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Chapter 6 - The Muslim League
Chapter 7 –Lucknow Pact
Revised Syllabus • Factors leading to the formation of the Muslim League and its objectives. • Significance of Lucknow Pact Factors leading to the Formation of MiuslimLeague 1. Loss of Sovereignty by Mughal Rulers The British established their supremacy in India by dethroning the Mughal rulers who were the followers of Islam. Therefore, the Muslim became bitter enemies of the British. Muslims took part in Wahabi movement and also the great uprising of 1857 with the aim of dethroning British Government. 2. British Policy of Divide and Rule: To check the growth of a united nation and to encourage communal feelings, British decided to follow the policy of ‘Divide and Rule’. i. In 1871, Lord Mayo’s government adopted a resolution which made Urdu the medium of instruction for Muslims and increased government aid to educational institutions run by the Muslims. ii. They tried to create hatred among the Hindu8s and Muslims by portraying Muslim rulers as plunderers, and Hindu rulers as cruel kings to their Muslim subjects. iii. They tried to justify the Partition of Bengal by convincing the Muslims that Bengal was partitioned to create a new Muslim majority province where Hindus would not be able to subvert their intrersts. iv. They tried to use caste structure to turn the non-brahminsand the lower castes against high castes. 3.Relative backwardness of the Muslimcommunity in Education,Trade and Industry • The upper class Muslims comprising zamindars and aristocrats, during the first 70 years of the 19th century were Anti-British. They were conservative and hostile to modern education. Because of this, the number of Muslims educated in western system of education remained small. • The British government in India had consciously discriminated against the Muslims after 1858, holding them responsible for the uprising of 1857. • The Muslim community was not much involved in the growth of any organised industry. Here too they lagged behind. • Some members of Muslim community did not keep up with the modern trends in social and cultural spheres because they were proud of their own literature and culture and did not adopt western system of education. 4. Role of Sir Sayyid Ahmed Khan • Sayyid Ahmad Khan was a great educationist and a social reformer. a. He regarded Hindus and Muslims to be one Quam (nation) b. He founded Mohammedan Anglo-Oriental College at Aligarh which had both Hindu and Muslim patrons. But he under the influence of Mr.Beck, the British principal of Mohammedan Anglo-oriental college, in 1880s, gave up his earlier views and declared that the political views of Hindus and Muslims were different. c. He founded the United Indian Patriotic Association in 1888 with a view to oppose congress d. He also felt that if British leave India, the Hindus would dominate Muslims as they are majority in number. So he requested that if educated Indians would support British rule, it will be a safeguard for Muslims in India. 5. Erroneous Interpretation of History i. Some British and communal historians divided Indian history into the Hindu and the Muslim Periods. The rule of Turks, Afghans and Mughals was called the Muslim rule, where the rulers were said to be the followers of Islam and their subjects, the follower of other religion. In the so-called Hindu period, Muslims rulers were dubbed as foreign invaders who had settled in India. They portrayed Rana Pratap and Shivaji as national heroes and Akbar and Aurangazeb as foreigners and infused communal feelings. ii. The communal bias was propagated through poetry, drama, novels, short stories, newspapers ,etc. iii. They also ignored the notion of a composite culture in two communuities. 6. Rise of Assertive Nationalism a. The propogation of shivaji and ganapati festivals by Tilak b. Aurobindo Ghosh’s concept of India as mother and nationalism as religion c. The initiation of Anti-Partition agitation and dips in the Ganga did not appeal to some of the Muslims. 7. Economic backwardness of the country
• Due to British colonial policies, India lacked modern
industrial development and there was acute unemployment among the educated youth. • This led the people to ask reservation in jobs on the basis of caste,creed or religion. • British used this opportunity to push further their policy to push further their policy of divide and rule.However, the unemployed people failed to realise that the British themselves were responsible for the economic backwardness. 8. Hindi-Urdu Controversy • Urdu was the court language of United Provinces ( present Uttar Pradesh) and some of the society protested against this practice. • As a result , On April 8,1900 the government instructed that all petitions to be submitted in Hindi and the court summons and official announcements to be issued in Hindi as well as in Urdu. The Muslims resented this. 9. Partition of Bengal • The purpose of partition was to create a wedge between Hindus and muslims and to stop the rising tide of nationalism. • British try to win over the favour of Muslims by giving them a muslim dominated province. Formation of Muslim League • Nawab Salimullah took the initiative. The proposal to form a central organisation for Muslims was accepted and a political aassociation “All India Muslim League” was set up on December 30,1906 under the Presidentship of Nawab Salimullah. • Agha Khan was chosen as the permanent President of the Muslim League. • Its headquarters were to be at Aligarh but its central office was shifted to Lucknow. Aims and objectives of Muslim League Short keyword -PPPP
1. To promote among Muslims of India, support for British
Government 2. To remove any misconception regarding the intention of government in relation to Indian Muslims 3. To protect and advance the political rights and interests of Muslims and to represent their needs and aspirations to the government in mild and moderate language 4. To prevent the rise of hostility between the Muslims of India and other communities. Significance of Lucknow Pact • It forged unity between the Hindus and Muslims • It forged unity between two factions of the congress- Early and Assertive Nationalists. • The unity pressurised the British to introduce reforms • Necessity to pacify Indians-The British felt it necessary to pacify Indians by the declaration of August 20, 1917 whish promised development of self-governing institutions in India.