A Brief History of Modern India (Spectrum)

MODERN INDIA
CHAPTER 1
The Revolt of 1857
The revolt of 1857 was a product of the character and policies of rule.
The cumulative effect of British expansionist policies, economic
exploitation and administrative innovations over the years had adversely
affected the positions of all rulers of Indian states, sepoys,
zamindars, peasants, traders, artisans, pundits, maulvis, etc. The
simmering discontent burst in the form of a violent storm in 1857 which
shook the British empire in India to its very foundations.
The causes of the revolt emerged from all aspects socio-cultural,
economic and politicalof daily existence of Indian population cutting
through all sections and classes. These causes are discussed below.
ECONOMIC CAUSES
The colonial policies of the East India Company destroyed the traditional
economic fabric of the Indian society. The peasantry were never really to
recover from the disabilities imposed by the new and a highly unpopular
revenue settlement (see chapter on "Economic Impact of British Rule in
India" for details). Impoverished by heavy taxation, the peasants
resorted to loans from moneylenders/traders at usurious rates, the latter
often evicting the former on non-payment of debt dues. These
moneylenders and traders emerged as the new landlords. While the scourge
of indebtedness has continued to plague Indian society to this day.
British rule also meant misery to the artisans and handicraftsmen. The
annexation of Indian states by the Company cut off their major source of
patronage. Added to this, British policy discouraged Indian handicrafts
and promoted British goods. The highly skilled Indian craftsmen were
forced to look for alternate sources of employment that hardly
A Brief History of Modern India
existed, as the destruction of Indian handicrafts was not accompanied by
the development of modern industries. Karl Marx remarked in 1853: "It was
the British intruder who broke up the Indian handloom and destroyed the
spinning-wheel. England began with depriving the Indian cottons from the
European market; it then introduced twist into Hindustan and in the end
inundated the very mother country of cotton with cottons.
Zamindars, the traditional landed aristocracy, often saw their land
rights forfeited with frequent use of a quo warranto by the
administration. This resulted in a loss of status for them in the
villages. In Awadh, the storm center of the revolt, 21,000 taluqdars had
their estates confiscated and suddenly found themselves without a source
of income, "unable to work, ashamed to beg, condemned to penury". These
dispossessed taluqdars seized the opportunity presented by the sepoy
revolt to oppose the British and regain what they had lost.
The ruination of Indian industry increased the pressure on agriculture

and land, the lopsided development in which resulted in pauperization of
the country in general.
POLITICAL CAUSES
The East India Company's greedy policy of aggrandizement accompanied by
broken pledges and oaths resulted in loss of political prestige for it,
on the one hand, and caused suspicion in the minds of almost all ruling
princes in India, on the other, through such policies as of 'Effective
Control', 'Subsidiary Alliance' and 'Doctrine of Lapse'. The right of
succession was denied to Hindu princes. The house of Mughals was humbled
when on Prince Faqiruddin's death in 1856, whose succession had been
recognized conditionally by Lord Dalhousie. Lord Canning announced that
the next prince on succession would have to renounce the regal title and
the ancestral Mughal palaces, in addition to renunciations agreed upon by
Prince Faqiruddin.
The collapse of rulersthe erstwhile aristocracyalso The Revolt of 1857
adversely affected those sections of the Indian society which derived
their sustenance from cultural and religious pursuits.
ADMINISTRATIVE CAUSES
Rampant corruption in the Company's administration, especially among the
police, petty officials and lower law courts, and the absentee
sovereigntyship character of British rule imparted a foreign and alien
look to it in the eyes of Indians.
SOCIO-RELIGIOUS CAUSES
Racial overtones and a superiority complex characterized the British
administrative attitude towards the native Indian population. The
activities of Christian missionaries who followed the British flag in
India were looked upon with suspicion by Indians. The attempts at socioreligious reform such as abolition of sati, support to widow-remarriage
and women's education were seen by a large section of the population as
interference in the social and religious domains of Indian society by
outsiders. These fears were further compounded by the Government's
decision to tax mosque and temple lands and legislative measures, such
as the Religious Disabilities Act, 1856, which modified Hindu customs,
for instance declaring that a change of religion did not debar a son
from inheriting the property of his heathen father.
INFLUENCE OF OUTSIDE EVENTS
The revolt of 1857 coincided with certain outside events in which the
British suffered serious lossesthe First Afghan War (1838-42), Punjab
Wars (1845-49), Crimean Wars (1854-56), Santhal rebellion (1855-57).
These had obvious psychological repercussions.
DISCONTENT AMONG SEPOYS
The conditions of service in the Company's Army and cantonments
increasingly came into conflict with the religious beliefs and
prejudices of the sepoys. Restrictions on wearing caste and sectarian
marks and secret rumors of proselytizing
4
activities of chaplains (often maintained on the Company's expenses)

