WHAT CONGRESS AND GANDHI HAVE DONE TO
THE UNTOUCHABLES
__________________________________________________________________
Appendices
Appendix VII : Minorities and
weightage
Appendix VIII : Cripps Proposals
Appendix IX: Objections to Cripps Proposals
Appendix X: Correspondence between Lord Wavell and Mr. Gandhi,
1944
Appendix XI : Political
Demands of Scheduled Castes
appendix VII
MINORITIES
AND- WEIGHTAGE
Views of the Montagu-Ohdmsford Report find of
the Simon Commission on the iniquitous distribution of weightage.
(1)
MONTAOU-CHILMSIORD
Report.
Extyact from the Moniagu'Chelmsford Report on
Indian Constitutional Reforms.
***
163.
Important minorities, it is proposed, should be represented by election. This appears to
point to a system of specified only for Mohammedans, who are no longer to be allowed to
vote in the general electorates as well as in their own special ones. We have elsewhere
touched upon the difficulty of denying to certain other communities, such as the Sikhs in
the Punjab, a concession which iť granted to Mohammedans, The authors of the scheme have
also agreed upon, and set forth the proportions of the seats to be reserved for the
special Muslim electorates in the various provinces. We are not aware on what basis, other
than that of negotiation, the figures were arrived at. Separate electorates are proposed
in. all provinces even where Mohammedans are in a majority: and wherever they are
numerically weak, the proportion suggested is in excess of their numerical strength or
their present representation. At the same time, nearly all the Muslim associations which
addressed us urged upon us that it should be still further increased. Now a privileged
position of this kind is open to the objection, that if any other community hereafter
makes good a claim to separate representation, it can be satisfied only by deduction from
the non-Muslim seats, or else by a rateable deduction from both Muslim and non-Muslim; and
Hindu and Muslim opinions are not likely to agree which process should b6 adopted. While,
therefore, for reasons that we explain subsequently, we assent to the maintenance of
separate representation for Mohammedans, we are bound to reserve our approval of the
particular proposals set before us until we have ascertained what the effect upon other
interests will be, and have made fair provision for them. We agree with the authors of the
scheme that Mohammedans should not have votes both in their own special, and in the
general electorates—and we welcome the Muslim League's assent to the revision in this
respect of existing arrangements."
(2)
Extract from the Report of the Indian Statutory
Commission, Vol. II.
***
NUMBER OF MOHAMMEDAN
SEATS
Para
85. We now take up the question of the proportion of
seats in the various provincial councils to be set aside for Mohammedan members,
The
Lucknow Pact, as we have already pointed out, included an 'agreement between Hindus and
Moslems as to the proportion of Indian elected seats allotted in each province to the
Mohammedan community, and its terms have been followed closely in the allocation of
Mohammedan seats in the existing provincial legislatures. The Pact is no longer accepted
by either side as offering & fair basis of
representation and the rival contentions now put forward are indicated in paragraph 70
above. It is ,very much to be hoped that a renewed effort will be made between the two
communities themselves to arrive at a fresh accommodation; but in the absence of
agreement, a decision will have to be reached by others, on the assumption that separate
electorates remain. Our own opinion is that in view of the existing position and of the
weakness of the Moslem minority in six out of the eight provinces(Burma is not in question), the present scale of weightage in favour of
Mohammedans in those provinces might properly be retained. Thus, the proportion to be
allotted to them, of seats filled from the "general" constituencies (other than
the European general constituencies) would be determined as at present. But a claim has
been put forward for a guarantee of Mohammedan representation which goes further than
this—-see paragraph 70 above and Appendix VII at the end of this chapter. This claim
goes to the length of seeking to preserve the full security for representation now
provided for Moslems in these six provinces and at the same time to enlarge in Bengal and
the Punjab the present proportion of seats secured to the community by separate
electorates to figures proportionate to their ratio of population. This would give Mohammedans a fixed and
unalterable majority of the "general constituency" seats in both provinces. We
cannot go so far. The continuance of the present scale of weightage in the six provinces
could not—in the absence of a new general agreement between the
communities—equitably be combined with so great a departure from the existing
allocation in Bengal and the Punjab.
It
would be unfair that Mohammedans should retain the very considerable weightage they now
enjoy in the six provinces, and that there should at the same time be imposed, in face of
Hindu-Sikh opposition, a definite Moslem majority in the Punjab and in Bengal unalterable
by any appeal to the electorate. On the other hand, if by agreement separate electorates
in Bengal were abandoned, so that each community in that province was left to secure such
seats as it could gain by appeal to a combined electorate, we should not, on that account,
seek to deprive the Moslem community of its existing weightage in the six provinces where
they are in a minority. In the same way in the Punjab, if Moslems, Sikhs and Hindus were
prepared to seek election through a joint electorate covering all three communities, here
again we should still be prepared to see this combined with the preservation of the
present numerical proportion secured to the Mohammedans by separate electorates in the six
other provinces.
We
make this last suggestion, which really involves giving the Moslem community the advantage
of a choice between two courses to follow, because we sincerely desire to see all
practicable means attempted for reducing the extent of separate electorates and for giving
the other system a practical trial.
