Day 76 – Q 3. Why was the ‘Day of Deliverance’ celebrated by Jinnah, B R Ambedkar and E V Ramasami Naicker?
3. Why was the ‘Day of Deliverance’ celebrated by Jinnah, B R Ambedkar and E V Ramasami Naicker?
Introduction
The Muslim League observed ‘Day of Deliverance’ on 22 December 1939 when the Congress Party members who were part of the Central and provincial governments resigned in mass protesting the Viceroy’s decision to make India a party to the Second World War without duly consulting Indians.
Body
The “Day of Deliverance” : 22 December 1939
- On 3 September 1939, the then Viceroy Lord Linlithgow declared that India was at war with Nazi Germany during the Second World War, along with Britain.
- The dominant political party in India at that time, the Indian National Congress, objected to this decision of the viceroy which was taken without consulting Indians.
- On 22 October 1939, the Congress called upon all its ministries to resign in the wake of the viceroy’s declaration.
- On 2 December that year, League chief Muhammad Ali Jinnah called upon Indian Muslims to celebrate 22 December as ‘Deliverance Day’ from Congress. He stated, “I wish the Muslims all over India to observe Friday 22 December as the “Day of Deliverance” and thanksgiving as a mark of relief that the Congress regime has at last ceased to function.”
- The day was observed by the League in India as decided. Some other parties also joined the celebration. They were the All-India Depressed Classes Association and the Independent Labour Party. Prominent leaders who joined Jinnah in the observance included Dr. B R Ambedkar and E V Ramasami Naicker (Periyar) of the Justice Party. Some Parsis and Anglo-Indians also participated.
Reasons for Jinnah/League’s celeberations
- The Congress was in power in 7 British Indian provinces after elections in 1937. The Muslim League could form the government in only one province then.
- The League wanted to portray a negative image of the Congress and it directed efforts to showcase the “plight” of Muslims under Congress rule.
- The 1938 Pirpur Report brought out by the League listed cruelties suffered by Muslims in the Congress-ruled provinces. This report became an important document used to demand and justify partition of the country.
Reasons for Ambedkar and Naicker joining the observance:
- Dr. Ambedkar believed that the communities he worked with were twenty times more oppressed by Congress policies than were Indian Muslims. he clarified that he was criticizing Congress, and not all Hindus.
- E. V. Ramasami Naicker of the Justice Party called upon his party and all Dravidians to celebrate 22 December “on a grand scale…to rid the country of the menace of the Congress”.
Conclusion
- The Congress criticised this move of the League. Mahatma Gandhi appealed to Jinnah to desist from observing this day.
- Jawaharlal Nehru offered Jinnah to deal with the allegations of anti-Muslim bias by the party but his attempts fell through because the League was adamant on being the sole representative of Indian Muslims. This was unacceptable to Nehru as there were several Muslims in the Congress party.
- The observance of this day was also disapproved by senior congress leader Abul Kalam Azad.
Best answer: Mudrarakshas
