Leader and Statesman Defined

A leader is that person who understands all categories of the people whom he is leading, works for making them united around himself or the party or organization with a certain specified vision. He also knows how things can be improved and people could be led towards a better vision. He also plans the strategy, methods and the way towards that goal. A statesman is a skilled, widely experienced and highly respected political leader. Quaid-i-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah rightly fits into these definitions. Quaid-i-Azam’s political career is very long and spread over two divergent phases.  The first phase relates to the period from 1897 to 1920 when he was an important political leader of the Indian National Congress (INC), and second phase relates to the period from 1921 to 1948 when he was mostly the President of All India Muslim League (AIML). It was because of his farsightedness, skillful handling of the political situation that he was able to galvanize the Muslim nation and create Pakistan in August 1947 as the largest Islamic State in the world. Also, it is quite interesting that during 1913-1920 Jinnah was member and leader of both the AIML and the INC. The specialty of this period is that his dual leadership pushed both these organizations into a common goal of Lucknow Pact in December 1916 and made these parties put pressure on the British to grant self-government. Though the self-government could not be attained, yet this unity in political ranks forced the British to accept most of their demands in the shape of Government of India Act 1919. The situation started changing after Amritsar sessions of the Muslim League and the Congress held in December 1919, in which Jinnah cooperated with Gandhi on a number of issues. Since the dawn of 1920 M. K. Gandhi started showing his real designs when he was able to sympathize with the Muslim sentiments at the meeting of the Central Khilafat Committee held on May 28, 1920 in which Gandhi’s idea of starting Satyagraha for attaining the Muslim demands of Khilafat and preservation of Holy Lands of Arabia was adopted. This was followed by his becoming President of All India Home Rule League in October 1920 when he changed the Constitution of Home Rule and decided on making decisions by simple majority, this was against what Jinnah had made bound the Congress in Surat in 1907 that no decision affecting Muslims or any minority will be forced by the majority until two-third members of the concerned community consent to it. Despite Jinnah and his colleagues’ protest, Gandhi continued his solo flight and changed the Congress constitution in December 1920 in the same way and started his Satyagraha movement against the wishes of Jinnah forcing Jinnah to leave the Home Rule League as well as the Congress in December 1920 and Jinnah finally devoted his whole life to the All India Muslim League until the establishment of Pakistan in 1947. The most important aspect in both these phases was that Jinnah worked for securing the political rights of the Muslims. The only difference was that in the first phase Jinnah worked for bringing unity between the Muslims and Hindus as equal partners in the politics of British India as is witnessed by the Lucknow Pact of 1916. In the second phase, he worked more vigorously for galvanizing the Muslim nation and securing for them a homeland in the shape of majority Muslim areas of the Subcontinent. In this phase as well he succeeded with a thumping victory for providing homeland in the shape of Pakistan to at least Muslim majority living in the provinces of Sindh, NWFP (now KP), Punjab, Balochistan, Bengal, and Assam of the British India. This paper is focused on the whole personality of Quaid-i-Azam covering both phases of his political phase.

Leader of the Congress and Muslim League (1906-1920)
Jinnah rose to the top hierarchy of the Congress leadership since 1906 when he attended the 22nd Session of the Indian National Congress held in Calcutta in December 1906 as a delegate from the Provincial Congress of Bombay. Moreover, Jinnah acted as Secretary of Dadabhai Naoroji, President of the Session, and read Naoroji’s presidential address. The other important factor was that Jinnah spoke on two resolutions in this session. Speaking on Maulvi Mahomed Yusuf (Bihar)’s resolution on “Validity of Wakf-alal-Aulad”, a Muslim issue, Jinnah said that moving of this resolution “shows one thing, gentlemen, that we Mahomedans can equally stand on this platform of the National Congress”.¹  The other resolution was on “Self-Government”. Speaking on this resolution, Jinnah was bold enough to say that “the Mahomedan community should be treated in the same way as the Hindu community”.² In this way Jinnah could not tolerate that the Muslims in the Congress as well as the country should be looked down upon by the Hindus.
