FAITH, NATION, AND DISSENT: THE KHILAFAT MOVEMENT AND THE POLITICAL DIVIDE IN BRITISH INDIA

Abstract

The dissolution of the Ottoman Caliphate following World War I marked a pivotal moment for the global Muslim community, and particularly for Indian  uslims  rappling with the loss of a symbol that embodied both religious and political unity. In British India, the Khilafat Movement emerged as a mass mobilization  effort to protest the dismemberment of the Caliphate and to assert Muslim solidarity in the colonial political arena. While often idealized as an anti-colonial  struggle, the movement's consequences were far more complex and far-reaching. It accelerated the involvement of religious leadership in politics, redefined  communal identities, and exacerbated sectarian divisions, despite temporarily uniting Hindus and Muslims under Gandhi’s non-cooperation campaign. Yet, the  Khilafat Movement also revealed ideological fault lines within the Indian nationalist struggle. Muhammad Ali Jinnah, an advocate of constitutionalism and  secular political practice, of elite-led, reformist Muslim politics. This article critically explores the dynamics of the Khilafat Movement, its impact on Indian Muslim political identity, the divergence of leadership strategies, and its long-term influence on the evolution of Muslim separatism and the eventual demand for Pakistan. resisted the merger of religion and mass politics that characterized the Khilafat campaign. His marginalization during this period foreshadowed his eventual departure from the Indian National Congress and reinforced his belief in an independent political path for Indian Muslims. Meanwhile, figures like Aga Khan III and Syed Amir Ali supported the Turkish cause through diplomatic and journalistic means, offering a contrasting model of elite-led, reformist Muslim politics. This article critically explores the dynamics of the Khilafat Movement, its impact on Indian Muslim political identity, the divergence of leadership strategies, and its long-term influence on the evolution of Muslim separatism and the eventual demand for Pakistan.