CRIPPS MISSION

2.3 History

Submitted by
AANAND SINGH
UID: UG2019 - 02

Submitted to
NITU KUMARI
Assistant Professor

MAHARASHTRA NATIONAL LAW UNIVERSITY, NAGPUR

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 Table of Contents

S.N. Contents P.N.

1 Introduction 3
2 Cripps Mission And Its Main Proposals 4,5
1) Why Cripps mission?
2) Proposals
3 Reaction Of Congress , Muslim League ,Sikhs And Mahatma Gandhi 6,7
4 Impact on Indian Politics 8
1) Congress and its working committee
2) Indian Politics
5 Failure Of The Mission 9
6 Conclusion 10
7 Bibliography 11

Introduction
The second world war saw the making of Sir Stafford Cripps who was inducted in Winston
Churchill's War Cabinet in February 1942 as Minister of Production. He was also Lord Privy

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Seal and Leader of the House of Commons. His prestige was high and he was looked on as
'presumptous' challenger to Churchill's leadership when the war situation was getting worse.
Due to the public pressure within and outside, the Cabinet authorized him to go to India in
March 1942 to enlist India's support for war effort by negotiating a settlement on the
constitutional question of self-government.
The failure of Cripps Mission has been generally interpreted from two angles. From the
British viewpoint the Mission failed due to Mahatma Gandhi's commitment to non-violence
and his anxiety to keep India out of war. From the Indian viewpoint, the Mission failed
because the War Cabinet, dominated by die-hard conservatives, had no intention of
promoting the cause of India's self-government and designed the mission to appease the
American opinion which was growing in favour of India's independence. Other contributing
causes mentioned in historical works for the Mission's failure are a lack of coordination
between the War Cabinet and Cripps, and the Viceroy Linlithgow and Cripps; Cripps’s
tactless handling of the negotiations, the Congress leaders, impatience, and inadequate
functioning of the telegraphic system between Delhi and London, etc.
This research work tries to explain the Cripps mission and its failure and significance.
Research Objectives
1. To study in detail the Cripps mission and its main proposals.
2. To study the reaction of Congress, Muslim league, Sikhs and Mahatama
Gandhi and its failure.
3. To study its impact on Indian politics at that time.
Research Questions
1. What was Cripps mission and its main proposals?
2. How Congress, Muslim League, Sikhs reacted?
3. How this mission impacted Indian Politics?

To fulfill above mentioned objectives the doctrinal method of research is used.

Cripps Mission And Its Main Proposals

Why Cripps mission?

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The Cripps Mission was a war measure. In early 1942 the British forces had suffered heavy
reverses in North Africa and the East. The Japanese had rallied forces on the eastern frontier
of India with Rangoon in their possession. In panic people were leaving Calcutta. In such a
desperate situation, the American and Chinese governments urged Churchiļl to enlist India's
support for the War effort by negotiating a settlement of its constitutional problem. The
British public opinion and the Labour Party lobby within the British cabinet supported India's
cause for freedom and it seemed as though there was going to be crisis within the cabinet on
the issue. George Orwell wrote that the “Cripps Mission was a bubble blown by popular
dicontent”. Realizing the gravity of the military situation in the East near the eastern borders
of India, and the Japanese controlling the Bay of Bengal, the war cabinet sent Cripps to India
for support in war effort and settling the Indian question.1
Cripps had visited India in 1939-40. He knew personally the prominent Indian political
leaders and was acquainted with the Indian problem. He had brought his own proposals
earlier but this his visit was official, and he was to negotiate with the Indian political parties
on the basis of the Draft Declaration devised by the War Cabinet. Cripps arrived in Delhi on
23 March 1942, he was originally to stay in India for two weeks but he had to postpone his
departure for another week for further negotiation.
Proposals
The Draft Declaration proposed that on the termination of war there would be created a new
Indian union which shall constitute a new Dominion associated with the United Kingdom or
other dominions by a common allegiance to the Crown but equal to them in every respect and
in no way subordinate in any aspect of its domestic or external affairs. 2 The Declaration
further stipulated that after the creation of new India Union a constitution body would be set
up to draw a constitution subject to the right of a province to opt out, and form a Union of its
own having the same status as that of the Indian Union. Further, the Indian states unwilling to
adhere to the new constitution would retain their existing relations with the paramount power
until a revision of Treaty arrangements.3
After specifying the future constitutional programe the Draft Declaration laid down that until
the new constitution is framed 'His Majesty's government must inevitably bear the
responsibility and retain the control and direction of the defence of India, as a part of their
world war effort' And finally 'the leaders of the principal political sections of Indian people
1
https://www.jstor.org/stable/pdf/44158132.pdf?refreqid=excelsior%3Adccfb4cade228ae5962aa1fe65854d96
2
Nicholas Mansergh and Lumby E.W.R., Transfer of Power, The Cripps Mission
(1942), Document 465-466.
3
http://www.open.ac.uk/researchprojects/makingbritain/content/cripps-mission

