...Question: What do you think of the proposed revision of the Treaty ofSevres?
Gandhi: I have only hurriedly glanced through the new terms. So far as I canjudge, they aim at pacifying Turks and not Indian Mussulmans. The two thingshave to be recognised as distinct. Khilafat is essentially a religiousmovement, being idealistic and unconnected with Turkish pacification. Itderives its sanction directly from the injunction of the Prophet. Until,therefore, Indian Mussulmans are placated, there can be no peace, and the sinequa non of Mussulman conciliation is that what is termed the Island of Arabiamust remain under the exclusive Mussulman control and under the spiritualsovereignty of the Khalifa, whoever he may be for the time being. The prestigeof Islam demands rendition of Smyrna and Thrace to Turkey, and evacuation bythe Allied Powers of Constantinople, but the existence of Islam demands thetotal abrogation of mandates taken by Britain and France. No influence, director indirect, over the Holy Places of Islam will ever be tolerated by IndianMussulmans. It follows, therefore, that even Palestine must be under Mussulmancontrol. So far as I am aware, there never has been any difficulty put in theway of Jews and Christians visiting Palestine and performing all theirreligious rites. No canon, however, of ethics or war can possibly justify thegift by the Allies of Palestine to Jews. It would be a breach of implied faithwith Indian Mussulmans in particular and the whole of India in general. Not anIndian soldier would have gone, if Britain on the eve of war had declared eventhe possibility of any such usurpation, and it is becoming clearer every daythat if India is to remain a free partner in a future British Commonwealth, asdistinguished from the Empire, the terms of the Khilafat have to be settledmore in consultation with the spiritual leaders of Mussulmans than with thepolitical leaders of Turkey.