Indian Round Table Conferences 1931-1933
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The three Round Table Conferences of 1930–1932 were a series of peace conferences organized by the
British Government ga, Rialtas a Shoilse gd, Riaghaltas a Mhòrachd , image = HM Government logo.svg , image_size = 220px , image2 = Royal Coat of Arms of the United Kingdom (HM Government).svg , image_size2 = 180px , caption = Royal Arms , date_es ...
and Indian political personalities to discuss constitutional reforms in India. These started in November 1930 and ended in December 1932. They were conducted as per the recommendation of
Muhammad Ali Jinnah Muhammad Ali Jinnah (, ; born Mahomedali Jinnahbhai; 25 December 1876 – 11 September 1948) was a barrister, politician, and the founder of Pakistan. Jinnah served as the leader of the All-India Muslim League from 1913 until the ...
to Viceroy Lord Irwin and Prime Minister
Ramsay MacDonald James Ramsay MacDonald (; 12 October 18669 November 1937) was a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, the first who belonged to the Labour Party, leading minority Labour governments for nine months in 1924 ...
, and by the report submitted by the
Simon Commission The Indian Statutory Commission also known as Simon Commission, was a group of seven Members of Parliament under the chairmanship of Sir John Simon. The commission arrived in India in 1928 to study constitutional reform in Britain's largest a ...
in May 1930. Demands for
Swaraj Swarāj ( sa, स्वराज, translit=Svarāja '' sva-'' "self", '' raj'' "rule") can mean generally self-governance or "self-rule". It was first used by Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj to attain self rule from the Mughal Empire and the Adil ...
or self-rule in India had been growing increasingly strong.
B. R. Ambedkar Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar (14 April 1891 – 6 December 1956) was an Indian jurist, economist, social reformer and political leader who headed the committee drafting the Constitution of India from the Constituent Assembly debates, served a ...
, Jinnah, Sir Tej Bahadur Sapru,
V. S. Srinivasa Sastri Valangaiman Sankaranarayana Srinivasa Sastri (22 September 1869 – 17 April 1946) was an Indian politician, administrator, educator, orator and Indian independence activist. He was acclaimed for his oratory and command over the English langua ...
, Sir
Muhammad Zafrulla Khan Chaudhry Sir Muhammad Zafarullah Khan ( ur, ‎; 6 February 1893 – 1 September 1985) was a Pakistani jurist and diplomat who served as the first Foreign Minister of Pakistan. After serving as foreign minister he continued his internation ...
,
K. T. Paul Kanakarayan Tiruselvam Paul (24 March 1876 – 11 April 1931) was an Indian leader who served as the president of the All India Conference of Indian Christians, representing the Christian community of colonial India in the First Round Tabl ...
and
Mirabehn Madeleine Slade (22 November 1892 – 20 July 1982), also known as Mirabehn or Meera Behn, was a British supporter of the Indian Independence Movement who in the 1920s left her home in England to live and work with Mahatma Gandhi. She devoted h ...
were key participants from India. By the 1930s, many British politicians believed that India needed to move towards
dominion status The term ''Dominion'' is used to refer to one of several self-governing nations of the British Empire. "Dominion status" was first accorded to Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Newfoundland, South Africa, and the Irish Free State at the 1926 ...
. However, there were significant disagreements between the Indian and the British political parties that the Conferences would not resolve. The key topic was about constitution and India which was mainly discussed in that conference. There were three Round Table Conferences from 1930 to 1932.


First Round Table Conference (November 1930 – January 1931)

The Round Table Conference officially inaugurated by His Majesty George V on November 12, 1930 in Royal Gallery House of Lords at London and chaired by the Prime Minister.
Ramsay MacDonald James Ramsay MacDonald (; 12 October 18669 November 1937) was a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, the first who belonged to the Labour Party, leading minority Labour governments for nine months in 1924 ...
was also chairman of a subcommittee on minority representation, while for the duration his son, Malcolm MacDonald, performed liaison tasks with
Lord Sankey John Sankey, 1st Viscount Sankey, (26 October 1866 – 6 February 1948) was a British lawyer, judge, Labour politician and Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain, famous for many of his judgments in the House of Lords. He gave his name to th ...
's constitutional committee. One of the foremost advisers was Sir
Malcolm Hailey William Malcolm Hailey, 1st Baron Hailey, (15 February 1872 – 1 June 1969) known as Sir Malcolm Hailey between 1921 and 1936, was a British peer and administrator in British India. Education Hailey was educated at Merchant Taylors' School and ...
, an Indian civil servant with thirty years experience. The leading Liberal on the committee,
Lord Reading Marquess of Reading is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1926 for Rufus Isaacs, who had been Member of Parliament for Reading between 1904 and 1913, before serving as Viceroy of India and Lord Chief Justice of Eng ...
was "well aware of the troubles which might arise if and when India became independent."
Clement Attlee Clement Richard Attlee, 1st Earl Attlee, (3 January 18838 October 1967) was a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1945 to 1951 and Leader of the Labour Party from 1935 to 1955. He was Deputy Prime Mini ...
, who served on the
Simon Commission The Indian Statutory Commission also known as Simon Commission, was a group of seven Members of Parliament under the chairmanship of Sir John Simon. The commission arrived in India in 1928 to study constitutional reform in Britain's largest a ...
, wanted an early resolution but was baulked by the Conservatives in government until 1945. Sir Samuel Hoare wrote the cabinet a memo recommending a federal formula for the Government of India to "make it possible to give a semblance of responsible government and yet retain the realities and verities of British control." The idea was proposed by the princely states and other Liberal Indian leaders including Sir Tej Bahadur Sapru would welcome it. The minority Labour government hoped to win the support of Liberal and Conservative colleagues in parliament for a "responsive" Indian government at central and provincial levels and a conservative legislature. The eight British political parties were represented by sixteen delegates. There were fifty-eight political leaders from British India and sixteen delegates from the princely states. In total 74 delegates from India attended the Conference. However, the Indian National Congress, along with Indian business leaders, kept away from the conference. Many of them were in jail for their participation in Civil Disobedience Movement. Lord Irwin made a controversial statement declaring that India should be eventually granted Dominionship. After a discussion in Delhi in December 1929, Gandhi had refused to attend the London meetings. In accordance with the law the Viceroy arrested Gandhi sending him to prison. However the Mahatma's presence would prove vital for the conference success. The culmination of events were settled by the Gandhi–Irwin Pact (1931). A chastised Gandhi wanted the peaceful end to civil disobedience demanded by the Viceroy and his Council. Lord Irwin was triumphant but the Simon Commission had failed to gauge the determination of Indian opinion to ultimately bring independence. The Conservatives were disgusted: "the whole conference was manipulated and manoeuvred by the Socialist Party, said Sir Winston Churchill, "to achieve the result they had set before themselves from the beginning, namely the conferring of responsible government at the centre upon Indians."


