Recommendations of Cabinet Mission Plan,1946

 Recommendations of Cabinet Mission Plan, 1946

Cabinet mission was composed of three cabinet ministers of England

1.  Sir Stafford Prince

2.  Alexander

3.  Sir Patrick Lawrence

 Objectives of Cabinet Mission Plan, 1946

• The cabinet mission plan arrived on March 24 1946 to advise a machine to draw the constitution of India.

• To make arrangements for interim government.

• The cabinet mission plan was like a declaration of India's Independence.

The cabinet mission plan arise its own recommendation on May 16 in 1946. The recommendations are as follows

•  the cabinet mission plan proposed that there shall be a union of India which was to be empowered to deal with the defense and foreign affairs.

• It recommended an undivided India and turn down the Muslim league’s demand for our separate Pakistan. The cabinet mission restricted the communal representation.

•  It provided that all the members of interim cabinet would be Indians and there would be minimum interference with the viceroy of India.

•  it recognized Indian right to cede from the common wealth.

• It also provided the formation of the constituent assembly on democratic principles of population.

•  the union government and its legislature were to have limited powers, Dealing with foreign affairs, communication and finances. The union would have powers necessarily to raise the finances to raise the subjects.

• All subjects other than the union subjects and all residuary powers would be vested in the provinces.  The princely states would retain all subjects and all residuary powers.

• The constituent assembly will be formed of the representative of the provincial assemblies and the princely states.  each province have to be allotted a total number of seats in proportion to its population.

•  The constituent Assembly had to comprise of 293 members of British provinces and 93 members from princely states.

• The representation of the provincial legislatures was to be break up into three

     Section A- Madras, Uttar Pradesh, Central Province Bombay, Bihar, Orisa.

      Section B-  Punjab, NWEP (North West Frontier Province) 

   Section C- Assam and Bengal.

Here we can see that though the Cabinet Mission Plan rejected the plan of Muslim league’s to make separate Pakistan, yet it grouped the Section B in such a way that it automatically get weighted to the idea of separate Pakistan, because Section B would get complete autonomy.

Reaction to the Cabinet mission plan- 

The Congress accepted the proposals related to the constituent assembly. But since the Muslim league has been given the proportional representation at rejected the idea of the interim government.  Congress also rejected the idea of a weak centre and division of India in small states.  The Congress was against the decentralisation and the idea was to have a strong centre.

The Muslim league first approved the plan, but when declared that it could change the scheme through its majority in constituent assembly,  they rejected the plan. on July 27 the Muslim league council met at Bombay, Where did you know reinterred The demand for Pakistan as the only course left open to the Muslim league.  They rejected the plan and called the Muslims to resort to direct action to achieve the land of their demands of Pakistan.