Chapter 1: Pakistan's ideology and its historical background

Topic: (1.4) Pakistan Movement (1940 - 1947)

Areas under Japanese Control - 1942

Areas under German Control - 1942

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 Cripps Mission (1942)

The Cripps Mission was an attempt in March 1942 by the British government to
secure full Indian cooperation and support for their efforts in World War II. The
mission was headed by a senior minister Stafford Cripps.

Background
 The Second World War broke out in Europe in 1939. British declared war
against Germany.
 The British faced some military setbacks during the Second World War in
Europe from Germany and in Asia from Japan.
 On 3rd September 1939, the Viceroy Lord Linlithgow announced that India
too was at war with Germany.
 The announcement was criticized by the Congress, and it demanded for the
acceptance of full independence in return for help, but the British
Government refused to agree.
 The Congress high command asked its ministers to tender resignations in
protest, against the decision of the British Government.
 Britain wanted the cooperation of Indian people and political parties to coup
with their war efforts and decided to send a delegation under the
Chairmanship of Sir Stafford Cripps.

Cripps Mission to India

 Cripps Mission reached Delhi on March 23, 1942, to hold discussion with
Indian leaders.
 Cripps Misson task was to explain to the Indian political parties how serious
the Japanese threat to India was.
 Cripps brought the framework of a proposal which the British Government
was willing to offer. Cripps proposed that:
 After the War an Indian Union would be set up with Dominion status.
 Individual provinces could also opt out of the Union and negotiate
their own independence.
 Elections for the Constituent Assembly would be held immediately
after the War.
 The Constituent Assembly would frame the new Constitution of India.
Impact
 The All-India Muslim League rejected the proposals immediately as it
contained no reference to the establishment of Pakistan. However, Jinnah
was pleased to see that the right to opt out of a future Union was included.

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  Gandhi called the Cripps proposals “a post-dated cheque on a failing bank.”
 Congress demanded immediate and full control over the Central
Government and objected to the proposed right given to provinces to opt out
of the Union, thus didn’t agree with the British government.
 Gandhi began to press for an immediate withdrawal of British from India
and the transfer of powers to Congress.

The Quit India Movement (1942)

The Quit India Movement was launch at the Bombay session of the Congress
Committee by Mahatma Gandhi on 8 August 1942, during World War II,
demanding an end to British rule in India.
 Congress called for immediate withdrawal of the British.
 It was to be followed by non-violent civil disobedience and resistance to
British rule. Gandhi called the Quit India Movement a ‘do or die’ attempt to
force the British out.
 For several weeks there was widespread rioting across the country.
 The British responded firmly by arresting Gandhi, Nehru, Azad and other
senior Congress leaders.
 Muslim League maintained its position of neither supporting the British nor
advocating anti-British resistance.
 Jinnah termed the Quit India Movement ‘blackmail’ and suspected of
Congress plans to assume control of India and force other parties to deal
with them on their own terms.

Gandhi-Jinnah Talks (1944)

Gandhi-Jinnah talks were initiated in July 1944 to resolve the political problems of
India and in response to a public desire for a settlement of Hindu-Muslim
differences.
 Gandhi proposed talks with Jinnah on the two-nation theory and negotiating
on the issue of partition.
 Gandhi-Jinnah talks held in Bombay in September in 1944 to ease the
deadlock over the partition between Muslim League and Congress.
 Gandhi wanted the League to give support to Congress in struggle to remove
the British. Only after the British left could partition be considered.
 Jinnah wanted to secure partition before the British left.

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  Gandhi considered himself to be speaking for all of India, but Jinnah
reminded him that he was just the spokesman of Congress.
 Gandhi gave the impression that he did not support the ‘Two Nation Theory’
whereas this had not become official League policy.
 Gandhi-Jinnah talks failed to reach any agreement.

Impact:
 These talks brought some political advantages to the Muslim League.
 Congress through its main leader had been forced to negotiate with the
Muslim League on an equal footing.
 Gandhi by negotiating possible terms of a partition was tacitly accepting the
Muslim League claim to speak for the Muslims.