Participants

* British Representatives: ** Labour:
Ramsay MacDonald James Ramsay MacDonald (; 12 October 18669 November 1937) was a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, the first who belonged to the Labour Party, leading minority Labour governments for nine months in 1924 ...
,
Lord Sankey John Sankey, 1st Viscount Sankey, (26 October 1866 – 6 February 1948) was a British lawyer, judge, Labour politician and Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain, famous for many of his judgments in the House of Lords. He gave his name to th ...
, Wedgwood Benn, Arthur Henderson, J. H. Thomas,
William Jowitt William Allen Jowitt, 1st Earl Jowitt, (15 April 1885 – 16 August 1957) was a British Liberal Party, National Labour and then Labour Party politician and lawyer who served as Lord Chancellor under Clement Attlee from 1945 to 1951. Backg ...
,
Hastings Lees-Smith Hastings Bertrand Lees-Smith PC (26 January 1878 – 18 December 1941) was a British Liberal turned Labour politician who was briefly in the cabinet as President of the Board of Education in 1931. He was the acting Leader of the Opposition and ...
, Faisal razzak
Earl Russell Earl Russell, of Kingston Russell in the County of Dorset, is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created on 30 July 1861 for the prominent Liberal politician Lord John Russell. He was Home Secretary from 1835 to 1839, Foreign ...
** Conservative: Earl Peel, Marquess of Zetland, Samuel Hoare,
Oliver Stanley Major (Honorary Colonel, TA) Oliver Frederick George Stanley (4 May 1896 – 10 December 1950) was a prominent British Conservative politician who held many ministerial posts before his relatively early death. Background and education Stanley ...
** Liberal: Marquess of Reading, Marquess of Lothian, Sir Robert Hamilton, Isaac Foot * Muslim League:
Aga Khan III Sultan Muhammad Shah (2 November 187711 July 1957), commonly known by his religious title Aga Khan III, was the 48th Imam of the Nizariyya. He played an important role in British Indian politics. Born to Aga Khan II in Karachi, Aga Khan III ...
(leader of British-Indian delegation),
Muhammad Ali Jinnah Muhammad Ali Jinnah (, ; born Mahomedali Jinnahbhai; 25 December 1876 – 11 September 1948) was a barrister, politician, and the founder of Pakistan. Jinnah served as the leader of the All-India Muslim League from 1913 until the ...
, Maulana Mohammad Ali Jauhar,
Muhammad Shafi Muḥammad Shafī‘ ibn Muḥammad Yāsīn ‘Us̱mānī Deobandī ( ur, ; ar, محمد شفيع بن محمد ياسين العثماني الديوبندي, ''Muḥammad Shafī‘ ibn Muḥammad Yāsīn al-‘Uthmānī ad-Diyūbandī''; ...
, Muhammad Zafarullah Khan, Sir Abdul Halim Ghuznavi, Sir Ghulam Hussain Hidayatullah, AK Fazlul Huq, Dr. Shafa'at Ahmad Khan, Raja Sher Muhammad Khan of Domeli * Indian States' Representatives:
Maharaja of Alwar Alwar State was a kingdom from 1770 to 1818 and a princely state under British rule from 1818 to 1947. Initially its capital was Macheri and then the city of Alwar. The nobility of Alwar State belonged to the Naruka branch of the Kachwaha dyna ...
, Maharaja of Baroda,Faisal Razzak Ghutto
Maharaja of Darbhanga The Darbhanga Raj, also known as Raj Darbhanga and the Khandwala dynasty, was a Maithil Brahmins dynasty and the rulers of territories, not all contiguous, that were part of the Mithila region, now divided between India and Nepal. The rulers ...
,
Nawab of Bhopal The Nawabs of Bhopal were the Muslim rulers of Bhopal, now part of Madhya Pradesh, India. The nawabs first ruled under the Mughal Empire from 1707 to 1737, under the Maratha Empire from 1737 to 1818, then under British rule from 1818 to 1947, an ...
, Maharaja of Bikaner,
Rana of Dholpur Dhaulpur State or Dholpur State, historically known as the Kingdom of Dholpur, was a kingdom of eastern Rajasthan, India, which was founded in AD 1806 by a Jat ruler Rana Kirat Singh of Gohad. After 1818, the state was placed under the au ...
, Maharaja of Jammu and Kashmir, Maharaja of Nawanagar, Maharaja of Patiala (Chancellor of the Chamber of Princes), Maharaja of Rewa, Chief Sahib of Sangli, Sir
Prabhashankar Pattani Sir Prabhashankar Dalpatram Pattani (Gujarati language, Gujarati: સર પ્રભાશંકર પટ્ટણી) (15 April 1862 – 16 February 1938) was the prime minister or Divan, Diwan of Bhavnagar State in Gujarat, India. He was born ...
(Bhavnagar),
Manubhai Mehta Sir Manubhai Nandshankar Mehta CSI (22 July 1868 – 14 October 1946) was the dewan of Baroda state from 9 May 1916 to 1927. From 1927 to 1934, he was the prime minister of Bikaner state. Life He was born on 22 July 1868 to Nandshankar Mehta ...
(Baroda), Sardar Sahibzada Sultan Ahmed Khan (Gwalior),
Akbar Hydari :''To be distinguished from his son who was the Governor of Assam, Muhammad Saleh Akbar Hydari.'' Sir Muhammad Akbar Nazar Ali Hydari, ''Sadr ul-Maham'', His Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, PC (8 November 1869 – November 1941) was an ...
(Hyderabad), Mirza Ismail (Mysore),
Kailash Narain Haksar Colonel Sir Kailash Narain Haksar CIE (20 February 1878 – 1953, Calcutta), also spelled Kailas Narayan Haksar, was Minister of the princely state of Jammu and Kashmir from 1942 to 1944, and a former minister in Gwalior State. He was the son ...
(Jammu and Kashmir) * British-Indian Representatives: ** Hindus:
B. S. Moonje Balakrishna Shivram Moonje (B.S.Moonje, also B.S. Munje, 12 December 1872 – 3 March 1948) was a leader of the Hindu Mahasabha in India. Career Moonje was born into a Deshastha Rigvedi Brahmin (DRB) family in 1872 at Bilaspur in Centr ...
,
M. R. Jayakar Mukund Ramrao Jayakar (M.R. Jayakar) (13 November 1873 – 10 March 1959, Bombay) was the first Vice-Chancellor of the University of Poona. He was a lawyer, scholar and politician. He was a prominent freedom fighter. Jayakar was born in a Marat ...
, Diwan Bahadur Raja Narendra Nath ** Liberals: J. N. Basu, Tej Bahadur Sapru,
C. Y. Chintamani Sir Chirravoori Yajneswara Chintamani (10 April 1880 – 1 July 1941) was an Indian editor, journalist, liberal politician and parliamentarian. Life He was born on the Telugu New Year's Day (ugadi) at Vizianagaram, Andhra Pradesh, India. He w ...
,
V. S. Srinivasa Sastri Valangaiman Sankaranarayana Srinivasa Sastri (22 September 1869 – 17 April 1946) was an Indian politician, administrator, educator, orator and Indian independence activist. He was acclaimed for his oratory and command over the English langua ...
,
Chimanlal Harilal Setalvad Sir Chimanlal Harilal Setalvad KCIE (July 1864 – 10 December 1947) was an eminent Indian barrister and jurist who practiced in the Bombay High Court in the early 20th century. Life and background Chimanlal was born in July 1864 at Bharuch, ...
** Justice Party: Arcot Ramasamy Mudaliar, Bhaskarrao Vithojirao Jadhav, Sir
A. P. Patro Rao Bahadur Sir Annepu Parasuramdas Patro Order of the Indian Empire, KCIE (1875 or 1876–1946) was an Indian politician, ''zamindar'' and education minister in the erstwhile Madras Presidency. Patro was born in a rich and powerful family of ...
** Depressed Classes:
B. R. Ambedkar Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar (14 April 1891 – 6 December 1956) was an Indian jurist, economist, social reformer and political leader who headed the committee drafting the Constitution of India from the Constituent Assembly debates, served a ...
,
Rettamalai Srinivasan Diwan Bahadur Rettamalai Srinivasan (7 July 1860 - 18 September 1945), commonly known as R. Srinivasan, was a Scheduled Caste activist and politician from then Madras Presidency of British India (now the Indian state of Tamil Nadu). He is a Para ...
** Sikhs:
Sardar Ujjal Singh Sardar Ujjal Singh (27 December 1895 – 15 February 1983) was an Indian politician who served as the Governor of Punjab (India) (1 September 1965 – 26 June 1966), followed by acting Governor of Tamil Nadu (28 June 1966 - 16 June 1967). Pr ...
, Sardar Sampuran Singh ** Parsis:
Phiroze Sethna Year of birth missing Year of death missing Members of the Imperial Legislative Council of India Members of the Council of State (India) Parsi people People from Mumbai 1938 deaths Officers of the Order of the British Empire Indian Knig ...
, Cowasji Jehangir, Homi Mody ** Indian Christians:
K. T. Paul Kanakarayan Tiruselvam Paul (24 March 1876 – 11 April 1931) was an Indian leader who served as the president of the All India Conference of Indian Christians, representing the Christian community of colonial India in the First Round Tabl ...
( All India Conference of Indian Christians) ** Europeans: Sir Hubert Carr, Sir Oscar de Glanville (Burma), T. F. Gavin Jones, C. E. Wood (Madras) ** Anglo-Indians:
