Cong cites history to counter Dalai’s claim

NEW DELHI:The Dalai Lama’s remarks that “India’s Partition could have been averted had Jawaharlal Nehru conceded to MA Jinnah as the Prime Minister” on Thursday had the Congress contesting the comments and the TMC saying that spiritual leaders should not come down to the world of politics.

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, August 9

The Dalai Lama’s remarks that “India’s Partition could have been averted had Jawaharlal Nehru conceded to MA Jinnah as the Prime Minister” on Thursday had the Congress contesting the comments and the TMC saying that spiritual leaders should not come down to the world of politics.

“Those who are in the world of spirituality should not come down to the world of politics. Spirituality is much above politics. Such remarks (as the Dalai Lama made) confuse the disciples,” TMC leader Dinesh Trivedi said.

The Congress on its part argued against the Dalai Lama’s interpretation of history. Ex-minister and Congress spokesperson Manish Tewari cited historical records to argue against what the Dalai Lama said on Wednesday.

“With respect his Holiness, the Dalai Lama is wrong that Nehru was self-centred and therefore opposed Gandhi’s suggestion of making Jinnah PM of India. The historical record suggests otherwise. May be it would be worth his while to peruse it,” Tewari advised the supreme spiritual leader of the Tibetans asking him to read “The Transfer of Power 1942-47 Volume X: The Mountbatten Viceroyalty, Formulation of a Plan”.

The document speaks of the “misconception that, in 1947, Nehru reacted angrily to Gandhi’s suggestion that Jinnah should be given the prime ministership of India and solely for this reason, this last-ditch attempt to prevent the Partition of India failed.”

It records Viceroy’s personal account in the Mountbatten papers as saying, “Nehru did not react angrily or with shock to the suggestion of Jinnah being offered PM-ship but expressed doubt that Gandhi’s suggestion would be accepted by Jinnah…Both Nehru and VP Menon separately pointed out to Viceroy Mountbatten that Gandhi had made the offer of PM-ship to Jinnah earlier occasions as well, and that Jinnah had not accepted it.” “The factors in the failure of Gandhi’s suggestion of offering the PM-ship to Jinnah were many and Nehru alone cannot be held responsible,” suggest documents.