Highlights Of Plan

Northern Advocate, 3 June 1947, Page 5

Highlights Of Plan

Highlights of the British plan, according to the correspondent are:— (1) Immediate measures for partition, including partities of the Punjab and Bengal. . (2) No change in the Interim Gov ernment until partition is effected, when two separate governments will be established with full powers in all qubiects. (3) Each provincial legislature to vote on the partition issue. (4) Joint working of defence, communications and external affairs to be provided for until the Constituent Assemblies of Hindustan and Pakistan are in a position to reach a final de cision on separate working. (5> The Princely States, after trans fer of power, not to be able to enter military or any other fresh trcatie: with Britain and Britain to use her influence to persuade the States to join one or other of the two dominions. While each provincial legislature will have to vote formally on the partition issue. . ~ _ . , This is important only in the Punjab and Bengal. Procedure from voting on partition will be that first the whole legislature will vote on the issue partition' of India and then it will divide into Moslem and non-Moslem sections, each of which will then vote on partition of the province. A joint committee is expected to be established to work out■ pro^ lerns , | sociated with the armed forces, dm I sion of assets and the liabilities of the present Central Government, includ-

ing the national debt and sterling balances, and division of communication facilities and customs arrangePrincely States probably will be given the choice of joining the Constituent -.Assembly or staying mdePe Mr e Samin Jan Khan, President ol the North-West Frontier Provinces Moslem League, said the league would •begin its election campaign to enlist the Pathans’ support for the province s incorporation into Pakistan. Baluchistan will also decide, by a democratic process, to which Constituent Assembly it will belong. The Daily Mail’s New Delhi correspondent says the Moslem leaders favour keeping Pakistan within the British Empire, regardless of what Hindustan may decide. All the Dominions have been informed of the Government's plan. They take the view that Britain must make inducements to keep India within the Empire, but the privileges which go with such status must be sought. A plan for a united India has been scraoped, says the British United Press New Delhi correspondent. The Viceroy (Viscount Mountbatten) handed Indian leaders only a plan based on division of India, according to very reliable quarters. The correspondent adds that the plan lays down the procedure for dividing the country, including the partition of Punjab and Bengal, and the appointment of a boundary commission.