Lucknow Session of 1916 and the Lucknow Pact
Modern History › Revolutionary Activities and the First World War · Topic 15.7
At Lucknow in 1916, under the Moderate president Ambika Charan Majumdar, the Congress readmitted the Extremists led by Tilak, and the Congress and the Muslim League presented joint demands. The Lucknow Pact had the Congress accept separate electorates for Muslims and a fixed share of seats, a landmark that also entrenched separate political entities.
7 min read · UPSC Prelims · History · Revolutionary Activities and the First World War
At a Glance
- Reunion Extremists led by Tilak readmitted to the Congress, 1916
- President Ambika Charan Majumdar, a Moderate
- Pact Congress and Muslim League put forward joint demands
- Key concession Congress accepted separate electorates for Muslims
- Exam link UPSC Prelims, Modern History: Revolutionary Activities and the First World War
Where Does It Fit?
This is the seventh topic of the category on revolutionary activities and the First World War. The previous topic covered the Home Rule League Movement, which helped bring about this session. This topic covers the Congress reunion and the pact with the Muslim League. The next and last topic covers Montagu’s statement of August 1917. Previous topic: Home Rule League Movement.
Why Were the Extremists Readmitted?
The Lucknow session of the Indian National Congress, presided over by a Moderate, Ambika Charan Majumdar, finally readmitted the Extremists led by Tilak to the Congress fold. Several factors made the reunion possible.
| Factor | Detail |
|---|---|
| Old controversies | They had become meaningless |
| Lesson of the split | Both sides realised that the split had led to political inactivity |
| Efforts of Besant and Tilak | They worked vigorously for reunion; to allay Moderate suspicion Tilak declared that he supported a reform of administration and not an overthrow of the government, and he denounced violence |
| Deaths of Gokhale and Pherozshah Mehta | The two Moderates who had led the Moderate opposition to the Extremists were dead |
The split is told in Surat Split, 1907, and the efforts of Tilak and Besant in Home Rule League Movement.
Why Did the Muslim League Change Its Stand?
Another significant development at Lucknow was the coming together of the Muslim League and the Congress and the presentation of common demands to the government. The League, now dominated by younger militant nationalists, was moving closer to the Congress objectives and turning increasingly anti-imperialist.
| Reason for the shift | Detail |
|---|---|
| Turkey | Britain’s refusal to help Turkey, ruled by the Khalifa who claimed religio-political leadership of all Muslims, in the Balkan wars (1912-13) and against Italy (1911) angered Muslims |
| Annulment of partition | The 1911 annulment annoyed the sections of Muslims who had supported the partition |
| Aligarh university | The refusal to set up a university at Aligarh with powers to affiliate colleges all over India alienated some Muslims |
| Younger members | They were turning to bolder nationalist politics and outgrowing the limited outlook of the Aligarh school; the League’s Calcutta session of 1912 committed it to work with other groups for a system of self-government suited to India, provided it did not conflict with its basic objective of protecting Muslim interests |
| Wartime repression | Government repression during the war infuriated younger Muslims: Maulana Azad’s Al Hilal and Mohammad Ali’s Comrade faced suppression, and the Ali brothers, Azad and Hasrat Mohani were interned |
The League’s origin is in Morley-Minto Reforms, 1909, and the Formation of the Muslim League, and the annulment in Swadeshi Movement New forms Boycott, meetings, samitis, festivals, atma…">New Forms of Struggle and the Extent of Mass Participation. The Aligarh school is in Sir Syed Ahmed Khan and the Aligarh Movement.
What Were the Terms of the Lucknow Pact?
The Lucknow Pact between the Congress and the Muslim League could be considered an important event in the course of the nationalist struggle. The League agreed to present joint constitutional demands with the Congress to the government. The Congress accepted the League’s position on separate electorates, which would continue until any one community demanded joint electorates, and the Muslims were granted a fixed proportion of seats in the legislatures at the all-India and provincial levels.
The joint demands were: that the government declare that it would confer self-government on Indians at an early date; that the representative assemblies at the centre and in the provinces be expanded with an elected majority and more powers; that the term of the legislative councils be five years; that the salary of the Secretary of State for India be paid by the British treasury and not from Indian funds; and that half the members of the executive councils of the Viceroy and provincial governors be Indians. A.C. Majumdar said that after nearly ten years of painful separation both wings of the nationalist party had realised that united they stand, divided they fall.
How Was the Pact Evaluated?
Though half the executive was to be elected by the legislature, the executive as a whole was not to be responsible to the legislature. The legislature could not remove the elected half, but since important matters like the budget depended on its approval, a constitutional deadlock was likely. This was the kind of executive-legislature relation the Congress seemed to ask for in any scheme of post-war reform. The demands were thus just a significantly expanded version of the Morley-Minto reforms.
