Proposal to M.A. Jinnah on Power-Sharing in the Interim Government

Sub title : A Constitutional Scheme for Muslim-Hindu Parity and Coalition

Subject: Interim Government (1946) | Cabinet Mission Plan | Muslim League Politics

Date of publication: 1946

Language: English

Page: 3 p.

Source: National Archives of Pakistan

Serial no: 27513

Keyword: M.A. Jinnah — Casim Sulaiman Adamjee — Interim Government | Muslim League — Congress — Parity | Portfolio Distribution — Defence | Finance — Premiership — Coalition Ministry — Tyranny of Majority — Cabinet Mission — 1946

Abstract: This three-page document is a detailed political proposal from Casim Sulaiman Adamjee to M.A. Jinnah, President of the All-India Muslim League. Written during the crucial negotiations for India's Interim Government, it outlines a comprehensive scheme for a coalition between the Muslim League and the Indian National Congress. The proposal demands parity in all aspects: an alternating Premiership, equitable distribution of key portfolios (suggesting External Affairs and Defence for Muslims, Finance and Internal Affairs for Hindus), and the formation of coalition ministries in all provinces.

Description: This letter is a significant primary source that captures the core constitutional demands and political logic of the Muslim League on the eve of Partition. It goes beyond the general demand for Pakistan, presenting a detailed blueprint for a power-sharing arrangement in a united India, reflecting the League's insistence on absolute parity with the Congress as a safeguard for Muslim interests. The author uses communal stereotypes to justify portfolio assignments (e.g., Muslims as "martial," Hindus as good with finance) and explicitly dismisses the Sikh community's claim to significant power. The document serves as a vivid illustration of the political deadlock and the fundamental disagreements over the structure of the Indian state that ultimately made partition inevitable SCANNED BY: NATIONAL ARCHIVES OF PAKISTAN.

Total Views: 12        Favorites : 0