History & Civics
Do you think that the All-India Congress Party had no alternative but to accept the Mountbatten Plan? Support your answer with examples.
India Independence
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Answer
Yes, the All-India Congress Party had no alternative but to accept the Mountbatten Plan because of the following reasons —
- The large-scale communal riots that engulfed the whole country convinced all that the only solution to the communal problem lay in the Partition of India.
- The League had joined the Interim Government to obstruct and not to cooperate. Experience of working with the League had convinced the Congress that it could not have a joint administration with the League.
- The only alternative to Partition was a Federation with a weak Centre. A smaller India with a strong central authority was better than a bigger State with weak Centre.
- Any further continuation of British rule would mean a greater calamity for India. The British were instigating the rulers of the Indian States to remain independent. Hence, partition was the price for immediate independence.
- The leaders felt that further delay in the transfer of power could find India in the midst of a Civil War.
- The leaders felt that Partition would rid the Constitution of separate electorates and other undemocratic procedures. India could then evolve as a truly secular and democratic polity.
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