Subject: Political Science Notes

Ch-1 The Challenges of Nation building

Class-12
Overview of the chapter

In this chapter we will focus on the events leading to partition in India and following that
how first few years of independent India were full of challenges. We begin the story of
politics in India since Independence by looking at how three of these challenges of nation-
building were successfully negotiated in the first decade after 1947.

•Freedom came with Partition, which resulted in large scale violence and displacement and
challenged the very idea of a secular India.
•The integration of the princely states into the Indian union needed urgent resolution.
•The internal boundaries of the country needed to be drawn afresh to meet the aspirations
of the people who spoke different languages.

Important terms

1. Two Nation theory- It was propounded by Muhammad Ali Jinnah to create a separate
sstate for Muslims.
2. Refugee- People who migrate to new areas for rehabilitation due to civil war or natural
disaster.
3. Princely states- States ruled by princes who enjoyed some form of control over their
state’s internal affairs under the British supremacy.
4. Razakars- A para-military force of Nizam was sent to respond people’s movement
which had no bounds.
5. Nizam- Ruler of Hyderabad was titles as Nizam who was world’s richest person.
6. States Reorganization commission- It was appointed in 1950 to look into the matter to
redraw the boundaries of states.
7. Instrument of Accession- A document signed by rulers of states when they agreed to
become part of Indian Union.
8. Bifurcation- Division of something into two branches or parts.
9. NWFP- North Western Frontier Province.
10. Khan Adbul Ghaffar Khan was known as Frontier Gandhi.

Introduction

On 15 August, 1947, after ruling the subcontinent for over 200 years, the British left India and it
became a free nation. It was a moment of celebration and rejoicing. PM Nehru in his speech at
midnight of 14-15 August 1947, said- “Long years ago we made a tryst with destiny and now the
time comes when we shall redeem our pledge, not wholly or in full measure but very
substantially”. On the eve of independence, political consolidation and nation building appeared
to be a gigantic problem before India. The problem was further made complicated by the
problem of reorganization of states and conflicts over linguistic identity. These problems being
of a serious nature tended to disrupt the cohesive fabric of the nation.

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 ● India became Independent at the hour of midnight on 14-15 August 1947.
● Our leaders on attaining independence agreed upon two goals to be achieved-
1. We shall run our country through democratic government
2. The government will be run for the good of all, particularly the poor and the socially
disadvantaged groups.

THREE CHALLENGES

● The first challenge was to shape a nation that was united yet accommodative of the
diversity in our society. It spoke different languages and followed different cultures and
religions. It was widely believed that a country full of such kinds of diversity could not
remain together for long.
● The second challenge was to establish democracy. India adopted representative
democracy based on the parliamentary form of government. A democratic constitution is
necessary but not sufficient for establishing a democracy so the challenge was to develop
democratic practices in accordance with the constitution.
● The third challenge was to ensure the development and well-being of the entire society
and not only of some sections. The constitution clearly laid down the principle of equality
and special protection to socially disadvantaged groups and religious and cultural
communities.

PARTITION: DISPLACEMENT AND REHABILITATION

● On 14-15 August 1947, not one but two nation-states came into existence-India and
Pakistan.
● This was the result of ‘partition’ the division of British India into India and Pakistan.
● Such a division was not only very painful , but also very difficult to decide and to
implement
● It was decided to follow the principle of religious majorities which means that areas
where the Muslims were in majority would make up the territory of Pakistan and rest was
to stay India.
● But the division of the country had lot of difficulties-
1. There was no single belt of Muslim majority areas in British India. There were two
areas of concentration, one in the west and one in the east and in no way these two
areas could be joined. So it was decided that new country Pakistan will comprise of
two territories- West and East Pakistan separated by a long expanse of Indian
Territory.
2. Secondly not all Muslim majority areas wanted to be in Pakistan. Khan Abdul Gaffar
Khan the leader of North western frontier province and known as Frontier Gandhi
was opposed to the two-nation theory.
3. The third problem was that two of the Muslim majority provinces of British India,
Punjab and Bengal had very large areas where the non-Muslims were in majority. So

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 it was decided that these two provinces would be bifurcated according to the religious
majority at the district and even lower level.
4. The fourth problem was of the minorities on both sides of border. Lakhs of Hindus
and Sikhs in the areas that were now in Pakistan and an equally large number of
Muslims on the Indian side of Punjab and Bengal found themselves trapped. They
were aliens in their own land and became easy targets

CONSEQUENCES OF PARTITION

● There were killings and atrocities on both sides of the border.

