WHAT ABOUT THE STATES ? 535
Mr. Jinnah’s statement on the Sovereignty of the Indian States is a piece of gratuitous meddling.
Mr. Jinnah asked for his Pakistan State and he has got it. After that he has no more right to speak on the affairs of the Indian Union than has any other foreign ruler.
His attempt to stir up trouble in the Indian States is not an isolated instance of the Quaid-e-Azam’s hankering after the status of an all India leader. He has according to one of his followers supported the cause of Moplastan on what grounds he only knows.
Mr. Jinnah speaks as an expert on Constitutional affairs. He would be well advised if he kept his special knowledge for the many Constitutional knots which need unravelling in the Pakistan Constituent Assembly.
Mr. Jinnah has to make up his mind. Either he functions as the prospective head of the Pakistan State or he assumes responsibility for working in the Union.
It is not as though Mr. Jinnah was given a charter to meddle in things that did not concern him. His party’s unwillingness to stay in the Union has won it separation. It cannot now start sowing seeds of trouble in the rest of India.
The Congress must act betimes. The time for speeches will come later. The present position is bad enough in all conscience. It would be tragic if the Congress wakes up to discover that its over-optimism has added to its worries.” [1]
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- : The Free Press Journal, dated 5th June 1947.