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

248 · THE INDIAN STRUGGLE
Conference on November 30th and December 1st, eight times
before the Federal Structure Committee and twice before the
Minorities Committee. In his maiden speech before the
Federal Structure Committee on September 15th, 1931, he
explained the position of the Indian National Congress and
the mandate given by the Karachi Congress and went on to
say: 'Time was when I prided myself on being and being
called a British subject. I have ceased for many years to
call myself a British subject; I would far rather be called a
rebel than a subject. But I have now aspired—and I still
aspire—to be a citizen, not in the Empire but in a Common-
wealth, in a partnership if possible, if God wills it, an indis-
soluble partnership but not a partnership superimposed
upon one nation by another.' (It is clear from this speech
that in spite of the Lahore resolution on independence, the
Mahatma was striving for a settlement with Britain on the
basis of Dominion Status.)
In the Press interview which the Mahatma had granted on
board S.S. Rajputana, it was evident that he was full of
optimism. But before the second meeting of the Federal
Structure Committee which took place on September 17th,
disillusionment began to creep in. He began to realise
of what stuff the members of the Round Table Conference
were made. Therefore at the outset of his speech on Sep-
tember 17th, he said: 'I have endeavoured to study, as
I had not done before, the list of the delegates; and the first
feeling of oppression that has been coming upon me is that
we are not the chosen ones of the nation which we should be
representing, but we are the chosen ones of the Government.
Furthermore, knowing well the different parties and groups
in India from experience, as I study the list of delegates I
see some very noticeable gaps,¹ and so I am oppressed with a
sense of unreality in connection with our composition.' The
Mahatma began to see through the game of the British
classes, 2 from Labour, 2 Sikhs, 1 Parsi, 2 Indian Christians, 2 Britishers
domiciled in India, 1 Anglo-Indian and 3 women—total 44. The Moslems
who are a quarter of the Indian population had the largest representation
and there was only one Nationalist Moslem among them.
¹ This reference was to the Nationalist Moslems, among others, whose
absence the Mahatma now began to feel. The discovery of the Mahatma
one cannot help feeling, was rather belated.