Iqbal, Jinnah and India's Partition: An Intimate Relationship

Author(s): V. N. Datta
Source: Economic and Political Weekly , Dec. 14-20, 2002, Vol. 37, No. 50 (Dec. 14-20,
2002), pp. 5033-5038
Published by: Economic and Political Weekly

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 Iqbal, Jinnah and India's Partition
An Intimate Relationship
This paper brings olut soime dinlensionls of the crucial political relationship betweenz
Mulhannliad Iqbal anzd Mohammad Ali Jinniah. Though this relatiotnship lhad far-reaching
consequences in shaping the cotntours of the suibcointinenzt's taurbulent history, it las
not been adequately studied in partition histories.

V N DATTA

C M Naim has edited a comprehensive material on politics, especially on the

volume containing six scholarly articles on Hindu-Muslim question, and demonstrate
spate of scholarly literature has the Iqbal-Jinnah association.1 This is a his political evolution as a poet-philoso-
appeared on the poetry of valuable contribution to our understand- pher. Sheikh Mohammad Ashraf, a well
Muhammad Iqbal (1878-1938) and ing of communalism, nationalism, Islamicknown publisher from Lahore, published
the politics of Mohammad Ali Jinnah polity and Indian politics. But this work,parts of this correspondence with a preface
(1876-1948) in both India and Pakistan.a product of intellectual premeditations,by Jinnah in 1943.5 Iqbal's two letters in
Iqbal's political role has so far been mainlyconcentrating exclusively on the system ofUrdu to Jinnah, dictated to Ghulam Rasul
studied as a starting point, a sort of con-ideas, does not analyse the concrete social Mehr, a distinguished Urdu writer, have
spicuous linkage, if not as a footnote, in and political reality relating to India'salso been quoted by scholars. But, Jinnah's
the creation of a separate, independent,partition. replies to these letters are not available.
sovereign state of Pakistan. But little effort In Pakistani historiography, Iqbal is often Nor did Iqbal preserve Jinnah's correspon-
has been made to examine the politicalrepresented as the founding and spiritual dence - poets are untidy in such matters.
relationship between Iqbal and Jinnah that father of Pakistan. In many Indian writ- Scholars like Aley-Ahmed Suroor have
led to significant political developmentsings, on the other hand, he is projected as questioned the authenticity of some of the
in the history of modern India. a firm and convinced Muslim nationalist, Iqbal-Jinnah correspondence.6 Assuming
This paper seeks to understand the rolewhile in other works he emerges as a that some of these letters have been tink-
of Iqbal and Jinnah in the Pakistan move-champion of Hindu-Muslim solidarity and ered with to justify the ideological foun-
ment, the nature of their relationship and freedom of India and a unique symbol of dations of the Pakistan movement, it will
commitment to a principle that ultimately India's composite culture, fostered and be fruitful to juxtapose them with chang-
became an aspiration, and a battle-cry forsustained throughout the centuries. Rafiq ing trends in Iqbal's poetry and other
Muslims in shaping the destiny of a sepa-Zakaria, S M H Burney and Khawaja writings. Doubtless, changes in Iqbal's
rate nation. By focusing upon the evolu- Ahmed Faruqi, in their studies, hesitate in political attitude can be discerned princi-
tion of Iqbal's ideology, as reflected in hissaddling Iqbal with the parentage of pally via his poetry, while his letters deepen
poetry, letters and speeches, it is intended Pakistan.2 For Mohammad Mujeeb, Ali our understanding of his political ideology
to show the growth of separatist trends inSardar Jafri, Jagan Nath Azad and and vision.

his thinking and ideas. By appropriating Khushwant Singh, the question whether Indeed, Iqbal was an outstanding Per-
his ideas and philosophy, in the changedIqbal was a poet of Muslim separatism is sian-Urdu poet. His reading was exten-
historical circumstances of the 1930s, sive, his mind fertile and vigorous, and his
irrelevant - their principal interest lies in
Jinnah forged an intimate intellectual and his poetry, and in his outstanding creativestyle, rising at times to solemn eloquence,
political-philosophical vision. This paperjourney. For them, he was essentially reflected
a boundless creative energy and
audacity of spirit. His sense of the lan-
brings out some dimensions of this highly poet par excellence, not a cultural-political
crucial political relationship, a relation-ideologue of the Pakistan movement. guage was original and unparalleled. Yet,
ship that has not been adequately studied In understanding lqbal's political ideo- we cannot disengage Iqbal's poetry from
his political ambitions and aspirations.
in partition histories. Yet, this relationshiplogy, the difficulty lies in the nature of the
had far-reaching consequences in shapingsource-material. His presidential address Scholarly writings do not often engage
the contours of the subcontinent's turbu- delivered at the All India Muslim League with the politics of lqbal's poetry. This
lent history. The British imperial autho- session at Allahabad on December 29, essay is a modest attempt to fill this gap.
rity, the Congress, the Muslim League, and 1930, and the account of his participation
communal forces were the major players at the Round Table Conferences in 1931 II
in the vivisection of the country. Yet, it and 1932 are well documented and well
is important to explore the origin and nature known.3 But his correspondence withIn the early part of his life, until Iqbal
of the ideological shift towards Muslim Mohammad Ali Jinnah, between May 23, went to Cambridge in 1905, his poetry
separatism through the personalities of 1936 and November 10, 1937, comprising was imbued with a burning passion for
these two remarkable men of the 20th eight letters, poses certain problems.4 Indian nationalism and its heterogeneous
century. Iqbal's letters contain vital source- culture. Unlike his contemporaries, his

