PAKISTAN STUDIES

Political Events Assignment

Nicholas Ali

B.COM I

12 April 2010

Formation of the Indian National Congress The Congress was formed by a retired British Civil servant named Allan Octavian (A.O.) Hume. Its first president was Barrister Womesh Chandra Banerjee, whose presidency was announced at the Congresss inaugural session in Bombay in December of 1885. It gradually transformed into a broad based national organization. It comprised of 72 members out of whom there were two Muslims; Shoaib Qureshi and Ali Imam. It had three main objectives. 1) To create one nation made up of all the different elements of India. 2) For the Indian nation to be created along all lines; political, moral, mental and social. 3) To consolidate the union between Great Britain and India. Partition of Bengal Bengal was divided on 16 October, 1905 by Lord Curzon. Bengal was far too vast to govern, it had an area of 189,000 sq miles and by 1903 had a population of 78.5 million. Many districts of Eastern Bengal had been neglected due to poor communication and isolation. Calcutta and its nearby districts benefited from the attention of the British government. This division had three main administrative objectives. 1) It wanted to relieve the government of Bengal of some of its duties and ensure efficient administration in the outlying districts. 2) The government wanted to develop backward Assam by increasing its jurisdiction so as to include an outlet to the sea. 3) The government also wanted to unite the scattered sections of the Uriyaspeaking populations. Simla Delegation On the 1st of October 1906, a delegation of Muslims leaders headed by Aga Khan III met the Viceroy of India, Lord Minto to discuss the political ambitions of the Muslims in India. There were 35 members, 5 of which were from West Bengal and Nawab Ali Chaudhary represented East Bengal and Assam. They had the following objectives. 1) The employment of Muslims to the civil, military and judiciary administrations should be increased. 2) Seats should be reserved for Muslims on the municipal and districts boards and in the university senate and syndicate. 3) There should be separate elections of Muslims to the provincial council based on their political importance and not their population. 4) Elections of Muslims to the Imperial Legislative Council. 5) A Muslim university should be established. Formation of the All India Muslim League

1885

1905

1906

At the Mohammedan Educational Conference in Dhaka, Muslim leaders had decided to create their own political party. This conference was presided over by Nawab Viqar-ul-Malik. It would be known as the All India Muslim League and consisted of 400 members. Its first president was Sir Aga Khan III. Its headquarters were located in Lucknow. Annual Session of the All India Muslim League The first session of the All India Muslim League was held in Karachi, in December of 1907. It was presided over by Sir Adamjee Pir Bhai and its first president was Sir Aga Khan. Swadeshi/Boycott Movement This was lead by Pundit Modan Mohan Malwia. The Indian people began to promote products made domestically and boycotted British made goods. Morley-Minto Reforms Lord Morley the Secretary of State for Indian Affairs announced that he wanted to give the Indian people more legislative powers. So talks between him and the Governor General of India, Lord Minto began. The Act was passed in 1909 and one of the most important reforms passed was that the Muslims gained the right to separate electorates. Mohammed Ali Jinnah became a member of the Imperial Legislative Council. Annulment of the partition of Bengal. Jinnah joins the Muslim League. Joint session of the Muslim League and the Indian National Congress On 31 December, 1915 both the Muslim League and the Indian National Congress held a joint meeting, where they discussed the future of the peoples they were representing. And also to work towards the reconciliation of the Muslims and Hindus. The Lucknow Pact After a joint session of the League and Congress, the Lucknow Pact was passed. It recognized the League as an important political party and granted them separate electorates in the provincial and Imperial Legislative Council. The other important clauses were: 1) Weightage 2) One-third representation of Muslims in the Central Government Khilafat Movement This began movement began to save the Khalifa of Turkey, because the Britain had decided to dismember it along with other European powers. The important members of this movement were Ghandi, Maulana Ali Jauhar and Maulana Shakut Ali Jauhar. Jinnah did not take part in the movement as he did not believe to mix religion with politics. Jalianwala Bagh Tragedy

1907

1909

1910 1911 1913 1915

1916

1919

1920 1924

The British government had passed laws in India establishing that Indians could not meet publicly in large groups. One day, a large crowd gathered at Jalianwala Bagh and Sir Michael ODyer ordered troops to fire at the unarmed groups. Officials claimed that 379 people died and 1,200 wounded. Quaid leaves Congress Khilafat Movement ended The Delhi Proposals Jinnah realized that separate electorates were the main hindrance towards HinduMuslim unity, so he agreed to given up this provision if the Hindus agreed to provide certain safeguards towards the Muslims; which were: 1) Sindh must be separated from the Bombay Residency and made a separate province. 2) N.W.F.P and Balochistan should be made provinces, giving them provincial amendments. 3) Muslim representation in the Central Legislature would not be less than one third.

