Attlee’s Statement—February 20, 1947

Background

• League’s declaration of “Direct Action Day” on 16th August 1946 for its demand for Pakistan and the communal clashes that followed had created a crisis like situation in the country.
• Even after Wavell ensured the League’s entry into the “Interim Government”, it continued its non-cooperative attitude both inside and outside the Government.
• Further, the League refused to participate in the Constituent Assembly which met on 9th December 1946
• The breaking point came when the League demanded that the Constituent Assembly be dissolved because it was unrepresentative.
• On 5th February 1947 the Congress members of the Interim Government sent a letter to Wavell with the demand that the League members should be asked to resign.
• A crisis was imminent.
• This developing crisis was temporarily defused by the statement made by Attlee in Parliament on 20 February, 1947

Main Points of Attlee’s Statement—February 20, 1947

• The date for British withdrawal from India was fixed as 30 June 1948 even if the Indian leaders had not agreed on the constitution by that time.
• Atlee made it clear that if, by June 1948 the Constituent Assembly was not fully representative (i.e. if Muslim majority provinces did not join) power would be transferred to more than one central Government.
• The British powers and obligations vis-à-vis the princely states would lapse with transfer of power, but these would not be transferred to any successor government in British India.
• Lord Louis Mountbatten would take over from Lord Wavell in March 1947.

Why a date was fixed for early withdrawal?

• British had hoped that the date would shock the parties into agreement on the main question
• The British government was keen on averting the looming constitutional crisis.
• British also hoped that Indians would be finally convinced that the British were sincere about conceding independence
• The basic reason why the Attlee Government accepted the need for a final date was because they could not deny the truth of Wavell’s assessment that an irreversible decline of Government authority had taken place.

Reactions to the Statement

Congress’ Response

The anticipation of freedom from imperial rule lifted the gloom that had set in with continuous internal wrangling. The statement was enthusiastically received in Congress circles as a final proof of British sincerity to quit. Even the provision of transferring the power to more than one Central Government was acceptable to the Congress as it meant that the existing Assembly could go ahead and frame a constitution for the areas represented in it. It offered a way out of the existing deadlock, in which the League not only refused to join the Constituent Assembly but demanded that it be dissolved. The Congress responded with a gesture of cooperation to the League. Nehru appealed to Liaqat Ali Khan, “The British are fading out of the picture and the burden of this decision must rest on all of us here. It seems desirable that we should face this question squarely and not speak to each other from a distance.”

League’s Response

The hope for an agreement proved to be an illusory as Jinnah's reaction to Attlee's statement was entirely different. Jinnah was more convinced than ever that he only had to bide his time in order to reach his goal. After all, the declaration made it clear that power would be transferred to more than one authority if the Constituent Assembly did not become a fully representative body, i.e. if the Muslim majority provinces did not join it. The league was on a war path. It began a civil disobedience campaign in Punjab which brought about the collapse of the coalition ministry headed by Khizr Hayat Khan of the Unionist Party.

A brief analysis of Attlee’s Statement of 20 February, 1947

• While the statement was no answer to the constitutional crisis that was at hand, it showed that the British decision about leaving India remained unchanged.
• The Statement of February 20, 1947 in the context of Indian politics was an open license for Pakistan in some form or other.
• This Attlee’s announcement had hints of partition.
• By fixing the date of transfer of power, the British had done no more than intensifying the ‘war of succession’.
• They had encouraged the Indians to take the decision into their own hands, but those hands now held knives.
• During the last week of February 1947, the Punjab erupted with intensified violence in a half dozen major cities including Amritsar which ultimately brought down the Khizr Hayat Khan led coalition Government.

Mountbatten Plan, June 3, 1947

In February, 1947, Lord Mountbatten was sent as the Viceroy to India to ensure early transfer of power. He put up his plan on June 3, 1947 which included partition of India. Following the Mountbatten Plan, June 3, 1947, India was made free, but by partitioning India the new state of Pakistan was created.

Seeing the kind of communal tension created in the name of religion, the Congress leaders thought it beneficial for the larger interest of humanity to accept the decision of partition. On 15 August 1947, India attained freedom.

