Students should refer to Muslim League Class 10 ICSE notes provided below which has been designed by ICSE Class 10 History teacher based on the latest syllabus and examination guidelines for ICSE Class 10 History. You should carefully read through and understand all topics of this chapter given below so that you can learn the concepts given in Chapter Muslim League which will be very useful if you use them prior to your History exams.
ICSE Class 10 History Muslim League Summary
We have provided below a summary of Chapter Muslim League. This is an important chapter in Standard 10th ICSE History. The summary provided below has been prepared by expert History faculty for ICSE based on the latest ICSE books. You should refer to all Chapter Summaries ICSE Class 10 History which will help you to understand all chapters and to get more marks in exams.
Muslim League ICSE Class 10 History
Scope of syllabus
• Factors leading to the formation of the Muslim League objectives of the League.
• Significance of the Lucknow Pact – 1916
FACTORS LEADING TO THE FORMATION OF THE MUSLIM LEAGUE
1) Loss of Sovereignty by Mughal Rulers –
• The British established their supremacy in India after dethroning the Mughal rulers who were the followers of Islam.
• Muslims became bitter enemies of the British. They participated in the Wahabi Movement, which aimed to end British Domination in India.
• The British government. consciously discriminated against the Muslims, holding them responsible for the uprising of 1857.
• 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 dissention between the two communities and encouraged separatist and communal tendencies.
2) British Policy of Divide and Rule –
• After the First War of Independence in 1857, the British became apprehensive of the safety and stability of their empire in India.
• They saw the unity between Hindus and Muslims as a threat to them.
• 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 & Rule’ in the following manner.
(i) Tried to create hatred among the Hindus and Muslims by portraying Muslim rulers as plunderers and Hindu rulers as Cruel Kings to their Muslim subjects.
(ii) They utilized the caste structure to turn the non- brahmins and the lower castes against high castes.
(iii) They justified the Partition of Bengal by convincing the Muslims that Bengal was being partitioned to create a new Muslim majority province where the Hindus would not be able to subvert their interests.
(iv) They tried to spread communal hatred through the Press, Posters, Literature and Public Platform.
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.
(i) Upper class Muslims comprising zamindars, aristocrats, were anti-British. They were conservative and hostile to modern education. Hence, the number of Muslims educated in western system of education remained small.
(ii) The British Government consciously discriminated against the Muslims, holding them responsible for the uprising of 1857. They were discriminated in the recruitment to civil and military services.
(iii) The Muslim community was not much involved in the growth of any organized industry. Here too, they lagged behind.
4) Economic Backwardness of the country-
• Economic backwardness of the country contributed to the growth of communalism in India.
• Due to the British Colonial Policies, India lacked modern industrial development and there was acute unemployment among the educated youth, as a result of which there was fierce competition among the youth to secure the few available jobs.
• The British used this opportunity to further their policy of ‘Divide and Rule’ and fan communal rivalry among the educated Indians on the question of jobs in Government service.
5) Role of Sir Sayyid Ahmed Khan –
• Sir Sayyid Ahmed Khan was a great educationist and social reformer.
• He regarded Hindus and Muslims to be one quam [nation]
• He founded the Mohammedan Anglo-Oriental college at Aligarh which had both Hindu and Muslim patrons.
• Under the influence of the British Principal of Mohammedan Anglo- Oriental college, he gave up his earlier views and declared that the political interests of Hindus and Muslims were different.
• When the Indian National Congress was founded, Sayyid Ahmad Khan opposed it.
• He founded United Indian Patriotic Association in 1888 with a view to oppose the congress. He was supported by Mr. Beck, the British Principal of Mohammedan Anglo-Oriental College.
• He felt that the continuance of British rule was a ‘Guarantee for the welfare and progress of the community’. Hence, he declared that if the educated Muslims support the British, the later would reward them with Government jobs and other special favour.
6) Erroneous Interpretation of History –
• The manner in which Indian history was interpreted in those days contributed to the growth of communal thinking among the Hindus and the Muslims. Some British and communal historians divided Indian history into the Hindu and Muslim periods.
(i) The rule of Turks, Afghans and Mughals was called the ‘Muslim Rule’ where the rulers were said to be the followers of Islam and their subjects, the followers of other religions.
(ii) In Hindus period, Muslim rulers were dubbed as foreign invaders who had settled in India.
• The British and communal historians ignored the nation of a composite culture in India and tried to create a rift between the two communities. They failed to interpret that the diversity was primarily class-wise and region wise and not religion-wise.
• Some communal historians highlighted the myth that Indian society and culture had reached great heights during the ancient period but was declining during the medieval period which was dominated by Mughal rulers.
• They did not give much importance to the contribution of the medieval period to the development of Indian economy, religion, art, culture etc.
FORMATION OF MUSLIM LEAGUE
The proposal to form a central organization for Muslims was accepted and a political association ‘All India Muslim League’ was set up on Dc. 30, 1906, under the President ship of Nawab Salimullah. Agha Khan was elected as Permanent President of the Muslim League. Its headquarters were to be at Aligarh, but its central office was shifted to Lucknow in 1910.
OBJECTIVES OF THE MUSLIM LEAGUE
(i) To promote, among the Muslims of India, support for the British Government and to remove any misconceptions regarding the intentions of the Government in relation to Indian Muslims.
(ii) To protect and advance the political rights and interests of the Muslims and to represent their need and aspirations to the Government in mild and moderate language.
(iii) To prevent the rise of feelings of hostility between the Muslims of India and the other communities.
THE LUCKNOW PACT
The joint scheme of political reforms agreed to by both the Congress and the Muslim League in 1916 at Lucknow is known as The Lucknow Pact.
Significance of the Lucknow Pact
1) Hindu-Muslim Unity – Both the communities agreed to compromise in some areas for the common goods.
(i) The congress compromised on its secular character by accepting the scheme of separate electorates for Muslims.
(ii) Muslim League accepted the principles of election and the majority rule.
2) Unity within the Congress –The Lucknow session and the signing of the Lucknow Pact brought about unity between the Assertive Nationalists and the Early Nationalists. After their split in Surat Session of 1907, they came together in 1916, and as a result, congress was strengthened.
3) Pressure on the Government – The unity between the congress and the League and between the Early Nationalist and the Assertive Nationalists became a threat to the British Government of India. The Government now had no excuse for delaying political or constitutional reforms.
4) Necessity to Pacify Indians – As the First World War continued the leaders of the Congress and the League impressed upon the British Government that their demand for constitutional Reforms should not be rejected if they wished Indians to be loyal to the British.
The Government, hence felt if necessary to pacify the Indians by the Declaration of Aug. 20, 1917, which promised a policy of gradual development of Self-Government Institutions in India.
IMPORTANT EVENTS, YEARS & DATES
