How Jinnah used Ignorance (of the masses) to claim support for his "Two Nation Theory"

Some Pakistanis now believe – albeit secretly – that the partition had never happened.  Everyone knows partition of India and Pakistan was brought about by the greed of Nehru and Jinnah.  But Jinnah’s singularly damning role has largely been underplayed in history due to his fortunately Hero-worship in Pakistan.

It is a fact that he started the rioting and violence through his “Day of Direct Action” call in July of 1946.  Here is an interesting account from the archives of “The Atlantic” where the author at that time was analyzing the craziness of Jinnah’s assertion that Muslims will not get enough representation in an Indian democracy.  See very carefully how Jinnah used the utter illiteracy of the Muslim masses about the basic democractic norms to exploit their religious insecurities!  This article was published in April of 1946.

Britain has often been taunted with employing “divide and rule” tactics in India, but the cleverest attempt at dividing and ruling is that of Jinnah. Moslems number only 94.5 millions according to the census of 1941. Compared with the 255 million Hindus, they will always be in a minority in any system of democratically elected bodies.

To counter this disability the Moslems, as long ago as 1909, pressed for and secured the electoral device of separate Hindu and Moslem electorates, with seats “reserved” in the legislature on a communal basis. This procedure ensured to Moslems a political representation in excess of their numerical proportions. But it did not satisfy them for long.

When Congress ministries took office in seven out of eleven provinces in 1937, Moslem Leaguers (who had polled only 4.6 per cent of the total Moslem vote) were denied any share in the spoils of office. Moslem League propagandists have represented this situation as a denial of their legitimate rights, and as proof of a Hindu determination to dominate India. Tactically, it may have been unwise of Congress, but under a party system of government it is difficult to see how it could have done otherwise. Congress did not refuse office to Moslems as such, but to Moslems who were not members of Congress.

For Congress is not, as League followers claim, a Hindu organization. The Hindu Mahasabha is the party of orthodox Hindus. Congress is, and always has been, open to Moslems, and has a notable Moslem president, the Maulana Abul Kalam Azad. Mr. Asaf Ali is another Moslem member of the Working Committee. To expect Congress to present ministerial offices to its political rivals is as if the British Labor Party, after its recent overwhelming victory, should be invited to give Cabinet posts to members of the insignificant Independent Labor Party, which had opposed it at the polls.