December 30, 2006

G. M. Sayed has always been criticised by the central power elite since 1946, a year before the partition of the sub-continent. He was an intelligent and well versed political leader. Though sharp in political maneuverings, he lacked charismatic personality to appeal the masses. He was a political tactician, an ideologue but never a mass leader. Hence his abilities were at best in making and un-making of ministries in the pre-independence Sindh. His experience in toppling down various ministries made him believe that he commanded the political scene in Sindh but the second ministry of Allah Baksh Soomro proved a hard nut to be cracked. The egoist Sayed had to shift his allegiance from his cherished principles and ideals to get the Allah Baksh ministry over-thrown. He not only joined the Muslim League, which he had considered a party of toadies and title holders, but also put his best efforts to pump in a major section of Sindhi elite, the Pirs and Syeds, who had held reverence and big following among rural masses in the organization. He was instrumental in making the hitherto paper-organization into a popular movement. In retaliation, he did not hesitate to initiate an agitation on Masjid Manzal Gah issue that divided the Sindhi masses on communal lines. Through this negative tactics, he at one hand could destabilize the Allah Baksh ministry and on the other helped in mobilizing of Sindhi Muslim elite, intelligentsia and the masses for the Muslim League and the Pakistan movement. From 1938 to 1946, G.M. Sayed had played a very important role in the creation of Pakistan. He had become the main driving and leading personality in the Sindh Muslim League but his pre-dominance was challenged in 1946 by Mr. Jinnah, the charismatic leader of the Indian Muslims. This personality clash stole the wind from the sails of Sayed. He tried to brave this situation but the momentum geared in by the movement was so strong that the leader of Sindhi Muslims found himself isolated and swimming against the tide. His ego forced him to oppose the Pakistan movement at the time of deliverance, for which he had spent about seven years of consistent and tiresome struggle.

G. M. Sayed, started his political career as a teen-ager in February 1920 by joining the Khilafat movement, which had enhanced the socio-political consciousness of the masses. Its coincidence with the “Quit India” movement, strengthened anti-British and anti-feudal feelings. During 1919-25, the Khilafat movement undoubtedly played a mass mobilization role and for the first and last time united the people of Sindh in an all-India movement.

Joins Congress

Inspired by the impact of the movement, Sayed joined Congress but did not take any active part in the civil dis-obedience movement launched by Gandhi. The abrupt end of the Khilafat movement shifted the political mode in Sindh from agitational to constitutional spheres. Sayed got elected to the post of vice president and then the president. Karachi Local Board. However, his relations with the Congress could not last long as he felt that the provincial Congress was dictated by the vested interests of traders and money-lenders. He severed his links with the Congress in 1931 and focused his attention on Sindh-based issues.

G.M. Sayed, joined the efforts of Mr. Jamshed Mehta and others to form Sindh Hari Committee. The main objective of the Sindh Hari Committee was allotment of state lands as harap grants to haris in the Lloyd Barrage area and improvement in the batai (division of produce) system and grant of permanent tenure to haris on lands they had cultivated for some time. It did not call for the abolition of the feudal system. On the allotment of Sukkur Barrage lands to big landlords, the leaders of the Hari Committee, Qadir Baksh Nizamani and Noor Muhammad Palejo, vigorously opposed the landlords. G.M. Sayed and his supporters resigned from the Committee.

He also took part in the successful movement for separation of Sindh from the Bombay Presidency. It brought about a change in the basis of politics i.e., from anti-British to anti-Hindu and paved the way for the support of the “two nation” theory and formation of an effective Muslim organization. Now the sons of feudal families, educated in British institutions, had become leaders of Sindhi Muslims and the leaders of the Khilafat movement, except Sheikh Abdul Majid Sindhi, were discarded.

In the wake of 1935 Act, several parties were formed in Sindh to participate in the forthcoming elections. Sayed formed Sindh Peoples Party with Shahnawaz Bhutto and Allah Baksh Soomro in June 1934. Sheikh Abdul Majid Sindhi formed Sindh Azad Party in September 1935. Sir Ghulam Hussain Hidayatullah formed his own party styled as Muslim Political Party in August 1936.

In the elections of 1936, Sayed’s United Party won 22, Hidayatullah’s Party 3 and Sheikh Abdul Majeed’s Azad Party 3 seats. Congress won 7 and the remaining 25 were independents, Muslims and Hindus. The governor, Sir Lancelot Graham invited Hidayatulah having support of just three seats to form the ministry. He had earlier formed his party on communal lines but had to give up his religious stances to form the ministry. So he formed another party with the name of Sindh Democratic Party comprising both Hindu and Muslim members of legislative assembly.

