4 Mr. MacCALLUM SCOTTasked (4) with reference to the recent arrest and imprisonment without bail of Khan Bahadur Khawaja Mohamed Khan, Chief of Hoti, upon a serious charge, whether he is aware that the Advocate-General, in asking leave to withdraw the case against him in the High Court of Bombay, stated that he had no grounds whatever to conduct the case against him, and that he was at a loss to know why the frontier authorities had arrested him and sent him down to Bombay; whether he is aware that his lordship the judge of the High Court of Bombay, in discharging the accused, stated that the Khan was arrested on evidently nobody's complaint, that he had been subjected to many indignities, and that the whole procedure seemed to be most irregular and arbitrary; and whether the Secretary of State has made any inquiry into the circumstances connected with the case and considered what, reparation can be made to the Khan; (5) whether the Viceroy and Governor-General of India has issued a notification that no Government servants should join any movement for collecting subscriptions for universities and colleges; whether he is aware that on the 5th April, 1911, Sirdar Mir Alam Khan, Sahib, E.A.C. Peshawar, and Maulvi Ghulam Hassan Khan, sub-registrar and honorary magistrate, Peshawar, addressed a letter to Khan Bahadur Kbawaja Mohamed, Khan of Hoti, asking him with menaces to subscribe to the fund for establishing the proposed Islamia College, at Peshawar, adding that this college was the uppermost idea in the mind of the Chief Commissioner and that, although the Khan was personally against the scheme, nevertheless, by subscribing to it he would remove the many suspicions existing about his person; and whether he proposes to take 2891 any action in this matter; and (6) whether his attention has been called to the Manual of Pashto, compiled by Major G. Roos Keppel; whether he is aware that this book contains, on pages 203, 213, 217, and 231, offensive personal allusions to Khan Bahadur Khawaja Mohamed, Khan of Hoti; whether the author of this book is now Sir George Roos Keppel, Chief Commissioner of the North-West Frontier Province; and whether he can give any explanation of the matter?
§ 7. Mr. KEIR HARDIEasked whether the right hon. Gentleman is now able to make his promised statement anent the case of His Highness the Khan of Hoti?
§ The UNDER-SECRETARY of STATE for INDIA (Mr. Montagu)The person described as "His Highness" is not a ruling chief, but a British subject named Khan Bahadur Khwaja Muhammad Khan, commonly called the Khan of Hoti Mardan. I regret that I have hitherto been unable to make the promised statement, but I had only a telegraphic summary of somewhat voluminous Papers which came from the Government of India last week. The Secretary of State is presenting the Papers to Parliament at once, and they will be distributed as soon as they can be printed. The case is a complicated one, and it is impossible for me to give in my present answer any summary of the circumstances which led to the arrest of the Khan Bahadur on a criminal charge, or of the legal proceedings at Bombay. Apart from the question of the Khan Bahadur's guilt or innocence of the specific offence with which he was charged, which has been settled by high judicial authority in favour of the accused, the Secretary of State fully concurs with the Government of India (for reasons which will be appreciated when the Papers are read) in thinking that the primâ facie case justified the action of the North-West Frontier Province authorities in arresting the Khan when asked by the Bombay authorities to take notice of the facts as they were then known, and that the Khan was treated with all possible consideration. He has also satisfied himself that the allegations made against Sir George Roos Keppel of malice against the Khan Bahadur are absolutely baseless, as might have been expected from that officer's honourable and distinguished record; and that the various earlier incidents connected with the Khan which have been mentioned in the Press and in this House had no con- 2892 nection whatever with his arrest and trial on a charge of abetting the abduction of two girls.
Mr. MacCALLUM SCOTTWith reference to the reference in the answer to allegations of malice against Sir George Roos Keppel, may I ask whether there has been any suggestion of malice against him in any of the questions I have asked, and is there any suggestion in the answer which has been read out that I have made any such suggestions of malice against Sir George Roos Keppel?