were interpreted by Indian sepoys, who were generally conservative by
nature, as interference in their religious affairs. To the religious
Hindu of the time, crossing the seas meant loss of caste. In 1856 Lord
Canning's Government passed the General Service Enlistment Act which
decreed that all future recruits to the Bengal Army would have to give
an undertaking to serve anywhere their services might be required by
the Government. This caused resentment.
The Indian sepoy was equally unhappy with his emoluments compared to his
British counterpart. A more immediate cause of the sepoys'
dissatisfaction was the order that they would not be given the foreign
service allowance (Matta) when serving in Sindh or in Punjab. The
annexation of Awadh, home of many of the sepoys, further inflamed their
feelings.
The Indian sepoy was made to feel a subordinate at every step and was
discriminated against racially and in matters of promotion and
privileges. The discontent of the sepoys was not limited to matters
military; it reflected the general disenchantment with and opposition to
British rule. The sepoy, in fact, was a 'peasant in uniform' whose
consciousness was not divorced from that of the rural population. "The
Army voiced grievances other than its own; and the movement spread
beyond the Army", observes Gopal.
Finally, there had been a long history of revolts in the British Indian
Armyin Bengal (1764), Vellore (1806), Barrackpore (1825) and during the
Afghan Wars (1838-42) to mention just a few.
BEGINNING AND SPREAD The reports about the mixing of bone dust in rtta
(flour) and the introduction of the Enfield rifle enhanced the sepoys'
growing disaffection with the Government. The cartridge of the new rifle
had to be bitten off before loading and the grease was reportedly made
of beef and pig fan The Army The Revolt of 1857
administration did nothing to allay these fears, and the sepoys
their religion was in grave danger.
felt
The greased cartridges did not create a new cause of discontent in the
Army, but supplied the occasion for the simmering discontent to come out
in the open. The revolt began at Meerut, 58 km from Delhi, on May 10,
1857 and then, gathering force rapidly, soon embraced a vast area from
the Punjab in the north and the Narmada in the south to Bihar in the
east and Rajputana in the west.
Even before the Meerut incident, there were rumblings resentment in
various cantonments. the 19th Native Infantry at Berhampur, which refused
to use the newly introduced Enfield rifle and broke out in mutiny in
February 1857 was disbanded in March 1857. A young sepoy of the 34th
Native Infantry, Mangal Pande, went a step further and fired at the
sergeant major of his unit at Barrackpore. He was overpowered and
executed on April 6 while his regiment was disbanded in May. The 7th
Awadh Regiment which defied its officers on May 3 met with a similar
fate. And then came the explosion at Meerut. On April 24, ninety men of
3rd Native Cavalry refused to accept the greased cartridges. On May 9,
eighty-five of them were dismissed, sentenced. to 10 years' imprisonment
and put in fetters. This sparked off a general mutiny among the Indian
soldiers stationed at Meerut. The very next day, on May 10, they
released their imprisoned comrades, killed their officers and unfurled
the banner of revolt. They set off for Delhi after sunset. In Delhi, the
local infantry joined them, killed their own European officers including
Simon Fraser, the political agent, and seized the city. Lieutenant
Willoughby, the officer-in charge of the magazine at Delhi, offered some
resistance, but was overcome. The aged and powerless Bahadur Shah Zafar
was proclaimed the emperor of India.
Delhi was soon to become the centre of the Great Revolt and Bahadur
Shah, its symbol. This spontaneous raising of the last Mughal king to
the leadership of the country was a recognition of the fact that the
long reign of Mughal dynasty
6
had become the traditional symbol of India's political unity. With this
single act, the sepoys had transformed a mutiny of soldiers into a
revolutionary war, while all Indian chiefs who took part in the revolt
hastened to proclaim their loyalty to the Mughal emperor.
Bahadur Shah, after initial vacillation, wrote letters to all the chiefs
and rulers of India urging them to organize a confederacy of Indian
states to fight and replace the British regime. The entire Bengal Army
soon rose in revolt which spread quickly. Awadh, Rohilkhand, the Doab,
the Bundelkhand, central India, large parts of Bihar and East Punjab
shook off British authority.
The revolt of the sepoys was accompanied by a rebellion of the civil
population, particularly in the north-western provinces and Awadh. Their
accumulated grievances found immediate expression and they rose en masse
to give vent to their opposition to British rule. It is the widespread
participation in the revolt by the peasantry, the artisans, shopkeepers,
day laborers, zamindars, religious mendicants, priests and 'civil
servants which gave it real strength as well as the character of a
popular revolt. Here the peasants and petty zamindars gave free
expression to their grievances by attacking the moneylenders and
zamindars who had displaced them from the land. They took advantage of
the revolt to destroy the moneylenders' account books and debt records.
They also attacked the British-established law courts, revenue offices
(tehsils), revenue records and police stations.
According to one estimate, of the total number of about 1,50,000 men who
died fighting the English in Awadh, over 1,00,000 were civilians.
Within a month of the capture of Delhi, the revolt spread
parts of the country.
STORM CENTRES AND LEADERS OF THE REVOLT
to different
At Delhi the nominal and symbolic leadership belonged to the Mughal

emperor, Bahadur Shah, but the real command lay with a court of soldiers
headed by General Bakht Khan who
THE Revolt of 1857 7
had led the revolt of Bareilly troops and brought them to Delhi. The
court consisted of ten members, six from the army and four from the
civilian departments. The court conducted the affairs of the state in
the name of the emperor. Emperor Bahadur Shah was perhaps the weakest
link in the chain of leadership of the revolt. His weak personality, old
age and lack of leadership qualities created political weakness at the
nerve centre of the revolt and did incalculable damage to it.
At Kanpur, the natural choice was Nana Saheb, the adopted son of the
last Peshwa, Baji Rao II. He was refused the family title and, banished
from Poona, was living near Kanpur. Nana Saheb expelled the English from
Kanpur, proclaimed himself the Peshwa, acknowledged Bahadur Shah as the
emperor of India and declared himself to be his governor. Sir Hugh
Wheeler, commanding the station, surrendered on June 27, 1857.
Begum Hazrat Mahal took over the reigns at Lucknow where the rebellion
broke out on June 4, 1857 and popular sympathy was overwhelmingly in
favour of the deposed Nawab. Her son, Birjis Qadir, was proclaimed the
Nawab and a regular administration was organized with important offices
shared equally by Muslims and Hindus. Henry Lawrence, the British
resident, the European inhabitants and a few hundred loyal sepoys took
shelter in the residency. The residency was besieged by the Indian
rebels and Sir Henry was killed during the siege. The command of the
besieged garrison devolved on Brigadier Inglis who held out against
heavy odds. The early attempts of Sir Henry Havelock and Sir James
Outrarn to recover Lucknow met with no success. Finally, Sir Colin
Campbell, the new commander-in-chief, evacuated the Europeans with the
help of Gorkha regiments. In March 1858, the city was finally recovered
by the British, but guerrilla activity continued till September of the
same year.
At Bareilly, Khan Bahadur, a descendant of the former ruler of
Rohilkhand, was placed in command. Not enthusiastic about the pension
being granted by the British, he organized
8
The Revolt of 1857. An army of 40,000 soldiers and offered stiff

resistance to the British.
In Bihar, the revolt was led by Kunwar Singh, the zamindar of
Jagdishpur. An old man in his seventies, he nursed a grudge against the
British who had deprived him of his estates. He unhesitatingly joined
the sepoys when they reached Arrah from Dinapore.
Maulvi Ahmadullah of Faizabad was another outstanding leader of the
revolt. He was a native of Madras and had moved to Faizabad in the north
where he fought a stiff battle against the British troops. He emerged as
one of the revolt's acknowledged leaders once it broke out in Awadh in

May 1857.
The most outstanding leader of the revolt was Rani Laxmibai, who assumed
the leadership of the sepoys at Jhansi. Lord Dalhousie, the governorgeneral, had refused to allow her adopted son to succeed to the throne
after her husband Raja Ganbadhar Rao died, and had annexed the state by
the application of the infamous 'Doctrine of Lapse'. Driven out of
Jhansi by British forces, she gave the battle cry"main apni Jhansi nahi
doongi" (I shall not give away my Jhansi). She was joined by Tantia
Tope, a close associate of Nana Saheb, after the loss of Kanpur. Rani of
Jhansi and Tantia Tope marched towards Gwalior where they were hailed by
the Indian soldiers. The Scindhia, the local ruler, however, decided to
side with the English and took shelter at Agra. Nana Saheb was
proclaimed the Peshwa and plans were chalked out for a march into the
south. Gwalior was recaptured by the English in June 1858.
For more than a year the rebels carried on their struggle
odds.
against heavy
SUPPRESSION OF REVOLT
The revolt was finally suppressed. The British captured Delhi on
September 20, 1857 after prolonged and bitter fighting. John Nicholson,
the leader of the siege, was badly wounded and later succumbed to his
injuries. Bahadur Shah was taken prisoner. The royal princes were
captured and butchered on the spot, publicly shot at point blank range,
by Lieutenant Hudson himself. The emperor was exiled to Rangoon where
he died in 1862. Thus the great House of Mughals was finally and
completely extinguished. Terrible vengeance was wreaked on the
inhabitants of Delhi. With the fall of Delhi the focal point of the
revolt disappeared.
One by one, all the great leaders of the revolt fell. Military
operations for the recapture of Kanpur were closely associated with the
recovery of Lucknow. Sir Colin Campbell occupied Kanpur on December 6,
1857. Nana Saheb, defeated at Kanpur, escaped to Nepal in early 1859,
never to be heard of again. His close associate Tantia Tope escaped into
the jungles of central India, was captured while asleep in April 1859
and put to death. The Rani of Jhansi had died on the battlefield earlier
in June 1858. Jhansi was recaptured through assault by Sir Hugh Rose, By
1859, Kunwar Singh, Bakht Khan, Khan Bahadur Khan of Bareilly, Rao Sahib
(brother of Nana Saheb) and Maulvi Ahmadullah were all dead, while the
Begum of Awadh was compelled to hide in Nepal. At Benaras a rebellion
had been organized which was mercilessly suppressed, by Colonel Neil,
who put to death all suspected rebels and even disorderly sepoys.
By the end of 1859, British authority over India was fully reestablished. The British Government had to pour immense supplies of men,
money and arms into the country, though Indians had to later repay the
entire cost through their own suppression.
CAUSES OF FAILURE OF REVOLT
Limited territorial spread was one factor; there was no all-India

