Delhi, Prime Minister's Office, South Block - May 8th, 1949
The morning of May 8th saw Arjun's office more crowded than usual.
Sardar Patel, Finance Minister Kelkar, Planning Minister Pant, Law Minister Munshi, and all the other ministers had all been summoned for the cabinet meeting.
Even though all, except Patel, were clueless about the agenda, they knew when Arjun calls everyone together like this, it usually meant something big was coming.
Arjun didn't waste time on pleasantries. "Gentlemen, I believe you all know about the Commonwealth summit invitation, right? I've decided to attend the meeting personally. Main reason being that I will publicly announce India's withdrawal from the Commonwealth."
The room went dead silent. The gathered men were too stunned to speak. Kelkar's mouth actually fell open. Patel, who already knew about this, watched the others' reactions with barely concealed amusement.
"You're...leaving the Commonwealth, Prime Minister?" Pant finally managed. "Just like that?"
"Just like that," Arjun nodded.
Munshi recovered first. "Prime Minister, this…this is bit extreme. The Commonwealth provides us with valuable resources, preferential access, and decades of established networks. Leaving now means we'll essentially be abandoning all of these.
Not to mention, it'll make the West very nervous about where India stands. That could create serious complications."
Kelkar jumped in. "Exactly. The economic implications alone are significant. Trade preferences and financial networks. We're heavily dependent on international cooperation for our industrialization plans. Cutting these ties abruptly seems unnecessarily risky."
Arjun listened calmly, not looking particularly concerned. "I've thought about all that. India's position is strong enough now. We have our UNSC seat, economic agreements with all major powers like US, Britain and Soviets, and a growing industrial capacity.
Nobody's going to publicly denounce us. As for Washington, I'm planning to invite them for bilateral talks, later this month, about the dollar peg anyway. That'll keep them on board."
"And Krishna-ji will handle the diplomatic cleanup in London," he added. "He's good at smoothing ruffled feathers."
Patel spoke up. "What about the practical benefits the Commonwealth provides? Access to resources and other information sharing networks. Have you thought anything regarding them?"
"I did," Arjun affirmed. He paused for effect. "I'm going to propose a new forum at the summit. Call it the Conference of Sovereign Nations or CSN in short."
Everyone stared at him.
"It'll have same basic purpose as the CPMC," Arjun continued. "But without Britain sitting at the centre like it owns the place. No permanent leader, no symbolic head or inherited hierarchy."
"Then…who runs it, Prime Minister?" Munshi asked.
"No single member. The chairmanship rotates. Every member takes turns to host the summit. Equal footing for everyone, at least formally."
Patel let out a surprised laugh. "You're basically redesigning the Commonwealth without the monarchy. That's... bold."
"I'm just removing the pretense that some countries matter more because of colonial history," Arjun said. "If cooperation is actually useful, it'll survive without a crown presiding over it."
Patel shook his head, looking both impressed and concerned. "London is going to hate this, that's for certain. And what about the other members? Canada, Australia, the African countries? They're going to face awkward questions about why they're staying in an organization that India just publicly walked away from."
"Exactly," Arjun said with a slight smile. "Which gives them all the more reason to join the CIN instead."
The room went quiet as everyone processed this.
Shastri who was quit till now, spoke with a small smile. "It's quite a clever trap that you have set, Prime Minister. If the Britain refuses to participate in CSN, it exposes them publicly as clinging to old imperial ideas.
It will also make other nations interpret refusal as arrogance or obstruction, weakening Britain's global standing."
"That's the idea," Arjun confirmed.
Kelkar still looked worried. "Prime Minister, even with the clever framing, this will be a major diplomatic rupture. British will be furious. And given the recent trends, they might just retaliate even if it costs them."
"Then so be it. Brits should know that they need us more than we need them," Arjun countered. "Look, I know this is risky. But we can't keep playing the role of grateful former colony.
Not after how much damage they caused to us. We need to step up and boldly remove every last bit of colonial footprint."
Patel nodded slowly. "I agree. The timing is actually good as well. We're strong enough now to absorb the diplomatic fallout. A year ago this would have been reckless. Now? Not so much."
