Defence, Finance and Home remained in the hands of ‘European’ officials;
the new post of War Production was given to the British businessman Sir
Edward Benthall – the man who had, before the Round Table Conferences,
explained to his colleagues that they had nothing to fear from Indians in
government as long as Defence, Finance and Home remained in European
hands.
JAIL AGAIN, AND OUT OF IT: THE CRIPPS MISSION
AND BACK TO JAIL AGAIN
Jail during the war meant respite from the outside world; one’s jailors
could decide how little or how much one was to have access to infor-
mation: Nehru requested, and after much delay was denied, access to the
papers of the Congress’s National Planning Committee that he had hoped
to work on while in prison. A limited correspondence was permitted,
however, and Nehru could continue to write to interested parties in
England who were watching his ideological development with some
interest.
In one candid letter, Nehru outlined his ideological state: ‘I hate
anarchy of all kinds, of the mind, the body, and the social organism.
I dislike a mess, and my own predilection is entirely in favour of order.
And yet there are worse states than that of anarchy and disorder, and in
this mad world of ours, the choice often lies between evils... No, I am
not a communist, nor indeed do I belong to any other “ism”. Having failed
to find anchorage in religion, I refuse to give up my mental freedom in
favour of any dogma or binding creed. Yet I believe in the socialist
structure; it seems to me inescapable if the world is to survive and progress
... These last five years...have had a powerful effect upon me, and my
mind’s assurance about the future of humanity has been considerably
shaken.’ Nehru spoke of Indian culture, of its resilience over thousands of
years, and of its importance for post-independence India. ‘The new culture
and civilisation that will come will (or I hope it will) produce a classless
society & will make Brahmanas and Kshatriyas of all of us wherever we
may be.’^14 This last usage had echoes of Gandhi’s argument on the basis
of a ‘true’ caste system: not based on birth, but on moral values. It was a
moment of weakness; the image is not typical of Nehru – but it was a
moment indicative of a tone of resignation and lack of certainty or control
that was beginning to affect Nehru at the time.
THE END OF THE RAJ 111