CRIPPS
PROPOSALS
DRAFT DECLARATION FOR DISCUSSION WITH INDIAN
LEADERS
The
conclusions of the British War Cabinet set out below are those which Sir Stafford Cripps
has brought with him for discussion with Indian Leaders, and the question as to whether
they will be implemented will depend upon the outcome of those discussions which are now
taking place.
His
Majesty's Government having considered the anxieties expressed in this country and in
India as to the fulfilment of promises made in regard to the future of India have decided
to lay down in precise and clear terms, the steps which they propose shall be taken for
the earliest possible realisation of self-government in India. The object is the creation
of a new Indian Union which shall constitute a Dominion associated with the United Kingdom
and other Dominions by a common allegiance to the Crown but equal to them in every
respect, in no way subordinate in any aspect of its domestic or external affairs.
His
Majesty's Government, therefore, make the following Declaration:—
(a) Immediately upon cessation of hostilities, steps shall be
taken to set up in India, in manner described hereafter, an elected body charged with the
task of framing a new Constitution for India.
(b) Provision shall be made, as set out below, for participation
of Indian States in the Constitution-making body.
(c) His Majesty's Government undertake to accept and implement
forthwith the Constitution so framed subject only to:—
(i)
The right of any Province
of British India that is not prepared to accept the new Constitution, to retain its
present constitutional position, provision being made for its subsequent accession if it
so decides.
With
such non-acceding Provinces, should they so desire, His Majesty's Government will be
prepared to agree upon a new Constitution giving them the same full status as the Indian
Union and arrived at by a procedure analogous to that here laid down.
(ii)
The signing of a Treaty
which shall be negotiated between His Majesty's Government and the Constitution-making
body. This Treaty will cover all necessary matters arising out of the complete transfer of
responsibility from British to Indian hands ; it will make provision, in accordance with
undertakings given by His Majesty's Government, for the protection of racial and religious
minorities; but will not impose any restriction on the power of the Indian Union to decide
in future its relationship to other Member States of the British Commonwealth.
Whether
or not an Indian State elects to adhere to the Constitution, it will be necessary to
negotiate a revision of its Treaty arrangements so far as this may be required in the new
situation.
(d) The Constitution-making body shall be composed as follows
unless the leaders of Indian opinion in the principal communities agree upon some other
form before the end of hostilities:—
Immediately
upon the result being known of Provincial Elections which will be necessary at the end of
hostilities, the entire membership of the Lower Houses of Provincial Legislatures shall as
a single electoral college proceed to the election of the Constitution-making body by the
system of proportional representation, This new body shall be in
number about l/10th of the number of the electoral college,
Indian States shall be invited to appoint
representatives in the same proportion to their total population as in the case of
representatives of British India as a whole and with the same powers as British Indian
Members,
{e) During the critical period which now faces
India and until the New Constitution can be framed, His Majesty's Government must
inevitably bear the responsibility for and retain the control and direction of the defence
of India as part of their world war effort, but the task of organising to the full the
military) moral and material resources of India must be the responsibility of the
Government of India with the co-operation of the peoples of India. His Majesty's
Government desire and invite the immediate and effective participate on of the leaders of
the principal sections of the Indian people in the counsels of their country, of the
Commonwealth and of the united nations. Thus they will be enabled to give their active and
constructive help in the in-charge of a task which is vital and essential for the future
freedom of India.
OBJECTIONS TO ORIPPS PROP0SALS
Statement
by B, R. Ambedkar showing how the CRIPPS Proposals would affect the Untouchables
The War Cabinet proposals show a sudden Volte Face on the part of His Majesty's Government.
The putting forth of these proposals, which were denounced by them as an invasion of
minority rights, is an indication of their complete surrender of right to win might. This
is Munich mentality, the essence of which is to save oneself by sacrificing others, and it
is this mentality which is writ large on these proposals.
It is reported that the American and English people are annoyed at Indians not
welcoming the proposals of His Majesty's Government relating to the constitutional
advancement of India and .hereby allowing the mission of Sir Stafford Cripps to fail. One
can forgive the Americans for their attitude, but surely the English people and Sir
Stafford Cripps ought to know better. It does not seem to have been sufficiently realised
that the proposals of His Majesty's Government now put forth as the best are the very
proposals which have been rejected and condemned by His Majesty's Government as the worst,
only a few months previously. Those who realise this cannot but help saying that this is
the ugliest part of the whole business of constitutional advance, which His Majesty's
Government is now suddenly and contrary to its previous declarations, rushing to
undertake. The proposals fall into three parts; (1) There is to be a constituent assembly
with a right to frame the Constitution for India. This Assembly is to have the fullest
power to frame such constitution as the majority in the Assembly may choose to decide; (2)
The new Constitution is not to include all of the present Provinces of India but only such
Provinces as may be willing to be bound by it. For
this the Provinces have been given a right to decide whether they shall join the new
Constitution or stay out of it. This is left to be done by a plebiscite in which a bare
majority is declared enough to decide the issue ; (3) The Constituent Assembly shall be
required to enter into a treaty with the British Government. The treaty is to contain
provisions for the safety and security of racial and religious
minorities. After such a treaty is signed, the British Government is to withdraw its
sovereignty and the Constitution framed by the Constituent Assembly is to come into
operation.
Such,
in brief outline, is the
scheme of His Majesty's Government.
