1920s

Terms to Remember

Communalism The growth in hostility, rivalry between two communities. A situation in which
communities become unfriendly towards each other. They become intolerant
to each other’s beliefs and actions.

Arya Samaj It was religious and political party working towards the revival and
reformation of Hinduism. It encouraged the growth of Hinduism. It also
aimed at bringing back those Hindus who had accepted other religions such as
Islam or Christianity. Muslims blamed that this party was working towards
forcible conversion of the Muslims to Hinduism.

Hindu Mahasabha It was a Hindu nationalist political party in India.

The organization was formed to protect the rights of the Hindu community
in British India, after the formation of the All India Muslim League in
1906and the British India government's creation of
separate Muslim electorate under the Morley-Minto reforms of 1909.
Separate Separate Electorates are that type of elections in which minorities select
Electorate their own representatives separately, as opposed to Joint Electorates where
people are selected collectively. When minorities fear that they would not
get representation in state affairs and government then they
demand separate electorates.

Provincial Provincial Autonomy is such a system in which the government of

Autonomy the provinces works quite independently from any external influence and does
not rely on any of the external forces.

Central The setup of government that plans and manages affairs of the whole
government country.

Provincial The setup of government that plans and manages affairs of the whole
government country.
During 1920s, there was a rapid growth in communal issues in India. The communities
especially the Muslim and the Hindus, started to have greater degree of misunderstanding
and mistrust. This led to the growth of communalism in India. The gap between the two
communities started to grow wider and their relationship started to deteriorate.

Q Why was the gap b/w Muslims and Hindus becoming wider in 1920s?

Firstly, the Congress had withdrawn support from the Khilafat Movement which was seen by the
Muslims with suspicion. They considered this act to be an act of betrayal by the Congress done
deliberately to damage the cause of the Movement.

Secondly, many Hindunationalists’ parties had become more active during this time period such as
Arya Samaaj and the Hindu Mahasabha. Though these parties were mostly working towards the
revival and unification of the Hindu community, the Muslims in India felt threatened by the
activities of these political parties.

Thirdly, the Congress had accepted the Muslims’ demands for separate electorate and provincial
autonomy at the time of the Lucknow pact in 1916. However, as the time passed, the Congress did
not remain in support of these Muslim demands.

DELHI PROPOSALS 1927

 During 1920s, the relationship between the Muslim and the Hindu community had
deteriorated due to a number of factors.
 The Muslims no more trusted any other community in helping them safeguard their rights.
 They learnt that other communities would support them as long as it was beneficial for
them.
 The Muslims needed to take control of affairs in their own hands and not expect any
support from other communities especially the Hindu community.
 In order to discuss the ways through which the rights of Muslims could be protected, a
meeting of Muslim leaders was held in Delhi.
 In the meeting there were many ways discussed and finally the Muslim leaders decided to
put them together.
 The points of discussion in this meeting were called the Delhi Proposals.
 Muslims presented these proposals as their demands.
 They also stated that they would drop their demand of separate electorate if these
proposals were accepted.
 The proposals were:
1. Sindh should be made a separate province.
2. Reforms should be introduced in the provinces of Baluchistan and NWF as well.
3. Muslims should be given seats in the councils of Bengal and Punjab according to their
population proportion.
 4. There should be 1/3 seats for Muslims in the central government.

Q: Why were Delhi proposals presented?

Firstly, the Muslims were losing trust upon other communities especially after the experiences of
the khilafat movement when they felt that the Congress left them at the point when the khilafat
movement was in a critical state. The Muslims then realized that they needed to take some action
independently to safeguard the position of the Muslims. This led them to draw up the Delhi
proposals after a meeting of Muslim leaders to take control of their affairs in their own hands.

Secondly, at the time of the Lucknow pact the Congress had agreed that the Muslimswould have
the right to 1/3 seats in the central government and autonomy at provincial level. As the time
passed, the Congress decided to withdraw support from these demands of the Muslims. This
disturbed the Muslimsas these were two basic demands to protect their rights in India as a
minority. Therefore, they decided to put forwards their demands as the Congress had failed to
represent them.

Thirdly, during 1920s the Muslims in India had grown concerned about the growth of communalism
in India. Some Hindunationalist parties had become quite active during this decade. Arya Samaaj
and HinduMahasabha were collectively posing threat to the Muslimsculture and religion. The
Muslims realized that it was time to take actions by becoming politically active to protect their
religion and culture that appeared to be under greater threat due to the growth of
fundamentalism in India during this time period. . They decided to present the Delhi proposals.

