There is no doubt that, as in the old British Commonwealth, the King is the symbolic Head of the Commonwealth. But the Honourable Prime Minister made it clear that in the old Commonwealth the king has the status and function of the Head of the Commonwealth while in the new one he has the status but not the function. To the extent the King continues as a symbol of the free association but without any function whatever and no citizen of India would owe allegiance to him. This new Commonwealth, as I could gather from the Declaration, is a free association of independent nations; each nation member will be free to enter its own regional and international obligations. It will be only united with others by common ideals and interest. Its main advantage will be, as described by the Prime Minister of Great Britain, Mr. Attlee, in the House of Commons recently as ‘close consultation and mutual support‘ and the King will only be the symbol of this free association.
