Page:Fischer - A Week with Gandhi.pdf/114



“Why will it not wait until after the war?” I asked.

“Because I want to act now and be useful while the war is here,” he replied.

“Have you any organization with which to carry on this struggle?” I inquired.

“The organization is the Congress Party,” he answered. “But if it fails me, I have my own organization, myself. I am a man possessed by an idea. If such a man cannot get an organization, he becomes an organization.”

“Have you sufficient confidence in the present mood of the country? Will it follow you? This civil disobedience movement may involve heavy sacrifices for the people. Has anybody opposed your idea?”

“I had a letter today from Rajagopalachari,” he told me. “He is the only one opposed. I know his views. But how does he expect the Moslem League to work with him when he wishes to work with the Moslem League in order to destroy Pakistan?”

“Do you think Jinnah is set on Pakistan? Perhaps it is a bargaining counter with him which he will give up if Hindu-Moslem cooperation can be achieved.”

“As I have told you before,” Gandhi stated, “he will only give it up when the British are gone and when there is therefore nobody with whom to bargain.”