Montagu’s Statement of August 1917

The Secretary of State for India, Edwin Samuel Montagu, made a statement on August 20, 1917 in the British House of Commons in what has come to be known as the August Declaration of 1917. The statement said: “The government policy is of an increasing participation of Indians in every branch of administration and gradual development of self- governing institutions with a view to the progressive realisation of responsible government in India as an integral part of the British Empire.”

From now onwards, the demand by nationalists for self- government or home rule could not be termed as seditious since attainment of self-government for Indians now became a government policy, unlike Morley’s statement in 1909 that the reforms were not intended to give self-government to India. Also, in the use of the term ‘responsible government’ was implied the condition that the rulers were to be answerable to the elected representatives, and not only to the imperial government in London. However, it was equally clear that the British had no intention of handing over power to predominantly elected legislatures with an Indian majority. So, in order that the executive be made responsible in some measure to the elected assemblies, whose size and the proportion of elected members in which was going to be increased in any case, the concept of ‘dyarchy’ was to be evolved.