The members of the Hindu Independent Party, a support base of the ministry, made excessive demands and to balance these unreasonable supporters, Sir Ghulam Hussain was compelled to seek the support of Sayed’s United Party. An agreement was reached between the two parties which envisaged a Superior Committee to advise and guide the ministry on matters of policy. G.M. Sayed succeeded through this Committee, to force the Ministry to launch the Debt Conciliation Bill and Land Alienation Bill. This annoyed the Hindu supporters. Further, on the death of Bhojsing, speaker, he also managed to get Miran Muhammad Shah elected as speaker. As a result, all the members of the Hindu Independent Party withdrew their support and decided to sit on opposition benches. Having maneuvered the withdrawal of Hindu support, the Sindh United Party seized the opportunity and demanded that the ministry be expanded from 3 to 6 ministers to accommodate Allah Baksh Soomro, M.A. Khuhro and Nehchaldas Vazirani in the cabinet. Ghulam Hussain, realizing the balance of forces, advised the governor to expand the cabinet, but he refused to accept this advice. Now, having brewed crisis within Ghulam Hussain’s ministry, Sayed brought about a secret arrangement with the disillusioned Hindus and Congress groups to overthrow the ministry. On the voting day, the ministry was defeated in a cut motion. Thanks to the efforts of Sayed, the first ministry of Sindh ended. A new ministry came into office on 23 March 1938, under the leadership of Allah Baksh Soomro, the leader of Sindh United Party.

The overthrow of Sir Ghulam Hussain ministry was planned mainly by G.M. Sayed and Pir Ali Muhammad Rashidi through the support of the Hindu members and the Congress group in the assembly, only 7 out of 35 Muslim members had voted with Sindh United Party. This was due to the pro-Congress leanings of Mr. Allah Baksh.

G.M. Sayed and Pir Ali Muhammad Rashidi, who were instrumental in bringing about the new ministry, tried to dictate it. But to their dissatisfaction, Allah Baksh acted independently. The question of enhancement of land assessment, left undecided by the previous ministry, provided another opportunity to isolate the Allah Baksh ministry. G.M. Sayed held a meeting with the Congress Party and wrote a letter to the premier requesting him not to take any decision on this issue without first taking the parties supporting the ministry into confidence. But the Congress decided to support the ministry. Disappointed by the decision of the Sindh Congress, G.M. Sayed asked Sardar Patel and Abul Kalam Azad to intervene in this regard. But they went back without deciding any thing on the subject. In reaction to the Congress decision, not to become a tool to overthrow Allah Baksh ministry, G.M. Sayed and Pir Ali Muhammad Rashidi decided to shift their allegiance from the lofty ideals of non-communal politics and join the Muslim League.

In complete disregard to the demand of Syed’s United Party, the Allah Baksh ministry enhanced the land assessment. Consequently, the Sindh United Party walked over to opposition benches and Allah Baksh had to switch over to the Congress Party.

The Muslim League could not win a single seat in Sindh in 1937 elections. It came about in 1938 that the Sindh Muslim League could enroll urban based personalities like Abdullah Haroon (who had resigned the central parliamentary board of League in 1936 declaring its manifesto “too communal.”) Abdul Majid Sindhi and Hidayatullah. But the more important induction, in terms of organizational expansion of League, was that of G.M. Sayed who had considerable influence among landed gentry, particularly among the Pirs and Sayeds in and outside the assembly. This helped to broaden the political base of League among the Muslim elite and religious sections.

The historic Sindh Provincial Conference of the League, held on 8-10 October 1938 at Karachi was presided by Jinnah. The Chairman, Reception Committee, Sir Abdullah Haroon, in his welcome address stressed the need of an independent federation for Muslims of India.

In the Subjects Committee of the Conference, a resolution was tabled by Sheikh Abdul Majid Sindhi, which, inter alia, provided that India should be divided into two federations, the Federation of Muslim states and the Federation of non-Muslim States. The Muslim League leadership at that stage was not prepared to take up the demand of an independent federation hence the resolution was not accepted.

After the Conference, Jinnah held meetings with Muslim members of the assembly in order to form the Muslim League Assembly party. Allah Baksh refused to join League after failing to get assurance that he would be supported by Muslim League as premier. The Muslim League Assembly Party was formed with Ghulam Hussain Hidayatullah and Bande Ali Talpur as leader and deputy leader. G.M. Sayed found the Muslim League conference as a platform to dislodge the Allah Baksh ministry. He successfully persuaded the Assembly Party that a no-confidence motion be moved in the budget session.

