Sir Sultan Muhammed Shah, Aga Khan III (2 November 1877 – 11 July 1957) was the 48th
Imam of the
Nizari Ismaili community. He was one of the founders and the first president of the
All-India Muslim League. His goal was the advancement of Muslim agendas and protection of Muslim rights in India. The League until the late 1930s was not a mass organisation but represented the landed and commercial Muslim interests of the United Provinces (today's
Uttar Pradesh). He shared
Syed Ahmad Khan's belief that Muslims should first build up their
social capital through advanced education before engaging in politics. Aga Khan called on the
British Raj to consider Muslims to be a separate nation within India. Even after he resigned as president of the AIML in 1912, he still exerted major influence on its policies and agendas. He was nominated to represent India to the League of Nations in 1932 and served as President of the
League of Nations from 1937–38.