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are invited in the counsels of their country, of the Commonwealth and of the United Nations.
Later Cripps elaborated on the procedure to be adopted for elections to the constitution-
making body.4
The main proposals of this mission can be noted as
1. A Constitution-making Body would be set up immediately after the war.
2. There would be provisions for the participation of Indian States in the
Constitution-making Body.
3. If any province did not like to accept the new constitution, it could later retain its
existing constitutional position.

Reaction Of Congress , Muslim League ,Sikhs And Mahatama Gandhi

Congress and Gandhi

4
http://www.open.ac.uk/researchprojects/makingbritain/content/cripps-mission

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The Draft Declaration was an updated version of the proposals that Cripps had made to the
Indian political leaders during his visit to India in 1939-40. The crux of the problem was the
response of the Congress to his proposals. That is why he spent most of his time during his
stay in India in negotiating with the Congress because he thought that if the Congress
accepted his proposals, the other political parties would line up. After his arrival in Delhi for
the first two days Cripps held consultations with the Viceroy Lord Linlithgow and high-
ranking British officials on the Draft Declaration From 27th to 29th March, he met the Indian
political leaders including the Congress President Maulana Azad accompanied by Asaf Ali,
the Muslim League President Mohammad Ali Jinnah, and Mahatma Gandhi. On 29th March
he met Jawaharlal Nehru who returned from Allahabad after attending his daughter's
marriage. Nehru took Cripps to Birla House to meet other Congress leaders including Gobind
Ballabh Pant, B.G. Kher and Mahatma Gandhi. The same day he held a Press conference. On
30th March the Draft Declaration was released to the Press which was followed by his
broadcast.5
Cripps's italks iwith ithe iIndian ileaders iwere iexploratory iHis imeeting iwith iGandhi iwas
i disappointing. iRecalling iit ilater iwith iLouis iFisher iin iWardha, iGandhi ihad isaid ito iCripps iafter
i a ibrief istudy iof ihis iproposals, i'Why idid iyou icome iif ithis iis iwhat iyou ihad ito ioffer. iIf ithis iis
i your ientire iproposal iin iIndia, iI iwould iadvise iyou ithe inext iplane ihome'. iGandhi's ireactions ito
i the iproposals iwere isharp, ifirstly ibecause ithey igave ia iblow ito ithe iunity iof iIndia iwhile
i containing iin ithem ithe iseeds iof iPakistan, iand ifurther, ithe ipeople iof iIndian istates iwere idenied
i their irights iof irepresentation iof ithe iConstituent iAssembly. iFor iGandhi ithe iproposals icontained
i nothing iworthwhile ifor ithe ipresent, iand igave ionly ia ipromise ifor ithe ifuture. iProfessor iReginald
i Couploud, ia iconstitutional iexpert iand iCripps's iconfidant iin iDelhi iwrote ithat ihe isaw iGandhi's
i hand iin ithwarting ithe iproposal. i
On i2nd iApril iAzad iand iNehru imet iCripps iand itold ihim iof ithe iCongress iWorking iCommittee's
i turning idown ihis iproposals ibut iwould inot imake ithem ipublic. iThe ibasic iissue ifor irejection iwas
i the iindependence iof iIndia iwhich iwas inot iconceded. iThereafter, iGandhi ileft ifor iWardha iand
i later idenied ihaving iinfluenced iin iany iway ithe irejection iof ithe iproposal.
Muslim League
The iCongress iand iSikhs irejected ithese iproposals idue ito ithe ipossibility iof ithe iIndia's ipartition
i with ithe iprovision ithat iprovinces icould iopt iout iof ia ifuture iIndian iConstituent iAssembly iwhile
i the iLeague irejected iit ifinding ino iclear-cut iacceptance iof iPakistan. iMd.Ali iJinnah iexpressed
5
Nicholas Mansergh and Lumby E.W.R., Transfer of Power, The Cripps Mission (1942), Document 465-466.

