Establishment of Pakistan

  • Introduction
  • Two Nation Theory
  • Muslim League As A Mass Movement And The Establishment of Pakistan
  • Lucknow Pact of 1916
  • Quaid-e-Azam's Fourteen Points
  • Allama Iqbal's Presidential Address of 1930
  • Pakistan Resolution (Lahore Resolution)
  • Cripps Mission
  • Non-Co-operation Movement
  • Muslim League As The Sole Representative of Muslims
  • Cabinet Mission Plan of 1946
  • Direct Action Day
  • 3rd June Plan
  • Establishment

    • <> Introduction

    The creation of Pakistan is the result of the long struggle which the Muslims of the sub-continent waged in order to protect their national identity from being merged into Hindu culture. The Muslims succeeded in achieving a separate homeland for themselves under the dynamic leadership of the Quaid-e-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah. The Two Nation Theory was the basis of their struggle for the creation of Pakistan.


    <> Two Nation Theory

    A concept or ideology is normally a political, cultural or social reality, which becomes the basis of a common goal for a nation. Such a concept has a very important significance in the collective life oa a nation. The political, economic and social concepts give birth to a specific system of life style. In other words, a nation comes into existence because of a common national concept.

    The Two Nation Theory stipulates that there are two distinct nations in South Asia namely the Muslims and the Hindus. Inspite of living together for centuries these two nations were unable to co-exist in unison. The Muslims of South Asia consider themselves as one nation having their own civilization, culture, historical heritage, philosophy of life, code of conduct and politico-economic system. All these are based on the teachings of Islam. The principles as well as the system of Islam are very different from those of Hinduism so much so that inspite of living together for centuries, the Hindu and the Muslims were unable to evolve a common culture and one nationhood.

    The concept of separate natinal identity for Muslims is rooted in history. However, Sir Syed Ahmed Khan was the first Muslim political leader who used the word "Nation" for the Muslims of South Asia. In the decaded of 1800's whne Sir Syed Ahmed Khan realized that Hindus were trying to destroy that Muslim civilization and culture, he exhorted the Muslims to stand on their own feet to safeguard their national and cultural identity. Many other Muslim leaders of South Asiz particularly Maulana Mohammad Ali Johar, Allama Iqbal and Quaid-e-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah followed suit and declared the Muslims as a Nation. The Quaid-e-Azam said:
    "Hindustan is neither one country, nor can its inhabitants be one nation. This is a sub-continent and Muslims are two major nations" The Quaid-e-Azam in a number of his speeches said that Muslims should not be considered a minority, but they should be a nation. He said that the only realistic solution to the political problems of South Asia is to recognize the Muslims as a separate nation. He defined the Muslim nation in the follwing words.
    "We believe that every comprehensive and authoriative definition of nationhood is forced to recognize the Muslims as a separate nation and Muslims and Hindus are the two major nations of the sub-continent. We, the Muslims, are a nation of ten crore people. In addition to it we are a nation of which has its own culture, civilization, language and literature, art and craft, history, moral values, character, legal system, customs and traditions, calender, natural talents and aims and objectives. In short, we have our own ideology and we lead our life according to our own faith and belief. We are a separate natin by all canons of international law".

    Initially, the Muslim leaders had demanded that legal and constitutional protection should be provided to the Muslims for their separate national entity. However, when these safeguards were not provided and the Indian National Congress decided to impose Hindu culture upon the Muslims on the basis of their numerical majority. The Muslims put forward the demand of a separate homeland for themselves. This ultimately resulted in creation of Pakistan.


    <> Muslim League As a Mass Movement And The Establishment of Pakistan

    The establishment of All India Muslim League on 30th December, 1906 was the result of the realization that it was necessary for the Muslims of South Asia to organize themselves politically in order to safeguards their rights and interests. The basic objective of Muslim League was to take necessary steps for protecting the rights of Muslims and to keep the British Government fully informed about the problems and demands of Muslims. In addition to this the Muslim League was also to improve relations of Muslims with British Government and also between different nations living in the sub-continent. In 1913, All India Muslim League declared "the attainment of self rule under the British crown" as its goal.


    <> Lucknow Pact of 1916

    The Quaid-e-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah joined the Muslim League in 1913 and devoted himself to strengthening this organization. It was because of his efforts that a political agreement was made between the Muslim League and the Congress at Lucknow. This agreement is known as "Luchnow Pact of 1916". Through this pact, the Congress recognized the separate status of Muslims and also accepted the demand of separate electorate for the Muslims.

