Evening star., 1939-10-09
BY LELAND STOWE,

Chicago Daily News Foreign Correspondent.
LONDON, Oct. 9.-The British
government is confronted today
with an imperative problem which
will have the most profound in
f1uence upon Anglo-French prosecu-
ton of the war and may prove
vital factor in winning eventual al
lies for the Western powers or, al
Tentatively, may seriously dampen
the sympathies of American and
other neutral publics. This prob
lem is whether India will be given
such measure or self-rule that her
300,000000 people will support
Great Britain Fundamentally in its
fight to crush Nazi imperialism.
This fateful question has been
posed by the All-India Congress
Committee, and its 600 delegates are
meeting in India today to insist
upon a clear-cut, unequivocal an
swer from Prime Minister Neville
C!lamberlain's wartime cabinet. If
the members of the All-India Con-
gresS fail to obtain from London
what they regard as recognition of
the absolute minimum of their de-
mands, Britain will be threatened
with the necessity of prosecuting the
war without the support of India's
powerful leaders. She may risk the
development of a new mass move
ment for Indian independence at a
moment when tranquility and unity
inside the empire are of the utmost
Importance to her victory over Hit
lerism.
Position Clearly Stated.
The All-India Congress Commit
tee has stated its position with
sharp realism in its recent declara-
ton which invites the British
government to declare unequivocally
their war aims regarding democ-
racy and imperialism and the es-
tablishment of a new world or ier,
and how these aims will be applied
to India now, and whether they in
clude the elimination of imperialism
and the treatment of India as
free nation whose policy is guided
by her own people" This document
also insists that india is the crux
OF the problem, as she is an out
standing example of modern i'm
perialism."
Thus, Mahatma Gandhi and his
followers have raised the funda-
mental problem of what Britain's
war aims are going to be and upon
what moral basis Britain will ap-
peal to the sympathies of civilized
nations throughout the world. The
New Statesman and Nation de-
scribes this as a logical challenge
and says: IF Britain fights for
democracy, then she must neces-
sarily end imperialism and estab-
lish full democracy in India"
Dominion Status Urged.
Meanwhile, Indians who are in
London declare that a full donlin-
ion status for India is the very least
that can satisfy India's masses and
win their aid for Britain during
the war.
The text of the All-India Con-
gress Committees significant decla-
ration has not yet been published
in the British press and, in fact,
the Congress Committees meeting
today is scarcely mentioned in Lon
don dailies-although this event is
of supreme interest to the British
commonwealth of nations.
This mornings News Chronicle Is
unique In calling attention to the
great issue at stake in India. It
publishes a very revealing article
by Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, chair
man of the ALI India Congress War
Emergency Committee, who is the
mightiest popular leader in India,
next to Gandhi himself. Nehru's
declarations authoritatively reflect
the sentiments which now animate
the 600 congress delegates meeting
today. Among other things he says:
IF this war is for democracy and
self determination and against NaN
aggression, 1t cannot be for annexa-
tions, indemnities or reparations,
for keeping colonial peoples in sub
lection and for maintaining the
imperialist system. - India can
take no part In defending impe-