Context: BR Ambedkar, the Chairman of the drafting committee of the Constitution, also played a role in India’s unification.
Ambedkar’s Role in Indian Unification:
Legally invalidated exclusion of princely states: of Travancore and Nizam of Hyderabad from Indian union and their stance to appeal to the United Nations (UN).
Represented India’s legal interest at all the three Round Table Conferences (RTC): which were held with the aim of framing the 1935 Government of India Act
Dismissed the idea of princely states seeking representation in British Indian Parliament after 1935.
Acted against the constitutionality of the Cabinet Mission Plan 1946: Ambedkar argued that the Indian government has the prerogative right to advise the Crown about the paramountcy.
If the Crown cannot transfer paramountcy, the Crown cannot also abandon it,
Denied the Mountbatten’s plan of June 3, 1947, that princely states can join any successor government or become independent.
Derided the false pride of princely states: He argued that out of the 562 princely states,
454 (princely) states have an area of less than 1,000 square miles; as many as 15 states have territories which in no case reach a square mile,
452 states have a population of less than 1,00,000;
374 states have a revenue of less than Rs 1 lakh;
Closed the doors for United Nations (UN) intervention: He said the UN would never grant any assistance to an Indian state from external aggression without insisting that the state should first introduce responsible government within its area.
Recognized unification of Hyderabad as an internal matter of suzerainty: and advised to name operation as “police action” and not an Indian Army intervention.