Early Life
Chaudhari Khaliquzzaman was born in Bengal in the year 1889. He studied at the Mohammedan Anglo-Oriental College in Aligarh from 1907 to 1917.
Khaliquzzaman was a prominent voice in local politics, having served as the Mayor of Lucknow.
Role in India’s Independence Movement
In 1916 he joined the Home Rule movement under the leadership of Ms. Annie Besant and with the collaboration of Gokhale. He represented the Indian National Congress during the deliberations on the Lucknow pact, which represented the first step towards Hindu-Muslim unity in Indian politics.
He was an active part of the Khilafat and the Non-Cooperation movement, and was arrested in 1921 for organizing a public boycott of the Prince of Wales’s visit to Lucknow. Although he was initially associated with Congress, he went to join the Muslim League.
Contribution to Constitution Making
Khaliquzzaman was elected from the United Provinces constituency on a Muslim League ticket. He participated in the deliberations on separate electorates.
Later Contributions
After partition, Khaliquzzaman remained in India for some time but eventually left for Pakistan where he held the post of the President of the Pakistan Muslim League until 1950.
He passed away in 1973.
Key Writings:
His most notable work was Pathway to Pakistan, published in 1961.
- Khaliquzzaman delivered an eloquent speech supporting the motion of the pledge moved by Jawaharlal Nehru in the Constituent Assembly.
- He participated in the discussions on the topic of the election of ministers and the discretionary powers of governors.
- In the discussions on separate electorates, he expressed the view that it was necessary to ensure that the Muslim community was truly represented.