veneer about the revolt. The eastern, southern and western parts of
India remained more or less unaffected.
Certain classes and groups did not join and, in fact, worked against the
revolt. Big zamindars acted as "breakwaters to storm"; even Awadh
tahacildars backed off once promises
10
of land restitution were spelt out. Moneylenders and merchants suffered

the wrath of the mutineers badly and anyway saw their class interests
better protected under British patronage. Modern educated Indians viewed
this revolt as backward looking, and mistakenly hoped the British would
usher in an era of modernisation. Most Indian rulers refused to join and
often gave active help to the British. By one estimate, not more than
one-fourth of the total area and not more than one-tenth of the total
population was affected.
The Indian soldiers were poorly equipped materially, fighting generally
with swords and spears and very few guns and muskets. On the other hand,
the European soldiers were equipped with the latest weapons of war like
the Enfield rifle. The electric telegraph kept the commander-in-chief
informed about the movements and strategy of the rebels.
The revolt was poorly organized with no coordination or central
leadership. The principal rebel leadersNana Saheb, Tantia Tope, Kunwar
Singh, Laxmibaiwere no match to their British opponents in generalship.
On the other hand, the East India Company was fortunate in having the
services of men of exceptional abilities in the Lawrence brothers, John
Nicholson, James Outram, Henry Havelock, Edward, etc.
The mutineers lacked a clear understanding of colonial rule; nor did
they have a forward looking programme, a coherent ideology, a political
perspective or a societal alternative. The rebels represented diverse
elements with differing grievances and concepts of current politics.
The lack of unity among Indians was perhaps unavoidable at this stage of
Indian history. Modern nationalism was yet unknown in India. In fact,
the revolt of 1857 played an important role in bringing the Indian
people together and imparting to them the consciousness of belonging to
one country.
HINDU-MUSLIM UNITY FACTOR
During the entire revolt, there was complete cooperation
and Muslims at all levelspeople, soldiers,
between Hindus
The Revolt of 1857

leaders. All rebels acknowledged Bahadur Shah Zafar, a Muslim, as the
emperor and the first impulse of the Hindu sepoys at Meerut was to march
to Delhi, the Mughal imperial capital. Rebels and sepoys, both Hindu and
Muslim, respected each other's sentiments. Immediate banning of cow
slaughter was ordered once the revolt was successful in a particular

area Both Hindus and Muslims were well represented in leadership, for
instance Nana Saheb had Azimullah, a Muslim and an expert in political
propaganda, as an aide, while Laxmibai had the solid support of Afghan
soldiers.
Thus, the events of 1857 demonstrated that the people
India were not basically communal before 1858.
and politics of
NATURE OF THE REVOLT

Views differ on the nature of the 1857 revolt. It was a mere 'Sepoy
Mutiny' to some British historians"a wholly unpatriotic and selfish
Sepoy Mutiny with no native leadership and no -popular support", said
Sir John Seeley. However, it is not a
complete picture of the event as
it involved many sections of the civilian population and not just the
sepoys. The discontent of the sepoys was just one cause of the
disturbance.
Dr K. Datta considers the revolt of 1857 to have been "in the main a
military outbreak, which was taken advantage of by certain discontented
princes and landlords, whose interests had been affected by the new
political orc:er". The last mentioned factor gave it an aura of a
popular uprising in certain areas. It was "never all-Indian in
character, but was localised, restricted and poorly organized". Further,
says Datta, the movement was marked by absence of cohesion and unity of
purpose among the various sections of the rebels.
It was at the beginning of the twentieth
came to be interpreted as a "planned war
V.D. Savarkar in his book, First War of
in his Eighteen FiftySeven considers the
ttfight for religion but ended as a war
century that the 1857 revolt

of national independence", by
Indian Independence. Dr S.N. Sen
revolt as having begun as a
of independence. Dr R.C.
12 A Brief History of Modern India

Majumdar, however, considers it as neither the first, nor national, nor
a war of independence as large parts of the country remained unaffected
and many sections of the people took no part in the upsurge.
According to Marxist historians, the 1857 revolt was "the struggle of
the soldier-peasant democratic combine against foreign as well as feudal
bondage". However, this view does not stand scrutiny in the light of the
fact that the leaders of the revolt themselves came from a feudal
background.
The revolt of 1857 is not easy to categorise. While one can easily
dismiss some views such as those of L.E.R. Rees who considered it to be a
war of fanatic religionists against Christians or T.R. Holmes who saw in
it a conflict between civilisation and barbarism, one cannot quite go so
far as to accept it as a war for independence. It had seeds of
nationalism and anti-imperialism but the concept of common nationality
and nationhood was not inherent to the revolt of 1857.
One may say that the revolt of 1857 was the first great struggle of
Indians to throw off British rule. It established local traditions of
resistance to British rule which were to pave the a y for the modern
national movement.
CONSEQUENCES
The revolt of 1857 marks a turning point in the history of India. It led
to changes in the system of administration and the policy of the
Government.
(i)
The direct responsibility for the administration of the

country was assumed by the British Crown and Company rule
was abolished. The assumption of the Government of India by
the sovereign of Great Britain was announced by Lord Canning
at a durbar at Allahabad in the 'Queen's Proclamation'
issued on November 1, 1858.
(ii) The era of annexations and expansion ended and the British promised
to respect the dignity and rights of the native princes.
The Revolt of 1857 13
(ii)
The Indian states were henceforth to recognise the

paramountcy of the British Crown and were to be treated as
parts of a single charge.
(iii)
The Army, which was at the forefront of the outbreak, was

thoroughly reorganised and British military policy came to
be dominated by the idea of "division and counterpoise".
(v) Racial hatred and suspicion between the Indians and

aggravated.
the English was
Views
It is difficult to avoid the conclusion that the so-called Firs
National War of Independence of 1857 is neither First,
National, nor War of Independence.
not
R.C. Majumdar, The Mutiny became a Revolt and assumed a political

character when the mutineers of Meerut placed themselves under the king
of Delhi a section of the landed aristocracy and civil population
decided in his favour. What began as a fight for religion ended as a war
of independence. S.N. Sen had a single leader of ability arisen among
them (the rebels), we must have been lost beyond redemption. John
Lawrence, The revolt of 1857 was a struggle of the soldier-peasant
democratic combine against foreign imperialism as well as indigenous
landlordism.
Marxist Interpretation
Here lay the woman who was the only man among the rebels.
Hugh Rose
her)
(a tribute to the Rani of Jhansi from the man who defeated
It was far more than a mutiny, yet much less than a first war of
independence.
taniey vvolpert