Lord Mountbatten as Viceroy

• In February 1947, following Attlee’s declaration for “transfer of power”, Wavell was replaced as Viceroy by Lord Mountbatten.
• He was the last Viceroy and charged with the task of winding up the Raj by 30th June 1948
• Mountbatten was given more powers than his predecessors to settle the matters on the spot so he was quick in decision making
• He was directed to explore the options of unity and division till October, 1947 after which he was to advise His Majesty’s Government on the form transfer of power should take.
• He soon discovered that the broad contours of the scenario that was to emerge were discernible even before he came to India.
• Cabinet Mission Plan was a dead horse. Jinnah was obdurate that the Muslims would settle for nothing less than a sovereign state.
• A serious attempt at retaining unity would have involved identifying with the forces that wanted a unified India and countering those who opposed it.
• Rather than doing that, Mountbatten preferred to woo both sides.

Main Points of Mountbatten Plan, June 3, 1947

The major points of the plan were as follows:-

Dominion Status

• The 3rd June, 1947 Plan, famously came to be known as the Mountbatten Plan.
• It sought to effect an early transfer of power.
• This transfer of power was to be done on the basis of Dominion Status to two successor states, India and Pakistan.

Partition

• The members of the Legislative Assemblies of Bengal and the Punjab should meet separately in two groups i.e. representatives of the predominantly Hindu areas, and representatives of the predominantly Muslim areas.
• If both sections of each of these Assemblies voted for partition, then that province would be partitioned.
• Partition will be followed by creation of two dominions and two constituent assemblies
• If Bengal decided in favor of partition, a referendum was to be held in the Sylhet District of Assam to decide its fate.
• Similarly, a referendum was proposed to decide the future of the North West Frontier Province.
• Sindh Legislative Assembly of was to decide either to join the existing Constituent Assembly or the New Constituent Assembly.

Boundary Commission

• In case of partition, the viceroy would set up a Boundary Commission to demarcate the boundaries of the province on the basis of ascertaining the contiguous majority areas of Muslims and non-Muslims.
• Thus a boundary commission was set up under the chairmanship of Sir Cyril Redcliff for demarcating the boundaries of new parts of the Punjab and Bengal

Princely States

• The British suzerainty over these Princely states was terminated.
• They were given the choice to remain independent or accede to dominions of India or Pakistan.

Transfer of Power 

• Mountbatten announced at a press conference that the British would soon leave India for good on 15 August 1947.
• Thus an early date was decided by the British to leave India as compared to 30th June 1948 as decided earlier

Thus, the League’s demand for creation of Pakistan was conceded to the extent that it would be created, but taking Congress’ position on unity into account Pakistan would be made as small as possible. Mountbatten’s formula was to divide India but retain maximum unity.

Rationale for an early date

• One of the major reasons for an early date for withdrawal was the desperation of the British to secure Congress’s agreement on dominion status.
• The British also wanted to escape responsibility for the rapidly deteriorating communal situation.

Seeking Goodwill of Congress

Since Congress was asked to concede their main point i.e. a unified India, all their other demands were met. Whether it was ruling out independence for the princes or unity for Bengal or Hyderabad’s joining up with Pakistan instead of India, Mountbatten firmly supported Congress on these issues. He got His Majesty’s Government to agree to his argument that Congress goodwill was vital if India was to remain in the commonwealth.

Why Congress accepted Dominion Status

The Congress was willing to accept Dominion Status for a while despite its being against the spirit of Lahore Congress (1929) declaration of “Purna Swaraj” because:-

• Congress wanted a quick transfer of power in a peaceful manner
• It was important for congress to assume authority and power to check the explosive situation due to communal tension
• Dominion Status gave breathing time to the new administration as British officers and civil service officials could stay on till Indians get settled in their new positions.

For Britain, Dominion Status offered a chance of keeping India in the Commonwealth, even if temporarily. Though Jinnah offered to bring Pakistan into the Commonwealth, a greater store was laid by India’s membership of the Commonwealth, as India’s economic strength and defence potential were deemed sounder and Britain had a greater value of trade and Investment there.

