Towards Freedom : Documents on the Movement for Independence in India 1939, Part II/edited by Mushirul Hasan. New Delhi, Oxford University Press, 2008, lxii, 981-1978 p., ISBN 019-569651-4.

    Contents: General editor's preface. Editors introduction. List of abbreviations. Calendar of documents. 5. Workers' struggles. 6. National politics (Nationalist). 7. National Politics (Leftist). 8. Communal (And Sectarian) politics. Index.    

    "The Towards Freedom volumes, each edited by a distinguished scholar, bring together historical material relating to the period 1937--47 from a wide variety of sources--official records, private and organizational papers, newspapers, and other contemporary publications available within the country. It presents documents relating to the activities, attitudes, and ideas of diverse classes and sections of Indian society, all of which contributed to the attainment of independence with partition.

    This volume systematically covers the major sociopolitical developments during 1939. Part I of the volume covers the 1937 elections, World War II, Kisan Sabhas, and Princely India. In continuation Part II explores, among other things, worker's struggles, strikes and their organizations in different parts of India. Congress organizations, and especially the correspondence between Gandhi, Bose, and Nehru constitute the chapter on nationalist politics. The subsequent chapter records the activities of the left parties, their organizations, and blocks within them. The final chapter traces the trends of communal and sectarian politics of the time.

    A unique resource, this volume presents unpublished documents from the national and state archives and the Nehru Memorial Museum and Library, as well as extracts from English Newspapers. It sheds light on various aspects of anti-colonial resistance in British and Princely India, socio-cultural movements and legislations, peasant agitations, and subaltern movements.

    The General editor's preface for the Towards Freedom series provides the context and focus. Mushirul Hasan's introduction gives an insightful and lucid historical background within which to view the documents. The calendar of documents at the beginning of the volume is an excellent guide to the selected source material. This volume will be indispensable for research scholars, professional historians, teachers and students of history, particularly those concerned with the Indian National Movement and British imperialism." (jacket)

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