As if this were not enough, India also subsidized the war effort in many other ways like the manufacture of armaments and numerous essential supplies.
The war, however, had a devastating impact on the lives of Indians. Since the British began to export grain from India to feed their troops, there were food shortages which resulted in inflation and rationing. The most horrifying fallout of World War II was the totally avoidable Bengal famine of 1943, in which, it is estimated, about two million people died. It was the outcome of a variety of factors. In 1942, after the occupation of Burma, the Japanese began to advance into the north-eastern areas of India. This led to a huge influx of refugees from Burma and also cut off the supply of rice from that country. The harvest had not been good in Bengal that year, and when food prices went up, hordes of starving villagers thronged the cities in search of food. The British war strategies aggravated the situation. They adopted a ‘scorched-earth policy’ in the east, so that the Japanese would not have access to food, and destroyed the boats that carried provisions in a riverine province like Bengal. They even prevented humanitarian aid from other countries from reaching the affected population in case the Japanese got hold of it.
Churchill was completely unsympathetic to the plight of Indians who starved to death while their grain fed the British, saying that it was ‘their fault for breeding like rabbits’.
This situation posed a tremendous challenge for the members of political parties. They could not remain silent about the deadly effects of the British war policies on their own people.
While the League may not have cooperated with the Congress in the Quit India Movement, in a speech in the Indian Legislative Assembly in his capacity as deputy leader of the Muslim League, on 26 February 1944, Liaquat Ali spoke out on this matter: ‘Is it not a fact that on account of this war, millions of our countrymen have lost their lives to starvation? How can anyone in this house say that we seem to have forgotten that there is a war on, and that India is directly and intimately affected by it?’16
The war was ultimately the catalyst that brought freedom from imperial rule, but it extracted an extremely heavy cost.
8
Achieving the Goal
The Indian subcontinent was a crucible, constantly boiling during the early 1940s. The British desperately needed the resources this vast land could provide to save their little island from being run over by the Germans. They extracted this support from a colonized country. Yet, they were unwilling to give ear to the requests of Indian leaders for independence. Consequently, this became a period of a prolonged and often acrimonious three-way conflict—between the imperialistic power and the two major political parties representing the Indians. Each side had an agenda to pursue and a goal to accomplish. The Congress wanted self-rule and an undivided India, the Muslim League wanted self-rule and Pakistan. And as for the British—while they wanted to bask in the lustre of the most dazzling jewel in the emperor’s crown for as long as they could—they could ill afford to let go of this lifeline. They did not want to concede freedom to the nationalists till their own war was won, and when they did, they wanted India to remain undivided. No side would or could budge an inch, which meant that this battle was becoming so rancorous that rapprochement was a word that did not find place in any party’s dictionary.
In the years leading to Independence, Delhi turned into a city that pulsated with frantic activity. Ra’ana was the mother of two little boys, but there was no letting up from the work routine. Liaquat Ali was travelling constantly. He had to—in order to muster countrywide support for the Pakistan movement, essential to make it a reality. There were meetings upon meetings, and speeches upon speeches that whirled him away to each corner of India.
The house named after her was always chock-full of visitors. Liaquat worked extensively with the youth to strengthen the organization and the functioning of the Muslim League in different parts of the country. He had close and old connections with Aligarh Muslim University and encouraged the students to come and confer at his house. Not only the leaders and the workers of the League but also the Muslim National Guards and the members of the Muslim Students Federation made 8B Hardinge Avenue their meeting place. Most of the working committee meetings that were slotted for Delhi also took place there.
