Venkat Dhulipala: The Muslim League in UP in late 1930’s

Modern Asian Studies / Volume 44 / Issue 03 / May 2010 , pp 603-640

Introduction

The political rise of the Muslim League (ML) in the United Provinces (UP) in the period between the provincial elections in 1937 and the ‘Pakistan’ resolution in 1940 has been considered by historians as crucial for the Partition of India and the formation of Pakistan in 1947.1 It has been argued that during this period of Congress party rule in the UP, a revived and united ML under the strong leadership of M.A. Jinnah, was successful in rallying the Muslims under one party, one flag and one leader.2 The ideology of Muslim nationalism is widely understood to have been forged by the ML in the UP, before it was transmitted to the Muslim majority provinces where Pakistan eventually came into existence. The ML’s success in the UP is thus seen as crucial in the process of the transformation of Muslims from a minority community in undivided India, to a separate nation with aspirations to statehood. [. . .]

FULL TEXT BELOW:

Rallying the Qaum: The Muslim League in the United Provinces, 1937–1939

by Venkat Dhulipala in Modern Asian Studies 44, 3 (2010) pp. 603–640.