“At the outset, the minority rights subcommittee operated with the assumption that separate electorates would survive the transfer of power. After all, they had been a mainstay of Indian political life since 1909.”
– Partinav Anil, Another India
During the recent election, there was a lot of debate on reservations for Muslims. While some regional and national parties supported reservations for Muslims, the ruling BJP opposed it, stating that there was no such provision in the Indian Constitution.
To understand the issue, we need to go back to the Constituent Assembly of India, the body formed to design the constitution of India. Muslims had been recipients of reservations since 1909 (Morley Minto reforms), and they assumed that independent India would continue to provide reservations. However, Congress leaders in India felt that reservations for Muslims were one of the key factors for partition, so they were not keen to continue reservations for Muslims.
“Tainted by Partition, decimated by migration, and confronted by a strident opposition, the League proved spectacularly unsuccessful at swaying the assembly behind its schemes.”
– Partinav Anil, Another India
The issue came up for debate during the design of the constitution. While some Muslim members supported the continuation of reservations, such as Saadulla, others from Bihar and UP, like Tajamul Hussain and Begum Aizaz Rasul, were against it. Ultimately, it was decided to do away with reservations for Muslims.
“Azad is not a cipher: he has a conscience. If he felt that it was against the interests of his community he would have immediately said so and protested. But he did not do so, because he knew and felt that what was being done was right. Therefore, if Mr Saadulla interprets his silence as neutrality, he is much mistaken.”
– Sardar Patel
“Do not bring in reservation in the place of separate electorates. Separate electorates have barred our progress. Separate electorates have gone for ever. We desire neither reservation nor separate electorates. We want to merge in the nation. We desire to stand on our own legs. We do not want the support of anyone. We are not weak. We are strong. We are Indians first and we are all Indians and will remain Indians.”
– Tajamul Hussain
“You will be isolated, you will be treated as an alien and your position will be the same as that of the Scheduled Caste. You are not poor. Like the Scheduled Castes, you are not weak, you are not uneducated; you are not uncultured; you can always support yourself. You have produced brilliant men. So do not ask for protection or safeguard. You must have self-confidence in you.”
– Tajamul Hussain
“To my mind, reservation is a self-destructive weapon which separates the minorities from the majority for all time. It gives no chance to the minorities to win the goodwill of the majority. It keeps up the spirit of separatism and communalism alive which should be done away once and for all,”
-Begum Aizaz Rasul
Author Partinav Anil, in his book “Another India,” suggests that the use of Tajamul Hussain and Begum Aizaz was a strategy of Sardar Patel to prevent reservations for Muslims. While some members were advocating for reservations for Muslims, Sardar Patel encouraged Tajamul Hussain and Begum Aizaz to counter their arguments and ensured that their views prevailed. Leaders like Maulana Azad could have influenced the resolution, but he remained silent during the debate, and his silence was interpreted as support for Tajamul Hussain.
“Patel recruited two northern League rebels, Tajamul Hussain, Shia landlord from Bihar, and Begum Aizaz Rasul, League chief in the UP legislative council and the only Muslim woman in the assembly, to scuttle the work of his party colleagues Azad and Hifzur Rahman, both in favour of reservations”
– Partinav Anil, Other India
Viv•i•fy : ( verb) : to endow with renewed life 