Henry Gidney Sir Henry Albert John Gidney FRSE MID (9 June 1873 – 5 May 1942) was a leader of the Anglo-Indian community of British India for 20 years, founding the All India Anglo-Indian Association in 1926. His grandfather, William Gidney, was killed at t ...
** Women:
Begum Jahanara Shahnawaz Begum Jahanara Shahnawaz (7 April 1896 – 27 November 1979) was a politician and Muslim League activist. She was the daughter of Sir Muhammad Shafi. Her husband was Mian Shah Nawaz. She studied at Queen Mary College, Lahore, British Indi ...
,
Radhabai Subbarayan Kailash Radhabai Subbarayan, ''nee'' Kudmul (22 April 1891 - 1960) was an Indian politician, women's rights activist and social reformer. She was the wife of Indian politician P. Subbarayan and mother of Mohan Kumaramangalam, P. P. Kumaramangal ...
** Landlords:
Maharaja Kameshwar Singh Mahārāja (; also spelled Maharajah, Maharaj) is a Sanskrit title for a "great ruler", "great king" or " high king". A few ruled states informally called empires, including ruler raja Sri Gupta, founder of the ancient Indian Gupta Empire, an ...
of
Darbhanga Darbhanga is the fifth-largest city and municipal corporation in the Indian state of Bihar situated centrally in Mithila region. Darbhanga is the headquarters of the Darbhanga district and the Darbhanga division. It was the seat of the erstw ...
(Bihar), Muhammad Ahmad Said Khan Chhatari (United Provinces), Raja of Parlakimedi (Orissa), Provash Chandra Mitter ** Labour:
N. M. Joshi Narayan Malhar Joshi (5 June 1879 – 30 May 1955) was an Indian trade union leader and follower of Gopal Krishna Gokhale. Joshi became involved in labour issues and started the All India Trade Union Congress in 1920 along with Lala Lajpat Rai. H ...
,
B. Shiva Rao Benegal Shiva Rao (26 February 1891 – 15 December 1975) was an Indian journalist and politician. He was a member of the Constituent Assembly of India and an elected representative of the South Kanara constituency in the First Lok Sabha (later n ...
** Universities:
Syed Sultan Ahmed Sir Syed Sultan Ahmed, KCSI (1880–1963, Patna, Bengal Presidency, British India) was an Indian barrister and politician who had a very successful practice as a barrister, having victories over Motilal Nehru, Tej Bahadur Sapru and Sarat Chandr ...
, Bisheshwar Dayal Seth ** Burma: U Aung Thin,
Ba U Sir Ba U ( my, ဘဦး, ; 26 May 1887 – 9 November 1963), was a Burmese politician and lawyer. He served as Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Burma from 1948 to 1952, and the second president of Burma from 16 March 1952 to 13 March 1957 ...
, M. M. Ohn Ghine ** Sindh: Shah Nawaz Bhutto,
Ghulam Hussain Hidayatullah Sir Ghulam Hussain Hidayatullah KCSI ( ur, غلام حسین هدايت الله , sd, غلام حسين هدايت الله; January 1879 – 4 October 1948) was a colonial Indian and Pakistani politician from Sindh. He held several offices in ...
** Other Provinces:
Chandradhar Barua Chandradhar Barua (15 October 1874 – 26 October 1961) was an eminent writer, poet, dramatist and lyricist from Assam of Jonaki Era, the age of romanticism of Assamese literature. Barua was born at Dergaon, Golaghat, Assam on 15 October 1878. H ...
(Assam),
Sahibzada Abdul Qayyum Nawab Khan Bahadur Sahibzada Sir Abdul Qayyum Khan KCIE (12 December 1863 – 4 December 1937), hailing from Topi, Swabi District, British India (modern day Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Pakistan) was an educationist and politician. Qayyum Khan helped Mor ...
(NWFP),
S. B. Tambe Shripad Balwant Tambe was a pledger from Amravati in Berar division of Central Provinces. He was a member of the Swaraj Party and President of the Central Provinces Legislative Council. He was appointed member of the Government of Central Prov ...
(Central Provinces) ** Government of India: Narendra Nath Law,
Bhupendra Nath Mitra Sir Bhupendra Nath Mitra (Bengali: ভূপেন্দ্র নাথ মিত্র) (October 1875 – 25 February 1937) was an Indian government official and diplomat who served as the third Indian High Commissioner to the United Kingdom fr ...
,
C. P. Ramaswami Iyer Sir Chetput Pattabhiraman Ramaswami Iyer (12 November 1879 – 26 September 1966), popularly known as Sir C. P., was an Indian lawyer, administrator and politician who served as the Advocate-General of Madras Presidency from 1920 to 1923, Law ...
, M. Ramachandra Rao * Officials attending in consultative capacity: W. M. Hailey, C. A. Innes, A. C. MacWatters, Sir Henry G. Haig, L. W. Reynolds * Indian States Delegation Staff: ** Hyderabad: Sir Richard Chenevix-Trench, Nawab Mahdi Yar Jung,
Ahmed Hussain, Nawab Sir Amin Jung Bahadur Nawab Sir Ahmed Hussain, Amin Jung Bahadur, KCIE, CSI, LLD (Osmania), MA, BL (Madras) was born in Madras on 11 August 1863 in the family of a leading businessman. Life In 1893, he visited Hyderabad ( Nizam's Dominion now in Andhra Pradesh, ...
,
Reginald Glancy Reginald is a masculine given name in the English language. Etymology and history The meaning of Reginald is “King". The name is derived from the Latin ''Reginaldus'', which has been influenced by the Latin word ''regina'', meaning "queen". Th ...
** South Indian States:
T. Raghavaiah Diwan Bahadur Thodla Raghavaiah CSI was an Indian administrator who served as the Diwan of Travancore from 1920 to 1925. He was a favourite of the Maharaja Moolam Thirunal. His refusal to allow low-caste to enter Hindu temples is believed to ...
** Baroda:
V. T. Krishnamachari Rao Bahadur Sir Vangal Thiruvenkatachari Krishnamachari KCSI, KCIE (8 February 1881 – 14 February 1964) was an Indian civil servant and administrator. He served as the Diwan of Baroda from 1927 to 1944, Prime Minister of Jaipur State fro ...
** Alwar:
Fateh Naseeb Khan Khan Bahadur Maj.Gen. Fateh Naseeb Khan, OBE KB (1888–1933), was the Commander-in-chief of Alwar State Forces. He was a close confidant and trusted aide of Maharaja Jai Singh Prabhakar Bahadur, who was the Maharaja of Alwar State. He ...
** Orissa States:
K. C. Neogy Kshitish Chandra Neogy (1888–1970), also known as KC Neogy, was an Indian politician from West Bengal. He was a member of the Constituent Assembly of India, member of the first Cabinet of independent India and the chairman of the first Finance C ...
** Nominated by the Chamber of Princes Special Organisation:
L. F. Rushbrook Williams Laurence Frederic Rushbrook Williams, (1890–1978) was a British historian and civil servant who spent part of his working life in India, and had an abiding interest in Eastern culture. Life and work Williams was a Fellow of All Souls' Colleg ...
, Qazi Ali Haidar Abbasi, Jarmani Dass,
Anna Babaji Latthe Anna Babaji Latthe (9 December 1878 – 16 May 1950) or Annasaheb Latthe was an Indian politician, social reformer, educationist and leader of the Satyashodhak Samaj and Non-Brahmin movement. Annasaheb Latthe started his career as a Lecturer of E ...
, D. A. Surve * Secretariats: S. K. Brown, V. Dawson, K. S. Fitze, W. H. Lewis, R. J. Stopford,
John Coatman John Coatman, CIE, (1889–1963) was director of public information for the Indian Police Service and the British government in India. He was made a Companion of the Order of the Indian Empire in 1929 and was a member of the secretariat during th ...
, Marmaduke Pickthall,
K. M. Panikkar Kavalam Madhava Panikkar (3 June 1895 – 10 December 1963), popularly known as Sardar K. M. Panikkar, was an Indian statesman and diplomat. He was also a professor, newspaper editor, historian and novelist. He was born in Travancore, then a ...
,
N. S. Subba Rao Nanjanagud Subbaraya Subba Rao (14 March 1885 – 29 June 1943) was a professor of economics at Maharaja College, Mysore. He later became Principal of Maharaja College, Mysore and retired as the Vice Chancellor of University of Mysore from 193 ...
,
Geoffrey Corbett Sir Geoffrey Latham Corbett KBE CIE (9 February 1881 – November 1937) was a British member of the Indian Civil Service and a mountaineer. He held senior positions in the Governments of British India and the Kingdom of Egypt. Early life The so ...
, A. Latifi,
Girija Shankar Bajpai Sir Girija Shankar Bajpai (3 April 1891 – 5 December 1954) was an Indian civil servant, diplomat and Governor. Early life and education Bajpai was born in Allahabad to an orthodox Kanyakubja Brahmin family originally from Lucknow. He was the ...
* Secretariat-General: R. H. A. Carter,
Mian Abdul Aziz ur, عبد الرحمن پشاوری , native_name_lang = ur , birth_name = Abdur Rahman Samdani Peshawari , birth_date = , birth_place = Peshawar, Punjab Province, British India , death_date = , death ...
, W. D. Croft, G. E. J. Gent,
B. G. Holdsworth Benjamin George Holdsworth CIE (31 July 1892 – 24 February 1943) was an Indian civil servant and administrator who served as the Diwan of Pudukkottai state from 1931 to 1933. Early life Holdsworth was born on 31 July 1892 to Rev. J. ...
, R. F. Mudie, G. S. Rajadhyaksha


