Key Question 10: How important were the contributions of Jinnah, Allama Iqbal, and Rahmat Ali to the success of the Pakistan Movement to 1947?
Muhammad Ali Jinnah
Biography:
• Muhammad Ali Jinnah was born on 25 December 1876 in Karachi.
• His father's name was Jinnah Poonja.
• He acquired his early education from Sindh Madrasa.
• In 1892, he moved to London for further studies.
• On his return to India, he started his practice at Bombay High Court and developed an interest in politics.
• In 1906, Jinnah started his political career with the National Congress.
• He was elected in the Imperial Legislative Council in 1910.
• In 1913 he bid farewell to Congress and joined the All India Muslim League.
• In his starting years as a political leader, he strongly believed in Muslim-Hindu unity.
Jinnah as an Advocate of Hindu-Muslim Unity:
• Jinnah always wanted Muslims and Hindus to join hands in the movement towards freedom.
• He was an active member of both the National Congress and the Muslim League.
• He was the man that brought both the partied together for the Lucknow Pact.
• He received the title of “Ambassador of Hindu-Muslim Unity” after the historic agreement signed in 1916 by both the parties.
• It was only after the Nehru Report’s violation of the Lucknow Pact that gave Jinnah the ultimate realization of the distinction of Muslims as a separate nation.
Role of Jinnah in the Muslim League:
• Jinnah joined League in 1913.
• Till 1920, Jinnah represented League and Congress both.
• In 1927, the Muslim League under the leadership of Jinnah boycotted the Simon Commission because it had no Indian member.
• In 1928, Jinnah took a stand against Nehru Report and asked him to make the amendments to make it acceptable by Muslims.
• After Congress rejected Jinnah's suggestion of amendments in the Nehru Report, Jinnah proposed his famous 14 points to protect the Indian Muslims' rights.
• In 1931 - 1932, Jinnah attended the first two Round Table Conferences and spoke for the rights of Muslims.
• In 1934, he became disappointed by Indian politics and stayed in England.
• On Liaquat Ali Khan and Allama Iqbal's requests, he returned to India and was elected as the president of the Muslim League.
• Muslim League experienced a terrible defeat in the general elections of 1936-1937, Jinnah responded to the defeat with optimism and launched a mass contact to let the common people of India what Muslim League stands for.
• In 1939, Jinnah asked the Muslims to celebrate "The Day of Deliverance" because the tyrant rule of Congress came to its end.
• In 1940, the Pakistan Resolution was passed under the leadership of Jinnah.
• Jinnah plays a significant role in Cripps's mission, Simla Conference and the Cabinet Mission to speak for the rights of Muslims by making all schemes by British and Hindus to undermine the Muslims of India.
• In 1945 - 1946 general election, Muslim League experienced a tremendous victory in Muslim majority states.
Relation of Jinnah with Gandhi, Nehru & Congress:
• Gandhi used to call Jinnah, a man committed to his cause and a respectful friend.
• In 1915, hen Gandhi arrived in India, Jinnah went to Bombay to greet his friend.
• Gandhi played a great role in Jinnah’s political path.
• The equation of Nehru and Jinnah was not a positive one and the Nehru Report turned out to be the final nail in it.
• In 1944, M. Asif wrote in his jail diary, the name of Jinnah was enough to turn Nehru’s expressions tense.
• Nehru himself wrote a letter to Gandhi after Jinnah’s 14 points that he would rather retire to a South Sea Island than listen to the 14 points.
• In the starting two decades of the twentieth century, Jinnah became a prominent leader in the National Congress.
• In 1920, Jinnah resigned from Congress when the party started following a campaign ‘Satyagraha’.
Allama Iqbal
Biography:
• He was born in Sialkot, on 9 November 1877.
• He belonged to a Kashmiri Brahmins’ family that embraced Islam 300 years earlier.
• He acquired his early education from the traditional Maktab then joined the Mission School.
• He did his Bachelor and Master from the Govt. College Lahore.
• He was appointed as a lecturer in the Oriental College, Lahore.
• He did his doctorate in philosophy from Munich University.
• He was a philosopher and a poet who took inspiration from the Quran.
Beliefs:
• He believed that Muslims will be undermined by the dominance of the British of Hindus if they do not stand for themselves.
Working:
• In 1911, he resigned from his government service and focused on writing poetry to motivate and inspire Muslims about their individuality as a nation.
• In 1926, Iqbal was elected as a member of the Punjab Assembly.
• In 1927, he was elected as a General Secretary.
• In 1930, in his Allahabad addresses, he demanded a separate homeland for Muslims where they could practice their religion.
• In 1932, Iqbal attended the third Round Table Conference as a Muslim delegate.
• In 1936 when Jinnah was residing in England, Iqbal wrote him letters to express the urgency of the situation and requested him to return.
• On 21 April 1938, Iqbal died.
Chaudhry Rahmat Ali
Biography:
• He was born in Gharshankar on 16 November 1879.
• He graduated from Islamia College in Arts.
• He did his MA and LLB from England’s Cambridge and Dublin universities.
Working:
• He believed in the Muslims’ freedom and suggested for a separate homeland for Muslims of India before anyone else.
• He also coined the name of the separate state for Muslims, ‘Pakistan’.
• At that time, Iqbal and Jinnah’s views were different, they started embracing Rahmat Ali’s idea after the Nehru Report.
• In 1933, he established the ‘Pakistan Movement’.
• He started a pamphlet known as ‘Now and Never’ and suggested in it a separate homeland for Muslims and called it ‘Pakistan’.
• In the name Pakistan, ‘P’ represents Punjab, ‘A’ for Afghania (NWFP), ‘K’ for Kashmir and ‘TAN’ for Balochistan.
• In the 1930's Round Table Conference proposed the Muslim leaders including Jinnah to focus their efforts towards a separate homeland for Muslims but his proposal was rejected as that time the leaders were not convinced about it.
• However, Rahmat Ali’s proposal was passed as ‘Pakistan Resolution’ in 1940 under the leadership of Muhammad Ali Jinnah.
• Luckily, he lived enough to see the freedom of Muslims on 14th August 1947 though he was not happy with the boundaries.
• In 1948, Rahmat Ali went to live in England to put forward and win the case of Kashmir.
• In 1951, he died because of ill health.