SIMON COMMISION 1927

Terms to Remember

Commission A group of people set up by the government for an important and specific task
Conservative A political Party in Britain. It supported strict control of the British on the
Party Indian government.
Labor Party A political party in Britain. It had sympathetic attitude towards Indian
nationalism. It supported the idea that more Indian should be involved in the
government of their own country.
Constitution A constitution is a set of fundamental principles or established precedents
according to which a state or other organization is governed.
What was Simon Commission?

 In 1927, the Conservative British government in England sent a commission to India from
England.
 It consisted of seven men.
 It was headed by Sir John Simon.
 It contained no Indian.
 It had been sent to India to see the political condition of India and hold meetings with
Indian leaders.
  It was supposed to give suggestion to the British government as to what the future
constitution should be like for India.
 The Commission was badly opposed by the Indians and there were protests all over India
upon the arrival of the Simon Commission.

Q: Why did Simon Commission come to India?

Firstly, in 1919 the British had introduced reforms in India calledMontague Chelmsford reforms.
These reforms had introduced a new system of government in provinces called diarchy. In the
reforms, it was stated that after 10 years a committee would be set up to evaluate how effective
these reforms had been. SimonCommission was sent in 1927 to judge the effectiveness of the
reforms introduced in 1919.

Secondly, in 1930 the political situation in India was becoming serious. The Congress had been
established as a strong political agent and the All India Muslim League was also emerging as an
active political party. The rise in political awareness in India was no more a thing to be ignored by
the British. They sent the Simon commission to have an understanding of the political scene of
India before introducing new reforms.

Thirdly, the British were planning to introduce reforms in India before the next election in
Britain. It was because the Labor party was likely to win elections in Britain and Labor party was
sympathetic to the cause of the Indian nationalism. There was a fear that the Labor government
would give greater concessions to Indians. The Commission was sent two years before its due time
to ensure a strong grip of the British on India by the then Conservative government.

Q: Why was Simon commission opposed by the Indians?

Firstly, in 1927 the British sent a commission of seven men headed by John Simon to India. The
purpose of sending the Commission was to evaluate the MCR and hold meetings with different
political leaders to understand their demands. The Commission did not have a single Indian
member. The Indians felt insulted by this exclusion because the British had shown no trust in the
abilities of the Indians to include in the Commission.

Secondly, the Commission also had the job of giving recommendations for the future reforms/
constitution in India. The Indians doubted the intentions of the British because they were sure
that the Commission would give recommendations favorable for the British only. It was because no
Indianwas included in the Commission. The fear that the Commission would not make fair
suggestions made the Indians criticize the commissions.

Thirdly, in 1920 the Indians had become more politically active and organized. The Indians wanted
to exert pressure upon the British for self-government. Rejecting the Simon commission was a
way tell the British that the Indians were in no mood to accept any British policy in general unless
their demand of self-government was taken seriously.
ALL PARTIES CONFERENCE 1928

 Though the Indians were badly divided into different communities and political groups, all
Indian agreed that the Simon Commission was not likely to be fair.
 They all had one common opinion about the Simon Commission needed to be opposed.
 To oppose this Commission, they organized an All Party Conference.
 The representatives of all leading political parties in India attended this meeting.
 The meeting was headed by Pundit Motilal Nehru.
 The meeting was attended by the Congress, The Muslim League, the Sikh League, the Hindu
Mahasabha, the Liberals etc.
 In the meetings suggestions were given as to what the future Indian constitution should be
like.
 The suggestions were formally put together in a report that came to be known as Nehru
report.
 The report contained many suggestions that were against the interest of the Muslims.
 Muslim leaders present in the conference disagreed with these suggestions. However, their
objections were ignored.
 Since the Muslims leaders’ objections were ignored, Jinnah called this report as ‘parting of
the ways’.
 Jinnah was so much offended by the recommendations that the Nehru Report contained
that he introduced his own recommendations that came to be known as his famous Fourteen
Points.

Q: Why was All-Parties Conference (APC) organized?

Firstly, as a reaction to the Simon commission

Secondly, to discuss the future constitution of Indiawhich was acceptable to all

Thirdly, to bring about certain degree of unity within India (common goal for all Indians)

Q: Why was Nehru Report (NR) presented?

Firstly, in 1927 the British sent a Commission to India to hold talks with the Indian political
leaders and make recommendation as to what the future constitutions should be like. The Indians
severely criticized the arrival of Simon Commission because it did not contain a single Indian
member. All the parties in India attended APC to discuss future constitution of India. The Nehru
Report was presented as a set of recommendations on part of the Indians for the future
constitution.
Secondly, the British had always considered themselves superior to other nations of the world.
They considered Indians to be politically immature citizens. In their view the Indians were
incapable of drawing up a constitution for themselves. During the APC the Indians representatives
from different communities were invited to draft a constitution for India to show the British that
they were absolutely capable of doing so. Nehru report was presented as a reply to the British
taunts.

