971, the...... middle of paper...... Pakistan surrendered in the war. The Indo-Pakistani War helped the Bengalis establish a sovereign state for themselves. The distribution of racist leaflets against minorities showed the chauvinistic and fascist regime of Shiv Sena. Indira Gandhi's corrupt government, socialist regime and controversial scandals such as giving government money to her son's company and the Nagarwala scandal of 1971 were also exposed. All these political events influenced the context of the novel and the daily lives of the characters. .Works cited Malieckal, Bindu. THE BANGLADESH GENOCIDE IN THE LONG JOURNEY OF ROHINTON MISTRY 28.2 (2008): 75-88. December 2008. Web. November 12, 2013. Mistry, Rohinton. Such a long journey. New York: Knopf, 1991. Print. Rajagopal, Krishnadas. “Nagarwala case: the mystery returns after three decades.” - Indian Express. Np, December 21, 2008. Web. November 25. 2013.