Economic and Political Weekly December 14, 2002 5033

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identification with Indian culture, religions
and history was quite spontaneous, intense
and broad. His poems expressed his eclec-
tic outlook, his respect for Hindu gods and
Sikh religious leaders and his profound
feelings for the rivers, the hills and land-
scape of India. By drawing upon Hindu,
Muslim and Sikh traditions and symbols,
Iqbal, in these years, emerges as a leading
Indian poet. His Tarcahalh-e-Hind of 1904
(the Song of India that he recited at the
Young Men's Indian Association in Lahore
at the request of Hardayal) extolled the
glories of his Hindustan:
Sarey-e-jahan se accha Hindustan Hamara
Ham Bulbelain hay uski woh gulstan
hamara
Mazhab nahin sikhata apas main bayr
rakhna
up the message of the Bhagavada-Gita:high moral tone, and carried a clear com-
Shakti bhi Shanti bhi Bhagton key geet munitarian message. Therein, perhaps lay
main hai his originality. Iqbal did not emulate the
Dharti key basiyan ki mukti preet main hai.lyrical charm of Mir Taqi Mir or Ghalib'a
acute sense of exalted humanism.16
Power and peace are the songs of a devotee
Love is the ultimate for humankind.10 Instead, he acknowledged his intellectual
debt to Altaf Husan Hali, the poet of
In the same poem, Iqbal declared his
'Islamic Renaissance' for inspiring him
unstinted commitments to his homeland
to compose poetry for the moral re-
and its cultural symbols:
generation of the 'fallen Muslim com-
Khak-e-vatan ka mujh ko har zara devta hai munity':
For me every particle of my country is a Main kishawar shair ka Nabi ho gaya
deity.' Nazil hai meyre lab pai kalam-e-Hali
One of his poems, Aftab, was a loose I am a model for composing poetry
rendering of the Gayatri Mantra, for which But I echo Hali's voice.17
a Muslim cleric prepared afatva (religious In particular, his poems Shikva (the
edict) against him Complaint), composed in 191 1, and Javab-
Aftab Ham Ko Zaya-e-shawor dey I-Shikva (Answer to the Complaint) n 1912,

