INDIAN FEDERATION PLAN

Taranaki Daily News, 10 June 1931, Page 5

INDIAN FEDERATION PLAN

COMMITTEE TO BE LARGER OUTSTANDING QUESTIONS RE-EXPORTATION OF CLOTH PUBLIC COMPANY FORMED British Wireless. Rugby, June 8. Captain Wedgwood Benn, Secretary for India, replying to quest)jus said it was intended that the personnel of the proposed federal structure committee should be as before with certain additions which he was not yet in a position to announce. The depressed classes were represented at the conference and their representation on the committee was being considered. Asked whether the delay in the reassembling of the round-table conference in London was to be utilised to attempt further progress in India, Captain Benn said he was not aware of . any fundamental outstanding question affecting all the provinces requiring discussion, except problems such as the communal difficulties, and relations between the centre and the provinces, which were essentially involved in the federal as well as provincial constitutions.

Questioned regarding the constitution of the Operations Agency Company registered in India for the purpose of buying and exporting stocks of boycotted cloth, Captain Benn said it was a public company. No shares had been offered for public subscription. The company had not yet acquired any stocks for re-exportation. The list of directors was circulated to members of Parliament.

Mr. Ramsay MacDonald, replying to Mr. Stanley Baldwin, who raised various points regarding the resumption of the Indian round-table conference, agreed with the view that there must be included additional Indians to discuss the additional British personnel. He hoped the Indians would solve the communal problem, in which connection Mr. Baldwin expressed the fear that the disturbed atmosphere might prevent useful results. | Mr. MacDonald pointed out that the scope of the resumed conference would be in accordance with the round-table conference’s determinations regarding safeguards, defence of minorities, finance and other matters. He agreed that the conference would not be a constituent assembly as the constitution must be embodied in a Bill which must be submitted to Parliament.