* The Indian Elections With the Report of the Select
Committee on- India almost completely monopolizing attention, the results of the elections for the Legislative Assembly are in some danger of being overlooked. In fact they are of con- siderable importance. The Congress Party has re- entered the field after its years of non-co-operation, and has demonstrated impressively the strength of its political organization—most notably in Madras, where the well-organized Justice Party has been heavily defeated. Results are not yet complete, but it is clear that the successful Congress candidates will form the strongest party in the Assembly, though there is no likelihood of their obtaining a clear majority. How they will use their power remains to be seen. If they choose the path of obstruction they could no doubt reduce the Assembly to something like impotence. There is fortu- nately little prospect of that. If the Nationalists have any political wisdom they will make a pOint of demon- strating in what may prove to be the last Assembly of the Montagu-Chelmsford regime their capacity for governing on parliamentary lines. Nothing would do more to create confidence in this country and to strengthen any claims that may be made in India for the modification of some of the safeguards recommended by the Joint Committee. * * * *
Previous page
