Chapter 311 Gandhi’s Advice

On the issue of the balance between East and West Pakistan, Ali Jinnah and later Pakistani leaders chose to suppress Bengal.

But in fact, the national strength of Bangladesh far exceeds that of any other nation.

If British India had not been divided, Bengalis would have been the second largest ethnic group, second only to Hindustani in population.

The Bengalis also control the earliest industrial area in India, the Calcutta Industrial Area, and occupy the economic area centered on the mouth of the Ganges. Except for a slight disadvantage in population, they are better than the Hindustani in other aspects.

From an ethnic point of view, the Bengalis were the biggest victims of India's partition. The complete Calcutta Industrial Zone was divided into two parts, and one ethnic group was divided into two countries. A powerful ethnic group in the subcontinent became suppressed in both countries. that one.

"If I were to choose, I would like to build a real nation-state based on Bangladesh, which is very consistent with the traditions of our European countries. It can be called Bangladesh or any other country. I wonder what Mr. Jinnah thinks?" Duan said. Teacup, Alan Wilson came up with another solution.

"I never agree." Ali Jinnah flatly refused after hearing this. "This will bring chaos to the subcontinent."

"I knew you wouldn't agree, so how will Pakistan treat the Bangladeshis?" Alan Wilson shrugged, "Choose suppression or what? If you choose suppression, it will not last long, but tolerance is the same. Sooner or later, the Bangladeshis will There will be new countries and the problem will be almost unsolvable.”

Alan Wilson could not think of a solution to this problem, but then again, everything he did in British India was not to solve the problem, but to delay it and push the current problem back as far as possible.

Rationally, he knows that as time goes by, the accumulated problems will only become bigger and bigger if not solved, and he becomes less and less afraid to move. But what does it matter, that is a matter between Indians and Pakistanis.

Since Ali Jinnah objected, he would have just not mentioned the Bengali issue. Anyway, it would not be the British who would die by then.

But in his heart, Alan Wilson had made up his mind. After leaving the partition of India and Pakistan, he would establish Bangladesh. The Congress Party and the Muslim League were firmly opposed to it. He spread it widely in the areas where Bangladeshis gathered. It was considered as another dig. A pit worthy of the tradition of the British Empire.

The greatest significance of this meeting was to convince Ali Jinnah that Alan Wilson was sincerely helping him. Although his main purpose as an Englishman was to split British India, the general direction was not to achieve the same goal by different routes. The two sides really had the same goal. The space for collaboration is not small.

The imperialists fought for independence and reached consensus on this aspect of partition. At the same time, Alan Wilson also informed Ali Jinnah of his conditions. The bottom line for civil servants in British India was that they would stay for the whole year of 1947 and independence would be discussed next year. Therefore, at this time, the Muslim League must cooperate Civil servants.

Of course, this was also mutual. The civil servants absolutely supported the idea of ​​partitioning India and Pakistan, tried their best to prevent the Governor-General from making any efforts to preserve British India, and were absolutely biased in favor of the Muslim League in judging matters. The two sides maintained liaison relations until British India ceased to exist. .

What bad intentions can civil servants have? They are just seeking money. In essence, they will not create obstacles for the emergence of Pakistan. At the same time, they will also create space for the British Empire to act as regulators in the future.

For the Muslim League, with the help of the British, the pursuit of independence will be smoother, and cooperation will benefit both parties.

"How was the talk?" Sir Barron asked directly when he saw Alan Wilson coming back. He knew that Alan Wilson wanted to talk to Ali Jinnah, but he didn't know whether the assistant's return brought good news.

"Not bad." Alan Wilson pondered for a moment and said, "It clarified the bottom line of both parties and made Ali Jinnah realize that there is actually room for cooperation between the two of us. As for the Governor's opinion, it is only the Governor's personal opinion. It does not represent any The overall opinion of the Muslim League.”

"Oh, it sounds good. By the way, there is official news from China.

Senator Churchill has promised to come to New Delhi. "Sir Barron nodded and told another news.

"The great former prime minister worked tirelessly for the empire, which is really touching." Alan Wilson changed the topic when he said this, "Does the Governor know about this?"

"Gandhi is here, and the Governor is meeting with him." Sir Barron said expressionlessly, "I really hope that Senator Churchill will arrive early. We should treat the backbencher as Prime Minister."

"I think there is no problem. After all, Senator Churchill has a wide international reputation. It is not too much to treat the hero who won the world war with some courtesy. In British India, we can still regard him as the prime minister."

If it had been the imperial period, Alan Wilson's remarks, which perfectly expressed his disobedience, would have definitely caused trouble. But now, in modern society, who cares about this.

"Aren't you going to stay and wait for the outcome of Gandhi and the Governor?" Sir Barron asked when he saw Alan Wilson was about to leave.