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i his idismay iat ithe irefusal ito irecognise ithe iright iof iMuslim iself idetermination iwhile iaddressing
i the iannual isession iof ithe iAll iIndia iMuslim iLeague iat iAllahabad, i“the iMusalmans ifeel ideeply
i disappointed ithat ithe ientity iand iintegrity iof ithe iMuslim ination ihas inot ibeen iexpressly
i recognised...Muslim iIndia iwill inot ibe isatisfied iunless ithe iright iof inational iself idetermination
i is iunequivocally irecognised. iIt imust ibe irealised ithat iIndia iwas inever ia icountry ior ia ination.It
i has iroused iour ideepest ianxieties iand igrave iapprehensions, iespecially iwith ireference ito ithe
i Pakistan ischeme, iwhich iis ia imatter iof ilife iand ideath ifor iMuslim iIndia.6
Sikhs
The Draft Declaration was rejected both by the Congress and Muslim League though on
different grounds. The Congress rejected it because there was no provision for immediate
transfer of power to India and Muslim League rejected it because it did not provide procedure
for establishment of Pakistan.
The Draft Declaration alarmed the Sikhs because Punjab being a Muslim majority province
(About 57% according to the Census Report of 1941) got the right to secede from the centre.
For them it was to perpetuate the Muslim majority rule. Therefore the Sikh deputation which
met Sir Stafford expressed their utter dissatisfaction with the Draft Declaration. In the
memorandum submitted to Sir Stafford they demanded the division of Punjab into two parts-
one comprising of the Eastern portion and other comprising of the Western portion.
Draft Declaration had great effect on the politics of the Punjab. It divided the political parties
in Punjab in two camps- one for Pakistan other against Pakistan. Draft Declaration helped
Muslim League to consolidate its power. In order to counteract the Pakistan the Akalis
demanded Azad Punjab and then Sikh State both aiming at the partition of Punjab . The Sikhs
had demanded Ravi river as the boundary with districts of Amritsar, Gurdaspur and Lahore in
the memorandum sub- mitted to Sir Stafford. This demand was partially fulfilled in 1947.7

Impact on Indian Politics

Congress and its working committee

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https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/002088177601500108?journalCode=isqa
7
Kirpal Singh, THE CRIPPS MISSION 1942 AND THE SIKHS

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The iCongress's ifinal irejection iof ithe iproposals iwas iinfluenced iby iGandhi's iadherence ito inon-
violence ifor iwhich iwe ihave ito iunderstand ithe iCongress ipolicy ion iwar iand inon-violence isince
i 1939. iFrom i1939 ithe iCongress iwas ianxious ito isupport ithe iwar ieffort ibut ialmost iin ievery
i meeting iof ithe iCongress iWorking icommittee itill iearly i1942 ithe iissue iof iparticipation iin iwar
i led ito ipolitical iwrangling. iGandhi iwas iconvinced ithat ithe iBritish iwere igoing ito ilose ithe iwar.
i In ithe iCongress iWorking icommittee iin iWardha ion i3-7 iJuly i1940 ieven iVallabhbhai iPatel
i stood iup iagainst iGandhi ion inon-violence. i
As a pragmatist Maulana Azad too was anxious to support the war effort while keeping the
door open for negotiations with the British government. That is why on the issue of non-
violence and war he resigned thrice as President of the Congress, and even as late as 13July
1942 at the A.I.C.C. meeting in Wardha, just three weeks before the Quit India movement C.
Rajagopalachari had already left the Congress on the issue as also K.M. Munshi. Bhulabhai
Desai withdrew from the Congress. Gandhi even advised Nehru to resign from the Congress
Working committee due to his ambivalent attitude on war in early 1942. In view of Gandhi's
strong commitment to non-violence there was no possibility of accepting the Cripps
proposals which enjoined support for war effort from India. Thus the negotiations conducted
by Azad and Nehru with Cripps appear to be an exercise in futility.

