Let us look at the final phase of National Movement and try to understand the
situations that led to the partition of India. The people of the country faced very
difficult questions and had to accept very difficult answers in these year.

You have read about the Second World War already. When the war started in
1939, most of the provinces of India were governed by Congress ministries. The
British government had agreed to give the Indians the right to rule themselves to
some extent. The British parliament passed the Government of India Act in 1935.
According to this, provinces could hold elections and winning parties could form
governments. However, the right to vote was given to a small section of the
population – only about 12 % for provincial
assemblies and about 1 % for the Central
assembly. When elections were held in the
assemblies of the 11 provinces of British
India in 1937, Congress won in most
provinces. Eight out of 11 provinces had a
Congress “Prime Minister”, working under
the supervision of a British Governor.
The world war was going on. Congress
leaders were now facing a difficult situation.
Should they help the British in fighting the
war against Germany, Japan, Italy and other
Axis forces? Britain had decided that India
will participate in the war without even asking
them. There were reasons both for and against
supporting the war

The Congress was divided on this issue. Most Congress leaders were opposed
to Hitler, Mussolini and the ideology of fascism. They wanted to fight against the
Fascist drive to conquer other sovereign nations. The Congress expected that the
British would see their double standards in the expectation that India should support
them in fighting the fascists but not giving (or at least promising) India full freedom.
The British realised this but, at the same time, it was hard for them to accept that
they will really have to dismantle the empire they had built. There were different