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Tele. Address:
INSTATUCOM.

Indian Statutory Commission,
Royal Courts of Justice, W. C. 2 .
Dated 2nd July, 1 930

My dear Buchan,

I wonder whether you would consider writing a letter to
the "Times" referring to Sastri's observation when addressing
H. of C . Members yesterday, to the effect that the Viceroy 's
announcement of November lst about the "ultimate issue" of the
Montagu policy being "Dominion status" was regarded by Indians
as proclaiming a new policy. The worst of the announcement,
in my judgment, was that it was framed in terms which would
give one impression in India and a different impression in
Britain. My chief concern now is that the same mistake
should not be repeated in the course of the next few days,
as I fear it may be.

Look at the P . M's letter to Baldwin
enclosed, which stated in terms that the Viceroy's declaration
implied no change in policy at all. Yet Press telegrams
from Simla actually hint that the Government of India is
encouraging the idea that it proclaimed "a new objective"!

No one has more genuine sympathy for Edward's difficulties
than I have, but really they are very largely due to the
fatal mistake of calculated ambiguity. No one expects the
Government here and now to say that it adopts the Commission's
recommendations (though I must say I do not think it would
be quite out of place for the Viceroy to point out that they
should be studied instead of being denounced, and that Indians
must realise that the only useful contribution any one can
make