Facts for Prelims (FFP)
Source: IE
Context: The Liaquat-Nehru Pact was a post-Partition agreement between India and Pakistan in 1950. The pact aimed to address the treatment of minorities in both countries and provide them with equal rights and security.
- However, the pact became a point of contention for Syama Prasad Mookerjee, a member of the Hindu Mahasabha and a part of Nehru’s first Union Cabinet.
- June 23rd is the 70th death anniversary of Syama Prasad Mookerjee
About the Liaquat-Nehru Pact
| Dimension | Description |
| Name | Nehru-Liaquat Pact (also called Delhi Pact) was signed on April 8, 1950, between Jawaharlal Nehru (Prime Minister of India) and Liaquat Ali Khan (Prime Minister of Pakistan) |
| Purpose | Establish a framework for the treatment of minorities in India and Pakistan |
| Background | Communal tensions and violence during the Partition of India in 1947 |
| Provisions of the Pact | |
| · Refugees were allowed to return safe and unmolested to dispose of their property.
· Abducted women and looted property were to be returned. · Forced conversions were derecognized. · Minority rights were confirmed. · Setting up minority commissions in both India and Pakistan · Countries to ensure complete equality of citizenship for minorities in both countries · Countries will guarantee freedom of movement within each country, freedom of occupation, speech, and worship for minorities |
|
Why did Syama Prasad Mookerjee resign?
He resigned from the Union cabinet (Minister for Industry and Supply) due to his disagreement with the controversial Nehru-Liaquat Pact, which he believed would leave Hindus in East Bengal at the mercy of the Pakistani state and go against his vision of a divided Bengal with West Bengal for Hindu Bengalis.
- He also opposed special status to Jammu and Kashmir. His famous slogan was “Ek desh mein do Vidhan, do Pradhan aur Do Nishan nahi chalenge” (trans: “One country cannot have two constitutions, two prime ministers and two flags”), referring to the provisions of Article 370.