Hindi hain hum watan hey Hindustan Chashm-e-Khirad apni tajjali sey noordey were clearly inspired by Hali's Musaddas.
hamara O Sun, stimulate our mental faculties with
Akbar Allahabadi, who had exhorted
Yunan-o-misr Roma sab mit gaya jahan your glorious light Muslims to lead a pure life and to prepare
sey Give us wisdom by your divine light.12 themselves to protect their cultural iden-
Baki raha hai ub tak namo nishan hamara tity, also influenced him greatly.
Kuch bat hai key hasti mitti nahin hamrai After his return from Europe, in 1908,
Islamic principles of dynamic righteous-
Barsoon raha hai dushman dor-e-jahan Iqbal was a changed man. He acquired a
ness and social action were not mere poetic
hamara. new world view. He began to reflect on
or comtemplative images for Iqbal. They
religious issues in the wake of the Euro-
Our country is the greatest in the world. became a medium of integrating and
pean aggression against the Muslim coun-
We are her nightingales, and she our gar- consolidating Muslims as a strong Pan-
dener tries, including Turkey and Persia. To face
Islamic community inspired by the highest
Religion doesn't peach rift the western challenge, he, like his contem-
ideals of truth, love and justice. He ex-
We are Indians, and our country is India poraries Maulana Azad, the Ali brothers. pressed the finest values of Islam in his
Greece, Rome and Egypt are no more Mohammed and Shaukat and Hasrat
Yet we continue to flourish
powerful poetic rhetoric of inspiring
Mohani, advocated 'Pan-Islamism as the
Muslims to consolidate themselves as a
Something within us makes our existence political goal of the Islamic world'. He
worthy of note
community.
began to regard himself as Islam's mes-
Though unsmiling Fortune has beensenger or Shair-I-Islam, and his poetry Often in his poetry Iqbal anatomised his
our enemy.7 piteous spectacle of the Muslim commu-
became a vehicle of Islamic thought.13
Iqbal described 'Rama' as Imam -e-Hind nity, its moral degeneration, its false idols,
It was in these years that Iqbal adopted
(a religious leader of India) and its hypocrisy. In anguish, he cried in
the posture of a fervent preacher (nasih)
Saqi Namna,
Phir hai ram key wajud per Hindustanin his poetical compositions. His poetry
ko naz Bhuji Ishq ki ag andher hai
was to serve as a moral guide, a shaper
Ahley nazar samajtey hein usko Imam-I- Musalman nahin ag ka dher hai
Hind
of individual, and, by extension, a
community's conduit. He warned: The fire of life is dead
India is proud of Rama It is not a Muslim, but a heap of dust18
Shair ra maqsoud agar adamgari ast
The wise revere him as a spiritual guide.
Shairi ham wars-I-paygambri ast In 'Shikva' he argued with God for
Likewise, Iqbal considered Guru Nanak favouring the non-Muslims
If the purpose of poetry is the fashioning
as Mard-e-Kamil or the perfect man.8 of men Rehmat-en hain teri agyar key kashanon par
Taking pride in his brahmin ancestory, Poetry is likewise the heir of prophecy.14 Burg girti hai to becharey Musulmanon par
he wrote:
Moreover: Kindness is bestowed not on the Muslims
mara binger key Hindustan digar namey but on non-Muslims
Shair ander risht-e-millat chu dil
bini Brahma zada ashnaye Rom-o-Tabriz While the Muslims continue to suffer19
ast Millat-e-bay shair-e-anmbar-e-gil
Iqbal waxed lyrical over Muslim con-
Look at me, you will never find another The poet is like the heart in the breast of quests and domination. There is an expres-
in India the community
sion of aggressive communitarian nation-
who, like me, a Brahman's son, under- A people without a poet is a mere heap
of clay.15 alism in the following lines:
stands the secrets of the
Arabs and Persia.9 Cheen o Arab hamara Hindustan hamara
Ghalib never pontificated. His most Muslim hain ham watan hay sara jahan
In 'Naya Shivala' (The New temple), aserious thoughts were expressed irrever- hamara
harmonious blend of Shakti (power) andently and rather spontaneously. After Teygon key saya main ham pal kar javan
bhakti (workship), he eloquently summed1908, Iqbal's poetry gradually acquired a hooye hain

