Round Table Conference

Round table conference is actually a series of conferences held between the British government
and Indian political personalities to maintain peace in the country and bring out constitutional
reforms in India. In Indian history, the British administration convened the Round table
conference in three sessions between 1930 and 1932 to discuss the potential future of the
Indian Constitution. The meeting was a product of the Simon commission's assessment of the
Government of India Act 1919, which was started in 1927 and whose report was released in
1930. The meeting took place in London.

Round Table Conference Dates

The round table conference dates for the first, second, and third meetings are as follows:
• The first Round table conference was held between November 12, 1930, to January 19,
1931.
• The 2nd round table was held between September to December 1931.
• And the 3rd round table conference was held between November 17 to December 24,
1932.

First Round Table Conference

The British administration held three round table conferences to consider constitutional changes
in India between 1930 to 1932, the first of which was held in 1930. The 1930 report of the Simon
Commission was followed during these conferences.

The first Round table conference was formally launched by British king George V on 12th
November 1930 in London at the House of Lords under the leadership of Ramsay McDonald,
who was the prime minister of the country at that time.

History of First Round Table Conference

A total of three round table conferences have been held altogether. The Indian National Council
did not attend the first and last conferences. In fact, during the conference, there was a
movement going on in India named Civil Disobedience Movement.
• Demands for India to be given Dominion status were growing in some sectors of the
British political system.
• The flamboyant Mahatma Gandhi was super-heading the fight for Purna Swaraj while
the Liberation Movement in India was in full swing.
• The foundation of the discussions was the advice given by Mohammad Ali Jinnah and
Simon Commission report to Lord Irwin, who was the viceroy of India at that time and
Ramsay McDonald who was the British prime minister at that time.
• For the very first time, the Indians and British interacted as equals. The inaugural round
table conference started on 12th November 1930. Although Congress and other notable
business figures declined to attend the meeting, numerous other Indian organizations
were present at it.
Features of First Round Table Conference
The British government and prominent Indian politicians convened the three Round Table
Conferences in 1930–1932, a series of peace conferences, to propose constitutional changes in
India. These lasted from November 30, 1930, until December 31, 1932.

• The inaugural Round table conference, which was held in London from November 1930
to 1931 December, was presided over by Ramsay McDonald.
• The British and Indians finally met on equal footing at this point.
• Congress and a few well-known corporate figures declined to participate in the
conference.
• Other members like Hindu Mahasabha, Muslim League, Justice Party, and the Princely
States were present at the first Round table conference.
• Although the first meeting was held, nothing was achieved.
• The British administration acknowledged that any debate regarding the Governance of
the future constitution of India would definitely require the presence of the Indian
National Congress.

Participants of First Round Table Conference

During the period when the first Round table conference was being organised, there was an
ongoing civil disobedience movement in India because of which the Indian National Congress
and many other eminent political leaders did not turn up for the Round Table Conference.
• However Indian National Congress was not part of the first Round table conference. Still,
many delegates marked their presence.
• There were 16 delegates as representatives from three British political parties, 74
delegates from India, of which 58 delegates belonged to some Indian political parties,
and the rest 16 delegates were the rulers of Indian princely states.
• Additionally, there were representatives from Burma, Sindh, Bihar, Orissa, and other
United provinces.
• Because most of the members of the Indian National Congress or any other notable
political party leader worked behind bars for their participation in the civil disobedience
movement, none of the eminent political leaders from India participated in the
conference.

Issues Discussed in First Round Table Conference

Although the Congress was not a member of the first Round table conference, other
participants, along with the British government, had discussed some issues. Several issues
were discussed in the first round table conference, some of them are as follows:
• The Framework for Central Government.
• The constitution of the province was examined.
• Minorities Defence Services in Sindh and the Northwest Frontier provinces.
• Legislative oversight of the executive branch.
• Separate electoral votes for untouchables were pushed for by Dr BR Ambedkar.
• The all-India Federation was proposed by Tej Bahadur Sapru, with which the Muslim
League agreed.
• As long as their internal autonomy was upheld, the princely states agreed.
Effects of First Round Table Conference
No solid conclusion or effects of the first Round table conference would be drawn because of
the absence of the Indian National Congress and the ongoing civil disobedience movement
initiated by Mahatma Gandhi in India.
• The first Round table conference was in session until 19th January 1931. Although
numerous reform concept work was agreed upon, very little of them was put into
practice, and Indian National Congress continued its civil disobedience.
• It was thought that the conference was a flop. The British government recognized the
necessity and significance of the Congress Party making any decision on the country's
political destiny.

