Evening star., 1942-08-06
Gandhi' 5 Arrest Seen
Il Disobedience
Support Is Voted
Congress Committee
Is Expected to Back
Move Tomorrow
BY BLAIR BOLLES.


BY BLAIR BOLLEs.
The American Government Is
standing on the sidelines, trusting
the crisis in India, which will reach
Its peak tomorrow when the ALL
India Congress Committee debates
the launching Of civil disobedience
satyagraha campaign, will fizzle out
harmlessly before our soldiers in
India are endangered and before
the whole outlook for the course
Of war in Asia is violently charged.
High diplomatic speculation in
Washington Is that Mohandas
Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru and
other congress leaders will be ar
rested Immediately on charges of
interfering with India's carrying
out the war II the civil disebedience
resolution adopted July "A by the
Congress Party Working Commit
tee Of Is members is adopted by the
Congress Committee Of 80 members.
Unanimous adoption is expected.
British sources here disclosed this
morning tho texts of some hitherto
unpublished remarks made by COM
mittee members at the May meet
ing Of the Congress Working Com
mittee which reflect the American
involvment In the Indian problem.
'1mperialistic" War.
Commenting on the draft pro-
posed by GAndhi for an independ-
ence-now resolution, Achut Pat
wardhar said:
"I doubt II America Is progress
sive force. The existence Of an
American army In India is not
tact which improves our situation.
The war is an imperialist war. Our
policy can be that we can take no
kides."
Biswanath Das said:
'The protest against the intro
duction Of American soldiers IN the
country is proper. They have
brought in troops from the Domin-
Ions and other nations. This is
highly Objectionable and danger
ous."
The United States Government
took . direct hand in the Indian
problem last March during the mis-
sion of Sir Stafford Cripps and
afterwArd, by sending Col. Louis
johnson to India as President Roose-
velt's personal representative and
then by sending Henry Grady there
as head of an economic mission.
Since March the problem has in
creased in intensity, until now 1t is
ct the boiling point.
With the japanese Army at the
Burmese Mountain gates to India,
presumably ready to take advantage
Of an Indian civil disturbance by
invasion, the Japanese-controlled
radio has been extolling Gandhi
Is the man who 'is saving India
from the catastrope Of war" ac-
cordine to transcripts Of short-wave
programs available from British
sources here. With tomorrow IN
mind, the Toxic radio recently COM
mented:
"An the Indian people who have
% long endured British plunder,
exploitation and oppression will un-
douhAedly adopt the congress resolu-
tion when they meet August T."
The quarrel which Is being pressed
now In India by the leaders Of the
All-India Congress party Is not
over IndiA'S right to SELF govern
ment. but over what is practical
and effective for tho interim period
until the war i won and = new
constitution can be framed by In
dianS. The precise attitude OF
dandhi has been made difncult OF
ascertaining by the disclosure yes
terday that at the May meeting
Of the Working Committee he
pressed vainly for adoption OF q
draft containing the words, IT In
dia were freed, her first step would
probably be to negotiate with
Japan"
See Disobedience Failure.
Seasoned observers here expect
that an appeal by the All-India
Congress Committee for genera
civil disobedience would fail, al
though they expect, too, that II
would disturb the internal peace Of
India for . brief period At least
and thus divert Indian energy IRON
Indias defense.
The reason advanced for the ex'
pectation Of failure are that oppo'
sition to the party leaders exists
within the congress: that the con
gress is opposed by 0O,000,0 900 In
dams living in the Indian states
90 O00, 900 Mohammedans, $4,000 ,0O
untouchables and 5000 sikhs; tina
the favorable monsoon has pro-
duced good crops and the 1ndiar
farmers, who compose 30 per cen
of the population, are interested
now in harvest first and politics
afterward; that the workers in In
dustry are getting higher ant
steadier wages than ever In thei
lives and that the industrial EN-
ployers are experiencing a wa
boom.
The July Il resolution, which
up for action tomorrow before tn
Au-India Congress Committe
urges the withdrawal Of Britisl
power from India at once. tn
final two Of its 1s paragraphs de
clare that II Great Britain hold
firm to its determination to renal
. power in India for the duration
then:
Congress will reluctantly be com
pelled to utilize all the non-violer
strength it has gathered since 1872
when 1t adopted non-violence q
part Of It's policy Of vindication {
its political rights and libertie
s,,eh a widespread struggle woul