Proceedings

The conference started with six plenary meetings where delegates put forward their issues nine sub-committees were formed to deal with several different matters including federal structure, provincial constitution, province of
Sindh Sindh (; ; ur, , ; historically romanized as Sind) is one of the four provinces of Pakistan. Located in the southeastern region of the country, Sindh is the third-largest province of Pakistan by land area and the second-largest province ...
and
NWFP NWFP may refer to: *North-West Frontier Province, a province of British India, and later, Pakistan *Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (; ps, خېبر پښتونخوا; Urdu, Hindko: خیبر پختونخوا) commonly abbreviated as KP o ...
, defense services and minorities e.t.c. These were followed by discussions on the reports of the sub-committees on Federal Structure, Provincial Constitution, Minorities, Burma, North West Frontier Province, Franchise, Defense services and
Sindh Sindh (; ; ur, , ; historically romanized as Sind) is one of the four provinces of Pakistan. Located in the southeastern region of the country, Sindh is the third-largest province of Pakistan by land area and the second-largest province ...
. These were followed by 2 more plenary meetings and a final concluding session. It was difficult for progress to be made in the absence of the Indian National Congress but some advances were made. The Prime Minister wrote his diary "India has not considered. It was communalism and proportions of reserved seats" that exposed the worst side of Indian politics. The idea of an All-India Federation was moved to the centre of discussion by Tej Bahadur Sapru. All the groups attending the conference supported this concept. The princely states agreed to the proposed federation provided that their internal sovereignty was guaranteed. The Muslim League also supported the federation as it had always been opposed to a strong Centre. The British agreed that representative government should be introduced on provincial level. The Congress, which had killed and boycotted the first conference, was requested to come to a settlement by Sapru,
M. R. Jayakar Mukund Ramrao Jayakar (M.R. Jayakar) (13 November 1873 – 10 March 1959, Bombay) was the first Vice-Chancellor of the University of Poona. He was a lawyer, scholar and politician. He was a prominent freedom fighter. Jayakar was born in a Marat ...
and
V. S. Srinivasa Sastri Valangaiman Sankaranarayana Srinivasa Sastri (22 September 1869 – 17 April 1946) was an Indian politician, administrator, educator, orator and Indian independence activist. He was acclaimed for his oratory and command over the English langua ...
. A settlement between Mahatma Gandhi and Viceroy Lord Irwin brought the Congress to the second session of Round Table Conference, which opened on 7 September. Although MacDonald was still Prime Minister of Britain, he was by this time heading a coalition Government (the "National Government") with a Conservative majority, including Sir Samuel Hoare as a new Secretary of State for India. On 7 November 1931 Gandhi secretly met with Malcolm MacDonald in his rooms at Balliol College, Oxford. He took the opportunity to gain publicity from a tour of the East End and visit to Lancashire cotton mills, but could not persuade the government to grant self-rule: of more urgency was the gathering Agrarian Crisis and Congress newest campaign for a Fair rent. The discussion led to the passing of the
Government of India Act 1935 The Government of India Act, 1935 was an Act adapted from the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It originally received royal assent in August 1935. It was the longest Act of (British) Parliament ever enacted until the Greater London Authority ...
, yet the Governor of United Provinces was happy to be rid of Gandhi's campaigns "playing havoc with six or seven million tenants in the UP." When Nehru decried that the famine relief programme was pitiful, he was already asking for a kisan rent strike, and Patel called for a
satyagraha Satyagraha ( sa, सत्याग्रह; ''satya'': "truth", ''āgraha'': "insistence" or "holding firmly to"), or "holding firmly to truth",' or "truth force", is a particular form of nonviolent resistance or civil resistance. Someone w ...
. When quizzed in London about his intentions for the conference, Gandhi averred he could do nothing about agrarian problems from England. Little was achieved other than the Government realised they had to tackle absentee landlordism in India to avert disaster.


