Since the AIML’s establishment in 1906, Jinnah had mistrusted its pro-British inclinations. The Muslim League was willing to offer their loyalty to Britain in exchange for more political representation. Ultimately, this loyalty did not stop the British from reversing the Partition of Bengal. A now disillusioned AIML amended its constitution and adopted Indian self-government as its primary goal in 1912 (Pirzada, 1969, p. 258).
In October 1913, with no reason to continue opposing the League, Jinnah joined the organisation yet retained his membership in Congress, stressing that “loyalty to the Muslim League and Muslim interest would in no way and at no time imply even a shadow of disloyalty to the National cause to which his life was dedicated” (Saiyid, 1962, p. 54). Unfortunately for Jinnah, Congress would endure significant blows over the next few years.
The deaths of Moderate leaders Gokhale and Pherozeshah Mehta in 1915 significantly undermined the party and left Jinnah isolated. Not to mention the fracturing of the party several years before in Surat. Nevertheless, Jinnah saw that INC and AIML would have to work together if India were to achieve freedom.
In 1915, Jinnah ensured the INC and AIML held their annual sessions in Bombay and organised a joint meeting between the two parties. At this meeting, the Congress and League pledged to work together to pressure the British, and committees were set up to prepare a common scheme of reforms.
In 1916, the INC and AIML met again in Lucknow and officially endorsed the reforms at their respective annual sessions. The scheme came to be known as the Lucknow Pact and called for the following, amongst others (Pirzada, 1969, pp. 392-397):
- 4/5 of members of the Provincial Legislative Councils and Imperial Legislative Council must be elected.
- Separate electorates for Muslims in Provincial Legislative Councils in the following proportions:
Punjab (50%)
United Provinces (30%)
Bengal (40%)
Bihar (25%)
Central Provinces (15%)
Madras (15%)
Bombay (1/3) - No bill/clause/resolution concerning a particular community can be passed if 3/4 of the members from said community oppose it.
- The number of members in the Imperial Legislative Council must be increased to 150.
- 1/3 of the Indian members of the Imperial Legislative Council must be Muslims.
- 1/2 of the Viceroy’s Executive Council must be Indians.
In short, Congress agreed to Muslim demands concerning political representation, and, in exchange, the League agreed to INC’s ideas concerning government structure along the lines of Gokhale’s Political Testament.
The Lucknow Pact is a testament to Jinnah’s adeptness as a political tactician in the cause for an Independent India. By bringing the League and Congress together, Jinnah single-handedly allied India’s most influential political parties, creating a joint front against the British. Thereby living up to his title as “the best ambassador of Hindu-Muslim unity” and making significant strides in the cause for Indian independence (Wolpert, 1984, pp. 34-35).
The Lucknow Pact not only brought the AIML and INC together, but it also healed the fractured Congress party as both the Extremists and Moderates were on board with the proposed reforms (Mehrotra, 1995, p. 112). The Lucknow Pact signified a turning point in the Indian Independence Movement. It turned the League and Congress from bickering rivals into a united political force to be reckoned with.
On the 31st December 1916, Jinnah gave his presidential address to the AIML during its annual session in Lucknow, where he stated the following (Sarojini, 1918, pp. 21-62):
“In its general outlook and ideal as regards the future, the All-India Muslim League stands abreast of the Indian National Congress and is ready to participate in any patriotic efforts for the advancement of the country as a whole. […] I have been a staunch Congressman throughout my public life and have been no lover of sectarian cries, but it appears to me that the reproach of “separatism” sometimes levelled at [Muslims] is singularly inept and wide of the mark when I see this great communal organisation rapidly growing into a powerful factor for the birth of United India. A minority must, above everything else, have a complete sense of security before its broader political sense can be evoked for cooperation and united endeavour in the national tasks. To the [Muslims] of India that security can only come through adequate and effective safeguards as regards their political existence as a community. Whatever my individual opinion may be, I am here to interpret and express the sense of the overwhelming body of [Muslim] opinion, of which the All-India [Muslim] League is the political organ.”
