Punjab Politicians, Third June Plan and Partition of Punjab

Abstract

The present paper discusses ‘Punjab Politicians, Third June Plan and Partition of Punjab'. Lord Mountbatten was last viceroy of India and took the responsibility of partition of British India and also to send British troops back to England. Mountbatten developed a strong relationship with the Indian princes who were said to have considerable confidence in him and persuaded most of them to accede to the new states of India and Pakistan. Mountbatten arrived in India in March, 1947, and noted that all parties in the Punjab were seriously preparing for civil war and of these by far the most serious are the Sikhs. Mountbatten consulted the matter of partition with the leaders of many communities and political parties. He said that there can be no question of coercing any large areas in which one community has a majority to live against their will under a Government in which another community has a majority and partition is only alternative for this coercion. Muslim League demanded partition of India and Congress demanded the partition of certain provinces. Congress and Muslim League were not willing to leave a substantial area in which their community had a majority under the Government of the other. Lord Mountbatten opposed the partition of India and partition of provinces.