Second Round Table Conference (September 1931 – December 1931)


Participants

* British Representatives: ** Labour:
Ramsay MacDonald James Ramsay MacDonald (; 12 October 18669 November 1937) was a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, the first who belonged to the Labour Party, leading minority Labour governments for nine months in 1924 ...
, Wedgwood Benn, Arthur Henderson,
William Jowitt William Allen Jowitt, 1st Earl Jowitt, (15 April 1885 – 16 August 1957) was a British Liberal Party, National Labour and then Labour Party politician and lawyer who served as Lord Chancellor under Clement Attlee from 1945 to 1951. Backg ...
,
Hastings Lees-Smith Hastings Bertrand Lees-Smith PC (26 January 1878 – 18 December 1941) was a British Liberal turned Labour politician who was briefly in the cabinet as President of the Board of Education in 1931. He was the acting Leader of the Opposition and ...
, F. W.hick-Lawrence,
Lord Sankey John Sankey, 1st Viscount Sankey, (26 October 1866 – 6 February 1948) was a British lawyer, judge, Labour politician and Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain, famous for many of his judgments in the House of Lords. He gave his name to th ...
, Lord Snell, J. H. Thomas ** Conservative: Viscount Hailsham, Samuel Hoare, Earl Peel,
Oliver Stanley Major (Honorary Colonel, TA) Oliver Frederick George Stanley (4 May 1896 – 10 December 1950) was a prominent British Conservative politician who held many ministerial posts before his relatively early death. Background and education Stanley ...
, Marquess of Zetland ** Scottish Unionist: Walter Elliot ** Liberal: Isaac Foot, Henry Graham White, Robert Hamilton, Marquess of Lothian, Marquess of Reading, * Indian States' Representatives:
Maharaja of Alwar Alwar State was a kingdom from 1770 to 1818 and a princely state under British rule from 1818 to 1947. Initially its capital was Macheri and then the city of Alwar. The nobility of Alwar State belonged to the Naruka branch of the Kachwaha dyna ...
, Maharaja of Baroda,
Maharaja Of Darbhanga The Darbhanga Raj, also known as Raj Darbhanga and the Khandwala dynasty, was a Maithil Brahmins dynasty and the rulers of territories, not all contiguous, that were part of the Mithila region, now divided between India and Nepal. The rulers ...
,
Nawab of Bhopal The Nawabs of Bhopal were the Muslim rulers of Bhopal, now part of Madhya Pradesh, India. The nawabs first ruled under the Mughal Empire from 1707 to 1737, under the Maratha Empire from 1737 to 1818, then under British rule from 1818 to 1947, an ...
, Maharaja of Bikaner, Maharao of Kutch,
Rana of Dholpur Dhaulpur State or Dholpur State, historically known as the Kingdom of Dholpur, was a kingdom of eastern Rajasthan, India, which was founded in AD 1806 by a Jat ruler Rana Kirat Singh of Gohad. After 1818, the state was placed under the au ...
, Maharaja of Indore, Maharaja of Jammu and Kashmir,
Maharaja of Kapurthala Kapurthala State, with its capital at Kapurthala, was a former Princely state of Punjab. Ruled by Ahluwalia Sikh rulers, spread across . According to the 1901 census the state had a population of 314,341 and contained two towns and 167 village ...
, Maharaja of Nawanagar, Maharaja of Patiala, Maharaja of Rewa, Chief Sahib of Sangli, Raja of Korea, Raja of Sarila, Sir
Prabhashankar Pattani Sir Prabhashankar Dalpatram Pattani (Gujarati language, Gujarati: સર પ્રભાશંકર પટ્ટણી) (15 April 1862 – 16 February 1938) was the prime minister or Divan, Diwan of Bhavnagar State in Gujarat, India. He was born ...
(Bhavnagar),
Manubhai Mehta Sir Manubhai Nandshankar Mehta CSI (22 July 1868 – 14 October 1946) was the dewan of Baroda state from 9 May 1916 to 1927. From 1927 to 1934, he was the prime minister of Bikaner state. Life He was born on 22 July 1868 to Nandshankar Mehta ...
(Baroda), Sardar Sahibzada Sultan Ahmed Khan (Gwalior), Sir Muhammad Akbar Hydari (Hyderabad), Mirza Ismail (Mysore), Col. K.N. Haksar (Jammu and Kashmir),
T. Raghavaiah Diwan Bahadur Thodla Raghavaiah CSI was an Indian administrator who served as the Diwan of Travancore from 1920 to 1925. He was a favourite of the Maharaja Moolam Thirunal. His refusal to allow low-caste to enter Hindu temples is believed to ...
(Travancore),
Liaqat Hayat Khan Khan Bahadur Nawab Sir Liaqat Hayat Khan (also sometimes 'Liaquat Hyat Khan'), (February 1887 – 1948) was an Indian official who served for most of his career as a minister and later Prime Minister of Patiala State, in British India. Early l ...
(Patiala) * British-Indian Representatives: ** Government of India:
C. P. Ramaswami Iyer Sir Chetput Pattabhiraman Ramaswami Iyer (12 November 1879 – 26 September 1966), popularly known as Sir C. P., was an Indian lawyer, administrator and politician who served as the Advocate-General of Madras Presidency from 1920 to 1923, Law ...
, Narendra Nath Law, M. Ramachandra Rao ** Indian National Congress: Mahatma Gandhi (He was the sole representative of the Congress). ** Muslims:
Aga Khan III Sultan Muhammad Shah (2 November 187711 July 1957), commonly known by his religious title Aga Khan III, was the 48th Imam of the Nizariyya. He played an important role in British Indian politics. Born to Aga Khan II in Karachi, Aga Khan III ...
,
Maulana Shaukat Ali Shaukat Ali (10 March 1873– 26 November 1938; Urdu: مولانا شوكت علي) was an Indian Muslim member of the Khilafat Movement. He was the elder brother of the renowned political leader Mohammad Ali Jouhar. Early life Shaukat Ali was ...
,
Muhammad Ali Jinnah Muhammad Ali Jinnah (, ; born Mahomedali Jinnahbhai; 25 December 1876 – 11 September 1948) was a barrister, politician, and the founder of Pakistan. Jinnah served as the leader of the All-India Muslim League from 1913 until the ...
,
A. K. Fazlul Huq Abul Kasem Fazlul Huq ( bn, আবুল কাশেম ফজলুল হক, ur, ; 26October 1873 — 27 April 1962), popularly known as Sher-e-Bangla (''Lion of Bengal''), was a British Indian and Pakistani lawyer and writer who present ...
, Sir Muhammad Iqbal,
Muhammad Shafi Muḥammad Shafī‘ ibn Muḥammad Yāsīn ‘Us̱mānī Deobandī ( ur, ; ar, محمد شفيع بن محمد ياسين العثماني الديوبندي, ''Muḥammad Shafī‘ ibn Muḥammad Yāsīn al-‘Uthmānī ad-Diyūbandī''; ...
, Muhammad Zafarullah Khan, Sir Syed Ali Imam, Maulvi
Muhammad Shafi Daudi Muhammad Shafi Daudi was an Indian Muslim scholar and a politician, who was a member of the Central Legislative Assembly from 1924 to 1935. Early life and education Muhammad Shafi Daudi was born in Daudnagar village of Bihar in 1875. He stud ...
, Raja
Sher Muhammad Khan Sher Muhammad Khan ( ur, ), ( Punjabi, ), better known by his pen name Ibn-e-Insha, ( ur, ), ( Punjabi, ) (15 June 1927 – 11 January 1978)M. R. Jayakar Mukund Ramrao Jayakar (M.R. Jayakar) (13 November 1873 – 10 March 1959, Bombay) was the first Vice-Chancellor of the University of Poona. He was a lawyer, scholar and politician. He was a prominent freedom fighter. Jayakar was born in a Marat ...
,
B. S. Moonje Balakrishna Shivram Moonje (B.S.Moonje, also B.S. Munje, 12 December 1872 – 3 March 1948) was a leader of the Hindu Mahasabha in India. Career Moonje was born into a Deshastha Rigvedi Brahmin (DRB) family in 1872 at Bilaspur in Centr ...
, Diwan Bahadur Raja Narendra Nath ** Liberals: J. N. Basu,
C. Y. Chintamani Sir Chirravoori Yajneswara Chintamani (10 April 1880 – 1 July 1941) was an Indian editor, journalist, liberal politician and parliamentarian. Life He was born on the Telugu New Year's Day (ugadi) at Vizianagaram, Andhra Pradesh, India. He w ...
, Tej Bahadur Sapru,
V. S. Srinivasa Sastri Valangaiman Sankaranarayana Srinivasa Sastri (22 September 1869 – 17 April 1946) was an Indian politician, administrator, educator, orator and Indian independence activist. He was acclaimed for his oratory and command over the English langua ...
,
Chimanlal Harilal Setalvad Sir Chimanlal Harilal Setalvad KCIE (July 1864 – 10 December 1947) was an eminent Indian barrister and jurist who practiced in the Bombay High Court in the early 20th century. Life and background Chimanlal was born in July 1864 at Bharuch, ...
** Justice Party:
Raja of Bobbili Raja Sri Ravu Svetachalapati Sir Ramakrishna Ranga Rao KCIE (20 February 1901 – 10 March 1978) was an Indian politician and ''zamindar'' who served as the Chief Minister of Madras Presidency from 5 November 1932 to 4 April 1936 and 24 ...
, Arcot Ramasamy Mudaliar, Sir
A. P. Patro Rao Bahadur Sir Annepu Parasuramdas Patro Order of the Indian Empire, KCIE (1875 or 1876–1946) was an Indian politician, ''zamindar'' and education minister in the erstwhile Madras Presidency. Patro was born in a rich and powerful family of ...
, Bhaskarrao Vithojirao Jadhav ** Depressed Classes:
B. R. Ambedkar Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar (14 April 1891 – 6 December 1956) was an Indian jurist, economist, social reformer and political leader who headed the committee drafting the Constitution of India from the Constituent Assembly debates, served a ...
,