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 Khanjar halal ka hai quomi nashan hamara India Muslim League session took place,
the foundation of nationality. In a satirical
Magrab ki vadyon main goonji azan hamari in Lahore in 1920, Iqbal did not take care
vein, in his poem on 'Husain Ahmad' he
Thamta na tha kisi say sail e rawan hamara wrote: to attend it even though the meeting was
Salar-e-karwan hai Mer-I-Hijaz apna held at the Gulab theatre just opposite his
Ajm Hanooz nadanad ramuz-e-din varna
Us nam say baqi aram-I-jahan hamara residence.26
Zi Deoband Husain Ahmed eh chey
Iqbal ka tarana Bang-I-dara hai goya Never before had the communal ques-
Bulajmi ast
Hota hai jada paima phir karvan hamara
Sarood bar sar-e-mamber key millat us tion assumed such dangerous dimensions
China and Arabia are ours, Hindustan is watan ast in the country as it did in the 1920s, after
ours
Khilafat and non-cooperation move-
Chey bai khabar us makam a Mohanmmad
We have grown to mankind under theArb ast ments (1919-22), an era of Hindu-Muslim
shadow of sword
Ba Mustaffa barasan khesh rafraternisation.
key din Between 1923-26, there
The dagger like Crescent is our nationalhama oost
were as many as 72 communal riots against
symbol Agar bey oo narasidi tamam buhalbi ast
16 in the course of 20 years from 1900.
The valleys of the West resonated with our
call to prayer
Non-Arabian countries do not know what The Hindu-Muslim problem, Mahatma
Nobody could stem the swelling tide of our
true faith is Gandhi announced in March 1925, was an
conquerors A strange interpretation of true faith from 'insoluble puzzle' and he would keep out
Husain Ahmad of Deoband! of it. He took to fast and saw no 'light'
Mir-l-Hajaz (the Prophet) is our leader
He declares that countries make nations to resolve the communal question.
His name gives us peace and tranquillity.20
How ignorant he is of the message of the
Again, Iqbal's new sensibility is evident Despite a number of unity conferences,
Prophet, who is the true
in the following lines: political parties were unable to cure the
Source of Religion.24
communal canker. The Nehru Report,
Main tuj ko batata hun taqdir-I-umam
Thus, according to Iqbal, Islam was a published in 1928, accepted Dominion
kya hai
Shamshir o sina awwal taus o rabab akhar 'single unanalysable reality' and its sepa- Status as its goal but found no favour with
ration from politics was unjustified. He the Muslim League, and the All India
Let me tell you what is the destiny of a
nation
rejected the western idea of territorial Muslim conference. The Nehru Report had
nationalism as a byproduct of the per- recommended the abolition of separate
The sword and dagger take precedence
version of western democracy, and deve- electorates and the reservation of seats and
over singing and dancing.21
loped an intertwined notion of Muslim weightage for Muslims in provinces in
He preferred to die in Mecca and nationalism and Islamic universalism as a which they constituted a majority. These
Medina:
common basis of action. recommendations were made on the as-
Main maut dhoondta hoon zammen-e-
sumption that Muslim interests were pro-
hijaaz mein III tected by the principle of provincial auto-
I seek death in the holy land of Hejaz.22 nomy. Weighted heavily in favour of a
In 'Bang-e-Dara' (The Call of the Iqbal's passionate commitment to Is- strong centre, the constitution that the
Caravan bell) and mathanavis 'Israr-e- lamic universalism, his notation of sepa- Nehru report recommended, could hardly
khudi' (Secrets of the Self) and 'Ramuz- rate Muslim identity and citizenship, and be called federal. Understandably, Mus-
e-Baikhudi' (Mysteries of Selflessness), his complete disregard of territorial na- lims' reactions against the Nehru Report
Iqbal expresses his commitment to Mus- tionalism provide sound clue to an under- were strong. The appointment of the Simon
lim sentiments and beliefs.23 His Masjid standing of his political conduct. His poetic Commission in 1927 split the Muslim
Qurtaba (Cordova) in 'Bale-Jibril energies and political leanings increas- League into two factions, one led by
(Gabriel's wing), which equals Milton's ingly came under the shadow of an Islamic Muhammad Shafi, and the other by M A
'Paradise Lost', harps on the glory of framework. Jinnah. In 1929, Iqbal joined the Shafi
Islam and Muslim conquests that had led Iqbal himself did not take any active part group. For four years (1926-1930), he
to the expansion of Muslim dominionin in politics until 1927, though in iis Asrar- was a member of the Punjab legislative
the world. For him, Islamic idiom was I-Khudi
a (1915), Ramuz-I-bi-Khudi (1918) council. In 1930, he was president of the
powerful medium of inspiring Muslim Payam-I-Mashriq (1923) he expoun-
and Punjab Muslim League.
ded the notion of millat, and exhorted
communities and forging a modern Jinnah came to an agreement with
Muslims to follow the tenets of Islam and
Muslim identity. He realised that the con- M A Ansari, president of the Congress,
to consolidate themselves as a community. on March 20, 1927, which guaranteed the
cept of Khudi (self-realisation), embodied
in the Quran, was an essential element Essentially, he was a poet, not a politician. Muslims 33 per cent of the seats in the
But, he was a poet with a difference. In central legislature, a separation of Sind from
for the moral and spiritual uplift of the
Muslim society. When Maulana Husain these years, he turned into a poet-philoso- Bombay and reforms in Baluchistan and
Ahmad Madni, Sheikh-ul-Muhaddas, pher, inspiring a generation of people North-Western Frontier Province. At this
president of Jamiatul Ulama-I-Hind, ex- through a powerful message of community stage Jinnah was willing to give up the
horted Hindus and Muslims, at Bara Hindu regeneration and self-confidence. demand for separate electorates. Initially,
Rao, Delhi, on January 9, 1938, to sink In 1920s and 1930s, the Muslim League, the Congress working committee wel-
torn by factionalism, was an upper-class comed the Delhi proposals on May 15,
their differences and join together in their
fight against British imperialism, and party of landed gentry, was almost at 1927, but later rejected them, Mohammed
emphasised that nations were formed by death's door, depending on the munifi- Shafi, Mian Fazl-I-Husain and Iqbal also
countries, Iqbal contested his views sar- cence of the Raja of Mahmudabad and a repudiated this agreement. Iqbal felt that
castically, and retorted that religion wasa few other individuals.25 When the All provincial legislatures could not protect