The motion was moved by G.M. Sayed and seconded by Ghulam Hussain Hidayatullah. But after 4 days, when the assembly took the motion, Ghulam Hussain and Mir Bande Ali, the leader and the deputy leader of Sindh Muslim League Assembly Party crossed the floor and joined Allah Baksh ministry. When the motion was placed for voting only seven out of 29 members of Muslim League Party rose to support it.

Manzalgah question

To gain mass support and weaken the Soomro ministry, the working committee of the Sindh Muslim League at its meeting held in March 1939 decided to take up the Manzalgah Masjid question. Muslim League calculated that the Allah Baksh ministry, could be cornered through agitation on communal lines and isolated from the Muslim masses. Thanks to the efforts of G.M. Sayed and Ali Muhammad Rashidi, Pirs, (in particular Pir Bharchondi and Pir Sarhandi), were drawn to the forefront of the movement.

A Satyagrah (civil disobedience) movement was launched from 01 October 1939. Hundreds of Muslims courted arrest and occupied the Masjid. This followed the tragic riots in Sukkur resulting in the killing of 151 Hindus and 14 Muslims. The movement had shifted the balance against Allah Baksh ministry as the Hindus felt that the ministry had failed to provide them proper security and protection. The Hindu ministers, therefore, tendered resignations and came over to the opposition benches.

In another somersault, Sindh Muslim League members dissolved the Muslim League Assembly Party and formed along with some Hindu members, the Sindh Nationalist Party. To attain the support of Mir group, Mir Bande Ali Talpur was nominated as Chief Minister.

In view of Allah Baksh’s failure to maintain majority, the governor asked Allah Baksh to prove support of 31 members. Since Allah Baksh failed to do so, the governor invited Mir Bande Ali to form the ministry on 18 March 1940. G.M. Sayed, Nehchaldas Vazirani, Muhammad Ayub Khuhro, Sheikh Abdul Majid Sindhi and Gokaldas Rai were taken as ministers. Both Jinnah and Haroon expressed doubts about this alliance but finally concurred. Their disquiet soon proved justified. The Muslim League ministers grossly disobeyed the All India Muslim League’s policy on electorate issue and passed an Act in April 1940, to introduce joint electorate as enshrined in the agreed 21 point program of Hindu Panchayat.

In order to combat the increasing pressure of Hindu MLA’s, the leaders of Sindh Muslim League invited Maulana Azad of the Congress to intervene. He used his good offices in both the camps and a coalition ministry was formed.

The agreement known as Azad Pact envisaged interalia resignation of Sheikh Abdul Majid or G.M. Sayed and induction of Allah Baksh on the vacated seat.

A joint parliamentary advisory committee comprising 15 members from among all the different parties in the assembly was appointed with the object of advising and assisting the government. Jinnah disliked the Azad Pact and considered it a setback to the Sindh Muslim League. On 16 November 1940, when he visited Karachi, he suggested that it would be better if all the Muslim ministers including Allah Baksh group should join Muslim League failing which the League ministers should resign from the cabinet. Allah Baksh declined to join the Muslim League.

The Allah Baksh group maneuvered a come back. On 7 March 1941, the Congress party moved a cut motion in the budget session of Sindh Legislative Assembly. Allah Baksh and the two Hindu ministers left the treasury benches and joined the opposition. This was the end of Mir Bande Ali ministry. Allah Baksh was installed as premier by the Congress. The ministry included Ghulam Hussain Hidayatullah, Rai Gokaldas, Mewaldas, Pir Ellahi Baksh, and Pirzada Abdul Sattar.

Organizational activity gave G.M. Sayed another opportunity to be nominated on the working committee of the All India Muslim League, which already included Abdullah Haroon from Sindh. With the efforts of G.M. Sayed, the leaders of Sindh Hari Committee also joined the Muslim League and supported the Pakistan movement.

Allah Baksh ministry had been firmly entrenched when in October 1942, on the call of the Congress, he publicly renounced his titles in protest. The British government dismissed Allah Baksh from office and called on Ghulam Hussain to form a new ministry. At that time Ghulam Hussain did not command the support of a single member. He started negotiations with the Muslim League Assembly Party and offered them some ministries, provided they supported him in the assembly. The Muslim League was divided on the issue. Ayub Khuhro and G.M. Sayed groups were in favour of joining the ministry whereas Sheikh Abdul Majid Sindhi group opposed the move. Khuhro and Sayed succeeded in getting their opinion endorsed by the working committee and the council of the Provincial League despite the instructions of M.A. Jinnah. Sheikh Abdul Majid who strongly opposed joining the ministry resigned from the post of general secretary. Soon Ghulam Hussain and Pir Elahi Baksh joined the Muslim League.

