Lecture-02
Attempts to form a united Bengal and the division of the subcontinent,
1947:The origin and spread of communalism during the colonial rule, Lahore
Resolution, 1940, Independent United Bengal Scheme ,1947, Creation of Pakistan
,1947.
British rule in the sub-continent:
The original name of the East India Company was 'the Governor and company of Merchants of
London trading into the East Indies'. Englishmen were desirous to set British colony in east
Bengal and gradually hold grips of the sub-continent. Apparently they expressed their
intention of doing business and trade; however, in reality, they planned to put the whole sub-
continent under their domination. To that direction, east India Company was stablished in 1600
A.D. They got the permission from the Mughal Emperor to trade in 1612. Day by day, the
British set up their trading stations in many places. At first they captured Ormuz from the
Portuguese with the help of the king of Iran. They organized business establishments at
armgoon and Muslipotam. They bought some land s and got permission to set up a factory in
Madras. They build up many factories in Bengal in 1714. The most important privilege was
obtained from the Bengal governor shah shuja who permitted the English to have trade in
Bengal without any customs duties in lieu of an annual lump sum of Rs. 3000 only.
After the accession of Nawab Siraj-ud-doula to the masnad he issued to the company a
parwana with his three conditions:
The unauthorized fortification works in and around Calcutta must be demolished.
They must pursue their legal trade strictly according to the law of the land.
They must make over to government all outlaws now under the protective umbrellas of the
Fort William authorities.
The company refused starkly to accept the nawab's conditions and Siraj also refused to accept
the company as bonafide traders in the country. Nawab Siraj-ud-Daula had conflict with the
British. As the result, the battle of Plessey was fought on 23 June 1757.siraj was defeated
because of treachery of his leading general Mir Jafar. After the battle, the British conquered
Bengal and gradually got control of sub-continent for about two hundred years.
After the battle of Plessey the British rule started with in three phases:
1. British management by the domestic puppets
2. Company rule
3. Administration by British government
The First Phase: British Management by Domestic Collaborators
The British did not take power directly in their hand soon after the victory at Plessey. Rather
they began to strengthen the base of their power through such high born natives who would
remain obedient to them. Mir Jafar was the first to get appointment as the puppet Nawab by the
British. During this time, a political vacuam led to plundering of treasury and other state
property.
When Jafor was proved inefficient to fulfill their expectations, he was deposed and replaced
with Mir Quasim as the new Nawab in 1760.He was an able, vigilant and strict administrator.
As the most conscientious of all Nawabs, Quasim tried to run the administration independently
and strengthen the Mughal territory against the interests of the British which resulted in his
dethronement. He had to fight two battles with the English. At last he was defeated in the battle
of Boxer in 1764.From the time English began to capture full power. By 1857 the whole sub-
continent went under their occupation with Lord Clive in the central leadership.
The Second Phase: The Company Rule
The British Company rule here for about one hundred years from till 1857. The first ruler of
the company was Lord Clive. During his time a dual administration was introduced in Bengal.
In this system, the British took away the economic right and responsibility to conduct
administration was given to the Nawab. As a result the Nawab become powerless and the
supreme power went in the hand of the British. As the dual administration was proved
ineffective, the British took over the administrative power. By passing the ‘Regulation Act’ in
the British parliament, the post of Governor was changed into Governor General. A number of
governor generals ruled till 1857. They took some reform programs for the convenience of
their administration in this country.
Permanent Settlement:
Lord Cornwallis introduced the permanent settlement system in 1793. It was important because
it was more than merely a tax system. It formed the nucleus of the colonial system of control;
other parts of the administration such as executive, the judiciary and police were geared to
desired working of the permanent settlement. It survived with modification till the 1950s and
molded social and economic relation in the delta to such an extent that contemporary
Bangladesh society cannot be understood without reference to it.
The permanent settlement was a deal that the British struck with the tax collecting rural gentry,
the zaminders. The British made the zaminders the de facto landowners and fixed the tax
demand in perpetuity: the state would not enhance the rate in future. In returns zaminders were
bound to pay their taxes with clockwork punctuality on pain of their land being auction
Outwardly this system of permanent settlement looked to be purely an economic system but
actually, it gave birth to a social revolution. It gave rise to a new class of potentates, Talluqdars
and landlords who soon established their control on the Indian society.
