Anglo-Indian Round Table
Conferences
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The three Round Table Conferences of 1930–32 were a series
of conferences organized by the British Government to discuss constitutional
reforms in India. They were conducted as per the recommendation of Jinnah to
Viceroy Lord Irwin and Prime Minister Ramsay MacDonald,[1][2] and by the report
submitted by the Simon Commission in May 1930. Demands for swaraj, or
self-rule, in India had been growing increasingly strong. By the 1930s, many
British politicians believed that India needed to move towards dominion status.
However, there were significant disagreements between the Indian and the
British political parties that the Conferences would not resolve.
First Round Table Conference (November 1930 – January 1931)
The Round Table Conference officially inaugurated by His
Majesty George V on November 12, 1930 in Royal Gallery House of Lords at London
and chaired by the British Prime Minister, Ramsay MacDonald.
The three British political parties were represented by
sixteen delegates. There were fifty-eight political leaders from British India
and sixteen delegates from the princely states. In total 74 delegates from
India attended the Conference. However, the Indian National Congress, along
with Indian business leaders, kept away from the conference. Many of them were
in jail for their participation in Civil Disobedience Movement.
Participants
British Representatives:
Labour Party : Ramsay Macdonald, Lord Sankey, Wedgwood Benn,
Arthur Henderson, J. H. Thomas, William Jowitt, Hastings Lees-Smith, Earl
Russell
Conservative Party: Earl Peel, Marquess of Zetland, Samuel
Hoare, Oliver Stanley
Liberal Party : Marquess of Reading, Marquess of Lothian,
Sir Robert Hamilton, Isaac Foot
Indian States' Representatives: Maharaja of Alwar, Maharaja
of Baroda, Nawab of Bhopal, Maharaja of Bikaner, Rana of Dholpur, Maharaja of
Jammu and Kashmir, Maharaja of Nawanagar, Maharaja of Patiala (Chancellor of
the Chamber of Princes), Maharaja of Rewa, Chief Sahib of Sangli, Sir
Prabhashankar Pattani (Bhavnagar), Manubhai Mehta (Baroda), Sardar Sahibzada
Sultan Ahmed Khan (Gwalior), Akbar Hydari (Hyderabad), Mirza Ismail (Mysore),
Col. Kailas Narain Haksar (Jammu and Kashmir)
British-Indian Representatives:
Muslim League:
1.
Aga Khan III (leader of British-Indian
delegation),
2.
Maulana Mohammad Ali Jauhar,
3.
Muhammad Shafi,
4.
Muhammad Ali Jinnah,
5.
Muhammad Zafarullah Khan,
6.
A. K. Fazlul Huq,
7.
Hafiz Ghulam Hussain Hidayat Ullah,
8.
Dr. Shafa'at Ahmad Khan,
9.
Raja Sher Muhammad Khan of Domeli,
10.
A. H. Ghuznavi
Hindus:
1.
B. S. Moonje,
2.
M. R. Jayakar,
3.
Diwan Bahadur Raja Narendra Nath
Liberals:
1.
J. N. Basu,
2.
Tej Bahadur Sapru,
3.
C. Y. Chintamani,
4.
V. S. Srinivasa Sastri,
5.
Chimanlal Harilal Setalvad
Justice Party:
1.
Arcot Ramasamy Mudaliar,
2.
Bhaskarrao Vithojirao Jadhav,
3.
Sir A. P. Patro
Depressed Classes:
1.
B. R. Ambedkar,
2.
Rettamalai Srinivasan
Sikhs:
1.
Sardar Ujjal Singh,
2.
Sardar Sampuran Singh
Parsis:
1.
Phiroze Sethna,
2.
Cowasji Jehangir,
3.
Homi Mody
Indian Christians:
1.
K. T. Paul
Europeans:
1.
Sir Hubert Carr,
2.
Sir Oscar de Glanville (Burma),
3.
T. F. Gavin Jones, C. E. Wood (Madras)
Anglo-Indians:
1.
Henry Gidney
Women:
1.
Begum Jahanara Shahnawaz,
2.
Radhabai Subbarayan
Landlords:
1.
Maharaja Kameshwar Singh of Darbhanga (Bihar),
2.
Muhammad Ahmad Said Khan Chhatari (United
Provinces),
3.
Raja of Parlekhmundi (Orissa),
4.
Provash Chandra Mitter
Labour:
1.
N. M. Joshi,
2.
B. Shiva Rao
Universities:
1.
Syed Sultan Ahmed,
2.
Bisheshwar Dayal Seth,
Burma:
1.
U Aung Thin,
2.
Ba U,
3.
M. M. Ohn Ghine
Sindh:
1.
Shah Nawaz Bhutto,
2.
Ghulam Hussain Hidayatullah
Other Provinces:
1.
