Mention any three factors that led to the formation of the Muslim League in India.

Three factors that led to the formation of the Muslim League in India are-

1. Loss of Sovereignty by Mughal Rulers — The British established their supremacy in India after dethroning the Mughal rulers. The British government consciously discriminated against the Muslims, holding them responsible for the uprising of 1857. However, after the 1870s, the British government changed its attitude and followed the policy of appeasing the Muslims in order to undermine the National Movement. They sowed the seeds of dissension between the two communities and encouraged separatist and communal tendencies.
2. British Policy of Divide and Rule — The British saw the unity between the Hindus and the Muslims as a threat to them. Thus, to check the growth of a united national feeling in India and to encourage communal and separatist tendencies in Indian politics they decided to follow the policy of 'Divide and Rule'.
3. Relative Backwardness of the Muslim Community in Education, Trade and Industry — The communal and separatist trend of thinking grew among the Muslims to some extent because of their relative backwardness in education, trade and industry.