● In the name of religion people of one community ruthlessly killed and maimed people of
the other community.
● Cities like Lahore, Amritsar and Kolkata became divided into communal zones
● Minorities on both sides of the border fled their home and often secured temporary
shelter in refugee camps.
● They travelled to the other side of the new border by all sorts of means often by foot and
were often attacked, killed or raped.
● In many cases women were killed by their own family members to preserve the family
honour.
● Many children were separated from their parents
● For lakhs of these refugees the country’s freedom meant life in refugee camps for months
and sometimes for years.
● The partition was not merely a division of properties, liabilities and assets or a political
division of the country and the administrative apparatus but also financial assets and
things like tables, chairs, typewriters, paper-clips, books and also musical instruments of
the police band.
● It is estimated that about 80 lakh people were forced to migrate across the new border
and about 5 to 10 lakh people were killed

Mahatma Gandhi’s sacrifice

On the 15th August 1947 Mahatma Gandhi did not participate in any of the Independence Day
celebrations. He was in Kolkata in the areas which were torn by gruesome riots between Hindus
and Muslims. He was saddened by the communal violence and disheartened that the principles
of ahimsa (non-violence) and Satyagraha (active but non-violent resistance) that he had lived and
worked for, had failed to bind the people in troubled times. Gandhiji went on to persuade the
Hindus and Muslims to give up violence. His presence in Kolkata greatly improved the situation,
and the coming of independence was celebrated in a spirit of communal harmony, with joyous
dancing in the streets.

Gandhiji was particularly disliked by those who wanted Hindus to take revenge or who wanted
India to become a country for the Hindus, just as Pakistan was for Muslims. They accused
Gandhiji of acting in the interests of the Muslims and Pakistan. Gandhiji thought that these
people were misguided. He was convinced that any attempt to make India into a country only for
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 the Hindus would destroy India. His steadfast pursuit of Hindu-Muslim unity provoked Hindu
extremists so much that they made several attempts to assassinate Gandhiji. Despite this he
refused to accept armed protection and continued to meet everyone during his prayer meetings.
Finally, on 30 January 1948, one such extremist, Nathuram Vinayak Godse, walked up to
Gandhiji during his evening prayer in Delhi and fired three bullets at him, killing him instantly.
Thus ended a life long struggle for truth, non-violence, justice and tolerance.

INTEGRATION OF PRINCELY STATES

British India was divided into what were called the British Indian provinces and the Princely states.
The British Indian provinces were directly under control of the British government and several
large and small states were ruled by princes called princely states. Princely states covered one-
third of land area of the British Indian Empire and one out of four Indians lived under princely
rule.

THE PROBLEM OF PRINCELY STATES

There were 565 princely states and just before independence British announced that paramountcy over
these states will come to an end. It was left to these states whether to join India or Pakistan or
remain independent. This was a very serious problem and could threaten the very existence of a
united India.
● The ruler of Travancore announced that the state had decided on Independence
● The ruler of Hyderabad made similar announcement the next day.
● The ruler of Bhopal was also averse in joining the Constituent Assembly
● So all this showed a strange situation since Indian independence aimed at unity and self
determination as well as democracy

GOVERNMENT’S APPROACH TOWARDS PRINCELY STATES

The government took a firm stance against possible division of India. The Muslim league opposed the
INC and took the view that states should be free to adopt any course they liked.
Sardar Patel played a historic role in negotiating with the rulers of princely states firmly but
diplomatically and bringing most of them into the Indian Union. The government’s approach was
guided by three considerations:
1. The people of most of the princely states clearly wanted to become part of the Indian
union.
2. The government was prepared to be flexible in giving autonomy to some regions and the
idea was to accommodate plurality and adopt flexible approach in dealing with the
regions.
3. In the backdrop of partition which brought into focus the contest over demarcation of
territory the integration of the territorial boundaries of the nation had assumed supreme
importance
Instrument of Accession
● The rulers of most of the states signed a document called the ‘Instrument of Accession’
which meant that their state agreed to become a part of the Union of India

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 ● The Princely states of Junagadh, Hyderabad, Kashmir and Manipur proved more difficult
than the rest.

