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mohammad ali jinnah

mohammad ali jinnah On August 14, 1947, the new Islamic Republic of Pakistan was formed. At midnight the next day India won its freedom from British rule after 350 years of its presence. The British left India divided in two separate countries, which were founded on the basis of religion. There were several reasons for the partition of India and three different parties all contributed to it. These parties were the British, the Indian National Congress, and the Muslim League. The British had based their knowledge of the people of India on their religious backgrounds and on the innate differences rather then the way that they were in the present time. The British were also fearful of the threat of Muslims who had been the former rulers for over 300 years under the Mughal Empire (Mahmud 148). So, the idea of separateness had been built in between the Muslims and the Hindus by their government. The Muslims were difficult in accepting the changes of colonial power and they refused to learn English and to associate with the British. This was a severe setback for them because the Hindus were then able to hold better positions in the government. Sir Syed Ahmed Khan, a social reformer and educator, taught the Muslims that education and cooperation with the British was necessary for their survival in the society. Khan was also the first to come up with the idea of a separate Muslim nation. Hindu revivalists also made the tension stronger between the Muslims and the Hindus. They resented the Muslims for their former rule over India. The revivalists rallied for a ban on the slaughter of cows which was a cheap source of meat for the Muslims, but sacred to the Hindus, and they tried to rally for Hindi to become the national language instead of Urdu. The Indian National Congress also did many wrongdoings towards the Muslims, which convinced the Muslim League that it would be impossible to live in an undivided India because their best interests would not be looked after. One example of this was the requirement of the national anthem, “Bande Matram”, which expressed anti-Muslim sentiments, to be sung in schools in India where Muslim children were attending. These along with many other factors forced such leaders as, Mohammad Ali Jinnah, to take action in bringing about a separate Muslim nation. Mohammad Ali Jinnah has been called the “Quaid-I-Azam” or the “Father of the Nation” by Muslims because it was he who used his intelligence and determination to bring about the creation of a new nation of Pakistan. In an article from the official website of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, a quote was written about Jinnah which summarizes his many roles: He was one of the greatest legal luminaries India had produced during the first half of the century, an ambassador of Hindu-Muslim unity, a great constitutionalist, a distinguished parliamentarian, a top-notch politician, an indefatigable freedom-fighter, a dynamic Muslim leader, a political strategist and, above all one of the great nation-builders of modern times (1). Jinnah provided political leadership to the Indian Muslims when no one else would and he took their hopes and wishes and formulated them into demands that would eventually bring about the formation of a new nation. Jinnah entered into politics in 1905 by joining the Indian National Congress. He went to England that same year as a member of the delegation to argue for the cause of Indian self-government during the British elections (1). For about three decades after his entry into politics, Jinnah fought and worked hard for Hindu-Muslim unity. Jinnah was the major force behind the formation of the Lucknow Pact. This pact was signed by both the Indian National Congress and the All-India Muslim League. The Lucknow Pact “conceded Muslims the right to separate electorate, reservation of seats in the legislatures and weightage in representation both at the Centre and the minority provinces” (2). This was a major step for Muslims, because they were being granted privileges within the government, which to once they didn’t play a major role in. Jinnah was against the tactics that were being used by Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi. Gandhi brought violence into the issue of freedom from British rule and Jinnah was strongly opposed to that. He did not want to be apart of Gandhi’s “methods of Satyagrah (civil disobedience) and the triple boycott of government-aided schools and colleges, courts and councils and British textiles” (2). When Gandhi was elected as President of the Home Rule League, Jinnah resigned and stated, “Your extreme program has for the moment struck the imagination mostly of the inexperienced youth and ignorant and the illiterate. All this means disorganization and chaos” (2). Even though Jinnah left the Congress he still continued to fight, non-violently, for peace between the Hindus and the Muslims. Jinnah then began to revive the Muslim League, which was now inactive and disorganized. He didn’t give up and, he kept fighting for Muslim leaders and people to join the League and fight for their cause. With his determination, Jinnah managed to win the Muslim League about 108 seats out of a total of 485 Muslim seats in the legislature. After reviving the Muslims morale, Jinnah proclaimed a demand for Pakistan, he stated, “We are a nation with our own distinctive culture and civilization, language and literature, art and architecture, names and nomenclature, sense of values and proportion, legal laws and moral code, customs and calendar, history and tradition, aptitudes and ambitions; in short, we have our own distinctive outlook on life and of life. By all canons of international law, we are a nation” (4). This demand had a major impact on Indian politics and it brought down the hope of Hindus of ever being the dominant religion among the Muslims. When the Muslim League had begun to rise, talks between Jinnah and Gandhi came underway. The Congress ministries had resigned after not being consulted about India’s involvement in the war with Japan, the League was given an opportunity to extend their influence (Qureshi 199). The Congress had not expected the Muslim League to be so strong and had doubted their strength with Muslim politics. In 1942, the Congress was given another chance to rethink their options when the Cripps draft was proposed. The draft said that they could disagree with proposed Indian Union and form their own separate Union. This made it clear that the British were agreeing with the Muslim solution of the Indian problem and, that if it failed there would be a divided India. The Congress still didn’t agree with the terms and neither did the Muslims because they believed it represented the Congress alternative to Pakistan. The leaders of the Congress were arrested and put in jail for attempting a rebellion for nearly three years and their organization was outlawed (Qureshi 202). Jinnah used this opportunity to strengthen his cause and raise its prestige. Leaders from the League began to travel and give speeches and new Muslim student organizations were established. On July 27, 1943, Gandhi was ready to start bargaining. He wrote to the Viceroy, Lord Wavell, and said that he was prepared to advise the Congress Working Committee. He stated that he was ready to: “renounce mass civil disobedience and to give full co-operation in the war effort, if a declaration of immediate Indian independence were made and a national government responsible to Central Assembly were formed, subject to the provision that during the pendency of the war, military operations should continue as present, but without financial burden on India” (Qureshi 207). The British were ready to compromise and give India its freedom, but it couldn’t happen until after the war. After receiving this reply many Congress leaders turned to Jinnah, but if they wanted his help they would have to show effort to reach a compromise with him. Now, Jinnah and Gandhi began to negotiate. The Muslims wanted to have their own separate nation and not just a separation from any existing union (Qureshi 216). The Muslims wanted there to longer be any connection between their new nation of Pakistan and India. Gandhi was unable to accept this offer because he didn’t want the Muslims of India to be a distinct nation from the rest of the Indians. It became obvious that the two leaders would be unable to reach a solution so the talks were called off (Qureshi 217). When the idea of partition was given up on, the two sides began to revolt. The Hindus and Muslims started riots against one another which resulted in many murders across the subcontinent. When it became realized that there was a need for an agreement, His Majesty’s Government sent down to India ,Lord Mountbatten, the new Viceroy. He formulated negotiations between the two sides and a plan was made to partition the subcontinent and hand the power over to two successor states on August 15, 1947 (5). Once Pakistan was finally formed, Mohammad Ali Jinnah was recognized for his contributions by being nominated by the Muslim League as the Governor-General of Pakistan. Many say that the Muslims were very fortunate to have Jinnah during their difficult struggle for Pakistan. “It is true that the destinies of nations are molded by their innermost urges and their determination to achieve their purpose, but if they fail to produce a leader of the necessary ability and stature at the crucial moment, their urges may be frustrated and their determination may prove of little avail” (Qureshi 306). Mohammad Ali Jinnah was that leader that helped the Muslims form their own nation and grant them with the rights that they truly deserved. Bibliography:

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