Influence of the Permanent Settlement:
1. The Permanent Settlement adversely affected the income of the company as the revenue was
fixed quite on the low side due to lack of proper measurement.
2. It benefited only the landlords and the condition of the farmers could not be improved as
much as was expected. The poor farmers continued to be the victims of the harassments of the
landlords who exploited them for their own selfish motives.
3. The British government expected that with the implementation of permanent settlement the
income of the company would increase tremendously but their expectations were not fulfilled.
4. This settlement also proved harm full for the landlords who failed to deposit the required
revenue in the royal treasury in time. As a result, their land was sold off..
5. It hurt the national feeling of the people because this system created a special class of
zamindars in the country who became the true devotees of the English. This class did not
support the people during the war of independence.
Lord Wellesley worked for expansion of the British Empire in India. Lord William
Bentinck introduced English in place of Persian as the state language. Lord Dalhousie
introduced train and telegraph in the subcontinent.
As a result of all these British rule spread all over India. Their imperialistic policy and
exploitation agitated the people of this country. Many small and big revolts occurred against
the British. The biggest of these was the sepoy mutiny of 1857.The British authority strictly
suppressed the mutiny. After the sepoy mutiny ‘India rule Act’ was passed in the British
parliament. This act ended the company rule in this country.
The Third Phase: The direct British rule
From the time the British government began to rule directly over the subcontinent in the name
of Victoria, the great Queen of England. The representative of the British government who
ruled the subcontinent was called Viceroy. a council was formed to advice him. In this way
India went under the British government. After that their rule continued here for ninety years.
Right from the very beginning anti-British many resistance movements were carried out by a
number of people and organization s including the Islamic scholars, Peasants and mass
citizens. Some of this movement s gained credibility among general people that led to the
independence struggle of subcontinent. The most remarkable movements are Fakir-sannayasi
Resistance (1760-1800), Farazi Movement , sepoy mutiny(1857), Khaliafah Movement(1919-
1924),Non-cooperation Movement(1919-1922),Quit India Movement, Tebhaga Movement and
so on.
The strong reason of lingering the British domination despite these movements was caused by
the Hindu-Muslim cleavages. Many aristocratic Hindu extended cooperation to the British
,learnt English ,took royal awards and worked with them in various government activities
.Muslims, on the other hand, abandoned learning theirs language ,kept them aloof from them
and emerged inimical to them because of their previous political background. However in the
beginning of twentieth century, Muslims respond to the awakening calls of some of their
leaders, started learning English, formed separate political party name Muslim League that
opened opportunity of reunion between the two rival communities of subcontinent.
Partition of Bengal [1905-1911]
Finding the Bengal Presidency too large for one governor to administer, in 1905 the English
decided to redraw its boundaries and divided it into two parts. The provinces of Bengal and
Assam were reconstituted so as to form the two provinces of manageable size. Western Bengal,
with a population of 54 million (42 million Hindus and 9 million Muslims) and Eastern Bengal
and Assam with a population of 31 million (12 million Hindus and 18 million Muslims) . The
territory to be transferred from Bengal to the new province consisted of the districts of
Chittagong and Dhaka Divisions, Rajshahi Division excluding Darjeeling, and the District of
Malda.
Curzon, the Viceroy of India, sent the proposal to London in February 1905. The Secretary of
State for India St. John Brodrich sanctioned it in June, and the proclamation of the formation of
the new province was issued in September. The province of Bengal and Assam came into
being on 16 October 1905.
Incidentally, the partition went in favor of the Muslims. Before the partition, Western Bengal,
being the first area to come under western influence, was developed and industrialized. It was a
striking contrast to the eastern part where the Muslim peasantry was crushed under the Hindu
landlords, the river system was infested with pirates, and very few funds were allocated for
education. It was dreaded as a place of banishment. The partition helped boost Bengali
literature and language.