A lesser woman might have thrown up her hands at the challenge this must have posed. But Ra’ana had given herself over to her husband’s work—his goal was her goal too. She was also extremely fortunate to have a dear old friend by her side—Kay ‘Billy’ Miles. In one of the tributes to Ra’ana after her death, Suraiyya Abbasi, a founder member of the All Pakistan Women’s Association (APWA), founded by Ra’ana, mentions their old friendship thus: ‘I had the honour of knowing Begum Sahiba dating back to the years when she was studying for her MA Economics in Lucknow and therefore she often visited her friend Miss Miles who was then Principal of the Muslim Girls’ School [later Karamat Husain College] in which I was studying. I often took up books and bouquets for Miss Miles and there I met her always smiling and with kind words.’1
Kay pitched in to take care of the children when the Khans were absorbed in their political commitments. She accompanied the family to Pakistan and provided strong support to Ra’ana at each and every challenging moment of her life. She wrote the brief biography Dynamo in Silk, which provides a deep and authentic insight into the life of an iconic woman of the subcontinent.
Ra’ana’s son Ashraf wrote the following in his tribute to his mother after her death: ‘I never remember her [Ra’ana] losing her temper at me or my brother and we as children were hardly sweet and innocent! The discipline and our educational guidance came from dear Billy (Miss Kay Miles) who was not only at school with my mother but went to be her life’s companion and assistant. Billy and my mother seemed to complement each other so well.’2 Such an example of steadfast friendship is rare to find, and perhaps Ra’ana attracted such deeply entrenched loyalty because she gave in equal measure.
One by one, her younger brothers and sisters were also getting settled. Norman, the closest to her in age, passed law and entered the judicial service. In 1938, he married Kamla Neelkanth, who was from Indore. Their son, Jitendra, was the most fascinated by the achievements of his illustrious aunt and took care to preserve much archival material. He was also the only member of her natal family who attended her funeral in Karachi.
Her younger sister, Muriel, later known as Meera, married Devi Chand Sawhney, an industrialist, in 1943. Later, she took up residence on Prithviraj Road, in Delhi. After Partition, Ra’ana often visited her sister and would make use of the opportunity to have her famous ghararas stitched. Meera Sawhney’s niece-in-law, Rati, mentions how the outfit Ra’ana wore to receive her UN Award, made from classic Benaras brocade, was tailored in the city, and how she left directly from Delhi.
Meera Sawhney too possessed the same passion for social work as her sister and was deeply involved in the activities of the Ramakrishna Mission, setting up schools and taking care of the education of the children of her domestic staff. To quote her nephew, Vishwanath Anand: ‘Aunty Meera was never haughty or condescending. She always dressed simply and didn’t wear any jewellery worth mentioning. In fact, during the sudden and brief war with China, she raised donations and donated some of her personal jewellery to the Prime Minister’s War Fund. I remember, Aunty used to regularly hold classes for around 10 children of the members of her staff in her house.
‘Aunty Meera became very involved with the Ramakrishna Math and would so often work for many of its causes and was particularly endeared of Swami Vivekananda’s teachings. She was one of the moving forces behind the setting up of the Sister Nivedita School in Delhi but shunned any kind of personal publicity.’3
The sisters had inherited a very precious legacy from their mother—to do what they could for the betterment of society.
The war’s dark shadow was evident in the constant presence of uniformed men on the streets of Delhi—Indian, British and American s
oldiers and pilots, either stationed there or passing through. There were blackouts when the threat of Japanese bombs loomed over the city. And yet, despite the uncertainty and shortages, the rationing and the rumours, and the ever-volatile political situation, there was still time for the small pleasures of entertaining guests.
