Simon Commission 1927: Reforms, Political Reactions, & Road to the Government of India Act 1935

Simon Commission: Commission & Constitutional Evolution

The Government of India Act of 1919 provided for the appointment of a commission ten years from the date of the Act to evaluate the 1919 constitutional amendments and to give advice on additional measures.

Simon Commission: British Inquiry into Indian Reforms

• On November 8, 1927, the British government established an all-white, seven-member Indian Statutory Commission, generally known as the Simon Commission (after the name of its head, Sir John Simon). 

Mandate of Commission: Gauging India’s Readiness for Reform

• The commission’s mandate was to advise the British government on whether India was ready for future constitutional reforms and along what lines.

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Reason to Appoint the Commission Two Years Ago by the British Government Appoint: 1927 Appointment Amid Political Concerns

• Anticipation of Defeat by Conservative Government: Although constitutional revisions were due only in 1929, the Conservative administration, then in control in Britain, anticipated defeat by the Labour Party and hence did not want to leave the matter of the future of Britain’s most expensive colony in “irresponsible Labour hands”. 
• Failure of the 1919 Act: Furthermore, by the mid-1920s, the failure of the 1919 Act to establish a stable imperial power had resulted in several parliamentary investigations and probes. 
• Main Commission And Reports: The Lee Commission investigated Raj’s failure to recruit enough British officers, the Muddiman Commission investigated the impasse within the diarchy regime, and the Linlithgow Commission investigated the Indian agricultural problem. As a result, the British government appointed the Simon Commission in 1927.

India’s Reaction: India Unites in Boycott, 1927

• Congress: The Congress session in Madras (December 1927), presided by M.A. Ansari resolved to boycott the commission “at every step and in every shape.”
• Muslim League: A branch of the Muslim League– Under Jinnah’s leadership, a faction of the Muslim League boycotted the Commission. 
• Tej Bahadur Sapru: He leads the Liberal Federation in boycotting the Simon Commission.

Conclusion

The Simon Commission drafted the framework for the Government of India Act  1935, which fostered “responsible” local government in India but not at the federal level.

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