All India Muslim League was founded at Dhaka in December 1906 but Jinnah joined it on October 10, 1913. Why Jinnah joined late? Some writers did try to give some reasons but they do not sound well. The fact remains that he was sympathetic towards the goals and objectives of the Muslim League, i.e., to promote the political rights of the Muslims, grant of separate electorates to the Muslims under the new reforms, and grant of one-third representation to the Muslims in the federal council and legislature because of political importance of the Muslim community. Before formally joining the Muslim League, Jinnah had already worked for the attainment of these rights for the Muslims from his own angle, the records of which are not much known to the biographers. However, there are signs which show that Jinnah was favorable to the grant of separate electorates to the Muslims, one-third representation of the Muslims in the Federal Cabinet and Federal Parliament because of the political importance of the Muslim community. When Minto-Morley Reforms were announced in early 1908, Jinnah was attending the Congress Committee meeting at Allahabad on April 18-19, 1908. The Committee suggested certain changes in the Congress Constitution in the light of new reforms for which Jinnah was the chief legal adviser. In his address to this Committee, Jinnah thanked Lord Morley for the efforts he made for grant of new reforms to the Muslims. The point of approval of a resolution or motion in any meeting of the Congress relating to Muslims or any other community was that unless and until two-third majority of members attending the concerned meeting approve the resolution or motion, it will not be considered as having passed by the Congress. On the basis of these recommendations of this Committee, the Madras session of the Indian National Congress held in December 1908 approved changes in the Congress constitution.  Further in a letter to the Editor, Times of India, Bombay, Jinnah sympathized with the Muslim demand of separate representation. In a meeting of the Anjuman-i-Islam, Bombay, held on August 1, 1909 presided over by Sir Aga Khan III also Jinnah expressed for acceptance of  the Muslim demands as mentioned before. Unofficially, he was being invited to the meetings of the Muslim League since December 1910. It was at the Bankipur session of the AIML Council held in December 1912 presided over by Sir Aga Khan III that Jinnah’s amendment in the League constitution to work for “grant of Self-Government suitable to India” was adopted by the AIML Session held in March 1913. On this basis, Jinnah was also elected Member of the Imperial Legislative Council from Bombay as a representative of the Muslims of the Bombay Province on January 4, 1910.
The Congress agreed to all these Muslim demands under the Lucknow Pact in December 1916 which was a Pact between the AIML and INC concluded at Lucknow. The way Jinnah planned to bring these two largest political parties of the country on one platform was marvelous. The first challenge was because of Turkey’s involvement in the First World War (1914-1918), the British Rulers manipulated through certain Muslim leaders of Bombay – whom Jinnah termed as “wire-pullers” –  that session of the Muslim League due to be held in December 1914 should not be held. By holding certain meetings with such leaders and with the officials of the Bombay Governor’s House, Jinnah was able to arrange meeting of the Muslim League in Bombay in December 1915. Moreover, he also planned to hold the Congress session at Bombay about the same time in December 1915. In order to chalk out some common formula for understanding between the Congress and the Muslim League, committees of the respective parties were appointed. These committees of both these parties arranged a number of meetings between themselves and came to a final common formula, which was put at annual sessions of Congress and Muslim League arranged at one place of Lucknow about the same time in December 1916. Thus, the formula of commonality between these two parties was approved which is known as Lucknow Pact. Accordingly, Jinnah emerged as the “Architect” of Lucknow Pact and earned the title “Ambassador of Unity”.
Congress Leaders Turned against Lucknow Pact
It was because of the Lucknow Pact that separate electorates for the Muslims and the other minorities continued to be maintained under the Government of India Act 1919 as was earlier granted under the Government of India Act 1909. The Congress leaders turned against the separate electorates to the Muslims and other minorities after 1920 when Jinnah had left the Congress. The Nehru Report of August 1928 is a clear manifestation of this. A public meeting in Bombay on October 24, 1928 attended by about 5000 Muslims was convened to consider the Nehru Report. Maulvi Muhammad Yaqub presided over this meeting. Leaders from all sections of Muslim opinion participated. All unanimously rejected the Nehru Report, terming it "Hindus’ Magna Carta". Maulana Shaukat Ali, Secretary of the Central Khilafat Committee warned the Muslims that "Islam is in Danger".
When Jinnah and other Muslim leaders rose against the Nehru Report, it created a great turmoil in the country despite the fact that Simon Commission was appointed whose deliberations were largely boycotted by the Congress and Jinnah Group of Muslim League. In order to resolve the Hindu-Muslim settlement, three Round Table Conferences were held in London during 1930-1932 but the issue could not be resolved. The whole of Muslim India had risen against the Nehru Report. Quaid-i-Azam attended meetings of the first two RTCs in London, for the third he was not invited. Gandhi was also invited to the second RTC but no settlement between the Hindus and the Muslims could be reached. However, because of the Muslim pressure and pressure from all the minorities of British India, separate electorates were granted to the Muslims and other minorities under the Government of India Act 1935.
Jinnah left the Congress in December 1920 because of two reasons. First, Jinnah argued that India was not yet ready for Non-Cooperation of the type on “peaceful” lines as Gandhi was suggesting as it will destroy India. Jinnah’s words were: “This step that you are taking is not the right step to take at this moment”.³ The other reason was that the Congress’ creed which was approved in 1907, had been changed which decided that Congress would decide only by majority vote without caring for the Muslims and the minorities.⁴ Therefore, Jinnah rightly thought that when all the decisions of the Congress are to be taken by majority, the Muslims shall have no faith in such a Congress. Consequently, Jinnah was right in his decision to leave the Congress in December 1920, a realization which came to Maulana Mahomed Ali and Maulana Shaukat Ali after eight years when Hindu objective was clearly manifested in the Nehru Report of 1928.
