HIS-103

Lecture- 5

Government of India Act 1935

and The Election of 1937
 Introduction

• In March 1933, the British Government published a

draft of the future constitutional plan for India in the
form of a White Paper.
• In April 1933, the Joint Select Committee discussed
the various suggestions offered to it and gave it a final
shape.
• A bill was introduced in the House of Commons on 5
February 1935.
• It became an Act on 4 June 1935 and received royal
assent on 2 August 1935.

© Shaheen Afroze 2
 Govt. of India Act 1935
• The Government of India Act, 1935 is a very lengthy and
complicated statute consisting of 321 sections and 10 schedules.
• The basic features of the Act were: (a) All-India Federation; (b)
Central responsibility; (c) Provincial autonomy (d) Safeguards,
and the removal of the dyarchy.
• Dyarchy basically means the double form of government or
dual form and it was first imposed in the year 1919 by the
government of India act for the administration of policies by the
British government.

© Shaheen Afroze 3
 Govt. of India Act 1935
• The act was implemented and formed from the sources like the Simon
Commission Report, the three roundtable conferences (1930, 1931, and
1932) etc. which were earlier declined by the government.
• The provisions and the material for the act were mainly derived from the
Nehru Report, Lothian Report, Simon Commission Report, the White
Papers, the Joint Selection Commissin Report to form the act.
• One of the reasons for the enactment of the act were the Indian Leaders who
urged and fought to bring reforms in the country through these acts.
• The Act proposed various amendments in context to the act earlier framed in
the year 1919.
• The Govt. of India Act 1935 was the last constitution of British India, before
the country was divided, in 1947, into two parts-India and Pakistan.

© Shaheen Afroze 4
 Importance of the Act
• The act holds great importance in the Indian history
• The introduction of the act ended the dyarchy system by giving
more freedom to British India
• This act is of utmost importance because it leads to the
Relationship of a Dominion Status which urged the need for
Independence again in the minds of the people,
• The main provision of the act was to make the Governor
General Pivot of the constitution to settle if there were any
disputes among the people,
• An important provision of the act was the protection of
minorities such as women etc. and safeguarding their rights.

© Shaheen Afroze 5
 Importance of the Act
• The Act could not satisfy the Hindu nor the Muslim community
• Through the Act the British Govt. tried to pacify the movements
had been taking place prior to the year across India
• The partition of India 1947 was eventually based on the act of
1935
• It was adopted as the basic constitutional structure of India and
Pakistan following partition

© Shaheen Afroze 6
 The Act and the Election
• The Government of India Act 1935/Legislative council 1935
increased the number of enfranchised people.
• Approximately 30 million people, among them 4.25 million
women, gained voting rights.
• This number constituted one-sixth of Indian adults.
• The Act provided for a limited adult franchise based on
property qualifications such as land ownership and rent, and
therefore favoured landholders and richer farmers in rural areas.

© Shaheen Afroze 7
 Provincial Election of 1937
• Provincial elections were held in British India in the winter of 1936-37
as mandated by the Government of India Act 1935.
• Inspite of being critics of the act both the main parties of India –
Congress and Muslim League participated in the election
• Elections were held in eleven provinces - Madras, Central Provinces
Bihar Orissa, United Provinces, Bombay Presidency, Assam, NWFP,
Bengal, Punjab, and Sindh.
• Out of a total of 1585 seats, 482 seats were reserved for Muslims

© Shaheen Afroze 8
 Election Results
• The final results of the elections were declared in February 1937.
• The Indian National Congress emerged in power in eight of the
provinces - the exceptions being Bengal, Punjab and Sindh 
• The Congress won 758 out of around 1585 seats in a resounding victory,
and went on to form eight provincial governments.
• It formed governments in United Provinces, Bihar, the Central
Provinces, Bombay and Madras and in NWFP, Bombay and Assam it
formed coalition government with local parties.

© Shaheen Afroze 10
 Election Results
• The AIML captured around 25 percent of the seats reserved for Muslims.
• The Congress Muslims achieved 6 percent of them.
• No Congress Muslim won in Sindh, Punjab, Bengal, Orissa, United Provinces,
Central Provinces, Bombay and Assam.
• The AIML failed to form the government in any province.
• Muslim League could not win a single seat in NWFP.
• In Punjab it got only 2 of the 84 reserved seats.
• Most of the Muslim seats were won by regional Muslim parties. 
• Fazlul Haq of Krishak Praja Party won in Bengal while Sikandar Hayat Khan
of Unionist Party won in Punjab.

© Shaheen Afroze 11
 Election Results and AIML

• The election results were a blow to the League

• After the election, Jinnah offered to form coalitions with
the congress.
• The AIML insisted that the congress should not nominate
any Muslims to the ministries, as AIML claimed to be the
exclusive representative of Indian Muslims
• This was not acceptable to the congress and it declined the
league’s offer

© Shaheen Afroze 12
 Aftermath
• After 28 months of forming government, the Congress ministries
resigned in October 1939, in protest against Viceroy Lord Linlithgow’s
action of declaring India to be a belligerent in the Second World War
without consulting the Indian people.
• Both Viceroy Linlithgow and Muhammad Ali Jinnah were pleased
with the resignations.
• On 2 December 1939, Jinnah put out an appeal, calling for Indian
Muslims to celebrate 22 December 1939 as a “Day of Deliverance”
and thanksgiving as a mark of relief that the Congress regime has at
last ceased to function.

© Shaheen Afroze 13
 Muslim Leagues’s Failure in the
1937 Elections

• Muslim league at that time lacked strong leadership as their leaders

were not there to support them, such as Jinnah(disillusioned by politics
went to London) and Allama Iqbal(who was seriously ill)
• Muslim league lacked support at ground level as it was not so much
popular at that time among locals Muslims.
• There was an air of aristocracy among the League’s prime leaders.
• There was mismanagement among the party, as they lacked strong
insight of a leader causing them to drift aimlessly.

© Shaheen Afroze 14