H I S T O R Y

Punjabi Muslims and Creation of Pakistan- 2
Professor J.S. Grewal

THE Punjabi Muslim leaders, whether in towns or in the countryside, were keen to see their communitarian interests served through petitions and representations or whatever little of constitutional politics were there in the Punjab in the form of municipalities and the legislative council. In the former, they had to contest elections on the basis of joint or separate electorates; and in the latter, they were simply nominated till the Act of 1909 which introduced an element of election.

Already, in 1906 the All-India Muslim League had been founded.  In the Punjab, there was an acute rivalry between Muhammad Shafi and Fazl-i Hussain.  In 1907, there were two Muslim Leagues in the Punjab under their respective leadership.  Three members of the Muslim League were elected to the Punjab Council in 1909 on the basis of separate electorates.  Fazl-i Husain was elected in 1916.  He participated in the deliberations of the Indian National Congress and the All India Muslim League at Lucknow in 1916 when the Congress-League Pact was formulated.  He participated in the Khilafat movement too.

The Act of 1919 introduced separate electorates for the Sikhs too, with a weightage at the cost of both Hindus and Muslims.  Fazl-i Husain was elected to the Punjab Council and invited by the Governor to be the first minister.  He formed a Rural Party in the Assembly with the support of some Hindu and Sikh members.  After the elections of 1923, it was given the impressive name of the Unionist Party.

The Unionist Party ensured for leaders of the Punjabi Muslims a dominant share in political power.  It could thus contain the Muslim League which was interested primarily in safeguarding and promoting Muslim interests. As the minister for education, Fazl-i Husain tried to promote Muslim interests in jobs and admissions to academic institutions, justifying this policy by pointing to the relative shortage of Muslims in institutions. His policies hit the urban Hindus and Sikhs but not the rural Hindus and Sikhs. The policies pursued by the Unionist Party were broadly pro-rural. This actually meant that they worked in the interest of the landholders, especially large land-holders.

The Unionist policies had the backing of the British rulers of the Punjab. In 1900, a radical shift in their policy was embodied in the Punjab Alienation of Land Act. The favourable position created by the Act for the land-holders of the Punjab was consolidated through further legislation before and after the Act of 1919.

Suspicious of the Congress from the very beginning, and consequently of the new urban middle class of the Punjab which was dominated by Hindus, the colonial rulers were keen to create and perpetuate vested interests for prolonging their hold on the Punjab which was becoming increasingly important to them for various reasons. The regional sentiment to which the Unionist Party could appeal tended to neutralize the appeal of nationalism, whether secular or religious.  It is not surprising that the Unionist Party managed to remain in power till nearly the end of colonial rule in the Indian subcontinent.

Unlike the Congress (and the Akalis in the Punjab), the Unionists did not bycott the Simon Commission. They were satisfied with the constitutional reforms of 1919 and wanted further extension on the same lines, involving extended franchise on the basis of separate electorates. They favoured the idea of ending Dyarchy and providing for greater provincial autonomy.  In short, they were keen to reinforce and expand the existing constitutional provisions in the interest of the countryside which was dominantly Muslim.

Their demands carried the implication of more political power for the leaders of the Punjabi Muslims. The so-called ‘Communal Award’ was immediately acceptable to them as much as to the Muslim League. The Congress was indifferent. The Akalis alone were positively and strongly opposed to the award but they had no option. They accepted the Act of 1935 which embodied only a slight modification of the award.

The Act of 1935 strengthened the position of the Punjabi Muslims as the dominant partners in the politics of the province. When Fazl-i Husain died in 1936, his mantle fell on Sikandar Hayat as the leader of the Unionist Party.  The Unionists won 95 out of the 175 seats in the elections of 1937. Twenty other members joined the Unionists to give them an absolute majority in the Legislative Assembly.

The results of the elections of 1937 appeared to demonstrate that no other political party could ever compete with the Unionists.  Of the 55 members in the Opposition, 19 were independent, 18 from the Congress, and 10 from the Shiromani Akali Dal. The Majlis-i Ahrar-i Islam-i Hind, founded by Maulana Hibib ur-Rahman Ludhianavi in 1931, had the support of important leaders like Ataullah Shah Bukhari, Maulana Daud Ghaznavi and Maulana Mazhar Ali Azhar.  The Ahrar leaders were earlier associated with the Congress, especially during the Khilafat movement. However, they derived inspiration from religion, advocated tabligh, and hobnobbed with Pirs. They were opposed to the Ahmadiyas in religion and to the Muslim League in politics.

Nevertheless, the Ahrars joined the Muslim League Board before the elections of 1937 though they left it within a month to fight the elections on their own. They won only two seats.  Similarly, the Majlis-i Itihad-i  Millat, founded in 1935 by a former Khilafat leader, Maulana Zafar Ali Khan, joined the Muslim League Board but only to leave it for contesting the elections independently of the League.  Only two of their candidates won the elections. It is interesting to note that these parties could think of joining hands with the Muslim League after having worked closely with the Congress.  However, the Muslim League itself won only two seats and one of the elected candidates joined the Unionists.  The League was far from representing the Punjabi Muslims. [To be continued]

BACK

With Compliments from


Gogi Sidhu
President

Satish K. Jain
Executive Vice President

1301, Mahalo Place, Rancho Dominguez , CA 90220 U.S.A.

http://www.magnespec.com
Phone:- 0013106032262

A full service mechanical and electrical engineering firm providing investigation, analysis, design services and construction administration in:

ELECTRICAL-
Interior and Exterior Lighting, Power Distribution
Short Circuit Analysis, Coordination Studies
Life Safety and Fire Alarm Systems
Security, Sound, Voice and Communications Systems

MECHANICAL
Heating, Ventilation, Air Conditioning systems
Plumbing, Refrigeration & Process Piping
Fire Protection, Energy Conservation, Life Cycle Analysis

Serving: District of Columbia, Maryland, and Virginia. State registration for work throughout the United States can be arranged. Contact us for a complete company brochure