z:\ ambedkar\vol 08\vol8 05.indd MK SJ+YS 28 9 2013/YS 13 11 2013 386
386 DR. BABASAHEB AMBEDKAR : WRITINGS AND SPEECHES
Government of India (Preliminary Provisions) Act
Be it enacted by the King’s most Excellent Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and Commons, in this present Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same as follows : —
I .— (1) If within six months from the date appointed in this behalf a majority of the Muslim members of the Legislatures of the Provinces of the North- West Frontier, the Punjab, Sind and Bengal pass a resolution that the predominantly Muslim areas be separated from British India, His Majesty shall cause a poll to be taken on that question of the Muslim and the non-Muslim electors of these Provinces and of Baluchistan in accordance with the provisions of this Act.
(2) The question shall be submitted to the electors in these Provinces in the following form : —
(i) Are you in favour of separation from British India ?
(ii) Are you against separation ?
(3) The poll of Muslim and non-Muslim electors shall be taken separately.
II. — (1) If on a result of the poll, a majority of Muslim electors are found to be in favour of separation and a majority of non-Muslim electors against separation, His Majesty shall by proclamation appoint a Boundary Commission for the purpose of preparing a list of such districts and areas in these Provinces in which a majority of inhabitants are Muslims. Such districts and areas shall be called Scheduled Districts.
(2) The Scheduled Districts shall be collectively designated as Pakistan and the rest of British India as Hindustan. The Scheduled Districts lying in the North-west shall be called the State of Western Pakistan and those lying in the North-east shall be called Eastern Pakistan.