*INDEPENDENCE DAY*
*Independence Day* is annually celebrated on 15 August, as a national holiday in India commemorating the nation's independence from the United Kingdom on *15 August 1947,* the UK Parliament passed the Indian Independence Act 1947 transferring legislative sovereignty to the Indian Constituent Assembly. India still retained _King George VI_ as head of state until its transition to full republican constitution. India attained independence following the Independence Movement noted for largely non-violent resistance and civil disobedience led by the _Indian National Congress (INC)._ Independence coincided with the partition of India, in which the British India was divided along religious lines into the Dominions of India and Pakistan; the partition was accompanied by violent riots and mass casualties, and the displacement of nearly 15 million people due to religious violence. *On 15 August 1947,* the first Prime Minister of India, _Jawaharlal Nehru_ raised the Indian national flag above the Lahori Gate of the *Red Fort* in Delhi. On each subsequent Independence Day, the incumbent Prime Minister customarily raises the flag and gives an address to the nation. The entire event is broadcast by _Doordarshan,_ India's national broadcaster, and usually begins with the shehnai music of _Ustad Bismillah Khan._
