Vallabhbhai Jhaverbhai Patel; 31 October 1875 – 15 December 1950), endeared as Sardar, was an Indian statesman. He served as the first deputy Prime Minister of India from 1947 to 1950. He was an Indian barrister and a senior leader of the Indian National Congress who played a leading role in the country's struggle for independence and guided its integration into a united, independent nation.

1. October 31st ,1875 – December 15th ,1950

2. Contents:-
1. Introduction
2. Decision
3. Justification & Conclusion

3. Introduction – “WHO WAS HE?”
• Vallabhbhai Jhaverbhai Patel was born on October 31st , 1875 in
Nadiad, Bombay Presidency, British India (now Gujarat, India).
• Initially he was a barristor and later turned into a politician, a
senior leader in Indian National Congress and became a
prominent pillar in India’s freedom struggle.
• He led and organised peasants revolution in Kheda, Bardoli district
of Gujarat in non-violent civil disobedience against the Britishers
and thus became one of the most influential leaders in Gujarat.
• Sardar Patel was an ardent follower of Mahatma Gandhi.

4. • He had extraordinary oratory and diplomatic skills as if he can
convince and persuade the most adamant people’s views/decisions
to change or modify.
• To uplift the best common interest of whole India, he even clashed
with his allies also.
• He was a man blessed with far-sightedness, he saw upcoming
future events through accurate analysis of ongoing current events
and scenarios of his time.
• He was the 49th President of Indian National Congress.
• He was the 1st Deputy Prime Minister and Home Minister of the
country after independence.
• He was admired, respected and supported across the country, only
second to Mahatma Gandhi (sometimes even surpassing him).

5. • As the 1st Home Minister he played the key role in the integration
of the princely states in the dominion of India.
• He was the first leader of Congress to accept the partition of
India and insisted other leaders also that if they don’t agree, the
Muslim League will be invited to form the government in the
country.Therefore he accepted the partition and gave Muslim
League, the Pakistan they always wanted.
• Following the partition, there was a massive transfer of
population across the two countries which led to severe
humanitarian disturbances. Sarder Patel took the lead in
organising relief and emergency supplies, established refugee
camps and visited the border areas with Pakistani leaders to
encourage brotherhood and peace among people.

6. • Patel enjoyed the loyalty and the faith of rank and file Congressmen,
state leaders and India’s civil servants.
• He was responsible in bringing Dr. B.R. Ambedkar for drafting India’s
constitution.
• He was also instrumental in the founding of Indian Administrative
Service and Indian Police Service.
• He was known as “Sardar Patel” where Sardar meant leader.
• Also known as “Iron Man”, “Bismarck of India”, “Patron Saint of
India’s Civil Servants”.
• He has posthumously honoured with “Bharat Ratna” award in 1991.
• To honour his legacy, National Unity Day is celebrated in India on
October 31st on the birth anniversary of SardarVallabhbhai Patel.

7. MAJOR DECISION
• SardarVallabhbhai Patel is considered as one of the founding father
of present day’s modern India. As independent India’s 1st Home
Minister and deputy Prime Minister, he took several important and
strategic decisions which influenced and changed India’s future and
then present drastically.
• Out of his several decisions, this following one will standout forever.
This is:-
• Unification of princely states in the Dominion of India.
1. Accession of J&K, Hyderabad, Junagadh and Jodhpur.

8. • Unification of India
• He led the task of forging a united India, successfully integrating
British colonial provinces and 565 self-governing princely states that
formed the Dominion of India.
• Patel persuaded almost every princely state to accede to India. His
commitment to national integration in the newly independent
country was total and uncompromising, earning him the title “Iron
Man of India”.
• Back then, the princely states covered 48% of the area of pre-
Independent India and constituted 28% of its population.
• Through the Indian Independence Act of 1947, the princely states
acquired independence and it also gave each of these rulers the
option to accede to the newly born dominions of India or Pakistan
or continue as an independent sovereign state.

9. • Realising the need to get these 500-odd chiefdoms to accede to India
before the day of independence, Patel and Menon began using all the
tricks in the bag, including the use of both force and friendly
advice, to achieve their integration with the Indian dominion.
• But the process was far from simple. Mollycoddled as well as
exploited by the British for decades, many of the rulers saw the
departure of the British as the ideal moment to declare autonomy
and announce their independent statehood on the world map.
• Patel began lobbying the princes, attempting to make them
receptive towards dialogue with the future government and forestall
potential conflicts.
• Patel used social meetings and unofficial surroundings to engage
most of the monarchs, inviting them to lunch and tea at his home in
Delhi.

