The Reminiscences of Zafrulla Khan — Page 108
108 REMINISCENCES OF SIR MUHAMMAD ZAFRULLA KHAN of the Congress Party. They began to emphasize the so-called parliamentary convention or doctrine that a Cabinet could work smoothly and properly only if it was representative of the majority party in the legislature and that they could not, therefore, include in a Cabinet elements from outside the party. They said they would be willing to give representation to Muslims in each of these provinces provided the person selected to be appointed as minister was either already a member of the Congress Party or would agree to become a member. The Muslim League took this as an assault on the Muslim league claim that the Muslim League alone represented political elements among the Muslims in India. That generated tension and the situation grew more and more serious with the rift widening all the time till when the Congress provincial ministries threw their hands in, over the issue of India's participation in the War. The day was called Deliverance Day by the Muslim League because they had been delivered from the tyranny of the Congress ministries. In the remaining four provinces, where the Congress was not in the majority, normal governments had been formed, and they continued to function smoothly and no crisis arose. The system worked fairly well, until and during the war, till the question of the constitutional advance, especially with reference to the war effort, began to occupy the front of the stage again. Question : What do you feel about the possibilities in the UP particularly offered the coalition ministry having worked in 1937 ? Khan : It is very difficult to assess today what would have happened. One can only speculate. In all situations it is difficult to assess what would have happened if something else had been done in place of what was actually done. Today so many factors have overtaken the whole situation and over-spread it that it would be a purely academic exercise to attempt an assessment. Besides, I do not have ultimate knowledge of conditions in the United Provinces, so that my opinion would not be of any great value. Question : Shortly after this, at the outbreak of war, you became Minister of War and Supply ? Khan : We set up the Ministry of War Supply, just before the outbreak of the war. It was one of those measures that were taken as a matter of precaution. We set up an organization of supply in which all the British territories, dominions, colonial areas and India, south and east of the