Chandradhar Barua (Assam),
2.
Sahibzada Abdul Qayyum (NWFP),
3.
S. B. Tambe (Central Provinces)
Government of India:
1.
Narendra Nath Law,
2.
Bhupendra Nath Mitra,
3.
C. P. Ramaswami Iyer,
4.
M. Ramachandra Rao
Officials attending in consultative capacity:
1.
W. M. Hailey,
2.
C. A. Innes,
3.
A. C. MacWatters,
4.
H. G. Haig,
5.
L. W. Reynolds
Indian States Delegation Staff:
Hyderabad:
1.
Sir Richard Chenevix-Trench,
2.
Nawab Mahdi Yar Jung,
3.
Ahmed Hussain,
4.
Nawab Sir Amin Jung Bahadur,
5.
Sir Reginald Glancy
South Indian States:
1.
T. Raghavaiah
Baroda:
2.
V. T. Krishnamachari
Alwar:
1.
Fateh Naseeb Khan
Orissa States:
1.
K. C. Neogy
Nominated by the Chamber of Princes Special Organisation:
1.
L. F. Rushbrook Williams,
2.
Qazi Ali Haidar Abbasi,
3.
Jarmani Dass,
4.
A. B. Latthe,
5.
D. A. Surve
Secretariats:
1.
S. K. Brown,
2.
V. Dawson,
3.
K. S. Fitze,
4.
W. H. Lewis,
5.
R. J. Stopford,
6.
J. Coatman,
7.
Marmaduke Pickthall,
8.
K. M. Panikkar,
9.
N. S. Subba Rao,
10.
Geoffrey Corbett,
11.
A. Latifi,
12.
Girija Shankar Bajpai
Secretariat-General:
1.
R. H. A. Carter, Mian Abdul Aziz,
2.
W. D. Croft, G. E. J. Gent,
3.
B. G. Holdsworth,
4.
R. F. Mudie,
5.
G. S. Rajadhya
Proceedings
The conference started with 6 plenary meetings where
delegates put forward their issues 9 sub committees were formed to deal with
several different matters including federal structure, provincial constitution,
province of Sindh and NWFP, defense services and minorities e.t.c.[4] These
were followed by discussions on the reports of the sub-committees on Federal
Structure, Provincial Constitution, Minorities, Burma, North West Frontier Province,
Franchise, Defense services and Sindh. These were followed by 2 more plenary
meetings and a final concluding session.[3] It was difficult for progress to be
made in the absence of the Indian National Congress but some advances were
made.
The idea of an All-India Federation was moved to the centre
of discussion by Tej Bahadur Sapru.[5] All the groups attending the conference
supported this concept. The princely states agreed to the proposed federation
provided that their internal sovereignty was guaranteed. The Muslim League also
supported the federation as it had always been opposed to a strong Centre. The
British agreed that representative government should be introduced on
provincial level.
Other important discussions were the responsibility of the
executive to the legislature and a separate electorate for the so-called
Untouchables as demanded by Dr. B.R. Ambedkar.
Second Round Table Conference (September – December
1931)[edit]
The Congress had boycotted the first conference was
requested to come to a settlement by Sapru, M. R. Jayakar and V. S. Srinivasa
Sastri. A settlement between Mahatma Gandhi and Viceroy Lord Irwin known as the
Gandhi–Irwin Pact was reached and Gandhi was appointed as the sole
representative of the Congress to the second Round Table Conference. By this
time, there was a coalition Government in Britain with a Conservative majority.
It was held in London in September 1931. The discussion led to the passing of
the Government Of India act of 1935.
Participants
British Representatives:
Labour Party :
1.
Ramsay Macdonald,
2.
Wedgwood Benn,
3.
Arthur Henderson,
4.
William Jowitt,
5.
Hastings Lees-Smith,
6.
F. W.hick-Lawrence,
7.
Lord Sankey,
8.
Lord Snell,
9.
J. H. Thomas
Conservative Party :
1.
Viscount Hailsham,
2.
Samuel Hoare,
3.
Earl Peel,
4.
Oliver Stanley,
5.
Marquess of Zetland
Scottish Unionist:
1.
Walter Elliot
Liberal:
1.
Isaac Foot,
2.
Henry Graham White,
3.
Robert Hamilton,
4.
Marquess of Lothian,
5.
Marquess of Reading,
Indian States' Representatives:
1.
Maharaja of Alwar,
2.
Maharaja of Baroda,
3.
Nawab of Bhopal,
4.
Maharaja of Bikaner,
5.
Maharao of Kutch,
6.
Rana of Dholpur,
7.
Maharaja of Indore,
8.
Maharaja of Jammu and Kashmir,
9.
Maharaja of Kapurthala,
10.