Summary
Revolta product of character and policies of colonial rule.
Economic causes
Heavy taxation under new revenue settlement,
Summary evictions,
Discriminatory tariff policy against Indian products,
Destruction of traditional handicrafts industry, and
Absence of concomitant industrialisation on modern lines that hit
peasants, artisans and small zamindars.
Political causes
Greedy policy of aggrandisement,
Absentee sovereigntyship character of British rule,
British interference in socio-religious affairs of Indian public.
Military causes
Discontent among sepoys for economic,
Psychological and religious reasons,
Coupled with a long history of revolts.
CENTRES OF REVOLT AND LEADERS
Delhi
- General Khan Kanpur
- Nana Saheb
Begum Hazrat Mahal Bareilly
- Khan Bahadur Bihar
Kunwar Singh Faizabad
- Maulvi Ahmadullah Jhansi
Laxmibai
Lucknow
- Rani
THE BRITISH RESISTANCE

Delhi -- John Nicholson,
Kanpur Lucknow
Jhansi Benaras
- Lieutenant Willoughby,
Lieutenant Hudson Sir Hugh Wheeler, Sir Colin Campbell Henry
Lawrence, Brigadier Inglis,
Henry Havelock, James Outram, Sir Colin Campbell Sir Hugh Rose Colonel James Neill
CAUSES OF FAILURE
Limited territorial and social base.
Crucial support of certain sections of Indian public to British
authorities.
Lack of resources as compared to those of the British.

Lack of coordination and a central leadership.
Lack of a coherent ideology and a political perspective.
NATURE
Not quite the first war of independence but sowed the seeds of
nationalism and quest for freedom from alien rule.
EFFECT
Crown took over.
Company rule abolished.
Queen's Proclamation altered administration.
Army reorganised.
Racial hatred deepened.
CHAPTER 2
Religious and Social Reform Movements
GENESIS OF THE AWAKENING
The dawn of the nineteenth century witnessed the birth of a new visiona
modern vision among some enlightened sections of the Indian society.
This enlightened vision was to shape the course of events for decades to
come and even beyond. This process of reawakening, sometimes, but not
with full justification, defined as the 'Renaissance', did not always
follow the intended line and gave rise to some undesirable by-products
as well, which have become as much a part of daily existence in the
whole of the Indian subcontinent as have the fruits of these reform
movements.
The presence of a colonial government on Indian soil played a complex,
yet decisive role in this crucial phase of modern Indian history. The
impact of British rule on Indian society and culture was widely
different from what India had known before. Most of the earlier
intruders who came to India had settled within her frontiers, were
absorbed by her superior culture and had become part of the land and its
people. However, the British conquest was different. It came at a time
when India, in contrast to an enlightened Europe of the eighteenth
century affected in every aspect by science arid scientific outlook,
presented the picture of a stagnant civilisation and a static and
decadent society.
Indian society in the nineteenth century was caught in a vicious web
created by religious superstitions and social obscurantism. Hinduism had
become a compound of magic, animism and superstition. The priests
exercised an overwhelming and, indeed, unhealthy influence on the minds
of the people. Idolatry and polytheism helped to reinforce
15
16
their position, and their monopoly of scriptural knowledge imparted a

deceptive character to all religious systems. There was nothing that
religious ideology could not persuade people to do.
Social conditions were equally depressing. The most distressing was the
position of women. The birth of a girl was unwelcome, her marriage, a.
burden and her widowhood inauspicious. Attempts to kill female infants
at birth were not unusual. Several women hardly had a married life worth
the name, yet when their husbands died they were expected to commit
sati which Raja Ram mohan Roy described as a 'murder according to every
shastra. If they succeeded in overcoming this social coercion, they were
condemned as widows to life-long misery, neglect and humiliation.
Another debilitating factor was caste. It sought to maintain a system of
segregation, hierarchically ordained on the basis of ritual status. At
the bottom of the ladder came the untouchables or scheduled castes, as
they came to be called later, who formed about twenty per cent of the
Hindu population. The untouchables suffered from numerous and severe
disabilities and restrictions. The system splintered people into
numerous groups. In modern times it became a major obstacle in the
growth of a united national feeling and the spread of democracy. It may
also be noted that caste consciousness, particularly with regard to
marriage, prevailed also among Muslims, Christians and Sikhs who
practised untouchability, though in a less virulent form. The rules and
regulations of caste hampered social mobility, fostered social divisions
and sapped individual initiative. Above all, the humiliation of
untouchability militated against human dignity.
The establishment of colonial rule in India was followed by a systematic
attempt to disseminate colonial culture and ideology as the dominant
cultural current. Faced with the challenge of the intrusion of colonial
culture and ideology, an attempt to reinvigorate traditional
institutions and to realise the potential of traditional culture
developed during the nineteenth century.
17
The impact of modern Western culture and consciousness of defeat by a

foreign power gave birth to a new awakening. There was an awareness that
a vast country like India had been colonised by a handful of foreigners
because of internal weaknesses within the Indian social structure and
culture. For some time it seemed that India had lagged behind in the
race of civilisation. This produced diverse reactions. Some English
educated Bengali youth developed a revulsion for Hindu religion and
culture, gave up old religious ideas and traditions and deliberately
adopted practices most offensive to Hindu sentiments, such as drinking
wine and eating beef. The response, indeed, was varied but the need to
reform social and religious life was a commonly shared conviction.
During the last decades of the nineteenth century, the rising tide of
nationalism and democracy also found expression in movements to reform
and democratise the social institutions and religious outlook of, the
Indian people. Factors such as growth of nationalist sentiments,
emergence of new economic forces, spread of education, impact of modern