While the effort of the Congress and the League to present a united front was far-sighted, the acceptance of separate electorates by the Congress implied that the two came together as separate political entities, a major landmark in the evolution of the two-nation theory by the Muslim League, in the chapter’s view. Efforts to bring together the masses of the two communities were not considered. But the controversial decision to accept separate electorates also reflected a serious desire on the part of the Congress to allay minority fears of majority domination. There was a large amount of enthusiasm generated among the people by the reunion, and even the government decided to placate the nationalists with its August 1917 declaration of an intention to grant self-government in time.
As an analytical point, the Pact shows a trade-off that runs through the national movement: unity of leaders was bought with a principle, separate electorates, that the 1909 reforms had introduced and that the chapter calls detrimental. The Montagu declaration that followed is in Montagu’s Statement of August 1917.
Why Is This Topic Important?
- Core topic The Lucknow Pact and the 1916 reunion are asked in nearly every Prelims cycle
- Communal politics Acceptance of separate electorates is a key Mains point
- Link to Montagu The reunion prompted the 1917 declaration
What Came Next?
The next and last topic of this category covers Montagu’s statement of August 1917. Next topic: Montagu’s Statement of August 1917.
Key People and Terms
- Lucknow Pact The 1916 agreement between the Congress and the Muslim League
- Reunion The readmission of the Extremists to the Congress
- Separate electorates A system in which only members of a community vote for its candidates
- Al Hilal Maulana Azad’s journal suppressed during the war
- Comrade Mohammad Ali’s journal suppressed during the war
- Young Party The younger League members who turned anti-imperialist
Exam Corner
Points to Remember
- Lucknow 1916: president Ambika Charan Majumdar.
- Extremists readmitted; Gokhale and Pherozshah Mehta had died.
- League shift: Turkey, annulment of partition, Aligarh university, war repression.
- Congress accepted separate electorates and a fixed share of seats for Muslims.
- Joint demand: half of the executive councils to be Indians.
Do Not Confuse With
- Surat 1907 and Lucknow 1916 Surat: split; Lucknow: reunion
- Lucknow Pact and Morley-Minto Both accepted separate electorates; Lucknow was a Congress-League agreement
- Reunion and Pact Reunion: Moderates and Extremists; Pact: Congress and League
Memory Hook
Lucknow 1916: the split healed, the League joined, separate electorates conceded.
Mains Angle
Questions ask about the Lucknow Pact and its consequences. These points add depth.
- United front Joint demands of Congress and League
- Price of unity Separate electorates accepted
- Leaders’ unity The masses of the two communities were not brought together
A Question You May Face
An original practice question, not a past paper question.
“Evaluate the Lucknow Pact of 1916 and its implications for Indian politics.”
How to Answer
- Background Reunion and League shift.
- Terms Joint demands and separate electorates.
- Evaluation Far-sighted unity versus separate entities.
- Conclude Link to later communal politics.
GS Relevance
Frequently Asked Questions
What was decided at the Lucknow session of 1916?
The Congress, under the Moderate Ambika Charan Majumdar, readmitted the Extremists led by Tilak, and the Congress and the Muslim League presented joint demands for self-government and council reforms in what became the Lucknow Pact.
Why were the Extremists readmitted to the Congress in 1916?
Old controversies had lost meaning, both sides saw that the split had caused inactivity, Besant and Tilak worked for reunion with Tilak denouncing violence, and the deaths of Gokhale and Pherozshah Mehta removed the leading Moderate opponents.
What were the terms of the Lucknow Pact?
The Congress accepted separate electorates for Muslims until any community demanded joint electorates, and gave Muslims a fixed share of seats in the legislatures. The two bodies would present joint demands for early self-government and expanded, more powerful councils.
Why did the Muslim League move closer to the Congress?
Britain's refusal to help Turkey, the annulment of the Bengal partition, the denial of an Aligarh university with affiliating powers, the League's Calcutta resolution of 1912 for self-government, and wartime repression of Muslim leaders pushed the younger League members towards nationalism.
What were the joint demands of the Congress and the League?
They demanded an early declaration of self-government, expanded legislative councils with an elected majority and more powers, five-year terms, payment of the Secretary of State's salary from the British treasury, and half of the executive councils to be Indian.
What were the criticisms of the Lucknow Pact?
By accepting separate electorates the Congress implied that the two came together as separate entities, a landmark in the League's two-nation theory. Also, the masses of the two communities were not brought together, and the executive scheme risked a constitutional deadlock.
PYQ Practice — Statement Analysis
1 The Lucknow session of 1916 was presided over by Ambika Charan Majumdar.
He was a Moderate.
2 The Congress opposed separate electorates for Muslims in the Lucknow Pact.
It accepted them.
3 The Extremists were readmitted to the Congress at Lucknow in 1916.
Tilak and Besant had worked for it.
4 The Muslim League turned increasingly anti-imperialist before 1916.
Younger militant nationalists dominated it.
5 The Lucknow Pact demanded that the Secretary of State's salary be paid from Indian revenues.
It demanded that the British treasury pay it.
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