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Independence from British Empire

 By: Tariq Ismail

The partition of India happened due to three causes, the British policy of divide and rule on the basis of religion, caste, creed, the demand of Muslim league for the separate Muslim state and the relationship of Muslim league and Indian National Congress. The partition of India not just change the geography of India; it left a deep impact on the hearts of people of the sub-continent.

The decline of British rule and the root of the Partition started with the Sepoy mutiny in 1857. The rebellion began as the mutiny of Indian sepoys of the East India Trading Company. The mutiny started when the third regiment of light cavalry sepoys refused to put Lee-Enfield .303 caliber cartridge in their mouth.[1] These cartridge’s fat were rumored to include beef, which would be offensive for Hindus and pork, which would be offensive for Muslims. When the news of the outburst at Meerut reached Lucknow, the situation instantly became dangerous. Building were set on fire, and Indians, who have guns, began to gather in the city and to attack British’s positions. By June, the British rule had started to break. “Every outpost, I fear, has fallen; and we daily expect to be besieged by the confederated mutineers and their allies.” Wrote by Lawrence on June 12.[2]

Sir Henry Rose and his men took Gwalior on 20th June 1859. Among those who fell in fighting was the Rani of Jhansi. Tantia Topi escaped, only to be betrayed by British; he was hanged in April, 1859. Peace in India was not officially announced until July 1859. “War is at an end; Rebellion is put down; the Noise of Arms is no longer heard where the enemies of the State have persisted in their last struggle; the Presence of large Forces in the field has ceased to be necessary; Order is re-established; and peaceful Pursuits have everywhere  been resumed.[3]


In 1858, the results of Sepoy mutiny came as all power was given to the British Crown from the East India Company, who ruled for almost a century. British Crown administer most of the India as a different states. The Crown ruled directly under the Company’s land and indirectly over the rest of India. This act of transfer of control of India is known as the “Government of India Act 1858”.  This bill states that the Company’s lands in India were given to Queen. India was to be governed in the Queen’s name. The secretary of state for India was empowered to send some secret messages to India directly without consulting Council.[4]The Act helped in a new period of Indian history, bringing the finish of Company rule in India.

The Indian National Congress party was formed in 1885 by Indian and British members of the Theosophical society movement. The idea of making a political party was considered in a private meeting of seventeen men after a Theosophical Convention held in Madras in December 1884. Allan Octavian Hume took the initiative and in March 1885 the first convening the first Indian National Union to meet in Poona.[5]  The party’s main objective was to obtain a greater share in government for educated Indians and to create a platforms for civic and political discussion between educated Indians and the British Raj. In next few years the demands of Congress become more drastic in the form of opposition of the British government. The party decided to support in favor of the independence movement because it will allow a new political system in which Congress will be a major party.

In 1905, the partition of Bengal was made on October by Viceroy Curzon. The former province of Bengal was divided into two new provinces, “Bengal” and “Eastern Bengal” with Dacca as the capital of the latter. Partition was encouraged for administrative reasons. An Administration could be established in the east, where the population would benefit from new schools and employment opportunities. The partition was supported by the Muslims of the East Bengal. Their reasons for supporting were both their poor economic status and the supremacy of the Hindu businessman and landlords of West Bengal in governance of Bengal.[6] The opposition to the partition was led by the educated middle class of western Bengal. Bengali Hindus were at the lead of political tension for greater participation in the governance under the British rule. The main reason of partition was political. The Hindus were in a better positions than Muslims in terms of economic status.

In 1906, the All India Muslim League was formed. The formation of Muslim political party was decided in the meeting held at Lucknow in September 1906. The reasons behind the formation of Muslim League was the indifferent attitude of the Congress towards Muslims. Educational and economic backwardness of Muslims of India as compare to Hindus of India. The evolution of Minto Marley reforms which was the turning point came in 1906 during John Marley’s budget speech; in which he hinted of constitutional reforms. The main objectives of the party was to safeguard the political rights of Muslims and to bring them into the notice of government. To prevent among the Muslims from the prejudicial feelings against the other communities of India.[7]

The Muslim League and the Congress held their meeting in 1906 at Lucknow. The meeting settled the details of an agreement about the configuration of the governments and the importance of representation to be allowed to the two communities. This settlement between the League and the Congress was called the Lucknow Pact. The most major accomplishment of this pact for the Muslims was that for the first time the Congress recognized the League as a representative body of the Muslims of India. The Congress also granted the separate electorate in provincial elections. Although British denied it, but Lucknow pact is considered as an important event in political constitutional history of India. It was the first and the last pact signed by both Congress and the League.