Western ideas and culture and increased awareness of the world
strengthened the resolve to reform.
The socio-cultural regeneration of the India of the nineteenth century
was occasioned by the colonial presence, but not created by it.
Social Base
The social base of this quest was the newly emerging middle class and
traditionally as well as western educated intellectuals, but there was a
significant contrast between the broacily bourgeois ideals derived from
a. growing awareness of contemporary developments in the West, and a
predominantly non-bourgeois social base. nineteenth century
intelligentsia searched for its model in the European 'middle class',
which, as it learnt through western education, had brought about the
great transformation in the West from medieval to modern times through
movements like the Renaissance, the Reformation, the Enlightenment and
democratic revolution, or reform. Yet its own social roots lay not in
industry or trade, increasingly
18
controlled by British managing agency firms and their Marwari

subordinates, but in government service or the professions of law,
education, journalism or medicinewith which was very often combined
some connection with land in the shape of the intermediate tenures.
Ideological Base
The important intellectual criteria which gave these reform movements an
ideological unity were rationalism, religious universalism and humanism.
Social relevance was judged by a rationalist critique. Raja Rammohan
Roy upheld the principle of causality linking the whole phenomenal
universe and demonstrability as the sole criterion of truth. Akshay
Kumar Dutt, while proclaiming that 'rationalism is our only preceptor",
held that all natural and social phenomena could be analysed and
understood by purely mechanical processes. This perspective enabled them
to adopt a rational approach to tradition and evaluate the contemporary
socio-religious practices from the standpoint of social utility and to
replace faith with rationality. For instance, in the Brahmo Samaj the
repudiation of the infallibility of the Vedas was the result, while the
Aligarh movement emphasised reconciliation of Islamic teachings with the
needs of the modern age. Syed Ahmed Khan went to the extent of
emphasising that religious tenets were not immutable.
Many of the intellectuals abandoned, though in varying degrees, the
principle of authority in religion and evaluated truth in any religion
by the criteria of logic; reason or science. Swami Vivekananda held that
the same method of investigation which applies to other sciences should
form the basis on which religion is to> justify itself. Although, some
reformers tended to appeal to faith and ancient authority to bolster
their appeal, overall a rational and secular outlook was very much
evident in posing an alternative to prevalent social practices. For
instance, Akshat cited medical against
child marriage. to the past was
to be used only as an aid and an instrument. Neither a revival of the

past nor a total :break with tradition was envisaged.
Though the reformers tried to reform their religions,
19
their religious perspective was universalistic. Raja Rammohan Jeligiar2

sasaalial embodiments of universal th was a defender of the basic and
universal principles of a religions-such as the monotheism of the
Vedas and mall attacking polytheism ofand trinitarianism of
Christianity said that all had the same 'din (faith) ever Keshub Chandra
SenTheld that:our position is not that truths are to be found all
religions, but that all establishes
The universalist perspective was an attempt part of social reformers to
contend with the influence religious identity on the social and
political outlook of the people which was indeed strong. However, under
the onslaught of colonial culture and ideology, instead of providing the
basis for the development of a secular ethos, universalism retreated
into religious particularism towards the second half of the nineteenth
century.
The social reform movements were also an embodiment of a new humanitarian
morality which included the notion that humanity can progress and has
progressed, and that moral values are ultimately those which favour
human progress. An emphasis on the individual's right to interpret
religious scriptures in the light of human reason and human welfare and
a general attack on priestly domination of religious practices
underlined the humanist aspect of religious reform movements.
Religious reformation was the major but not the exclusive concern of
these movements. Instead of other-worldliness and salvation, attention
was focussed on worldly existence. Because of the strong religious
coefficient of social practices and the fact that religion was the
dominant ideology of the times, it was not possible to undertake arty
social action without coming to grips with it
These movements embraced the entire cultural existence,
and all significant practices like language,
the way of life

religion, art and philosophy. The evolution of an alternative culturalideological system and the generation of traa
emerge as twin movement, which to reconstruct traditional knowledge,
cultivation of vernacular languages, creation of an alternate system of
education, defence of religion, efforts to regenerate Indian art and
literature, emphasis on Indian dress and food, attempts to revitalise
the Indian systems of medicine and to probe the potentialities of precolonial technology.
These reform movements could broadly be classified in two categories
reformist movements like the Brahmo Samaj, the Prarthana Samaj, the
Aligarh movement, and the revivalist movements like Arya Samaj and the
Deoband movement. Both the reformist and revivalist movements depended,

with varying degrees, on an appeal to the lost, purity of the religion
they sought to reform. The only difference between one reform movement
and the other lay in the degree to which it relied on tradition or on
reason and conscience.
SOCIAL REFORM
The humanistic ideals of social equality and the equal worth of all
individuals which inspired the newly educated middle class had a major
impact on the field of social reform. This enlightened section of
society was disgusted with the prevailing social ills and inhuman social
practices. The social reform movements formed an integral part of the
religious reforms primarily because nearly all the effort towards social
ills like untouchability and gender-based inequity derived legitimacy
from religion in one way or the other. In later years though, the social
reform movement gradually dissociated itself from religion and, adopted
a secular approach. Also, earlier the reform movements had a rather
narrow social basethey were limited to the upper and middle classes and
upper castes who tried to adjust their modernised views with respect to
the existing social conditions. But later on, the social reform
movements penetrated the lower strata of society to revolutionise and
reconstruct the social sphere.
21
In the beginning, organisations such as the Social Conference, Servants

of India Society and the Christian missionaries were instrumental in
social reform along with many enlightened individuals like Jyotiba
Phule, Gopalhari Deshmukh, K.T. Telang, BM. Malabari, D.K. Karve, Sri
Narayana Guru, E.V. Ramaswami Naicker and B.R. Ambedkar. In later years,
especially with the onset of the twentieth century, the national
movement provided the leadership and organisation for social reform.
To reach the masses, propaganda in Indian languages was the modus
operandi of the reformers who used a variety of media such as novels,
dramas, poetry, short stories, the press and, in the 1930s and later on,
the cinema to spread their views.
Broadly, the social reform movements had a two-jointfight for
bstterfrtent of status of fo remove disability arising out of
untouchatlity.
Fight for Betterment of Position of Women The reformers had to work
against great odds. Women were generally accorded a low status, and were
considered to be inferior adjuncts to men, with no identity of their
own. Their desire to give expression to their talents and energies were
further suppressed by practices such as purdah, early marriage, ban on
widow-remarriage, sati, etc. Both Hindu and Muslim women were
economically and socially dependent, while education was generally
denied to them. The Hindu women had no right to inherit property or to
terminate an undesirable marriage. The Muslim women could inherit but
only half as much as men could, while in matters of divorce there was
no equality between men and women. Polygamy was prevalent among Hindus
as well as Muslims.
Their glorification as wives and mothers was the only way in which the
society recognised the contribution of women as members of society. The
struggle for the improvement of the status of women in the society was
considered to be vital, since a radical change in the domestic sphere
where initial socialisation of the individual takes place
22
and where a crucial role is played by womenwas the need of the hour.
There was a clear understanding that this change would translate into
reformed homes and reformed men, and that no country whose females were
sunk in ignorance could ever make significant progress in civilisation.
The social reform movements, the freedom struggle, movements led by
enlightened women themselves and, later, free India's Constitution have
done much for the emancipation of women.
The reformers basically appealed to the doctrines of individualism and
equality, and argued, to bolster their appeal, that true religion did
not sanction an inferior status to women. They raised their voice
against degrading customs such as polygamy, purdah, child marriage,
restrictions on widow remarriage, and worked relentlessly to establish
educational facilities for women, to persuade the Government to enact
favourable legislations for women and in general to propagate giving up
of medieval, feudal attitudes.
Because of the indefatigable efforts of the reformers, a number of
administrative measures were adopted by the Government to improve the
condition of women.
Abolition of Sati
Influenced by the frontal attack launched by the enlightened Indian
reformers led by Raja Rammohan Roy, the Government declared the practice
of sad or the burning alive of widows illegal and punishable by
criminal courts as culpable homicide. The regulation of 1829 was
applicable in the first instance to Bengal Presidency alone, but was
extended in slightly modified forms to Madras and Bombay Presidencies in
1830.
Female Infanticide
The practice of murdering female infants immediately after birth was
common among upper class Bengalis and Rajputs who considered females to
be an economic burden. The Bengal regulations of 1795 and 1804 declared
infanticide illegal and equivalent to murder, while an Act passed in
1870 made, it compulsory for parents to register the birth of all babies
and provided for verification of female
23
children for some years after birth, particularly in areas where

