Learning Objective
- The First World War, Khilafat and Non-Cooperation
- Differing Strands within the Movement
- Towards Civil Disobedience
- The Sense of Collective Belonging
The First World War, Khilafat and Non-Cooperation
- In India, modern nationalism grew alongside the anti-colonial movement led by Mahatma Gandhi. Colonialism brought different groups together under the Congress.
- After World War I, economic and political changes worsened life for common people. Income tax and custom duties doubled, creating hardships. Crop failures and an influenza epidemic added to the suffering. A new leader emerged, proposing a new way to resist.
The Idea of Satyagraha
- In 1915, Gandhi returned to India and launched Satyagraha, emphasizing truth and non-violence. He believed in uniting Indians through non-violent resistance.
- In 1917, he went to Champaran to support peasants against oppressive plantations. That same year, he organized Satyagraha in Kheda, Gujarat. In 1918, he led a movement among cotton mill workers in Ahmedabad.
The Rowlatt Act
- In 1919, Gandhi led a nationwide Satyagraha against the Rowlatt Act, which allowed detention without trial. Police fired on a peaceful procession in Amritsar on April 10th, sparking violence. Martial law was imposed, and General Dyer led troops.
- On April 13th, the Jallianwala Bagh massacre occurred, killing hundreds. Gandhi ended the movement due to escalating violence. He then united Hindus and Muslims over the Khilafat issue. In 1920, he started a non-cooperation movement for Khilafat and Swaraj.
Why Non-cooperation?
Mahatma Gandhi believed British rule in India happened with Indian cooperation. He proposed the Non-Cooperation Movement in stages, starting with surrendering government titles and boycotting civil services, the army, and more. After much debate, the movement was adopted in December 1920.
Differing Strands within the Movement
In January 1921, the Non-Cooperation-Khilafat Movement started. Different social groups joined, but the meaning varied for each.
The Movement in the Towns
The movement began with the middle class, with students, teachers, and lawyers joining. Indian textile production rose as foreign goods were boycotted. However, the movement slowed because Khadi clothes were costly, and there were limited Indian educational and legal options.
Rebellion in the Countryside
- The Non-Cooperation Movement reached the countryside, where peasants protested against oppressive landlords, demanding reduced rents and an end to forced labor.
- Jawaharlal Nehru began visiting villages in Awadh in June 1920, establishing the Oudh Kisan Sabha by October. By 1921, the movement expanded, targeting landlords’ homes and seizing grain boards.
- In the early 1920s, a guerrilla movement erupted in the Gudem Hills of Andhra Pradesh due to government forest closures. Led by Alluri Sitaram Raju, the revolt aimed to protect livelihoods.
Swaraj in the Plantations
For Assam’s plantation workers, freedom meant the right to move in and out and stay connected to their villages. The 1859 Inland Emigration Act restricted their movement. Upon hearing of the Non-Cooperation Movement, many workers left for home but were intercepted by police and brutally beaten.
Towards Civil Disobedience
- In February 1922, Gandhi ended the Non-Cooperation Movement due to violence. Some leaders wanted to join provincial council elections. CR Das and Motilal Nehru formed the Swaraj Party.
- In the late 1920s, Indian politics was influenced by the global economic depression and falling agricultural prices. The Statutory Commission was formed to review India’s constitutional system.
- In 1928, the Simon Commission arrived in India, met with protests. In December 1929, Lahore Congress, led by Jawaharlal Nehru, demanded ‘Purna Swaraj’ or full independence, declaring January 26, 1930, as Independence Day.
The Salt March and the Civil Disobedience Movement
- On January 31, 1930, Gandhi sent a letter to Viceroy Irwin with eleven demands, including abolishing the salt tax. If demands weren’t met by March 11, Congress would start civil disobedience.
- Gandhi’s famous salt march covered 240 miles from Sabarmati to Dandi, where he made salt from seawater on April 6, launching the Civil Disobedience Movement.
- The movement spread worldwide, with salt laws broken, foreign clothes boycotted, and revenue and forest laws violated. Abdul Ghaffar Khan and Gandhi were arrested in April 1930, sparking attacks on British symbols.
- Gandhi called off the movement with the Gandhi-Irwin Pact on March 5, 1931, agreeing to a Round Table Conference in London. When it failed, he relaunched the Civil Disobedience Movement in India until it lost momentum by 1934.
How Participants Saw the Movement
- During the Civil Disobedience Movement, Patidars in Gujarat and Jats in Uttar Pradesh were active supporters. However, they felt disillusioned when the movement was called off in 1931 and many refused to participate when it restarted in 1932. Poorer peasants joined radical movements led by Socialists and Communists.
- Business interests were organized through bodies like the Indian Industrial and Commercial Congress and FICCI, which initially supported the movement. Some industrial workers joined strikes in 1930 and 1932. Women participated extensively, but Congress hesitated to give them leadership roles for a long time.
The Limits of Civil Disobedience
- Dalits, known as untouchables, weren’t initially interested in Swaraj. Gandhi, calling them Harijans, organized satyagraha for them. However, they sought reserved seats in education and a separate electorate.
- Ambedkar formed the Depressed Classes Association in 1930, clashing with Gandhi at the Round Table Conference over separate electorates. The Poona Pact of 1932 provided reserved seats for Depressed Classes.
- After the decline of the Non-Cooperation-Khilafat movement, Hindu-Muslim relations soured as Muslims felt alienated from Congress. Jinnah sought Muslim representation based on population, but compromise efforts failed due to opposition from the Hindu Mahasabha in 1928.
The Sense of Collective Belonging
- Nationalism grows when people feel part of one nation. History, fiction, folklore, songs, and symbols contribute to this. Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay created Bharat Mata in the 1870s with his hymn ‘Vande Mataram.’ Abanindranath Tagore painted her as an ascetic figure, symbolizing calm and spirituality.
- Nationalists recorded folk tales and songs, and during the Swadeshi movement, a tricolor flag with lotuses and a crescent moon symbolized unity. By 1921, Gandhi designed the Swaraj flag with red, green, and white, and a spinning wheel, representing self-reliance.
Conclusion
In the early 20th century, Indians from different backgrounds united for independence. Gandhi-led Congress worked to reconcile differences and ensure all voices were heard, creating a diverse nation seeking freedom from colonialism.
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