footing and to prepare it to shoulder its own responsibility. You did put in your full energy with your usual zcal and made a tremendous effort in economic development. You helped the people in their calamities and earned their gratitude. For this you deserve great credit. But you did something else as well. Wittingly or unwittingly you made it a point never to say “no” to (any demand, however, impossible or manifestly unreasonable that demand might be, thus taking credit for whatever was accomplished and passing on the blame to the Centre for whatever had to be denied. You took the least line of resistance.
You were the agent of the Centre. The popularity of the agent should have meant the popularity of the principal. Your conduct, however, brought about the opposite result. It created the impression among the population of East Pakistan that to get anything for them, a continual battle had to be waged against an unwilling and an unsympathetic Centre. Not once did you mention to them my real feelings in regard to the development of East Pakistan, and the urgency and importance I give it. Not once did you try convincingly to explain to them the limitations of our resources, the struggle we have to put up to get resources from abroad, the restrictions that other countries placed on trying up their grants and loans, to particular projects, or the implications of an integrated economy planned on a national basis. You say that you worked with “utmost loyalty and devotion”. May I modify it by saying that you worked with utmost energy and zcal. I am afraid, loyalty and devotion to the higher cause got sacrificed at the altar of personal property. The results were inevitable. I warned you repeatedly of the dangers inherent in your approach. The anti-Pakistan elements were quick to exploit this situation, and by their activities were making a bid to loosen discipline in East Pakistan to jeopardize the national interest. When this happened you started evading controversial issues connected with law and order.
You have said that “your sincerest advice was ignored in several matters including the Constitution.” The only advice you gave with reference to the constitution was that Martial law was the right answer for the country at present and that the question of making a change to a constitutional form of government should remain in abeyance. My own belief being that institutions and not individuals are the proper instruments of governments, I felt that the sooner we make a start in establishing institutions that will work in our conditions, the better. I did not ignore your advice. I carefully considered it but did not accept it.
In the course of the discussion on the recommendations of the Constitution Commission and the Cabinet Committee, in the Governor's Conference when detailed discussions were taken, you expressed certain views as being in accordance with the opinion in certain sections of the intelligentsia in East Pakistan. Those views were already known and were duly considered. You did not attempt to advance any reasons in support of them.
You next say that I took a decision on a most important matter without consulting you as a Governor. I believe you are referring to the arrest of Mr. 'Suhrawardy.