Economic and Political Weekly December 14, 2002 5035

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Muslims under the existing constitutional presidential address that he delivered at theMuslim League session, where Iqbal
provisions, and therefore required drastic Muslim League session held in Allahabaddelivered his address, his audience,
changes. on April 29, 1930. Here he propoundedmostly local men not knowing English,
During 1928-29 Iqbal delivered six his theory of a Muslim homeland, thoughfell short of quorum not exceeding
lectures, under the auspices of Madras ambiguously so. He felt that the Nehruseventy, and the next day due to its meagre
Muslim Association at Madras, Mysore, report and the Simon Commission recom-attendance, the Muslim League session
Hyderabad and Aligarh, which were pub- mendations had denied the Muslims their was terminated.
lished as Reconstruction of Religious legitimate political rights. He expressed lqbal delivered his address at a time
thought in Islaml in 1930. In these lectures, his desire to free Muslims from the geo- when the first session of the Round Table
he offered a rational interpretation of graphical limits hitherto imposed by the Conference was being held in London. His
Islam. explored its philosophical basis, and British government, and spoke in favour proposal suggested that the amalgamation
regarded it as consistent with modern of a separate area (he did not use the word of four Musliml majority provinces would
philosophy and science. He believed that 'province' but 'area') for the protection of strike a balance between the 'Hindu and
the teaching of Islam advocated a a separate Muslim cultural identity.29 The Muslim India'. His scheme for the redis-
meliorism, it recognised the importance of life of Islam as a cultural force depends tribution of territory, in the north-western
the growing universe, and was dynamic on its centralisation in a specified terri- part of India, was in sharp contrast to the
and flexible enough to adapt itself to the tory.30 He realised the threat posed by unitary form of government in a 'self-
current needs and thought of modern Hindu majoritarianism to Muslim cultural governing' India.34 In other words, Iqbal
times.27 By giving a rational interpretation identity. He criticised the Lucknow Pact supported the plan for a federal India with
of the Quran, he reinterpreted some of of 1916. the crowning achievement of a strong emphasis on provincial autonomy.
the
essential Islamic legal principles. He urged
Jinnah, forreducing Muslims to a religious In his letter to Edward Thompson, he
Muslims to model their social life in the minority, a notion that Jinnah drastically reiterated that he did not want a separate
light of ultimate principles as revealed in
modified later in his presidential address Muslim state.35
at the Muslim League session in Lahore
the Islamic ideals. Almost Janus-like, Iqbal About three years later, in 1932 at the
had one face towards the past in the in 1940. In his address, Iqbal also attacked Second Round Table conference in Lon-
recovery of the essence of Islam, andthe scheme of 'Punjab ruralism', the 'sheet- don, Iqbal felt isolated. His speech at the
another towards the future that lookedanchor' of the Unionist Party, for reducing conference was resented by the British,
ahead by projecting a Faustian vision the
of Muslim majority toa minority in Punjab. Hindu and Muslim delegates.36 It is doubt-
unlimited power and the 'concept of man'Iqbal gave a blueprint for resolving the ful whether Chaudhry Rahmat Ali, who
communal problem, which had acquired had floated a scheme for the creation of
bent on a ceaseless quest for apprehending
reality. Condemning 'traditional' or 'ob-an insidious character in 1920s. He said, a sovereign independent Muslim state of
scurantist' Islam, Iqbal gave legitimacy 'I
towould like to see the Punjab, north-west Pakistan, derived his inspiration from Iqbal
the political cause of Muslim nationalism.
frontier, Sind and Baluchistan amalgam- Muhammad. Jehangir, as an eye-witness,
Because of his profound reverence for ated into a single state. Self-government claims that Iqbal had met Rahmat Ali at
Islamic tradition and symbols, he upheld within British Empire or without the British Cambridge, and approved his proposal for
empire... The formation of a consolidated naming the new Muslim state as Pakistan.37
Shariat as the guiding principle of Muslim
polity and society. He sought to revivenorth-west
a Indian Muslim state appears to But K K Aziz maintains that Iqbal never
dynamic and radical element within Islam me be the final destiny of the Muslims at met Rahmat Ali.38
by restoring the freedom to use Ijtihad,least
a of north-west India' .31 This state was When Jinnah visited Punjab, in June
means of exercising independent judge- conceived to be exclusive of the Ambala 1936, to seek public support for the Muslim
ment, as a necessary instrument of division and other areas where non- League in the forthcoming 1937 elections,
Muslim politics.28 Muslims predominated. He also opposed he found no response. He was welcomed
the inclusion of Indian native states in the
But on specific issues, especially those by five persons at the Lahore railway station.
relating to women whom he wanted to lead nominal federation.as recommendedHeby
had no political standing. He was a
the Simon Commission.
a 'pure' life in subjection to men, and the consultative politician, quick only at pro-
Islamic restriction of eating and drinking, Reginald Coupland, an imperial-consti-
ducing ready-made formulae to settle the
he had conservative views. In the closing
tutional historian, thought that Iqbal's
communal problem. He was a general
chapter of the Oxford edition of his book,
proposals for a separate Muslim state in
without an army. Fazl-i-Husain, the secu-
he warned the reformers against moving India, couched in an ambiguous language,
lar-unionist, ignored him, and wrote in his
too fast in introducing radical changes in
were susceptible to various interpreta-
diary 'Jinnah could not get on with any-
the 'old institutions' and practices fol-
tions.32 He did not contemplate a separate
body. He is no leader. I shall not go out
lowed in Muslim countries. sovereign Muslim state, but only a north-
of my way to be nice to him'. Jinnah was
Clearly, Iqbal was opposed to the ideawest autonomous Muslim religion com- disgusted and vowed never to come back
of territorial nationalism. In his concep- prising the Muslim majority areas within
to Punjab. Jinnah met Iqbal on May 21,
tion of the state, the spiritual and thea loose All India Federation, but excluding
1937, at his residence in Javid Manzil,
temporal issues were inseparable. IslamIndian states and exercising only those Lahore, and thereon developed that a close
was a theocracy that realised the spiritualpowers expressly vested in it by a free
relationship between them that lasted until
in human organisation. He doubted if aconsent of the federal states.33 Interest- Iqbal's death in April 1938.
non-Muslim legislative assembly couldingly, Iqbal's address was completelyDespite his failing health, Iqbal's deep
exercise the use of Ijtihad. These prin- ignored by the Indian political parties,involvement in politics from 1937 on-
ciples formed the ideological basis of his including the Muslim League. At the wards arose, to some extent, due to his