CASE STUDY OF HYDERABAD

● Hyderabad was the largest princely states and some parts of old Hyderabad state are
today parts of Maharashtra, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh
● Its ruler carried the title of Nizam
● He entered into what was called the Standstill Agreement with India in November 1947
for a year while negotiations with the Indian government were going on.
● The people of Hyderabad started a movement against the Nizam’s rule.
● The peasantry in the Telangana region in particular was victim of Nizam’s oppressive
rule and rose against him.
● The Communists and the Hyderabad were in the forefront of the movement
● The Nizam responded by unleashing a para-military force known as the Razakars on the
people who committed lot of atrocities and communal nature on the Razakars.
● They murdered mutilated, raped and looted targeting particularly the non-Muslims.
● In September 1948 Indian army moved in to control the Nizam’s forces and finally after
few days Nizam surrendered and led to accession of Hyderabad to India.

MANIPUR
● A few days before independence the Maharaja of Manipur –Bodhachandra Singh signed
the Instrument of Accession with the Indian government on the assurance that the internal
autonomy of Manipur would be maintained
● Under the pressure of public opinion the Maharaja held elections in June 1948 and the
state became a constitutional monarchy and became the first Indian state to hold elections
based on Universal adult franchise.
● There were lots of differences within the Legislative Assembly over the Merger of
Manipur with India the repercussions of which are still being felt.

REORGANISATION OF STATES
The first important challenge India encountered after independence was the integration of princely and
other native states. India had 562 princely states. The boundaries of the states had to be drawn in
a way so that the linguistic and cultural plurality of the country could be reflected without
affecting the unity of the nation. Our leaders promised the linguistic principle as the basis of
formation of states.
● After the Nagpur session of Congress in 1920 the principle was recognized as the basis of
the reorganization of the INC party itself.
● After independence and partition things changed and our leaders felt that this division on
the basis of language would lead to disruption and disintegration.
● This decision of the national leadership was challenged by the local leaders and the
people
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 ● Protests began in the Telegu speaking areas of the old Madras province which included
present day Tamil Nadu, parts of Andhra Pradesh, Kerala and Karnataka.
● The Vishalandhra movement demanded that the Telegu speaking areas be separated from
the Madras province and separate Andhra province be made.
● The movement gathered momentum as a result of the Central government’s vacillation
● Potti Sriramulu , a Congress leader went on indefinite fast that led to his death which
caused great unrest and resulted in violent outbursts in Andhra region
● Finally the PM announced the formation of a separate Andhra state in December 1952.
● The formation of Andhra Pradesh spurred the struggle for making of other states on
linguistic lines in other parts of the country
● These struggles forced the Central government into appointing a States Reorganization
Commission in 1953 to look into the question of redrawing of the boundaries of the
states.
● The States Reorganization Act was passed in 1956 which led to the creation of 14 states
and 6 union territories.
● Thus we can conclude that creation of linguistic states which created fear of separatism
and division of the country has rather changed the nature of democratic politics and
leadership and has strengthened national unity
● Democracy in other words was associated with plurality of ideas and ways of life.

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Model Answers

1. What were the developments that led to the partition of India?

TWO NATION THEORY

According to the 'two-nation theory' advanced by the Muslim League, India consisted of
not one but two 'people', Hindus and Muslims. That is why it demanded Pakistan, a separate
country for the Muslims. The Congress opposed this theory and the demand for Pakistan.
But several political developments in 1940s, the political competition between the Congress
and the Muslim League and the British role led to the decision for the creation of Pakistan.

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 PRINCIPLE OF RELIGIOUS MAJORITY
This basically means that areas where the Muslims were in majority would make
up the territory of Pakistan. The rest was to stay with India

2. Read the following very different statements made in August 1947

"Today you have worn on your head a crown of thorns. The seat of power is a nasty
thing. You have to remain ever wakeful on that seat.... you have to be more humble
and forbearing...now there will be no end to your being tested." — M.K GANDHI