However, the working committee of the All India Muslim League in its Delhi session on 8th November 1942, deplored the act of Sindh Provincial League but in view of Ghulam Hussain’s joining the League allowed the arrangements to continue.

This proved a wise decision. During this period, the Muslim League expanded its organization and political work. By 1943, most of the Muslim members had rallied under the League banner and the League Assembly party was able to muster support of 29 members out of 35 Muslim members. At the budget session of Sindh Legislative Assembly on 3 March 1943, G.M. Sayed moved a resolution supporting the cause of Pakistan. The resolution declared that.

“It is necessary for them (Indian Muslims) to have independent national states of their own and hence any attempt to subject the Muslims of India under one central government is bound to result in civil war with grave and unhappy consequences.”

The resolution, supported by 24 out of 35 Muslim members was approved. Thus Sindh assembly was the first legislature which supported the Pakistan Resolution.

The Provincial League elections were to be held in June 1943. With the Muslim League gaining roots among the Muslims of Sindh there started a tussle between Khuhro and Sayed groups for the control of the organization.

Jinnah visited Karachi in early June 1943 to study the situation. He advised that no minister should hold the post of the president of the Provincial League. Ayub Khuhro had to withdraw, hence the name of Sheikh Abdul Majid Sindhi was suggested for the post but on the insistence of Jinnah and supported by Ghulam Hussain Hidayatullah, G.M. Sayed was elected president by the council of the Provincial League.

The annual session of All India Muslim League was held at Karachi on 24 December 1943. G.M. Sayed and Yusuf Haroon acted during the session as chairman and secretary of the reception committee, respectively.

The holding of the Muslim League annual session in Karachi, gave impetus to the propaganda and organizational activity of Sindh Muslim League. But the struggle for power between the ministers and the League’s president was also increasing bitterly with a shadow of traditional tussle between Mirs and Sayeds. Ghulam Hussain Hidayatullah enjoyed the support of Khuhro, Yousuf Haroon and the Mir Group. Whereas the Sayed group was well entrenched in the Provincial League Committee. It was also supported by Hashim Gazdar, traditional rival of Haroons, and Sheikh Abdul Majid Sindhi. Sayed was not content with the post of the president of the Provincial League and intended to control the Muslim League government as well. To the disappointment of ministerial group, Sayed strengthened his control of the League organization by getting himself re-elected as its president on 14 March 1944. Another Sayed, Ghulam Haider Shah was appointed general secretary. The working committee was also dominated by Sayed group. It is worth noting that during the tenure of G.M. Sayed the membership of the League was raised to nearly 3 lakhs. The branches were formed all over Sindh.

Sayed found himself in a better position to attack the ministry. On 7 July 1944, the working committee of Sindh Provincial League criticized the ministry on its failure to redress the problems of people and resolved that the ministry should resign. The issue was placed before the working committee of the All India Muslim League which preferred not to take any decision but referred to the Sindh Muslim League Assembly party on technical grounds. During the meeting of the working committee where Sayed tried to denounce the ministry, Jinnah expressed his anger and contested Sayed’s claims. He opined that Sayed was prone to unconstitutional methods, unworthy intrigues and had precipitated a crisis in the ranks of Sindh Muslim League.

The two by-elections at Shikarpur and Tando Muhammad Khan constituencies also witnessed a fight between the two factions. The crisis was further precipitated by the sudden and arbitrary dismissal of M.H. Gazdar, a supporter of G.M. Sayed group, from the ministry.

Now infighting entered the final round. In February 1945, Sayed retaliated and with the support of Maula Baksh and the Hindu leaders, defeated the ministry by 25 votes against 19 on a one rupee cut motion sponsored by Sheikh Abdul Majid Sindhi.

The Governor deemed fit to give Ghulam Hussain some more time to consolidate his position by reshuffling, or expanding his cabinet. He out-maneuvered Sayed and appointed Maula Baksh as minister in order to win over Azad Muslim Party of late Allah Baksh.

At this point, Jinnah reacted sharply and held G.M. Sayed responsible for causing a split, breaking party discipline, shaking the solidarity of Sindhi Muslims and undermining the basic structure of the League organization and its aims and objects. The strong reaction by the president of Muslim League compelled G.M. Sayed to surrender and assure complete support to Sir Ghulam Hussain. The tables were turned and Ghulam Hussain who joined the Muslim League in order to save his ministry, had won the confidence of Mr. Jinnah and the person who made Sindh Muslim League a mass organization had become a persona-non-grata for the central leadership.