Maharaja of Nawanagar,
11.
Maharaja of Patiala,
12.
Maharaja of Rewa,
13.
Chief Sahib of Sangli,
14.
Raja of Korea,
15.
Raja of Sarila,
16.
Sir Prabhashankar Pattani (Bhavnagar),
17.
Manubhai Mehta (Baroda),
18.
Sardar Sahibzada Sultan Ahmed Khan (Gwalior),
19.
Sir Muhammad Akbar Hydari (Hyderabad),
20.
Mirza Ismail (Mysore),
21.
Col. K.N. Haksar (Jammu and Kashmir),
22.
T. Raghavaiah (Travancore),
23.
Liaqat Hayat Khan (Patiala)
British-Indian Representatives:
Government of India:
1.
C. P. Ramaswami Iyer,
2.
Narendra Nath Law,
3.
M. Ramachandra Rao
Indian National Congress:
1.
Mahatma Gandhi,
2.
A. Rangaswami Iyengar,
3.
Madan Mohan Malaviya
Muslims :
1.
Aga Khan III,
2.
Maulana Shaukat Ali,
3.
Muhammad Ali Jinnah,
4.
A. K. Fazlul Huq,
5.
Muhammad Iqbal,
6.
Muhammad Shafi,
7.
Muhammad Zafarullah Khan,
8.
Syed Ali Imam,
9.
Maulvi Muhammad Shafi Daudi,
10.
Raja Sher Muhammad Khan of Domeli,
11.
A. H. Ghuznavi,
12.
Hafiz Hidayat Hussain,
13.
Sayed Muhammad Padshah Saheb Bahadur,
14.
Dr. Shafa'at Ahmad Khan,
15.
Jamal Muhammad,
16.
khaja Mian Rowther,
17.
Nawab Sahibzada Sayed Muhammad Mehr Shah
Hindus:
1.
M. R. Jayakar,
2.
B. S. Moonje,
3.
Diwan Bahadur Raja Narendra Nath
Liberals:
1.
J. N. Basu,
2.
C. Y. Chintamani,
3.
Tej Bahadur Sapru,
4.
V. S. Srinivasa Sastri,
5.
Chimanlal Harilal Setalvad
Justice Party:
1.
Raja of Bobbili,
2.
Arcot Ramasamy Mudaliar,
3.
Sir A. P. Patro,
4.
Bhaskarrao Vithojirao Jadhav
Depressed Classes:
1.
B. R. Ambedkar,
2.
Rettamalai Srinivasan,
Sikhs:
1.
Sardar Ujjal Singh,
2.
Sardar Sampuran Singh
Parsis:
1.
Cowasji Jehangir,
2.
Homi Mody,
3.
Phiroze Sethna
Indian Christians:
1.
Surendra Kumar Datta,
2.
A. T. Pannirselvam
Europeans:
1.
E. C. Benthall,
2.
Sir Hubert Carr,
3.
T. F. Gavin Jones,
4.
C. E. Wood (Madras)
Anglo-Indians:
1.
Henry Gidney
Women:
1.
Sarojini Naidu,
2.
Begum Jahanara Shahnawaz,
3.
Radhabai Subbarayan
Landlords:
1.
Muhammad Ahmad Said Khan Chhatari (United
Provinces),
2.
Kameshwar
Singh of Darbhanga (Bihar),
3.
Raja of Parlakimedi (Orissa),
4.
Sir Provash Chandra Mitter
Industry:
1.
Ghanshyam Das Birla,
2.
Sir Purshottamdas Thakurdas,
3.
Maneckji Dadabhoy
Labour:
1.
N. M. Joshi,
2.
B. Shiva Rao,
3.
V. V. Giri
Universities:
1.
Syed Sultan Ahmed,
2.
Bisheshwar Dayal Seth
Burma:
1.
Sir Padamji Ginwala
Sindh:
2.
Shah Nawaz Bhutto,
3.
Ghulam Hussain Hidayatullah
Other Provinces:
1.
Chandradhar Barua (Assam),
2.
Sahibzada Abdul Qayyum (NWFP),
3.
S. B. Tambe (Central Provinces)
Indian States Delegation Staff: V. T. Krishnamachari
(Baroda), Richard Chenevix-Trench (Hyderabad), Nawab Mahdi Yar Jung
(Hyderabad), S. M. Bapna (Indore), Amar Nath Atal (Jaipur), J. W. Young
(Jodhpur), Ram Chandra Kak (Jammu and Kashmir), Sahibzada Abdus Samad Khan
(Rampur), K. C. Neogy (Orissa states), L. F. Rushbrook Williams, Jarmani Dass,
Muhammad Saleh Akbar Hydari, K. M. Panikkar, N. Madhava Rao
British Delegation Staff: H. G. Haig, V. Dawson, K. S.