Leader of the Muslim League (1921-1929)
By March 1929, Jinnah’s leadership had been established above board. The way Jinnah planned and devised his Fourteen Points Formula as a settlement between four different schools of Muslim political thought – Jinnah Group of AIML, Shafi Group of AIML, All-Parties Muslim Conference, and Central Khilafat Committee – is marvelous. After presenting his Fourteen Points Formula, Jinnah rightly spoke in the tone of a great leader: “We have met here on an occasion which to my mind really involves an issue affecting the life and death of 70 million of Mussalmans”. He also emphasized: “I want to appeal to everyone to leave aside personal quarrels and leave aside differences. There is no intelligent body without differences, and the fact of differences shows we are intelligent people. These differences exist everywhere but here comes wisdom, statesmanship and discipline that while differences do arise we should be in a position to smooth them and march forward with a united decision. That is the test of all organized, well disciplined, well trained and experienced body. Are you going to show the world that we are a body who can come to one conclusion, one decision which we consider in the best interests of our country?”⁵
Finally, the unity between the Jinnah and Shafi groups of the AIML was brought about early next year in February 1930 as a result of consistent endeavors of Jinnah. By this time almost all the Indian Muslim politicians had realized the importance of Jinnah's Fourteen Points making them the final charter of Muslim freedom. As a result of Jinnah's hectic efforts, an important meeting of the Council of the AIML was held on February 28, 1930 in Delhi with Jinnah in the chair in which over fifty Muslim leaders belonging to both the factions of the League participated. It was announced amidst cheers that both the sections of the League had been reunited. The two leaders reached an agreement to travail for Muslim constitutional settlement in the light of Jinnah's Fourteen Points.
All these developments were closely watched by the British officials, particularly the Viceroy and the Secretary of State for India. Before this patch up between the two groups of AIML, but after the approval of Fourteen Points of Jinnah by the AIML in its Council in March 1929, Jinnah had shown to the Congress and the Hindu Mahasabha leaders that now the AIML would not be ready for settlement on the previous lines. The new course of Jinnah was from now on the settlement with the Congress and Hindu Mahasabha leaders on nothing less than his Fourteen Points; otherwise he was going for the “parting of the ways” with the Hindu leaders. The Muslims were to now resort to a new course of action and that would be independence of Muslim majority provinces from the British and the Congress yoke. It was on these lines that Jinnah met Dr. Tej Bahadur Sapru on January 31, 1930 and conveyed to him his new line of action. Jinnah had started his endeavors with the Hindu leaders such as the one on January 31, 1930 with Dr. Tej Bahadur Sapru, to impress upon him to be ready for settlement with the Muslims on nothing short of the Fourteen Points. Not only this, but the provincial Muslim meetings and conferences like those of Maulana Shaukat Ali in Bombay on August 11, 1929 had shown how the Muslims rallied to Jinnah's Fourteen Points and thinking of different lines. This meeting was attended by about 10,000 Muslims. At another meeting in Delhi, speaking from the platform of All-India Muslim Conference on April 5, 1931, in his presidential address Maulana Shaukat Ali made it further clear that the All India Muslim Conference and other Muslim leaders "stood" by these Fourteen Points of Quaid-i-Azam.
These Fourteen Points of Jinnah attained historical importance. No future constitution could be evolved outside the framework provided by these points. Even Allama lqbal seems to have drawn his concept of a separate Muslim state in South Asia from these points of Jinnah who, as President of AIML, allowed Iqbal to preside over Allahabad session of AIML held in December 1930. Chaudhry Rahmat Ali claimed that in framing his scheme of Pakistan he was in turn influenced by Allama lqbal's address. But as a matter of fact, the Fourteen Points served the purpose of being mother of all the Muslim schemes to come forth in future. The concept of Muslim nationhood, though not mentioned, ripens in the shape of these points. The British constitutional experts also thought it difficult to deviate from the framework set out by these points. It is characteristic of the genius of the Quaid-i-Azam that he alone, from among so many intellectual giants among Muslim leaders of his time, could conceive the Fourteen Points plan which not only set the course of history on different lines, but signaled Muslims’ party of their way with those of the Congress and Hindu political parties.

The writer is Ex-Director, National Institute of Historical and Cultural Research, and Professor at Quaid-i-Azam Chair (NIPS), Quaid-i-Azam University Islamabad.
E-mail: [email protected]

1.  Riaz Ahmad, Quaid-i-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah: The Formative Years 1892-1920, p. 77.
2.  Ibid.
3.  Ibid., p.195.
4.  Ibid., pp- 195-196.
5.  Statesman, Calcutta, 31 March 1929.