Mountbatten Plan

a declaration of the government of Great Britain on June 3, 1947, that provided for the partition of India into two states that were granted the rights of dominions.

The plan was implemented by the viceroy of India, L. Mountbatten. According to the Mountbatten plan, India was divided into two states—a Hindu state, Hindustan, and a Muslim state, Pakistan. Both states received the rights of a dominion. In the northwestern border province and in the Sylhet District of Assam, the question of which state to join was settled by referendum and in Sind, by vote of the Legislative Assembly. In Punjab and Bengal the issue of demarcation was decided by vote of the legislative assemblies; deputies from Muslim-majority areas and deputies from Hindu-majority areas voted separately. Princes were given the right to choose either to join one of the two dominions or to retain their previous relations with Great Britain. After these measures were carried out, the Constituent Assembly of India was divided into the assemblies of Hindustan and Pakistan. On Aug. 15, 1947, the partition was completed, and both states were declared dominions. Subsequently, the Mountbatten plan was confirmed by the king of Great Britain as the statute On the Independence of India.