‘I met her for the first time in Delhi much before Partition. My husband and I were invited to Liaquat Ali’s for lunch,’ recalls Begum Ismat Iftikharuddin, in an interview given to Jalal Salahuddin and Moni Mohsin in The Friday Times, Lahore, 21–27 June 1990. ‘This was a small lunch and the arrangements were very simple. Ra’ana was a gracious hostess, warm and unruffled. Despite her diminutive stature she had a very definite presence. I think her early training as a teacher stood her in good stead in her public life. She had the composure of a woman confident of her personal abilities.’4 The lady goes on to say further in the same interview, ‘Liaquat Ali was an extremely liberal man and supported Ra’ana in all her activities. Theirs was a happy marriage and they complemented each other in temperament. Ra’ana knew very little about politics before she married Liaquat Ali, but under his guidance she learned fast and found her forte in women’s development. One of Ra’ana’s most attractive features was her lack of pretension. Even after Liaquat Ali Khan became Prime Minister, she remained unaffected by it all . . . ’
There was also the pastime of bridge which both husband and wife enjoyed, and found time to play, not only with Jinnah and his sister, Fatima, but with other friends as well.
Dharam Vira was one of them. He had made the acquaintance of Ra’ana’s family when he was posted in Almora in the early 1930s, and made friends with her brother, Norman. Later, when he was transferred to Delhi in the 1940s, he became close to Liaquat Ali Khan as well. He provides an interesting glimpse of their association. ‘He and his Begum were very fond of bridge and since I also played bridge it became a great common bond between us.’5
These must have been moments snatched from the punishing routine of meetings, discussions, travel and piles of correspondence.
It is true that Ra’ana more than made her mark in political life, especially after the formation of Pakistan, but according to her friend, Kay Miles, ‘Ra’ana Liaquat Ali Khan was essentially a home lover, and was never so happy as when she was performing the essentially feminine task of “pottering around the house”, or relaxing with her husband, her children, her music and her books in her own home. She enjoyed playing the piano and the guitar when time permitted, and had a keen and critical appreciation of Western classical music.’6
The children had the benefit of all the activities that could be organized for them, as is earlier mentioned. Horse riding was a skill considered essential for children from aristocratic families. In a letter dated 3 February 1942, Liaquat Ali mentioned that they had bought a small pony for Ashraf and requested Jinnah for the use of one of his stables. ‘I shall be grateful if you would kindly permit the use of one of your stables and a servant’s house for the syce till we are able to build one . . . ’7
This correspondence proves how close the two men had become. All the letters ended with ‘Regards to Miss Jinnah and love from the children’. There were always inquiries about Fatima Jinnah’s state of health. The note of deference in the younger couple was apparent. As Roger Long notes, ‘Jinnah was also sparse with his praise for others, including Liaquat . . . ’8 This was even while he had made it public that Liaquat was his right-hand man. At the same time, Ra’ana and Fatima might have maintained courteous relations but the undercurrent was not one of warmth as would become obvious later. Fatima was very possessive about her brother, as Ruttie, Jinnah’s wife, had experienced.
Public life, however, can never remain devoid of controversy, and Liaquat Ali Khan was not left unscathed either. When Gandhi announced the Quit India Movement, the League responded with ‘Divide and Quit’. Hobbled by the demands of the war, the nervous British jailed all the members of the Congress Working Committee to avoid having to divert their energies towards containing the turmoil in India. In the meantime, the League formed a Civil Defence Committee in August 1942. Liaquat Ali was an extremely active member of this committee and toured the country seeking to organize the Muslim masses and bring about awareness among them. His dedicated endeavour had an impact on Jinnah who formed a three-member Parliamentary Board in 1943 and appointed Liaquat Ali as its convenor as well as for the Committee for Action. The purpose of these bodies set up by Jinnah was to rally and educate Muslims about the movement for Pakistan.
Towards the end of 1943, a member of the Congress, Bhulabhai Desai, reached out to Liaquat Ali to discuss the formation of an interim government by the Congress and League jointly, within the broad framework of the Government of India Act 1935. This discussion was soon blown up in the media as the Liaquat–Desai Pact and caused a great deal of misunderstanding. Later, Liaquat Ali explained that it had been an informal exchange of opinions, not a pact, which could not have been formalized without the concurrence of the president of the Muslim League, Jinnah and Gandhi from the side of the Congress. The viceroy, Lord Archibald Percival Wavell, stepped into the picture and asked Sir John Colville, the governor of Bombay, to approach Jinnah and verify the matter. Jinnah naturally denied any knowledge of it. This issue was fortunately sorted out, but it could have created a rift between the two important leaders of the Muslim League. Rumour-mongers even spread the story that since Jinnah was seriously ill, practically on his deathbed, Liaquat had acted on his own.