10. • From invoking the patriotism of the princes to reminding them of
the possibility of anarchy on event of their refusal to join, he kept
trying to convince them to join India.
• He asked them to join in the independence of their nation and act as
responsible rulers who cared about the future of their people.
• He also introduced the concept of “privy purses”, a payment to
be made to royal families for their agreement to merge with
India.
• Patel did not rule out force. Stressing that the princes would need to
accede to India in good faith, he set a deadline of 15 August 1947 for
them to sign the instrument of accession document.
• Patel’s tireless efforts paid off when most of the rulers agreed to
accede India willingly, realising the broader picture.
• By 15 August 1947, the process of integration of princely states was
almost complete except for a few, who held out.

11. Accession of Jammu & Kashmir, Hyderabad,Junagadh
and Jodhpur
• The biggest problems however arose with Jodhpur, which tried to
negotiate better deals with Pakistan; Junagadh, which actually did
accede to Pakistan and with Hyderabad and Kashmir, which declared
that they intended to remain independent.
• JODHPUR:-
• In June 1947, Maharaja Hanvant Singh ascended the throne of
Jodhpur.Young and inexperienced, he reckoned that he may get a
better “deal” from Pakistan than India.
• So Hanvant Singh entered into negotiations with Mohammed Ali
Jinnah, who gave the Maharaja a signed blank sheet of paper to
list all his demands.

12. • From free access to the Karachi port to arms manufacturing and
importing, the princely state was allowed to accede to Pakistan on
any terms it chose.
• Seeing the risks in the border state acceding to Pakistan, Patel
immediately met Hanvant Singh and assured him that importing
arms would be allowed, Jodhpur would be connected to
Kathiawar by rail and India would supply grain to it during
famines. But the Maharaja was not convinced enough and was in
double mind.
• The Maharaja was still willing to go Pakistan, but then Patel warned
him as the accession of a predominantly Hindu state to Pakistan
would violate the basic tenet of the two-nation theory and was very
likely to cause communal violence in the State. Fearing of riots like
in Punjab and Bengal, Hanvant Singh decided to accede Jodhpur to
India & Jinnah’s blank cheque was discarded.

13. • JUNAGADH:-
• A kingdom with nearly 80% Hindu population whose Muslim
decided to accede to Pakistan on September 15, 1947. The
outraged people of Junagadh rose against the Nawab’s rule in
several parts of the state, forcing the ruler to flee to Karachi with
his family and formed a provisional Government there.
• Patel asked Pakistan to reverse its acceptance of the accession
to hold a plebiscite. When it refused, he sent the Indian Army to
annex the princely state on November 1, 1947.
• This was followed by plebiscite that was held in December the
same year, during which 99% of Junagadh’s people chose India
Pakistan.

14. • JAMMU & KASHMIR (then Kashmir):-
• Kashmir, a princely state with a Hindu king ruling over a
Muslim population didn’t acceded to either India or Pakistan.
• On 12 August 1947, J&K sought a standstill agreement with both
and Pakistan.
• Strategically, geographically and financially J&K was very imp. to
the new formed nations.
• Knowing Pakistan’s intentions about the critical situation in
the Indian leaders debated a lot and formed strategy if anything
haywire.
• Patel was not very interested in Kashmir, he was at that point if
Pakistan takesover Kashmir than be it. He was exhausted with
with the ruler of J&K, Hari Singh and with his naive and
nature but deep inside he wanted J&K to be a part of India.

15. • Pakistan began the invasion of Kashmir on October 22, 1947,when
Pakistani lashkars (armed tribesmen) Army, entered Kashmir.
• Patel wanted to send army immediately to Kashmir but waited as
advised by Nehru and Mountbatten.
• Maharaja Hari Singh thought that his own army can contain the
Pakistani invasion forces but the failed.
• Then a desperate Maharaja Hari Singh asked GoI for military
assistance but Patel denied stating that they won’t interfere until
J&K accede to India & a cornered Hari Singh signed the instrument
of accession and J&K officially became Union of India’s territory.