The
proposal regarding Constituent Assembly is not a new proposal. It was put forth by the
Congress when the war broke out and what is important is that this proposal of the
Congress was rejected by His Majesty's Government. This is what Mr. Amery said in the
House of Commons on August 14, 1940, regarding Constituent Assembly:—
"Congress
leaders have built up a remarkable organization, the most efficient political machine in
India. .. If only they had succeeded, if the Congress could, in fact speak, as it
professes to speak, for all the main elements in India's national life, then however
advanced their demands.- our problem would have been in many respects far easier than it
is to-day. It is true that they are numerically the largest single party in British India,
but their claim in virtue of that fact to speak for India is utterly denied by very
important elements in India's complex national life. These others assert their right to be
regarded not as mere numerical minorities but as separate constituent factors in any
future Indian policy. The foremost among these elements stands the great Muslim community.
They will have nothing to do with a Constitution framed by a Constituent Assembly elected
by a majority vote in geographical constituencies. They claim the right in any
constitutional discussions to be regarded as an entity and are determined only to accept a
Constitution whose actual structure will secure their position as an entity against the
operations of a mere numerical majority. The same applies to the great body of what are
known as the Scheduled Castes who feel, in spite
of Mr. Gandhi's earnest endeavours on their
behalf, that, as a community, they stand outside the main body of the Hindu Community
which is represented by the Congress."
This
statement was made by Mr. Amery when he was elucidating the announcement made by the
Viceroy on 6th August 1941 in which he had given the following pledge to the minorities on
behalf of His Majesty's Government;—
"There
are two main points which have emerged. On these two points. His Majesty's Government now
desire me to make their position clear. The first is as to the position of the minorities
in relation to any future constitutional scheme. . . It goes without saying that they (H.
M. Government) could not contemplate the transfer of their present responsibilities for
the peace and welfare of India to any system of government whose authority is directly
denied by large and powerful elements in India's national life. Nor could they be parties
to the coercion of such elements into submission to such a government."
Again
on the 23rd April 1941, Mr. Amery referred to the demand of the Constituent Assembly and
expressed himself in the following terms:—
"India's
future Constitution should be devised by Indians for themselves and not by the British
Government. India's future Constitution should be essentially an Indian Constitution,
framed in accordance with the Indian conception of Indian conditions and Indian needs. The
only essential condition is that the Constitution itself and the body which is to frame
it, must be the outcome of agreement between principal elements in India's national
life."
Such
were the views and pledges given by H. M. Government regarding Constituent Assembly, which
is now conceded. Regarding the demand for Pakistan, it was a demand put forward by the
Muslim League. This demand was also rejected by His Majesty's Government. This is what Mr.
Amery said in regard to it in the House of Commons on August 1, 1940 :—
" This reaction against the dangers of what is
called the Congress Raj or Hindu Raj has gone so far as to lead to a growing demand from
Muslim quarters for a complete breaking up of India into separate Hindu and Muslim
dominions. I need say nothing to-day of the manifold and to my
mind, insuperable objections to such a scheme, at any rate in its extreme form. I would
only note that it merely shifts the problem of permanent minorities to somewhat smaller
areas, without solving it."
Again
on April 23, 1941, he referred to it in his speech in the House of Common and spoke about
it in the following terms :—
"I
am not concerned here to discuss the immense practical difficulties in the way of this
so-called Pakistan project nor need I go back to the dismal record of India's history in
the 18th century or to the disastrous experience of the Balkan countries before our eyes,
to-day, in order to point out the terrible dangers inherent in any break up of the
essential unity of India, at any rate in its relation to the outside world. After all,
there is no British achievement in India of which we have reason to be proud than the
unity. . .we have given her."
Such
were the views of His Majesty's Government only a year ago regarding Constituent Assembly
and Pakistan.
It
is quite obvious that the proposal for a Constituent Assembly is intended to win over the
Congress, while the proposal for Pakistan is designed to win over the Muslim League. How
do the proposals deal with the Depressed Classes ? To put it shortly, they are bound hand
and foot and handed over to the caste Hindus. They offer them nothing; stone instead of
bread. For the Constituent Assembly is nothing short of a betrayal of the Depressed
Classes. There can be no doubt as to what the position of the Depressed Classes will be in
the Constituent Assembly; nor can there be any doubt regarding the political programme of
the Constituent Assembly. In the Constituent Assembly, there may be no representatives of
the Depressed Classes at ail because no communal quotas are fixed by these proposals. If
they are there, they cannot have a free, independent and decisive vote. In the first
place, the representatives of the Depressed Classes will be in a hopeless minority. In the
second place, all decisions of the Constituent Assembly are not required to be by a
unanimous vote. A majority vote is enough to decide any question no matter what its
constitutional importance is. It is clear that under this system the voice of the
Depressed Classes in the Constituent Assembly cannot count. In the third place, the
present system of proportional representation by which the members to the Constituent
Assembly are to be elected under the terms contained in His Majesty's proposals cannot but
result in the caste Hindus having virtually the right to nominate the representatives of
the Depressed Classes to the Constituent Assembly. Such representatives of the Depressed
Classes will be the tools of the caste Hindu . In the fourth place, the Constituent
Assembly will be filled with the Congressites who will form the dominant majority party
able to carry out its own programme. There is no doubt that Mr. Gandhi, whatever may be
said about his endeavours in the matter of the social uplift of the Depressed Classes, is
totally opposed to giving political recognition to the Depressed Classes in the
Constitution as a separate and distinct element in the national life of India. That being the case, the programme of the majority party in the
Constituent Assembly will be to wipe out the political safeguards already granted to
the Depressed Classes in the present Constitution. Any one, who
realises what is implied in the Constituent Assembly, will admit that His Majesty's
Government by their proposals have literally thrown the Depressed Classes to the wolves.
