First and Second Round Table Conferences

At a Glance

• First RTC November 1930 to January 1931; opened by King George V on 12 November 1930; no Congress
• Second RTC 7 September to 1 December 1931; Gandhi the sole Congress representative
• Chair Ramsay MacDonald
• Outcome No agreement; minorities deadlock; Gandhi returned on 28 December 1931
• Exam link UPSC Prelims, Modern History: Civil Disobedience Movement and Round Table Conferences

Where Does It Fit?

This is the eighth topic of the category on the Civil Disobedience Movement and Round Table Conferences. The previous topic covered the Karachi session. This topic covers the first two conferences held in London. The next topic covers the third conference and the resumption of civil disobedience. Previous topic: Karachi Congress Session, 1931.

Why Was a Round Table Conference Held?

The Viceroy, Lord Irwin, and the British Prime Minister, Ramsay MacDonald, agreed that a round table conference should be held, since the dyarchy; autonomy and representative government Centre No parliamentary responsibility Fate Overtaken by…">recommendations of the Simon Commission report were clearly inadequate. The report is described in Recommendations of the Simon Commission.

What Was the First Round Table Conference?

The first conference was held in London between November 1930 and January 1931. King George V opened it officially on 12 November 1930 and Ramsay MacDonald chaired it. It was the first conference arranged between the British and Indians as equals. The Congress and some prominent business leaders refused to attend, but many other Indian groups were represented.

The outcome was meagre. It was generally agreed that India would develop into a federation, with safeguards on defence and finance and other departments transferred. But little was done to implement the recommendations, and civil disobedience continued in India. The British government realised that the Congress had to take part in any discussion of India’s future constitution.

How Did the Second Conference Come About?

Liberal leaders such as Tej Bahadur Sapru, C.Y. Chintamani and Srinivasa Sastri appealed to Gandhi to talk with the Viceroy. Gandhi and Irwin reached the compromise known as the Gandhi-Irwin Pact, or Delhi Pact, described in Gandhi-Irwin Pact. The second conference was held in London from 7 September to 1 December 1931. The Congress nominated Gandhi as its sole representative, with A. Rangaswami Iyengar and Madan Mohan Malaviya also attending. A large number of other Indian groups took part, including princes, Muslims such as Aga Khan III, Muhammad Iqbal and Jinnah, Hindu groups, Liberals, the Justice Party, the depressed classes, Sikhs, Parsis, Indian Christians, industry, labour, women such as Sarojini Naidu, and universities.

Why Was Little Expected From It?

• Lord Irwin had been replaced as Viceroy by Lord Willingdon.
• Just before the conference, the Labour government in England was replaced by a National Government, an uneasy coalition of Labour and Conservatives.
• The British were angered by increased revolutionary activity, which had claimed many European lives in India.
• Conservatives in Britain led by Churchill strongly objected to negotiating with the Congress on an equal basis and demanded a strong government in India. The Conservative-dominated cabinet under MacDonald had a weak and reactionary Secretary of State for India, Samuel Hoare.

What Happened at the Second Conference?

Gandhi, and through him the Congress, claimed to represent all the people of India against imperialism, but other delegates did not share this view. Historians point out that many delegates were conservatives, government loyalists and communalists, whom the colonial government used to neutralise Gandhi’s efforts, and the British claimed the Congress did not represent all of India.

Gandhi argued for a partnership between Britain and India on the basis of equality, demanded immediate responsible government at the Centre and in the provinces, and said the Congress alone represented political India. He said the untouchables were Hindus and not a minority, so rejected separate electorates for them, and said there was no need for separate electorates or special safeguards for Muslims or other minorities. Many delegates disagreed.

The session deadlocked on the minorities question. The Muslims, depressed classes, Christians and Anglo-Indians, who demanded separate electorates, came together in a Minorities’ Pact. Gandhi fought hard against this concerted move to make all constitutional progress conditional on settling the issue. The princes were also lukewarm about a federation, especially after the chance of a Congress government at the Centre receded with the suspension of civil disobedience.

How Did the Second Conference End?

The lack of agreement meant that no substantial result on India’s constitutional future came out of the conference. It ended with MacDonald’s announcement of four things.

The government refused to concede the basic Indian demand of freedom, and Gandhi returned to India on 28 December 1931. As an analytical point, the conference showed that the question of minority representation could block progress when delegates had different aims, and the Communal Award that followed is in Communal Award, 1932. The next steps are in Third Round Table Conference and the Resumption of Civil Disobedience.

Why Is This Topic Important?

• Conference details Dates, chairs and attendees are Prelims facts
• Minorities deadlock Leads to the Communal Award
• Gandhi’s claim The Congress as the sole representative of India is a Mains debate

What Came Next?

The next topic covers the third conference and the resumption of civil disobedience in 1932. Next topic: Third Round Table Conference and the Resumption of Civil Disobedience.

Key People and Terms

• Round Table Conference A series of London conferences on India’s constitution
• Minorities’ Pact An alliance of Muslims, depressed classes, Christians and Anglo-Indians for separate electorates
• Lord Willingdon Viceroy who replaced Irwin
• Samuel Hoare Secretary of State for India at the second conference
• National Government A coalition in Britain from 1931
• Indian Consultative Committee A body announced by MacDonald

Exam Corner

Mains Angle

Questions ask why the conferences failed. These points add depth.

• First No Congress, so no authority
• Second Gandhi’s claim and the minorities deadlock
• British politics National Government and Conservative pressure