EARLY CONCLUSION

Wairarapa Times-Age, 6 April 1942, Page 3

EARLY CONCLUSION

EXPECTED IN DISCUSSION WITH INDIA ANNOUNCEMENT TOMORROW. PROMISED BY SIR STAFFORD CRIPPS. LONDON, April 5. The final outcome of Sir Stafford Cripps’s mission to India is expected to become known on Tuesday. Sir Stafford Cripps lias called a Press conference for that day hi order to give an outline of what he proposes to do. By that time he expects to have the British War Cabinet’s reply to the Congress resolution submitted to it. The Working Committee of Congress was in session for two hours today and is meeting again tomorrow. The committee passed a resolution once again defining its attitude to the war.

CHINESE REPORT

MEDIATION BY PRESIDENT SOUGHT. REPORTED LETTER TO INDIAN LEADER. (By Telegraph—Press Association— Copyright) LONDON, April 4. The Chungking correspondent of the United Press of America says that President Roosevelt is being asked to mediate in an effort to prevent the collapse of the Indian negotiations. In Washington today a White. House spokesman cryptically disclosed that Colonel Louis Johnson, Mr Roosevelt’s personal Minister to India, who yesterday arrived in New Delhi, “carried a personal letter from the Roosevelts to an Indian leader.” The spokesman refused to disclose' the name of the leader or the contents of the letter.

A message from New Delhi says that the Congress Working Committee has issued a statement saying that it is unable to advise the country to accept Sir Stafford Cripps’s proposals. The president of the Moslem League, Mr Jinnah, said: “There may be shortcomings in the British declaration on India, but it is our firm determination that the only goal is Pakistan (the creation of an independent Moslem State or States). It is not a question of their giving it; we will take it. The Moslem League is now an' organisation not of hundreds of thousands but of millions.” A memorandum which the leader of the Indian Liberal movement, Sir Tej Bahadur Sapru, has presented to Sir Stafford Cripps, strongly urges the inclusion of an Indian defence member on the Executive Council, “because otherwise the British declaration will fail to achieve its object.” The memorandum says it should not be difficult to definite the sphere of the defence member and the Commander-in-Chief in order to avoid conflict while securing close co-operation and co-ordina-tion between them.

The meeting of the president of the Congress Party, Maulana Azad, and the Congress leader, Pandit Nehru, with the Commander-in-Chief, General Wavell, took place this evening in New Delhi. Sir Stafford Cripps attended. Sir Stafford today saw Colonel Johnson and various Indian leaders.