1927

The Simon Commission The British government had decided to create a commission which went to India and noted the development the reforms were having on India. This commission was head by Sir John Simon and 6 other members, whom were all Britons. So part of the League protested against this and this group became the Jinnah Group while its counterpart which supported the commission was known as the Shafi Group after Sir Mohammad Shafi. When the Simon Commission arrived in India they were met with hostility and thus returned to Britain. The Nehru Report Following the Simon Commission, the government resent Sir John Simon to India to inquire about the constitutional development of the nation. He appointed a committee headed by Pundit Moti Lal Nehru to develop the principals for a constitution of India. Known as the Nehru Report in consisted of the following important points; 1) The clauses of the Lucknow Pact had been rejected. 2) Separate Electorate and Weightage had also been rejected. 3) A unitary form of government had been proposed abolishing the idea of provinces having autonomous power. 4) One fourth representation of Muslims in the Central Legislative. 5) Hindi should be made the official language. Jinnahs Fourteen Points In response to the Nehru Report, Jinnah passed his fourteen points. The main points were; 1) A federal government 2) Separate Electorates 3) Weightage 4) Separation of Sindh

1928

1929

5) Provincial Autonomy 6) Muslim Representation in the Cen. Leg; 1/3 The League reunited after these points had been passed. First Round Table Conference

1930

The Congress didnt show up for this conference as their leaders had been jailed due to the Civil Disobedience Movement. So the League discussed their issues and 8 committees had been set up to deal with the political issues. At the end of the conference, they decided to an agreement to write safeguards for the minorities and create a federal government. Ghandi-Irwin Pact After the First RTC, the British realized they needed the participation of the Congress. So, the Viceroy Lord Irwin and Ghandi formed a pact which stated that Congress would participate in the next RTC if its leaders were let out of jail only if Civil Disobedience discontinued. But Civil Disobedience would only be discontinued if the British stopped passing laws to curb Congresss constitutional progress.

1931

Second Round Table Conference Two committees were formed to solve the problems of developing a constitution and the rights of the minorities. Both the committees were headed by Ghandi but he took an unreasonable stance and a lot of minorities; Muslims, Anglo-Indians, Indian Christians and the Europeans protested and thus the Second RTC ended on this note. The Communal Award The communal award had been announced giving minorities separate electorates in the country; not only Muslims. Many of the Hindu classes in the caste system had been given rights. Weightage had also been given to many different communities in different provinces, making Muslims minorities in those areas. Poona Pact

1932

Ghandi opposed the Communal Award because it separated the Untouchables from mainstream Hindu society. Ghandi went on a hunger strike due to it, claiming that all people should be equal. So the Poona Pact had been signed between him and Dr. B.R. Ambedker, the leader of Untouchables. The pact was a compromise between the Hindu caste system and the depressed classes who were the Untouchables. Third Round Table Conference The third RTC was a disaster. Jinnah was not invited, Congress failed to appear and so did the Labour class of the British Parliament. White Paper

1933

White Paper was a report on the decisions made during the Round Table Conferences. It passed through some committees and ultimately its constitutional

recommendations became the Government of India Act passed in 1935.

Pakstan

1933

In 1933, a college student named Chaudhary Rehmat Ali published a pamphlet entitled Now or Never, which suggested the word Pakstan. P-Punjab A-Afghania K-Kashmir S-Sindh T A-- BalochisTAN N This was later adopted has Pakistans name with the inclusion of the alphabet I. The Government Of India Act On the 4th of August 1935, the Government of India Act had been passed and was passed. Its main clauses were 1) A Federal government 2) A Governor General 3) Federal Legislature consisting of the Council of State (Upper House) and the Federal Assembly (Lower House) The Act was passed two years before the Indian elections. The Provincial Elections

1935

1937

1939

The Government of India Act was practically implemented in 1937 after the elections. The elections werent very favourable for both parties; they didnt do as well as they predicted. Out of eleven provinces, seven of them were run by Congress and the other four were mixed, run by coalition. Day Of Deliverance The British Empire proclaimed Indias involvement in the Second World War without consulting the main political parties. So Congress demanded immediate and complete transfer of power for their participation in the war. The British refused and Congress resigned thus handing power over to the League. It was a joyous day for Jinnah and his colleagues on 22 December, 1939. The Pakistan Resolution This resolution stated that all areas were Muslims were in majority should band together and form a separate nation. The Resolution was moved by Bengal Chief Minister Maulvi-Faz-ul-Haq and seconded by Chaudhary Kaliq-uz-zaman. The meeting was under the chairmanship of Quaid-e-Azam. The British Offer of 1940 During the 1940s the British were losing the war to the axis powers. So they made

1940

1942

an offer to the Indians for their co-operation. They stated that the Governor Generals Executive Council would be expanded and a War Advisory council be set up. After the war they would create a body comprised of Indians to create the constitution with regard to the minorities but they also stated that they would not transfer power. Both the League and the Congress rejected the offer. Quit India Movement In 1942, Congress declared it wanted full independence from Britain. This was followed by a lot of violence like destroying railway stations and post offices and other infrastructure the British built. The British responded by suppressing this uprising. The Movement was a failure. Ghandi-Jinnah Talks Ghandi and Jinnah met to settle the differences of the Hindu-Muslim differences. Ghandi stated that the Muslim separation could be constituted as part of the Indian Federation but not as a separate nation. Jinnah did not agree and the talks ended. General Elections Congress won 80% of the general seats and 91.3% of the general votes. While the League won all 30 seats reserved for Muslims. In the Provincial elections, Congress won 91% of the general voters while the League secured 87% of the Muslim votes. Direct Action Day The League after years of effort decided to wage war, figuratively, against the British. Jinnah and other leaders began making provocative speeches. Muslims began to riot and Hindu groups responded in violence. Direct Action meant to resort to non-constitutional methods; any actions against the Law. With all the violence in India, the British had to think quickly to stop it. Interim Government An interim government dominated by Congress had been formed. 3rd June Plan This guaranteed the independence of the Indian sub-continent. The British were finally leaving.

1944

19451946

1946

1947

Indian Independence Act This act freed the Muslim people and an independent Muslim state had been established. Transfer of Power Pakistan had been established and Jinnah was its first Governor General and Liaquat Ali Khan its first Prime Minister.