It may be said that while there is the Constituent Assembly which may deny constitutional
safeguards to the Depressed Classes, His Majesty's Government have been careful to include
in their proposals the provisions for a treaty with the Constituent Assembly the object of
which is to secure the interests of the Depressed Classes. This proposal of a treaty is
evidently borrowed from the plan adopted by His Majesty's Government for the settlement of
the Irish dispute. The proposal regarding the treaty does not say what are the safe-guards
His Majesty's Government will decide to include in the treaty. This is an important point
because there may be a difference of opinion between His Majesty's Government and the
Depressed Classes on the nature, number and method of the political safeguards that may be
necessary to protect the interests of the Depressed Classes under the new Constitution.
The second and equally important question about the treaty is what is going to be the
sanction behind the treaty. Will the treaty be a part of the Constitution framed by the
Constituent Assembly, so that any provision in the Constitution which, is repugnant with
the treaty will be null and void ? Or, will the treaty be just a treaty between the two
governments, the Indian National Government and His Majesty's Government, as any trade
treaty ? If the treaty is to be of the former kind, it will be the law of the land and
will have legal sanction of the Indian Government behind it. If, on the other hand, the
treaty is to be of the latter kind, it is obvious it will not be the law of the land and
will have no legal sanction behind it. Its sanction will be political sanction. Now a
treaty cannot override the Constitution framed by the National Government for the obvious
reason that such a thing, as was found in the case of Irish Free State, is incompatible
with Dominion Status. The only sanction behind such a treaty will be political sanction.
It is obvious that the use of such sanction must depend upon the colour of the Government
and the state of public opinion. Given this fact, the questions that arise are two: (1)
What are the means which His Majesty's Government will have at its disposal to enforce the
treaty obligations? (2) Secondly, will His Majesty's Government be prepared to use these
means to coerce the Indian National Government to abide by the terms of the treaty ? With
regard to the first question, it is obvious that the means for enforcing the treaty are
twofold—use of force and trade war. As to the military force, the Indian army will
not be available. It will be entirely transferred to the control of the new Indian
National Government. His Majesty's Government will have therefore lost this means of
enforcing the treaty. It is impossible to believe that His Majesty's Government will send
its own army to compel the National Government to obey the treaty. A trade war is not
possible. It is a suicidal policy and the experience of the Irish war with the Irish Free
State for the recovery of land annuities shows that a nation of shopkeepers will not
sanction it even though it may be for their interest and honour. The treaty therefore is
going to be an empty formula, if not a cruel joke, upon the Depressed Classes. His
Majesty's Government has sent out these proposals to be welcomed by Indians. But neither
His Majesty's Government nor Sir Stafford Cripps have offered any explanation as to why
they are offering to Indians the very proposals which His Majesty's Government had been
condemning in scathing terms only a few months ago. A year ago, His Majesty's Government
said that they would not grant Constituent Assembly because that would be a coercion of
the minorities. His Majesty's Government is now prepared to grant Constituent Assembly and
to coerce the minorities. A year ago, His Majesty's Government' said that they will not
allow Pakistan because that is Balkanisation of India. To-day, they are prepared to allow
the partition of India. How can the Government of a Great Empire lose all sense of
principle ? The only explanation is that His Majesty's Government has, as a result of the
course of the war, become panic-stricken. The proposals are the result of loss of nerves.
How great is the panic that has overtaken His Majesty's Government can be easily seen if
one compared the demands made by the Congress and the Muslim League and the concessions
made to them by these proposals. The Congress demanded that the Constitution should be
framed by a Constituent Assembly by a mere majority vote. On the other hand, when the
Viceroy announced that the British Government will not be a party to the coercion of the
minorities involved in the demand by the Congress, the Working Committee of the Congress
at its meeting at Wardha held on August 22, 1940. passed the following resolution ;—
"The
Committee regrets that although the Congress has never thought in terms of coercing any
minority, much less of asking the British Government to do so, the demand for a settlement
of a Constitution though through a Constituent Assembly of duly elected representatives
has been misrepresented as coercion and the issue of minorities has been made into an
insuperable barrier to Indiana progress."
The
Working Committee added :—
"The
Congress had proposed that minority rights should be amply protected by agreement with the
elected representatives of the minorities concerned."
This
shows that even the Congress did not demand that the decision of minority rights should be
included in the purview of the Constituent Assembly. His Majesty's Government has,
however, given them the additional right to decide this minority rights issue by a bare
majority vote. With regard to the question of Pakistan, the same attitude is noticeable.
