Correct Option: (D)
The Government of India Act of 1935 envisioned an All-India Federation comprising both British Indian provinces and princely states. The inclusion of princely states was a strategic move by the British to create a conservative bloc within the proposed federal structure. The princes, largely autocratic and dependent on British support, were expected to act as a counterweight to the growing influence of nationalist leaders and parties, particularly the Indian National Congress, which advocated for greater self-rule and independence. This arrangement aimed to dilute the strength of nationalist demands and preserve British paramountcy by aligning princely interests with imperial objectives.
Incorrect Options
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(1) Exercise more and direct political and administrative control over them: This is incorrect. The princely states already operated under British paramountcy, which ensured indirect control through treaties and residents. The Federal scheme did not aim to directly annex or increase direct administrative control over their internal affairs, but rather to integrate them into a larger political framework while maintaining their internal autonomy to a certain extent.
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(2) Involve the princes actively in the administration of the colony: This is incorrect. While the princes were to be part of the federal legislature, their involvement was primarily intended to serve British strategic interests rather than to grant them substantial administrative power or integrate them actively into the day-to-day administration of British India. Their role was more as a conservative check than as active administrators of the colony.
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(3) Finally effect the complete political and administrative take-over of all the princely states by the British: This is incorrect. The Act did not propose the abolition of princely states or their complete political and administrative absorption into British India. Instead, it sought to incorporate them into a federal structure, preserving their distinct identity and internal autonomy, albeit under British paramountcy, to serve as a bulwark against nationalist aspirations. The intention was strategic alliance, not outright annexation.