23rd March marks the anniversary of the Resolution that serves as the foundation stone of Pakistan. The Resolution was passed at the annual session of the Muslim League at Lahore, attended by prominent leaders from all over India. While the Resolution serves both as a milestone as well as a roadmap for Independence, its broad contours reflect the political context of the time. It is worthwhile to probe the political, as well as the social, and historical dimensions of this landmark Resolution.
In this context, of particular relevance are the national sentiment among the Muslims, the role of leadership, and Muslim-Hindu relations at the time. While Sir Syed was able to bridge the gap between the British and the Muslims, the chasm between the Muslims and the Hindus widened in the early years of the 20th century. Maulana Shibli was among the earliest Muslims voices who, in his articles, made the point that Muslims and Hindus together could achieve their political objectives; and in the past both communities had lived side by side.
The Lucknow Pact of 1916 came as a major development underpinning cordial Muslim-Hindu interaction. The Lucknow Pact between the Congress and the League was the result of goodwill and concessions between the two entities. Congress agreed to separate electorates for the Muslims. Major principles agreed to in the Pact became the basis for the Government of India Act 1919.
At this time, leaders like Muhammad Ali Jinnah and Maulana Abul Kalam Azad tried to rouse Muslim sentiments against the British and the western powers who were working against the Muslims’ interests in other parts of the world. This showed a cleavage between the ‘liberal’ and ‘conservative’ sections of Muslim leadership. It is interesting to note how this cleavage worked during the critical pre-Independence phase in India.
The post-World War I time, once again, brought the Hindus and Muslims together, in support of the Khilafat Movement. While the Rowlett Act, 1918, and Jallianwala Bagh incident, 1919, pushed nationalist sentiments against the British, they, on their part, were anxious to get support of both the Muslims and Hindus who were politically charged after international developments.
The Hindus were invited to attend the Delhi Khilafat Conference; in 1920, Muslims sent a message to the Viceroy to start a non-cooperation movement; Gandhi also announced a non-cooperation movement; a Resolution passed by Congress supported the Muslims for the Khilafat Movement. The movement became a mass movement, more political than religious, and stoked the Muslim nationalist sentiments. Such sentiments would build up the case for an independent Muslim homeland.
While Gandhi and Congress had their own reasons to support the Muslims in the Khilafat Movement, this also tested the limits of Hindu-Muslim amity in the long run. At this time, Indian independence was not a pronounced goal. After the formation of the Simon Commission, to investigate India’s constitutional problems, at its session in Calcutta, the Muslim League decided to work with Congress to draft a Constitution for India. The proposals dealt with the Muslim majority provinces, NWFP, Sind and Baluchistan, and could be seen as a precursor of the later developments, and resolutions for an independent Muslim state. The Nehru Report was favourable to Muslim demand for separate provinces of NWFP and Sind.
Muslim demand for a federal system, and preserving Muslim majority in provinces, was given shape in Mr Jinnah’s Fourteen Points of March 1929. As Hndu-Muslim differences grew, Muslim solidarity increased, as reflected in the annual session held at Lucknow, in 1937. The Muslim League, along with other parties had disapproved the federal setup under the Government of India Act of 1935.
Allama Iqbal had already given the ‘idea’ of a Muslim homeland, and Chaudhary Rehmat Ali had given it the name-Pakistan. The idea of a separate Muslim homeland, carved out of British India, was mature when it was formally presented, and approved at the annual session of the Muslim League at Lahore, on March 23, 1940. The Resolution referred to the ‘Northwestern and Eastern zones of India should be grouped together to constitute “Independent States.” Mr Jinnah poignantly pointed out that the ‘problem of India could not be solved if it was treated merely as an inter-communal question,’ and that the two communities could never evolve a common nationality that could be read as raison d’ etre of Independence.
The Lahore Resolution gave concrete form to the demand of Pakistan to which millions of Indian Muslims heeded, as it moved toward reality in August 1947. Pakistan did not emerge merely as a Muslim cultural entity or an administrative unit from British India. Its emergence is explained by the tone of the historic Lahore Resolution, as well as by the wider historical, cultural and political context of the time. Short lived Hindu-Muslim ‘unity,’ colonial policies, and a burgeoning Muslim identity explain the sentiment behind the Resolution, and later, Independence.
Today, as India reneges on its commitments on Kashmir, and water sharing, and plays politics in cricket, the Pakistan Resolution is a reminder of why Pakistan came into being; and what lessons are to be learnt, and applied to fulfill the objectives of its founders.
The writer is former faculty Quaid-i-Azam University; Editor, CISS, Muzaffarabad. He can be accessed at: [email protected]