The Muslims of India welcomed the partition of Bengal, but the Hindu community strongly
opposed it. They launched a mass movement, declaring October 16 as a day of mourning in
Calcutta. Influenced by the Chinese boycott of American goods, the Hindus started the
Swadeshi Movement against the British. In the meantime, the Hindus raised the Band-i-
Mataram as the national cry protecting worship of Shivaji as a national hero. This organized
anarchist movement took a terrorist turn resulting in political sabotage and communal riots. In
1906 the Indian Muslim leaders gathered at Dhaka under the patronage of Nawab Salimullah
and set up the All-India Muslim League.
Keeping in view the fluid political situation in India and the cult of Hindu revivalism, the
British decided to undo their earlier decision to please the Hindus. The provinces were reunited
in 1911. This act saddened the Muslims. It was a catalyst in making the Muslims of India
realizes the need for a separate homeland.
Pakistan movement and the birth of Pakistan:
Two important issues contributed an important role for Pakistan movement and the birth of
Pakistan. This are-
Two Nation Theory (Mohammed Ali Jinnah)
Jinnah said “By the international standard the Muslims are a nation. So they are in need
of a separate home land a territory and a state”
Lahore Resolution (A.K.Fazlul Haq)
Lahore resolution gave Bengal Muslim a sense of nationhood and they demanded separate
political existence.
Lahore Resolution:
Lahore Resolution adopted at the general session of the Muslim league. In 1940 MOHAMMED
ALI JINNAH called a general session of the All India Muslim League in Lahore to discuss the
situation that had arisen due to the outbreak of the Second World War and the Government of
India joining the war without taking the opinion of the Indian leaders, and also to analyses the
reasons that led to the defeat of the Muslim League in the general election of 1937 in the
Muslim majority provinces.
HUSEYN SHAHEED SUHRAWARDY left with a small group of Muslim League workers for Lahore
on 19 March 1940. A .K FAZLUL HUQ led the Bengal Muslim League contingent and reached
Lahore on 22 March. The Chief Ministers of Bengal and the Punjab were two dominant figures
in the conference.
Jinnah, in his speech, criticized the Congress and the nationalist Muslims, and espoused the
Two-Nation Theory and the reasons for the demand for separate Muslim homelands. His
arguments caught the imagination of the Muslim masses. Sikandar Hayat Khan, the Chief
Minister of the Punjab, drafted the original Lahore Resolution, which was placed before the
Subject Committee of the All India Muslim League for discussion and amendments. The
Resolution, radically amended by the Subject Committee, was moved in the general session by
Fazlul Huq on 23 March and was supported by Choudhury Khaliquzzaman and other Muslim
leaders. The Lahore Resolution ran as follows:
That the areas where the Muslims are numerically in a majority as in the Northwestern and
Eastern zones of India should be grouped to constitute 'independent states' in which the
constituent units shall be autonomous and sovereign.
The resolution gave Bengal Muslims a sense of nationhood and henceforth, instead of making
complaints against Hindu injustice, they demand for separate political existence.
Birth of Pakistan
The Hindu press dubbed the Lahore resolution as the “Pakistan demand” .The Hindu press
supplied Muslim leadership a concrete slogan, which immediately conveyed to them the idea
of a state. It would have taken long for the Muslim leaders to explain the Lahore resolution and
convey its real meaning and significance to the Muslim masses.
On 15 April 1941, the so called Pakistan resolution was incorporated as a creed in the
constitution of the Muslim league in its madras session. It continued to be the league creed
until its dissolution after the independence of Pakistan in 1947. Indeed, 1940 onward, Pakistan
was the great talking point of the Indian independence debate.
The Pakistan slogan spread rapidly among the Indian Muslims. There was obvious reason for
this. To the Muslim peasants of Bengal, and Punjab, Pakistan was being presented as the end
of Hindu zamindar and bania exploitation..
The Hindu and Sikh communal groups in Bengal and the Punjab preferred the partition of the
Indian sub-continent by separating the Hindu Sikh majority portion of the Punjab and majority
portion of Bengal from the Lahore resolution based Pakistan zones. According to their
expectations eastern Punjab and western Bengal should join with the Hindu majority India. The
surgical solution to Hindu Muslim communal problem of the subcontinent was last achieved
through the creation of Pakistan 1947.
Reference: BANGLAPEDIA-National Encyclopedia of Bangladesh, Editor: Prof. Sirajul Islam.
