In order to
regulate
their activities, the Trade Union Act was pass-
ed in 1926 and it came into force on 1 June, 1927.
ed in 1926 and it came into force on 1 June, 1927.
Cambridge History of India - v4 - Indian Empire
The Mahants who were in control of Gurdwaras and
were gaining a lot from them, opposed the move. That led to agita-
tion by the Akalis. The Mahant of Nankana Sahib collected a
Pathan guard and some 130 Akalis were killed in a treacherous
affray on 5 March, 1921. Conflicts took place between the Akalis
and the Police, the most important being at Guru Ka Bagh. The
Akalis adopted the policy of passive resistance. They were tortur-
## p. 949 (#993) ############################################
THE SIKH GURDWARAS ACT
949
ed by the Police. All kinds of indignities were inflicted on them.
However, the Akalis continued to send Jathas after Jathas in spite
of a policy of repression followed by the Government and ultimate-
ly they succeeded in their objective.
In 1925 was passed the Sikh Gurdwaras Act which provided
for the better administration of the Sikh Gurdwaras and for
enquiries into matters connected with them. The Act extend-
ed to the whole of the Punjab. It empowered the Provincial Gov-
ernment to declare by means of a notification that a particular
Gurdwara was a Sikh Gurdwara. It is true that objections could
be raised against the Notification but ultimately the matter was
decided by a Sikh Gurdwara Tribunal which consisted of a Presi-
dent and two other members appointed by the Provincial Govern-
ment. In most cases, the Tribunal gave its decision in favour of
the Akalis and the result was that most of the Gurdwaras came
under their control. These Gurdwaras had a lot of landed pro-
perty attached to them and a regular income of crores of rupees
every year.
Provision was also made for the appointment of a
Central Board to control the Sikh Gurdwaras in the Province.
There were to be separate Sikh Gurdwara Committees for the
management of the individual Gurdwaras. The final authority
for the management of the Sikh Gurdwaras vested in the Central
Board whose members were to be elected by the Sikhs in a pres-
cribed manner. Provision was also made for the appointment of
a Judicial Commission consisting of three Sikh Members to be
appointed by the Provincial Government. Detailed provisions
were made regarding the powers and duties of the Sikh Gurdwara
Committees. On the whole, it was a useful measure and it en-
abled the Akalis to reform the Gurdwaras and indirectly to add to
their own strength in the political field.
Under the Government of India Act, 1919, 47 subjects were de-
clared to be Central subjects and 52 subjects were included in the
Provincial List. The distribution of the subjects involved a deficit
for the Central Government and consequently a Committee known
as the Provincial Relations Committee was set up with Lord Meston
as its President to make recommendations as to how the deficit
could be met. The Committee recommended that the provinces
should make contributions to the Government of India so that the
budget could be balanced. It was estimated that the defiçit was
to be about Rs. 10 crores and the provinces were required to pay
according to their capacity. A schedule gave the permanent and
standard ratio at which each province was to be taxed in order to
wipe out the Central deficit. The contributions made by the
various provinces to the Central Government in 1921-22 were
## p. 950 (#994) ############################################
950
POLITICAL DEVELOPMENTS SINCE 1919
Madras Rs. 348 lacs, Bombay Rs. 56 lacs, Bengal Rs. 63 lacs,
Punjab Rs. 175 lacs, United Provinces Rs. 240 lacs, Assam Rs. 15
lacs, Burma Rs. 64 lacs and C. P. and Berar Rs. 22 lacs.
When the British Government promised the establishment of
responsible Government in India, the members of the public ser-
vices were upset. Formerly, they used to rule the country and
now they got worried about their position in the future. They
demanded certain safeguards. It was suggested that the members
of the All India Services, with a few exceptions, might be allowed
to retire before they completed the service ordinarily required for
earning pension and they should be given a pension proportionate
to their actual service. About 345 All India service officers retired
by 1924. The Government of India was faced with the problem
that an adequate number of Englishmen and Europeans was not
forthcoming for the All India Services and a Royal Commission on
Superior Civil Services in India was appointed in 1923. It came
to be known as the Lee Commission as Lord Lee was its Chairman.
The Commission made many recommendations. As regards the
Indian Civil Service, the Indian Police Service, the Indian Forest
Service and the Irrigation Branch of the Service of Engineers on
which public security mainly depended, the Secretary of State was
allowed to continue to recruit. His control, with certain safe-
guards, was to be maintained. As regards the Indian Education
Service, the Indian Veterinary Service and the Indian Medical
Service (Civil) which operated mostly in the Transferred field, it
was recommended that the control of the ministers was to be made
effective by closing the recruitment on an All India basis. The offi-
cers already in those services were to be allowed to retain their All-
India status and privileges. However, the new recruits to those servi-
ces were to be appointed in future by the Provincial Governments
and they were to form a part of the Provincial Services. It was made
clear that the change was not to apply to the Indian Medical Service.
Each province was required to employ in its Medical Department a
certain number of officers lent from the Medical Department of
the Army in India. The Commission recommended an increased rate
of Indianisation. For the Indian Civil Service, 10% of the superior
posts were to be filled by the appointment of the provincial service
officers to "listed” posts. Direct recruitment in future was to be
on the basis of equal numbers between Europeans and Indians. It
was estimated that within 15 years, half the recruits to the Indian
Civil Service would be Indians and half Europeans. As regards the
Indian Police Service, recruitment was to be in the proportion of five
Europeans and three Indians, allowing their promotion from provin-
cial services to fill up 20% of the vacancies. It was estimated that
## p. 951 (#995) ############################################
THE LEE COMMISSION
951
by 1949 the personnel of the Police Service would be half Euro-
peans and half Indians. As regards the Indian Forest Service, the
recruitment was to be in the ratio of 75% Indians and 25% Euro-
peans. As regards the Irrigation Branch of the Indian Service of
Engineers, there was to be direct recruitment of Indians and Euro-
peans in equal numbers. As regards the Central Services, the
Commission recommended that in the Political Department 25%
of the total officers to be recruited annually should be Indians.
In the Imperial Customs, not less than half the new entrants should
be the natives of India. In the Superior Telegraph and Wireless
Branch, 25% of the persons should be recruited in England and
the rest in India. As regards State railways, recruitment in India
was to be increased as soon as possible to 75%. 25% new entrants
were to be recruited in England. The Commission also recom-
mended an increase in the emoluments and privileges of the mem-
brs of the civil service. The European members of the services
were to be allowed to remit their overseas pay at the rate of 2s. for
a rupee or to draw the same in London in sterling at that rate,
although the actual rate of exchange was ls. 5d. The European
members of the Superior Civil Services and their wives were to
receive four return passages and one single passage for each child
during service. If any European member of a Civil Service died
while serving in India, his family was to be repatriated at the ex-
pense of the Government of India. The pensions of the civil
servants were considerably increased. Medical attendance by
European officers was to be made available to them. Family pen-
sion funds were to be introduced. All future British recruits to the
All India Services were given the option to retire on proportionate
pension in case they decided not to serve in India. The Commis-
sion also recommended that the Public Service Commission should
be set up immediately.
The Lee Commission had been appointed in 1923 by Lord Peel
who belonged to the Conservative Party. However, the Report of
the Commission appeared when the Labour Party headed by
Ramsay MacDonald was in office. The Report was fiercely
attacked in India as a reactionary document out of tune with the
new era ushered in by the Labour Government. The opposition
was due to racial antagonism and the desire to press home a politi-
cal advantage. It was also due to the fact that many unnecessary
financial concessions were offered to the Services.
The Factory Act of 1911 had limited the working hours of child-
ren and women to 7 and 11 respectively and provided for a com-
pulsory recess for half an hour in the midday in all factories. The
old limits of 9 to 14 for the age of children had been retained but
## p. 952 (#996) ############################################
952
POLITICAL DEVELOPMENTS SINCE 1919
arrangements made to get their age properly certified. Particular-
ly in the case of textile industries, the working hours of children
were limited to 6 and of adult males to 12. Many new provisions
were introduced about the health and safety of the industrial
workers. However, unrest in the labour world after 1919 made it
necessary that changes should also be made in the conditions of
labour in India. The Draft Conventions and the Draft Recom-
mendations of the International Labour Conference held at
Washington in 1921 were introduced into the Central Legislature
and passed in 1922. The new act widened the definition of fac-
tory. It abolished the old distinction between textile and non-
textile factory. It raised the minimum age for children for em-
ployment from 9 to 12 and the maximum age from 14 to 15 provided
the children were not employed for more than 6 hours a day with
fixed compulsory rest intervals. The Act restricted the work of all
adults to 11 hours a day and 60 hours a week, with a rest interval
of 1 hour after six hours work and a regular weekly holiday. Pro-
vision was also made for payment for over-time work. The Act
applied only to factories and not to all industrial workers. Cer-
tain changes were made in the Act in 1923 and 1926 to ensure
better working. In 1923 was passed the Workmen Compensation
Act. It provided for compensation for certain kinds of injuries, or
death of industrial workers of various classes. In 1923 was passed
the Boilers Act and in 1925 the Cotton Ginning and Pressing
Factories Act.