custom was resorted to in utmost privacy.
Widow Remarriage
the
The Brahmo Samaj had the issue of widow remarriage high on its agenda
and did much to -popularise it. But it was mainly due to the efforts of
Pandit Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar (1820-91), the principal of Sanskrit
College, Calcutta, that the Hindu Widows' Remarriage Act, 1856, which
legalised marriage of widows and declared issues from such marriages as
legitimate, was passed by the Government. Vidyasagar cited Vedic texts
to prove that the Hindu religion sanctioned widow remarriage.
Jagannath Shankar Seth and Bhau Daji were among the active promoters of
girls' schools in Maharashtra. Vishnu Shastri Pandit founded the Widow
Remarriage Association in the 1850s. Another prominent worker in this
field was Karsondas Mulji who started the Satya Prakash in Gujarati in
1852 to advocate widow remarriage.
Similar efforts were made by Professor D.K. Karve in western India and
by Veerasalingarn Pantulu in Madras. Karve himself married a widow in
1893. He dedicated his life to the upliftment of Hindu widows and
became the secretary of the Widow Remarriage Association. He opened a
widows' home in Poona to give the high caste widows an interest in life
by providing them with facilities for vocational training. He crowned
his work by setting up an Indian Women's University at Bombay in 1916.
The right of, widows to remarriage was also advocated by B.M. Malabari,
Narmad, Justice Govind Mahadeo Ranade and K. Natarajan 'among others.
Child Marriage
The Native Marriage Act (or Civil Marriage Act) signified the coming of
legislative action in prohibiting child marriage in 1872. It had a
limited impact as the Act was not applicable to Hindus, Muslims and
other recognised faiths. The relentless efforts of a Parsi reformer,
B.M. Malabari, were rewarded, by the enactment of the Age of Consent Act
(1891) which forbade the marriage of girls below the age of 12. The
Sarda Act (1930) further pushed up
24
the marriage age to 18 and 14 for boys and girls respectively. In free
India, the Child Marriage Restraint (Amendment) Act, 1978 raised the age
of marriage for girls from 15 to 18 years and for boys from 18 to 21.
Education of Women
The Christian missionaries were the first to set up the Calcutta Female
Juvenile Society in 1819. The Bethune School, founded by J.E.D. Bethune,
president of the Council of Education in Calcutta in 1849 was the first
fruit of the powerful movement for women's education that arose in the
1840s and 1850s. Pandit Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar was associated with
no less than 35 girls' schools in Bengal and is considered one of the
pioneers of women's education. Charles. Wood's Despatch on Education
(1854) laid great stress on the need for female education. In 1914, the
Women's Medical Service did a lot of work in training nurses and
midwives. The Indian Women's University started by Professor Karve in
1916 was one of the outstanding institutions imparting education to
women. In the same year Lady Hardinge Medical College was opened in
Delhi.
Health facilities began to be provided to women with

Dufferin Hospitals in the 1880s.
the opening of
Participation in the swadeshi and anti-partition and the Home Rule

movements during the opening decades of the twentieth century was a
major liberating experience for the otherwise home-centred Indian women.
After 1918, they faced lathis and bullets and were jailed during
political processions, picketing, etc. They actively participated in
trade union and kisan movements, or revolutionary movements. They voted
in, stood for and got elected to various legislatures and local bodies.
Sarojini Naidu went on to become the president of the Indian National
Congress (1925) and later the governor of the United Provinces (194749).
After 1920, aware and self-confident women led a women's movement. Many
organisations and institutions such as the All India Women's Conference
(established in 1927) came up.
Religious and Social Reform Movements 25
Legislative Measures in Free India
Free India's Constitution provides legal equality to women and prohibits
any discrimination by the state on the basis of gender (Articles 14 and
15). The Specially marriageAs1125 permits intercaste and interreligious
marriage. The Hindu Marriage Act, 1955 abolished bigamy and permitte
issolution of marriage on specific grounds. The Hindu Succession Act
1956 made the daughter equal co-eir with son, thus abolishing
discrimination with respect to inheritance laws. The Hindu Adoption and
Maintenance Act enhanced the status of women in matters off adoption. was
amended in April 1976 to cover women who do not fall within the purview
of the Employees' State Insurance Act, 1948. The Directive Principles of
State Policy provide for equal pay for equal work for both men and
women. provided for equal remuneration to men and women workers and
prevention of discrimination against women in matters of employment. The
Factories Act 1976 provided for establishment of creches where 30 women
(as against 50 previously) are employed. The Criminal bills passed by
Parliament 83 amended the Indian Penal Code, Indian Evidence Act and
Criminal Procedure Code to make laws against rape and other such crimes
against women much more stringent and also to add a new provision in the
Indian Penal Code to make cruelty against a woman by her husband and
other relations punishable. Traffic was amended and retitled as Immoral
TraffisErevestoril Act 1986
to cover all personsmale or femalewho
are sexually exploited for commercial purposes. The Dowry Prohibition
amended in 1986 made the giving and taking of dowry an offence. In 1987,
an Act was passed making the glorification of sati a cognisable offence.
Struggle Against Caste-Based Exploitation
The original four-fold division of Hindu society got further sub-divided
into numerous castes (jatis) and sub-castes due to racial admixture,
geographical expansion and diversification of crafts which gave rise to
new vocations.
According to concept of Hindu chaturvarnashrama, the caste of a person