Rettamalai Srinivasan Diwan Bahadur Rettamalai Srinivasan (7 July 1860 - 18 September 1945), commonly known as R. Srinivasan, was a Scheduled Caste activist and politician from then Madras Presidency of British India (now the Indian state of Tamil Nadu). He is a Para ...
** Sikhs:
Sardar Ujjal Singh Sardar Ujjal Singh (27 December 1895 – 15 February 1983) was an Indian politician who served as the Governor of Punjab (India) (1 September 1965 – 26 June 1966), followed by acting Governor of Tamil Nadu (28 June 1966 - 16 June 1967). Pr ...
, Sardar Sampuran Singh ** Parsis: Cowasji Jehangir, Homi Mody, Phiroze Sethna ** Indian Christians:
Surendra Kumar Datta Surendra Kumar Datta (1878–1942), also spelt as Surendra Kumar Dutta or S. K. Dutta, was the president of the All India Conference of Indian Christians and thus the Indian people, Indian Christians, Christian delegate to the Round Table Confer ...
,
A. T. Pannirselvam Rao Bahadur Sir Arogyaswami Thamaraiselvam Pannirselvam (1 June 1888 – 1 March 1940) was an Indian attorney, landlord, politician and leader of the Justice Party (India), Justice Party. He was born in a royal family of Udayar (caste), Udayar c ...
** Europeans: E. C. Benthall, Sir Hubert Carr, T. F. Gavin Jones, C. E. Wood (Madras) ** Anglo-Indians:
Henry Gidney Sir Henry Albert John Gidney FRSE MID (9 June 1873 – 5 May 1942) was a leader of the Anglo-Indian community of British India for 20 years, founding the All India Anglo-Indian Association in 1926. His grandfather, William Gidney, was killed at t ...
** Women: Sarojini Naidu,
Begum Jahanara Shahnawaz Begum Jahanara Shahnawaz (7 April 1896 – 27 November 1979) was a politician and Muslim League activist. She was the daughter of Sir Muhammad Shafi. Her husband was Mian Shah Nawaz. She studied at Queen Mary College, Lahore, British Indi ...
,
Radhabai Subbarayan Kailash Radhabai Subbarayan, ''nee'' Kudmul (22 April 1891 - 1960) was an Indian politician, women's rights activist and social reformer. She was the wife of Indian politician P. Subbarayan and mother of Mohan Kumaramangalam, P. P. Kumaramangal ...
** Landlords: Muhammad Ahmad Said Khan Chhatari (United Provinces), Kameshwar Singh of Darbhanga (Bihar), Raja of Parlakimedi (Orissa), Sir Provash Chandra Mitter ** Industry:
Ghanshyam Das Birla Ghanshyam Das Birla (10 April 1894 – 11 June 1983) was an Indian businessman and member of the Birla Family. Birla family history Ghanshyam Das Birla was born on 10 April 1894 at Pilani town in Jhunjhunu district, in the region known as R ...
,
Sir Purshottamdas Thakurdas Sir Purshottamdas Thakurdas (1879–1961), , was a Gujarati cotton trader, mill owner, businessman and industrialist from Mumbai, India. He was one of the signatory of ''Bombay Plan'', which was set of proposals for the post-independence economy o ...
, Maneckji Dadabhoy ** Labour:
N. M. Joshi Narayan Malhar Joshi (5 June 1879 – 30 May 1955) was an Indian trade union leader and follower of Gopal Krishna Gokhale. Joshi became involved in labour issues and started the All India Trade Union Congress in 1920 along with Lala Lajpat Rai. H ...
,
B. Shiva Rao Benegal Shiva Rao (26 February 1891 – 15 December 1975) was an Indian journalist and politician. He was a member of the Constituent Assembly of India and an elected representative of the South Kanara constituency in the First Lok Sabha (later n ...
,
V. V. Giri Varahagiri Venkata Giri (; 10 August 1894 — 24 June 1980) was an Indian politician and activist from Berhampur in Odisha who served as the 4th president of India from 24 August 1969 to 24 August 1974. He also 3rd vice president of India from ...
** Universities:
Syed Sultan Ahmed Sir Syed Sultan Ahmed, KCSI (1880–1963, Patna, Bengal Presidency, British India) was an Indian barrister and politician who had a very successful practice as a barrister, having victories over Motilal Nehru, Tej Bahadur Sapru and Sarat Chandr ...
, Bisheshwar Dayal Seth ** Burma: Sir Padamji Ginwala ** Sindh: Shah Nawaz Bhutto,
Ghulam Hussain Hidayatullah Sir Ghulam Hussain Hidayatullah KCSI ( ur, غلام حسین هدايت الله , sd, غلام حسين هدايت الله; January 1879 – 4 October 1948) was a colonial Indian and Pakistani politician from Sindh. He held several offices in ...
** Other Provinces:
Chandradhar Barua Chandradhar Barua (15 October 1874 – 26 October 1961) was an eminent writer, poet, dramatist and lyricist from Assam of Jonaki Era, the age of romanticism of Assamese literature. Barua was born at Dergaon, Golaghat, Assam on 15 October 1878. H ...
(Assam),
Sahibzada Abdul Qayyum Nawab Khan Bahadur Sahibzada Sir Abdul Qayyum Khan KCIE (12 December 1863 – 4 December 1937), hailing from Topi, Swabi District, British India (modern day Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Pakistan) was an educationist and politician. Qayyum Khan helped Mor ...
(NWFP),
S. B. Tambe Shripad Balwant Tambe was a pledger from Amravati in Berar division of Central Provinces. He was a member of the Swaraj Party and President of the Central Provinces Legislative Council. He was appointed member of the Government of Central Prov ...
(Central Provinces) * Indian States Delegation Staff:
V. T. Krishnamachari Rao Bahadur Sir Vangal Thiruvenkatachari Krishnamachari KCSI, KCIE (8 February 1881 – 14 February 1964) was an Indian civil servant and administrator. He served as the Diwan of Baroda from 1927 to 1944, Prime Minister of Jaipur State fro ...
(Baroda), Richard Chenevix-Trench (Hyderabad), Nawab Mahdi Yar Jung (Hyderabad), S. M. Bapna (Indore), Amar Nath Atal (Jaipur), J. W. Young (Jodhpur),
Ram Chandra Kak Ram Chandra Kak (5 June 1893 – 10 February 1983) was the prime minister of Jammu and Kashmir during 1945–1947. One of the very few Kashmiri Pandits to ever hold that post, Kak had the intractable job of navigating the troubled wate ...
(Jammu and Kashmir), Sahibzada Abdus Samad Khan (Rampur),
K. C. Neogy Kshitish Chandra Neogy (1888–1970), also known as KC Neogy, was an Indian politician from West Bengal. He was a member of the Constituent Assembly of India, member of the first Cabinet of independent India and the chairman of the first Finance C ...
(Orissa states),
L. F. Rushbrook Williams Laurence Frederic Rushbrook Williams, (1890–1978) was a British historian and civil servant who spent part of his working life in India, and had an abiding interest in Eastern culture. Life and work Williams was a Fellow of All Souls' Colleg ...
, Jarmani Dass,
Muhammad Saleh Akbar Hydari : Sir Muhammad Saleh Akbar Hydari KCIE, CSI (12 October 1894 – 28 December 1948) was an Indian civil servant and politician. He was the last British-appointed Governor of the province of Assam, who also continued in the role after Indian in ...
,
K. M. Panikkar Kavalam Madhava Panikkar (3 June 1895 – 10 December 1963), popularly known as Sardar K. M. Panikkar, was an Indian statesman and diplomat. He was also a professor, newspaper editor, historian and novelist. He was born in Travancore, then a ...
,
N. Madhava Rao Sir Nyapathi Madhava Rau (8 June 1887 – 28 August 1972) was an Indian civil servant, administrator, and statesman who served as the 23rd dewan of Mysore from 1941 to 1945 and later as a member of the Drafting Committee of the Constituent Asse ...
* British Delegation Staff: H. G. Haig, V. Dawson, K. S. Fitze, J. G. Laithwaite, W. H. Lewis, P. J. Patrick,
John Coatman John Coatman, CIE, (1889–1963) was director of public information for the Indian Police Service and the British government in India. He was made a Companion of the Order of the Indian Empire in 1929 and was a member of the secretariat during th ...
, G. T. Garratt, R. J. Stopford * British Indian Delegation Staff:
Geoffrey Corbett Sir Geoffrey Latham Corbett KBE CIE (9 February 1881 – November 1937) was a British member of the Indian Civil Service and a mountaineer. He held senior positions in the Governments of British India and the Kingdom of Egypt. Early life The so ...
, A. Latifi,
Girija Shankar Bajpai Sir Girija Shankar Bajpai (3 April 1891 – 5 December 1954) was an Indian civil servant, diplomat and Governor. Early life and education Bajpai was born in Allahabad to an orthodox Kanyakubja Brahmin family originally from Lucknow. He was the ...
, Benegal Rama Rau, Syed Amjad Ali, Prince Aly Khan, A. M. Chaudhury,
Mahadev Desai Mahadev Haribhai Desai (1 January 1892 – 15 August 1942) was an Indian independence activist, scholar and writer best remembered as Mahatma Gandhi's personal secretary. He has variously been described as "Gandhi's Boswell, a Plato to G ...
, Govind Malaviya,
K. T. Shah Khushal Talaksi Shah was an Indian economist, advocate and socialist best known for his active role as a member of the Constituent Assembly of India that was responsible for framing of the Indian Constitution. An alumnus of the London School of Ec ...
, P. Sinha * Secretariat-General: R. H. A. Carter, K. Anderson,
C. D. Deshmukh Sir Chintaman Dwarakanath Deshmukh, CIE, ICS (14 January 1896 – 2 October 1982) was an Indian civil servant and the first Indian to be appointed the Governor of the Reserve Bank of India in 1943 by the British Raj authorities. He subsequent ...
, J. M. Sladen, Hugh MacGregor, G. F. Steward, A. H. Joyce, Syed Amjad Ali, Ram Babu Saksena