    In the decade of 1920's many important political events took place in the sub-continent. Some of the notable events are the Khilafat Movement, the Hijrat Movement and the non-Cooperation Movement in which both Muslims and Hindus worked together. But this unity was very short-lived. The Hindu enmity and hatred for Muslims becames apparent. The publication of the Nehru Report in 1928 proved the animosity of the Congress towards the Muslims and the Lucknow Pact of 1916 was torn into pieces. The Nehru Report negated the separate electorate alongwith those clauses of the Lucknow Pact, which guranteed rights of the Muslims and turned down all measures which Muslims considered essential for their progress and for preservance of their separate identity.


    <> Quaid-e-Azam's Fourteen Points

    The Quaid-e-Azam refused to accept the Nehru Report. In order to project the Muslim point of view on the political issues of South Asai, he prepared a draft of guiding principles consisting of fourteen points. These principles are popularly known as Quaid-e-Azma's fourteen points. They are as under:
    A comparison of the Nehru Report with the Quaid-e-Azam's fourteen points shows that the political gap between the Hindus and the Muslims had really widened. The Congress and its Hindu leadership wanted to enforce a constitution for South Asia in which the Hindus were to become masters due to their numerical majority and the Muslims as slaves due to their smaller number. They were not prepared to accept any separate political status for Muslims and were not ready to make any specific provision for the protection of the rights and interests of Muslims.

    The Muslims desired that their separate national identity should be recognized. They demanded a constitution which could safeguard their rights and interests. They were certain that absence of such a constitution would result in the defacement of their civilization and culture, faith and religion and the concept of separate identity. This predicament was not acceptable to the Muslims. They were not ready to allow the Hindus and the Congress to destroy their separate identity and deprive them of their political and social rights.
    The Muslim leaders demanded that national identity of both Hindus and the Muslims should be recognized and measures should be takes so that these nations are able to lead their lives peacefully, in accordance with their faith and belief.


    <> Allama Iqbal's Presidential Address of 1930

    Muslim League leaders, since the establishment of the party had been trying to protect the rights of Muslims of India, but no clear solution of separate Muslim State in sub-continent was given by any leader. It was Dr. Allama Mohammad Iqbal who gave a clear idea of separate homeland for Muslims in his presidential address at annual session of All India Muslim League at Allahabad in 1930. In that address he demanded that in North West India where Muslims are in majority, all the provinces be amalgamated and made a separate state within or outside British Commonwealth. This was the actual basis on which, in 1940, in the annual session of All India Muslim League at Lahore, that Pakistan Resolution, originally called Lahore Resolution made that clear-cut demand for separate Muslim homeland in North West and Eastern zones.


    <> Pakistan Resolution (Lahore Resolution)

    The annual session of Muslim League was held in Lahore in March 1940. This session was held at the same place where Minaret of Pakistan (Minar-e-Pakistan) stands today. In this grand congregation, Quaid-e-Azam and other Muslim leaders analysed the political problems of the Muslims in detail and unanimously passed a resolution known as the Lahore Resolution later on called the Pakistan Resolution. The Resolution stated that:

    ".....no constitutional plan whould be workable in this country or accept to Muslims unless it is designed on the following basic principle, namely, that geographically contiguous units are demarcated into regions which should be so constituted, with such territorial readjustments as may be necessary, that the areas in which the Muslims are numerically in a majority as in the north-western and eastern zones of India, shoud be grouped to constitute independent States in which the constituent units shall be autonomous and soverign.....Adequate, effective and mandatory safegurards should be specifically provided in the Constitution for minorities..... for the protection of their riligious, cultural, economic, politicla, administrative and other rights".

    The Muslim League entered a new era after the passage of Lahore Resolution. It turned into a popular party of the people. Its branches were spread all over South Asia and its message reached all areas where Muslims lived.


    <> Cripps Mission

    During this time, the world was engulfed in the flames of the Second World War(1939-45). The British Government wanted to have the cooperation of all major political parties of South Asia so that they could utilize maximum facilities and resources of the area for war efforts. To achieve this purpose, the British Government sent a mission headed by Sir Stafford Cripps to negotiate with the political leaders of South Asia and submit the political recommenadtions. After long deliberatins the mission gave its recommendations which are known as the Cripps Plan or the Crips Recommendations . The plan promised that after the war is over, a constitution would be prepared for South Asia which would give it the status of a Dominion. This implied that although South Asia would be under the British Crown, yet the British Government will not interfere in its internal and external affairs. The sub-continent would have its own representative government and legislature would exercise the soverign powers.


    <> Non Co-operation Movement

    The Congress rejected this plan because they wanted to exploit the pressure of War on the British Government and impose a constitution of its own choice in South Asia. For this purpose, Congress started the non-Co-operation Movement at the end of 1942, so that the Britishes could be forced to leave India and Congress could establish its own rule.
    The aim of Muslim League was to establish an independent homeland. Pakistan, for the Muslims. The Muslims did not want to remain under the rule of Hindus after obtaining freedom from the Britishers. Experience had shown them that Congress wanted to establish a system in the sub-continent to usurp the rights and interests of the Muslims and destroy their natioanl identity. According the Muslim League, demanded an independent country for the Muslims.


