On the life and role of Mahomed Ali Jinnah, 1876-1948, Pakistani Statesman in the run up to Pakistan movement against India.

This book analyses the development of Jinnah ́s relationship with India ́s Muslims from his entry into politics until 1934. It shows that a dominant view of Jinnah - that he was an ambassador of Hindu Muslim unity in the 1920s who became a communalist in the 1940s - is far from the truth. The book argues that the "two Jinnahs" approach over-simplifies the trajectory of a complex and evolving political thinker and strategist. The primary changes in Jinnah ́s politics were the strategies he employed to achieve his goals rather than the goals themselves. Amongst the many aspects of Jinnah ́s political thought and career analysed here are his "elitism" and distance from mass politics, his relations with Gandhi, Motilal and Jawaharlal Nehru, Willingdon, Ramsay MacDonald and Irwin, his attitude to the Rowlatt Act, the Khilafat movement and non-cooperation, and his troubled and complex relations with other nationalist Muslim leaders.

The issues concerning the Partition of India in 1947 have long been debated both by Indian and Pakistani historians, but now a leader directly responsible for the Defence and Foreign Affairs of India has come forward with a historical appraisal that helps both countries come to a better understanding of the contentions between them. Jaswant Singh has not written a hagiography of Jinnah, but focused on him as a key figure in the final deliberations preceding Independence.

Mohammad Ali Jinnah has been both celebrated and reviled for his role in the Partition of India, and the controversies surrounding his actions have only increased in the seven decades and more since his death. Ishtiaq Ahmed places Jinnah's actions under intense scrutiny to ascertain the Quaid-i-Azam's successes and failures and the meaning and significance of his legacy. Using a wealth of contemporary records and archival material, Dr Ahmed traces Jinnah's journey from Indian nationalist to Muslim communitarian, and from a Muslim nationalist to, finally, Pakistan's all-powerful head of state. How did the ambassador of Hindu-Muslim unity become the inflexible votary of the two-nation theory? Did Jinnah envision Pakistan as a theocratic state? What was his position on Gandhi and federalism? Asking these crucial questions against the backdrop of the turbulent struggle against colonialism, this book is a path-breaking examination of one of the most controversial figures of the twentieth century.

Was Jinnah the sole driving force behind the Partition of India? Or was he a champion of Islam who stood for a new Islamic renaissance? Mahomed Ali Jinnah started his political career in the Congress as a staunch Indian nationalist. He believed in secular politics and was opposed to bringing religion into it. He was known as an ambassador of Hindu–Muslim unity. So why did he, towards the end of his career, initiate the creation of a separate Muslim-state? This new biography provides the answers while casting fresh light on Jinnah's character, his personal life, his political and legal careers, his relationship with Gandhi, Nehru as well as his disagreements with their ideas. Carefully examining the major events of his life – from early childhood to his first speech as President of the All India Muslim League – Yasser Latif Hamdani presents a complex and compelling portrait of Jinnah who is often narrowly regarded as a votary of a theocratic Islamic state. Based on extensive research and a wealth of archival material, Hamdani has revealed those traits of Jinnah’s personality that made him the most misunderstood leader of his times. He also comments on how religious zealots have turned Pakistan into an Islamic Republic contrary to Jinnah's vision.

In this book, the author takes Pakistan as a case study in a search for better definitions of nations and nationalism, arguing that it exhibits the three essential ingredients for a successful national movement. These are a distinctive integrated community, a particular set of circumstances, and purposeful leadership.

'Ayesha Jalal's book is an important scholarly account of ... the partition of India in 1947.' American Historical Review