"...India will awake to a life of freedom....we step out from the old to the new...we end
today a period of ill fortune and India discovers herself again. The achievement we
celebrate today is but a step, an opening of opportunity..." -- JAWAHARLAL NEHRU
Spell out the agenda of nation building that flows from these two statements.
● The agenda of nation building which flows from these two statements arc:
o Respect India's sovereign status which we have earned after years of national
struggle.
o To maintain unity and diversity, and establish a secular India. Thus, an
immediate challenge was to shape a nation that was united, and yet
accommodative of the diversity in Indian society. Establish a secular state
which gives equal respect to all religions and does not discriminate between
religions. All minorities arc respected.
o Establish democratic institutions & processes. Have enlightened & vigilant
citizens, guarantee rights & conduct free & fair elections.
o Ensure development & wellbeing of entire society.
● Both statements have their own significance and appeal to me because:
o Power do corrupt people and therefore legitimacy, accountability are the
basis of true democracy. Thus, there is no end to being tested.
o In a country as diverse as ours, a secular approach is equally important for us.

3. What are the reasons Nehru used for keeping India secular?

The reasons attributed to India being a secular nation by Pandit Nehru were both ethical
And prudential:

I. PRUDENTIAL
Even after large scale migration of Muslims to the newly created Pakistan, the Muslim
population in India accounted for 12 per cent of the total population in 1951. The Partition had
already created severe conflict between Hindus and Muslims. Besides, there were other religious
minorities such as Sikhs, Christians, Thins, Buddhists, Parsis and Jews. Thus Nehru felt that this
religious pluralism needed to be accommodated in order to prevent communal riots,
fundamentalism etc, which would ultimately lead to the disintegration of the country. Thus
according to Nehru, "We must give them security and the rights of citizens in a democratic State.

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If we fail to do so, we shall have a festering sore which will eventually poison the whole body
politic and probably destroy it."

II ETHICAL
Nehru felt that India should treat all religions equally and that it should not be a country that
gave superior status to adherents of one faith and inferior to those who practiced another
religion. All citizens would be equal irrespective of their religious affiliation. Being religious or a
believer would not be a test of citizenship. He firmly believed that members of all religious
communities had contributed in the struggle for independence. Hence, adopting the idea of
secularism would be ethically right

● Muslim minorities had to be made to feel safe & secure.

● Communal riots between Muslims & Hindus would have resulted in loss of human life.
● If India was not secular, the fundamental rights guaranteed in the constitution would
become meaningless. The government would be forced to divert its attention from social,
economic & political issues to tackling law & order problems.
● Democratic state preaches religious tolerance & not religious fundamentalism, secularism
& rather than theocracy.
● Secular nature of Indian State would help realize the goals & principles such as
socialism, equality, liberty & fraternity stated in the constitution.

4. "Tomorrow, we shall be free as well as of mourning".

a. Who spoke the above statements?

Mahatma Gandhi
b. When & where were these statements spoken?
14 August 1947, Kolkata

c. Why does the Speaker say that it will be a day of rejoicing as well as mourning?
While it was a day of rejoicing as India was attaining freedom from two centuries of
colonial oppression, it was also a day of mourning because of the partition of India
& Pakistan. On the one side, there were Independence Day celebrations while on the
other side, places like Kolkata, Punjab & Delhi were torn by gruesome fights
between Hindus & Muslims. There was large scale communal violence and
Gandhiji's principle of ahimsa and Satyagraha failed to bind the people.

d. What does the speaker imply by the word slavery?

During the two centuries of British Colonial rule, India -- its resources and its people
were intensely exploited. The Britishers oppressed the Indians and treated them as
uncivilized and unequal and made them work as slaves in their own land. This is
what the speaker refers to.

5. Read the passage and answer the questions that follow

We have a Muslim minority who are so large in numbers that they cannot, even
if they want, go anywhere else. That is a basic fact about which there can be no
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 argument. Whatever the provocation from Pakistan and whatever the
indignities and horrors inflicted on non-Muslims there, we have got to deal with
this minority in a civilized manner. We must give them security and the right
of citizens in a democratic State. If we fail to do so, we shall have a festering sore
which will eventually poison the whole body politic and probably destroy it .
a. Who spoke the following lines? When & to whom?
Jawaharlal Nehru, 15th October in his letter to the Chief Ministers

b. What rights does the writer wish to guarantee Muslims?

The writer wishes to guarantee the Muslims security and the rights of citizens in a
democratic state.

c. List out the horrors inflicted on non-Muslims by the Muslim's in Pakistan?