The Central Advisory Board of Education created first in 1920
under the Chairmanship of the Educational Commissioner of the
Government of India, was abolished in 1923 as a measure of econo-
my on the recommendation of the Indian Retrenchment Committee
presided over by Lord Inchcape. It was revived after 12 years.
According to the recommendation of the Universities Conference
held at Simla on the initiative of the Government of India in May
1924, an Inter-University Board for India was set up in 1925 and
the same has been doing very useful work since then.
The Bureau of Education in India was abolished in 1923 as a
measure of economy. It was revived after 14 years. It was pri-
marily concerned with the collection and dissemination of litera-
ture relating to educational problems in the various Provinces.
LORD IRWIN (1926-31)
Lord Irwin succeeded Lord Reading in 1926. He was a man
of remarkable character and he left a very favourable impression
on the minds of the Indians. He is said to have been a keen prac-
## p. 953 (#997) ############################################
LORD IRWIN
953
tising Christian. In spite of the surrounding circumstances, he
maintained his peculiar political austerity. He tried his best to
raise the status of the Indians. Formerly, the Constitution of
India was made for the Indians by the British Parliament without
any participation of the Indians. It was during his regime that
the first Round Table Conference was held in London in 1930 to
discuss the nature of the Constitution which India was to have and
very many distinguished Indians were invited to participate in its
deliberations. This was a big departure from the previous prac-
tice but was in keeping with the spirit of a confidential Despatch
submitted by the Viceroy and his Council to London in 1930. The
recommendation made by the Viceroy was that in the future
Constitution, India should have the status of a partner rather than
a subordinate as had been the case before.
When Lord Irwin came to India, there were Hindu-Muslim riots
all over the country. The immediate causes were minor incidents
such as the playing of music before mosques, slaughter of cows,
pelting of stones by mischievous boys or anti-social elements in
society but the consequences were very serious. During those riots,
houses and shops were looted and burnt. People were murdered.
There were pitched battles in the streets of the cities between gangs
armed with sticks and stones. There was not only loss of life and
property but trade and commerce also suffered. It was estimated
that between 250 and 300 persons were killed and more than 2,500
injured during the riots. The Hindu-Muslim Conference was held
at Simla to create a better atmosphere but it was without any result.
- The efforts of the All India National Conference to find a solution
to the problem also failed and communal riots continued to occur
from time to time.
It was during his regime that the Simon Commission was
appointed in 1927. The Indians protested against its all-White
composition. There were Hartals and boycotts all over the coun-
try. Lathi charges were common. In December 1928, the Indian
National Congress at its Calcutta session passed a resolution asking
the British Government to grant India dominion status within a
year. In October 1929, Lord Irwin made a statement on behalf
of the British Government that the goal of the British Government
in India was to give dominion status to India but that declaration
did not satisfy the Indian leaders and at its Lahore session held in
December 1929, the Congress declared that its goal was full inde-
pendence and not dominion status. January 26, 1930 was declar-
ed as Independence Day. Civil Disobedience Movement was
started by Mahatma Gandhi under his own leadership. Thousands
of men, women and children were arrested and punished. In many
## p. 954 (#998) ############################################
954
POLITICAL DEVELOPMENTS SINCE 1919
cases, their properties were confiscated. It was in that atmosphere
that the Simon Commission submitted its Report and the First
Round Table Conference met in London in 1930. Not much could
be accomplished on account of the absence of the representatives
of the Indian National Congress. Through the efforts of Sir Tej
Bahadur Sapru and M. R. Jayakar, the Gandhi-Irwin Pact was
signed on March 5, 1931. While the Government of India agreed
to make certain concessions, the Congress agreed to withdraw the
Civil Disobedience Movement. The boycott of the non-Indian
goods was to be discontinued. Mahatma Gandhi was not to press
for a public inquiry into the allegations against the conduct of the
police in India. The Government of India was to withdraw the
ordinances promulgated in connection with the Civil Disobedience
Movement. Pending prosecutions were to be withdrawn. The
prisoners were to be released and their properties restored. Fines
which had not been realised were to be remitted. Immovable
property taken into possession by the Government was to be return-
ed to their owners.
The Gandhi-Irwin Pact had a mixed reception. The people
of the country welcomed it as a great victory for the Congress.
The Congress was in a stronger position in future to fight against
the Government. However, the agreement was condemned on
the ground that Mahatma Gandhi was not able to save the lives of
Sardar Bhagat Singh and his comrades. The result was that when
Gandhiji went to attend the Karachi session of the Congress soon
after the signing of the agreement, there were black flag demons-
trations against him and there were shouts of “Down with Gandhi"
and “Gandhi truce has sent Bhagat Singh to the gallows”.
There was a lot of indignation over the publication of a book by
Miss Mayo entitled Mother India in which the social system of the
Indians was condemned. It was believed that publication of the
book was inspired by the Government of India with the object of
demonstrating to the world that the people of India were not fit
for self-Government.
In 1927, Rai Sahib Harbilas Sharda introduced a Bill in the
Central Assembly with the object of prohibiting marriages of girls
below the age of 12 and of boys below the age of 15. The Bill was
changed considerably before the same was passed in 1930 as the
Sarda Act. The Act applied to all communities and made mar-
riage contract between boys under 18 and girls under 14 an offence
punishable by law. It is unfortunate that the Act has not been
enforced properly in the country.
In 1927, there was a bitter dispute over the fixation of the Gold
value of the rupee. The Currency Commission had recommended
## p. 955 (#999) ############################################
LORD IRWIN
955
the fixation of the value of the Indian rupee at Is. 6d. That was
the price at which the Indian rupee had settled after many fluctua-
tions. Sir Purshotamdas Thakurdas, a member of the Commis-
sion, wrote a minute of dissent in which he recommended the rate
of is. 4d. Although it was a highly technical currency measure,
there was a lot of hue and cry in the country. The cotton manu-
facturers of Western India claimed that they were fighting for
the Indian Agriculturists. In spite of the heat created, the value
was fixed at 1s. 6d. but it created a lot of bitterness.
There was a lot of terrorist activities in the country. A bomb
was thrown on the train in which Lord Irwin was travelling on 23
December, 1929. Sardar Bhagat Singh and his friends threw
bombs in the Central Assembly. They were captured, tried and
ultimately hanged. An attempt was made by the Government to
burn their dead bodies on the banks of the river Sutlej near Feroze-
pore but the half-burnt bodies were recovered by the people,
brought to Lahore and ultimately cremated on the banks of the
river Ravi. Lakhs of people joined the funeral procession.
In 1929, the Government of India announced the appointment
by His Majesty the King-Emperor of a Royal Commission on Indian
labour with the late Rt. Hon'ble J. H. Whitley as its Chairman, “to
enquire into and report on the existing conditions of labour in
industrial undertakings and plantations in British India; on the
health, efficiency and standard of living of the workers; and on
the relations between the employers and the employed; and to
make recommendations. ” The Royal Commission critically exa-
mined the existing Labour Legislation and Labour conditions in
India and made its recommendations in its Report which was pub-
lished in July, 1931. In pursuance of the recommendations made
by the Royal Commission, the Workmen Compensation Act was
amended in 1933. The Indian Factories' Act of 1934, extended
the provisions of the previous Factories Acts regarding the hours
of work and sanitary and other conditions to industrial labourers.
The Payment of Wages Act, 1936, sought to regulate the pay-
ment of wages to the workers. The C. P. Unregulated Factories
Act of 1937 regulated the labour of women and children and made
provisions for the welfare of labour in the factories to which the
Factories Act of 1934 did not apply. The hours of work were limited
to 10 a day or 50 a week in all perennial factories. Each Province
appointed Factory Inspectors to secure the observance of the Facto-
ries Act.
The Madras Labour Union formed by Shri B. P. Wadia in 1918
is considered to be the first trade union in the country. In 1920,
Shri N. M. Joshi set up the first All India Trade Union Congress.
## p. 956 (#1000) ###########################################
956
POLITICAL DEVELOPMENTS SINCE 1919
Trade Unions began to spring up in most of the industrial centres.
In order to regulate their activities, the Trade Union Act was pass-
ed in 1926 and it came into force on 1 June, 1927. Chapter II of
the Act dealt with the registration of the Trade Union. There
was to be a Registrar of Trade Unions for every Province. A
procedure was laid down for their registration. An application
was to be made to the Registrar for the registration of a Trade
Union and that application was to contain certain particulars.
