Formation and Background

Historical Context

  • Following World War II, British economic exhaustion and the Royal Indian Navy Mutiny of 1946 compelled the Attlee government to accelerate the transfer of power
  • The Cabinet Mission Plan (March 1946) was dispatched to India to negotiate the transition

Cabinet Mission Members

  • Lord Pethick-Lawrence (Secretary of State for India)
  • Sir Stafford Cripps (President of the Board of Trade)
  • A.V. Alexander (First Lord of the Admiralty)

Cabinet Mission Plan (1946) - Key Features

Three-Tier Federal Structure

  • Section A: Hindu-majority provinces
  • Section B: Muslim-majority provinces
  • Section C: Bengal and Assam

Other Provisions

  • 389-member Constituent Assembly proposed
  • Lapse of British paramountcy over princely states
  • Rejected the demand for Pakistan
  • Proposed Interim Government during transition

Structure of the Interim Government

Constitutional Framework

  • Operated under the Government of India Act, 1919
  • Restructured Viceroy's Executive Council
  • Viceroy Lord Wavell remained formal constitutional head
  • Indian leaders exercised real executive authority

Leadership

  • Lord Wavell: Viceroy, ex-officio President of Executive Council
  • Jawaharlal Nehru: Vice-President (de facto Prime Minister)
  • Liaquat Ali Khan: Finance Member (joined October 1946)
  • Dr. Rajendra Prasad: Food and Agriculture

Key Objectives

  • Prepare India for independence
  • Coordinate transfer of power
  • Facilitate functioning of Constituent Assembly

Crisis and Muslim League Entry

Direct Action Day

  • Muslim League withdrew acceptance and launched 'Direct Action Day' (16th August 1946)
  • Triggered Great Calcutta Killings and widespread communal riots
  • Despite turmoil, Viceroy invited Nehru to form government

Muslim League's Entry (26th October 1946)

  • League joined without withdrawing rejection of Cabinet Mission Plan
  • Five League nominees included, three Congress members resigned
  • Liaquat Ali Khan used financial powers to obstruct Congress initiatives

Significance of the Interim Government

Independent Foreign Policy

  • Nehru laid foundations for non-alignment and independent diplomacy

Princely States

  • Addressed relations with princely states
  • Laid groundwork for integration into Indian Union

Administrative Indianisation

  • Began transferring control of civil services, police, and armed forces to Indian leaders

Governing Experience

  • Indian leaders gained experience in administration, food management, and developmental planning

Realization of Partition Inevitability

  • Administrative paralysis convinced leaders (Patel, Nehru) that unworkable coalition would cause continuous civil strife
  • Paved way for acceptance of Lord Mountbatten's Partition Plan (3rd June 1947)

Constitutional/Legal Provisions

  • Government of India Act, 1919 (as operating framework)
  • Cabinet Mission Plan, 1946 (as political framework)
  • British paramountcy over princely states (lapsed under Cabinet Mission Plan)