Fellow Delegates,

This Special Session of our Sabha has been summoned to make clear our position regarding the constitutional issues that have arisen. Hitherto-since our Annual Session last June-the Executive Committee has been able to act in accordance with your decisions made by yourselves earlier, and to make certain further decisions. The position now is sufficiently clear to enable us to do this. You will permit me at this stage to remind you once again, as the subject is very relevant to the matters you will have to discuss today, of the reasons why our Sabha was started, and the objects for which it has been striving.

Although there was a certain degree of unity and orga­nised public opinion in the early stages of the new reform movement, roughly between 1918 and 1923, the situation began to deteriorate rapidly after that ; not only did dis­unity begin to manifest itself among the different commu­nities, and indeed within each community, but the vigour and enthusiasm of public opinion began to wane.

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