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The address mentioned "..Nor have you worked only for the advancement of the Muslim community, but also for the improvement of the condition of the Indians in general. When the first public meeting of protest of the citizens of Bombay against the great hardships and sufferings of the Indians in South Africa was organised, it was to Your Highness that the eyes of everyone turned as the fittest person to preside at such a meeting. Your Highness did preside at the meeting and you have since continued to take the keenest interest in the struggle of the Indians against the unjust rules and laws that unfortunately obtain in South Africa....".

Mowlana Sultan Mohamed Shah replied by saying he was very proud indeed, to be given such an honour. In his reply address, He talked about the duties of a true leader, the difficulties faced by Muslim leadership, the inter-relationships between the Hindus and the Muslims not only in India but in other parts of the world, the need for stability, the importance of education and other important topics.

He said, "That one object is the improvement of education. The Muslims should enlarge the sphere of education where it exists already and must create it where it is absent. Scientific and technical education in all its various branches such as commercial, industrial and agricultural instruction must be the main practical objects of our energy and ambitions. At the same time the literary side so beautifully known as the Humanities should not be neglected and our interest as well as sentiments make it necessary that a knowledge, not only of English, Arabic and Persian but also of Sanskrit literature, should exist amongst us so that we may come in contact with the sources of Hindu civilisation and the roots of Hindu society..."(n.d p.176)