Thirdly, India had suffered greatly due to the political division within its huge population.
Different communities in India had different political aims and objectives. Due to this, it had
been easy for the British to rule India by playing one community off the other. In 1928 during
APC, the Indians decided that they would form a common political goal by producing a set of
recommendations acceptable to all communities. Nehru report was presented with a view of
setting up a common goal for all Indians.

Q: Why did Muslims/All India Muslim League criticize the Nehru Report?

Firstly, Muslims population formed a minority in India. In order to save their rights they had
demanded 1/3rd representation in the central government and a large degree of provincial
autonomy. The Muslims wanted a loose federation in India with most of the powers resting with
the provinces. On the other hand, the NR recommended that India should have a strong central
government which would give the power of the government to the Hindu majority. For this reason
NR was rejected by the Muslims/AIML.

Secondly, the Muslim and Hindu communities in India had a huge controversy over Urdu and Hindi
languages. The Congress wanted Hindi to be official language of India. This made Muslims insecure
as they considered the demand of the Congress to be an attack on their cultural identity. One of
the reasons why Sir Syed Ahmed Khan had presented the Two Nation Theory was this language
controversy. It was a deep seated issue in India and when NR recommended that Hindi should be
the official language of India the Muslims were bound to reject it.

Thirdly, according to the Congress the grant of the separate electorates to minorities in India
was a major cause of divisions within Indian population on the basis of religion. NR suggested that
the government of India should be secular with state having no religion. Due to this the report
denied the right of the separate electorates to any community on the basis of reliogion in India.
The Muslims resented this suggestion because having no right to the separate electorates would
mean permanent Hindu dominance. This reason made them criticize the Report.
JINNAH’S 14 POINTS 1929

 In 1927 Simon Commission came to India.

 Indian were badly offended by the composition of the Commission.
 They decided to boycott the Commission.
 One of the ways to boycott was the All Party Conference.
 The Conference was concluded with a report that became popular as the Nehru Report.
 This report upset the Muslims greatly.
 Jinnah presented the demands of the Muslims in his famous 14 points.

Q: Why did Jinnah present his famous 14 points?

Firstly, when the Simon Commission came to India in 1927 Indians were furious at its composition
as it had no Indian member. They organized an All Parties Conference (APC) to show opposition to
the Simon Commission. During the Conference, recommendations were made as to how India should
be governed. The report produced at the end of the conference was expecting Muslims to make
too many sacrifices. Jinnah was appalled when the changes he recommended in the Nehru report
were ignored blatantly. He therefore presented his recommendations separately through his
famous 14 points.

Secondly, the Muslim population formed a minority in India and they were less politically aware
and organized. It was only after the formation of the All India Muslim League that the Muslims
started to form a clear and definite political vision. Jinnah wished to give Muslim community a
better political by making a summary of all the Muslims demands. The 14 points were presented to
achieve the target of providing Muslim community a definite goal to work towards.

Thirdly, the other communities especiallythe Hindus and the British had always exploited the
weaker political position of the Muslim community. Jinnah produced his 14 points to save the
Muslims from this exploitation. He clearly stated that his 14 points would form the basis for any
future negotiations with the British as well as the Congress.

Q: Why were the 14 points of Jinnah considered as important?

Firstly, he was able to give a reply to NR (reason as the first)

Secondly, he was able to provide a goal to the Muslims to work towards.

Thirdly, he was able to form basis of future negotiations with the Congress.
SALT MARCH 1930

 The Salt March, also known as the Dandi March and the Dandi Satyagraha, was an act
of nonviolent civil disobedience in India led by Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi
 It was to produce salt from the seawater in the coastal village of Dandi (now in Gujarat), as
was the practice of the local populace.
 The British officials introduced taxation on salt production. The Salt Laws demanded that a
license had to be sought from the British for the production of salt from sea water. The
laws decalred sea-salt reclamation activities illegal, and then repeatedly used force to stop
it.
 Gandhi decided to attack these Salt Laws through a march.
 The 25-day march lasted from 12 March 1930 to 6 April 1930 as a direct action campaign
of tax resistance and nonviolent protest against the British salt monopoly.
 It gained worldwide attention which gave strength to the Indian independence movement.
 The march was over 240 miles. They walked for 24 days 10 miles a day.
 The march was the most significant organised challenge to British authority since the Non-
cooperation movement of 1920–22, and directly followed the Purna Swaraj declaration of
sovereignty and self-rule by the Indian National Congress on 26 January 1930.