The rules of a Trade Union were required to make provision
for certain things given in Section 6 of the Act. Section 7 gave the
power to the Registrar to call for further particulars. The Regis-
trar was authorised to give a certificate of registration of a Trade
Union and he could also cancel the same in certain cases. Provi-
sion was made for an appeal against the order of the Registrar.
Every registered Trade Union was declared to be a body corporate
by the name under which it was registered and was to have perpe-
tual succession and a common seal with power to acquire and hold
both movable and immovable property and to enter into con-
tracts and was also liable to sue and be sued. Section 15 of the
Act classified the objects on which the general funds of a registered
trade union could be spent. Section 16 authorised the constitu-
tion of a separate fund by a registered Trade Union for political
purposes. Sections 17 and 18 granted certain exemptions to Trade
Unions. Provision was also made for the dissolution of Trade
Unions and also their amalgamation with other trade unions.
LORD WILLINGDON (1931-36)
Lord Irwin was succeeded by Lord Willingdon. Before his ap-
pointment as Governor-General, Lord Willingdon was the Gover-
nor of Bombay and Madras from 1913 to 1924. From 1926 to
1930, he was the Governor-General of Canada. It was during his
Viceroyalty that the Second Round Table Conference met in Lon-
don in 1931. Nothing came out of this Conference as Mr. Jinnah
refused to come to terms with Mahatma Gandhi and the Mahatma
left the Conference in disgust. As soon as he came back to India,
the truce between the Government and the Congress came to an
end. Mahatma Gandhi was arrested and in order to meet the
civil disobedience campaign started by the Congress, the Govern-
ment promulgated four Ordinances. A large number of persons
were arrested and convicted.
There was acute economic distress in the United Provinces. Both
the landlords and cultivators were hard hit. The Government
remitted land revenue to the tune of Rs. 68 lakhs to begin with and
## p. 957 (#1001) ###########################################
LORD WILLINGDON
957
later on increased the same to Rs. 109 lakhs. In spite of this, the
tenants were not satisfied and they refused to pay rents. The result
was that the Government promulgated the United Provinces Emer-
gency Powers Ordinance. A large number of persons including
Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru were arrested in this connection towards
the end of 1931.
There was similar trouble in the North-Western Frontier Pro-
vince. Under the leadership of Khan Abdul Gaffar Khan, the Red
Shrits started a campaign in favour of non-payment of rents and
taxes. Ordinances were promulgated in this area also and Khan
Abdul Gaffar Khan was arrested.
In August 1932, the British Prime Minister, Mr. Ramsay Mac-
Donald, gave the Communal Award in which it was laid down as
to how many seats were to be given to the various communities in
India. Separate electorates were granted to the Muslims, Indian
Christians, Sikhs and Europeans. Provision was also made for
separate constituencies for the Depressed Classes. The Muslim
League welcomed the Communal Award but the Hindus condemn-
ed it. However, the Congress neither accepted it nor rejected it.
Mahatma Gandhi opposed the setting up of separate constituencies
for the depressed classes and began a fast unto death unless and
until the Depressed Classes were put along with the Hindus. There
were hectic negotiations and ultimately the Poona Pact was signed.
The Poona Pact abolished the separate constituencies of the De-
pressed Classes but reserved seats for them from the quota of the
Hindus.
Towards the end of 1932, the Third Round Table Conference
was held. The Congress members were in the jails and hence the
Conference was boycotted by them. However, the other Indians
attended it and delegates reached an agreement on many points.
Their proposals were published in a White Paper in March, 1933.
The White Paper proposed a federation of 11 Provinces and those
Indian States which were willing to join it on certain conditions.
It provided for a bicameral Federal Legislature to which the Exe-
cutive was to be responsible. However, the Governor-General was
given many special powers which could be exercised by him even
without consulting his ministers. Provincial autonomy was to be
established in the Provinces and ordinarily the Governor was ex-
pected to act according to the wishes of the ministers. The White
Paper proposals were rejected by the people of India as too many
discretionary powers were given to the Governor-General and the
Governors. The people also did not like the federal scheme as pro-
posed in the White Paper.
In 1933, Mahatma Gandhi undertook a second fast. This fast
## p. 958 (#1002) ###########################################
958
POLITICAL DEVELOPMENTS SINCE 1919
>
was intended to help the cause of the Harijans. Mahatma Gandhi
intended to shake the conscience of the Hindus towards the un-
touchables in Hindu society. This fast lasted for 21 days.
Civil disobedience movement was suspended for 6 weeks to
begin with but later on it was completely abandoned. In its place,
individual civil disobedience movement to be practised by private
individuals was started. Mahatma Gandhi contemplated a march
from Ahmedabad to the Kaira District but he was arrested and
imprisoned. While the Mahatma was in jail, he started his third
fast and the Government released him after a week as his condi-
tion was found to be dangerous. Many attempts were made to
start the civil disobedience movement but they did not succeed.
In 1934, Mahatma Gandhi put an end to the campaign saying:
“In future no Congressman except myself shall practise Civil Dis-
obedience. "
There was a wave of terrorism in the country during this period.
Within 3 years, 3 District Magistrates of Midnapore alone were
shot dead by the terrorists. On 8 May, 1934, a desperate attempt
was made on the life of Sir John Anderson, Governor of Bengal,
by two young terrorists but luckily he survived. The Governor
showed courage and coolness while facing the assailants.
The Government of India Act was passed in 1935 but only a
part of it came into force on 1 April, 1937.
Earthquakes took place in Bihar and Quetta. There was a ter-
rible loss of life and property. In the case of Bihar, a lot of useful
work was done by societies like the Arya Samaj and Dr. Rajendra
Prasad made a special mention of this fact. In the case of Quetta,
the Earthquake was so terrible that in one night the whole of the
population of Quetta disappeared. Thousands of men, women and
children died under the debris of their houses which shook and
collapsed in that fateful night.
The Indian Press (Emergency Powers) Act, 1931, Foreign Rela-
tions Act, 1932 and Indian States (Protection) Act, 1934 were
passed during the regime of Lord Willingdon. The object of the
Indian Press (Emergency Powers) Act, 1931 was to provide
against the publication of that matter which incited or encouraged
murder or violence. Provision was made for the deposit of security
by the keepers of printing presses. The provincial Government
was given the power to forfeit the security of a press in certain cases.
If a printer applied for a fresh declaration, he could be asked by
a magistrate to deposit a security of the value of not less than
Rs. 1,000 and not more than Rs. 10,000 as the magistrate might
think fit. If, after the deposit of a new security, a newspaper pub-
lished objectionable matter, the provincial Government could for-
## p. 959 (#1003) ###########################################
INDIAN PRESS (EMERGENCY POWERS) ACT
959
feit the new security also. Provisions which applied to keepers of
printing presses applied equally to the publishers of newspapers.
Section 11 penalised the keeping of printing presses and the publish-
ing of newspapers without making the security deposit as required
by the provincial Government or the magistrate. If a press did
not deposit the security but continued to do its work, it could
be forfeited to His Majesty and the declaration of the publi-
sher was liable to be cancelled Any police officer empowered
for that purpose by the provincial Government could seize
any unauthorised news sheets or unauthorised newspapers wher-
ever found and the same could be ordered to be destroyed by a
magistrate. The Government was given the power to seize and
forfeit undeclared presses producing unauthorised news sheets and
newspapers. The penalty for disseminating unauthorised news
sheets and newspapers was imprisonment up to 6 months, with or
without fine. The provincial Government was given the power to
declare certain publications forfeited to His Majesty and also issue
search warrants for the same. The Customs Officers were autho-
rised to detain packages containing certain publications when im-
ported into British India. No unauthorised news sheets or news-
papers could be transmitted by post.
The powers conferred by the Act were undoubtedly sweeping in
their nature and scope. Those were actually used by the Provin-
cial Governments to prohibit the publication of the names and por-
traits of well-known leaders of the Civil Disobedience Movement
as the publication of such pictures tended to encourage the move-
The other restraints included the prohibition of the publi-
cation of Congress propaganda of any kind including messages
from the persons arrested, messages issued or purported to be issued
from persons in jail, exaggerated reports of political events, notices
and advertisements of meetings, processions and other activities
tending to promote Civil Disobedience Movement or any other
matter in furtherance of the same. Under this Act, the Govern-
ment took action against many newspapers. The printers and
publishers of the Bombay Chronicle were called upon to deposit
Rs. 3,000 each for publishing an article by Mr. Horniman. The
printer and publisher of the Anand Bazar Patrika each received a
demand for Rs. 1,000. A security of Rs. 6,000 was demanded from
the Amrit Bazar Patrika. Rs. 6,000 were deposited by The Liberty
of Calcutta. A security of Rs. 6,000 was deposited by the Free
Press Journal and later on forfeited by the Bombay Government.