Proceedings

The Second Session opened on September 7, 1931. There were three major differences between the first and second Round Table Conferences. By the second: * ''Congress Representation'' — The Gandhi–Irwin Pact opened the way for Congress participation in this conference. Gandhi was invited from India and attended as the sole official Congress representative accompanied by Sarojini Naidu and also Madan Mohan Malaviya,
Ghanshyam Das Birla Ghanshyam Das Birla (10 April 1894 – 11 June 1983) was an Indian businessman and member of the Birla Family. Birla family history Ghanshyam Das Birla was born on 10 April 1894 at Pilani town in Jhunjhunu district, in the region known as R ...
, Muhammad Iqbal,
Sir Mirza Ismail Sir Mirza Muhammad Ismail Amin-ul-Mulq (24 October 1883 – 5 January 1959) was an Indian statesman and police officer who served as the Diwan of Mysore, Jaipur, and Hyderabad.P. 254-258, ''Business Legends'' by Gita Piramal (1998) – Published ...
(
Diwan of Mysore The diwan of Mysore, also spelled dewan of Mysore, synonymously the prime minister of Mysore, was the ''de-facto'' chief executive officer of the government of the Kingdom of Mysore and the prime minister and royal adviser to the Maharaja of My ...
), S.K. Dutta and Sir Syed Ali Imam. Gandhi claimed that the Congress alone represented political India; that the Untouchables were Hindus and should not be treated as a “minority”; and that there should be no separate electorates or special safeguards for Muslims or other minorities. These claims were rejected by the other Indian participants. According to this pact, Gandhi was asked to call off the Civil Disobedience Movement (CDM) and if he did so the prisoners of the British government would be freed except the criminal prisoners, i.e. those who had killed British officials. He returned to India, disappointed with the results and empty-handed. * ''National Government'' — two weeks earlier the
Labour Labour or labor may refer to: * Childbirth, the delivery of a baby * Labour (human activity), or work ** Manual labour, physical work ** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer ** Organized labour and the labour ...
government in London had fallen.
Ramsay MacDonald James Ramsay MacDonald (; 12 October 18669 November 1937) was a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, the first who belonged to the Labour Party, leading minority Labour governments for nine months in 1924 ...
now headed a National Government dominated by the
Conservative Party The Conservative Party is a name used by many political parties around the world. These political parties are generally right-wing though their exact ideologies can range from center-right to far-right. Political parties called The Conservative P ...
. * ''Financial Crisis'' – During the conference, Britain went off the Gold Standard, further distracting the National Government. At the end of the conference Ramsay MacDonald undertook to produce a Communal Award for minority representation, with the provision that any free agreement between the parties could be substituted for his award. Gandhi took particular exception to the treatment of untouchables as a minority separate from the rest of the Hindu community. Other important discussions were the responsibility of the executive to the legislature and a separate electorate for the Untouchables as demanded by Dr.
B. R. Ambedkar Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar (14 April 1891 – 6 December 1956) was an Indian jurist, economist, social reformer and political leader who headed the committee drafting the Constitution of India from the Constituent Assembly debates, served a ...
. Gandhi announced that henceforth he would work only on behalf of the ''Harijans'': he reached a compromise with the leader of depressed classes, Dr. B. R. Ambedkar, over this issue; the two eventually resolved the situation with the
Poona Pact The Poona Pact was an agreement between Mahatma Gandhi and Dr. B. R. Ambedkar on behalf of Dalits, depressed classes, and upper caste Hindu leaders on the reservation of electoral seats for the depressed classes in the legislature of British ...
of 1932. But not before the conference of All-India Depressed Classes had specifically 'denounced the claim made by Gandhi.'


