Question: How important was Muhammad Ali Jinnah to the Pakistan  

Movement? Explain
your answer. [14]
Answer: The Quaid-i-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah was one of the greatest leaders of the modern
age. He not only led his people to independence but founded a separate homeland, where they could
mould their lives in accordance with the traditions of Islam and cultivate their culture and
civilization.
Jinnah  presented  his  14  points  in  relation  to  the  Nehru  report  of  1928  which  was completely
against Muslims of the sub-continent. In 1940 he for militate the famous Lahore Resolution for a
separate homeland Pakistan. In 1944 Jinnah had talks with Gandhi but no fruitful results came out.
In 1928 the Muslim politics took altogether a different turn when Muhammad Ali Jinnah refused to
accept the Nehru Report in an all parties’ Conference. Jinnah rejected the Nehru Report as he
considered non-acceptance of his proposal by the Conference an insult to the entire Muslim
community of the country. A positive aspect of Nehru Report was that it resulted in the unity of
divided Muslim groups. In a meeting of the council of All India Muslim League on March 28, 1929,
members of both the Shafi League and Jinnah League participated. Quaid-i-Azam termed the Nehru
Report as a Hindu document, but considered simply rejecting the report as insufficient. He decided to
give an alternative Muslim agenda. It was in this meeting that Quaid-i-Azam presented his famous
Fourteen Points. So in his 14 points Jinnah stated that the safe guard and protection for the rights and
interests of the Muslims must be given, the demand of federal form of Government, provincial
autonomy, protection of minorities, separate electorates, religious freedom to all and one-third seats
for all Muslims and it further demanded that Sind must be separated from Bombay and full
provincial status must be given to N.W.F.P and Baluchistan. These 14 points set out the demands of
the Muslims for any future negotiation with either Congress or the British. These 14 points became
inspiration for the Muslims of the sub-continent because it convinced that the Hindus and the
Muslims were two separate nations.
The attitude of the Hindus made it clear that the Hindus and the Muslims were two separate nations.
On March 23rd, 1940 at the annual session of Muslim League at Lahore, the famous resolution,
commonly known as the Pakistan Resolution was passed. It was presented by Maulvi Fazlul Haq.
Quaid-e-Azam said in the ever eloquent words
We are a nation with our own distinctive culture and civilization, language and literature, art and
architecture, names and nomenclature, sense of values and proportion, legal laws and moral code,
customs and calendar, history and tradition, aptitudes and ambitions; in short, we have our own
distinctive outlook on life and of life. By all canons of international law, we are a nation.
In September 1944 Gandhi held talks with Jinnah to discuss about the future of India, but no fruitful
results came out of it because Gandhi did not accept Muslims as a separate nation. Though the
Gandhi-Jinnah negotiations failed to achieve the avowed goal of the
Hindu-Muslim unity, they brought to Jinnah and the Muslim League two important political gains.
Firstly, the leadership of the Congress had now offered to discuss the question of Pakistan seriously
before that, the Congress and Mahatma had kept the door to that subject uncompromisingly shut.
Secondly, the Congress could no longer justifiably claim that it stood for all the communities in India
including the Muslims. Louis Feisher wrote
The wall between Jinnah and Gandhi was the Two Nation Theory. By the close of 1946, the
communal riots had flared up to murderous heights, engulfing almost the entire subcontinent. The
two people it seemed were engaged in a fight to the finish. The time for a peaceful transfer of power
was fast running out. Realizing the gravity of the situation, His Majesty’s  Government  sent  down
to  India  a  new  Viceroy  –  Lord  Mountbatten.  His protracted negotiations with the various
political leaders resulted in 3 June (1947) Plan by which the  British decided to  partition  the
subcontinent, and  hand over power to  two successor States on 15 August, 1947. The plan was duly
accepted by the three Indian parties to the dispute the Congress, the League and the Alkali Dal
(representing the Sikhs). In  July,  1947  the  British  parliament  passed  the  Indian  Independence 
act  which  was enforced promptly. The Muslims of the Sub Continent finally succeeded in carrying
out an independent  Islamic  State  for  Muslims  and  Quaid  e  Azam  achieved  for  what  he  was
destined for.
Jinnah’s 14 points and Lahore Resolution 1940 were great achievements and these two events
eventually lead to the establishment of Pakistan which was ‘the greatest’ achievement of Jinnah.

