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PM Modi’s remarks, which accused the Congress of supporting a plan that could have sent Assam to the erstwhile East Pakistan, referred to the Cabinet Mission’s grouping proposal of 1946.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi. (PTI)
Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s comments in Guwahati on December 20 have brought a little-remembered chapter of pre-independence history back into public debate. PM Modi said that during India’s independence, there was a concrete plan under which Assam could be merged with Bengal and later included in East Pakistan.
According to him, this would “erase the identity” of the region, and the Congress leadership was willing to accept such an arrangement until the first Chief Minister of Assam, Gopinath Bordoloi, “stood with his own party” to oppose it.
PM Modi said, “Congress had conspired to erase the identity of this place even before independence. When the Muslim League and the British powers were united and preparing the ground to divide India, at that time there was a plan to make Assam a part of East Pakistan. Congress was also going to be a part of that conspiracy. Then Bordoloi ji stood against his own party. He opposed this step of erasing the identity of Assam and saved Assam from being separated from the country.”
PM Modi’s comments resurfaced a question that is rarely discussed: what exactly was the plan, why was Assam in danger of being annexed by Bengal, which was annexed by Pakistan in 1946, and how did India’s central leadership react when the proposal came forward?
The answer lies in the Cabinet Mission Plan, which was the last major British attempt to keep India united through a complex federal structure. Its “grouping” formula placed Assam in “Group C” with Bengal and created deep concerns about its political future in the province.
This concern was further intensified by years of demographic change, the Muslim League’s interest in absorbing Assam into the eastern part of Pakistan, and internal tensions within the Congress over how to respond. Bordoloi felt that the grouping proposal posed a real threat to the distinct cultural and political identity of Assam, and he began a quiet but determined resistance campaign.
As the internal debate within the Congress intensified, Mahatma Gandhi eventually clearly supported him. Jawaharlal Nehru’s position evolved over several stages, but in his correspondence and public statements of 1946 he made it clear that Assam could not be included in any grouping against its will.
The result was a complex episode that sits at the intersection of constitutional design, provincial concern and national-level strategy.
To understand the full picture, it is important to revisit what the Cabinet Mission proposed, why Assam objected so strongly and what Gandhi and Nehru said at the time.
What was the Cabinet Mission Plan of 1946?
In early 1946, with the end of World War II and the change of government in London under Clement Attlee, Britain’s withdrawal from India appeared imminent. To negotiate the terms of independence and prepare a constitutional framework, the Cabinet Mission consisting of Lord Pethick-Lawrence, Sir Stafford Cripps and AV Alexander arrived in India on 24 March 1946.
The Mission proposed a three-tier constitutional structure: a federal union at the top, autonomous provinces at the base, and an intermediate tier of provincial groups. The provinces were organized into three groups – the North-Western Muslim-majority provinces; Eastern Province comprising Bengal and Assam; And rest of India. This second group was the source of Assam’s objections.
Although Congress did not agree on every detail, it accepted the basic federal approach as a means of keeping India united. The Muslim League also accepted this plan. But for Assam Congress leaders, the grouping arrangement raised red flags, as it appeared to link Assam’s future to the political direction of Bengal.
Why was Assam placed with Bengal and why did it object?
The Cabinet Mission’s decision to combine Assam with Bengal had its origins in a note by Pethick-Lawrence in February 1946 on the feasibility of Pakistan, where he argued that Assam should be part of East Pakistan on economic, defense and financial grounds. When the Mission finally proposed grouping in May 1946, it was seen by the Assam Congress leaders as a compromise made with the Muslim League.
The Assam Congress feared an impact on the demographic and political weight of Bengal. The Assam Provincial Congress Committee therefore rejected the group outright, arguing that it would leave the province at the mercy of the Muslim-majority region and potentially compromise its identity.
Bordoloi, the then head of the Assam government, believed that if Assam was tied to Bengal, the cultural and linguistic uniqueness of Assam would be erased. He concluded that the plan risked turning the province into a bargaining chip, a position that was aligned with growing concerns about British objectives and the Muslim League’s long-standing objective of absorbing Assam into something it envisioned as Pakistan.
What did Gandhi say to the Assam Congress leadership?
Before adopting a definite stance, Bordoloi sought Gandhiji’s guidance. He sent two senior Assam Congress leaders – Bijaychandra Bhagwati and Mahendra Mohan Choudhary to consult him.
