Young India / An interpretation and a history of the nationalist movement from within

by Lala Lajpat Rai

5. The Imperial Legislative Council should have power to legislate on, and discuss and pass resolutions relating to, all matters of Indian administration, and the Provincial Councils should have similar powers with regard to Provincial administrations, save and except that the direction of military affairs, of foreign relations, declarations of war, the making of peace, and the entering into treaties, other than commercial, should be vested in the Government of India. As a safeguard, the Governor-General-in-Council or the Governor-in-Council, as the case may be, should have the right of veto, which, however, should be exercised subject to certain conditions and limitations.

6. The Council of the Secretary of State should be abolished. The Secretary of State should, as far as possible, hold in relation to the Government of India a position similar to that which the Secretary of State for the Colonies holds in relation to the Colonies. The Secretary of State should be assisted by two permanent Under-Secretaries, one of whom should be an Indian. The salaries of the Secretary and the Under-Secretaries should be placed on the British estimates.

7. In any scheme of Imperial Federation, India should be given through her chosen representatives a place similar to that of the self-governing dominions.

8. The Provincial Governments should be made autonomous, as stated in the Government of India’s despatch dated 25th August, 1911.

9. The United Provinces, as well as the other major provinces should have a Governor brought from the United Kingdom and should have an Executive Council.

10. A full measure of local self-government should be immediately granted.

11. The right to carry arms should be granted to Indians on the same conditions as to Europeans.

12. Indians should be allowed to enlist as volunteers and units of a territorial army established in India.

13. Commissions in the Army should be given to Indian youths under conditions similar to those applicable to Europeans.

Manindra Chandra Nandy of Kasimbazar. D.E. Wacha. Bhupendranath Basu. Bishan Dutt Shukul. Madan Mohan Malaviya. K. V. Rangaswamiengar. Mazharul Haque. V. S. Srinivasan. Tej Bahadur Sapru.

Ibrahim Rahimtoola. B. Narasimheswara Sarma. Mir Asad Ali. Kamini Kumar Chanda. Krishna Sahay. R. N. Bhanja Deo of Kanika. M. B. Dadabhoy. Sita Nath Roy. Mohamed Ali Mohamed. M. A. Jinnah.