Q: How important was Chaudhry Rehmat Ali? [4] Q: Why was Chaudhry Rehmat Ali an
important influence on the struggle for a separate homeland for Pakistan? [7] Ans: Chaudhry
Rehmat Ali was extremely important in Pakistan movement for giving a name (Pakistan: P for
Punjab, A for Afghanistan, K for Kashmir etc) and a concrete goal towards which Muslims must
strive. However it is true that Muslim League didn’t support his views for many years and Jinnah
even refused to meet Rehmat Ali in 1934. Rehmat Ali wrote a pamphlet ‘Now or Never’, Are we
to live or perish forever, also known as Pakistan declaration in 1932. Rehmat Ali had never
thought that his pamphlet would become so popular and would create such a big impact on the
hearts of thousands of Muslims living in India. His thinking was too mush far away from those
of Sir Syed and Allama Iqbal as he was the first Muslim to struggle for a separate homeland. He
tossed the name of Pakistan over 30, 000 Muslims living in north India now called as Pakistan.
He was in London while the RTC’s were held. He attended all of them and tried to persuade all
the Muslims leaders specially Jinnah to demand for nothing more than a separate homeland. At
this time Jinnah was of thinking that Muslims could get their rights more as being part of the
federation. It was 10 years later when the ML accepts the ideas of Rehmat Ali and acknowledged
them with great enthusiasm. He was in London when he organized the Pakistan National
Movement to high light the vitality of a separate homeland for the Muslims and do struggle for
getting a separate homeland for the Muslim state. He formed a Pakistan National Movement to
fight for the idea of Pakistan. Q: Who was Chaudhry Rehmat Ali? [4] Ans: Chaudhry Rehmat
Ali was born on 16 November 1895, like other Muslim Leaders he studied in Islamia College. In
1930 he left India to study at Cambridge, while he was there Round Table Conferences were
held in 1930-1932. As a young Muslim leader he attended all of the RTCs in London on Hindu-
Muslims relationships. He asked Jinnah not to take any other compromise than a separate
homeland for the Muslims as he believed in the partition and separate homeland for the Muslims.
At that time Jinnah was of thinking that Muslims would be better off in a federation and united
India and even Jinnah refused to meet Rehmat Ali. He in 1933 wrote a pamphlet “Now or
Never” in which he presented his idea of a separate homeland to be called Pakistan and argued in
the favour of partition. Due to this he tossed the name of Pakistan over 30 million people and
became popular during 1930s. After ten years League also accepted the idea of Rehmat Ali with
great enthusiasm. After his too much contribution for the Muslims state he passed away on 12
February 1951.
Who was Allama Iqbal? [4]
Allama Iqbal, born in Sialkot on 11 November 1877, was a distinguished Muslim Leader. He is known as
the architect of Pakistan because he was the first person who gave the idea of an independent Muslim
state during his presidential address to Muslim League at Allahabad in 1930. He got degrees in
philosophy from Punjab and Cambridge Universities and doctorate degree from the University of Munich,
Germany. He wrote poetry in Urdu and Persian. In 1922, he was awarded the title of "Sir" by the British in
recognition of his poetry. He was an active politician and contributed significantly in making the Muslim
League a mass political party. He died on April 21, 1938.
Originally Answered: Was the work of Allama Iqbal more important to the Pakistan
Movement than that of Rehmat Ali? Explain your answer.?
He was the first important Muslim leader to advocate the partition of India and the creation
of a separate Muslim state. As a result of his Allahabad address in 1930 when he put
forward this view, separatism was seriously considered by many Muslims during the 1930s.
He was also opposed to the British control of India – conquest of others was wrong and
went against the Muslim faith. This strengthened his view that Muslims should have a
separate homeland, independent of the British. He persuaded many Muslims that the
Muslim League had to build an effective mass political party to challenge the domination of
the Congress. This argument was adopted by Jinnah who went on to lead the Muslim
League as a highly effective political party. His poetry awakened a sense of nationhood
among Muslims and he urged them to be active in making progress. This progress needed
to be along a distinctive Islamic path and not capitalist in nature. Again this vision was
adopted by Muslims as a view of the future. Rehmat Ali.

In 1933 he and some fellow students produced a pamphlet called ‘Now or Never’ in which
he argued in favour of partition and gave the name Pakistan to this new Muslim state that
would be formed. This became popular amongst most Muslims during the 1930s. His views
were different from AI as he wanted a separate independent state whereas AI wanted just a
separate state. However, Ali did attract his critics, especially as he criticised many Muslim
leaders especially Jinnah and as such was viewed as less important a figure. He attacked him
over abandoning Muslim communities in such places as Delhi as well as accepting a divided
Bengal. He was also considered less important than Iqbal since Jinnah took up many of his
ideas whereas he refused to meet Ali, but nevertheless his views were adopted eventually.

QUESTION BANK
HISTORY X

CHAPTER 10 JINNAH, ALLAMA IQBAL, CHAUDHARY REHMAT ALI

Q.1 Was the creation of the new state the greatest achievement Jinnah made to the Pakistan
Movement? Give reasons for your answer. [14]
Q.2 SOURCE A:
There is only one way out. Muslims should strengthen Jinnah's hands. They should join
the
Muslim League. Indian question, as is now being solved, can be countered by our united front
against both the Hindus and the English. Without it, our demands are not going to be accepted.
People say our demands smack of communalism. This is sheer propaganda. These demands
relate to the defense of our national existence. The united front can be formed under the
leadership of the Muslim League. And the Muslim League can succeed only on account of
Jinnah. Now none but Jinnah is capable of leading the Muslims.
Q. What does the source depicts of Iqbal's concern about the political future of Muslims in
India?  [3]
Q.3 Who was Chaudhary Rehmat Ali? [4]
Q.4 Who was Allama Iqbal? [4]
Q.5 Why Was Chaudhary Rehmat Ali an important influence on the struggle for a Separate
Homeland for
Pakistan? [7]
Q.6 Was the work of Allama Iqbal more important to Pakistan movement than that of Rehmat
Ali?
Explain your answer. [14]