Jaswant Singh's Book Review Page 150

Book Reference: Page 150 Concluding para

Author’s Views: Concluding the Chapter 3, the author says , the political forces in India got divided, with one side composed of the Government and Muslims and the Hindus on the other. Due to Gandhi’s Civil Disobedience Movement and Dandi March ( Salt Satayagraha), the Muslims who were the beneficiaries of the system stood by and defended the Raj and the system.

Comments:  The  conclusions  are not borne out of facts. Does the learned author imply that all Muslims were siding with the government and became its beneficiaries and as a corollary all Hindus opposed the Government and were part of the Congress? There was a sizable population of Muslims who stood shoulder to shoulder with Gandhi and an equally sizable Hindu population who were siding with the Government, the system and thereby the  Raj. Secondly the Indian body politic was not composed only of the religious segments of Muslims, Hindus and the Government. (the first line of the paragraph in the book). There were many political parties, the Congress, The Indian Muslim League, The Hindu Maha Sabha, The Justice Party et all. The author’s division of the Indian body politic purely on two major religions is mischievous. There were many Muslims who were members of the Congress and likewise there were many Hindus who were staunch opponents of Congress and supporters of the British..

It is apparent that the author wants to decry the Civil Disobedience Movement of Gandhi and the Dandi March only because Jinnah was opposed to them. It is beyond controversy that the Dandi March was the unifying force and the spark that ignited the mass awakening of the subjugated Indians to stand up to the might of the Raj of 1930s. While the British Press suppressed the Jalianwala Bagh massacare and subsequent excesses in Punjab from international exposure and succeeded in it to a great extent, the Dandi March (and its aftermath ), no doubt was the first major political struggle which drew attention of the international press highlighting the plight of Indians and the non-violent struggle lead by Gandhi.

The fact that the British had a tacit understanding with those opposed to Indian National Congress and Gandhi’s political appeal was the real reason why the beneficiaries of the system supported the Raj. All Muslims were not the beneficiaries of the Raj and like wise not all Hindus were with Gandhi as the author wants us to believe.