determined the status and relative purity of different sections of
population. Caste, determined who could get education or ownership of
landed property, the kind of profession one should pursue, whom one
could dine with or marry, etc. In general, the caste of a person decided
his/ her social loyalties even before birth. The dress, food, place of
residence, sources of water for drinking and irrigation, entry into
templesall these were regulated by the caste coefficient.
The worst-hit by the discriminatory institution' of caste were the
untouchables or the scheduled castes, as they came to be called later on
The disabilities imposed on the lower castes were humiliating, inhuman
and based on the antidemocratic principle of inequality by birth.
Factors which Undermined Caste Rigidities
The pressure of British rule in India unleashed certain forces,
sometimes through direct administrative measures and sometimes
indirectly by creating favourable circumstances. For instance, the
creation of private property in land and free sale of land upset caste
equations. A close interlink between caste and vocation could hardly
continue in a state of destruction of village autarchy. Besides, modern
commerce and industry gave birth to several economic avenues while
growing urbanisation and modern means of transport added to the
mobility of populations. The British administration introduced the
concept of equality before law in a., uniformly applied system of law
which dealt a severe blow to social and legal inequalities, while the
judicial functions of caste panchayats were taken away. The
administrative services were made open to all castes and the new
education system was on totally secular lines.
The social reform movements also strove to undermine caste-based
exploitation. From the mid-19th century onwards, numerous, organisations
and groups such as the Brahmo Samaj, Prarthana Samaj, Arya Samaj,
Ramakrishna Mission, the Theosophists, the Social Conference and
individuals
27
worked to spread education among the untouchables and remove

restrictions imposed on them from entering temples or using ponds,
tanks, etc. Although many of them defended the chaturvarna system, they
criticised the caste system, especially untouchability. The social
reformers attacked the rigid hereditary basis of caste distinctions and
the law of karma which formed the basis of the religio-philosophic
defence of the undemocratic authoritarian caste institution. They called
on people to work for betterment in the real world in which they lived,
rather than strive for salvation after death. For instance, the Arya
Samaj while crusading against disintegration of Hindu society into
myriad sub-castes, aimed at reconstructing it on the original four-fold
division and upholding the right of even, the lowest castes to study the
scriptures.
The national movement with its thrust against the forces which tended to
divide the society took inspiration from the principles of liberty and
equality. The national leaders and organisations opposed caste

privileges, fought for equal civic rights and free development of the
individual. The caste divisions were diluted, although in a limited
'manner, because of mass participation in demonstrations, meetings and
satyagraha struggles. The Congress governments in various provinces
after 1937 did some useful work for the upliftment of the depressed
classes; for instance, free education for Harijans (untouchables) was
introduced in some provinces. The rulers of states like Travancore,
Indore and Devas themselves took the initiative in opening all state
temples by proclamation.
Gandhi always had in mind the objective of eradicating untouchability by
root and branch. His ideas were based on the grounds of humanism and
reason. He argued that the Shastras did not sanction untouchability and
even if they did, they should be ignored since truth cannot be confined
within the covers of a book. In 1932, he founded the All India Harijan
Sangh.
With increasing opportunities of education and general
28
awakening, there were stirrings among the lower castes themselves which
gradually developed into a powerful movement in defence of their rights
and against upper caste oppression. In Maharashtra, Jyotiba Phule, born
in a low caste Mali family, led a movement against the brahrninical
domination of Hindu society. He accorded the highest priority to
education of lower castes, especially girls for whom he opened several
schools. Babasaheb Ainbedkar, who had experienced the worst form of
casteist discrimination during his childhood, fought against upper caste
tyranny throughout his life. He organized the All India Scheduled Castes
Federation, while several other leaders of the depressed classes founded
the All India Depressed Classes Association. Ambedkar condemned the
hierarchical and insular caste system and advocated the annihilation of
the institution of caste for the real progress of the nation. The
struggle of the depressed classes was rewarded with special
representation for these classes in the Government of India Act, 1935.
Others in the 1900s, the Maharaja of Kolhapur encouraged the non-brahmin
movement which spread to> the southern states in the first decade of the
twentieth century and was joined by the Kammas, Reddis, Vellalas, (the
powerful intermediate castes) and the Muslims.
During the 1920s in South India, the non-brahmins organized the SelfRespect Movement led by E.V. Ramaswamy Naicker. There were numerous
other movements demanding lifting of ban on entry of lower castes into
temples; for instance Sri Narayana Guru in Kerala led a lifelong
struggle against upper caste domination. He coined the slogan "one
religion, one caste, one God, for mankind", which his disciple Sahadaran
Ayyapan changed into "no religion, no caste, no God for mankind".
But the struggle against caste could not be successful during the
British rule. The foreign government had its limitationsit could not
afford to invite hostile reaction from the orthodox sections by taking
up any radical measures. Also,

economic and political
no social uplift was possible without
29
upliftment. All this could be realised only under the government of a

free India. The Constitution of free India abolishes untouchability and
declares the endorsement of any disability arising out of untouchability
as unlawful. It also forbids any restriction on access to wells, tanks,
bathing ghats, hotels, cinemas, clubs, etc. In one of the Directive
Principles, the Constitution has laid down that "the state shall strive
to promote the welfare of the people by, securing and protecting as
effectively as it may a social order in which justicesocial, economic
and politicalshall inform all the institutions of the national life".
A GENERAL SURVEY OF SOCIO-CULTURAL REFORM MOVEMENTS AND THEIR LEADERS
Raja Rammohan Roy and Brahmo Samaj
Raja Rammohan Roy, the father of Indian Renaissance, was a man of
versatile genius. The Brahmo Samaj established by him was the earliest
reform movement of the modern type greatly influenced by modern western
ideas.
As a reformist ideologue, Roy believed in the modern scientific
approach and principles of human dignity and social equality. He put his
faith in monotheism. He wrote Gift to Monotheists (1809) and translated
into Bengali the Vedas and the five Upanishads to prove his conviction
that ancient Hindu texts support monotheism. In 1814, he set up Atmiya
Sabha in Calcutta to campaign against idolatry, caste rigidities,
meaningless rituals and other social ills. Strongly influenced by
rationalist ideas, he declared that the Vedanta is based on reason and
that, if reason demanded it, even a departure from the scriptures is
justified. He said the principles of rationalism applied to other sects
also, particularly to the elements of blind faith in them. In Precepts
of Jesus (1820), he tried to separate the moral and philosophical
message of the New Testament, which he praised, from its miracle
stories. He earned the wrath of missionaries over his advocacy to
incorporate the message of Christ in Hinduism. He stood for a creative
and intellectual process of selecting the best from eastern and western
30
cultures, over which, again, he faced orthodox reaction. He founded the

