Indian Army composition in 1914/1930 by Dr B R Ambedkar

[Guest guest]

Namaskar Mitra,

 

UPA govt asks for details of number of Muslims in the Indian Army. For strategic

reasons the British kept the % of Muslims in the Indian Army at a very high

level. Leaders like Veer Savarkar realized that India could not get freedom

until the % reduced which is why Savarkar kept on asking Hindus to join the

army. I reproduce for you extract from Babasaheb Ambedkar's masterpiece

'Thoughts on Pakistan'. Written in 1941 this chapter gives you % of Muslims in

the Indian Army in 1914/1930, concept of Martial Races, etc. Very Interesting.

See link below or read chapter 6 below.

http://www.esamskriti.com/html/essay_index.asp?cat_name=greatmen&cid=840&sid=11501

with prem sanjeev

 

Weakening

Chapter 6

 

The full title of this chapter is Weakening of Defences. How will the creation

of PAK affect the question of the defence of Hindustan? The question is not a

very urgent one, for there is no immediate reason to suppose that PAK will be

at war with Hindustan immediately after it is brought into being.

‘Friends BRA had not anticipated British tactical support to the Pakis

(read Muslims) in the state of Jammu & Kashmir. The two countries went to war

soon after attaining independence. Please read an article on the site by Claude

Arpi titled ‘Who Created the Kashmir Mess’’.

The questions may be answered under three heads, question of frontiers, question

of resources and question of armed forces.

Question of Frontiers

Hindus would say that PAK leaves it without a scientific frontier. There are two

points, which if taken into account will show that Hindu apprehension is

uncalled for. One it is no use insisting that any particular boundary is the

safest, for the simple reason that geographical conditions are not decisive in

the world today and modern technique has robbed natural frontiers of much of

their former importance. Two it is always possible for nations with no natural

boundaries to make good this defect. Artificial barriers can always be created.

There is no reason to suppose that the Hindus will not be able to accomplish

this. ‘Friends the bombing of Afghanistan by the U.S. proves BRA’s

point’.

Question of Resources

Moreover if resources are adequate there it is always possible to overcome the

difficulties created by an unscientific or a weak frontier.

 

Resources of

Area – sq kms

Population - crs

Revenues Rs crs

1. PAK (N.W.P, Punjab, Sind,Baluchistan, Bengal)

288,988

8.02

60.56

2. Hindustan

607,657

17.85

96.24

After Adjustment revenues would be - PAK

 

 

36

Hindustan

 

 

120

 

These are gross figures, revenues derived by Central Government from railways,

posts etc are not included. Just as some additions will have to be made to

these figures, so certain deductions will need to be made, mostly to

PAK’s account. The whole of Punjab and Bengal will not go to PAK meaning

app 50 % of revenues from these two provinces would go to India, represented by

the adjusted numbers shown above. Creation of PAK will not leave Hindustan in a

weakened condition.

Question of Armed Forces

The defence of a country depends more on its fighting force than on its

scientific frontier or resources. What are the fighting resources available to

PAK and Hindustan? The Simon Commission pointed out a special feature of the

Indian Defence Problem in the sense that there were special areas, which alone

offered recruits to the Indian army. The Commission found this state of affairs

natural to India and in support it cited the following figures recruited from

different Provinces during the Great War.

Sr No

Province

Combat + Non Combat recruits enlisted. ‘000

1.

Madras

92

2.

Bombay, Ajmer-Merwara

80

3.

Bengal & Burma, Bihar & Orissa, Assam

134

4.

Punjab, N.WF.P. Baluchistan

493 - 43%.

5.

United Provinces

281 - 24%.

6.

Central provinces, Nepal

75

 

TOTAL

1155

This data reveals that the fighting forces available for the defence of India

mostly come from the area, which is PAK. Then how can Hindustan defend itself?

The facts brought out by the Commission are beyond question but it cannot be

said that only PAK can produce soldiers and Hindustan cannot. Do only people of

Northwestern India belong to Martial Classes?

 

>From the above data it appears so. But Mr Chaudhari (see his articles on

‘The martial Races of India’ published in the modern Review of

July-September 1930, Jan-Feb 1931) has by his data demonstrated that this far

from true. He shows that the predominance of the men of the Northwest took

place as early as the Mutiny of 1857 some 20 years before the theory of martial

and non-martial classes were projected in a distinct form in 1879. Their

predominance had nothing to do with their alleged fighting qualities but was

due to the fact that they had helped the British suppress the Mutiny in which

the Bengal Army was completely involved. The Mutiny blew up the old Bengal army

and brought into existence a Punjabized and barbarized army resembling the

Indian army of today in broad lines and general propositions of its

composition.