Q: Why was Salt March organized?

Firstly, since the start of British rule in India, the British had governed India to benefit
themselves and had not put the needs and wishes of Indians in their list of priority. They passed
the policies which were beneficial to them onlyregardless of how they affected the Indians. One
such attempt was the infamous salt laws which forbade the making of salt except under license
from the government. Gandhi decided to criticize and condemn these unfair laws by organizing a
march as a protest.

Secondly, in January 1930, Gandhi had issued a declaration of independence which stated that the
people of India must work towards complete independence from the British rule because the
British government had ruined India economically, politically, culturally and spiritually. In the
month of March, he organized a march from Ahmadabad to the sea side village of Dandi. Besides
attacking the salt laws, he had organized this march to spread the idea of working towards full
independence.

Thirdly, the Indians were filled with hatred towards the British in general. The Salt March was
seen as an opportunity for the Indians to disregard all unfair laws passed by the British and show
opposition to British rule in any way possible. The Salt march was organized as a mass movement to
condemn the British policies in general to weaken their rule.
ALLAMA MOHAMMAD IQBAL and HIS ALLAHABAD ADDRESS

Allama Iqbal

 Muhammad Iqbal (November 9, 1877 – April 21, 1938), widely known as Allama Iqbal, was a
poet, philosopher and politician, as well as an academic, barrister and scholarin British
India who is widely regarded as having inspired the Pakistan Movement.
 He is called the "Spiritual Father of Pakistan."
 He is considered one of the most important figures in Urdu literature,with literary work in
both Urdu and Persian.
 Iqbal is admired as a prominent poet by Indians, Pakistanis, Iranians and other international
scholars of literature.
 Though Iqbal is best known as an eminent poet, he is also a highly acclaimed "Muslim
philosophical thinker of modern times".
 His first poetry book, The Secrets of the Self, appeared in the Persian language in 1915,
and other books of poetry include The Secrets of Selflessness, Message from the
East and Persian Psalms.
 Amongst these, his best known Urdu works are The Call of the Marching Bell, Gabriel's
Wing, The Rod of Moses and a part of Gift from Hijaz.
 Along with his Urdu and Persian poetry, his Urdu and English lectures and letters have been
very influential in cultural, social, religious and political disputes. [8]
 In 1923, he was knighted by King George V, granting him the title "Sir".
 While studying law and philosophy in England, Iqbal became a member of the London branch
of the All-India Muslim League.Later, during the League's December 1930 session, he
delivered his most famous presidential speech known as the Allahabad Address in which he
pushed for the creation of a Muslim state in northwest India.
 In much of South Asia and the Urdu-speaking world, Iqbal is regarded as the Shair-e-
Mashriq ( "Poet of the East").
 He is also called Mufakkir-e-Pakistan ( "The Thinker of Pakistan"), Musawar-e-
Pakistan ( "Artist of Pakistan") and Hakeem-ul-Ummat ( "The Sage of the Ummah").
 The Pakistan government officially named him "National Poet of Pakistan".
Q: Why was Allama Iqbal considered as important?

Due to the oppression and exploitation at the hand of other stronger communities, the Muslim
community was surrounded by the darkness of hopelessness. They were completely demoralized
due to their socio-political decline. Allama iqbal was a philosopher and poet who tried to revive the
Muslim community through his sublime poetry. His poetry played an important role in guiding the
Muslims towards the revival of their character and provided Muslims with a much needed stock of
hope. For his contribution towards the revival of the Muslim community through his poetry, Allama
Iqbal is considered as important.

Secondly, Allama Iqbal was not only a revivalist poet but also an active politician who had vision and
experience to lead the Muslims. He had served as the president of a wing of All India Muslim
League. Besides, Allama iqbal had actively participated in politics alongside Jinnah. He provided
Jinnah with support as and when it was needed. For his contribution to the political struggle of the
Muslims, Allama Iqbal is considered as important.

Thirdly, Sir Syed Ahmed Khan had stated that the Muslims in India had a unique identity as a
separate nation. This idea that the Muslims were a separate nation further evolved with the
passage of time when Allama Iqbal delivered a speech at Allahabad saying that the Muslims being
a separate nation deserved to live in an autonomous state where they formed a majority. Allama
Iqbal was the first Muslim leader who suggested the idea of political freedom for the Muslims in
India. The fact that he presented the ideology to guide the Muslim struggle towards achieving a
separate country makes him an important Muslim figure.