"There is no result. No matter what idea Gandhi has, Jinnah will not agree to it." Alan Wilson chuckled, having full confidence in this, and there was no need to watch the process if he knew the result.

With the approval of his immediate boss, Alan Wilson left work early today without deducting his salary.

He even had time to go to Delhi and passed by the junction of New Delhi and Delhi. The countdown sign that had been erected before was still standing, and the surroundings were very messy. Indians were strolling and poking weeds into the soil with their canes.

At this time, everything is tinted with beautiful pale colors—the pale green of the leaves, the pinkish-brown of the earth and tree trunks—like a dying wash of watercolor. Beside the road, flocks of low-flying brown pigeons chase each other, while emerald-green bee-eaters frolic like slow-flying swallows.

A team of sweepers, each man's load half-hidden under his coat, was heading toward a filthy garbage pit at the edge of the grass.

Those poor hungry people, their arms and legs were as thin as firewood, and their knees were so weak that they could not straighten up. They had only khaki rags to cover their bodies. They looked like skeletons wrapped in shrouds.

Comparing these Indians with the British expatriates in New Delhi, the huge gap can be seen. They are two completely different worlds in the same area.

Winter in New Delhi can only be said to exist. Even at this time of year, the so-called bone-chilling wind does not exist. On the contrary, from time to time, the temperature in a day changes from less than ten degrees to more than 20 degrees.

This was actually not very friendly to Alan Wilson, who lived in a place with four distinct seasons. He always had to prepare outerwear for different temperatures, but Gandhi did not have this problem.

In the Governor's Palace, only Mountbatten's office relied on an air conditioner to keep the temperature at around 20 degrees.

When Gandhi entered the office from the scorching heat, he was trembling with cold. Modern civilization brought about by science and technology was always incompatible with Gandhi. Seeing this situation, Mountbatten immediately ordered to turn off the air conditioner and open the windows. Mountbatten's wife also fetched a navy woolen sweater and draped it on the shivering Gandhi.

While Mountbatten's wife ordered the servants to arrange the luxurious tableware, Manu, who came to meet with Gandhi, also prepared his usual simple meal for him - a bowl of lemon juice, yogurt and date palm powder. gruel.

The handle of Gandhi's spoon had been broken off and tied to it with a bamboo stick. The two tin plates and this small spoon were brought out of the prison during the last time. With a smile, Gandhi filled a plate with porridge and handed it to Mountbatten.

"This tastes very good. You'd better try it. It's no worse than delicacies from mountains and seas." Gandhi said with a sly expression.

Mountbatten took one look at the muddle-headed thing and was at a loss. He didn’t know what Gandhi had done. However, it was hard to swallow after just one look, so the Governor simply refused, “I don’t think I’ve ever eaten it, and I don’t want to try it. "

"It doesn't matter, everything is difficult at the beginning, give it a try, maybe you like it very much." Gandhi stubbornly continued to insist that the other party have a taste.

Mountbatten couldn't resist the magical old man in front of him. Out of politeness and sincerity, he had to take a bite carefully. Gandhi looked at him eagerly, and he had no choice but to swallow it. Fortunately, Gandhi did not push the envelope and insisted that the Governor finish the meal.

The talks officially began and both parties went straight to the topic. Mountbatten first expressed his point, telling Gandhi that Britain's historical policy was never to submit to force, but in view of the victory of Gandhi's non-violent resistance movement, Britain had now decided to withdraw from India no matter what the circumstances.

Gandhi said to Mountbatten: "What is important is that you do not divide India. Please refuse to divide India, even if this refusal leads to a bloody war."

"It must be said that the voice of partition does exist." Mountbatten pondered for a moment and said, "Until the last moment, I hope that that possibility will not arise. In my heart, partition is the last move."

Gandhi touched his head and proposed a bold idea. This idea was so bold that even General Mountbatten, who had commanded thousands of armies, was surprised. Gandhi's opinion was to dissolve Nehru's government and invite Jinnah to form a new government. The Congress party would never sabotage Jinnah's formation plans. If Jinnah did not accept this plan, it would be up to the Congress party to form the government.

Afraid that the other party did not hear clearly, Gandhi repeated: "You can hand over the whole of India to the Muslim League, but you must not divide India. Please put the majority of Hindus under the rule of the Muslim League, entrust Jinnah to form a government, and British sovereignty is given to them."

If Alan Wilson were here, he would definitely be exclaiming in the tone of "I knew it" that he had seen the true face of Gandhi.

"Mr. Gandhi is really willing to make such a big sacrifice?" Governor Mountbatten was full of amazement. He now felt that Gandhi was much easier to deal with than Ali Jinnah.