Similar action was taken against other newspapers. There was
virtually a reign of terror in the country.
The Foreign Relations Act, 1932 replaced an Ordinance of 1931.
## p. 960 (#1004) ###########################################
960
POLITICAL DEVELOPMENTS SINCE 1919
Its object was to penalise publications calculated to interfere with
the maintenance of good relations between His Majesty's Govern-
ment and friendly foreign states. The necessity of this law arose
when the Indian newspapers criticised the administration in certain
states adjoining the frontiers of India. The Act provided that
where an offence under Chapter XXI of the Indian Penal Code
was committed against the ruler of a State outside but adjoining
India or against the consort or son of principal minister of such a
ruler, the Governor-General in Council could make or autho-
rise any person to make a complaint in writing of such an offence
and any court competent in other respects to take cognizance of
such offence could take cognizance of such a complaint. Any
book, newspaper or other document containing defamatory matter
which tended to prejudice the maintenance of friendly relations
between His Majesty's Government and the Government of such
State, could be detained in the same manner as seditious literature.
In January 1933, four Ordinances were promulgated which con-
ferred certain powers on the Government for the maintenance of
law and order and widened the operative section of the Indian Press
(Emergency Powers) Act, 1931 so as to permit action against the
publication of matter calculated to encourage the Civil Disobe-
dience Movement.
The object of the Indian States (Protection) Act, 1934 was to
prevent unreasonable attacks on the administration of the Indian
States in the newspapers of British India and to provide the author-
ities in British India with powers to deal with bands or demons-
trators organised on semi-military lines for the purpose of entering
and spreading dis-affection in the territories of Indian States.
LORD LINLITHGOW (1936-1943)
Before his appointment as Governor-General, Lord Linlithgow
had a brilliant career. He was the Chairman of the Royal Com-
mission on Indian Agriculture. He was also the Chairman of the
Joint Select Committee on Indian Constitutional Reforms. He had
a hand in the drafting of the Government of India Act, 1935. No
wonder, he was sent to India to work out the law in the making
of which he had a hand.
It goes without saying that Lord Linlithgow did all that he
could to bring the states into the Federation so that the whole of
the Government of India Act could be enforced. It was partly
due to opposition from the Congress and the Muslim League to
the Federal part of the Government of India Act and also due to
unwillingness on the part of the Indian States to join the Federation
## p. 961 (#1005) ###########################################
LORD LINLITHGOW
961
E
3
2
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.
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ces.
that the whole of the Government of India Act was not brought
into force on 1 April, 1937. Only that part of the Act which relat-
ed to Provincial Autonomy was brought into force on 1 April, 1937.
The Government hoped that the rest of the Act would be brought
into force later on.
It is true that the Indian National Congress did not approve of
the Act of 1935, but in spite of it, the Congress fought the Provin-
cial elections in the beginning of 1937. Although the Congress
got a majority in 7 Provinces, it refused to form ministries unless
and until a guarantee was given by the Governors concerned that
they would not interfere in the day to day working of the Provin-
cial Government. As the Governors refused to give such an under-
taking, a constitutional deadlock followed. Ultimately, Lord Lin-
lithgow asked the Governors to give such an undertaking as would
help the Congress Ministries to take office. To begin with, the
Congress formed ministries in 7 Provinces and later on in 8 Provin-
This state of affairs continued for more than two years and
during this period, the Congress ministries did a lot of useful work
in their respective Provinces.
The Congress Ministries resigned in October-November, 1939,
on account of differences between the Governor-General and the
Congress on the question of the second World War. What actu-
ally happened was that when the second World War broke out in
September, 1939, Lord Linlithgow declared war on behalf of India
against Germany. This he did without consulting the Congress.
It is true that constitutionally the stand taken by him was correct
but the view of the Congress was that the Viceroy should have
declared the war only after consulting the leaders and the people
of India. The Congress was also of the view that before declaring
war, the British Government ought to have declared its war-aims.
As nothing of the kind had been done, it showed that the Govern-
ment of India did not ask for help from the people. On 19 Octo-
ber, 1939, Lord Linlithgow reaffirmed the promise that Dominion
Status and complete equality were the goals of British policy in
India. However, the Congress was not satisfied and asked the Con-
gress Ministries to resign and the same was actually done.
The Congress started its campaign of opposition to the Govern-
ment and its war efforts. The opposition took the form of indivi-
dual civil disobedience. This was to be done by private persons in
their individual capacity and the same was not required to be done
on a nation-wide scale.
The Viceroy continued his negotiations with the various political
parties in the country with a view to secure their cooperation in the
administration of the country and the prosecution of the war. While
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## p. 962 (#1006) ###########################################
962
POLITICAL DEVELOPMENTS SINCE 1919
the attitude of the Congress was positively hostile, that of the
Muslim League was a mild one. The Muslim League under Mr.
Jinnah did nothing to hamper the war-effort of the Government.
In 1940, Lord Linlithgow made the famous August Offer but the
same was rejected by the Congress. The result was that the Vice-
roy took into his Executive Council the leaders of other political
parties and there the matter arrested for the time being, and the
war continued.
Another attempt was made by the British Government to resolve
the deadlock in India in March, 1942. This was done under
very pressing circumstances. On 8 March, 1942, the Japanese
Army entered Rangoon. Colombo was bombarded and some
bombs fell on the Eastern coast of India. Calcutta was also
threatened and people began to leave the city in large numbers.
It was under these circumstances that Sir Stafford Cripps who at
that time was the Leader of the House of Commons in England,
was sent to India with certain proposals with a view to end the
constitutional deadlock in the country. Sir Stafford did not im-
press Mahatma Gandhi and the Cripps proposals were rejected by
the Congress. The Mahatma described the Cripps proposals as a
"post-dated cheque on a crashing bank. ” Although Cripps did
not say so in so many words, his proposals virtually granted Pakis-
tan to the Muslim League. The Congress which stood for the
unity of India could not be expected to be a party to such proposals.
After the departure of Cripps, the Congress was in a desperate
mood. It was determined to do something which could bring the
independence of India nearer. With that object in view, the All-
India Congress Committee met at Bombay and passed the famous
Quit India resolution on 8 August, 1942, calling on the British to
quit the country forthwith. The Government also hit back. All
the top-ranking Congressmen were arrested throughout the coun-
try and they remained in jails for about 3 years. As the people
were left without any leadership, they resorted to whatever came
in their minds. There was a wave of disturbances in various parts
of the country. So great was the mob fury that in certain parts
of India, British authority disappeared completely for a few days.
People set fire to whatever fell into their hands. It is stated that
250 Railway Stations and 300 Post Offices were either damaged or
destroyed. 150 Police Stations were attacked. A number of offi-
cials and soldiers were killed. About 900 civilians lost their lives.
In 1943 there took place a terrible famine in Bengal. The
famine was due to many causes.
As a result of the third year of
the war, prices were soaring. In order to take advantage of the
high prices the agriculturists sold their crops and paid off their
## p. 963 (#1007) ###########################################
BENGAL FAMINE
963
debts and did not care to keep sufficient foodgrains for their own
sustenance. There was no import of food-stuffs from outside ex-
cept from Burma and that also was cut off after the fall of Burma
into the hands of the Japanese. Rice completely disappeared from
the market. Food shortage was in every part of the country and
there was no surplus in any part of India which could be sent to
Bengal. There was no system of rationing in the country by which
the available food-stuffs all over the country could be equitably dis-
tributed among all the people of India. The demand for food-
grains had also increased in India on account of war-conditions in
the country. Black market developed in foodgrains and what-
ever grains were available were sold at very high prices which the
poor people of Bengal could not afford to pay. The result was the
worst type of famine in Bengal in 1943. Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit
reported in October 1943 that about 700 persons were dying every
day in Calcutta. It was estimated that between August and Octo-
ber, 1943, 4,794 persons died in the streets and this figure did not
include 2,492 who had died in the hospitals during the same period.
It was estimated that between 16 October and 23 October, 1943,
2,155 persons died. On 28 July, 1944, Mr. Amery, Secretary of
State for India declared in the House of Commons that "in Bengal
last year about 700,000 human beings died as a consequence of
that famine. ” Another estimate is that 1/2 million human lives
were lost during that famine. The famine situation continued to
worsen till Lord Wavell took over as Governor-General in Octo-
ber 1943. He handed over the work of relief distribution to the
British Army. A system of rationing was introduced in all the
large towns of India and thus the situation was brought under
control. Lord Linlithgow earned a very bad name on account of
his failure to check the famine.
