His fourth would be: At best, all these members can but represent, in
even ever so faint a way, their own class who elects them. Say at a
liberal estimate that they represent more or less imperfectly half a
million people; what about the two hundred and ninety-nine and a half
million who are left out? Who are to protect tenants from landlords,
the innumerable unrepresented religions from that one which is
represented, the voiceless cities from the two which have voices? In
fact, who is to protect Europe from these few privileged classes?
That would be analogous to what is happening in India. These questions
are being asked.
The answer to the first question is quite simple. The two members do
not represent Madras, nor does the one member represent Burma. They
represent the non-officials of the Local Council, and that is all; that
is to say, ten or fifteen individuals of much their own class and
standing. It is not likely that they have any knowledge of the country
they are to represent, except the chief town. It is quite certain that
they have never even travelled over half their country, nor speak more
than one or two of the various tongues.
They have no knowledge of the administration anywhere, nor any
administrative ability. If a question vital to their Province arose
they would not know what to do; and if they did know they would not
dare to do it if it involved any responsibility, because they have no
backing in the country supposed to be theirs. They are totally
unknown, even by name, to nine hundred and ninety-nine out of every
thousand inhabitants. In fact, even this is an over-estimate. They
are not only without knowledge of the immense majority of "their"
people, but are antagonistic in race and religion to many of them, so
that it is only the English Government that keeps the peace.
The answer to the second question is much the same as to the first.
Fancy one member representing the Nair landholders of Malabar, the
Poligars, the Tamils, the Telugu landholders, and many others. It is
absurd.
There is no answer to the third question.
The answer to the fourth is that whatever help and representation and
defence the bulk of India can obtain must be obtained from the English
official members. They alone are quite impartial; they may be
comparatively ignorant, but their ignorance is light compared to that
of the native members, for it includes a knowledge of administration
obtained by experience, which none of the latter have. It is we alone
who have raised the people economically, and have done it often enough
against the influence of class.
Therefore the Council of the Government of India is so constituted that
whereas perhaps half a million people are represented directly or
indirectly by class and religion, the two hundred and ninety-nine and a
half million have no representation at all and must depend on the
English officials.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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