Simon Commission (1927) - Modern

India History Notes

The Indian Statutory Commission, also known as the Simon Commission (after its
chairman Sir John Simon), was an all-white, seven-member Commission established by
the British government on November 8, 1927 and led by Sir John Simon. The
Government of India Act of 1919 provided for the appointment of a commission to study
the progress of the governance scheme and suggest new steps after ten years. In 1928, the
commission arrived in British India to investigate constitutional reform in Britain's most
populous and important possession. One of its members was future Labour Party
leader Clement Attlee, who became committed to India's self-government. In this article,
we will discuss the Simon Commission (1927) which will be helpful for UPSC exam
preparation.

Simon Commission - Background

 The Dyarchy system was introduced by the Government of India Act of

1919, which also included a provision that a Commission would be appointed in India
after ten years to study constitutional reforms.
 The Simon Commission was established on November 8, 1927, by the British
government, which was led by Prime Minister Stanley Baldwin at the time.
 The Simon Commission, also known as the Indian Statutory Commission, was
a seven-member commission.
 The Simon Commission was made up entirely of white people. This Commission's
members were all British. It was chastised because there was no Indian
representation on the Commission.
 The purpose of this Commission was to make recommendations to the British
government on constitutional reforms in British India.
 The Conservative British government, which was in power at the time, feared
electoral defeat by the British Labour Party.
 The British government appointed the Simon Commission in 1927 to protect their
foothold in India, despite the fact that the Commission was not due until 1929.
 Lord Birkenhead, the Secretary of State for India, stated that Indians were
incapable of devising a constitutional reform scheme that could be accepted by
various segments of Indian politics.
 As a result, he was in charge of establishing the Simon Commission in 1927.

Simon Commission - Objectives

 The British government established a commission to investigate the Government of

India Act of 1919.
 The commission's mission was to investigate the operation of the act and make
recommendations for further reforms to the administrative system.
 Its main goal was to spread communal feelings in order to tear the country's social
fabric apart.
 It wished to postpone the process of granting Indians governance powers.
 They were attempting to spread and support the regional movement, which had the
potential to annihilate the country's national movements.
Simon Commission - Recommendations

 Create a representative government in the provinces.

 The governor should have discretionary authority in administrative matters and
internal security.
 Dyarchy should be abolished.
 The number of members of the provincial legislative council should be increased.
 The Government of India will have complete control over the Supreme Court.
 Separate communal electorates were retained and extended to other communities.
 The Governor General will have full authority to appoint cabinet members.
 There is no universal franchise.
 Local legislatures and rights to be represented at the centre should be established in
the northwestern frontier provinces and in Balochistan.
 Sindh will be split from Bombay, and Burma will be split from India.
 The Indian army needs to be Indianized.
 A Greater India Consultative Council will be formed.

Simon Commission - Impact

 A new generation of youth have made their first forays into political action. They were
the protest's most active participants.
 The radical forces began to demand not only total independence, but also significant
socio-economic reforms.
 Lord Birkenhead's challenge to produce an agreed-upon constitution was accepted
by a number of political parties, paving the way for unity.
 The report of the Commission was published in 1930. Before the publication, the
government stated that Indian opinion would be taken into account in the future, and
that the natural outcome of constitutional reforms would be dominion status for India.
 The Simon Commission resulted in the Government of India Act 1935, which
served as the foundation for many aspects of the current Indian Constitution.
 The first provincial elections were held in 1937, and Congress governments were
formed in nearly all of the provinces.
 The arrival of the Commission galvanised leaders and the masses, giving a boost to
the Indian independence movement.

Simon Commission - Criticism

 The all-European composition of the Commission was interpreted as an insult to

Indian nationalism.
 As a result, the Indian National Congress resolved to boycott the Commission at all
stages and in all forms.
 The Commission's seven members were all Englishmen who were members of the
British Parliament.
 The British government argued that because the committee had to report its findings
to the British Parliament, it was justified to appoint only British citizens.
 This argument was undermined by the presence of two Indian members of the British
Parliament, Lord Sinha and Mr. Saklatwala.
 The British government declared that it was not possible to appoint an Indian as a
member of the Constitutional Development Commission because there was no
unanimity of Indian opinion on the issue.
Response to Simon Commission
Response of Indians

 The Indian reaction to the Simon Commission was swift and nearly unanimous.
 What enraged Indians the most was the exclusion of Indians from the commission,
as well as the underlying assumption that foreigners would debate and decide on
India's suitability for self-government.
 This idea was viewed as a violation of the principle of self-determination, as well as a
deliberate insult to Indian self-respect.

Response of Congress

 The Congress session in Madras (December 1927), presided over by M.A. Ansari,
resolved to boycott the commission "at every stage and in every form."
 Meanwhile, Nehru was successful in getting a snap resolution passed at the session
declaring complete independence as the Congress's goal.

Response of Other Groups

 The liberals of the Hindu Mahasabha and the majority faction of the Muslim League
under Jinnah were among those who decided to support the Congress' call for a
boycott of the Simon Commission.
 In 1927, the Muslim League held two sessions: one in Calcutta under Jinnah, where
it was decided to oppose the Simon Commission, and another in Lahore under
Muhammad Shafi, who supported the government.
 Others, such as the Punjab Unionists and the Justice Party in the south, have
decided not to boycott the commission.

Response of Public

 On February 3, 1928, the commission arrived in Bombay. On that day, a nationwide

hartal was called, and mass rallies were held.
 There were black flag protests, hartals, and chants of 'Simon Go Back' wherever the
commission went.

 Lala Lajpat Rai, who was leading a protest against the Simon Commission in Lahore,
was brutally lathi-charged. He died later that year as a result of the injuries he
sustained at the time.
 Dr. B.R Ambedkar had submitted a report on the education of the oppressed classes
in the Bombay Presidency on behalf of the Bahishkrit Hitakarini Sabha.

Conclusion
The Simon Commission was established under the leadership of Sir John Simon to
investigate the functioning of India's constitutional system and make
recommendations for changes. It was officially known as the 'Indian Statutory
Commission,' and it was made up of four Conservative, two Labour, and one Liberal
members of the British Parliament. There was not a single Indian on the
Commission. As a result, when they arrived, they were greeted with the slogan 'Go
back, Simon.' To quell the protests, the viceroy, Lord Irwin, announced an offer of
"dominion status" for India in October 1929, as well as a Round Table Conference to
discuss a future constitution.