Simla Conference (1945)

The Simla Conference of 1945 was a meeting between the Viceroy of India Lord
Wavell and the major political leaders of British India in Simla. When it was clear
that British intended to leave India, they desperately needed an agreement on what
should happen when they leave.

Background:

 The Second Worl War ended in August 1945.

 The six-year war had left the British victorious but economically devastated
by the conflict.
 The Labour Party under Prime Minister Clement Attlee came to power in
Britain.
 The new Britain government was desperate to concentrate on Britain’s
domestic problems and negotiations started how power was to be transferred
in India.
 Viceroy Lord Wavell declared that the British Government wanted to see
India as an independent and prosperous country.

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Wavel Conference:

 All the political parties were invited to Simla in June 1945.

 The Muslim League delegation included M. Ali Jinnah, Liaquat Ali Khan
and Khawaja Nazimuddin. The Congress party was led by Gandhi, Abul
Kalam Azad and Khizer Hayat Tiwana.
 The Viceroy Lord Wavel proposed that an Executive Council should be
established to act as the interim government.
 This Executive Council would be Indian in all portfolios except the defence
member and the Viceroy himself.
 Wavel had stated that an equal number of Hindus and Muslims were to be
represented in the Council.
 Congress argued that they also had a right to nominate Muslims, whereas
Jinnah was adamant that only the Muslim League had the right to nominate
names for the Muslim quota.
 Jinnah also pointed out that as the Sikhs and Scheduled Castes on the
Council were bound to vote with the Hindus, this would mean a permanent
Muslim minority in the Executive Council.
 Lord Wavel could see no solution to the problem and closed the conference
on 14 July.

The 1945-46 Elections

 The General Elections to the Provincial and Central Legislatures were held
in India in 1945-46.
 Congress and the Muslims League both contested the elections.
 Congress claimed to represent all Indians and all communities. It fought the
election on a policy of an undivided and independent India.
 Muslim League appealed to the Muslim community with a policy of
establishing an independent Muslim homeland.
 The All-India Muslim League won all 30 Muslims seats in the Central
Assembly and 446 out of 495 Muslim seats in the Provincial Assemblies. It
took control in Bengal, and Sindh and was the largest party in Punjab.
 Congress won 91% of the non-Muslim vote and took control in eight states.

Significance and impact of 1945-46 elections

 The election result showed that the Muslim community was supporting the
League.

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  Muslim League had succeeded in getting its message across and had become
a force in Indian politics.
 The communal divide was much greater, and the election results showed the
split in India between Congress and the Muslim League.
 It was clear that there could be no settlement in India without League’s
approval.

1945-46 General Elections

The Cabinet Mission Plan (1946)

A Cabinet Mission visited India in 1946 to discuss the transfer of power from the
British government to the Indian political leadership with the aim of preserving
India's unity and granting its independence.

 It was the last attempt made by the British to keep the Sub-Continent
together as a federation.
 In March 1946 British Government sent a delegation comprising three senior
Cabinet minister to India to try to negotiate a settlement acceptable to all
parties.

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  The Cabinet delegation was led by Sir Stafford Cripps, A.V. Alexander and
Lord Pethick-Lawrance.
 The delegation found that there was little common ground between the
League and the Congress. Jinnah was insisting on the formation of Pakistan
while the Congress was opposed to any partition.
 The Cabinet delegation proposed an interim government setup to rule India
whilst the British withdrawal.
 An All-India Commission comprising member from central and provincial
legislatures would then decide whether there should be one or two states
after the British had left.
 Although Congress and League didn’t agree to the plan, the Cabinet
delegation announced its final plan in May 1946.

The Cabinet Mission proposals:

 It rejected the idea of establishing Pakistan.

 It suggested, there would be three different parts to a post-British India.
 The Hindu majority provinces
 The western Muslim provinces.
 Bengal and Assam
 Each part would have local autonomy and would be able to draw up its own
constitution.
 Foreign affairs, defence and communication would be managed by a Central
Indian Union.

