Rise of muslims in Indian politics: an analysis of development from 1885 to 1906

This book is based on the research that I did for my degree of
Ph.D. of the London University; it all started during the discus-
sions I had, in the gloomy atmosphere of the "buz bombs" in
London in 1944, with Professor Harold Laski, who was a great
source of inspiration for the Indian students in the forties. He
goaded me to undertake the work. I was fortunate in having
the guidance of Professor H. H. Dodwell, General Editor of the
six-volume Cambridge History of India. It was under his
direction that I started the research and after his death, almost
a year later, I had the benefit of the guidance by Professor (now
Sir) C. H. Philips, who is presently the Director of the London
School of Oriental and African Studies. My thesis was ap-
proved by the London University in 1948 on the recommenda-
tion of a board of examiners, consisting of the late Sir Reginald
Coupland, the famous historian, who had been a member of the
Cripps Mission to India in 1942 and a Professor of History at
the Oxford University, Dr. Vera Anstey, the eminent economist
and a Professor of the London School of Economics and my
tutor, Professor Philips.It is generally believed that there was little, if any, political
activity among the Muslims before the birth of the All-India
Muslim League, this work was undertaken with a view to find
out the truth.
At first I thought that, apart from official records and
temporary works, there would be little to help me in the mat.
ter; I was, however, amazed at the voluminous material in the
form of either Parliamentary papers, reports, proceedings
pamphlets of the various associations, available at the India
Office Library and the British Museum. The newspapers and
periodicals were also a great help. In those days newspapers
did not summarise speeches and statements; they gave them in
full. In periodicals and journals great care was taken by the
writers to be as comprehensive as possible and often, accurate.
All these factors made my task much easier, though, by no
means, any the less laborious.
This book is not exactly the thesis as presented to the London
University; the material is, no doubt, the same but the presen.
tation has been considerably simplified and made more readable
for the general public. All through my attempt has been to
give an objective, dispassionate analysis of the currents and
cross-currents of Indian politics during its most formative period
-the period, which began with the birth of the Indian National
Congress in 1885 and ended with the founding of the All-India
Muslim League in 1906. In fact these twenty-one years have
turned out to be the most crucial period in modern India for
it can safely be asserted now that the father of Muslim "nation-
hood” was not Mr. Jinnah but Sir Syed; that all the arguments
that Mr. Jinnah later advanced for partitioning the sub-
continent were not only the same, which Sir Syed used while
opposing the Congress, but were apparently copied from the
latter's utterances because even the words used by Mr. Jinnah
are, at places, the same as in Sir Syed's speeches and writings.
Moreover, the controversies and the conflicts, which engulfed
the Indian political arena from 1937 to 1947, had their origin
in the period under review (1885-1906). Is it not amazing
that so little progress could be made towards their resolution
in more than half a century's struggle against the British? The
controversies and conflicts, which dominated
this period, continued to plague us right upto the end of the
same British rule. The price we paid was the partition of India.
But even this terrible price did not solve the problem; it has
only added to our bitterness.
Despite more than two decades, the two religious groups,
either in India or Pakistan, are yet to adjust their relations--the
creation of Pakistan to my mind has only given a further edge
to the old feud-and, if this book helps, even in a small measure,
towards removing the cobwebs of suspicions and fears, and in
creating better understanding between the two communities, I
shall be amply rewarded for my humble effort.
I am grateful to India's Home Minister, Mr. Y. B. Chavan,
for contributing a foreword to this book. He has not only
been forthright in exposing communalism in the clearest terms
but a tower of strength to the Government in the fight for secu-
larism. He is an intellectual, who strayed into politics. His
views, besides being thought-provoking, deserve our respect and
consideration for Mr. Chavan is directly in charge of our
internal affairs.
A word about transliteration. I have tried to follow the
accepted rules except in the case of names of persons and places,
where I have followed the common usage. However all through
this work the words “Muslim”, “Musalman” and “Muham-
madan” have been spelt as quoted; with some other words also
a similar step had to be taken in order to avoid confusion in
the mind of the reader.
My thanks are due to Mr. S. Y. P. Quadri, who typed the
manuscript and to Mr. B. H. Pujar, who prepared the index.
In bibliography English and Urdu works have been listed
together; however, in the case of Urdu works, a brief descrip-
tion of the contents is given.
Finally, I must express my gratitude to Professor C. H. Philips
for the guidance he gave me in this work