 

The gap created by the revolt of the Hindustani regiments of the Bengal army

were once filled up by the Sikhs and other Punjabis, Hillmen eager for revenge.

Said Gen Mansfield, the Chief of Staff of the Indian Army about the Sikhs

“It is not because they loved us, but because they hated Hindustan and

the Bengal army that Sikhs had flocked to our standard instead of seeking the

opportunity to strike again for their freedom. The services rendered by the

Sikhs and the Gurkhas during the Mutiny were not forgotten and henceforward

Punjab & Nepal had the place of honor in the Indian Army”.

 

As a result of the above people from Northwest India came to be regularly

employed in the army and came to look upon it as an occupation with a security

and a career that was denied to men from the rest of India. This was not the

case with people in the rest of India. It must be noted that occupation becomes

hereditary and that the most difficult for a man to do is to change his

occupation. This distinction between martial and non-martial classes is purely

arbitrary. But apart from this there is enough fighting material in Hindustan.

There are the Sikhs, the Rajputs, Marathas and even the people of Madras as was

observed by Sir General F P Haines a one time Commander-in-Chief in India.

 

Hindustan need have no apprehension regarding the supply of an adequate fighting

force from among its own people. The Simon Commission drew attention to three

features of the Indian army that struck them as special and peculiar to India.

 

One the duty of the Indian army was two fold – one to protect it from

independent tribes on the Indian side of the Afghan border from raiding the

peaceful inhabitants of the plains below, two was to protect India against

invasion by countries lying behind and beyond organized territories. The second

unique feature was the role of the Indian army in maintaining internal piece. It

is a striking fact that while in regular units of the army British soldiers are

app 1 to 2.5 %, in troops allotted for internal security the preponderance is

reversed – the ratio being about 8 British soldiers to 7 Indians.

 

The Third unique feature is the preponderance in it of the men from the

Northwest. This is dealt with above but the Commission ignored an important

feature namely, Communal Composition of the Army. Thanks to Mr Chaudhari, the

following table shows the proportion of soldiers serving in the Indian infantry

–

Changes in the Communal Composition of the Indian Army

Sr

Area & Communities

% in 1914

% in 1930

No

 

 

 

1.

Punjab, NW.F.P & Kashmir

47

58.5

 

Punjabi Muslims & Pathans

17.3

28.95

 

Sikhs

19.2

13.58

2.

Nepal. Kumaon, Garwhal

15

22

3.

Upper India

22

11

 

Hindustani Muslims

4.1

0

4.

South India

16

5.5

5.

Burma

0

3

 

MUSLIMS

24.9

28.95

 

This table shows how the communal composition of the Indian army has been

undergoing a profound change. Change is particularly noticeable after 1919.

‘Friends note that the Khilafat movement and worsening of Hindu Muslim

relations started around 1920’. The figures show a huge rise in the

strength of the Punjabi Muslim and Pathan. The Sikhs are reduced from first to

third place.

Communal Composition of Indian Infantry & Cavalry in 1930

Sr

Communities

% in Infantry excluding Gurkhas

% in Cavalry

1.

Hindus & Sikhs

60.5

61.9

2.

Muslims

35.79

30.08

3.

Burmans

3.66

0

 

 

 

 

‘Friends please pray for Shri Chaudhari’s soul for providing us with

such invaluable data’. After 1930 there is no information available on the

communal composition of the Indian Army. The book has 8 pages of Legislative

Assembly debates 1938 on the subject but the British refuse to provide any

information’. This obstinacy on the part of the Govt of India to provide

this vital point has given rise to all sorts of speculation as to the present

proportion of Muslims in the Indian army, some day it is between 60-70 %.

Obviously it must be high enough to cause alarm to the Hindus.

 

‘Friends I cannot help but recalling words from Veer Savarkar’s

biography by Dhananjay Keer, quote pg 257 “Said in 1940 - Since the days

of the First War of Independence in 1857, it has been the policy of the British

to keep the army out of politics. Our politics must be to carry politics into

the Indian army and once we succeed the battle of freedom would be won. Till

the day of Savarkar’s whirlwind propaganda for Hindu militarization,

military career was the monopoly of the Muslims, who formed three fourths of

the Indian army. The effect of this propaganda was seen everywhere. The Muslim

plans for preponderance was effectively checkmated and brought down and the %

of the Hindus in the army went up as high as seventy”’.

 

‘Friends after the Mutiny of 1857 in order to prevent Hindus, Muslims

Sikhs from uniting it was decided to divide the army on a provincial basis

something that the Indian army follows up to this day.’ This was called

the principle of Class Composition the necessity being not giving too much

strength or prominence to any particular race ore religious group. These

principles have been governing the Indian army policy.