It cannot be denied that during the regime of Lord Linlithgow,
the Muslim League became a powerful organisation. When the
Congress ministries were in office, the Muslim League was allowed
to condemn them without any rhyme or reason. The Government
failed to stop the baseless allegations levelled by one political party
against the other. After the beginning of the second World War
in September 1939, the Viceroy was drawn nearer the Muslim
League and its President Mr.
were gaining a lot from them, opposed the move. That led to agita-
tion by the Akalis. The Mahant of Nankana Sahib collected a
Pathan guard and some 130 Akalis were killed in a treacherous
affray on 5 March, 1921. Conflicts took place between the Akalis
and the Police, the most important being at Guru Ka Bagh. The
Akalis adopted the policy of passive resistance. They were tortur-
## p. 949 (#993) ############################################
THE SIKH GURDWARAS ACT
949
ed by the Police. All kinds of indignities were inflicted on them.
However, the Akalis continued to send Jathas after Jathas in spite
of a policy of repression followed by the Government and ultimate-
ly they succeeded in their objective.
In 1925 was passed the Sikh Gurdwaras Act which provided
for the better administration of the Sikh Gurdwaras and for
enquiries into matters connected with them. The Act extend-
ed to the whole of the Punjab. It empowered the Provincial Gov-
ernment to declare by means of a notification that a particular
Gurdwara was a Sikh Gurdwara. It is true that objections could
be raised against the Notification but ultimately the matter was
decided by a Sikh Gurdwara Tribunal which consisted of a Presi-
dent and two other members appointed by the Provincial Govern-
ment. In most cases, the Tribunal gave its decision in favour of
the Akalis and the result was that most of the Gurdwaras came
under their control. These Gurdwaras had a lot of landed pro-
perty attached to them and a regular income of crores of rupees
every year.
Provision was also made for the appointment of a
Central Board to control the Sikh Gurdwaras in the Province.
There were to be separate Sikh Gurdwara Committees for the
management of the individual Gurdwaras. The final authority
for the management of the Sikh Gurdwaras vested in the Central
Board whose members were to be elected by the Sikhs in a pres-
cribed manner. Provision was also made for the appointment of
a Judicial Commission consisting of three Sikh Members to be
appointed by the Provincial Government. Detailed provisions
were made regarding the powers and duties of the Sikh Gurdwara
Committees. On the whole, it was a useful measure and it en-
abled the Akalis to reform the Gurdwaras and indirectly to add to
their own strength in the political field.
Under the Government of India Act, 1919, 47 subjects were de-
clared to be Central subjects and 52 subjects were included in the
Provincial List. The distribution of the subjects involved a deficit
for the Central Government and consequently a Committee known
as the Provincial Relations Committee was set up with Lord Meston
as its President to make recommendations as to how the deficit
could be met. The Committee recommended that the provinces
should make contributions to the Government of India so that the
budget could be balanced. It was estimated that the defiçit was
to be about Rs. 10 crores and the provinces were required to pay
according to their capacity. A schedule gave the permanent and
standard ratio at which each province was to be taxed in order to
wipe out the Central deficit. The contributions made by the
various provinces to the Central Government in 1921-22 were
## p. 950 (#994) ############################################
950
POLITICAL DEVELOPMENTS SINCE 1919
Madras Rs. 348 lacs, Bombay Rs. 56 lacs, Bengal Rs. 63 lacs,
Punjab Rs. 175 lacs, United Provinces Rs. 240 lacs, Assam Rs. 15
lacs, Burma Rs. 64 lacs and C. P. and Berar Rs. 22 lacs.
When the British Government promised the establishment of
responsible Government in India, the members of the public ser-
vices were upset. Formerly, they used to rule the country and
now they got worried about their position in the future. They
demanded certain safeguards. It was suggested that the members
of the All India Services, with a few exceptions, might be allowed
to retire before they completed the service ordinarily required for
earning pension and they should be given a pension proportionate
to their actual service. About 345 All India service officers retired
by 1924. The Government of India was faced with the problem
that an adequate number of Englishmen and Europeans was not
forthcoming for the All India Services and a Royal Commission on
Superior Civil Services in India was appointed in 1923. It came
to be known as the Lee Commission as Lord Lee was its Chairman.
The Commission made many recommendations. As regards the
Indian Civil Service, the Indian Police Service, the Indian Forest
Service and the Irrigation Branch of the Service of Engineers on
which public security mainly depended, the Secretary of State was
allowed to continue to recruit. His control, with certain safe-
guards, was to be maintained. As regards the Indian Education
Service, the Indian Veterinary Service and the Indian Medical
Service (Civil) which operated mostly in the Transferred field, it
was recommended that the control of the ministers was to be made
effective by closing the recruitment on an All India basis. The offi-
cers already in those services were to be allowed to retain their All-
India status and privileges. However, the new recruits to those servi-
ces were to be appointed in future by the Provincial Governments
and they were to form a part of the Provincial Services. It was made
clear that the change was not to apply to the Indian Medical Service.
Each province was required to employ in its Medical Department a
certain number of officers lent from the Medical Department of
the Army in India. The Commission recommended an increased rate
of Indianisation. For the Indian Civil Service, 10% of the superior
posts were to be filled by the appointment of the provincial service
officers to "listed” posts. Direct recruitment in future was to be
on the basis of equal numbers between Europeans and Indians. It
was estimated that within 15 years, half the recruits to the Indian
Civil Service would be Indians and half Europeans. As regards the
Indian Police Service, recruitment was to be in the proportion of five
Europeans and three Indians, allowing their promotion from provin-
cial services to fill up 20% of the vacancies. It was estimated that
## p. 951 (#995) ############################################
THE LEE COMMISSION
951
by 1949 the personnel of the Police Service would be half Euro-
peans and half Indians. As regards the Indian Forest Service, the
recruitment was to be in the ratio of 75% Indians and 25% Euro-
peans. As regards the Irrigation Branch of the Indian Service of
Engineers, there was to be direct recruitment of Indians and Euro-
peans in equal numbers. As regards the Central Services, the
Commission recommended that in the Political Department 25%
of the total officers to be recruited annually should be Indians.
In the Imperial Customs, not less than half the new entrants should
be the natives of India. In the Superior Telegraph and Wireless
Branch, 25% of the persons should be recruited in England and
the rest in India. As regards State railways, recruitment in India
was to be increased as soon as possible to 75%. 25% new entrants
were to be recruited in England. The Commission also recom-
mended an increase in the emoluments and privileges of the mem-
brs of the civil service. The European members of the services
were to be allowed to remit their overseas pay at the rate of 2s. for
a rupee or to draw the same in London in sterling at that rate,
although the actual rate of exchange was ls. 5d. The European
members of the Superior Civil Services and their wives were to
receive four return passages and one single passage for each child
during service. If any European member of a Civil Service died
while serving in India, his family was to be repatriated at the ex-
pense of the Government of India. The pensions of the civil
servants were considerably increased. Medical attendance by
European officers was to be made available to them. Family pen-
sion funds were to be introduced. All future British recruits to the
All India Services were given the option to retire on proportionate
pension in case they decided not to serve in India. The Commis-
sion also recommended that the Public Service Commission should
be set up immediately.
The Lee Commission had been appointed in 1923 by Lord Peel
who belonged to the Conservative Party. However, the Report of
the Commission appeared when the Labour Party headed by
Ramsay MacDonald was in office. The Report was fiercely
attacked in India as a reactionary document out of tune with the
new era ushered in by the Labour Government. The opposition
was due to racial antagonism and the desire to press home a politi-
cal advantage. It was also due to the fact that many unnecessary
financial concessions were offered to the Services.
The Factory Act of 1911 had limited the working hours of child-
ren and women to 7 and 11 respectively and provided for a com-
pulsory recess for half an hour in the midday in all factories. The
old limits of 9 to 14 for the age of children had been retained but
## p. 952 (#996) ############################################
952
POLITICAL DEVELOPMENTS SINCE 1919
arrangements made to get their age properly certified. Particular-
ly in the case of textile industries, the working hours of children
were limited to 6 and of adult males to 12. Many new provisions
were introduced about the health and safety of the industrial
workers. However, unrest in the labour world after 1919 made it
necessary that changes should also be made in the conditions of
labour in India. The Draft Conventions and the Draft Recom-
mendations of the International Labour Conference held at
Washington in 1921 were introduced into the Central Legislature
and passed in 1922. The new act widened the definition of fac-
tory. It abolished the old distinction between textile and non-
textile factory. It raised the minimum age for children for em-
ployment from 9 to 12 and the maximum age from 14 to 15 provided
the children were not employed for more than 6 hours a day with
fixed compulsory rest intervals. The Act restricted the work of all
adults to 11 hours a day and 60 hours a week, with a rest interval
of 1 hour after six hours work and a regular weekly holiday. Pro-
vision was also made for payment for over-time work. The Act
applied only to factories and not to all industrial workers. Cer-
tain changes were made in the Act in 1923 and 1926 to ensure
better working. In 1923 was passed the Workmen Compensation
Act. It provided for compensation for certain kinds of injuries, or
death of industrial workers of various classes. In 1923 was passed
the Boilers Act and in 1925 the Cotton Ginning and Pressing
Factories Act.