"What about the Naga Hills visit?" Pant asked. "You can't do both."
"I'll try to get back early. If it proves impossible, then I'll just push the visit back by a couple days," Arjun said. "The timing isn't as critical there. The Commonwealth summit is a fixed date and a unique opportunity.
I can't announce India's withdrawal through a cable or a representative. It has to be done in person, at their own summit, for the maximum impact."
Munshi sighed. "It's going to be a historic moment, that's certain."
"Indeed," Arjun said.
Patel stood up. "Alright. If we're doing this, we need to prepare properly. Menon would need detailed briefing materials. We need to coordinate with our embassies about how to explain this to their host countries. And also, a contingency plans for possible economic scenarios."
"Right," Arjun nodded. "Get started on that. I'll draft the speech that I'm giving at the summit myself."
After others left, Arjun sat down at his desk and pulled out paper to start drafting. The speech needed to hit the right notes.
'Hehe, May 14th is going to be an interesting day.'
---------------------------------------------------
Naga Hills, Kohima Administrative Center, May 7th, 1949
While Arjun was preparing for the CPMC, the administrative environment in Kohima was anything but calm.
The news from the Governor that Prime Minister himself will be visiting Naga Hills, tore through the regular calm and laid-back atmosphere like a hot knife through butter.
This is probably first time in decades, if not more, that someone with such stature is visiting this area. Usually, even when on some rare occasion, some important figure had wanted to 'visit' the northeastern states, they would go to Assam province.
But now, Assam no longer holds the administration of eight new northeastern states.
[A/N: 8th one being East Bengal]
Chief Commissioner B.P. Singh, a dedicated ICS officer who'd been managing the region with limited resources, was overwhelmed. His small staff, which was mainly some mix of old British-trained clerks and newly appointed Indian administrators, was running around in controlled panic.
"Are the guest houses even habitable?" Singh was barking orders to anyone within earshot. "What about the water supply, is it working? Have we cleared those landslides on the road from Dimapur? No? Then get it done as soon as possible."
His deputy, a young Naga officer named Kevi, approached with visible concern. "Sir, the village elders are asking questions. They appreciate the visit, but they want to know more. Some are worried it's about imposing more control over customary laws and traditional councils."
Singh rubbed his temples, feeling a headache building. "Kevi, as much I want to tell you, I'm not aware of the specifics. Inform them that Prime Minister is coming here to understand the concerns of the people. Not only that, but he's also bringing the development offers that'll make this region a better place.
And most importantly…make it absolutely clear that although he is very likely to respect the local traditions, they wouldn't want to be on the receiving end of his wrath if they try to undermine India's sovereignty in any way. Trust me."
Singh shivered slightly as he recalled a rumour he had once heard about this young Prime Minister, back when the Indo-Pak war was in full swing.
Kevi nodded solemnly, as his gaze shifted to the green hills in the distance. He knew this visit wasn't going to be easy. It could be the start of something good for the Naga people, a genuine integration with real benefits. Or…it could make things worse if handled badly. Worse for them.
He finally looked away, turning his gaze towards a group of armed police personnel discussing something with the officer from their branch.
These individuals were from the Intelligence Bureau and Delhi Police Special Branch. They had already arrived here, quietly sweeping every route and every potential meeting location. He must admit, they were quite professional and efficient with how they operated. But still…their presence reminded everyone that this visit could carry some potential risks.
"Sir, what if the elders refuse to meet with him?" Kevi asked quietly.
Singh turned to look at him. The first few words that came to his mind were 'They don't have a choice', but he couldn't bring himself to say them.
"Then we'll have failed before he even arrives, Kevi. That's why we need to do this right. Your people need to understand that this isn't about control, it's about partnership. But they also need to understand that partnership requires both sides to show up."
"Yes, sir. I'll do my best," Kevi replied as he straightened his shoulders.
Singh nodded as he cast one final glance at the calendar on his wall.
"Alright," he said, turning back to his staff. "Let's get to work. Make sure every issue is resolved."
He watched as Kevi and the other members walked away, before returning to his office to reassess the list of everything that needed to be done.