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Pak Studies History IGCSEPDF 26
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From this platform, he advised Muslims to stay away from the Congress.
He supported the demand for reserved seats for Muslims.
He promoted the idea that Hindus and Muslims were two distinct
nations.
This belief laid the foundation of the Two-Nation Theory.
Religion/Reconciliation Policy
Sir Syed Ahmad Khan believed Muslims should befriend the British to
secure their rights.
He worked to convince the British that Muslims were loyal and not against
them.
He also urged Muslims to cooperate with the British to achieve their goals.
Sir Syed wrote books and journals to remove misunderstandings between
Muslims and the British.
His notable works include Loyal Muhammadans of India and The Causes of
the Indian Revolt.
He wrote a commentary on the Bible to show similarities between Islam and
Christianity.
His works Tabyin-ul-Kalam and A Series of Essays on the Life of Muhammad
helped improve relations between the British and Indian Muslims.
These writings also removed misconceptions about Islam and
Christianity.
(ii) Two Nation Theory & Hindi-Urdu Controversy (1867)
The Hindi-Urdu controversy was a 19th-century colonial Indian debate over which
language should be official, reflecting and exacerbating Hindu-Muslim cultural and
religious tensions, as Hindi and Urdu are different scripts (Devanagari vs.
Perso-Arabic) of the same underlying language, Hindustani. Initiated by a Hindu
movement in 1867 demanding Hindi replace Urdu, this led to Muslim opposition,
with leaders like Sir Syed Ahmad Khan defending Urdu as part of their cultural
identity. The controversy contributed to the "Two-Nation Theory" and the eventual
partition of India.
The Two Nation Theory emerged largely as a response to the Hindi-Urdu controversy
of 1867, when the demand for Hindi to replace Urdu as the official language
prompted Sir Syed Ahmed Khan to realize the deep cultural divide between the
communities, ultimately leading to the call for a separate Muslim homeland and the
partition of British India.
● During the decline of Muslim rule, Urdu became the most common
language in the northwestern provinces of India and was declared the
official language.