78 the islamic prism
After 1943, the Muslim League’s proceedings were confi ned to coun-
cil meetings, chaired by Jinnah, that met fi ve times from 1944 to 1947.
Its preoccupation with the partition of the Indian subcontinent and cre-
ation of Pakistan did not dilute the Muslim League’s interest and com-
mitments to the Palestinian cause, however. In April 1946, it demanded
that Britain reject the recommendation of the Anglo- American commis-
sion, which sought an immediate admission of one hundred thousand
Jewish refugees from Eu rope into Palestine. The Muslim League re-
minded the British of the commitment it made in the White Paper of
1939, wherein the Mandate power agreed to restrict Jewish immigration
into Palestine.^35
In December 1947, the All- India Muslim League met for the last time
in Karachi before transforming into the Muslim League of Pakistan.
Meeting about three weeks after the United Nations adopted the parti-
tion plan, it expressed its indignation at the manner in which the United
Nations had decided the future of Palestine. Claiming to speak also on
behalf of Indian Muslims, the Muslim League committed itself to “ren-
der every possible help for the achievement of the aspirations of the Ar-
abs in Palestine, and the preservation of its freedom and integrity, which
is a matter of concern not only to the Arabs but to the Muslim world as
such.”^36 In short, since the days of the Balfour Declaration, the Muslim
League maintained a consistently hostile and unfriendly stance regard-
ing Jewish nationalism. It often projected itself as a spokesperson for the
entire Islamic community, and even following partition it sought to speak
on behalf of the Muslims of India.
Such a hard- line position naturally infl uenced and compelled the Con-
gress Party to accommodate the Muslim sentiments on Palestine. Dur-
ing the Khilafat period, it demanded that Jazirat al- Arab remain under
exclusive Muslim control. In subsequent years, anticolonialism became
its formal platform. At the same time, the not- so- subtle competition with
the Muslim League for Muslim support was palpable in its calculation.
While not prepared to go as far as did the Muslim League, it was not
sympathetic to Jewish nationalism. A pro- Zionist stand would have played
into the hands of the Muslim League and alienated a vast majority of the
Muslims from the Congress Party. Thus the INC also began or ga niz ing
Palestine Day celebrations in diff erent parts of the country.
The opposition of the INC to Jewish nationalism in Palestine had an-
other domestic consideration. The Muslim League was presenting Mus-
lims in British India not as a diff erent religious community but as a
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