First , Second and Third Round Table Conferences             

First, Second and Third Round Table Conferences held between 1930 and 1932, stand as pivotal events in the historical journey of British India towards self-governance. These conferences were a series of three meetings in London, where British and Indian leaders convened to discuss constitutional reforms in India. In this article, you will learn about all three Round Table Conferences, their background, outcomes, impact, etc.

This article will provide key insights for GS Paper-I Indian History of UPSC IAS Exam.

Table of Content

• Background of Round Table Conference
• First Round Table Conference
• Indian Representatives at the First Round Table Conference
• Outcomes of First Round Table Conference
• Background of the Second Round Table Conference
• Second Round Table Conference
• Significant changes during the Second Round Table Conference
• Outcomes of Second Round Table Conference
• Third Round Table Conference
• Outcomes of Third Round Table Conference
• Conclusion          
• Frequently Asked Questions         
• Reference           

Background of Round Table Conference:

• Both the Viceroy of India, Lord Irwin, and the British Prime Minister, Ramsay MacDonald, had found mutual consensus in the necessity of convening a round table conference.
• This resolution had stemmed from their shared acknowledgment that the suggestions put forth by the Simon Commission report were insufficient.

First Round Table Conference:

• The inaugural Round Table Conference had spanned from November 1930 to January 1931 in London.
• It was officially inaugurated by King George V on November 12, 1930, and presided over by the Ramsay MacDonald.
• The conference marked the instance where the British and Indian representatives had convened on equal bases.
• Certain factions, including the Congress and notable business leaders had abstained from attendance
• Many Indian groups were represented at this assembly.

Indian Representatives at the First Round Table Conference:

• The Indian princely states was advocated by dignitaries like the Maharaja of Alwar, Maharaja of Baroda, Nawab of Bhopal, Maharaja of Bikaner, Rana of Dholpur, Maharaja of Jammu and Kashmir, Maharaja of Nawanagar, Maharaja of Patiala (as Chancellor of the Chamber of Princes), Maharaja of Rewa, Chief Sahib of Sangli, Sir Prabhashankar Pattani (Bhavnagar), Manubhai Mehta (Baroda), Sardar Sahibzada Sultan Ahmed Khan (Gwalior), Akbar Hydari (Hyderabad), Mirza Ismail (Mysore), and Col. Kailas Narain Haksar (Jammu and Kashmir).
• The Muslim League was represented by Aga Khan III (leader of the British-Indian delegation), Maulana Mohammad Ali Jauhar, Muhammad Shafi, Muhammad Ali Jinnah, Muhammad Zafarullah Khan, A.K. Fazlul Huq, Hafiz Ghulam Hussain Hidayat Ullah, Dr. Shafa’at Ahmad Khan, Raja Sher Muhammad Khan of Domeli, and A.H. Ghuznavi.
• The Hindu Mahasabha was represented by B.S. Moonje, M.R. Jayakar, and Diwan Bahadur Raja Narendra Nath.
• The Sikh community were represented by Sardar Ujjal Singh and Sardar Sampuran Singh.
• The Parsi community were represented by Phiroze Sethna, Cowasji Jehangir, and Homi Mody.
• Women’s interests were upheld by Begum Jahanara Shahnawaz and Radhabai Subbarayan.
• The Liberals were represented by J.N. Basu, Tej Bahadur Sapru, C.Y. Chintamani, V.S. Srinivasa Sastri, and Chimanlal Harilal Setalvad.
• The Depressed Classes were represented by B.R. Ambedkar and Rettamalai Srinivasan.
• The Justice Party’s was represented by Arcot Ramasamy Mudaliar, Bhaskarrao Vithojirao Jadhav, and Sir A.P. Patro.
• The Labor representation was upheld by N.M. Joshi and B. Shiva Rao.
• Indian Christians were represented by K.T. Paul.
• Henry Gidney represented the Anglo-Indians
• The European presence were upheld by Sir Hubert Carr, Sir Oscar de Glanville (Burma), T.F. Gavin Jones, and C.E. Wood (Madras).
• The landlords of Bihar, the United Provinces, and Orissa, university delegates, individuals from Burma, Sindh, and other provinces were also present at the conference.
• The Government of India’s representation consisted of Narendra Nath Law, Bhupendra Nath Mitra, C.P. Ramaswami Iyer, and M. Ramachandra Rao.

Outcomes of First Round Table Conference:

• In terms of outcomes, the conference did not yield substantial progress.
• A consensus had emerged regarding India’s progression towards a federation, accompanied by safeguards for defense and finance, and the prospect of transferring other departments.
  • But the actual implementation of these recommendations was limited, with civil disobedience still persisting in India.
• The British government had recognized the importance of the Indian National Congress’ participation in any discourse concerning the future trajectory of constitutional governance in India.