16. • After J&K’s accession, a defence committee sat to tackle the
Pakistani invasion and debated a lot on lesser things & issues on
which Patel got angry & said “Do you want Kashmir or not?” to
which everyone replied “Yes”.
• Patel along with then defence minister Baldev Singh, immediately
ordered the Indian Army to deploy in Kashmir.
• Through his quick decision making and Indian Army’s valiant effort
they receded the invasion significantly back and regained control of
majority of Kashmir region.

17. • HYDERABAD:-
• The ruler of Hyderabad was a Nizam and he ruled the largest and
richest of all princely states in India.After independence, he
to join India. He neither joined Pakistan but was supportive to
being a Muslim. He was boastful of his riches and army.
• Both requests and threats from Patel and others mediators failed
change the mind of the wily Nizam, who also provided financial
of ₹20 crore to Pakistan. This move really enraged Patel.
• Things took a ugly turn when his army called Razakars unleashed
violence at Hyderabad’s Hindu residents. Patel acted again and
ordered an all out military operation known as 'Operation Polo’ to
takeover Hyderabad on September 17, 1948.
• The operation lasted for 4 days in which Nizam’s army was
and lost which ultimately forced the Nizam to surrender and
his State with the Indian Union.

18. JUSTIFICATION &
CONCLUSION
• Unification of India was one such task that changed the course of entire
history of modern India which will be remembered for eternity.
• It was Sardar Patel’s decision making ability that united the present day
India. When to use diplomacy and when to take action, he knew it all.
• Even Mahatma Gandhi knew that if anyone who could integrate princely
states to the Union of India, he was SardarVallabhbhai Patel, that’s why
he was given that humongous task.
• Sardar Patel being a former barrister knew exactly what was the need of
the hour, whether negotiations will work or swift action or wait & watch
strategy will work.Through this he was impeccable at decision making.

19. • He believed that in a newly independent country there should be one
union govt. and same law governing the whole country.There should
not be fragmentation of the country as it will weaken the country and
small states will be prone to foreign invasion and will be a concern of
national integrity.
• The decision of unification of the princely states into India turns more
practical when we see the bigger picture i.e.
• We can travel anywhere in the country without visa or any other
any other official permission. From one state to another we can freely
we can freely travel.
• We can do business or apply for employment opportunities in any
opportunities in any state of the country.
• We can live anywhere in India without any restrictions.
• One can study anywhere in India, can get medical assistance
assistance anywhere in the country with ease.

20. • Union government’s social beneficiary schemes are
available for each and every citizen of the country.
• Rules, laws, rights, duties etc does not vary across the
country, it is same for every individual living in the Union of
India.
• Every citizen is equal before the government.
• Welfare of the citizens is the utmost thing now.
• As the above mentioned advantages and liberties we enjoy
have been impossible if Sardar Patel hadn’t acted then.
• Just think if the unification of princely states was not done
from Delhi wants to go to Chennai for any work or any other
number of permissions/visas/formalities he has to obtain will
serious headache and plus the time consumed in getting
paperwork done so that he can finally travel. It’s

21. • Another aspect to this is, the termination of paramountcy after
independence meant that all rights that flowed from the state's
relationship with the British crown would return to them, leaving
them free to negotiate relationships with the new states of India and
Pakistan “on a basis of complete freedom”.
• Since majority of the princely states were in India, technically it was
not possible for them to be a part of Pakistan, only states sharing the
common border with Pakistan can do that. India also feared that if
these states remained independent, they can also accede to Pakistan
which can cause them severe problems.Therefore unification of the
princely states in India was so crucial.
• Also breaking links between independent India and the princely states
would have posed difficult problems for the princely states & as well as
India also.

22. • As with the development of trade, commerce and communications
during the 19th & 20th centuries had bound the princely states to
British India through a system of complex network. Agreements
relating to railways, customs, irrigation, the use of ports, and other
similar agreements would disappear, posing a serious threat to the
economic life of the subcontinent.
• If the princely states remained independent or acceded to Pakistan,
they will suffer economic crisis and also India might have suffered
some damage to its economic structure.Therefore the integration of
these states to India was very important.

23. “Little pools of water tend to become stagnant and useless, but if they
are joined together to form a big lake the atmosphere is cooled and
there is universal benefit.” – Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel