Published in 1986, ‘Facts are Facts’ by the late Wali Khan was an instant hit. ‘Facts are Facts’ is an attempt to contest text book versions of Pakistan’s history. In a bid to generate debate, the Viewpoint is serializing this text in its entirety

NWFP Referendum:

The people of the Frontier opposed the referendum. Their stand was clear. If its purpose was to obtain public opinion, it had already been ascertained a year ago during the elections  to  the  Legislative  Assembly.  The  Khudai Khidmatgars had defeated all the provincial parties including the Muslim League. After just a year what was the need to confirm the public opinion through a referendum?    In accordance  with  the  decision  taken  in  the  Provincial Conference of the Khudai Khidmatgars, the leaders of the Congress Party had decided to oppose referendum in NWFP. During this period Mountbatten went to Simla where he invited Jawaharlal Nehru to meet him. When he returned he announced that Jawaharlal Nehru had agreed to hold a referendum in the Frontier.  Jawaharlal  Nehru  explained  later  that  he  had  a detailed discussion on this issue with the Prime Minister of the province, Dr Khan Sahib, and together they agreed to hold the referendum.

The first objection of the Khudai Khidmatgars to the referendum was that when both the political parties, the Congress and the Muslim League, had agreed on partition [ratified by the Central Working Committee of the Congress] it was binding on them in view of their representation in the Congress through Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan. What was the need of holding a referendum when they had accepted the plan of partition with NWFP being a part of Pakistan? It was an exercise in futility, the result of which would be confrontation between anti and pro-Pakistan elements at a time when the situation was highly explosive.

But the Muslim League and the British had their vested interests in this referendum. The first objective of the Muslim League was to create an impression that Pakistan was established on the demand and insistence of the people of NWFP. In this process they wanted to prove that Khudai Khidmatgars had all along opposed the establishment of an Islamic State, with the result that referendum was the only recourse.

The NWFP was treated differently from the other provinces. When the partition plan was presented before the Legislative Assemblies of Bengal and Punjab they ratified it. Similarly the matter was referred to the Sind Assembly. The question arises why was it not placed before the Legislative Assembly of the NWFP? There was an excellent reason for this. If the Khudai Khidmatgars decided in favour of Pakistan, the decision would have to be credited to them. This was unacceptable to the Muslim League and to the British.

The Muslim League knew that the Khudai Khidmatgars would refuse to participate in the referendum, and it would go in favour of Pakistan. Therefore, their second objective was to make  an  issue  of  the  referendum result  by  saying that  the people of NWFP had no faith in the Khudai Khidmatgars. This may become a turning point in the politics of NWFP, and a revolutionary change would occur in its political scenario. The Muslim League would then demand a vote of no confidence in the light of the referendum. Then there would be no alternative for the Government but to accept the verdict of the people and submit its resignation. If the Government did not resign, it may be possible for the Governor General to dismiss it. The Government of NWFP would be taken away from Khudai Khidmatgars  and  be  presented  in  a  platter  to  the  Muslim League.

The Khudai Khidmatgars realised that the British were bent on holding a referendum. They disagreed with the idea but felt that if the British authorities wanted to perform the ritual, the people of the province who were not willing to opt either for India or Pakistan, should be free to establish a free State of their own. The referendum should be held not only on the issue of the partition of the country but also on the issue of an independent Pakhtoonistan.

This demand was rejected out of hand by Mountbatten. Consequently, the Khudai Khidmatgars announced that since the decision on the partition had already been taken, and it had become a non-issue, they would boycott the referendum. This is a classical example of the hypocrisy of the British and the iniquity of the leaders of Pakistan. For example, when the question of the partition of West Bengal arose, the Prime Minister of Bengal, a Muslim Leaguer, H.S. Suhrawardy, proposed that Bengal should remain united and become independent. Jinnah immediately accepted this proposal. But when the same kind of demand was made by Khudai Khidmatgars, they were condemned as enemies of Islam and traitors to Pakistan. It is interesting to recall that in united Bengal, the proportion of Muslims and non-Muslims was fifty- four  per  cent  and  forty-six  per  cent  respectively.  It  was probable that if the non-Muslims won over some Muslims MLAs, they could easily tip the balance and wipe out the possibility of a Muslim League Government. In the Frontier there was no scope for such desertion, or combination because non-Muslims could never form a Government in a province of ninety-three percent Muslim population. The Government of a united and independent Bengal would always have been dependent on the support of the non-Muslims; while in the Frontier this problem too was non-existent. The Khudai Khidmatgars were a monkey-wrench in the British plan to hang Islam like a millstone around the neck of Soviet Russia. They realised  that  this  international  plan  of  theirs  could  not  be implemented unless all the patriotic and anti-imperialistic forces were routed.

At   that   time  the   leaders  of   Khudai  Khidmatgars believed that the Muslim League would not create any disturbances once Pakistan was established. Had they known otherwise, nobody could have prevented them from continuing to oppose them. As a matter of fact, I had personally shown them this path of confrontation. The Khudai Khidmatgars wanted Pakhtoonistan and the British would not concede them this right of self-determination. Therefore, the only way out of this predicament would have been to pass a resolution in the Legislative Assembly establishing Pakhtoonistan. They would have been assured of the support of the Constituent Assembly of India which was controlled by the Congress Party. If the people of NWFP had used the referendum to announce their accession  to  India,  instead  of  refraining  from  voting,  they would certainly have got complete independence and also a promise of protection from the Congress Government. We should have explained to our people that if they wanted Pakhtoonistan,  they  should  cast  their  vote  in  favour  of accession to India. When I look back in retrospect, I feel that we were fooled by what then seemed like human consideration and Islamic fervour of the leaders of the Muslim League.

In  those  days  a  friend,  who  was  a  member  of  the Muslim League, told me, “Don’t you agree that we have got you in our grip? You are now stranded here, have no means of communication with India, as Punjab lies in between, cannot take a stand in the referendum that you  want to accede to India." Agreeing with his analysis. I said:

It  is  the  policy  of  your  Muslim  League  and  your masters, the British, to partition a well-knit country and balkanize a sub-continent. We are constructive while you are destructive. Have you forgotten what distance separates  the  Eastern  and  the  Western  parts  of a country at a distance of 1500 miles from each other, why is it difficult for the Frontier to join India with a distance of not more than 300 miles? Besides, you speak of the territory lying between the Eastern and the Western parts of your country as a non-Muslim enemy territory whereas there would be Muslim and Punjabi brethren on the border of my country. But all this could have been possible only if we too had followed your unprincipled policies.

Ultimately, the British got their heart's desire! Preparations were made for the referendum. Sir Olaf Caroe was removed and the referendum was conducted under the supervision of Sir Robb Lockhart. Although Khudai Khidmatgars had announced a boycott of the referendum, the Muslim League mobilised all their resources, and leaders from every comer of India were brought in to foment hatred. Even students from the Aligarh Muslim University were sent in large numbers to different parts of the Province. The amount of rigging on the election day was phenomenal. Bogus votes were cast  including  some  in  the  names  of  our  leaders.  Two interesting incidents occurred. One was narrated to me by Iskander Mirza who, in turn was told, by the then Deputy Commissioner of Hazara District. While inspecting different polling stations, he went to one in Galiyat. When he asked how the polling was going on, the staff proudly said that this being a hilly tract the total number of votes was 200 and all the 200 votes had been cast! He shouted at them and said that if some one raised an objection there would be no answer to the charge of booth capturing. Another incident was related to me during the 1970 elections when the National Awami Party had formed the Government. A lady MLA told me that she had cast fifty- one votes, in the referendum! I was struck at this chicanery. You must have had one vote and that too of your husband. What about these fifty votes?" I asked:

Did you cast these votes on behalf of "other" husbands, and, in that event, did you not consider it necessary to have  renewed  your  Nikah?  You  must  have  stood before the Polling Officers and stated that you are the lawful wife of so and so. Being a properly wedded wife what was the status of these 50 men in your life? An interesting development could have been that one of those 50 men could have legitimately claimed you as his wife. Because you had made a statement to that effect to the polling officer.

However, as a result of the combined efforts of Government officials, the Muslim League, and the British, the result of the referendum was as follows:

Despite this bungling and booth-capturing, fifty percent people voted in favour of Pakistan. It must be remembered that in those days there was no adult suffrage. Consequently, there were only six lakh voters out of a total population of thirty-five lakhs. In addition, the referendum was held only in six districts of the province, and six Agency  areas adjacent to the Frontier were excluded along with the tribal areas. Also, Swat, Dir, Chitral and Amb States were left out. The population of the entire Frontier Province was seventy to eighty lakhs. Three lakhs out of them cast their votes. The normal practice is that whenever the right of self determination is exercised under the aegis of an international organisation, the verdict is predicted upon  two-third of  the  total  votes being  cast.  Hence, if  the Khudai Khidmatgars objected to this methodology of the referendum, their objection was tenable on legal and moral grounds.

Since the Khudai Khidmatgars considered the referendum to be unnecessary, they did not want to waste their time over this issue. All they wanted to do was: fight the old enemy. Finally the light became visible at the end of a long and arduous tunnel. The British were finally compelled to windup their show. The valiant sacrifices made by Khudai Khidmatgars had ushered in the day of deliverance. The earnest desire for independence, dormant for years, was fulfilled. They directed all their efforts to clean the existing atmosphere which was charged with tension and hatred. The common enemy had been vanquished and now they were left with their own kith and kin, It was, therefore, incumbent upon all the people of the country to work together, and enjoy the fruits of freedom. A new life was in the offing for the poor and deprived Pakhtoons.

As expected, soon after the announcement of the result of the referendum, the Muslim League raised a hue and cry that the referendum was a vote of no-confidence in the present Provincial Government. It was, therefore, appropriate for the provincial Government to offer to resign.

The Muslim League knew that the referendum had nothing to do with the future of the present Government. The referendum was held to ascertain whether the people wanted to remain with India or Pakistan. In this exercise of option the Provincial Government had played no part. Confidence or no- confidence  was  a  matter  for  the  Legislative  Assembly  to decide. The leaders of the Muslim League had raised this agitation for an altogether different reason. Under the existing constitution it was within the Governor General's authority to dismiss a Provincial Government. According to the new constitution, however, which the British had promised to proclaim on the eve of independence, this authority was to be vested in the State Government. The strategy of the leaders of the  Muslim  League  was  to  pressurize  the  provincial Government to resign, and, if they did not do so, they would, then urge the Governor General to dismiss them. Therefore, Jinnah had discussions with Mountbatten and requested him to dismiss the present Provincial Government of NWFP. But Mountbatten took a contrary stand. He stated that the referendum had nothing to do with this issue and hinted that this was now upto the Muslim League to resolve. They could do whatever they considered proper

(To be continued)

The book in PDF form can be accessed at: http://www.awaminationalparty.org/books/factsarefacts.pdf