The Central Advisory Board of Education created first in 1920
under the Chairmanship of the Educational Commissioner of the
Government of India, was abolished in 1923 as a measure of econo-
my on the recommendation of the Indian Retrenchment Committee
presided over by Lord Inchcape. It was revived after 12 years.
According to the recommendation of the Universities Conference
held at Simla on the initiative of the Government of India in May
1924, an Inter-University Board for India was set up in 1925 and
the same has been doing very useful work since then.
The Bureau of Education in India was abolished in 1923 as a
measure of economy. It was revived after 14 years. It was pri-
marily concerned with the collection and dissemination of litera-
ture relating to educational problems in the various Provinces.
LORD IRWIN (1926-31)
Lord Irwin succeeded Lord Reading in 1926. He was a man
of remarkable character and he left a very favourable impression
on the minds of the Indians. He is said to have been a keen prac-
## p. 953 (#997) ############################################
LORD IRWIN
953
tising Christian. In spite of the surrounding circumstances, he
maintained his peculiar political austerity. He tried his best to
raise the status of the Indians. Formerly, the Constitution of
India was made for the Indians by the British Parliament without
any participation of the Indians. It was during his regime that
the first Round Table Conference was held in London in 1930 to
discuss the nature of the Constitution which India was to have and
very many distinguished Indians were invited to participate in its
deliberations. This was a big departure from the previous prac-
tice but was in keeping with the spirit of a confidential Despatch
submitted by the Viceroy and his Council to London in 1930. The
recommendation made by the Viceroy was that in the future
Constitution, India should have the status of a partner rather than
a subordinate as had been the case before.
When Lord Irwin came to India, there were Hindu-Muslim riots
all over the country. The immediate causes were minor incidents
such as the playing of music before mosques, slaughter of cows,
pelting of stones by mischievous boys or anti-social elements in
society but the consequences were very serious. During those riots,
houses and shops were looted and burnt. People were murdered.
There were pitched battles in the streets of the cities between gangs
armed with sticks and stones. There was not only loss of life and
property but trade and commerce also suffered. It was estimated
that between 250 and 300 persons were killed and more than 2,500
injured during the riots. The Hindu-Muslim Conference was held
at Simla to create a better atmosphere but it was without any result.
- The efforts of the All India National Conference to find a solution
to the problem also failed and communal riots continued to occur
from time to time.
It was during his regime that the Simon Commission was
appointed in 1927. The Indians protested against its all-White
composition. There were Hartals and boycotts all over the coun-
try. Lathi charges were common. In December 1928, the Indian
National Congress at its Calcutta session passed a resolution asking
the British Government to grant India dominion status within a
year. In October 1929, Lord Irwin made a statement on behalf
of the British Government that the goal of the British Government
in India was to give dominion status to India but that declaration
did not satisfy the Indian leaders and at its Lahore session held in
December 1929, the Congress declared that its goal was full inde-
pendence and not dominion status. January 26, 1930 was declar-
ed as Independence Day. Civil Disobedience Movement was
started by Mahatma Gandhi under his own leadership. Thousands
of men, women and children were arrested and punished. In many
## p. 954 (#998) ############################################
954
POLITICAL DEVELOPMENTS SINCE 1919
cases, their properties were confiscated. It was in that atmosphere
that the Simon Commission submitted its Report and the First
Round Table Conference met in London in 1930. Not much could
be accomplished on account of the absence of the representatives
of the Indian National Congress. Through the efforts of Sir Tej
Bahadur Sapru and M. R. Jayakar, the Gandhi-Irwin Pact was
signed on March 5, 1931. While the Government of India agreed
to make certain concessions, the Congress agreed to withdraw the
Civil Disobedience Movement. The boycott of the non-Indian
goods was to be discontinued. Mahatma Gandhi was not to press
for a public inquiry into the allegations against the conduct of the
police in India. The Government of India was to withdraw the
ordinances promulgated in connection with the Civil Disobedience
Movement. Pending prosecutions were to be withdrawn. The
prisoners were to be released and their properties restored. Fines
which had not been realised were to be remitted. Immovable
property taken into possession by the Government was to be return-
ed to their owners.
The Gandhi-Irwin Pact had a mixed reception. The people
of the country welcomed it as a great victory for the Congress.
The Congress was in a stronger position in future to fight against
the Government. However, the agreement was condemned on
the ground that Mahatma Gandhi was not able to save the lives of
Sardar Bhagat Singh and his comrades. The result was that when
Gandhiji went to attend the Karachi session of the Congress soon
after the signing of the agreement, there were black flag demons-
trations against him and there were shouts of “Down with Gandhi"
and “Gandhi truce has sent Bhagat Singh to the gallows”.
There was a lot of indignation over the publication of a book by
Miss Mayo entitled Mother India in which the social system of the
Indians was condemned. It was believed that publication of the
book was inspired by the Government of India with the object of
demonstrating to the world that the people of India were not fit
for self-Government.
In 1927, Rai Sahib Harbilas Sharda introduced a Bill in the
Central Assembly with the object of prohibiting marriages of girls
below the age of 12 and of boys below the age of 15. The Bill was
changed considerably before the same was passed in 1930 as the
Sarda Act. The Act applied to all communities and made mar-
riage contract between boys under 18 and girls under 14 an offence
punishable by law. It is unfortunate that the Act has not been
enforced properly in the country.
In 1927, there was a bitter dispute over the fixation of the Gold
value of the rupee. The Currency Commission had recommended
## p. 955 (#999) ############################################
LORD IRWIN
955
the fixation of the value of the Indian rupee at Is. 6d. That was
the price at which the Indian rupee had settled after many fluctua-
tions. Sir Purshotamdas Thakurdas, a member of the Commis-
sion, wrote a minute of dissent in which he recommended the rate
of is. 4d. Although it was a highly technical currency measure,
there was a lot of hue and cry in the country. The cotton manu-
facturers of Western India claimed that they were fighting for
the Indian Agriculturists. In spite of the heat created, the value
was fixed at 1s. 6d. but it created a lot of bitterness.
There was a lot of terrorist activities in the country. A bomb
was thrown on the train in which Lord Irwin was travelling on 23
December, 1929. Sardar Bhagat Singh and his friends threw
bombs in the Central Assembly. They were captured, tried and
ultimately hanged. An attempt was made by the Government to
burn their dead bodies on the banks of the river Sutlej near Feroze-
pore but the half-burnt bodies were recovered by the people,
brought to Lahore and ultimately cremated on the banks of the
river Ravi. Lakhs of people joined the funeral procession.
In 1929, the Government of India announced the appointment
by His Majesty the King-Emperor of a Royal Commission on Indian
labour with the late Rt. Hon'ble J. H. Whitley as its Chairman, “to
enquire into and report on the existing conditions of labour in
industrial undertakings and plantations in British India; on the
health, efficiency and standard of living of the workers; and on
the relations between the employers and the employed; and to
make recommendations. ” The Royal Commission critically exa-
mined the existing Labour Legislation and Labour conditions in
India and made its recommendations in its Report which was pub-
lished in July, 1931. In pursuance of the recommendations made
by the Royal Commission, the Workmen Compensation Act was
amended in 1933. The Indian Factories' Act of 1934, extended
the provisions of the previous Factories Acts regarding the hours
of work and sanitary and other conditions to industrial labourers.
The Payment of Wages Act, 1936, sought to regulate the pay-
ment of wages to the workers. The C. P. Unregulated Factories
Act of 1937 regulated the labour of women and children and made
provisions for the welfare of labour in the factories to which the
Factories Act of 1934 did not apply. The hours of work were limited
to 10 a day or 50 a week in all perennial factories. Each Province
appointed Factory Inspectors to secure the observance of the Facto-
ries Act.
The Madras Labour Union formed by Shri B. P. Wadia in 1918
is considered to be the first trade union in the country. In 1920,
Shri N. M. Joshi set up the first All India Trade Union Congress.
## p. 956 (#1000) ###########################################
956
POLITICAL DEVELOPMENTS SINCE 1919
Trade Unions began to spring up in most of the industrial centres.
In order to regulate their activities, the Trade Union Act was pass-
ed in 1926 and it came into force on 1 June, 1927. Chapter II of
the Act dealt with the registration of the Trade Union. There
was to be a Registrar of Trade Unions for every Province. A
procedure was laid down for their registration. An application
was to be made to the Registrar for the registration of a Trade
Union and that application was to contain certain particulars.
