Author, Burning for Freedom

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Saturday, October 27, 2012

The seeds of Pakistan now planted in 1938!


Mother India: “By the pricking of my thumbs,

Something wicked this way comes.”


Hi, Everyone! In 1937, the Congress had prodded the beast in Jinnah by arrogantly demanding dissolution of the Muslim League and by dangling the carrot of political power—only available by joining the Congress, they implied—before the Muslims.

Jinnah, filled with hatred and suspicion of the Congress, Gandhi, and Nehru, retaliated with a master-stroke reducing the Congress to a “Hindu” party in effect.

How Gandhi and Nehru must have wished he would just go poof!

·        But since the “bogey” Jinnah could not be made to go poof, they sought to be rid of him through partition.

Nehru’s words in his diary illuminate this quite clearly. On December 28, 1943, he writes:

"Instinctively I think it is better to have Pakistan or almost nothing if only to keep Jinnah far away and not allow his muddled and arrogant head from (sic) interfering continually in India's progress."

The axe ready to chop India had even now, in 1938, made its grim appearance on the political scene!

Let us see the how the first seed of Pakistan was planted.

The Government of India Act of 1935 required that a Central Federation be formed. Viceroy Linlithgow was avidly seeking to form this Federation.

But the Congress had set itself against the Federation and did its very best to hamper the Viceroy’s attempts to form this Federation in every possible way.

Surely, forming a Central Federation—one that united all the Provinces and the Princely States—was extremely desirable? Would it not have nipped any thought of partition in the bud?

Instead the Congress chose to oppose it. And not just oppose, Birla, one of Gandhi’s mouthpieces to the Viceroy, put an unbelievable proposal before the Viceroy! 

“Birla said that the communal position in India was getting rapidly worse. Congress was aware of it and its leaders were deeply anxious. He then suggested that the best course might be to let the Muslims have their Federation of the North-West. This astonished Linlithgow, who thought at first that Birla was teasing him. When he saw that the suggestion was serious he asked Birla whether he envisaged the perpetuation of British military power to keep peace between Muslim and Hindu Federation . . .

This was a most interesting conversation. It showed clearly Linlithgow’s dread of partition and therefore his shock at encouragement for it coming from a Hindu.”[1]

This conversation has taken place in 1938. Let the truth not escape anyone:

·        “Muslim Federation of the North-West”: what is that but another name for Pakistan?

·        A demand for a separate Hindu and Muslim Federation in private and the public face . . . ? A vociferous demand for Hindu-Muslim unity . . . !

Yes indeed, the seed of Pakistan has now been planted, on the soil that was tilled in 1937.

Anurupa



[1] Viceroy Lord Linlithgow’s biography, The Viceroy at Bay, by John Glendevon,  page 88.

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