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distress at the poor performance of the Hindu leaders.44 In his correspondenceJinnah borrowed Iqbal's political language
Muslim League, and the victory of the with Jinnah, Iqbal included Bengal in and
his vocabulary. The problem of India is
Congress in the 1937 elections. With clear scheme of a consolidated Muslim state.45
not national, but international. Jinnah
majorities in six provinces, the Congress realising the gravity of the situation,
This was a step further from his Muslim
emerged as the strongest political force in League address of 1930. especially the obduracy of the Congress
the country and formed ministries. On the leadership, and the might of Hindu com-
other hand, the Muslim League was IV munal forces, chartered his course of action
trounced in Punjab, Bengal and Sind; it for the creation of Pakistan. But Jinnah
counted little in the North-Western Fron- We may conclude that Iqbal's poetic was not an ideologue. His Lahore Reso-
tier Province. Iqbal realised the weakness vision marked a distinct shift from syn- lution fed itself on the juices of Iqbal's
of the Muslim League in the Muslimthetic view of India to a cry for a separate principles.
majority provinces, the 'disunity' ofMuslim homeland. Of course, his creative Iqbal's politics stemmed from his poetic
Muslims, and was conscious of the journey was shaped by the changing his- sensibility, but Jinnah used ideology as an
torical circumstances and the exigencies of
vulnerability of 'Muslim interests' under instrument of political action. As a vision-
the all-too powerful Congress hegemony. high politics. Consequently, he emerged ary, Iqbal crowned the dawn of Pakistan
as a poet-ideologue of a Muslim home-
He thus shared several ideas with Jinnah of which Jinnah became an accessory by
for the protection of Muslim politicalland. Both Iqbal and Jinnah began their his tactical skills as a first-rate politician.
interests. separate journeys as Indian nationalists, Notwithstanding the profound role of
Iqbal became president of the Punjabbut ended as advocates of a separate imperial designs, political manoeuvrings
Provincial Muslim League on May 19, homeland for Muslims. and economic exigencies in the partition
1936. His correspondence with Jinnah, It was Iqbal who blazed a trail that Jinnah
story, Iqbal, goes down in history as the
1936-38, throws ample light on how hefollowed. Iqbal conceived an idea of herald of Pakistan and a political mentor
was goading Jinnah to take up some crucialPakistan, Jinnah realised it. As an intel-of Jinnah; Jinnah of couse, acknowledged
issues concerning the future of the ag- lectual godfather, Iqbal gave a concept of his debt to his mentor in 1947. [
grieved and beleaguered Muslim com- the two-nation theory and offered a map
Address for correspondence:
of the redistribution of territory, forming
munity. It was at his initiative that the
Nawab of Mamdot joined the Punjaba Muslim state, comprising the north-westiic@delnet.ren.nic.in
Muslim League. and Bengal.46 As an ideologue, he rejected
In his letter of March 20, 1937, IqbalMaulana Azad's notion of composite Notes
advised Jinnah to rebut Jawaharlal Nehru's culture and religious pluralism.47 Iqbal
[This is a revised version of the Athar Ali Me-
'aesthetic socialism' on the ground that thehad no truck with Jawaharlal Nehru's
morial Lecture delivered at the Aligarh Muslim
Muslim problem was not economic, butsecular-socialist nationalism. Committed University, Aligarh, at the invitation of Aligarh
