Question

Who among the following had called Mohammad Ali Jinnah the ‘Ambassador of Hindu-Muslim Unity’?
A) Annie Besant
B) Sarojini Naidu
C) Bal Gangadhar Tilak
D) None of the above

Answer 1

Hint: Mohammad Ali Jinnah advocated Hindu-Muslim Unity during the initial years of his political career. He was given the title of the ‘Ambassador of Hindu-Muslim Unity’ because Congress agreed to separate electorate, for the first and last time, due to his untiring efforts.

Complete answer:
Mohammad Ali Jinnah advocated Hindu-Muslim Unity during the initial years of his political career. He started his political career showing the most ferocious will to establish unity between Hindu and Muslim Indians. At the end of the first 10 years of his career from 1906 to 1919, this attitude earned him the nickname ‘the ambassador of Hindu-Muslim Unity’.

Option A) Annie Besant: She was an Irish origin woman, who became the first woman President of the Indian National Congress (INC) to head its Calcutta session in 1917. She helped in launching the Home Rule League for promoting the Indian democracy after the outbreak of World War I in 1914. Thus, it is an incorrect option.

Option B) Sarojini Naidu: In December 1916, the All India Muslim League (AIML) and Congress had a meeting in Lucknow. It was because of the untiring efforts of Mohammad Ali Jinnah that Congress agreed to separate the electorate, for the first and the last time. To praise these efforts of Jinnah, Sarojini Naidu gave him the title of “Ambassador of Hindu-Muslim Unity”. Thus, it is the correct option.

Option C) Bal Gangadhar Tilak: In the history of India’s freedom struggle, one of the most interesting political relationships is the one between Lokmanya Bal Gangadhar Tilak and Mohammed Ali Jinnah. This association developed at a time when both the Indian National Congress, of which Tilak was a towering leader, and the All India Muslim League were themselves exploring a collaborative association to
demand self-rule for Indians from the British. Thus, it is an incorrect option.

Option D) None of the above: This option is incorrect because one of the given options is the correct answer.

Thus, the correct answer is Option ‘C’. Sarojini Naidu had called Mohammad Ali Jinnah the ‘Ambassador of Hindu-Muslim Unity.

Note: In the year 1918, Sarojini Naidu compiled the speeches and writings of Mohammad Ali Jinnah. The volume was given the sub-title ‘An Ambassador of Unity’. Sarojini Naidu wrote that Mohammad Ali Jinnah stood “as an embodied symbol of Hindu-Muslim unity.”