Aftermath

• The seventy-two day timetable, 3rd June to 15th August 1947, given by the British in their hurry to leave India, for both transfer of power and division of the country, was to prove disastrous.
• In fact, a peaceful division could take a few years at the very least.
• The partition council had to divide the assets in a hurry and there were no transitional institutional structures within which the knotty problems spilling over from division could be tackled.
• Mountbatten had hoped to provide the necessary link between India and Pakistan by becoming common Governor-General of India and Pakistan.
• But this could not happen as Jinnah wanted the position of the Governor General of Pakistan for himself.
• Hence even the joint defence machinery set up failed to last beyond December 1947 by which time Kashmir had already been the scene of a military conflict
• The Boundary Commission Award was ready by 12th August, 1947 but Mountbatten decided to make it public after Independence Day, so that the responsibility would not fall on the British.
• The delay in announcing the Boundary Commission award compounded the ongoing problem of communal riots in India.
• Ultimately, the Indian Independence Act, 1947 was enacted by the British Parliament that provided for the end of the British rule in India, on August 15, 1947.

Indian Independence Act 1947

On June 3, 1947, Lord Mountbatten, the viceroy of India, put forth the partition plan, known as the Mountbatten Plan.

• Once all the major political parties agreed to the partition scheme, based on the Mountbatten plan, Independence Bill was introduced in the House of Commons on 4th July, 1947.
• The bill was ratified by the British Parliament on 18th July 1947 and became Indian Independence Act, 1947.
• This was a very significant event in the colonial history of India as it marked the end of India’s struggle for national independence.
• However, it was the final culmination of British Policy of “Divide and Rule” as the act laid the basis of partition of India and a new state, Pakistan was created.

Salient Features of Indian Independence Act 1947

• It marked the end of the British rule in India. The British were to officially leave India on 15th August, 1947
• The act declared India as an independent and sovereign state from August 15, 1947.
• It dropped the title of Emperor of India from the royal titles of the king of England.
• It proclaimed the lapse of British paramountcy over the Indian princely states and treaty relations with tribal areas from August 15, 1947
• Indian Independence Act provided for partition of the country and creation of two independent dominions – India and Pakistan. This was to take effect from 15th August, 1947, with the implementation of the act.
• It granted freedom to the Indian princely states either to join the Dominion of India or Dominion of Pakistan or to remain independent.
• Office of viceroy was abolished by the act. Each dominion was to have a Governor General, to be appointed by the British crown on the advice of responsible government in each dominion
• Governor General, so appointed would be a constitutional head of the state and responsible for effective operation of the act.
• It designated the Governor-General of India and the provincial governors as constitutional (nominal) heads of the states. They were made to act on the advice of the respective council of ministers in all matters.
• His Majesty’s Government in Britain was to have no responsibility with respect to the Government of India or Pakistan.
• The constituent assembly of these two dominions were to also act as the legislature of the respective dominion
• Existing central legislative assembly and council of states were automatically dissolved with the passing of the act.
• It empowered the Constituent Assemblies of each dominion to frame and adopt any constitution for their respective dominion or nation and
• The two dominions were also to be free to repeal any act of the British Parliament, including the Independence act itself.
• The Indian Independence Act, 1947 was not a constitutional document in any manner and hence it held that until a new Constitution came into force, the 1935 Act would work as the Constitutional Law of India.
• No Act of the British Parliament passed after August 15, 1947 was to extend to either of the new dominions unless it was extended thereto by a law of the legislature of the dominion.
• The office of the secretary of state for India was also abolished by the act and his functions were transferred to the secretary of state for Commonwealth Affairs
• The act also provided for continuation of all the benefits of the civil servants appointed on or before 15th August, 1947. However, it discontinued the appointment to civil services and reservation of posts by the secretary of state for India.

Implementation

• As per the provisions on the act two dominions – India and Pakistan were created.
• While Pakistan got its freedom on August 14, India became independent on August 15, 1947.
• Muhammad Ali Jinnah became the Governor General of Pakistan
• India decided to request Lord Mountbatten to wield the post of the Governor general of India
• He swore in Jawaharlal Nehru as the first prime minister of independent India.
• The Constituent Assembly of India formed in 1946 became the Parliament of the Indian Dominion.

Repeal of the Act

• The act had empowered both the dominions to repeal any act of the British Parliament applied to them including Indian Independence Act itself.
• Subsequently, both India and Pakistan repealed the Independence Act, 1947, with enactment of their constitution
• Article 395 of Indian constitution effectively repeals the Indian Independence Act 1947.
• With the passing of the Indian constitution, the dominion status was also done away with and India became a republic.
• Interestingly, the British Parliament has still not repealed the Indian Independence Act, 1947 on its side.