cultural.39 In his next letter of May 28, to the notion of Millat, he repudiated the
Historian's Society, on November 24, 2001. 1 am
1937, Iqbal wrote that the 'time was ripeBritish constitutional measures, such asgrateful to Irfan Habib, Gopichand Narang, P N
for the redistribution of the country to formseparate electorates and weightage for Dhar, Saifuddin Soz, Yahspal, M Zuberi, and
one or more states without which enforce- resolving the communal disease. He felt Nonica Datta for their valuable suggestions and
critical comments.]
ment of Shariat is impossible in this that the Congress brand of nationalism
country. Iqbal warned that "if such a thing posed a threat to the protection of Muslim1 C M Naim, Iqbal, Jinnah: The Vision and the
is impossible in India the only other al- cultural and political aspirations. By de- Reality (Chicago 1977).
ternative is civil war which as a matter of manding a separate identity for Muslims, 2 Rafiq Zakaria, Iqbal the Poet and the Politician
fact has been going on for some time in he thought that communal tension would (New Delhi, 1993), p VIII, S M H Burney,
Poet and Patriot of India (New Delhi, 1983).
the shape of Hindu-Muslim riots.40 In his be contained and Hindu communal forces
letter to Jinnah, dated June 21, 1937, he would be held at bay. He wanted the See A K Dasgupta,'Concept of Pakistan',
Mainstream, October 13, 2001, 25-26.
proposed, 'Why should not Muslims of merging of Muslim nations into a uni- 3 See for instance, S H Vahid,'lqbal as Architect
north-west India and Bengal be considered versal commonwealth on the basis of of Pakistan' in Mohammad Iqbal, The Political
as a nation entitled to self-determination Shariat - a conception that was central Thinkers
to of Modern ldlia, xxvi (New Delhi,
as any other nation in India and outside' .4 his poetic vision. Of course, Jinnah, draw- 1993), p 112.
He also suggested that the Muslims ofing upon Iqbal's legacy, launched the Direct 4 This correspondence has been reproduced in
north-west India and Bengal ought to Action movement in Punjab to topple the several standard works, but the originals are
not available. Only few xerox copies typed
ignore the political compulsions ofKhizr ministry, mobilised public opinion
with Iqbal's dubious signatures exist. Ashiq
Muslim minority provinces and their in the North-West Frontier Province, and
Husain Batalvi, Allama Iqbal Key Akhre do
linguistic affiliations.42 Clearly, he wantedrealised his dream of a separate homeland
sal (Srinagar 1984), pp 578-88.
a separate federation of the Muslimn for Indian Muslims.48 5 Letters of Iqbal to Jinnah (ed) Sheikh Moha-
majority areas. Iqbal's plan of a Muslim state approxi- mmed Ashraf, Lahore, 1956 (second edition).
Iqbal criticised the Jinnah-Sikandar Pactmated to Jinnah' s declaration of the Lahore
6 Aley-Ahmed Suroor's letter to S M H Burney
of 1937. He feared that Sikander Hayat Resolution (1940) that specified the re-
in the private collection of S M H Burney, New
Khan's machinations would lead to the alignment of state boundaries before Delhi.
an See S M H Burney, Iqbal, Poet and
Patriot of India, p 125.
assembly of 50,000 people in Lahore. It
ruinationofthe Muslim League in Punjab.43
7 Ibid, Bang-e-Dara (Aligarh, 1975) p 83.
He also pressed Jinnah to hold a largealso provided fuel to Jinnah's two-nation
8 Ibid, p 177.
Muslim convention in Delhi, to counter theory, expounded in Iqbal's hometown
9 Nigar, Iqbal Number, January, 1963, see Jagat
the Congress propaganda carried on by about two years after his death. Indeed,
Nath Azad 'Iqbal ki Shairi, p 16.

