political parties in Britain. At
the time of the War, Britain had
an all-party government headed
by Prime Minister Winston
Churchill of the Conservative
party. The Conservatives wanted
to maintain the empire for as
long as possible. In comparison
to the Conservatives, the Labour
party was more willing to help
Indians get their freedom.

The British were willing to
give the status of Dominion to
India under the British Crown
soon after the War. But the
Congress wanted a promise of
complete freedom for India.
The Congress also demanded
that an immediate national
government should be set up at
the Centre. The British objected
to this by saying that they have
to also protect the interests of
several other communities in
India. They meant that Congress
did not represent all Indians,
like Muslims. They also implied that Congress may be ignoring the interests of
many Indians. So, the British were required to protect these interests.