The Muslim League did not demand that Pakistan must be conceded immediately. All that the
Muslim League had asked for was that at the next revision of the Constitution, the
Mussalmans should not be prevented from raising the question of Pakistan. The present
proposals have gone a step beyond and distinctly give to the Muslim League the right to
create Pakistan. These are constitutional proposals. They are intended to lead India to
wage a total war in which Hindus, Mussalmans, Depressed Classes and Sikhs are called upon
wholeheartedly to participate. Yet Sir Stafford Cripps, either with the consent or without
the consent of His Majesty's Government, has been making discrimination between major
parties and minor parties. The major parties are those whose consent is necessary. Minor
parties are those with whom consultation is believed to be enough. This is new
distinction. Certainly it was never made in the prior pronouncements either of His
Majesty's Government or of the Viceroy. The pronouncement spoke of the "consent of
the principal elements in the national life of India."
So
far as the Depressed Classes are concerned, I am not aware of any pronouncement in which
the Depressed Classes were placed on a lower plane than the one given to the Mussalmans. I
quote the following from the speech of the Viceroy made in Bombay on January 10, 1941,
from which it will be seen that the Depressed Classes were bracketed with the Mussalmans :
"There
are insistent claims of the minorities. I need refer only to two of them ; the great
Muslim minority and the Scheduled Classes—there are the guarantees that have been
given to the minorities in the past, the fact that their position must be safeguarded and
that those guarantees must be honoured."
This
invidious distinction now sought to be made is a breach of faith with those minorities
whose position has been lowered by this discrimination.
From a constitutional point of view of total war, it is bound to cause more disaffection
and disloyalty in the country. It is for the British to consider whether in this attempt
to win the friendship of those who have probably already decided to choose other friends,
they should lose those who are their real friends. The proposals show a sudden volte face on the part of His Majesty's Government.
The putting forth of those proposals which were denounced by them as an invasion of
minorities' rights is an indication of their complete surrender of right to win might.
This is Munich Mentality the essence of which is to save oneself by sacrificing others and
it is this mentality which is writ large on those proposals. My advice to the British
Government is that they should withdraw these proposals. If they cannot fight for right
and justice and their plighted word they should better make peace. They can thereby at
least save their honour.
CORRESPONDENCE BETWEEN LORD WAVELL AND MR. GANDHI, 1944
1. Letter
from Mr. Gandhi to Viceroy on July 15th, 1944,
"dear friend,
You
have no doubt seen the authentic copies, now published in the Indian Press, of the
statements given by me to Mr. Gelder of the News
Chronicle. As I have said to the Press, they were meant primarily to be shown to you.
But Mr. Gelder, no doubt with the best of motives, gave the interview premature publicity.
I am sorry. The publication will nevertheless be a blessing in disguise, if the interview
enables you to grant at least one of my requests contained in my letter of June. 17, 1944.
I am
yours, etc.,
(Sd.)
M. K. GANDHI."
2. Viceroy's
reply to Mr. Gandhi, dated 22nd July 1944.
"DEAR MR. GANDHI,
Thank
you for your letter of July 15. I have seen the statements you have made to Mr. Gelder,
and your subsequent explanation of them. I do not think I can usefully comment at present,
except to repeat what I have said in my last letter that if you will submit to me a
definite and constructive policy, I shall be glad to consider it.
Yours
sincerely,
(Sd.)
WAVELL."
3. Gandhi's
letter to the Viceroy, dated 27th July 1944.
"DEAR FRIENDS,
I
must admit my disappointment over your letter of 22nd instant. But I am used to work in
the face of disappointment. Here is my concrete proposal.
I am
prepared to advise the Working Committee to declare that in view of changed conditions,
mass civil disobedience envisaged by the resolution of August 1942, cannot be offered and
that full cooperation in the war effort should be given by the Congress, if a declaration
of immediate Indian independence is made and a National Government responsible to the
Central Assembly be formed subject to the proviso that, during the tendency of the war,
the military operations should continue as at present but without involving any financial
burden on India. If there is a desire on the part of the British Government for a
settlement, friendly talks should take the place of correspondence. But I am in your
hands. I shall continue to knock so long as there is the least hope of an honourable
settlement.
After
the foregoing was written, I saw Lord Munster’s speech in the House of Lords. The
summary given by him in the House of Lords fairly represents my proposal. This summary may
serve as a basis for mutual friendly discussion.
I
am,
Yours
sincerely,
(SD.)
M. K. GANDHI."
4, Viceyoy's reply to Mr. Gandhi, dated 15th
August 1944.
"DEAR MR. GANDHI,
Thank
you for your letter of July 27. Your proposals are ;— (i) that you should undertake to advise the Working
Committee : (a) "that in view of changed
conditions mass civil disobedience envisaged by the resolution of August 1942, cannot be
offered" and (b) "that full
co-operation in the war effort should be given by the Congress provided (ii) that His Majesty's Government (a) declare immediate Indian independence, and (b) form a "National Government"
responsible to the Central Assembly "subject to the proviso that during the pendency
of the war the military operations should continue as at present but without involving any
financial burden on India."
His
Majesty's Government remain most anxious that a settlement of the Indian problem should be
reached. But proposals such as those put forward by you are quite unacceptable to His
Majesty's Government as a basis for discussion and you must realise this if • you
have read Mr. Amery's statement in the House of Commons on July 28th last. They are indeed
very similar to the proposals made by Maulana Abul Kalam Azad to Sir Stafford Cripps in
April 1942 and His Majesty's Government's reasons for rejecting them are the same as they
were then.
3.