Economic and Political Weekly December 14, 2002 5037

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10 Iqbal, Bang-e-Dara, p 88. 27 Sir Muhammad Iqbal, The Reconstruction 1985, Document 121.
11 Ibid. of Religious Thought in Islam, Delhi, 1974,40 Dar, op cit, pp 253-55; Chopra, Document,
12 Ibid, p 43. p 174. 315.
13 M Mujeeb, The Indian Muslims (London, 28 Ibid, p 194. see also K K Aziz, A History of 41 Dar, pp 258-59; Chopra, Document, 282.
1967), p 488, see also Sarwant Sulat, Millat- the Idea of Pakistan, Vol I, Lahore, 1987, 42 Dar, pp 267; Chopra, Document, 525.
e-lslali ke Mukhstar Tarikh, Vol III (Delhi pp 192-93. 43 Ibid.
2001), p 41. 29 For a Perceptive Analysis of lqbal's Political 44 Ibid, p 269.
14 Iqbal, Javidnamah, Delhi 1984, p 46. Outlook, see K K Aziz, op cit, chapters 4-6, 45 Ibid, p 208.
15 Ibid, p 45. pp 184-332. 46 Some scholars maintain that Iqbal had nothing
16 M Mujeeb, Ghalib (New Delhi, 1969), pp 35, 30 Speeches and Statements of Iqbal (ed) by to do with the creation of a separate Muslim
41-42. Shambloo, Al Minar, Academy, New Delhi, state or what came to be known lateras Pakistan,
17 Muhammed Sadiq, History of Urdu Literature 1948, p 54. and for this view they quote Iqbal's letter to
(Delhi, 1984), pp 349-50. See also 'Hali and31 Reginald Coupland. The Constitutional Raghid Ehsan of Calcutta. (S M H Burney,
Iqbal' in Baquliyva-e-lqbtll; Mur-itaba Syed Problem of India, The Indian Problem (1833- op cit, pp 122-23) and Edward Thompson's
Abdul Wahid, Taimayd Majlis. Karachi, 1945), Part 1I, Oxford, 1945. p 198; see also account (C M Naim, op cit, pp 186, 190). In
pp 341-55, and for Akbar Allahabadi, see K K Aziz, op cit,- 193. the early 1930s, Iqbal was of course opposed
Muhammad Sadiq, op cit, pp 399-40. 32 Reginald Coupland, op cit, p 198. to the ceation of a separate state, and he made
18 Iqal, Bal-e-Jibril, (Lahore 1999), p 102. 33 Ibid. it clear while responding to Rahmat's Ali's
19 Ibid, p 166. 34 K K Aziz, op cit, p 194. scheme. But to stick to this notion is to ignore
20 Iqbal, Bang-e-Dara, p 159. 35 The Times, London, October 12, 1931. the changing views of Iqbal evident in his
21 Iqbal, Bal-e-Jabril, p 4. 36 Rima Hooja, Crusader for Self-Rule, Sir Tej letters to Jinnah. Also Edward Thompson's
22 Iqbal. Bang-e-Dara, p 198. Bahadur Sapru and the Indian National evidence is a reconstruction in retrospect.
23 M Mujeeb, India Miuslirms, p 486. Movement (New Delhi, 1999), p 120. Thompson was a close friend of Jawaharlal
24 Iqbal, Armaghain-e-Hija_:, (ed) professor 37 Jan Baz Mirza, 'Karwan -e-Ahrar', Vol IV Nehru and a supporter of the Indian National
Yusuf Salim Chisti, Calcutta, 1982, p 272. in Tarikh-e-Azadi bar safar, Lahore, 1974, Congress.
25 Ayesha Jalal, 'Nation, Reason and Religion: p 339. 47 For a comparative study of Azad and Iqbal,
Punjab's Role in the Partition in India', 38 K K Aziz, op cit. Vol I, p 292. see an illuminating article 'Azad and Iqbal'
Economic and Political Weekly, No XXXVIII,39 Letters of Iqbal (compiled and edited by by Farzana Sheikh, in Mushirul Hasan, Islam
August 8, 1997, 2184-85. Bakshi Ahmad Dar) Lahore, 1987, p 249. and Nationalism: Reflections on Abdul Kalain
26 Iqbl Key Siasi Rajuhat in Nigar, (ed) Niaz See also, P N Chopra, Towards Freedom Azad (New Delhi, 1992), pp 59-73.
Fatehpuri. January-February 1962, 39-41. (January 1-December 30, 1937), New Delhi, 48 Ibid, p 73.

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