Third Round Table Conference (November – December 1932)

The third and last session assembled on November 17, 1932. Only forty-six delegates attended since most of the main political figures of India were not present. The Labour Party from Britain and the Indian National Congress refused to attend. From September 1931 until March 1933, under the supervision of the Secretary of State for India, Sir Samuel Hoare, the proposed reforms took the form reflected in the
Government of India Act 1935 The Government of India Act, 1935 was an Act adapted from the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It originally received royal assent in August 1935. It was the longest Act of (British) Parliament ever enacted until the Greater London Authority ...
.


Participants

* Indian States' Representatives:
Deewan sagar Diwan and divan are variant terms originally used in Persian, Arabic, and Turkish with derivates in other Asian and European languages such as diwaan, dewan, etc. (see etymology sections at Divan, Diwan (poetry) and Dewan). These terms may refer ...
(Dewan of Hyderabad), Mirza Ismail (Dewan of Mysore),
V. T. Krishnamachari Rao Bahadur Sir Vangal Thiruvenkatachari Krishnamachari KCSI, KCIE (8 February 1881 – 14 February 1964) was an Indian civil servant and administrator. He served as the Diwan of Baroda from 1927 to 1944, Prime Minister of Jaipur State fro ...
(Dewan of Baroda), Wajahat Hussain (Jammu and Kashmir), Sir Sukhdeo Prasad (Udaipur, Jaipur, Jodhpur), D. A. Surve (Kolhapur), Raja Oudh Narain Bisarya (Bhopal),
Manubhai Mehta Sir Manubhai Nandshankar Mehta CSI (22 July 1868 – 14 October 1946) was the dewan of Baroda state from 9 May 1916 to 1927. From 1927 to 1934, he was the prime minister of Bikaner state. Life He was born on 22 July 1868 to Nandshankar Mehta ...
(Bikaner), Nawab
Liaqat Hayat Khan Khan Bahadur Nawab Sir Liaqat Hayat Khan (also sometimes 'Liaquat Hyat Khan'), (February 1887 – 1948) was an Indian official who served for most of his career as a minister and later Prime Minister of Patiala State, in British India. Early l ...
(Patiala),
Fateh Naseeb Khan Khan Bahadur Maj.Gen. Fateh Naseeb Khan, OBE KB (1888–1933), was the Commander-in-chief of Alwar State Forces. He was a close confidant and trusted aide of Maharaja Jai Singh Prabhakar Bahadur, who was the Maharaja of Alwar State. He ...
(Alwar State),
L. F. Rushbrook Williams Laurence Frederic Rushbrook Williams, (1890–1978) was a British historian and civil servant who spent part of his working life in India, and had an abiding interest in Eastern culture. Life and work Williams was a Fellow of All Souls' Colleg ...
(Nawanagar), Raja of Sarila (small states) * British-Indian Representatives:
Aga Khan III Sultan Muhammad Shah (2 November 187711 July 1957), commonly known by his religious title Aga Khan III, was the 48th Imam of the Nizariyya. He played an important role in British Indian politics. Born to Aga Khan II in Karachi, Aga Khan III ...
,
B. R. Ambedkar Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar (14 April 1891 – 6 December 1956) was an Indian jurist, economist, social reformer and political leader who headed the committee drafting the Constitution of India from the Constituent Assembly debates, served a ...
(Depressed Classes separate Electorate),
Ramakrishna Ranga Rao of Bobbili Raja Sri Ravu Svetachalapati Sir Ramakrishna Ranga Rao KCIE (20 February 1901 – 10 March 1978) was an Indian politician and ''zamindar'' who served as the Chief Minister of Madras Presidency from 5 November 1932 to 4 April 1936 and 24 ...
, Sir Hubert Carr (Europeans), Nanak Chand Pandit, A. H. Ghuznavi,
Henry Gidney Sir Henry Albert John Gidney FRSE MID (9 June 1873 – 5 May 1942) was a leader of the Anglo-Indian community of British India for 20 years, founding the All India Anglo-Indian Association in 1926. His grandfather, William Gidney, was killed at t ...
(Anglo-Indians), Hafiz Hidayat Hussain, Muhammad Iqbal,
M. R. Jayakar Mukund Ramrao Jayakar (M.R. Jayakar) (13 November 1873 – 10 March 1959, Bombay) was the first Vice-Chancellor of the University of Poona. He was a lawyer, scholar and politician. He was a prominent freedom fighter. Jayakar was born in a Marat ...
, Cowasji Jehangir,
N. M. Joshi Narayan Malhar Joshi (5 June 1879 – 30 May 1955) was an Indian trade union leader and follower of Gopal Krishna Gokhale. Joshi became involved in labour issues and started the All India Trade Union Congress in 1920 along with Lala Lajpat Rai. H ...
(Labour),
Narasimha Chintaman Kelkar Narasimha Chintaman Kelkar (N. C. Kelkar), popularly known as Sahityasamrat Tatyasaheb Kelkar (24 August 1872 – 14 October 1947), was a lawyer from Miraj as well as a dramatist, novelist, short story writer, poet, biographer, critic, historia ...
, Arcot Ramasamy Mudaliar,
Begum Jahanara Shahnawaz Begum Jahanara Shahnawaz (7 April 1896 – 27 November 1979) was a politician and Muslim League activist. She was the daughter of Sir Muhammad Shafi. Her husband was Mian Shah Nawaz. She studied at Queen Mary College, Lahore, British Indi ...
(Women),
A. P. Patro Rao Bahadur Sir Annepu Parasuramdas Patro Order of the Indian Empire, KCIE (1875 or 1876–1946) was an Indian politician, ''zamindar'' and education minister in the erstwhile Madras Presidency. Patro was born in a rich and powerful family of ...
, Tej Bahadur Sapru, Dr. Shafa'at Ahmad Khan, Sir Shadi Lal,
Tara Singh Malhotra Master Tara Singh (24 June 1885 – 22 November 1967) was an Indian People, Indian Sikh political and religious figure in the first half of the 20th century. He was instrumental in organising the Shiromani Gurdwara Prabhandak Committee and guid ...
, Sir Nripendra Nath Sircar, Sir Purshottamdas Thakurdas, Muhammad Zafarullah Khan.


Notes


References


Further reading

* * * * * *


External links


Golmej Sammelan in Hindi - गोलमेज सम्मलेन (1931-1932)70th Anniversary of Indian Independence - 1931 Indian Round Table Conference- UK Parliament Living Heritage


* ttps://www.gavco.net/product-category/conferencing/ Buy Conference Tables Oregon {{Pakistan Movement 1931 in British India Pakistan Movement 1930 in India 1931 in India 1932 in India Indian independence movement Conferences in London 1930 conferences 1931 conferences 1932 conferences 1932 in British India 1930 in British India 1930s in the City of Westminster