Allahabad Address
 The Allahabad Address is a speech by Pakistani scholar Sir Muhammad Iqbal, one of the
best-known in Pakistan history.
 It was delivered by Iqbal during the 25th annual session of the All-India Muslim League, on
the afternoon of Monday, 29 December 1930, at Allahabad, British India.
 In this address Iqbal outlined a vision of an independent state for Muslim-majority
provinces in northwestern India.
 In his address, Iqbal called for the creation of "a Muslim India within India", especially in
North-western India.[7] Iqbal demanded the right of self-government for the Muslims.
 He narrated the basic principles of the Islam and loyalties of the Muslims to their faith.
 He gave the idea and concept about a separate homeland in this address because the Muslim
were a nation and had a right that they got the identification and passed their lives in order
to the Islamic principles.
 In his address, Allama Iqbal explained that Islam was the major and determining factor in
the life of Indian Muslims.
 He defined the Muslims of India as a nation and recommended there could be no possibility
of peace in India without recognizing them as one. Unless the Muslims are considered as a
nation and their rights are protected, it is impossible to establish peace and order in the
land.
 As the permanent solution to the Muslim Hindus problem, Iqbal proposed that Punjab, North
West Frontier province, Baluchistan, and Sindh should be converted into one state.
 He expressed that the northwestern part of the country should be established to unite as a
self-governed unit, within or without the British Empire.

Q: Why is Allahabad Address considered as important?

Firstly, Sir Syed Ahmed Khan had stated that the Muslims in India had a unique identity as a
separate nation. This idea that the Muslims were a separate nation further evolved with the
passage of time when Allama Iqbal delivered a speech at Allahabad saying that the Muslims being
a separate nation deserved to live in an autonomous state where they formed a majority.
Allahabad Address by Allama Iqbal contained first ever reference to the creation of a separate
Muslim state. For this reason it is considered as important.

Secondly, Muslims in India were less politically aware and organized than the Hindu community. At
the start of 20th century they had started their political struggle in slightly more organized way.
Initially, they did not have a clear political vision but as the time passed they started to form a
proper goal to work towards. A big milestone in the Muslim struggle came in form of Allahabad
address delivered by Allama Iqbal. The address was important in guiding the Muslim struggle
towards the achievement of a separate country.

Thirdly, the idea of Allama Iqbal as mentioned in the Allahabad Address became a source of
inspiration for other Muslim leaders who developed a more detailed plan to safeguard the rights
of Muslims. Chaudhary Rehmat Ali had developed his scheme for Pakistan on the basis of the ideas
of Allama Iqbal. The Address became important in providing inspiration to other Muslims leaders
to develop more detailed scheme for a separate country.
ROUND TABLE CONFERENCES 1930-32

 The British were planning to introduce certain degree of self government in India.
 The demands of the Indian communities were also presented as to what the future
constitution should be like.
 The British decided to hold a session of talks to discuss constitutional matters with the
Indian leaders.
 These talks are refrred to as Round Table Conferences.
 The British stated that the talks were being held to discuss the grant of dominions status
to India.
 The congress decided to boycott RTC.
 The first session of these talks took place without the presence of the Congress.
 Absence of the Congress meant that nothing significant was achieved.
 The British Viceroy decided to bring the Congress to the next session of these talks.
 Viceroy Lord Irwin held talks with Gandhi and convinced him to attend the 2 nd session of
RTC after a pact which is called Gandhi Irwin Pact.
 Second session also failed to achieve any substantial thing.
 The third session was even a bigger failure than the second session.

Q: Why were RTCs arranged?

Firstly, in 1920sIndia had experienced a rapid growth in communalism. The gap between Muslim
and the Hindus had grown so much that both the communities were agreeing on almost nothing.
The Nehru Report presented the Hindu demands for the future constitution and Jinnah presented
14 points to state what the Muslims wanted in the future constitution. The two reports mostly
disagreed with each other leading to the formation of a deadlock in the constitutional matters.
RTCs were arranged to resolve this deadlock in the constitutional discussion.

Secondly, the British had sent a Commission in 1927 under the chairmanship of John Simon. The
Commission was assigned the task of suggesting as to what the future constitution should be like.
Though the Commission was severely opposed by the Indians it had been able to produce a report
to recommend the future constitution. The RTCs were organized to discuss the report submitted
by the Simon Commission.