World War II had broken the back of the British and signalled the disintegration of the empire. It would take decades to recoup from the heavy financial drain. An enormous number of promising young men had lost their lives or become disabled. The relentless German bombings had reduced its major cities to a shambles. Rebuilding Britain and negotiating with its war allies was the need of the hour. Consequently, the British rulers were now growing more and more anxious to come to some kind of settlement with the nationalists. To this end, Lord Wavell called for a conference in Simla on 25 June 1945 to discuss the formation of an Executive Council. Liaquat Ali attended, along with Jinnah. However, the discussions failed because the Congress and the League could not agree on the question of representation of different communities on the council.
After the war ended, Clement Attlee of the Labour Party replaced Churchill as the prime minister. He had always been in favour of India receiving its independence. In any case, severely crippled by the war, Britain was keen to withdraw from its colonies. With the purpose of realizing full self-government for India, Lord Wavell announced elections for the Legislative Assemblies as a preliminary step towards the formation of a Constitution-making body.
At that time, after the trial of three officers of Subhash Chandra Bose’s Indian National Army (INA), the anti-British sentiment had reached a new high in the country. The Congress had not supported the INA earlier, but now it defended the officers against the serious charges of treason. The sentences of the three men were remitted, and this won the Congress great popularity among the masses.
When the elections took place, the Congress ran away with ninety-seven per cent of the vote in non-Muslim constituencies, gained a majority in the Central Legislature. As a result, they formed governments in eight provinces. The Muslim League won the majority of the Muslim vote for most of the reserved Muslim seats in the Provincial Assemblies. It was also able to secure all the Muslim seats in the Central Assembly. Consequently, the League established that they were the true representatives of India’s Muslims. Jinnah interpreted this as the response of the Muslim masses to their call for a separate homeland. However, the League could form ministries only in the two provinces of Sind and Bengal. The Congress prevailed in the North-West Frontier Province and Punjab, with the provinces coming under a coalition ministry of the Congress, Sikhs and Union Party of Punjab.
Liaquat Ali won the Central Legislature election from the Meerut Constituency in UP. He was also elected chairman of the Leag
ue’s Central Parliamentary Board.
It suited Britain to keep India united for the purposes of its own defence plan against future conflicts. With the Congress and League pulling in different directions, they came up with the Cabinet Mission Plan to somehow push this through. This mission was composed of three cabinet ministers from England, Lord Frederick William Pethick-Lawrence, Sir Stafford Cripps and A.V. Alexander. They discussed their proposals with various Indian political parties for three weeks but could not reach an agreement. Finally, the mission released its own recommendations on 16 May 1946, rejecting the idea of a separate Muslim homeland and suggesting an undivided but decentralized India. The Cabinet Mission suggested grouping of Muslim-majority provinces, separate from Hindu-majority provinces, with almost complete autonomy. This plan was rejected by both parties.
The Congress agreed to join the Constituent Assembly, and after further discussion, the viceroy invited fourteen men to join the interim government on 15 June 1946. Jawaharlal Nehru was to head it; Muhammad Ali Jinnah and Liaquat Ali Khan were included from the League, as well as representatives of different religious groups and communities. Liaquat Ali had assisted Jinnah in his negotiations with the members of the Cabinet Mission and the leaders of the Congress. When the government asked the Muslim League to send their nominees for representation in the interim government, Liaquat was asked to lead the group in the cabinet. He was appointed finance minister. Later, he presented a budget that favoured the poor. No doubt, he took his economist wife’s opinion in the framing of this budget.
The Begum Page 10