Fitze, J. G. Laithwaite, W. H. Lewis, P. J. Patrick, J. Coatman, G. T. Garratt,
R. J. Stopford
British Indian Delegation Staff: Geoffrey Corbett, A.
Latifi, Girija Shankar Bajpai, Benegal Rama Rau, Syed Amjad Ali, Prince Aly
Khan, A. M. Chaudhury, Mahadev Desai, Govind Malaviya, K. T. Shah, P. Sinha
Secretariat-General: R. H. A. Carter, K. Anderson, C. D.
Deshmukh, J. M. Sladen, Hugh MacGregor, G. F. Steward, A. H. Joyce, Syed Amjad
Ali, Ram Babu Saksena
Proceedings
The second session opened on September 7, 1931. There were
three major differences between the first and second Round Table Conferences.
By the second:
The Second Round Table Conference (September 7, 1931)
Congress Representation — The Gandhi-Irwin Pact opened the
way for Congress participation in this conference. Mahatma Gandhi was invited
from India and attended as the sole official Congress representative
accompanied by Sarojini Naidu and also Madan Mohan Malaviya, Ghanshyam Das
Birla, Muhammad Iqbal, Sir Mirza Ismail (Diwan of Mysore), S.K. Dutta and Sir
Syed Ali Imam.
Gandhi claimed that the Congress alone represented political
India; that the Untouchables were Hindus and should not be treated as a “minority”;
and that there should be no separate electorates or special safeguards for
Muslims or other minorities. These claims were rejected by the other Indian
participants. According to this pact, Gandhi was asked to call off the Civil
Disobedience Movement (CDM) and if he did so the prisoners of the British
government would be freed excepting the criminal prisoners, i.e. those who had
killed British officials. He returned to India, disappointed with the results
and empty-handed.
National Government — two weeks earlier the Labour
government in London had fallen. Ramsay MacDonald now headed a National
Government dominated by the Conservative Party.
Financial Crisis – During the conference, Britain went off
the Gold Standard further distracting the National Government.
During the Conference, Gandhi could not reach agreement with
the Muslims on Muslim representation and safeguards. At the end of the
conference Ramsay MacDonald undertook to produce a Communal Award for minority
representation, with the provision that any free agreement between the parties
could be substituted for his award.
Gandhi took particular exception to the treatment of
untouchables as a minority separate from the rest of the Hindu community. He
clashed with the leader of depressed classes, Dr.B. R. Ambedkar, over this
issue: the two eventually resolved the situation with the Poona Pact of 1932.
Third Round Table Conference (November – December
1932)[edit]
The third and last session assembled on November 17, 1932.
Only forty-six delegates attended since most of the main political figures of
India were not present. The Labour Party from Britain and the Indian National
Congress refused to attend.
From September 1931 until March 1933, under the supervision
of the Secretary of State for India, Sir Samuel Hoare, the proposed reforms
took the form reflected in the Government of India Act 1935.
Participants[edit]
[7]
Indian States' Representatives: Akbar Hydari (Dewan of
Hyderabad), Mirza Ismail (Dewan of Mysore), V. T. Krishnamachari (Dewan of Baroda),
Wajahat Hussain (Jammu and Kashmir), Sir Sukhdeo Prasad (Udaipur, Jaipur,
Jodhpur), J. A. Surve (Kolhapur), Raja Oudh Narain Bisarya (Bhopal), Manubhai
Mehta (Bikaner), Nawab Liaqat Hayat Khan (Patiala), Fateh Naseeb Khan (Alwar
State), L. F. Rushbrook Williams (Nawanagar), Raja of Sarila (small states)
British-Indian Representatives:
1.
Aga Khan III,
2.
B. R. Ambedkar (Depressed Classes),
3.
Ramakrishna Ranga Rao of Bobbili,
4.
Sir Hubert Carr (Europeans),
5.
Nanak Chand Pandit,
6.
A. H. Ghuznavi,
7.
Henry Gidney (Anglo-Indians),
8.
Hafiz Hidayat Hussain,
9.
Muhammad Iqbal,
10.
M. R. Jayakar,
11.
Cowasji Jehangir,
12.
N. M. Joshi (Labour),
13.
Narasimha Chintaman Kelkar,
14.
Arcot Ramasamy Mudaliar,
15.
Begum Jahanara Shahnawaz (Women),
16.
A. P. Patro, Tej Bahadur Sapru,
17.
Dr. Shafa'at Ahmad Khan,
18.
Sir Shadi Lal,
19.
Tara Singh Malhotra,
20.
Sir Nripendra Nath Sircar,
21.
Sir Purshottamdas Thakurdas,
22.
Muhammad Zafarullah Khan
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