Impact:

 Muslim League stated that it was prepared to nominate members to an

Interim Cabinet to oversee the move to independence based on this plan, but
Nehru said that Congress would not feel bound by the plan once the British
had left.
 The League felt that this made further discussion pointless. Any agree might
just be overturned after the British had gone. So, the Cabinet Plan was
dropped.

Direct Action Day (16th August, 1946)

 Muslims feared that the British might just pull out and leave India to sort out
its own problems.

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  In July 1946 the Muslim League passed a resolution declaring that it should
prepare for the final struggle against both the British and Congress.
 On 16 August, the League called for a ‘Direct Action Day’ to show strength
of Muslim through peaceful demonstrations.

The 3rd June Plan (1947)

The 3rd June plan, 1947 was an official and formal acceptance of the Partition of
the Indian subcontinent into two independent states of Pakistan and India. Principle
of the partition of British India was accepted by the British Government. Successor
governments would be given dominion status. Autonomy and sovereignty to both
countries.

Background:

The Muslims League’s Direct Action Day (16th August 1946) was peaceful
throughout the Subcontinent except for in Calcutta where Hindu-Muslim riots
started.
 On 2 September 1946 the Executive Council was sworn in without the
Muslim Leagues nominations.
 On 15 October 1946 Jinnah nominated 5 members including one Hindu
member for the interim government.
 In February 1947 Britain Prime Minister Clement Atlee announced that
British Government would leave the Subcontinent by Jund 1948. Lord
Mountbatten arrived in India on March 22, 1947, as the last British Viceroy
of India to work out the plan for the transfer of power.
 Violence erupted all over the Subcontinent. A civil war was about to break
out.
 Finally British Government agreed for the partition on religious lines.
 By May 1947 Mountbatten had formulated a scheme which was eventually
made public on 3 June 1947 and formed the basis of the transfer of power.

The main features of the 3rd Jund Plan:

 Indo Pak subcontinent would be divided into two dominion states Pakistan
and India.
 Two states India and Pakistan would be independent states.
 The constitution of Government of India Act 1935 would be the constitution
of both states until they frame their constitutions.
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  Muslim majority provinces would have the choice of whether to join
Pakistan or India.
 Rulers of Princely States would have the choice of whether to stay with
India or want to join Pakistan based on two major factors geographical
contiguity and the people's wishes.
 Both countries shall have their own Governor-Generals who will be the
Executive Heads of their respective countries.
 A Boundary Commission shall be set up after partition which will demarcate
the boundaries of the two countries.
 Military assets shall be divided amongst two countries after partition.

Transfer of Power to India and Pakistan:

 In a press conference after the 3rd Jund Plan, Mountbatten announced that the
final transfer of power might be brought forward from June 1948 to August
1947.
 There was only 7 weeks left to deal with the problems involved in
partitioning British India such as:
o Boundaries between the Muslim and non-Muslim areas, particularly
in Punjab and Bengal.
o Issue of Princess if they decided to join Pakistan or India against the
wishes of their people.
o Division of Assets like Army, Finance, Civil Services etc.)

Outcome of 3rd June Plan:

 The voting which followed the 3rd June Plan, the Bengal and Punjab
Assemblies voted for partition.
 Sindh voted for Pakistan.
 In Baluchistan ‘a jirga’ (tribal assembly) voted for Pakistan.
 In the North-West Frontier Province (Now Khyber Pakhtunkhwa)
referendum was held which voted for Pakistan.
 The British government now passed the Indian Independence Act on 15 th
July 1947.

Indian Independence Act (15 July 1947)

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  When the British announced the third June plan for the partition of India all
political parties, such as the Muslim League and congress welcomed it.
 To put the 3rdJune Plan in effect, the British government passed the Indian
Independence Act on 15 July 1947.
 The act stated on 15 August 1947 Indian subcontinent would be partitioned
into two dominion states India and Pakistan.
 The Government of India Act-1935 would be the constitution of both states
until they frame their constitution.
 The Governor General was empowered to amend the Government of India
Act 1935 as necessary.
 Pakistan came into being on 14 august 1947 and India got independence on
15 August 1947.
 On 11th August 1947 Quaid-i-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah was elected
unanimously as the President of the Constituent Assembly of Pakistan.

 Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah sworn in as the first Governor

General of Pakistan on 14th August 1947.

Jinnah’s Address to the First Constituent Assembly on 11th August 1947:

 Jinnah’ s Address to the First Constituent Assembly on 11th August 1947.

“You are free! You are free to go to your temples. You are free to go to your
mosques or to any other places of worship in this State of Pakistan. You may
belong to any religion, caste or creed that has nothing to do with the
business of the state,”

“People who do black-marketing are usually knowledgeable, aware, intelligent

and responsible. They should be punished severely as the entire system of control
and regulation of foodstuff and basic commodities (products) are in their hands.
They (by doing black-marketing) cause wholesale starvation and shortage of food
which even leads to death.”
(Jinna’s Speech to the Constituent Assembly, 11th August 1947)

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 Boundary Commission (Radcliff Award)

Sir Cyril John Radcliff, a British lawyer was appointed as the Chairman of the
Boundary Commission to draw the borders that would divide British ruled India
into two new independent nations India and Pakistan.

The lines he drew triggered one of the larges forced mass migrations in the history,
with roughly 15 million people displaced and thousands of people killed.

 The two Commissions were set up by the end of June 1947 for the partition
of Punjab and Bengal.
 The boundary commissions included two nominees each of the Indian
National Congress and Muslim League respectively.
 The Commission was given a period of five weeks to complete this task.
 The boundary between the two nations became known as the Radcliff Line
and was officially announced on August 17, 1947.

The basic instructions given to the Boundary Commission:

 The Boundary Commission was instructed to demarcate (draw) the

boundaries of the two parts of the Punjab and Bengal on the basis of
establishing the contiguous (adjoining) majority areas of Muslims and non-
Muslims.

 The Boundary Commission was also instructed to consider other factors

such as community interest, their loyalty with British, their services to
British government and irrigation and agrarian (farming) system.

 Jinnah wanted the full provinces of Bengal and Punjab going to Pakistan
with only minor adjustments, whereas Congress was expecting almost half
of these provinces to remain in India. This essentially framed the problem of
partition.

 There was a proposal to put the problem of boundary demarcation into the
hands of UNO which Nehru refused to accept.
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  Jinnah wanted three Law Lords from Britain to be appointed in the
Commission as impartial members, but Mountbatten instead on Radcliff
who would have the power to make the award in case of a deadlock.
 Radcliff was asked to base boundary lines on the population of Muslims and
Hindus, in addition to other factors that include economic and
communication resources, such as irrigation channels and railway lines.

 As expected, the members of the Boundary Commission were unable to

reach agreement on the boundaries, Radcliff as the Chairman gave his
award.

The impact of the decisions of the Boundary Commission on Pakistan:

 The Radcliff Award was unfair to Pakistan because it awarded many Muslim
majority areas in Punjab and Bengal to India.
 Calcutta was the most developed area of Bengal. It had been built mainly on
the resources of East Bengal, but it was given to India. The raw material
which was produced in East Bengal had to be sent to Calcutta as all the
industries were in or around Calcutta.
 For Pakistan, (East and West part) separated by one-thousand miles of Indian
territory, the importance of sea communication and importance of Calcutta
could not be ignored, but Congress leaders were determined to deny Calcutta
to Pakistan and insisted on retaining it in India which was also supported by
Mountbatten.
 Radcliff in accordance with the desires of Mountbatten awarded Calcutta to
India despite the Muslim claim to it.
 In case of Punjab the award was again partial and against Pakistan. In
Punjab Gurdaspur and along with Pathankot tehsil were given to India that
provided a link between India and the State of Jammu and Kashmir.
 The Muslim majority tehsils of Ajnala (Amritsar District), Zira, Firozpur (in
Firozpur District), Nakodar and Jalandhar (in Jalandhar District) to India
instead of Pakistan.
 The flow of water in Punjab through the canals and rivers was controlled at a
series of ‘headworks’ most of which lay in the part of Punjab that was given
to India.
 Jinnah stated that the Award were ‘wrong, unjust and perverse.’

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Radcliff Award (Boundary Commission)

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