Background of the Second Round Table Conference:

• Members of the Indian Liberal Party such as Tej Bahadur Sapru, C.Y. Chintamani, and Srinivasa Sastri had appealed to Gandhi to engage in discussions with the Viceroy.
• Eventually, Gandhi and Irwin had reached a consensus known as the Gandhi-Irwin Pact, or the Delhi Pact.

Second Round Table Conference:

• The second Round Table Conference was convened in London from September 7, 1931, to December 1, 1931.
• Gandhi was designated as the sole representative of the Indian National Congress
• The A. Rangaswami Iyengar and Madan Mohan Malaviya had also participated.
• Participation in the conference was diverse as it included significant number of Indian representatives beyond the Congress.
• The delegates of princely states included Maharaja of Alwar, Maharaja of Baroda, Nawab of Bhopal, Maharaja of Bikaner, Maharao of Kutch, Rana of Dholpur, Maharaja of Indore, Maharaja of Jammu and Kashmir, Maharaja of Kapurthala, Maharaja of Nawanagar, Maharaja of Patiala, Maharaja of Rewa, Chief Sahib of Sangli, Raja of Sarila, Sir Prabhashankar Pattani (Bhavnagar), Manubhai Mehta (Baroda), Sardar Sahibzada Sultan Ahmed Khan (Gwalior), Sir Muhammad Akbar Hydari (Hyderabad), Mirza Ismail (Mysore), Col. K.N. Haksar (Jammu and Kashmir), T. Raghavaiah (Travancore), Liaqat Hayat Khan (Patiala).
• The Muslims were represented by Aga Khan III, Maulana Shaukat Ali, Muhammad Ali Jinnah, A.K. Fazlul Huq, Muhammad Iqbal, Muhammad Shafi, Muhammad Zafarullah Khan, Syed Ali Imam, Maulvi Muhammad Shafi Daudi, Raja Sher Muhammad Khan of Domeli, A.H. Ghuznavi, Hafiz Hidayat Hussain, Sayed Muhammad Padshah Saheb Bahadur, Dr. Shafa’at Ahmad Khan, Jamal Muhammad, and Nawab Sahibzada Sayed Muhammad Mehr Shah.
• The Hindu groups were represented by M.R. Jayakar, B.S. Moonje, and Diwan Bahadur Raja Narendra Nath.
• The Liberals were represented by J.N. Basu, C.Y. Chintamani, Tej Bahadur Sapru, V.S. Srinivasa Sastri, and Chimanlal Harilal Setalvad.
• The Justice Party had sent Raja of Bobbili, Arcot Ramasamy Mudaliar, Sir A.P. Patro, and Bhaskarrao Vithojirao Jadhav.
• The Depressed Classes were represented by B.R. Ambedkar and Rettamalai Srinivasan. Sikh interests were championed by Sardar Ujjal Singh and Sardar Sampuran Singh.
• The Parsis community were represented by Cowasji Jehangir, Homi Mody, and Phiroze Sethna. Indian Christians were voiced by Surendra Kumar Datta and A.T. Pannirselvam.
• The Industrialists were represented by notable figures such as Ghanshyam Das Birla, Sir Purshottamdas Thakurdas, and Maneckji Dadabhoy.
• The Labor’s were represented by N. M. Joshi, B. Shiva Rao, and V. V. Giri.
• Women’s representation was led by Sarojini Naidu, Begum Jahanara Shahnawaz, and Radhabai Subbarayan.
• Universities were represented by Syed Sultan Ahmed and Bisheshwar Dayal Seth.
• Attendees further included representatives from Burma and the provinces of Sindh, Assam, Central Provinces, and the NWFP.
• The Government of India was embodied by C.P. Ramaswami Iyer, Narendra Nath Law, and M. Ramachandra Rao.

Significant changes during the Second Round Table Conference:

• During the Second Round Table Conference, Lord Irwin was succeeded by Lord Willingdon as the Viceroy of India.
• Before the commencement of the conference, England’s Labour government was replaced by a National Government, an amalgamation of both Labour and Conservative parties of U.K.
• The British authorities were irked by the escalating revolutionary activities in India, which had resulted in the loss of numerous European lives.
• In Britain, the Right Wing or Conservatives, led by WinstonChurchill had vehemently opposed the British government’s engagement in equitable negotiations with the Congress.
  • Instead, they advocated for a robust administration in India.
• The Prime Minister, Ramsay MacDonald had headed the cabinet dominated by the Conservative faction, accompanied with a feeble Secretary of State for India, Samuel Hoare.
• During the conference, Gandhi claimed to represent the entirety of India’spopulace in opposition to imperialism.
  • However, the remaining delegates did not share this perspective.
• Many delegates were conservatist, loyalist to the government, and communalist.
  • The colonial authorities had strategically employed these factions to counterbalance Gandhi’s efforts.
• Multiple groups led the British government to argue that the Congress did not effectively represent the comprehensive interests of India.
• Gandhi had emphasized the necessity for a partnership between Britain and India, based on the principles of parity.

