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Coll 1/23 'Aden, Administration and Control: changes consequent on Indian Constitutional Charges; transfer to HMG' [‎47r] (98/1106)

The record is made up of 1 volume (551 folios). It was created in 24 Jan 1933-11 Jan 1934. It was written in English. The original is part of the British Library: India Office The department of the British Government to which the Government of India reported between 1858 and 1947. The successor to the Court of Directors. Records and Private Papers Documents collected in a private capacity. .

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ON INDIAN CONSTITUTIONAL REFORM
17
20° Novembris, 1933.] Memorandum by the . [Continued.
Secretary oe State for India.
not a matter in which, the Secretary of State can interfere, as he is
precluded from doing so by the Fiscal Convention. If Aden is separated,
it jvill be for the Indian Legislature of the future to decide what terms
si^d he accorded to salt from Aden. The concern shown in the recent
debates in the Indian Legislature for the commercial and other interests of
Indians at Aden seems to give some ground for hoping that, as I sincerely
trust may be the case, the Legislature would not be unresponsive to any
appeal on behalf of the Aden salt manufacturers.
Misunderstanding of the assurances in the statement of 19th June.
12. The conditions contemplated by His Majesty’s Government in the
statement of 19th June in the event of transfer are in my view generous
and ought to meet any reasonable apprehensions on the part of the Indian
interests concerned. The speeches in the Legislature showed that there
are certain misunderstandings as to the meaning of these conditions. Those
regarding the contribution and the promise that there would be no racial
discrimination have been dealt with above. Assurance No. 2 that a right
of appeal would continue to lie to the Bombay High Court, has been
included among the assurances in the interests of Aden litigants. An
undue amount of attention has, I think, been directed to the qualified
form of assurances 3 (maintenance of the free port) and 4 (maintenance
of the present standard of administration wdthout imposing additional taxa
tion). As regards 3, I would emphasise, v'hat is stated in the assurance,
that from the point of view of His Majesty’s Government themselves the
abandonment of the policy of a free port would clearly in existing economic
conditions be financially unsound, since the prosperity of Aden depends
largely on its transit trade. The assurance that the policy would be main
tained was only qualified by the words “ unless some radical change in the
present economic situation should take place.” I think that critics of this
qualification may have overlooked the word “ radical.” Assurance No. 4
“ not to impose any additional taxation ” was qualified by the words
“ unless such a course became, in His Majesty’s Government’s opinion,
absolutely necessary.” This is an obviously necessary qualification, as His
Majesty’s Government could not bind themselves in such a matter for ever.
The wording of assurance No. 5, “A proportion of Indian service adminis
trative personnel would be retained in Aden service for some years after
transfer took place,” has been misunderstood. The meaning was that a
proportion of the administrative personnel at Aden would continue to
- to tbe Indian Service for some years. In the Indian Legislature it
has been interpreted to mean that only a proportion of the Indians at
present serving among the administrative personnel would be retained foi
some years, and that the remainder would be sent away. In order to make
more explicit the meaning of this assurance, I may say that His Majesty s
Government are prepared to give an assurance that, in the event of the
transfer of Aden, all Indian administrative personnel serving in Aden at
the time of transfer would be retained on the terms of service under which
they wmre then serving, subject only to modification by mutual consent;
when vacancies occurred, Indians would remain eligible for appointment
(though there would be a gradual substitution of Colonial Service officers);
it would be understood that all newcomers to the Aden Service would be
appointed on definite terms to be agreed upon in each case, and would
have no claim to Indian conditions of service, unless these were specially
imported into their agreements or letters of appointment.

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Content

The volume contains extensive reports, memoranda and correspondence documenting discussions of the possible transfer of the civil administration of Aden from the Government of India to the Colonial Office. The primary authors and correspondents are the India Office The department of the British Government to which the Government of India reported between 1858 and 1947. The successor to the Court of Directors. Political Department, the Colonial Office, the Aden Chief Commissioner, the Secretary of State for India, the Aden Standing Committee, the Viceroy, the Government of India Foreign and Political Department, and the Joint Committee on Indian Constitutional Reform.

The majority of this correspondence concerns the following: the formal debates in the Council of State and the Central Legislative Assembly; the opinions of the Indian and Aden populations, both for and against transfer to the Colonial Office; and the wording of official statements. Tensions between the UK Government of the Government of India are well documented throughout the file.

The volume also contains letters and petitions from Aden and Indian citizens, politicians and trade associations, communicating their concerns over the Salt Tariff, future taxation, and either the marginalisation or dominance of Indian interests. Reports and printed proceedings of the Council of State, Central Legislative Assembly, and Joint Foreign Committee on Indian Constitutional Reform can be found at folios 166-230, and 38-48.

The following points are discussed at length within the volume: the desire of the Colonial Office to effect transfer prior to Indian independence; the importance of Aden to British imperial defence and communications; the disadvantages if Aden were to be administered as part of a federated India; the possible financial and military role of the Government of India, should Aden transfer to the Colonial Office; the financial contribution made by India; the status of Indian citizens in Aden; the question of continued representation in the Bombay High Court for Aden citizens; the possibility of maintaining the preferential Salt tariff; Aden's free port status; the possible role for Indian Service Personnel in Aden; and the impact on Indian and Aden businesses under Colonial Office administration, particularly on the salt trade.

The volume includes a divider which gives a list of correspondence references found within the volume by year. This is placed at the end of the correspondence (folio 4).

Extent and format
1 volume (551 folios)
Arrangement

The papers are arranged in rough chronological order from the front to the rear of the volume

Physical characteristics

Foliation: the foliation sequence commences at the inside front cover with 1 and terminates at the inside back cover with 551; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto The front of a sheet of paper or leaf, often abbreviated to 'r'. side of each folio.

Written in
English in Latin script
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Coll 1/23 'Aden, Administration and Control: changes consequent on Indian Constitutional Charges; transfer to HMG' [‎47r] (98/1106), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/L/PS/12/1459, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100035840269.0x000063> [accessed 28 March 2024]

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