Without recapitulating all these reasons in detail,
I should remind you that His Majesty's
Government at that time made it clear:
(a) That their offer of unqualified freedom after the cessation
of hostilities was made conditional upon the framing of a Constitution agreed by the main
elements of India's national life and the negotiation of the necessary treaty arrangements
with His Majesty's Government;
(b) That it is impossible during the period of hostilities to
bring about any change in the Constitution by which means alone a "National
Government" such as you suggest could be made responsible to the Central Assembly.
The
object of these conditions was to ensure the fulfilment of their duty to safeguard the
interests of the racial and religious minorities of the Depressed Classes and their treaty
obligations to the Indian States.
4.
It was upon the above conditions that His Majesty's Government invited Indian leaders to
take part in an interim Government which would operate under the existing Constitution. I
must make it quite clear that until the war is over responsibility for defence and
military operations cannot be divided from the other responsibilities of Government and
that until hostilities cease and the new Constitution is in operation, His Majesty's
Government and the Governor-General must retain their responsibility over the entire
field. So far as the question of India's share of the cost of the war is concerned, this
is essentially a matter for settlement between His Majesty's Government on the one hand
and the Government of India on the other, and existing financial arrangements can only be
reopened at the instance of one or the other.
5. It
is clear in these circumstances that no purpose will be served by discussion on the basis
which you suggest. If however the leaders of the Hindus, the Muslims and the important
minorities were willing to co-operate in a transitional Government established and working
within the present constitution, I believe good progress might be made. For such a
transitional Government to succeed, there must before it is formed, be agreement in
principle between Hindus and Muslims and all important elements as to the method by which
the new Constitution should be framed. This agreement is a matter for Indians themselves.
Until
Indian leaders have come closer together than they are now, I doubt if I myself can do
anything to help. Let me remind you too that minority problems are not easy. They are real
and can be solved only by mutual compromise and tolerance. 6. The period after the
termination of hostilities for which the transitional Government would last, would depend
on the speed with which the new constitution could be framed. I see no reason why
preliminary work on that Constitution should not begin as soon as the Indian leaders are
prepared to co-operate to that end. If they can arrive at a genuine agreement as to the
method of framing the Constitution, no unnecessary time need be spent after the war in
reaching final conclusions and in agreeing treaty arrangements with His Majesty's
Government. There again the primary responsibility rests on the Indian leaders.
Yours
sincerely,
(SD.)
WAVELL."
POLITICAL
DEMANDS OF SCHEDULED CASTES
Resolutions passed by the Working Committee of the
All-India Scheduled Castes Federation held in Madras on the 23rd September 1944 under the Presidentship of Rao Bahadur N .Shiva Raj,
B.A., B.L., M.L.A., outlining the safeguards for the Untouchables in the new Constitution.
RESOLUTION NO. I
subject :—Recognition
of the Scheduled Castes as a separate element.
The
Working Committee of the All-India Scheduled Castes Federation has found a section of the
Press in India making the allegation, that the statement made by H. E. the Viceroy in his
letter to Mr. Gandhi dated the 15th August 1944 to the effect that the Scheduled Castes
are one of the important and separate elements in the national life of India and requiring
that the consent of the Scheduled Castes to the Constitution of India was a necessary
condition precedent for transfer of power to Indians, is a departure from the position of
His Majesty's Government as defined in the Cripps Proposals. The Committee cannot help
expressing its indignation at this propaganda and takes this occasion to state in most
emphatic and categorical terms that the Scheduled Castes are a distinct and separate
element in the national life of India and that they are a religious minority in. a sense
far more real than the Sikhs and Muslims can be and within the meaning of the Cripps
Proposals. The Working Committee desires to point out that what has been stated by Lord
Wavell in his letter to Mr. Gandhi has been the position of His Majesty's Government from
the very beginning and was enunciated in clear terms as early as 1917 by the authors of
the Montagu-Chelmsford Report simultaneously with the enunciation by them of Responsible
Government as the goal of India's political evolution and has been confirmed by subsequent
action of His Majesty's Government such as the grant of separate representation to the
Scheduled Castes at the Round Table Conference, Joint Parliamentary Committee and in the
Government of India Act, 1935, as a recognised minority, separate from the Hindus. The
Working Committee has, therefore, no hesitation in saying that it is a false and malicious
propaganda to allege that this is a departure from the policy of His Majesty's Government
and regards it as a manoeuvre on the part of the enemies of the Scheduled Castes to defeat
their just claims for constitutional safeguards and calls upon Indian political leaders
and particularly the Hindu leaders to accept this fact, in the interests of peace and
good-will between the Hindus and the Scheduled Castes, and for the speedy realization of
India's political goal.
RESOLUTION NO. 2
subject :—Declaration
by His Majesty's Government relating to the Scheduled
Castes and the Constitution.
The
Working Committee of the All-India Scheduled Castes Federation welcomes the declaration
made by His Majesty's Government and recently reiterated by His Excellency the Viceroy
that His Majesty's Government regards the consent of the Scheduled Castes, among others,
to the Constitution of a free India, as a matter of vital importance and as a necessary
condition precedent to the transfer of power to Indian hands. At the same time, the
Working Committee wishes to draw the attention of His Majesty's Government to the attitude
of the Congress and other political organizations in the country which treats this
declaration of His Majesty's Government as not being a bona fide declaration and made without any
intention to honour it and as a mere matter of tactics adopted to postpone transfer of
power, and which is in all probability responsible for the unwillingness of the Majority
Community to seek for a settlement with the Scheduled Castes. The Working Committee
regards this allegation as baseless and calls upon His Majesty's Government not to give
any ground for such suspicion and make it clear that they will stand by the declaration at
all times and under all circumstances.