Outcomes of First Round Table Conference

The first Round table conference had only a few outcomes India would become a republic
defence, financial protections would be negotiated, and other departments would be transferred.
• The first round table took place between 1930 and 1931.
• Although the amendments made at the round table conference were approved, they
were never put into practice.
• The civil disobedience movement was continued by Indian National Congress leaders
during the first conference. This proves that the first meeting was seen as a failure.
• The British government expressed hope for Indian National Congress leaders'
attendance at the second round table conference and acknowledged the significance of
the presence of the Congress Party for successful plan execution.
• The Gandhi-Irwin pact, which put a stop to the civil disobedience movement and decided
to participate in the 2nd conference was signed by Mahatma Gandhi and Lord Irwin in
March 1931.

Second Round Table Conference

The Congress abstained from the first Round table conference, which was not successful at all.
The Gandhi-Irwin pact which was reached between Viceroy Lord Irwin and Mahatma Gandhi in
response to some requests, led the Congress to the second round table conference. The
meeting of the 2nd round table commenced on 7th September 1931. During this period,
McDonald was heading a coalition political alliance with a majority and appointing Samuel
Hoare as the Secretary Head of India.
On November 7, 1931, Mahatma Gandhi and McDonald had a meeting in which the
Government of India Act 1935 was enacted as a result. There were many differences between
the first and second round table conference on the grounds of representation of the Indian
National Congress, the Government of Britain, the finances, etc.

Participants of Second Round Table Conference

As compared to the first conference, the second round table conference was attended by some
intellectual and political leaders along with Indian National Congress.
• The British Prime Minister Ramsay McDonald along with other heads of other political
parties, joined the conference.
• Maharajas and rulers of many princely states were part of the second round table
conference.
• There were many representatives of the British Indian group. However, the Indian
National Congress was completely represented by Mahatma Gandhi.
 • Many specific community representatives also joined the conference, like Muhammad Ali
Jinnah Mohammed Iqbal Mohammad zafarullah Khan was the Muslim representative at
the 2nd Round Table Conference.
• Deewan Bahadur Raja Narendra Nath, B.S. Moonje per Hindu representatives.
• Bhim Rao Ambedkar was the representative of the depressed classes.
• Sarojini Naidu and Radhabai Subramanian were the women representatives, and many
Indian Christian justice parties and Anglo-Indian Sindh industries were the liberal
representatives at the second round table conference.

Outcome of Second Round Table Conference

The second round table conference could not produce any meaningful conclusions about the
constitution of India because there was no consensus between the diverse delegate groups.
The administration also refused to give into the fundamental demand for freedom made by
Indians.
• The second round table conference got underway on 7 September 1931. The Indian
National Congress was present at the conference, which significantly differed from the
first.
• Another distinction was that, Unlike the last conference, the British Prime Minister
McDonald was in charge of our national administration rather than a labour one. In
Britain, the labour party had been overthrown to weights earlier than the conference was
held.
• By creating distinct electorates for the minority population, the British decided to provide
a communal prize for representing minorities in India which was highly opposed by
Mahatma Gandhi.
• On the contrary, Bhimrao Ambedkar was quite in favour of this decision therefore,
Bhimrao Ambedkar and Mahatma Gandhi had two different opinions on the need for
separate electorates for the underprivileged section of the concept of separating
untouchables from the Hindu society.

Third Round Table Conference

The third round table conference was the final one. It took place on November 17, 1932. The
Indian National Congress chose to skip the convention due to their dissatisfaction. The British
Labour Party and INC both declined to attend the summit.
Only 46 persons from the summit remained, and several prominent political figures were absent.
From September 1931 through March 1933, it took place. This suggested several changes to
the 1935 Government of India Act. Sir Samuel Hoare oversaw the completion of all of these
tasks.

Participants of Third Round Table Conference

The number of participants in the third round table conference was comparatively lower than in
the 2nd conference.
• Only 46 delegates attended the third round table conference since the majority of
political leaders could not turn up for the meeting.
• The British labour party declined to participate in the conference, and this time Indian
National Congress was not invited to the conference.
• The representative of British Indians in the 3rd conference was Aga Khan 3.
 • Again, the depressed class was represented by Bhimrao Ambedkar, and this time
Begum Jahanara was the representative of women, whereas the representatives of
liberal delegates were the same as in the second conference.

Outcome of Third Round Table Conference

The outcome of the 3rd round table conference was also not game-changing. Some of the
recommendations were made in the third conference, which was published in a white paper in
1933, on the basis of which the government of India Act 1935 was passed.
• Nothing significant was addressed at the round table meeting because most of the
Important political leaders and rulers of princely states were not present in the third
round table conference.
• The suggestions and recommendations made at this conference were written down and
considered by the British Parliament.
• After deeply analysing the report submitted in the white paper, the Government of Britain
decided to pass the Government of India Act 1935.