Background of Wavell’s Plan and Simla Conference
- The events prior to the conference bottled up the dissent against the Raj exponentially.
- The Quit India Movement by M.K Gandhi launched in 1942 led to his arrest and imprisonment at the Aga Khan Palace in Pune.
- M.K Gandhi protested from the jail using Satyagraha, his fast for twenty-two days ended with his release as the Raj was worried Gandhi’s death would increase the resistance against the establishment.
- Gandhi was also infected with malaria-causing his health to severely deteriorate. During the tenure of his imprisonment, his wife Kasturba Gandhi and his trusted aide Mahadev Desai died at the Aga Khan Palace in Pune.
- With the growing agitation, Lord Linlithgow and Wavell recommended Gandhi’s unconditional release to Winston Churchill, in one of the letters Winston Churchill says “ it seems almost certain that the old rascal [Gandhi] will emerge all better for his so-called fast.”
- It was finally the Secretary of State of British India L.S Amery who convinced Churchill to release Gandhi. While Lord Wavell was trying to lobby for a united India and did not want to cater to the demand for a separate state for the Muslims as directed by the All India Muslim League led by Jinnah.
- After multiple correspondence and meetings with both Jinnah, Gandhi, and other prominent members, Wavell drafted a plan that would be presented at the talks in Simla which could possibly resolve the differences between AIML and INC.
- Before understanding the cause of conflict and the failure of the conference here is a brief understanding of Wavell’s Plan for the Simla Conference.
- Wavell’s responsibility was to formulate a plan acceptable to both the Indian National Congress (INC) and the All India Muslim League (AIML), to create a smooth transition of power.
- INC under the persuasion of Gandhi rooted for an undivided India, however AIML under the persuasion of M. Jinnah was hell-bent on the creation of a new state for Muslims in the country, later to be known as Pakistan.
- To further deliberate on the plan and create a common consensus the Simla Conference was convened on June 25th, 1945, inviting twenty-one political leaders including Gandhi and Jinnah.
Wavell Plan and Shimla Conference
Wavell Plan and Shimla Conference: Sir Archibald Wavell succeeded Lord Linlithgow as Viceroy of India in September 1943, appointed by Winston Churchill during a period of unrest between the British Empire and advocates of Indian independence. As a former Commander in Chief of India, Wavell brought insight into the pressing issues of the time.
The Simla Conference of 1945, held during Wavell’s tenure, gathered notable figures from India’s freedom movement to discuss post-independence roles and representation. Despite the conference’s aim to address these issues, it failed to reach a consensus, serving instead to amplify individual community demands, ultimately leading to its failure.