RESOLUTION NO. 3
subject :—Nature of
Constitutional Safeguards.
The Working Committee declares that no Constitution
shall be acceptable to the Scheduled Castes unless :—
(a) it has the consent of the Scheduled Castes ;
(b) it recognises the Scheduled Castes as distinct and separate
element;
(c) it contains within itself provisions for securing the
following purposes:
(1)
For earmarking a definite sum in the Budgets of the Provincial and Central Governments for
the Secondary, University and Advanced Education of the Scheduled Castes.
(2)
For reservation of Government lands for separate settlements of the Scheduled Castes
through a Settlement Commission.
(3)
For Representation of the Scheduled Castes according to their needs, numbers and
importance :—
(i)
in the Legislatures,
(ii)
in the Executive,
(iii)
in Municipalities and
Local Boards,
(iv)
in the Public Services,
(v)
on the Public Service
Commissions.
(4)
For the recognition of the above provisions as fundamental rights beyond the powers of the
Legislature or The Executive to amend or alter or abrogate.
{5)
For the appointment of an Officer similar in status to that of the Auditor-General
appointed under Section 166 of the Government of India Act of 1935 and re-movable from
office in like manner and on the like grounds as a judge of the Federal Court to report on
the working of the provisions relating to Fundamental Rights.
RESOLUTION NO, 4
subject :—Communal
Settlement.
The
Working Committee of the All-India Scheduled Caste Federation, while it is most eager for
a settlement of the Communal problem, wholly disapproves of the secret negotiations which
are being carried on by Mr, Gandhi and Mr, Jinnah for a settlement between the Hindus and
the Muslims, The Working Committee is of opinion "that Communal settlement of a
sectional character is harmful in every way. It is harmful because it ignores the vital
interests of other communities. It is harmful because it creates a feeling of suspicion in
other communities that dishonest deal is being made
between two communities to defeat their interests' It is also harmful to the general interests of the country,
inasmuch as the singling out of one special community from others for conferring special
privileges, not necessary for its
protection but demanded on the basis of prestige, creates differences in status which
from the point of view of maintaining equal citizenship for
all, are unjustifiable and must be deplored. The Working Committee is surprised that Mr.
Gandhi who has time and again proclaimed himself as an opponent of secrecy in public life
should have entered into secret diplomacy to bring about Hindu-Moslem Settlement. The
Committee expresses its emphatic opinion that the proper 'procedure to settle the communal
question, which would give a sense of security and ensure fair and equal treatment to all
is to discuss the demands put forth by each interest in public and in the presence of and
with the representatives of other interests.
RESOLUTION NO. 5
subject :—Revision
of the Constitution,
The Working Committee of the All-India
Scheduled Castes Federation is of opinion that the provisions in the existing Constitution
relating to minority representation are not based on any intelligible principle. The
Committee finds that as the system now stands, some minorities have not received even
their population ratio of representation, while other minorities have been given weightage
over and above their population ratio as a concession to their claims based on historical
and military importance. The Working Committee regards the recognition of such claims to
be harmful to the interests of other minorities and inconsistent with the ideal of social
and political democracy, which is the goal of all Indians and that they should never be
tolerated. In this connection, the Committee wishes to draw attention to the fact that the
principle of giving weightage to specially selected minorities
has been condemned by the authors of the Montagu-Chelmsford Report and also by the Simon Commission. The Committee
demands that in view of the fact that the next Constitution of India will be for India as
a Dominion, the provisions of the Constitution relating to minorities should be revised
and should be brought in accord with the principle of equal treatment of all minorities.
RESOLUTION NO. 6
subject :—Representation
in the Legislatures and in the Executive.
The Working Committee of the All-India
Scheduled Castes Federation desires to state in categorical and emphatic terms that the
Scheduled Castes will not tolerate any discrimination between one community and another in
the matter of representation and will insist upon their claim for seats in the Provincial
and Central Legislatures and in the Provincial and Central Executive being adjudged in the
same manner and by the same principles that may be made applicable to the claims of the
Muslim Community.
RESOLUTION NO. 7
subject :—Electorates.
The Working Committee of the All-India
Scheduled Castes Federation is of opinion that the experience of the last elections held
under the Government of India Act has proved that the system of joint electorates has
deprived the Scheduled Castes of the right to send true and effective representatives to
the Legislatures and has given the Hindu Majority the virtual right to nominate members of
the Scheduled Castes who are prepared to be the tools of the Hindu Majority. The Working
Committee of the Federation therefore demands that the system of joint electorates and
reserved seats should be abolished and the system of separate electorates be introduced in
place thereof.
RESOLUTION NO. 8
subject :—Framework
of Executive Government.
