Lahore Resolution and Bangladesh's Emergence

• The Lahore Resolution of 1940 was integral for Bangladesh's emergence as the eastern wing of Pakistan in 1947.
• Dr. M. Emdadul Haq, Professor & Chair of DHP presented this information on August 3, 2021.

Contextual History

• Sir Syed Ahmed Khan played a visionary role during and after the Rebellion of 1857.
• Socio-political impacts of the Islamic Renaissance occurred in Uttar Pradesh and the Punjab, followed by Eastern Bengal.
• Muslim leadership converged under the British Crown's Divide & Rule policy.
• British sectarian politics influenced conservative Hindus and 'bhadraloks' during the Partition of Bengal.
• Religious symbols were used in Congress politics to unify Hindus against the colonial government.
• The religious map of the sub-continent enacted by the British in 1947 was released by Oxford University Press in 1909.
• The map's release may have been an option to quell anti-British terrorist activities led by Congress-backed Hindu fundamentalists during 1908-'09.
• The map's release also coincided with the Shanghai Opium Commission in China, in an attempt to disengage the British colonial government from the South Asian drug trade.
• Mohammad Ali Jinnah's departure from the All India National Congress and joining the Muslim League in 1913 was a significant event leading to the Lahore Resolution.

Sir Syed Ahmed Khan's Advocacy

• Sir Syed Ahmed Khan, as an architect of the "Two Nation Theory," was the first to demand a distinct homeland where Muslims could practice Islam.
• In an 1882 public meeting in Ludhiana, he asserted that Islam must be upheld for the nation's identity.
• Two years later in Meerat, he reiterated that Hindus would outnumber Muslims four to one regardless of the election mode.
• He asked Muslims to refrain from joining the All India National Congress Party to avoid minority status in future independent India.

Early Proponents of Pakistan

• Poet Allama Iqbal is considered the "Spiritual Father of Pakistan".
• In 1930, Iqbal gave a Presidential Address to the 25th Session of the All-India Muslim League in Allahabad, expressing Islamic nationalism and emphasizing unity among Indian Muslims.
• Choudhry Rahmat Ali, the originator of the Pakistan Movement, coined the name "Pakistan" in a 1933 publication.
• Pakistan combines P=Punjab, A=Afghanistan, K=Kashmir, IS= Indus-Sind, and 'Stan' from Baluchistan.
• Bengal's name was notably absent in this naming convention.

Lahore Resolution of 1940

• At the Lahore Conference on March 23, 1940, Jinnah introduced his Two Nation Theory, advocating for a separate Muslim homeland in the Indian sub-continent.
• AK Fazlul Huq, the Chief Minister of undivided Bengal, moved the Pakistan resolution during the All India Muslim League's general session.
• The Resolution denounced the federal system outlined in the Government of India Act 1935.
• The Resolution emphasized that Muslims, being the majority in the northwestern and eastern zones of India, should form 'independent states' with autonomous and sovereign constituent units.

Jinnah's Two Nation Theory

• Muhammad Ali Jinnah advocated for the doctrine in the 1940s for Indian Muslims to have their own homeland.
• The theory rationalized the political division of India into a Hindu-majority India and a Muslim-majority Pakistan.
• Socio-economic, political, cultural, and religious differences defined the division
• In 1944, Jinnah stated that Muslims and Hindus were fundamentally different nations with opposing outlooks and nothing in common.
• Following the 1940 Pakistan Resolution, Jinnah firmly advocated the Two Nation Theory, building upon earlier Muslim political thinkers.
• Jinnah stated Hindus and Muslims have distinct philosophies, customs, and literatures, leading to potential discontent and the destruction of any inclusive government if forced together.

Sher-e-Bangla's Disposition

• Sher-e-Bangla AK Fazlul Huq indicated the need for a separate, independent land for Bengali Muslims in Eastern Bengal in the Lahore Resolution.
• In a letter of August 2nd 1942 to the Bengal Governor, Sir John Herbert, he requested a Bengali Army composed of 100,000 Muslim and Hindu youths, equally represented.
• Sher-e-Bangla seemed to be presenting a Three Nation Theory, aligning with Jinnah's Two Nation Theory in his political actions.

Critical Overview

• Communal rivalry that followed partition politics from 1905-'11 influenced Bengali Muslim leadership to support the Lahore Resolution.
• Sher-e-Bangla AK Fazlul Huq was instrumental in crafting the Pakistan Resolution.
• The Resolution came after attempts to work with Congress leadership failed after partition.
• Muslims didn't reach a long-lasting understanding with Congress leadership because of the fear of Hindu majoritarian dominance.
• Jinnah's Two Nation Theory soon failed after Pakistan's creation because the civil-military leadership did not address justice for the Bengalis.