The question of question to-day is the Khilafat question, otherwise
known as that of the Turkish peace terms. His Excellency the Viceroy
deserves our thanks for receiving the joint deputation even at this late
hour, especially when he was busy preparing to receive the head of the
different provinces. His Excellency must be thanked for the unfailing
courtesy with which he received the deputation and the courteous
language in which his reply was couched. But mere courtesy, valuable as
it is at all times, never so valuable as at this, is not enough at this
critical moment. 'Sweet words butter no parsnips' is a proverb more
applicable to-day than ever before. Behind the courtesy there was the
determination to punish Turkey. Punishment of Turkey is a thing which
Muslim sentiment cannot tolerate for a moment. Muslim soldiers are as
responsible for the result of the war as any others. It was to appease
them that Mr. Asquith said when Turkey decided to join the Central
Powers that the British Government had no designs on Turkey and that His
Majesty's Government would never think of punishing the Sultan for the
misdeeds of the Turkish Committee. Examined by that standard the
Viceregal reply is not only disappointing but it is a fall from truth
and justice.
What is this British Empire? It is as much Mahomedan and Hindu as it is
Christian. Its religious neutrality is not a virtue, or if it is, it is
a virtue of necessity. Such a mighty Empire could not be held together
on any other terms. British ministers are therefore bound to protect
Mahomedan interests as any other. Indeed as the Muslim rejoinder says,
they are bound to make the cause their own. What is the use of His
Excellency having presented the Muslim claim before the Conference? If
the cause is lost the Mahomedans will be entitled to think that Britain
did not do her duty by them. And the Viceregal reply confirms the view.
When His Excellency says that Turkey must suffer for her having joined
the Central Powers he but expresses the opinion of British ministers.
We hope, therefore, with the framers of the Muslim rejoinder that His
Majesty's ministers will mend the mistakes if any have been committed
and secure a settlement that would satisfy Mahomedan sentiment.
What does the sentiment demand? The preservation of the Khilafat with
such guarantee as may be necessary for the protection of the interests
of the non-Muslim races living under Turkish rule and the Khalif's
control over Arabia and the Holy Places with such arrangement as may be
required for guaranteeing Arab self-rule, should the Arabs desire it. It
is hardly possible to state the claim more fairly than has been done. It
is a claim backed by justice, by the declarations of British ministers
and by the unanimous Hindu and Muslim opinion. It would be midsummer
madness to reject or whittle down a claim so backed.