द इण्डियन स्ट्रगल / भारतीय स्वाधीनता संग्राम (नेताजी सुभाष चन्द्र बोस - ऐतिहासिक विश्लेषण)

SIGNS OF COMING UPHEAVAL 193
upon Congressmen to resign their seats in the Legislatures.
No notice was given to the Congress Parties in the different
Legislatures, nor was their opinion invited and the most
surprising thing was the acquiescence of Pandit Motilal
Nehru, who had been leading the Congress Party in the
Assembly. The Pandit had in the month of May encouraged
the Bengal Congress Party to fight the elections and had
especially enjoined on them to recapture some of the Moslem
seats. When a meeting of the All-India Congress Committee¹
was held at Allahabad the same month, a strenuous opposition
was put forward by the late Mr. J. M. Sengupta and the
writer, both of whom were members of the Congress Working
Committee. As a result of this opposition and also of the
dissatisfaction expressed by the Congress Parties in the
different Legislatures, the resolution regarding resignation
from the Legislatures was rescinded and the whole matter
was adjourned till the Lahore Congress in December. Up
till now it is a puzzle to many as to what happened between
May and July to make Pandit Motilal Nehru change his front.
Was he suddenly disappointed at the work put in by the
Congress Parties in the Legislatures? Was he faced with a
revolt or a faction in his own Party in the Assembly and
therefore wanted to dissolve it? Or did he want to put up a
united front against the Left-Wingers who were growing
more powerful, and for that reason wanted to placate the
Mahatma by agreeing to his pet theory of Council-boycott?
In any case, there is no doubt that without the support of
Pandit Motilal Nehru, the Mahatma would never have forced
his views on the Congress. And one has to remark with great
regret that Pandit Motilal Nehru who was the only man
who could influence the Mahatma either way at that time,
did a positive disservice to his country by actively supporting
the Mahatma in his policy of reviving the boycott of the
Legislatures. The harmful effect of this boycott became
more and more evident in the years to come. To say the
least, it was tactically a great blunder to boycott the Legis-
¹ The All-India Congress Committee is a body of about 350 members
representing the different provinces of India. Every year it elects an
Executive of 15 members, called the Working Committee.
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