§ Mr. MONTAGUI was not referring to my hon. Friend. Anybody who has followed this controversy knows that allegations have been made against Sir George Roos Keppel in the Press and elsewhere.
§ Mr. KEIR HARDIEHas the Under-secretary himself read the paragraphs in the Manual of Pashto, and, if so, is he satisfied himself that they are not offensive allusions to the Khan?
§ Sir J. D. REESIs this gentleman correctly described in Question No. 7 as "His Highness"?
§ Mr. MONTAGUI have answered that point in the reply I have already given.
Mr. MacCALLUM SCOTTHas the hon. Gentleman noticed that the judge, in his remarks upon this case, stated that the Khan had been arrested apparently in the first place at nobody's complaint; and, in the second place, that having been arrested the whole procedure under which he was arrested seems to be of the most irregular and arbitrary nature?
§ Mr. MONTAGUI am endeavouring to furnish the House with all possible information on this case. The whole of the Papers are going to be laid, and my hon. Friend will find his questions are fully dealt with. I am sorry for the delay, but the Papers only reached this country by the last mail which arrived on Saturday last.
§ Mr. MONTAGUSo far as it is possible pending the presentation of the Papers which I propose to lay on the Table. It is impossible to give a summary of the circumstances to-night. If the hon. Member will be so kind as to wait a very short time for the Papers he will find all his questions are answered.
Mr. MacCALLUM SCOTTWithout attempting to give me a summary of the proceedings in connection with the trial can the hon. Gentleman give me a definite answer to the definite question I have put to him, namely, whether a letter was addressed to the Khan asking him to subscribe to the fund for establishing the Islamia College and threatening him if he did not subscribe?
§ Mr. MONTAGUI do not want to deal with one particular paragraph without dealing with the whole. The Khan himself has been acquitted in a Criminal Court, and Sir George Roos Keppel has now, I hope, been acquitted of any charges that have been made against him by the expression of the confidence of the Government of India, and of the Secretary of State. Those are the two people concerned in this charge, and I really think the hon. Member had better wait for any further information until the Papers are laid.
§ Mr. SPEAKERThe hon. Member will see there are a large number of questions on the Paper, and it is not fair to occupy so much time at the expense of other Members with supplementary questions.
Mr. MacCALLUM SCOTTMay I ask you, Mr. Speaker—[HON. MEMBERS: "Order."] I wish to put a question. There was a reference in the last answer to charges that were made against Sir George Keppel. Now, I have not made any charges.
§ Mr. SPEAKERNo one said the hon. Member had. He seems to be particularly anxious to fit the cap. It has been particularly disclaimed by the Under-Secretary. Will the hon. Member now kindly ask Question 6?
§ Mr. SPEAKERIf the hon. Member will not ask Question 6, I shall pass on to the next.
§ Mr. SPEAKERI really must ask the hon. Member to resume his seat.
§ Mr. SPEAKERI shall have to ask the hon. Member to withdraw if he does not comply with the usual Rules. He must bear in mind we have only a very short time to deal with questions, and there are a great number on the Paper.
§ Mr. SPEAKERIf the hon. Member persists in resisting my authority, I must ask him to leave the House.
§ Mr. KEIR HARDIEQuestions 6 and 7 have already been answered, but perhaps I may be allowed to ask whether the Under-Secretary has satisfied himself by reading this Manual of Pashto that these personal allusions were not offensive and should not be withdrawn?
§ Mr. MONTAGUThe hon. Member will find on reading the Report that this set of questions in the Manual of Pashto are not Sir George Roos Keppel's authorship, but are twenty years old, and were collected in this Manual and given as examples of questions asked in the original examination.
Mr. MacCALLUM SCOTTAre we to understand that this Manual of Pashto has something to do with the trial, and that this particular question cannot be answered except with reference to the trial itself?
§ Mr. SPEAKERThe hon. Member must give notice of that question.