The Sun Never Sets
Update 2.0
Excerpt from “Lord Ripon & the Act that wasn’t” an article by Dr. B. C. Banerjee ,
The Hindu, Calcutta Edition, Volume 11, No. 300, Monday, October 27th, 1997, Calcutta, Bengal Province, Dominion of India.
“.. The Illbert bill, or as some like to name it ‘the bill that wasn’t’ [1] is arguably one of the most important bills in the empire never to be passed. A hundred and fourteen years after the matter was discreetly put out to pasture, the bill continues to be a matter of debate among us historians.
… Lord Ripon contemplated introducing the bill in 1883, which, some would say ambitiously, aimed to equate the legal status of Indian native and British justices in the Indian Empire. It provided for prosecution of Her Majesty’s subjects of British origin by Indian native judges. Naturally this was opposed by the British and Anglo-Indian elite as there was an apprehension of being prosecuted by native judges over exploitation of the native workforce in the plantations.
Lord Ripon in consultation with his subordinate Courtenay Illbert, after whom the bill was named, displayed much desired political acumen in refraining from pursuing the bill further and shelving it for later. [2] This helped soothe over many ruffled feathers in the British and Anglo-Indian community and arguably saved his future political career from certain ruin.
… The mainstream view among modern historians is that perhaps this bill, if passed, would have brought about a much earlier acceptance of Indian self-rule. By equating the ‘ruler and the ruled’ it would have brought the Rule of Law and the Rights of Man into the British political consciousness with regards to the Indian subjects and the Indian Empire. [3] Some of us with more radical views herald this bill as a stepping stone to an earlier rise of Indian political organizations and a more decisive shift to demanding complete independence from the Crown. However it could be possible that both these views may be flawed analyses of the course of events to follow.
Firstly, Lord Ripon, who back then had the reputation of being an out-spoken liberal, perhaps could have had his political reputation irreparably damaged by an organized political backlash from the colonial elite. [4] History stands witness to the immensely important role Lord Ripon had later on back in the House of Lords in ensuring that the Indian Empire was much better governed.
… Secondly, as the radicals claim, facing a strong well organized and well-coordinated political opposition would have galvanized the then nascent Indian political groups into actual political parties. This could have led to a much earlier rise of political activism in India. What remains debatable is whether such a ‘decisive shift’ to a demand for self-rule was bound to happen. [5]
… And lastly, perhaps most overlooked is the very divisive effect this law could have had on the elite. This stems from the near unanimous support the bill had, when it was first conceived among the Indian native elite and that was mirrored by an equally entrenched opposition to the bill among the British and Anglo-Indians in India and even back in Parliament. Such divisive bill would have surely created a very polarizing debate centered on it and would have forced many of the supporters of reform of Indian administration in the British Parliament to choose sides. Clearly such a divide would have lessened support for the momentous reforms enacted over the next few decades. It would be to lose the forest for the trees.
…In the end, perhaps it was for the best that we can conclude on the 170th birth anniversary of Lord Ripon that ‘the bill that wasn’t’ was not for the better.”
[1] The alpha-PoD in this TL. OTL Lord Ripon pushes for the Bill.
[2] ITTL he sticks to his guns.
[3] I highly doubt that could ever happen. Not with a Liberal party dying out as it did OTL.
[4] Which actually did happen OTL. And resulted in the premature death of Lord Ripon’s quite remarkable political career
[5] OTL such a shift did happen when the Indian political parties, namely the Indian National Congress realized it was necessary to ensure that the British administration was loathe to reform and change the status quo.
Here is a taste of things to come. Please so tell if you are comfortable with this style, format and size of updates. i will be posting the first update tomorrow
Hope you enjoy!