Thirdly, the British were alarmed to see the growth of the political awareness in India. They knew
that the Indians had started to talk about an Indian government completely independent of the
British influence. They knew that neglecting the Indians especially after Gandhi’s declaration of
independence was no more possible. They decided to involve the Indians in the making of the
constitution of their own country. RTCs were arranged to allow Indians an opportunity to decide
the framework of the future constitution for India.
Q: Why did the Congress not attend 1st RTC?

Firstly, in the Nehru Report the Indians had demanded that India should be given a dominion
status. In 1930, the British announced that they were planning to organize RTC to discuss the
possibility of giving dominion status to India. The Congress demanded a promise on part of the
British that this was the main objective to hold RTC. The British did not give any such promise and
the Congress decided to boycott the Conference.

Secondly, the Congress leaders knew that the sessions of the RTC would not be of much use unless
the British agreed to incorporate the suggestions in the future constitution. The Congress
demanded that the British should give a guarantee to include all those agreements which would be
agreed upon by allat the conference. The British were not prepared to make any such formal
promises. When they refused to give a guarantee, the Congress decided to boycott the talks.

Thirdly, the influence of the Congress had increased considerably in India. The leaders knew that
the absence of the Congress from the Conference would badly affect its proceedings. The
Congress wanted to make an impression of their strength upon the British by telling them that
nothing was possible without the involvement of Congress anymore. This made the Congress
boycott the first session of these talks.

Q: Why was Gandhi-Irwin pact signed?

Firstly, in 1930  RTC were organized Congress boycotted  1st RTC took place  Congress was
absent  no concrete outcome  desire to bring the Congress  talks between lord Irwin and
Gandhi  to persuade Gandhi to attend 2nd RTC (Congress was the largest party of India).

Secondly, before the start of 1st RTC the Congress had started non cooperation movement (NCM)
leading to unrest in India. Many political leaders were arrested on the charge of participating in
this movement and causing political disturbance. The British Viceroy Lord Irwin decided to hold
talks with Gandhi after 1st RTC. He agreed to release all political prisoners in return of Gandhi
calling off this non cooperation movement. The pact was also signed to persuade Gandhi to end
NCM.

Thirdly, in January 1920 Gandhi had issued a declaration of independence stating that Indian
people must work towards complete independence by moving the British out of India. During the
talks b/w Gandhi and Irwin this matter was also discussed. Gandhi was finally persuaded to give up
this demand for full independence in return of a promise that the Indians would be given real role
to play in the government of their own country. It could be said that Gandhi-Irwin pact was signed
to make Gandhi give up his demand for full independence.
Q: Why did 2nd RTC fail?

Firstly, the 2nd RTC took place in London between September and December 1931. The British
provided a platform for open discussion as to what the future constitution of India should be like.
The Labor party which was sympathetic to the Indians had lost power in Britain and the new
coalition government was less keen to reach a compromise in India. For this reason 2 nd RTC failed.

Secondly, after the formation of the Gandhi-Irwin pact the Congress had finally agreed to attend
the 2nd RTC. During the Conference when the issue of the rights of minorities in India was raised
Gandhi adopted a very firm stance that there was no problem of minorities in the sub-continent.
He refused to recognize the problems of the minorities in India. This major disagreement over
the minorities issue pushed the 2ndconference towards its failure.

Thirdly, Gandhi also adopted a hard line in the talks when he claimed that he and his party
represented all Indians regardless of their religious differences. Indirectly, Gandhi was denying
the existence of All India Muslim League as a political party representing the Indian Muslims. The
talks reached a deadlock when Gandhi showed an uncompromising attitude over this issue as well.
This was another factor responsible for the failure of 2 nd RTC.

Q: Why did 3rd RTC failed?

Firstly, Lord Irwin the Viceroy of India was genuinely interested in resolving the constitutional
issues in India. By the time the 3rd RTC was organized lord Irwin had been replaced by Lord
Willington. The new Viceroy was much less prepared to make concessions. This lack of co-operation
ultimately led to the failure of 3rd RTC.

Secondly, the Congress boycotted the talks (details in book in topic 3 rd RTC)

Thirdly, Muslims were not represented by strong leadership (details in book under the same topic)
COMMUNAL AWARD 1932

Q: Why was the Communal Award presented?

Firstly, during 1920s, India had seen a considerable growth in the communal issues. The mistrust
among Indian communities especially the Hindus and Muslims had grown to such a level that there
were frequent incidents of communal violence breaking out in different areas of India. The British
were concerned about the growth of communal violence and decided to solve it by introducing
Communal Award to resolve the issues related to minority communities in India.