“The [Muslims] must learn to have self-respect; what we want is a healthy and fair impetus to be given to our aspirations and ideals as a community, and it is the most sacred duty of government to respond to that claim. Towards the Hindus, our attitude should be of goodwill and brotherly feelings. Cooperation in the cause of our motherland should be our guiding principle. India’s real progress can only be achieved by a true understanding and harmonious relations between the two great sister communities. With regard to our own affairs, we can depend upon nobody but ourselves. We should infuse [a] greater spirit of solidarity into our society. […] We should not lose the sympathy of our well-wishers in India and in England by creating a wrong impression that we, as a community, are out only for self-interest and self-gain. We must show by our words and deeds that we sincerely and earnestly desire a healthy national unity.”
In summary, Jinnah is saying the AIML is the vital “political organ” of the Muslim community and necessary for the creation of a “United India”. It is the role of the AIML to see to the internal affairs of the Muslim community while working externally with the other communities of India for the “advancement of the country as a whole” (Sarojini, 1918, pp. 21-62). These are hardly the words of a staunch separatist who seeks to divide India and carve out a new state for himself, as is commonly depicted.
The Lucknow Pact reveals a lot about Jinnah’s political character. The same man who only six years before was dead against the idea of separate electorates was now the architect of a common scheme of reforms in which separate electorates were a key demand.
It is here a distinction must be made between strategy and tactics. Strategy defines your long-term goals and overarching plan to achieve said goals. Meanwhile, tactics are smaller, specific steps and decisions that must be taken to complete your overall strategy.
Strategy without tactics is the slowest route to victory. Tactics without strategy is the noise before defeat.
Sun Tzu
The Art of War
The inclusion of separate electorates in the Lucknow Pact was a political tactic. Jinnah knew he needed the League and Congress to be on the same page to free India. To do so, he had to compromise on his individual opinion regarding separate electorates because he knew it would be the only way to get the League on board. Separate electorates would have to be a necessary evil to secure his position in the Imperial Legislative Council. Jinnah’s ability to put aside his personal opinion for the overall strategy would serve him well in the years to come. However, it makes the historian’s job of dissecting and determining said opinion from the annals of history much harder.
In many ways, Jinnah acts against his personal beliefs. Including separate electorates is a clear example, with many more, albeit subtle examples, to come up in future essays. What is certain is that whatever Jinnah’s strategy was, it involved Muslims and Hindus working together for a common cause.
Unfortunately for Jinnah, events in the next few years would disrupt and eventually end the unity brought about by the Lucknow Pact. Nonetheless, the Lucknow Pact still served to establish the fundamentals of the Independence Movement with the agreement on separate electorates, making the communal issue a crucial part of Indian politics.
Furthermore, by agreeing with the League, Congress tacitly yielded to the idea India consisted of two different communities with different interests. This pushed the less relevant AIML into the forefront of Indian politics, alongside the INC, as the political body representing Muslim India. This made it necessary to have the League involved in any future decisions concerning Indian independence.
This essay is part of a larger series on the history of the Pakistan Movement called Jinnah’s Pakistan: Revisiting the Pakistan Movement
References
Mehrotra, S., 1995. A History of the Indian National Congress Volume One 1885-1918. Noida: Vikas Publishing House.
Pirzada, S., 1969. Foundations of Pakistan: All-India Muslim League Documents: 1906-1947. Dhaka: National Publishing House.
Saiyid, M. H., 1962. Mohammad Ali Jinnah: A Political Study. 3rd ed. Lahore: Ministry of Culture.
Sarojini, N., 1918. Mohammed Ali Jinnah: An Ambassador Of Unity. Madras: Ganesh & Co.
Wolpert, S., 1984. Jinnah of Pakistan. Oxford: Oxford University Press.