The Simla Deputation, the Muslim League and the Minto-Morley Reforms, 1906-1909

O Level Pakistan Studies History · The emergence of Pakistan: 1905 to 1939. A short explanation of the idea, the rules to remember, the mistake to avoid, a worked example and practice questions with answers.

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The idea

In 1906 the British were planning to give Indians more seats on the councils. Muslims were about a quarter of the population, so in ordinary elections Hindu voters could outvote them every time. A group of Muslim leaders, led by the Aga Khan, met the Viceroy, Lord Minto, at Simla and asked for separate electorates: Muslim seats chosen by Muslim voters only. Minto was sympathetic.

This success, and Hindu protests against the Partition of Bengal, showed that Muslims needed their own party. The All-India Muslim League was founded at Dhaka in December 1906.

The Minto-Morley Reforms of 1909 then wrote separate electorates into law.

Rules to remember

Common mistake

Students often say the League wanted independence or a separate country in 1906. It did not: its first aims were loyalty to the British and protection of Muslim rights. The demand for a separate homeland came in 1940.

Worked example

A statement reads: 'The Simla Deputation achieved nothing because Lord Minto only listened politely.' Is this fair?

  1. The deputation's main demand was separate electorates for Muslims.
  2. Minto gave a sympathetic answer in 1906, which encouraged the leaders to found the Muslim League two months later.
  3. In 1909 the Minto-Morley Reforms made separate electorates law, so the main demand was met.

Answer: No. The deputation was a success: its main demand became law in 1909 and it led on to the founding of the Muslim League.

Practice questions

Try each one, then open the answer.

1. Which other change did the 1909 reforms introduce?

  1. A
    a fully elected central assembly with an Indian majority
  2. B
    enlarged councils and an Indian on the Viceroy's council
  3. C
    the transfer of education and health to Indian ministers
  4. D
    the abolition of the post of Secretary of State for India
Show answer

Answer: B. The councils were enlarged with more elected members and an Indian joined the Executive Council, though officials kept control. Transferred subjects came in 1919.

2. Which was one of the original aims of the Muslim League in 1906?

  1. A
    to win complete and immediate independence from Britain
  2. B
    to create a separate sovereign state called Pakistan
  3. C
    to promote loyalty to the British and protect Muslim rights
  4. D
    to support the Congress demand for joint electorates
Show answer

Answer: C. At first the League was loyal to the British. Self-government became an aim in 1913 and a separate homeland only in 1940.

3. How did the Congress react to the Minto-Morley Reforms?

  1. A
    it welcomed them as a step to full independence
  2. B
    it accepted separate electorates without debate
  3. C
    it opposed separate electorates as divisive
  4. D
    it launched the Non-Cooperation Movement in protest
Show answer

Answer: C. Congress saw separate electorates as dividing Indians by religion, until it accepted them in the Lucknow Pact of 1916. Non-cooperation began in 1920.

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