Secondly, the arrival of the Simon commission in India had one positive effect. All communities
put aside their differences and held a meeting to discuss constitutional issues in India. However,
the meeting failed to produce a solution which was acceptable to all. The report presented at the
end of the conference led Jinnah to introduce his famous 14 points. When the Indians failed to
resolve their communal issues concerning minorities, the British introduced the Communal Award
as a British solution to the problem.

Thirdly, the BritishPrime Minister RamsayMacDonald had played an important role in the
introduction of the Communal Award. He stated that he was not only the Prime Minister of Britain
but also a friend of India. It could be said that the Communal Award was presented by the British
to improve the British image in the eyes of Indian people.

Q: Why was the Communal Award criticized?

Firstly, the Congress always wanted a secular form of government in India. It believed that all
Indians should be treated as Indians regardless of their religious beliefs. The party claimed that
the grant of separate electorates was not good for India because it divided the population on the
basis oftheir religion. The Communal Award granted the right of separate electorates to all
minorities in India. The Congress criticized the Award as it was bound to cause division within
India through thew grant of the separate electorates.

Secondly, Gandhi also criticized the untouchable being declared a minority (details in last
paragraph of the topic called “communal award 1932”)

Thirdly, though the Muslims showed acceptance for the Communal Award, they resented the fact
that their status was badly affected in Punjab and Bengal (details in second last paragraph of the
topic Communal Award 1932 in book).
CHAUDHRI REHMAT ALI’s PAKISTAN SCHEME

Q: Why is Chaudhary rehmat Ali considered as important?

Firstly, he suggested a separate Muslim homeland (details in book 1 st paragraph of Chaudhary

rehmat Alipg # 80)

Secondly, in 1933 he wrote a four paged pamphlet called “Now or Never.” In this pamphlet he not
only suggested the establishment of a separate homeland but also devised the name the future
Muslim nation. He suggested that it should be called Pakistan which means “Land of the Pure”. The
word had letters from all the major Muslim majority areas in India P from Punjab, S from Sindh
etc. He is considered as important for coining the name for theMuslim country.

Thirdly, when Chaudhary Rehmat Ali presented this scheme many Muslim leaders did not agree
with his idea including Jinnah. However, all Muslim leaders were convinced after experiencing the
Congress rule between 1937 and 1939. This scheme achieved a prominent status when Muslims
started the Pakistan movement in 1940 to demand a separate homeland for the Muslims in India.
This scheme sowed the seeds for Pakistan.

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA ACT 1935

Q: Why was government of India act introduced?

Firstly, in 1927 the British sent the Simon commission to India to start the process of designing a
constitution for India. Though this commission was met with criticism, it started a long
constitutional debate in India leading to the production of the Nehru report by Congress and the
14 points of Jinnah. This constitutional debate did not end even when the British organized RTC
between 1930 and 1932. Finally the Government of India Act was introduced as a new constitution
for India when no solution was reached through a series of talks.

Secondly during 1920s, the political awareness in India had increased to a point that the Indians
had started to contemplate the idea of complete independence from the British rule. The
declaration of independence by Gandhi in 1930 had encouraged the Indians to form a dream of
fully independent India. The British saw this all with concern and alarm. They decided to introduce
government of India to give Indians some real say in the government of their own country to make
them give up their demand for full independence.

Thirdly, the British were also concerned about the growing political strength of the Muslim
community in the last few years. The Muslims’ struggle had taken a concrete shape in form of
Jinnah’s14 points. Besides this, ideas about a separate Muslims homeland were also present in the
air. The British thought that it was time to take the Muslims seriously and give them some of
their demands. This was another reason why GIA was introduced.

Q: Why was Government of India Act 1935 considered as important?

Firstly, the GIA declared that India was to be a federation of provinces and princely states with a
two chamber parliament. The British had finally introduced a parliamentary form of government in
India. This clearly indicated that the influence of the British in India was weakening as they were
ready to allow Indians in the government of their own country. GIA exposed the fact that political
power of the British was at a decline.

Secondly, GIA 1935  1937 election  2 years of congress rule  Muslims realized that their
situation would not change even after the departure of British from India. This made them
convinced that they needed a separate homeland. In this way 1935 GIA led to the establishment
of Pakistan movement.

Thirdly, after 1940 the Indians started a very strong campaign for the British departure from
India.The events that took place ultimately forced the British to move out of India. When the
partition discussion started and the decision dividing India into two countries was made it was
decided that the two new countries would adopt an amended form of this Act of 1935 as
constitution for both the newly created countries. This Act is considered important because it
became the first ever constitution of the Muslim country with some amendments.

Why was the Government of India Act criticized?

