Khaksar Movement

The Constitution of Free India, 1946 A.C. Khaksar Movement

In 1945, Allama Inayatullah Khan Al-Mashriqi, founder of the Khaksar Tehreek, published The Constitution of Free India, 1946 A. C. Also known as the Mashriqi Constitution or Khaksar Constitution, the document was created in order to prevent the partition of India. The Constitution was formulated, under Mashriqi's guidance, by eminent personalities and intellectuals from various disciplines, such as politics, finance, and administration and law. The result was a monumental work that accommodated the rights of all - including Muslims, Hindus, Scheduled Castes, Sikhs, Jains, Parsees, Budhists, Jews and Christians. According to Mashriqi: "We addressed almost every important element of India's national life requesting it to send its declaration of interests so that in case the interests did not clash with those of other parties in the country they might be incorporated in the body of the Constitution 'as far as possible, feasible and consistent with the interests of other parties.' We addressed more or less 75 parties and over three hundred million people in the country accepted our invitation through their accredited leaders."* By December of 1945, 50,000 copies of the Constitution had been printed. Ultimately, however, the Constitution was not adopted for political reasons, and British India was subsequently partitioned in 1947. Nevertheless, The Constitution of Free India, 1946 A. C. serves as a lasting example of the Khaksars' efforts to bring the nation together - and how close they came to achieving the vision of a united, independent India. For more information on Allama Mashriqi and the Khaksar Tehreek, visit the following web sites: http://www.allamamashraqi.com http://www.allamamashriqi.info *Source: Mashriqi's address at the University Institute Hall, Calcutta on October 21, 1945, entitled "Where Leaders Fail: A Dispassionate Dissection of Indian Politics from a Non-Party Point of View"