The Collected Works of Mahatma Gandhi, as published in Harijan Under the heading ‘Gandhiji’s advice to Assam’ on 29 December 1946, Gandhi’s candid response is described. He asked the leaders to completely reject the grouping plan and, if necessary, to withdraw from the Constituent Assembly.
Gandhi said, “If you do not act now and rightly, Assam will be finished. Tell Bardoloi, I do not feel the slightest uneasiness. I have made up my mind. Assam must not lose its spirit. It must persist against the whole world. Otherwise I would say that in Assam there were only rubies and no men. It is an arrogant suggestion that Bengal should dominate Assam by any means… Tell the people even if Gandhiji tries to dissuade us, We will not listen.”
The strong support was significant for the Assam Congress, which felt isolated within the broader party on this question. Gandhi’s words strengthened Bordoloi’s determination to oppose any arrangement that would force Assam to join the group.
How did Nehru view the plan and the opposition in Assam?
Nehru’s position was determined based on his reading of British strategy. He believed that the Cabinet Mission Plan was designed to avoid putting Muhammad Ali Jinnah into an “impossible corner”, and he was wary of appearing harsh during negotiations.
Yet Nehru was clear that Assam should not be forced to join any group. In a letter to Bordoloi dated 22 July 1946, he wrote, “I think it was right and proper to decide against the group.” On 23 September 1946 he reiterated, “But under no circumstances will we agree that a province like Assam should be forced to do anything against its will.” Both the letters are part of the Nehru Archives.
In an interview with him in April 1946 BBCNehru also pointed out that Assam was “categorically opposed to Pakistan” and even named Assam among them, as per the Muslim League’s argument for self-determination, that “four important areas… cannot become part of Pakistan”.
Nehru’s most famous intervention came at a Bombay press conference on 10 July 1946, where he said, “It is very likely that Assam will decide against grouping with Bengal… I can say with full assurance and conviction that ultimately, there will be no grouping, because Assam will not tolerate it under any circumstances.” The comment was widely interpreted as a signal by the Congress to distance itself from the Cabinet Mission framework.
Political stakes for Assam in 1946
Assam’s concerns were not unfounded. The 1930s saw sustained efforts by the Muslim League to increase its influence in the province. Leaders such as Syed Saadullah advanced the argument that Assam and Bengal were indivisible, and that demographic changes resulting from migration from Bengal raised concerns.
The mission’s grouping proposal therefore created apprehensions that Assam would be incorporated into a political arrangement that might later justify its accession to Pakistan. For the Assam Congress, the risks were deeper: losing political autonomy, facing demographic pressures and being subsumed into larger Bengali-dominated structures.
Bordoloi’s stance was further complicated by his uneasy relationship with the Congress Working Committee, which disagreed with his staunch opposition to the group. Some Assam Congress leaders believed that the central leadership underestimated the results for the province. Bordoloi’s persistence and Gandhiji’s steadfast support ultimately ensured that the Assam group continued to oppose the system.
How these events shaped the outcome
Even though Sylhet joined Pakistan as a result of the Sylhet referendum, Bordoloi’s political maneuvering ensured that Assam’s overall status within India remained intact. His advocacy, rooted in cultural identity, demographic concerns and constitutional safeguards, helped prevent Assam from joining a group whose future trajectory could have linked it with Pakistan.
The positions adopted by Gandhi and Nehru further strengthened Assam’s ability to oppose the plan. Gandhi’s direct guidance encouraged the Assam Congress to reject this grouping, while Nehru’s repeated assurances ensured that Assam would not be forced into a structure it opposed.
Why have PM Modi’s comments revived this debate?
PM Modi’s claim that “Congress would have allowed Assam to accede to East Pakistan” stems from this controversial phase of 1946, when the group system of the Cabinet Mission Plan created a fear of Assam being absorbed into East Pakistan.
His comments highlight Bordoloi’s role in opposing the plan and Gandhi’s clear advice in favor of Assam’s stance.
This episode remains one of the most complex moments before Partition. The positions adopted by the Assam leadership, with Gandhi’s support and Nehru’s ultimate clarity, ensured that Assam entered independence as a firm part of India, not as a province grouped into a political structure that might develop very differently.
December 22, 2025, 20:07 IST
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