G.M. Sayed, over-run by the negative feelings of reaction decided to topple the Muslim League ministry. It was the second turning point in the political life of G.M. Sayed, the first being the joining of Muslim League to oust the Allah Baksh ministry. For the ensuing battle, G.M. Sayed tried to strengthen his group in the Muslim League and persuaded Sheikh Abdul Majid, Pir Ali Muhammad Rashidi and G.M. Bhurgari to join the League.

The final and bitter round in the war between the provincial and central League leadership, took place in the working committee meeting of the All India Muslim League held in 1945. Wherein G.M. Sayed and Pir Ali Muhammad Rashidi opposed the attitude of the central leadership, and stressed the need for agreement with Congress for joint pressure on British government. Jinnah attacked them bitterly, and refused to make concessions to the Congress. The working committee despite opposition from G.M. Sayed group decided to increase the powers of the Central Parliamentary Board and to completely centralize the parliamentary machinery functioning in various provinces.

For the 1946 elections, there emerged a three way struggle for League tickets between Sayed, Ghulam Hussain (supported by Mir Group) and Khuhro groups. Soon after his return from Simla, Jinnah visited Sindh and tried to forge unity between the rival factions. On his advice, a Provincial Parliamentary Board was formed consisting of all the leaders of warring groups. The selection of the Sindh parliamentary Board by M.A. Jinnah placed the Sayed group in a minority of one against four ministerial groups though also opposed to each other but united against Sayed.

Having realized his inability to get his supporters allotted Muslim League tickets, G. M. Sayed suspended the proceedings and adjourned the meeting of the Parliamentary Board. At this, Jinnah referred the matter to the Central Parliamentary Board and sent in Nawabzada Liaquat Ali, Nawab Ismail Khan and Hussain Imam to sort out the matter. They held G.M. Sayed responsible for the crisis.

Differences within the Sindh Parliamentary Board persisted in 10 constituencies. Except for G.M. Bhurgari and Sheikh Abdul Majid, all the disputed candidates for whom Sayed had kicked up the row were Sayeds. The Central Parliamentary Board agreed to give 3 tickets to Sayed nominees.

Sayed refused to accept the authority of Central Parliamentary Board and resigned from the membership of the working committee of the All India Muslim League. He was, therefore, expelled from the post of president Sindh Muslim League and the membership of All India Muslim League. Hashim Gazdar left Sayed Group and was made president of the Provincial League.

The Sayed group decided to contest the election at its own under the banner of Progressive League. For the elections of January 1946, in all 16 seats were contested by the group. The Sindh Muslim League won 27 out of 35 Muslim seats, whereas the Sayed group and Nationalist group of Maula Baksh could get 4 seats each.

Sayed group joined forces with the Congress and the Nationalist Muslims and formed a coalition party comprising 29 members, thereby preventing a Muslim League ministry. The Muslim League Assembly Party, through Hashim Gazdar, tried to form unity with the Congress, but Congress refused and proposed an all-parties government. But Jinnah rejected any truck with the Sayed group unless Sayed apologized and surrendered unconditionally.

The Governor dissolved the assembly and appointed a caretaker Muslim League government. The fresh elections were held in December 1946 at a time when all was set for partition of India.

In order to ensure a decisive victory in the December elections against the rival Sayed Group, the Muslim League leadership used all tactics including the Bihar issue to appeal the religious sentiments. The Sajjada Nashins and Pirs were attracted on religious slogans in such a manner that the majority of them left their ‘mentor’ G.M. Sayed. The Central High Command provided funds and transport and advised to win all the Muslim seats especially the G.M. Sayed seat at any cost. It arranged election meetings which were addressed by Pirs and ulema brought from the Punjab and students from Aligarh and the Punjab. Influential landlords associated with Sayed were won over by awarding Muslim League tickets.

The elections were contested on Pakistan demand and the Muslim League could win 33 out of the 35 contested Muslim seats. Sayed group was defeated on all but one seat which went to K.S. Khoso.

This was a grand success for the Muslim League reflecting its strength and popularity among the Muslim masses. Ghulam Hussain Hidayatullah once again became the premier of Sindh on 23 January 1947. Khuhro having support of 25 members was left high and dry as Jinnah interfered and saw to it personally that the “Grand Old Man” formed the ministry. Ghulam Hussain who headed the first provincial ministry of British Sindh formed the last one also. In pursuance of the partition plan of the subcontinent announced on 3 June 1947, the Sindh Legislative Assembly convened a special meeting on 26 June 1947, which resolved to opt for Pakistan. Thus the province of Sindh was the first among the majority Muslim provinces to opt for Pakistan.

— The author is a historian and Executive Director, All Pakistan Newspapers Society, APNS

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