This paper examines the concept of divisive desire in Bapsi Sidhwa’s Ice-Candyman, focusing on how the novel addresses institutionalised amnesia and collective memory. Set against the backdrop of the Partition of India in 1947 and the emergence of post-colonial Pakistan, the narrative intertwines personal desires with the consequent collective trauma. Sidhwa’s portrayal of ethnic, religious, and cultural tensions uncovers how historical amnesia—both personal and societal—shapes the characters’ identities and their perceptions of the past. The study explores how the characters’ experiences of loss, violence, and displacement are suppressed or manipulated by institutional powers, contributing to a collective memory that is fragmented, selective, and often silenced. By examining the interplay of personal desires and collective history, this paper analyses the way Sidhwa critiques the mechanisms of forgetting and the politics of memory. In doing so, it emphasises the role of storytelling in reconstructing or obscuring the traumatic past, suggesting that institutionalised amnesia serves as both a means of survival and a form of oppression. Through the lens of Ice-Candyman, the study highlights the tension between remembering and forgetting as central to the formation of national identity, and how the desire to move forward often leads to the erasure of painful histories. The work ultimately underscores the need for confronting collective memory in order to heal and understand the divides that persist within post-colonial societies.