Exit dyarchy

THE Swarajists have been as good as their word. In the only two provinces in which either by themselves or with their allies of one description or another they form the majority of the local Council, they have killed the new Constitution by killing dyarchy, which is its essence. Their action in this matter is obviously of the order that can only be justified by success, and success in such a case is a matter of time. But there is no doubt that so far as it rested with itself, the bureaucracy has made the path easier for them. It had two courses open to it when the salaries of the ministers were refused. One was to re-transfer the transferred departments, and the other was to dissolve the Council and make a fresh appeal; for the only other alternative, the assumption of responsibility by the Governor for the administration of the transferred departments was only a temporary makeshift which could be tried once, as it had actually been tried in this case, but which could not possibly be continued indefinitely. Of the two courses, the one that was both more proper from a constitutional point of view and more likely, if the country was not yet ready, to prolong the transitional stage was undoubtedly the latter. Indeed, it was our own fear that the result of a dissolution of the Councils just at this stage might not be entirely favourable to the Swarajists, that it was chiefly responsible for the advice we had been giving them not to resort to the extreme step prematurely, but, while permitting dyarchy to continue for a little while longer, to concentrate their attention on consolidating their position in the country.