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Ever since the Industrial Revolution, British-Indian tariffs have shaped India as a raw-material producer for British industry, a market for British finished goods, and persistently cracked down on Indian industry. Machine-made British goods drove India's ancient handicrafts out of business, forced millions back to the overpopulated soil.
During World War I, for purposes of supply, strategy and defeating foreign competition for the Indian market, Britain began — encouraging Indian industry. But after British capital had enjoyed a brief post-war Indian industrial boom, the crash came and tariffs were readjusted to protect Britain. World War II has once again brought British encouragement of Indian industry. Even so, Indians have charged Britain with discrimination against Indian firms wishing to build air craft, ships and automobiles.
The chief Indian parties and groups all believe that politically educated Indians can govern India -for India's sake -better than the British. But their programs greatly differ:
> The Congress wants complete independence, rather than Dominion status. It declares that Britain has deliberately set Moslems against Hindus for Britain's political advantage. It wants a national central government, claims that the Moslem League would cooperate, if Britain granted independence.
> The Moslem League still demands a separate Moslem state.
> Dr. Ambedkar, spokesman of the Untouchables, wants Dominion status with representative government, has recently urged Britain to impose such a government by fiat, if the Congress-Moslem parties will not unite.
> From somewhere in Axis territory, debonair Subhas Chandra Bose, veteran Indian National Congress leader who fled India in 1941, preaches Axis propaganda by radio. The effect of Bose and other scattered Axis partisans in India is impossible to gauge.
>The chief Indian exponent of compromise with Britain, Liberal Sir Tej Bahadur Sapru, has recently been gaining ground fast. Speaking for a group of nonparty leaders, he urges that Britain give a definite assurance of Dominion status after the war, make certain immediate changes:
1) The Viceroy's Executive Council of twelve (now eight Indians, four Britons) should be entirely Indianized, thus giving Indians the important portfolios of Finance and Defense. This would also force the Congress and Moslem parties to agree on councilmen or let Britain pick them.
2) Britain should give assurances that the Secretary of State for India will not use his powers to oppose the new Indianized Council.