The Nehru Report and Muslim Rights — Page 28
[ 28 ] League has also been rejected, which means that, because the Muslim in the Punjab and Bengal, on the ground of being a majority, have refused to be ruled by the Hindu minority, the concession of small extra representation enjoyed by the Moslems in other provinces, should be withheld from them, although such extra representation did not give the Moslems any dominating position in the councils, but merely made possible the representation in the councils of their various groups and associations. In the same connection the Muslims demanded that they should be granted 33 % of seats on the central legislature, so that their representation from differ ent provinces might be facilitated. The Calcutta and Lahore sections are uniformly at one in this demand. But this demand also has been rejected by the Nehru Committee. The Report says :-·• The Moslems are a little less than one-fourth of the total population of British India and they cannot be allowed reservation over and above that proportion in the central legislature. �' At present, though the number of Muslim seats -::n the legislative Assembly is not quite 33 % , yet it exceeds 25% in any case. The Nehru Committee recognises that 30% of the seats in the Legislative Assembly are at present occupied by Muslim representatives ; but it is not willing to give the Mussalmans even this proportion of seats in ,the future constitution. lln other words, while the inadequacy of 25 % of seats to represent the different Muslim interests, impelled the Muslim League to demand an increase in the present proportion of Muslim seats, or at least to maintain status quo, the Nehru Committee would, on the other hand, reduce the existing Muslim representation to one-fourth, i. e. , 25 % ;-although such demand would in no way adversely affect the position of the Hindu majority.