The example of Governmental repression is before your eyes. First, it
attempted through Karachi trials to prevent the Musalmans from openly
proclaiming the articles of their faith, when the people, undaunted by
this decision of the Government, preached through the length and breadth
of India that it was unlawful to serve in the army. The Government
slowly overlooked those activities fearing lest a mere repetition of the
Karachi resolution might lead to disaffection in the Army, and in order
to divert the attention of the people from those activities, it
suddenly, but deliberately declared the enrollment as unlawful. That
might get an opportunity of striking at the Non-Co-operators. Like the
moths that gather to sacrifice their lives round lighted candle, the
advocates of civil disobedience swarmed to break this declaration of
Lord Reading and cheerfully went in their thousands to gaol. This is
undoubtedly an example of self-sacrifice and self-effacement which will
rightly move Mahatma Gandhi to ecstasy, but we detect another truth
hidden in this demonstration of happiness and joy. It reveals to our
eyes the last stage of both the repression of the Government and the
patience of the people. The people are, no doubt, prepared to bear and
suffer gladly the hardships of a few days of imprisonment but on the
declaration of Martial Law the non-violent Non-Co-operation movement
will prove totally insufficient and useless. Amongst the Musalmans, at
least there will hardly be found a man who will be prepared to sacrifice
his life uselessly. A man can only have one of the two feelings in his
heart, when faced by the barrel of a gun, either to seek refuge in
flight or to take advantage of the law of self-preservation and despatch
adversary to hell. The third alternative of cheerfully yielding up one's
life to the enemy and considering it to be the one real success will
remain confined to Mahatma Gandhi and some of his adherents and fellow
thinkers. I, on my part, fear that in general the reply to the Martial
Law will be what is commonly called guerilla warfare, or in the words of
the Quran "kill them wherever you find them." The responsibility lies
with the representatives of the Musalmans. The members of the All-India
Muslim League, should consider it their duty either to refrain from
adopting Non-Co-operation as their creed or free it from the limitation
of keeping it, either by violence or non-violence, for it is not in our
power to keep Non-Co-operation peaceful or otherwise. So long as the
Government confines to the use of chains and fetters, Non-Co-operation
can remain peaceful as it is to-day, but if things go further and the
Government has recourse to gallows or machine guns it will be impossible
for the movement to remain non-violent.