By
Saquib Salim, New Age Islam
9 February
2023
The Bengal Tenancy Amendment Bill Was Passed
Into Law In The Teeth Of Muslim Opposition.” Maulvi Pointed Out That By
Dividing Hindus And Muslims Along Communal Lines The British Made Sure That
Their Say Became A Must In Passing Any Bill.
-----
“As long as
elections are sought on communal and religious issues and not on political and
economic issues and candidates have to seek election by appealing to the
religious and fanatical sentiments of the electorates, the establishment of
good feelings and cordial relations between the two communities (Muslims and
Hindus) is impossible to achieve.” Maulvi Abdus Samad told this to the press in
February 1940 in the capacity of the President of the ‘Anti-Separate Electorate
League’.
Any book on
the history of modern India is incomplete without the mention of separate
electorates. The British did not introduce limited democracy in India without
mixing their divide-and-rule policy with it. Separate Electorates were
introduced. It meant that Muslims would vote only for a fixed number of Muslim
candidates, Christians for Christians, and so on. The idea was welcomed by many
communal parties, Muslim League being the largest of them.
Several
scholars and politicians have since argued that communal politics and the
partition of India were direct outcomes of separate electorates. Maulana Abul
Kalam Azad, Asaf Ali, Khwaja Abdul Hamied, and several prominent nationalist
Muslim leaders opposed this colonial scheme, which had the backing of communal
leaders of the Muslim League. Still, a large section of Indian society believes
that separate electorates waas a popular demand of Muslims. It was not.
Almost no
history book mentions the very existence of an outfit called ‘The anti-Separate
Electorate League’ formed in Bengal by Maulvi Abdus Samad, a nationalist leader
from Murshidabad. Several other leaders like Moeenuddin Husein and Rezaul Karim
also joined in. No prominent historian wrote about the Muslims who had opposed
this divisive scheme. We can never be sure of their intentions but generations
of Indians kept believing that Muslims demanded separate electorates and were
more than happy after getting them.
History
books did not try to show the other side that a Muslim member of the Bengal
Council moved a resolution against the scheme on 2 August 1932 with the
considerable support of other Muslim members. The resolution demanding the
implementation of joint electorates in place of separate electorates passed
with 47 votes in favour against 32 in opposition.
The
resolution was moved by Maulvi Abdus Samad. While moving the resolution, he
argued that it was the British Government and Bureaucracy which had brought its
stooges as representatives of Muslims to forward the demand for a separate
electorate. He asked, “they have not yet explained how the interests of the
community can be best safeguarded by separate electorate…… We have been
enjoying this privilege for a long time, but let us see how it has safeguarded
our interests in the past. The Bengal Tenancy Amendment Bill was passed into
law in the teeth of Muslim opposition.” Maulvi pointed out that by dividing
Hindus and Muslims along communal lines the British made sure that their say
became a must in passing any bill.
Maulvi
further lamented the fact that under this system elections were being contested
on religious issues instead of economic and social development. He said, “since
the inauguration of the reformed constitution the fatwas of the mullas are
playing a very important part in politics and council elections”. This
introduction of religion into politics, he believed, would create obstacles in
the overall development of the Muslim community itself.
Not many
Muslims believed in a separate electorate. Maulvi argued, “separate electorate
is highly detrimental to the interests of the Muslim community and other
backward and minority communities and is anti-national and inconsistent with
responsible form of government and as such the nationalist Muslims are not
prepared to accept it, under any circumstance, even with a statutory majority.
So, the electorate must be joint.”
The motion
put to the vote said, “This council recommends to the Government that it be
pleased to inform the proper authorities concerned that in the opinion of this
council, the system of the separate electorate in the future constitution of
the country should be replaced by a system of the joint electorate”. The motion
passed with 47 against 32, where Maulvi Abdus Samad was supported by several
Muslims like Maulvi Hassan Ali, Maulvi Syed Majid Baksh, Maulvi Nural Absar
Chaudhury, Maulvi Abdul Hakim, Qazi Emdadul Haque, Maulvi Azizur Rahman, Maulvi
Abdul Hamid Shah, and others. Muslims like Maulvi Tamizuddin Khan voted against
it, not for the reason that they were in support of a separate electorate but
because they believed that the resolution should be passed for Universal Adult
Franchise, which, in view of Abdus Samad, was not practical at that time.
With all
the opposition from Muslims, the British went ahead and kept the separate
electorates. Maulvi Abdus Samad formed a party to oppose this. In 1934, at a
public meeting, he said, “The Communal Award would usher in an era of
fratricidal strife in the country. We opposed separate electorates because it
would more seriously affect the interests of the Muslim community than those of
the Hindu community. The continuance of the separate electorates would merely
strengthen the hands of the bureaucracy.”
Parful
Chandra Ray, writing on the issue in 1935 wrote, “it would be a gross calumny
on the awakened national consciousness of our Moslem brethren to assert that
they stand aloof (and support communal politics) in this hour of upheaval.” He
described Maulvi Abdus Samad as a “noble son of Bengal, who has consistently
and persistently maintained his position” and upheld secularism.
The time
has erased the names of nationalist Muslims giving an impression that Muslim
leadership was communal in the pre-independence era. Historians have glossed
over people like Maulvi Abdus Samad and organizations like the ‘Anti-Separate
Electorate League’.
URL: https://newageislam.com/interfaith-dialogue/nationalism-maulvi-electorate-league/d/129060
New Age Islam, Islam Online, Islamic Website, African Muslim News, Arab World News, South Asia News, Indian Muslim News, World Muslim News, Women in
Islam, Islamic
Feminism, Arab Women, Women In Arab, Islamophobia
in America, Muslim Women
in West, Islam Women
and Feminism