The working Committee of the All-India
Scheduled Castes Federation takes note of the fact that not only all wealth, property,
trade and industry are in the hands of the Majority Community, but even the whole
administration of the State is controlled by the Majority Community whose members have
monopolized all posts in the State services both superior and inferior. The Working
Committee of the All-India Scheduled Castes Federation regards this as the most dangerous
situation which cannot but cause great apprehension to the minority communities since the
combination of these circumstances gives the majority the fullest power to establish its
stranglehold upon the minorities. This fear of a stranglehold is greatly augmented by the
Constitutional provisions relating to the Executive contained in the Government of India
Act of 1935 which permits the majority in the Legislature to form a Government without
reference to the wishes of the minorities,
The Working Committee of the All-India
Scheduled Castes Federation feels that while, in the absence of an alternative system, the
Parliamentary system of Government may have to be accepted, the Committee is definitely
opposed to the system of Parliamentary cabinet inasmuch as it automatically vests the
Executive authority in the Majority Community and thereby strengthens the hold of the
Majority Community which has entered into the steel frame of the administration and thus
has become a source of great danger to the Minorities. The Working Committee has,
therefore, come to the conclusion that the system of Parliamentary Cabinet is not suited
to Indian conditions and that a different system under which Executive Government would be
formed in consultation with the wishes of the Minorities must be designed to give them a
better sense of security.
The Working Committee insists that the
Executive in the Provinces as well as in the Centre should be constituted in the following
manner:—
(i)
The Executive should
consist of a Prime Minister and other ministers drawn from general community and from
minority communities in a proportion to be specified in the Constitution.
(ii)
The Prime Minister and
Ministers drawn from the general community shall be elected to the Executive by the whole
house by single transferable vote.
(iii)
The Ministers
representing the minority communities shall be chosen by the members representing the
different communities by single transferable vote.
(iv)
The Members of the
Executive shall be members of the Legislature, shall answer questions, vote and take part
in debates.
(v)
Any vacancy in the
Executive shall be filled in accordance with rules governing the original appointments.
(vi)
The period for which
the Executive shall hold office shall be co-terminus with the life of the Legislature.
RESOLUTION NO. 9
subject :—Public Services,
While it is desirable to plan for a Government
which will be a Government of Laws and not of men, it cannot be forgotten that no matter
how Government is organised, it must remain a Government of men. That being so, whether
Government is good or bad as distinguished from a merely efficient Government and how far
the administration of public affairs will be non-political and
impartial must depend upon the spirit and outlook and sense of justice of the men who are
appointed to administer the Law. The Working Committee of the All-India Scheduled Castes
Federation is convinced that the Scheduled Castes can never get protection, justice or
sympathy from the present administration which is controlled by men full of caste
consciousness, narrow-mindedness, absence of sense of justice and having a hatred and
contempt for the Scheduled Castes. The Working Committee, therefore, demands that the
Constitution must recognise the right of the Scheduled Castes to reservation in the Public Services in the same proportion as
may be applied to the claims of the Muslim Community,
RESOLUTION NO. 10
subject :—Provision for
Education.
The
Working Committee of the All-India Scheduled Castes Federation feels that unless persons
belonging to the Scheduled Castes are able to occupy posts which carry executive
authority, the Scheduled Castes must continue to suffer, as they have been doing in the
past all the injustices and indignities from the hands of the Government and the Public.
The Working Committee, therefore, regards the spread of higher and advanced education
among the Scheduled Castes as of vital importance to them. But, it cannot be denied that
such advanced education is beyond the means of the Scheduled Castes. The Committee regards
it as essential that a definite liability in this behalf should be imposed on the State to
provide funds for that purpose and demands that the Constitution should impose an
obligation upon the Provincial Governments and the Central Government to set apart adequate sums, as may be specified by the
Constitution, exclusively for advanced education of the Scheduled Castes in their annual
budgets and to accept such provisions as a
first charge on their revenues,
RESOLUTION NO. 11
subject :—Separate
Settlements.
The
Working Committee of the All-India Scheduled Castes Federation holds;—
(a) that so long as the Scheduled Castes continue
to live on the outskirts of the Hindu village, as an alien people, with no source of
livelihood and in small numbers as compared to Hindus, they will continue to remain
Untouchables and subject to the tyranny and oppression of the Hindus and will not be able
to enjoy free and full life, and
(b)
that for the better protection of the Scheduled Castes from the tyranny and oppression of the Caste Hindus, which may take a worse form
under Swaraj, and to enable the Scheduled Castes to develop to their fullest manhood) to
give them economic and social security as also to pave the way for the removal of
untouchability, the Working Committee demands that the Constitution should provide-
(1)
For the transplantation of the Scheduled Castes from their present habitations and form
separate Scheduled Caste villages away from and independent of Hindu villages;
(2)
For the settlement of the Scheduled Castes in new villages a provision shall be made by
the Constitution for the establishment of a Settlement Commission;
(3)
All Government land which is cultivable and which is not occupied and land which may be
reclaimed shall be handed over to the Commission to be held in trust for the purpose of.
making new settlements of the Scheduled Castes.
(4)
The Commission shall be empowered to purchase new land under the Land Acquisition Act from
private owners to complete the scheme of settlements of the Scheduled Castes.
(5)
The Constitution shall provide that the Central Government shall grant to the Settlement
Commission a minimum sum of rupees five crores per annum to enable it to carry out their
duty in this behalf.
RESOLUTION NO. 12
"The
Working Committee of the A.I.S.C. Federation unanimously resolves that it places its
complete confidence in Dr. B. R. Ambedkar and authorises him to negotiate
on its behalf and on behalf of Scheduled Castes with other political parties or their
leaders as and when necessity arises."