Firstly, the Indians were expecting a greater role in the central government of India. The British
announced that the Governor General would be the Head of the Indian federation with powers to
pass any law that he wished. Besides, the system of diarchy was adopted at the central
government. These measures meant that the Indians were likely to have a highly restricted role at
the Centre. Many Indians resented the limited role that this Act granted and criticized it.

Secondly, the Act introduced a high degree of provincial autonomy as the provincial ministers
were made the direct heads of the provincial administration. However, the provincial governors
still had the emergency powers of dismissing the ministers as well as the whole administration in
their province by declaring emergency. The fact that the provincial autonomy had come with
certain limitations made the Indians criticize the Act.

Thirdly, the Indians were continuously demanding self-government in India. The Indians were
likely to receive full benefit of self-government if they had right to vote. The Government of
India Act 1935, increased the voting rights from two percent to 25 % for Indians. The fact that
the Indians had demanded voting rights for all Indians through Nehru report made them criticize
this Act.
ELECTIONS 1937

Q: Why did All India Muslim League perform poorly in 1937?

Firstly, during 1930s theMuslim league had suffered internal split. Within the party there were
small groups led by different leaders who had different opinions as to how to protect the rights
of Muslims. However these divisions started to disappear as a process of unification was started
by Muslim leaders when elections were held in 1937. The performance of the Muslim League was
affected badly due to the lack of complete unity and agreement.

Secondly, the Muslim League had never participated in any major elections. In 1937 it was the
first time that they contested elections. Their campaigning was not effective. It was after the
elections that the League learnt that its support lay more in areas where the Muslims were a
minority rather than a majority where there was a majority of Muslim they didn’t yet feel
threatened by Hindu domination. The poor campaigning on part of the Muslim League was another
reason for its poor performance.

Thirdly, most of the leaders of the Muslim League were wealthy princes, Nawabs and landlords.
They all belonged to the elite class of the Muslim community. The poor Muslims in India were
unable to identify themselves with their leaders. Most of the Muslims in India saw the Muslim
League as a political party of the aristocratic class of the Muslims. This image problem of the
Muslim League contributed towards its poor performance in the elections.

CONGRESS RULE 1937-39

Vande Mataram (English Translation: Mother, I bow to thee)

 is a Bengali poem written by Bankim Chandra Chatterjee in 1870s, which he included in his
1881 novel Anandamath.
 The poem was composed into song by Rabindranath Tagore.
 The first two verses of the song were adopted as the National Song of India in October
1937 by the Congress.
 The title 'Vande Mataram' means "I praise thee, Mother" or "I praise to thee, Mother".
Muslisms’ Objections

 The fourth stanza of the song addresses motherland India as, Mother Durga and Mother

Lakshmi ( the Hindu goddeses) . When a Muslim sings these words he is forced to equate his

country with the Hindu goddesses Durga and Lakshmi, thereby idolizing the land of India.
 This goes against the concept of tawheed (oneness of God) according to which a Muslim

cannot supplicate to anyone except God.

 The song was part of the novel “Anandmath” which was strongly anti Muslim. Novel
Anandamath by Bankimchandra Chaterjee, dealt with the theme of purifying the land of
India from non Hindu communities. It encouraged the idea that India was meant to be a land
of Hindus only.

Q: Why did Muslims criticize Wardha scheme?

Firstly, Wardha scheme was an educational scheme introduced by Gandhi. It suggested that there
should be no religious education for any community in schools. The Muslims objected to it by
saying that teaching Islam was necessary to Muslim children because they were a minority with a
high risk of getting influenced by the Hindu majority. Muslims criticized the scheme saying that it
was an attempt to subvert love for Islam among their children and convert them to Hinduism.

Secondly, the scheme also suggested that teaching should be carried out in Hindi in all schools and
colleges. The Muslims also objected to this saying that it was an attempt to undermine Muslim
culture and force Hindu culture upon them they also objected to it because it was not possible for
Muslim children to study Hindi. The suggestion of introducing Hindi as a medium of education led
the Muslims to criticize the Wardha scheme

Thirdly, due to sincerity and dedication of Gandhi he was recognized by most Indian as a godlike
figure. After the introduction of Wardha scheme a practice of bowing down in front of Gandhi’s
portrait to pay tribute to Gandhi was started in all educational institutions at the time of
assembly. The Muslims were furious at this measure because Islam does not allow them to bow
down in front of anyone except Allah. Wardha scheme was criticized because it led to this
unIslamic practice.

Q: Why was the Congress Rule (1937-39) hated by the Muslims?

Firstly, the introduction of Bande Mataram

Secondly, the introduction of Wardha scheme

Thirdly, the congress tyranny.