Killings, atrocities and maiming of non-Muslims just because of their religious
identity. The non-Muslims were forced to flee from their homes and secure
temporary shelter in refugee camps. Women were abducted and raped. People were
forced to convert their religion and families were separated.

d. Why did the speaker refer to it as a festering sore?

If the Muslim community is not guaranteed the basic rights and fundamental
freedoms, then there will be resentment, bitterness and anger among the Muslims,
intensifying like a festering sore till the maximum level of tolerance is breached.

6. Give examples to show that India was divided into great & small.

Great States - Kashmir, Hyderabad

There were 565 Princely States.
There were 26 small states in Orissa, 119 small & 14 big states in the Saurashtra
region of Gujarat and numerous other different administration

7. Read the following passage and answer the questions that follow

In the history of nation-building only the Soviet experiment bears comparison

with the Indian. There too, a sense of unity had to be forged between many diverse
ethnic groups, religious, linguistic communities and social classes. The scale –
geographic as well as demographic –was comparably massive. The raw material
the state had to work with was equally unpropitious: a people divided by faith and
driven by debt and disease." — Ramachandra Guha

(a) The commonalities that are seen between India & Soviet Union are.

Both nations have had large cultural, ethnic & linguistic diversities.
System of planning and five year plans adopted for economic growth and
development.
(b) The two dissimilarities which the author does not mention are:

Soviet Union had disintegrated into 15 Independent countries by compromising unity in

integrity, leading to the formation of the CIS by 12 of them. It was a confederation, with
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 each country retaining their sovereignty while in India the Princely states were brought
together & it emerged as a democratic federation with two set of governments — at the
central level & at the state level.
In the USSR there was a major transition from an autocratic socialist regime to a
democratic capitalist system while in India no major transition had to take place in the
social & economic sphere. India adopted a model of development which was influenced
by the Soviet model; however it is a system of mixed economy which suited Indian
conditions & people.
(c) In retrospect, India's example has worked better because she has:

● Remained united in spite of various movements for asserting regional identities,

aspirations & acts of insurgency, militancy & separatism. Has sustained itself as the
largest democracy in the world, followed a secular approach & guaranteed rights &
freedoms to its citizens.
The mixed model of growth and development has worked well and India is one of the
emerging global economic powers. By not joining bloc politics India has definitely
maintained an independent stand on foreign policy

8. Read the passage given below and answer the following questions:

We should begin to work in that spirit and in course of time all these angularities of
the majority and minority communities, the Hindu community and the Muslim
community – because even as regards Muslims you have Pathans, Punjabis, Shias,
Sunnis and so on and among the Hindus you have Brahmins, Vaishnavas, Khatris,
also Bengalese, Madrasis, and so on – will vanish. ... You are free; you are free to go
to your temples, you are free to go to your mosques or to any other place of worship
in this State of Pakistan. You may belong to any religion or caste or creed – that has
nothing to do with the business of the State.
Mohammad Ali Jinnah, Presidential Address to the Constituent Assembly of
Pakistan at Karachi, 11 August 1947

a. When did he give the Presidential Address to the Constituent Assembly of Pakistan? •
1 4 August 1947, Karachi
b. What kind of state was visualized by the speaker? a
The speaker visualized a state where all the majority and minority communities
would be abolished, where everyone would be free to go to any place of worship in
the state of Pakistan. One could belong to any religion or caste or creed but it would
have nothing to do with the business of the state.
c. Has that goal been achieved? Justify with examples.
No, this goal hasn't been achieved. Pakistan has a national religion — Islam,
hence it is a theocratic state and there is no freedom for people to practice religion
of their choice.

d. Do you think the speaker really means these lines?

No, the speaker does not mean these lines. If this had been the main aim of the
leader, he would not have advocated 'Two nation theory'. If he was honest about his
intentions then the creation of Pakistan would not have been a reality and after its creation
the outcome of politics in Pakistan would have been very different
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9. On a political map of India locate and label the following and symbolize them as
indicated:

1. Name and mark the original state from which the following states were carved out
Gujarat from Bombay
Meghalaya from Assam
Haryana from Punjab
Chhattisgarh from Madhya Pradesh

2. Name and mark the countries reorganized on religious grounds

India
Pakistan
3. Name two states that were affected by the partition.

4. Name two states that were once a union territory

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 10. On a political map of India locate and label the following and symbolize them as
indicated:

Identify and name the states as they were during the partition of India:
Indian State, or Union territory

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