The rules of a Trade Union were required to make provision
for certain things given in Section 6 of the Act. Section 7 gave the
power to the Registrar to call for further particulars. The Regis-
trar was authorised to give a certificate of registration of a Trade
Union and he could also cancel the same in certain cases. Provi-
sion was made for an appeal against the order of the Registrar.
Every registered Trade Union was declared to be a body corporate
by the name under which it was registered and was to have perpe-
tual succession and a common seal with power to acquire and hold
both movable and immovable property and to enter into con-
tracts and was also liable to sue and be sued. Section 15 of the
Act classified the objects on which the general funds of a registered
trade union could be spent. Section 16 authorised the constitu-
tion of a separate fund by a registered Trade Union for political
purposes. Sections 17 and 18 granted certain exemptions to Trade
Unions. Provision was also made for the dissolution of Trade
Unions and also their amalgamation with other trade unions.
LORD WILLINGDON (1931-36)
Lord Irwin was succeeded by Lord Willingdon. Before his ap-
pointment as Governor-General, Lord Willingdon was the Gover-
nor of Bombay and Madras from 1913 to 1924. From 1926 to
1930, he was the Governor-General of Canada. It was during his
Viceroyalty that the Second Round Table Conference met in Lon-
don in 1931. Nothing came out of this Conference as Mr. Jinnah
refused to come to terms with Mahatma Gandhi and the Mahatma
left the Conference in disgust. As soon as he came back to India,
the truce between the Government and the Congress came to an
end. Mahatma Gandhi was arrested and in order to meet the
civil disobedience campaign started by the Congress, the Govern-
ment promulgated four Ordinances. A large number of persons
were arrested and convicted.
There was acute economic distress in the United Provinces. Both
the landlords and cultivators were hard hit. The Government
remitted land revenue to the tune of Rs. 68 lakhs to begin with and
## p. 957 (#1001) ###########################################
LORD WILLINGDON
957
later on increased the same to Rs. 109 lakhs. In spite of this, the
tenants were not satisfied and they refused to pay rents. The result
was that the Government promulgated the United Provinces Emer-
gency Powers Ordinance. A large number of persons including
Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru were arrested in this connection towards
the end of 1931.
There was similar trouble in the North-Western Frontier Pro-
vince. Under the leadership of Khan Abdul Gaffar Khan, the Red
Shrits started a campaign in favour of non-payment of rents and
taxes. Ordinances were promulgated in this area also and Khan
Abdul Gaffar Khan was arrested.
In August 1932, the British Prime Minister, Mr. Ramsay Mac-
Donald, gave the Communal Award in which it was laid down as
to how many seats were to be given to the various communities in
India. Separate electorates were granted to the Muslims, Indian
Christians, Sikhs and Europeans. Provision was also made for
separate constituencies for the Depressed Classes. The Muslim
League welcomed the Communal Award but the Hindus condemn-
ed it. However, the Congress neither accepted it nor rejected it.
Mahatma Gandhi opposed the setting up of separate constituencies
for the depressed classes and began a fast unto death unless and
until the Depressed Classes were put along with the Hindus. There
were hectic negotiations and ultimately the Poona Pact was signed.
The Poona Pact abolished the separate constituencies of the De-
pressed Classes but reserved seats for them from the quota of the
Hindus.
Towards the end of 1932, the Third Round Table Conference
was held. The Congress members were in the jails and hence the
Conference was boycotted by them. However, the other Indians
attended it and delegates reached an agreement on many points.
Their proposals were published in a White Paper in March, 1933.
The White Paper proposed a federation of 11 Provinces and those
Indian States which were willing to join it on certain conditions.
It provided for a bicameral Federal Legislature to which the Exe-
cutive was to be responsible. However, the Governor-General was
given many special powers which could be exercised by him even
without consulting his ministers. Provincial autonomy was to be
established in the Provinces and ordinarily the Governor was ex-
pected to act according to the wishes of the ministers. The White
Paper proposals were rejected by the people of India as too many
discretionary powers were given to the Governor-General and the
Governors. The people also did not like the federal scheme as pro-
posed in the White Paper.
In 1933, Mahatma Gandhi undertook a second fast. This fast
## p. 958 (#1002) ###########################################
958
POLITICAL DEVELOPMENTS SINCE 1919
>
was intended to help the cause of the Harijans. Mahatma Gandhi
intended to shake the conscience of the Hindus towards the un-
touchables in Hindu society. This fast lasted for 21 days.
Civil disobedience movement was suspended for 6 weeks to
begin with but later on it was completely abandoned. In its place,
individual civil disobedience movement to be practised by private
individuals was started. Mahatma Gandhi contemplated a march
from Ahmedabad to the Kaira District but he was arrested and
imprisoned. While the Mahatma was in jail, he started his third
fast and the Government released him after a week as his condi-
tion was found to be dangerous. Many attempts were made to
start the civil disobedience movement but they did not succeed.
In 1934, Mahatma Gandhi put an end to the campaign saying:
“In future no Congressman except myself shall practise Civil Dis-
obedience. "
There was a wave of terrorism in the country during this period.
Within 3 years, 3 District Magistrates of Midnapore alone were
shot dead by the terrorists. On 8 May, 1934, a desperate attempt
was made on the life of Sir John Anderson, Governor of Bengal,
by two young terrorists but luckily he survived. The Governor
showed courage and coolness while facing the assailants.
The Government of India Act was passed in 1935 but only a
part of it came into force on 1 April, 1937.
Earthquakes took place in Bihar and Quetta. There was a ter-
rible loss of life and property. In the case of Bihar, a lot of useful
work was done by societies like the Arya Samaj and Dr. Rajendra
Prasad made a special mention of this fact. In the case of Quetta,
the Earthquake was so terrible that in one night the whole of the
population of Quetta disappeared. Thousands of men, women and
children died under the debris of their houses which shook and
collapsed in that fateful night.
The Indian Press (Emergency Powers) Act, 1931, Foreign Rela-
tions Act, 1932 and Indian States (Protection) Act, 1934 were
passed during the regime of Lord Willingdon. The object of the
Indian Press (Emergency Powers) Act, 1931 was to provide
against the publication of that matter which incited or encouraged
murder or violence. Provision was made for the deposit of security
by the keepers of printing presses. The provincial Government
was given the power to forfeit the security of a press in certain cases.
If a printer applied for a fresh declaration, he could be asked by
a magistrate to deposit a security of the value of not less than
Rs. 1,000 and not more than Rs. 10,000 as the magistrate might
think fit. If, after the deposit of a new security, a newspaper pub-
lished objectionable matter, the provincial Government could for-
## p. 959 (#1003) ###########################################
INDIAN PRESS (EMERGENCY POWERS) ACT
959
feit the new security also. Provisions which applied to keepers of
printing presses applied equally to the publishers of newspapers.
Section 11 penalised the keeping of printing presses and the publish-
ing of newspapers without making the security deposit as required
by the provincial Government or the magistrate. If a press did
not deposit the security but continued to do its work, it could
be forfeited to His Majesty and the declaration of the publi-
sher was liable to be cancelled Any police officer empowered
for that purpose by the provincial Government could seize
any unauthorised news sheets or unauthorised newspapers wher-
ever found and the same could be ordered to be destroyed by a
magistrate. The Government was given the power to seize and
forfeit undeclared presses producing unauthorised news sheets and
newspapers. The penalty for disseminating unauthorised news
sheets and newspapers was imprisonment up to 6 months, with or
without fine. The provincial Government was given the power to
declare certain publications forfeited to His Majesty and also issue
search warrants for the same. The Customs Officers were autho-
rised to detain packages containing certain publications when im-
ported into British India. No unauthorised news sheets or news-
papers could be transmitted by post.
The powers conferred by the Act were undoubtedly sweeping in
their nature and scope. Those were actually used by the Provin-
cial Governments to prohibit the publication of the names and por-
traits of well-known leaders of the Civil Disobedience Movement
as the publication of such pictures tended to encourage the move-
The other restraints included the prohibition of the publi-
cation of Congress propaganda of any kind including messages
from the persons arrested, messages issued or purported to be issued
from persons in jail, exaggerated reports of political events, notices
and advertisements of meetings, processions and other activities
tending to promote Civil Disobedience Movement or any other
matter in furtherance of the same. Under this Act, the Govern-
ment took action against many newspapers. The printers and
publishers of the Bombay Chronicle were called upon to deposit
Rs. 3,000 each for publishing an article by Mr. Horniman. The
printer and publisher of the Anand Bazar Patrika each received a
demand for Rs. 1,000. A security of Rs. 6,000 was demanded from
the Amrit Bazar Patrika. Rs. 6,000 were deposited by The Liberty
of Calcutta. A security of Rs. 6,000 was deposited by the Free
Press Journal and later on forfeited by the Bombay Government.
Similar action was taken against other newspapers. There was
virtually a reign of terror in the country.