Gandhi’s representation:

• He advocated for the immediate establishment of responsible governance both at the center and in the provinces.
• Gandhi reiterated that the Congress alone embodied the political essence of India.
• He dismissed the notion of a separate electorate for the untouchables by asserting their Hindu identity.
• He also negated the requirement for distinct electorates or special safeguards for Muslims or other minorities.
• However, many other delegates held contrasting viewpoints from Gandhi’s stance.
• This made session to get entangled in the issue of minority representation.
• Various groups, including Muslims, depressed classes, Christians, and Anglo-Indians, were advocating for separate electorates.
  • This culminated in a ‘Minorities Pact’ uniting these factions.
• Gandhi had contested this collective endeavour that had predicated all constitutional advancements on the resolution of this matter.
• The princely states had also exhibited a lack of enthusiasm towards a federation, particularly after the prospects of a Congress-led central government were demonstrated following the suspension of the civil disobedience movement.

Outcomes of Second Round Table Conference:

• Due to various reasons, not much optimistic anticipation surrounded the conference’s outcomes.
• Due to the absence of consensus among the numerous groups of delegates, the conference failed to yield significant outcomes concerning India’s constitutional trajectory.
• The conclusion of the session was marked by MacDonald’s declaration with key points such as:
  • Establishment of two Muslim-majority provinces—North-West Frontier Province (NWFP) and Sindh.
  • Initiation of an Indian Consultative Committee;
  • Creation of three expert committees focusing on finance, franchise, and states;
  • Anticipation of a unilateral British Communal Award in the event of Indian consensus not being achieved
• The government refused to grant the fundamental needs of Indian- independence.
• Subsequently, Gandhi returned to India on December 28, 1931.
• On the failure of the second Round Table Conference, the Congress Working Committee decided on December 29, 1931 to resume the civil disobedience movement.

Third Round Table Conference:

• The third Round Table Conference was convened from November 17, 1932, to December 24, 1932.
• It had witnessed the absence of the Indian National Congress and Gandhi, and it was also disregarded by many other prominent Indian leaders.
• The Indian States were represented by the included Akbar Hydari (Dewan of Hyderabad), Mirza Ismail (Dewan of Mysore), V.T. Krishnamachari (Dewan of Baroda), Wajahat Hussain (Jammu and Kashmir), Sir Sukhdeo Prasad (Udaipur, Jaipur, Jodhpur), J.A. Surve (Kolhapur), Raja Oudh Narain Bisarya (Bhopal), Manubhai Mehta (Bikaner), Nawab Liaqat Hayat Khan (Patiala), Fateh Naseeb Khan (Alwar State), L.F. Rushbrook Williams (Nawanagar), and Raja of Sarila (small states).
• Other Indian representatives were Aga Khan III, B.R. Ambedkar, Ramakrishna Ranga Rao of Bobbili, Sir Hubert Carr, Nanak Chand Pandit, A.H. Ghuznavi, Henry Gidney, Hafiz Hidayat Hussain, Muhammad Iqbal, M.R. Jayakar, Cowasji Jehangir, N.M. Joshi, Narasimha Chintaman Kelkar, Arcot Ramasamy Mudaliar, Begum Jahanara Shahnawaz, A.P. Patro, Tej Bahadur Sapru, Dr. Shafa’at Ahmad Khan, Sir Shadi Lal, Tara Singh Malhotra, Sir Nripendra Nath Sircar, and Muhammad Zafarullah Khan.

Outcomes of Third Round Table Conference:

• Similar to the preceding two conferences, the third conference yielded limited outcomes.
• The recommendations were compiled into a White Paper published in March 1933, which was subsequently debated in the British Parliament.
• A Joint Select Committee was established to scrutinize these recommendations and create a new Act for India.
• This committee presented a draft Bill in February 1935, which was subsequently enacted as the Government of India Act of 1935 in July 1935.

Conclusion

The Round Table Conferences, held between 1930 and 1932, were pivotal in shaping the future political landscape of India. These conferences were significant as they marked the first formal negotiations between the British and Indian leaders on the future governance of India. Despite the absence of the Congress party in the first conference, the dialogues facilitated the recognition of India’s political aspirations on a global stage.

The three conferences collectively highlighted the complexities of Indian societal divisions and the challenge of forming a consensus among diverse Indian opinions. The primary achievement of these conferences was the Government of India Act 1935, which introduced provincial autonomy and a federal structure as a step towards self-governance, though it was not fully satisfactory to all parties involved.

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