Communal Award

The announcement of the Communal Award on August 16, 1932, by British Prime Minister Ramsay MacDonald was a critical event in the final phase of the Civil Disobedience Movement. This decree emerged from the constitutional deadlock that followed the all-British Simon Commission (1927), the rejection of the Nehru Report (1928), and the subsequent failure of the Second Round Table Conference (1931). The Award expanded the system of separate electorates, introducing a significant political crisis within the nationalist movement and altering the focus of India’s freedom struggle.

The Context: From Simon Commission to the London Deadlock

The Constitutional Deadlock

The political momentum began with the appointment of the all-British Simon Commission in November 1927. The exclusion of Indians from this statutory body led to widespread boycotts and prompted the drafting of the Nehru Report (1928), which recommended joint electorates with reservation of seats for minorities. When the British government ignored a one-year ultimatum to grant Dominion Status, the Indian National Congress (INC) convened its historic Lahore Session (December 1929), officially declaring Poorna Swaraj (Complete Independence) and authorizing a nationwide Civil Disobedience Movement.

The Movement and the Round Table Conferences

Following the historic Dandi March (March 12 – April 6, 1930), Mahatma Gandhi launched a campaign of mass civil resistance. To resolve the administrative impasse, the British government organized the Round Table Conferences in London.

• First RTC (1930): Boycotted by the Congress; reached no consensus.
• Gandhi-Irwin Pact (March 1931): The movement was temporarily suspended, and Gandhi was released to attend the next phase of talks.
• Second RTC (September–December 1931): Gandhi attended as the sole official representative of the Congress. The conference ended in a deadlock over the “Minorities Question,” as representatives of various minority groups, including Dr. B.R. Ambedkar (Depressed Classes) and Muslim League leaders, demanded separate electorates. Gandhi fiercely opposed these demands, arguing they would permanently fracture Indian society. He returned to India empty-handed and relaunched the Civil Disobedience Movement in January 1932.

Provisions of the Communal Award (August 16, 1932)

In the absence of an agreed-upon solution among Indian delegates, Ramsay MacDonald announced the British government’s unilateral decision, known as the Communal Award (or the MacDonald Award).

Key Operational Clauses

• Retention of Separate Electorates: The system of separate communal electorates was maintained for Muslims, Sikhs, Indian Christians, Anglo-Indians, and Europeans.
• Extension to the Depressed Classes: Crucially, the Award classified the Depressed Classes (now known as Scheduled Castes) as a distinct minority community, granting them separate electorates for a period of twenty years.
• Dual Voting Right: Under this mechanism, members of the Depressed Classes were given two votes: one to elect their own representatives from separate communal constituencies, and another to vote in the general (caste Hindu) constituencies.
• Weightage and Allocation: Seats in the provincial legislatures were allocated based on communal proportions, with special weightage granted to minorities in certain provinces.

Nationalist Reactions and Gandhi’s Protest

The Congress Dilemma

The Indian National Congress took a neutral stance, announcing that it neither accepted nor rejected the Communal Award, aiming to avoid alienating either caste Hindus or minority communities.

Gandhi’s Ideological Opposition

Mahatma Gandhi, then imprisoned in the Yerwada Central Jail in Poona, strongly opposed the provision extending separate electorates to the Depressed Classes. His opposition was based on specific political and social principles:

• He argued that separate electorates would treat the Depressed Classes as a distinct community outside the Hindu fold, permanently institutionalizing untouchability.
• He believed it would halt internal social reform movements aimed at eradicating untouchability within Hindu society.
• Unlike separate electorates for Muslims or Sikhs, which he viewed as political arrangements between distinct religious groups, he saw this provision as an administrative division within a single religious community.

The Yerwada Fast

On September 20, 1932, Gandhi commenced a “fast unto death” in Yerwada Jail to protest the separate electorates for the Depressed Classes, demanding instead that they be granted reserved seats within a joint electorate framework.

The Poona Pact (September 24, 1931)

Gandhi’s fast created immense political pressure across the country, prompting immediate negotiations between caste Hindu leaders (such as Madan Mohan Malaviya) and representatives of the Depressed Classes, led by Dr. B.R. Ambedkar.

The Agreement

Recognizing the gravity of the situation, Dr. Ambedkar agreed to alter his demands. On September 24, 1932, the Poona Pact was signed by Ambedkar on behalf of the Depressed Classes and by Madan Mohan Malaviya on behalf of caste Hindus, resolving the immediate crisis.

Key Structural Changes Implemented by the Poona Pact

Impact on the Civil Disobedience Movement

Shift in Political Priorities

The signing of the Poona Pact and the campaign against the Communal Award altered the course of the Civil Disobedience Movement. Mahatma Gandhi became increasingly focused on social reform and the eradication of untouchability, shifting attention away from direct political agitation against the colonial state.

The Anti-Untouchability Campaign

In September 1932, Gandhi founded the All India Anti-Untouchability League (later renamed the Harijan Sevak Sangh) and started the weekly publication Harijan in 1933. In November 1933, he commenced a nationwide Harijan Tour, traveling thousands of miles to raise funds and build public opinion against untouchability.

Gradual Suspension and Withdrawal

While Gandhi focused on social reform, the political momentum of the Civil Disobedience Movement gradually declined under heavy government repression by Viceroy Lord Willingdon. The Congress Working Committee officially suspended the mass agitation in July 1933, and the movement was formally withdrawn in May 1934.

Historical Significance

The controversy surrounding the Communal Award and the subsequent Poona Pact carries immense structural importance for the trajectory of modern Indian history:

• Constitutional Blueprint: The system of joint electorates with reserved seats agreed upon in the Poona Pact became the foundation for political safeguards for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, later incorporated into Articles 330 and 332 of the Constitution of India.
• The Legislative Evolution: The communal distributions finalized through this process were incorporated directly into the Government of India Act 1935, which shaped the legislative structure of late colonial India.