The year 1919 brought the Rowlatt Act. The act was a legislative act approved by the imperial government council in Delhi. Extending the emergency measures of preventive custody, imprisonment without a proper trial. The act was after the president of the Committee, Sir Sidney Rowlatt, and British Judge by profession. The act allows the authorized government to imprison any person suspected of terrorism. The suspect was denied the right to know the confronter and the evidence used against him in trail. The main objective of this act was to control the growing nationalists in the country. After the Rowlatt Act and the Amritsar Massacre, the Congress and the League lose faith in British Government.

The act irritated many Indian leaders, which caused the government to implement the oppressive measures. Gandhi and other political leaders organized a Hartal on April 6 1920, where Indians would closed all their business and fast as a sign of their opposition and civil disobedience would be offered this law. Gandhi named this Hartal as a Satyagraha.

In 1922, the large group of non-cooperation movement workers killed 22 policemen, making Gandhi to suspend the non-cooperation movement. Gandhi with other leaders was imprisoned for six years. The majority of Congress leaders were still supporting Gandhi. But Motilal Nehru and Chittaranjan Das formed the Swaraj party, rejecting Gandhi’s leadership.

In 1927, a committee of seven British government members was formed by Lord Irwin, the Viceroy of India. Sir John Simon was the chairman of this committee. The instructions were given to the chairman of this committee to investigate the Indian constitution problems. Then they have to submit a detailed report in which they mentioned the suitable reforms. The committee does not have any Indian members. The Indian leaders make them noticed that they need an Indian member in their committee if they are examining the Indian Constitution problems and problems of Indian people. Without this they cannot make decision for the future of India. The Simon Commission Report did not approved by the Muslims, Hindus and the elected members of the Indian judicial assembly.

In the year 1930, Congress demanded the independence from the British. President of the Congress Jawaharlal Nehru hoisted the tricolor flag of India. The massive gathering of public attending the ceremony were asked if they agreed with it and the majority of people agreed by raising their hands in approval. On May, Gandhi wrote to Lord Irwin, explaining his intension to raid the Dharasana Salt works.[8]  Gandhi starts Civil Disobedience Movement against the salt laws by which the British had a monopoly over production and sale of salt. Gandhi was arrested with other Congress leaders who was supporting him.

Allama Iqbal gave the Allahabad Address where he explained the inner feelings of Muslims of India. He narrated the basic principles of Islam and loyalties of the Muslims to their faith. Iqbal gave the idea of a separate homeland in this address because the Muslims were a nation and had a right that they got the identification and passed their lives in order to the Islamic principles. There were many reasons which caused Muslims to think about the separate homeland. As the permanent solution to the Muslim Hindu problem, Iqbal proposed that Punjab, North West Frontier Province and Sindh should be one state. He expressed that the northwestern part of country should be established to unite in self-governing state, with or without British Empire.

After the Nehru report and Jinnah’s fourteen points. Lord Irwin invited both Congress and the League to the first Round Table Conference on November 1930. Except Congress all parties were present at meeting. Congress demanded that they have nothing to do with the constitutional conference until the Nehru Report was declared as the new Constitution of India. Many Hindu leaders were in jail because of their participation in Civil Disobedience Movement.[9] A settlement between Gandhi and Lord Irwin known as the Gandhi-Irwin pact was reached which was a way to bring the Congress to the second Round Table Conference. Gandhi was a sole representative of the Congress at the second round table conference. This pact further isolates Muslim League from the Congress and the British.

In 1932 the third and final round table conference was held on November. The Congress and the Labor Party did not take part in the meeting. It was decided to setup a federal legislature in India consisting of elected representatives of the British India. The representative of the state to be nominated by respective ruler.  The first conference was a failure due to the absence of the Congress. The second conference was remained fail because of the presence of the Congress which enhanced the level of hostility between the Hindus and Muslims. As the result of these conferences the British decided to release the white paper based on the recommendations which is handed over to select a committee.[10]

The Round Table Conferences could not achieve their main objectives and thus made the British to release the white paper. The committee was setup under the chairmanship of lord Linlithgow. The report of committee was published at 1934 that contained in the bill of law. The report and bill was passed in the British Parliament. The act was enforced in the country as the Government of India Act 1935. The act was consisted of two parts. One was central and other was provincial. The act of 1935 was failed to win the appreciation from various sectors. Both League and Congress expressed their dissatisfaction over the act.