Indian Politics
Gandhi's iQuit iIndia imovement iwas ia iresponse ito iCripps's iproposals. iThe irejection iof iCripps's
i proposals ileft ithe iCongress iwithout ia ifriend iamong ithe iBritish iand iAmerican istatesmen iand
i served ia iuseful ipropaganda ifor iChurchill. iChurchill iwas ithe ireal igainer. iWith ithe iCongress
i leaders ilanguishing iin iprison ifor iabout ithree iyears, ithe ifield iwas ileft iopen ifor ithe iMuslim
i League ito iconsolidate iitself. iThe iCongress iremained ioutside iconstitutional ipolitics ifor isix
i years. iIn i1942 ithe iMuslim iLeague ihad ino icontrol iin iBengal iand iPunjab ibut iby i1945 iit ienjoyed
i the istatus iof ia iParty igovernment iin iSind, iNorth iWest iFrontier, iBengal iand iin ithe iHindu
i majority iprovince iof iAssam. iAt iShimla iConference iin iJune i1945 iJinnah iclaimed ia iparity iwith
i the iCongress iand iemerged ias ia isole ispokesman iof ithe imuslims.8

Failure Of The Mission

On 9th April Azad met Cripps and on 10th April he sent two letters to Cripps demanding
constitutional changes and setting up of the national government 'which must be a cabinet

8
Shiva Rao, India's Freedom Movement, New Delhi, 1972, p. 19

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with full powers'. Azad wrote, ‘we are prepared to assume responsibility if national
government is formed with full power’.
Knowing the Congress demand for 'conventions' and guarantees' and thereby curbing the
Viceroy's executive authority, Linlithgow kept the War Cabinet informed of the threat to his
authority as the executive head of the Council. In his telegram to Cripps dated 10th April
Churchill asked Cripps to stick to the original Draft Declaration and ensure the preservation
of the Viceroy's executive authority and not yield to the Congress by promising any
guarantee or observance of conventions in the functioning of the Executive Council.
Peter Clarke (English historian) has shown that due to the circuitous telegraph system
Churchill's telegram of 10th April did not reach Cripps before the Congress rejected the
proposals, which was followed by the Congress Working Committee's resolution on 11th
April. The Mission failed, and on 12th April Cripps left for England after a Press
Conference.9
On the failure of Cripps Mission R.J. Moore wrote that it was crushed by the monolithic
millstones of Churchillian conservatism and Congress Nationalism'. Rejecting that Gandhi
wrecked the Cripps proposals, S. Gopal maintained that the War Cabinet had no intention of
seeing its success. Goher Rizvi too held Churchill responsible for subverting the proposals.
According to Churchill, Gandhi's pacifism led to the Mission's failure. Coupland too thought
likewise. Peter Clarke states that Gandhi's hostility, Linlithgow's dislike of Cripps, the
negative influence, exercised by the Congress and the government and Cripps lack of
political adroitness knocked out the mission. It has also been argued that the Mission tailed
because the British could not give what the Congress wanted, and further that the Labour
party was not interested in India’s cause of self government. The Mission's failure is also
attributed to Vallabhbhai Patel who scuttled it because its success would have made his rival
Nehru the Prime Minister.

Conclusion
This declaration was sent to India to enlist India into war which was looking impossible for
British forces to defend Indian soil on the eastern frontier. But this declaration was discarded
9
Peter Clarke, The Life of Sir Stafford Cripps, pp. 346

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by the most imminent personalities of Indian politics. Congress, Muslim League and Sikhs
did not accepted the proposals on different grounds. Proposals of this declaration was vague
and ambiguous and was not giving full independent status to India and this mission also
sowed the seed of partition which was not accepted the congress leaders and the failure of
this mission also shifted the powers from congress to muslim league as prominent leaders of
the congress was in jail after Quit India Movement.

Bibliography
Articles
1. Nicholas Mansergh and Lumby E.W.R., Transfer of Power, The Cripps Mission

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 2. Peter Clarke, The Life of Sir Stafford Cripps
3. Kirpal Singh, THE CRIPPS MISSION 1942 AND THE SIKHS
4. Louis Fisher, The Life of Mahatma Gandhi
5. Shiva Rao, India's Freedom Movement
Websites
1. journals.sagepub.com
2. www.open.ac.uk
3. www.jstor.org

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