INDIAN PROBLEM

Rotorua Morning Post, Volume 1, Issue 88, 4 December 1931, Page 5

INDIAN PROBLEM

(British. Official Wireless)

DEBATE IN COMMONS PRIME MINISTER SEEKS » ENDORSEMENT OF POLICY IMPORTANCE OF SUCCESS

* BUGBY, Wed. A debate in the,, House of Commons on the motion approving of a declaration of the Government's Indian policy was begun this afternoon in a crowded House and it will he continued to-morrow. . The motion was submitted by the Prime Minister who said his statement on Tuesday had the full assent of the Cabinet. He observed that none who had sat round the tahle at the conf erence could doubt that politieal capa'city in India was solid and widespread, and had enormously increased in recent years. The value of the conference had been that it had enabled them hetter to understand what was the Indian "mind" and what was the big problems ih translating that "mind" into a working constitution. • The next stage obviously was to submit the outstanding • questions to a detailed constructive examination and they accordingly were being referred to seyeral committees working in India. There wefe certain points the, conference desired to he specially studied, including the questions of franchise and safeguards. Alluding to the communal question, Mr. MacDonald said the Government took the view that it would. not be justified in allowing failure to agree on this point to stand in the way of putting into operation a constitution, which otherwise had a rough general agreement. He wanted to impress the House that this convietion- without re, servation, was that the work so far accomplished could never have bee'n done except by the method of cooperative consultation, and if they tried to change that method it would destroy the chances of continuing the agreement and co-operation with In- j dia herself; but if they succeeded it ! would be one of Great Britain's great- | est contributions to democratic insti- j tutions and human liberty. The Prime Minister criticised an ; amendment standing in the name of Mr. Winston Churchill and four other members and made an appeal, which later was repeated by Lord Winterton, for its withdrawal.