Even though Muslim League and the Congress were against the Government Act of 1935, it was implemented in 1937. Both parties were concerned their masses to support them in the provincial elections of 1937. But Muslim league who wanted a separate electorate was unfortunately divided in several factions owing to personal and ideological differences.[11]  Congress on the other hand was raising slogans of joint electorates. Congress wanted Hindi as the official language, where Muslim League wanted Urdu to be declared as the national language of the Indian sub-continent.

The results of the elections were a shock for both parties. Congress, who claimed to be representing 95 percent of the total Indian population, could not even secure the 40 percent of seats. Congress’s success was only limited to Hindu majority areas. For the Muslim League, the elections was a huge disappointment. They could only capture 106 seats out of 491 Muslim seats; 26 of them were taken by the Congress.[12] The final success was named in the favor of the Congress.

On March 1940, the Lahore Resolution was presented by Abdul Kasem Fazlul Huq, the prime minister of Bengal was a former political statement adopted by the Muslim League on the occasion of its three day general session in Lahore. It is called for the creation of a group of independent states on the western and east zones with in India. The resolution later evolved as a demand for a separate and single Muslim state called Pakistan.

In 1942 Sir Stafford Cripps arrived in Delhi and a series of meetings with the Indian leaders like Jawaharlal Nehru, Mohammad Ali Jinnah, A.K. Fazlul Huq and Abdul Kalam Azad etc. In the meeting he tried to convince them to accept his proposals; which states that during the course of the war, the British will retain their hold in India. At the end of the war, a constituent Assembly would be setup with the power to frame the future constitution of India. During the war an interim government comprising of different parties of India would be constituted. Jinnah considered these proposals as ‘unsatisfactory’ and was the acceptance of Cripps proposals would take the Muslims to the gallows. Jinnah and other Muslim leaders were convinced that the Cripps was a traditional supporter of the Congress and thus could not present an objective solution to the problem.

 When Cripps first visited India, he attended the meetings of Congress Working Committee. He also visited Gandhi and was impressed by him that he wore white khadi suit. He openly ridiculed the Muslim League’s demand for Pakistan when he said, “we cannot deny 25 carore Hindus desire of united India only because 9 carore Muslims oppose it.” In fact the proposals Cripps presented were mainly consisted of the ideas which were discussed in a meeting between Nehru and Cripps in 1938.[13]

When the war ended in August 1945, Viceroy Lord Wavell decided to hold a political conference. He invited the Congress and the League representative in the conference in Shimla on June. The Viceroy proposed an interim central government in which all the collections except that of war would be given to Indians. There was a deadlock over the League demands that all five Muslims members of the executive council should be the nominees of the Muslim League. The viceroy was of the opinion that four members should be taken from the Muslim League while the fifth member should be a Punjabi Muslim who did not belong to the League. The Viceroy’s insistence on having a non- leaguer in the executive council was in accordance with the advice given by British and Hindu officials to support Khizar Hayat Tiwana in his stand against Muslim League.[14] The Congress supported Khizar Hayat in his stand against the League. The Congress denied Muslim League’s claim of being the only representative of Indian Muslims. Jinnah took a strong stand on these two issues and the conference failed to achieve anything and finally ended in July 1945.

Lord Wavell wrote letters to both Nehru and Jinnah and invited them to join an “Interim Coalition Government” on July 1946. He suggested that there would be fourteen members in the cabinet. Six from the Congress, five from the League and three from the minority parties. The important portfolios will be divide equally to the Congress and The Muslim League. In order to break the deadlock, the secretary for India asked the viceroy to contact Nehru and to offer him to form Government. The Muslim League were ignored completely. Congress Working Committee authorized Nehru to negotiate the terms and conditions for joining the Interim Government. The Interim Government remained in place till the independence of India and Pakistan. Besides other duties it assisted the British Government in the process of transferring the power to the local people.

The Indian Independence Act 1947 passed by the Parliament of United Kingdom divided British India into two independent nations; the Republic of India and the Islamic Republic of Pakistan.



[5] Sitaramayya, B. Pattabhi. 1935. The History of the Indian National Congress. Working Committee of the Congress.


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