Indian Princes Warned Not To Seek Freedom

Northern Advocate, 13 June 1947, Page 8

Indian Princes Warned Not To Seek Freedom

(Received n. 30 a.m.) NEW DELHI, June 12. INDIAN Princes have been warned that they will not be able to walk (Hit of the Indian nations as independent countries when Britain leaves India. The Standing Committee of the States’ Peoples’ Congress issued a statement saying that the states would risk the enmity of the new independent states and India would be reduced to a

state of anarchy.

\ The committee demanded that British control of the Princely States should be transferred to the Central Government. It is officially announced in Hyderabad today that Hyderabad, the biggest of India’s Princely territories, will be an “independeift" state when the British transfer power to India. The Nizam declared that he would then be entitled to resume the status of an independent sovereign. He added that Hyderabad would not join ihe Hindustan or Pakistan Constituent Assembles.

The Maharajah of Travancore, Southern India, has decided to declare his state independent as from August 15. The Travancore Government has or- j dereri all district magistrates to prohi- i bit meetings or processions. The State’s Congress Party is ex- j peeled to organise to demonstrate j 'against the independence decision. j

India would need Britain’s help, she would ask for it, and would get it willingly, Mr Attlee told members of the Indian civil service at a London dinner. He added: ‘T believe there will still be great social and economic work for Britain 1o do in India. This is not the close of our association with India.” A PATIIAN STATE? A meeting of the North-west Frontier Province Congress and "Red Shirt” leaders at Peshawar today voted full powers to Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan, the Red Shirt leader, in negotiations on the province’s future. It is believed the decision might mean establishment, of a Palhan State on the frontier. A Calcutta message says Nural Amin, speaker of the Bengal Assembly, stated that Viscount Mountbatten was at present asking Congress and Moslem leaders for their opinions on a suggestion that the United Nations should be asked to assist in marking the boundaries of Pakistan and Hindustan. PLANNING DIVISION j The Viceroy presided at the first meeting of the Partition Committee of the Indian Interim Government consisting of two Congress Party and two Moslem League members. The Congress Party members are Dr V. Patel and Dr R. Prasad, and the Moslem League members Liaquat Ali Khan and Sardar Abdur Nish tar.

The Governor of the Punjab (Sir Evan Jenkins) has summoned the Provincial Assembly to meet in two sec- j lions on June 23 to decide on partition. ; One section will represent the east- j ern districts, with a Hindu majority, and the other the western section, ! with a Moslem majority. If both de- j cide against partition a joint session i will be held to decide' which part of India they will join. SIKHS DISAPPROVE PLAN ! A representative Sikh organisation's I meeting at Lahorfe carried a resolution | disapproving of the British plan for j division of India into two states, saying j the plan’s only redeeming feature was partition of the Punjab. j

The basis of division of the Punjab, however, was unjust and inequitable to Sikhs, giving them no position of power or status or any means of protecting their interests in the constitu-tion-making machinery. After four were killed and several injured and 10 cases of arson reported in Amritsar today, the markets were closed. In Calcutta, one was killed, two wounded and 33 arrested in renewed communal fighting, which followed a lull of 24 hours.