 

This principle so unanimously upheld and so rigorously applied upto the period

of the Great War, should have been thrown to the wind after the Great War, is

really beyond comprehension. What is the reason, which has led the British to

allow so great a preponderance of Muslims in the Indian Army? Two reasons. One

that Muslims proved in the Great War to be better soldiers than Hindus. The

second reason why the British have broken the rule because they wanted to

counter-act the forces of Hindu agitation for wresting political power from the

hands of the British.

 

Whatever be the explanation, 2 things stand out. One that the Indian army is

predominantly Muslim in composition. The other is that Muslims who dominate are

the Muslims from Punjab and N.W.F.P. This implies that these Muslims are made

the sole defenders of Indian from foreign invasion. How much can the Hindus

depend on the Muslim army? Suppose Russia invades it may be hoped that these

gatekeepers of India would be loyal to her. But suppose the invaders are

Afghans singly or in combination with other states, will these gatekeepers stop

the invader. This is a question no Hindu can afford to ignore. A Hindu must be

satisfied that this army will behave when British control is withdrawn.

 

Reality Check - Only the so-called Indian nationalists

will say yes to such an army defending the Hindus against an attack from

Afghanistan. The realist must take note of the fact that the Muslims look upon

as Hindus as kafirs, who deserve to be exterminated than protected. The realist

must also note that of all the Muslims, the Muslim of the northwest is the most

disaffected Muslim, in his relation with the Hindus. The realist must note that

the Punjabi Muslim is fully susceptible to the propaganda in favor of

pan-Islamism. It must be recalled that in 1919 the Indian Muslims who were

carrying on the Khilafat Movement actually went to the length of inviting the

Amir of Afghanistan to invade India is something that the Hindus might not have

forgotten.

 

Question – Will the Indian govt be free to use this army,

whatever its loyalties against the Afghans? The stand of the Muslim league is

to the effect that the Indian army shall not be used against Muslim provinces.

The principle was enunciated by the Khilafat Committee long before the League.

 

The Hindus will find themselves between the devil and deep sea so far as the

defence of India is considered, if India remains as one whole. Having an army,

that will not be free to use because the League objects. If you use it, its

loyalty is doubtful. If the army continues to be dominated by the Muslims of

Punjab & N.W.F.P. the Hindus will have to pay them but will not be able to use

them.

 

In this difficulty, what must the Hindus do? Is it in their interest to insist

that Muslim India should remain part of India so that they have a safe border

or is it better to welcome its separation from India so that they may have a

safe army? The Muslims of this area are hostile to Hindus. Should these Muslims

be without and against or should they be within and against. If the question is

asked to any prudent man there will be only one answer, namely let the Muslims

of north India separate i.e. PAK. That is the only way of getting rid of the

Muslim preponderance in the Indian army. This can be brought about by the

creation of PAK.

 

The Hindus do not seem to realize at what disadvantage they are placed from the

point of view of their defence by their exclusion from the army. Much less do

they know that they are in fact purchasing this disadvantage at a very heavy

price?

 

The PAK area which is the main recruiting ground of the present Indian army

contributes very little to the Indian exchequer.

Revenue Contribution to Exchequer – Pakistan area and Hindustan

Sr

Province

Rs crs

No

 

 

 

Pakistan Area

7.13

1.

Punjab, N.W.F.P. & Baluchistan

1.27

2.

Sind

5.86

 

Hindustan

51.91

1.

Bombay

22.53

2.

Madras

9.53

3.

Bengal (only ½ revenue shown based on population)

12.00

4.

Others

7.85

 

The PAK provinces contribute very little in fact it is the money contributed by

the provinces of Hindustan that enables the Govt of India to carry out its

activities in the PAK provinces. ‘Friends just like the Kashmir Valley of

today which contributes negligible revenue to the State’s coffers but

accounts for bulk of expenditure and whose aggressive people demand public

services without contributing/paying for it. So also the Pak provinces

contributed negliblely to the Indian exchequer but took a large part of all

India revenues. Coincidence! What’s common between them?’

 

NOTE - As pointed out above the revenue of the Central govt was Rs

121 crs of which Rs 52 crs was spent on the army. In what area is the bulk of

this money spent? Indian army where most of the population are Muslims from the

Pakistani area. Now the bulk of this Rs 52 crs is contributed by Hindu provinces

and is spent on an army from which the Hindus are excluded. How can the Hindus

avoid this tragedy and whether they will allow this to continue? If they have

to put an end to it the surest way is to allow the scheme of PAK to take

effect. A safe army is better than a safe border. ‘Friends even today

contributions from most Hindu temples go to the state treasurery but the amount

spent on temple upkeep is negligible. The same govt, however, spends crores of

rupees on funding Madrassas and Mosques so in effect Hindus are funding

madrassas since the contribution from these institutions is negligible. Has

anything changed!