    <> Muslim League As The Sole Representative of Muslims

    From 1942 to 1945, many efforts were made to develop a political understanding between the Congress and the Muslim League, but Congress proved to be too narrow-minded. The Congress refused to accept Muslims as a separate national entity and rejected the demand for separat homeland for Muslims. On the other hand, the Muslim League started uniting the Muslims of South Asia under its banner. Its message to struggle for the creation of Pakistan, became so popular that it become the dream of the vast majority of the Muslims of South Asia. In this manner, the Muslim League emerged as the largest and the most effective political party of Muslims.

    The popularity of the Muslim League and the Muslim support for the demand of Pakistan was proved in the elections of 1945-46. The Muslim League had participated in these elections on two major issues. Firstly, that Muslim League was the sole representative body of the Muslims and secondly, the demand for the creation of Pakistan. the Muslim League won all the seats reserved for the Muslims in the Central Assembly elections in December 1945.

    Provincial elections were held in February 1946 in which, most of the candidates of Muslim League were successful. The results of the elections proved that Muslims of South Asia were with the Muslim League and only Muslim League had the right to represent the Muslims of South Asia. The election results also proved that the demand for the creation of Pakistan had complete and undeniable support of the people.

    A convention of the members elected to the Central and Provincial Assemblies on the Muslim League tickets, was held in Delhi in April 1946. On this occasion, all the members reiterated that they would not hesitate to offer any sacrifice for the creation of Pakistan. A resolution was passed which demanded that a soverign and independent state Pakistan, comprising Bengal and Assam in the East, and Punjab, Sindh, North West Frontier Province (N.W.F.P.) and Balochistan in the West should be established without any further delay.


    <> Cabinet Mission Plan of 1946

    Although it was clear that the Muslims of South Asia were fully determined to create Pakistan, the British Government and the Congress party were still making efforts to make an impossibility. In 1946, a Cabinet Mission comprising three British Ministers came to South Asia which drafted a proposed constitution for South Asia, after negotiations with the local leaders. The British Government, the Congress and the Muslim League however, could not reach an agreement on this Cabinet Mission Plan and therefore, it could not be implemented.


    <> Direct Action Day

    The Muslim League decided to take "Direct Action" for projecting its point of view and particularly for pressing its demand for Pakistan. This was the first time that Muslim League had decided to take direct action through the people. 16th August, 1946 was announced for this purpose. On this day, public meetings were held all over the sub-continent and the people were apprised about the plan of the British and the Congress to totally ignore the Muslims and to rule over them. The public was also made aware of the fact that Congress wanted to establish its own rule in the sub-continent and make the Muslims their subjects. The leaders of Muslim League made it clear that they would never let the Congress dream become a reality and the Muslims of the sub-continent would create Pakistan at all cost.

    In September 1946, the Viceroy formed an interim government comprising the members of Congress alone. The Muslim League realized that the power should not be left completely in the hands of Hindus because that would harm the interests of Muslims. Hence, the Muslim League also decide to join the interim government. This government could not work effectively because there was a vast difference of opinion between the Ministers of Congress and the Muslim League. Congress was in favour of a united India and wanted a complete hold on the government. The Muslim League was demanding a separate homeland for the Muslims, on the basis of the "Two Nation Theory"

    On 20th February, 1947, the British Prime Minister Mr. Lord Atlee announced that the British Government would hand over the power of the sub-continent to its natives by June 1948. Lord Mountbatten became the Viceroy of South Asia in March 1947. He made last efforts to keep the sub-continent united but soon realized that the only solution was to divide the sub-continent into two soverign states i.e, India, comprising the Hindu majority areas and Pakistan, comprising the Muslim majority areas.


    <>3rd June Plan

    The plan of division of the sub-continent and establishment of Pakistan was announced on 3rd June , 1947. This is known as the "3rd June Plan". It was decided through this plan that instead of June 1948, the power will be handed over to the two states on the midnight of 14th and 15th August, 1947. In the same context in July 1947 the British Parliament passed an act regarding the independence and partition of the sub-continent. This is known as the Indian Independence Act 1947. In 3rd June Plan envisaged partition of Bengal and West Punjab. A boundary commission was formed to demark the boundaries of these two partitioned provinces.

    <> Establishment

    The struggle under the dynamic leadership of Quaid-e-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah ultimately bore fruit. The sub-continent was divided and Pakistan was created as a soverign and independent state on 14th August, 1947. Quaid-e-Azam became the first Governor General of Pakistan.



    The End