The Foreign Relations Act, 1932 replaced an Ordinance of 1931.
## p. 960 (#1004) ###########################################
960
POLITICAL DEVELOPMENTS SINCE 1919
Its object was to penalise publications calculated to interfere with
the maintenance of good relations between His Majesty's Govern-
ment and friendly foreign states. The necessity of this law arose
when the Indian newspapers criticised the administration in certain
states adjoining the frontiers of India. The Act provided that
where an offence under Chapter XXI of the Indian Penal Code
was committed against the ruler of a State outside but adjoining
India or against the consort or son of principal minister of such a
ruler, the Governor-General in Council could make or autho-
rise any person to make a complaint in writing of such an offence
and any court competent in other respects to take cognizance of
such offence could take cognizance of such a complaint. Any
book, newspaper or other document containing defamatory matter
which tended to prejudice the maintenance of friendly relations
between His Majesty's Government and the Government of such
State, could be detained in the same manner as seditious literature.
In January 1933, four Ordinances were promulgated which con-
ferred certain powers on the Government for the maintenance of
law and order and widened the operative section of the Indian Press
(Emergency Powers) Act, 1931 so as to permit action against the
publication of matter calculated to encourage the Civil Disobe-
dience Movement.
The object of the Indian States (Protection) Act, 1934 was to
prevent unreasonable attacks on the administration of the Indian
States in the newspapers of British India and to provide the author-
ities in British India with powers to deal with bands or demons-
trators organised on semi-military lines for the purpose of entering
and spreading dis-affection in the territories of Indian States.
LORD LINLITHGOW (1936-1943)
Before his appointment as Governor-General, Lord Linlithgow
had a brilliant career. He was the Chairman of the Royal Com-
mission on Indian Agriculture. He was also the Chairman of the
Joint Select Committee on Indian Constitutional Reforms. He had
a hand in the drafting of the Government of India Act, 1935. No
wonder, he was sent to India to work out the law in the making
of which he had a hand.
It goes without saying that Lord Linlithgow did all that he
could to bring the states into the Federation so that the whole of
the Government of India Act could be enforced. It was partly
due to opposition from the Congress and the Muslim League to
the Federal part of the Government of India Act and also due to
unwillingness on the part of the Indian States to join the Federation
## p. 961 (#1005) ###########################################
LORD LINLITHGOW
961
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that the whole of the Government of India Act was not brought
into force on 1 April, 1937. Only that part of the Act which relat-
ed to Provincial Autonomy was brought into force on 1 April, 1937.
The Government hoped that the rest of the Act would be brought
into force later on.
It is true that the Indian National Congress did not approve of
the Act of 1935, but in spite of it, the Congress fought the Provin-
cial elections in the beginning of 1937. Although the Congress
got a majority in 7 Provinces, it refused to form ministries unless
and until a guarantee was given by the Governors concerned that
they would not interfere in the day to day working of the Provin-
cial Government. As the Governors refused to give such an under-
taking, a constitutional deadlock followed. Ultimately, Lord Lin-
lithgow asked the Governors to give such an undertaking as would
help the Congress Ministries to take office. To begin with, the
Congress formed ministries in 7 Provinces and later on in 8 Provin-
This state of affairs continued for more than two years and
during this period, the Congress ministries did a lot of useful work
in their respective Provinces.
The Congress Ministries resigned in October-November, 1939,
on account of differences between the Governor-General and the
Congress on the question of the second World War. What actu-
ally happened was that when the second World War broke out in
September, 1939, Lord Linlithgow declared war on behalf of India
against Germany. This he did without consulting the Congress.
It is true that constitutionally the stand taken by him was correct
but the view of the Congress was that the Viceroy should have
declared the war only after consulting the leaders and the people
of India. The Congress was also of the view that before declaring
war, the British Government ought to have declared its war-aims.
As nothing of the kind had been done, it showed that the Govern-
ment of India did not ask for help from the people. On 19 Octo-
ber, 1939, Lord Linlithgow reaffirmed the promise that Dominion
Status and complete equality were the goals of British policy in
India. However, the Congress was not satisfied and asked the Con-
gress Ministries to resign and the same was actually done.
The Congress started its campaign of opposition to the Govern-
ment and its war efforts. The opposition took the form of indivi-
dual civil disobedience. This was to be done by private persons in
their individual capacity and the same was not required to be done
on a nation-wide scale.
The Viceroy continued his negotiations with the various political
parties in the country with a view to secure their cooperation in the
administration of the country and the prosecution of the war. While
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## p. 962 (#1006) ###########################################
962
POLITICAL DEVELOPMENTS SINCE 1919
the attitude of the Congress was positively hostile, that of the
Muslim League was a mild one. The Muslim League under Mr.
Jinnah did nothing to hamper the war-effort of the Government.
In 1940, Lord Linlithgow made the famous August Offer but the
same was rejected by the Congress. The result was that the Vice-
roy took into his Executive Council the leaders of other political
parties and there the matter arrested for the time being, and the
war continued.
Another attempt was made by the British Government to resolve
the deadlock in India in March, 1942. This was done under
very pressing circumstances. On 8 March, 1942, the Japanese
Army entered Rangoon. Colombo was bombarded and some
bombs fell on the Eastern coast of India. Calcutta was also
threatened and people began to leave the city in large numbers.
It was under these circumstances that Sir Stafford Cripps who at
that time was the Leader of the House of Commons in England,
was sent to India with certain proposals with a view to end the
constitutional deadlock in the country. Sir Stafford did not im-
press Mahatma Gandhi and the Cripps proposals were rejected by
the Congress. The Mahatma described the Cripps proposals as a
"post-dated cheque on a crashing bank. ” Although Cripps did
not say so in so many words, his proposals virtually granted Pakis-
tan to the Muslim League. The Congress which stood for the
unity of India could not be expected to be a party to such proposals.
After the departure of Cripps, the Congress was in a desperate
mood. It was determined to do something which could bring the
independence of India nearer. With that object in view, the All-
India Congress Committee met at Bombay and passed the famous
Quit India resolution on 8 August, 1942, calling on the British to
quit the country forthwith. The Government also hit back. All
the top-ranking Congressmen were arrested throughout the coun-
try and they remained in jails for about 3 years. As the people
were left without any leadership, they resorted to whatever came
in their minds. There was a wave of disturbances in various parts
of the country. So great was the mob fury that in certain parts
of India, British authority disappeared completely for a few days.
People set fire to whatever fell into their hands. It is stated that
250 Railway Stations and 300 Post Offices were either damaged or
destroyed. 150 Police Stations were attacked. A number of offi-
cials and soldiers were killed. About 900 civilians lost their lives.
In 1943 there took place a terrible famine in Bengal. The
famine was due to many causes.
As a result of the third year of
the war, prices were soaring. In order to take advantage of the
high prices the agriculturists sold their crops and paid off their
## p. 963 (#1007) ###########################################
BENGAL FAMINE
963
debts and did not care to keep sufficient foodgrains for their own
sustenance. There was no import of food-stuffs from outside ex-
cept from Burma and that also was cut off after the fall of Burma
into the hands of the Japanese. Rice completely disappeared from
the market. Food shortage was in every part of the country and
there was no surplus in any part of India which could be sent to
Bengal. There was no system of rationing in the country by which
the available food-stuffs all over the country could be equitably dis-
tributed among all the people of India. The demand for food-
grains had also increased in India on account of war-conditions in
the country. Black market developed in foodgrains and what-
ever grains were available were sold at very high prices which the
poor people of Bengal could not afford to pay. The result was the
worst type of famine in Bengal in 1943. Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit
reported in October 1943 that about 700 persons were dying every
day in Calcutta. It was estimated that between August and Octo-
ber, 1943, 4,794 persons died in the streets and this figure did not
include 2,492 who had died in the hospitals during the same period.
It was estimated that between 16 October and 23 October, 1943,
2,155 persons died. On 28 July, 1944, Mr. Amery, Secretary of
State for India declared in the House of Commons that "in Bengal
last year about 700,000 human beings died as a consequence of
that famine. ” Another estimate is that 1/2 million human lives
were lost during that famine. The famine situation continued to
worsen till Lord Wavell took over as Governor-General in Octo-
ber 1943. He handed over the work of relief distribution to the
British Army. A system of rationing was introduced in all the
large towns of India and thus the situation was brought under
control. Lord Linlithgow earned a very bad name on account of
his failure to check the famine.
It cannot be denied that during the regime of Lord Linlithgow,
the Muslim League became a powerful organisation. When the
Congress ministries were in office, the Muslim League was allowed
to condemn them without any rhyme or reason. The Government
failed to stop the baseless allegations levelled by one political party
against the other. After the beginning of the second World War
in September 1939, the Viceroy was drawn nearer the Muslim
League and its President Mr.