Brahmo Sabha (later Brahmo Samaj) in order to institutionalise his ideas
and mission. His ideas and activities were aimed at political uplift of
the masses through social reform and to that extent can be said to have
had nationalist undertones.
Roy was a determined crusader against the inhuman practice of sati. He
started his anti-sati struggle in 1818 and he cited sacred texts to
prove his contention that no religion sanctioned the burning alive of
widows, besides appealing to humanity, reason and compassion. He also
visited the cremation grounds, organized vigilance groups and filed
counter petitions to the Government during his struggle against sati.
His efforts were rewarded by the Government Regulation in 1829 which
declared the practice of sati a crime. As a campaigner for women's

rights, Roy condemned the general subjugation of women and opposed
prevailing misconceptions which formed the basis of according an
inferior social status to women. Roy attacked polygamy and the degraded
state of widows and demanded the right of inheritance and property for
women.
Rammohan Roy did much to disseminate the benefits of modern education to
his countrymen. He supported David Hare's efforts to found the Hindu
College in 1817, while Roy's English school taught mechanics and
Voltaire's philosophy. In 1825, he established a Vedanta college whei'e
courses in both Indian learning and Western social and physical sciences
were offered. He also helped enrich the Bengali language by compiling a
Bengali grammar book and evolving a modern elegant prose style.
Roy was a gifted linguist He knew more than a dozen languages including
Sanskrit, Persian, Arabic, English, French, Latin, Greek and Hebrew. A
knowledge of different languages helped him broadbase his range of
study. As a pioneer in Indian journalism, Roy brought out journals in
Bengali, Hindi, English, Persian to educate and inform the public and
represent their grievances before the Government. Asapalli cal activist,
31
Roy condemned oppressive practices of Bengali zamindars and

demanded
fixation of maximum rents. He also demanded abolition of taxes on taxfree lands. He called for a reduction Of export duties on goods abroad
and abolition of the East India Company's trading rights. He demanded
the executive from the and Europeans and that trial be held
Roy was an internationalist' with a vision beyond his times. He stood
for cooperation of thought and activity and brotherhood among nations.
His understanding of the international character of the principles of
liberty, equality and justice indicated that he well understood the
significance of the modern age. He supported the revolutions of Naples
and Spanish America and condemned the oppression of Ireland by absentee
English landlordism and threatened emigration from the empire if the
reform bill was not passed.
Roy had David Hare, Alexander Duff, Debendranath Tagore, P.K. Tagore,
Chandrashekhar Deb and Tarachand Chakraborty as his associates.
Raja Rarnmohan Roy founded the Brahmo Sabha in August 1828; it was later
renamed, Brahmo Samaj. The Samaj, was committed to "th amcl ask rational
the Eternal, Unsearchable, Immutable Being who is the Author, Preseyver
of the Universe". Prayers, meditation of the Upanishads were to be the
forms of worship and no graven image, statue or sculpture, carving,
painting, picture, portrait etc, were to be allowed in the Samaj
buildings, thus underlining the Samaj's opposition to idolatry and
meaningless rituals. The long-term agenda of the Brahmo Samajto purify
Hinduism and to preach monotheismwas based on the twin pillars of
reason and the Vedas and Upanishads. The Samaj also tried to incorporate
teachings of other religions and kept its emphasis on human dignity,
opposition to idolatry and criticism of social evils such as sati.
Roy did not want to establish a new religion. He only

Hinduism of the evil practices which had
wanted to purify

crept into it. Roy's progressive ideas met with;strong opposition from
orthodox elements like Raja Radhakant Deb who organized the Dharma Sabha
to counter Brahmo Samaj propaganda. Roy's death in 1833 was a setback
for the Samaj's. mission.
Maharishi Debendranath Tagore (1817-1905), father of Rabindranath Tagare
and a product of the best m traditional Indian learning and western
thought, gave a new life to Brahma Samaj and a definite form and shape
to the theist movement, when he joined the Samaj in 1842. Earlier,
Tagore headed the Tattvabodhini Sabha (founded in 1839) which, along
with its organ Tattvabodhini Pat fika in Bengali, was devoted to the
systematic study of India's past with a rational outlook and to the
propagation of Roy's ideas. A new vitality and strength of membership
came to be associated with the Brahmo Samaj due to the informal
association of the two sabhas. Gradually, the Brahmo Samaj came to
include prominent followers of Roy, the Derozians and independent
thinkers such as Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar and Ashwini Kumar Datta.
worked on two the Brahmo movement- outside it resolutely oosed the
Christian missionaries for their criticism of the Hinduism and their
attempts at conversion. Thei-evitalised Samaj supporieaWi-dow
remarriarrTeiys education, abolition of improvement in ryots' conditions
and temperence.
The Bramho Samaj experienced another phase of energy, vigour and
eloquence when Keshub Chandra Sen was made the acharyct by Debendranath
Tagore soon after the former joined the Samaj in 1858. Keshub was
instrumental in popularising the movement, and branches of the Samaj
were opened outside Bengal in the United Provinces, Punjab, Bombay,
Madras and other towns. Unfortunately, Debendranath did not like some of
. Sen's ideas which he found too radical, such as cosmopolitanisation of
the Samaj's meetings by inclusion of teachings from all religions and
his strong views against the caste system, even open support to intercaste marriages. Keshub Chandra Sen was dismissed from the office of
acharya in 1865. Keshub and his followers founded the Brahmo Samaj of
India in 1866, while Debendranath Tagore's Sarnaj came to be known as
the Adi Brahmo Samaj.
In 1878, Keshub's inexplicable act of getting his thirteenyear-old
daughter married with the minor Hindu Maharaja of Cooch-Behar with all,
the orthodox Hindu rituals caused another split in Keshub's Brahma Samaj
of India. Earlier, Keshub had begun to be considered as an incarnation
by some of his followers, much to the dislike of his progressive
followers. Further, Keshub had begun to be accused of authoritarianism.
After 1878, the disgusted followers of Keshub set up a new organisation,
the Sadharan Brahma Samaj.
A number of Brahmo centres were opened in Madras state. In Punjab, the

Dayal Singh Trust sought to implant Brahmo ideas by, the opening of
Dayal Singh College at Lahore in 1910.
According to H.C.E. Zacharias, "Raja Rammohan Roy and his Brahmo Samaj
form the starting point for all the various reform movementswhether in
Hindu religion, society or politicswhich have agitated. modern India."
The overall contribution of Brahmo Samaj may be summed thus
(i)
it denounced polytheism and idol worship;
(ii) it discarded faith in divine avataras (incarnations);
(iii) it denied that any scripture could enjoy the status of ultimate
authority transcending/ human reason and conscience;
(iv) it took no definite stand on the doctrine of;karma and
transmigration of soul and left it to- individual Brahmos to believe
either way;
(iv)
it criticised the caste system. In matters of social reform,
the Samaj attacked many dogmas and superstitions. It
condemned the prevailing Hindu prejudice against going
abroad. It worked for a respectable status for women in
societycondemned sati, worked for abolition, of purdah
system, discouraged child marriages and polygamy, crusaded
for widow remarriage and for provisions
34
of educational facilities, etc. It also attacked casteism and

untouchability though in these matters it attained only limited
success.
Prarthana Samaj In 1863, Keshub Chandra Seri helped found the Prarthana
Samaj in Bombay. Earlier, the Brahmo ideas spread in Maharashtra where
the Paramhansa Sabha was founded in 1849. Here the emphasis was on
monotheism, on 'works' rather than on faith. They relied on education
and persuasion and not on confrontation with Hindu orthodoxy. There
was a four-point social agenda also: (i) disapproval of caste system,
(ii) women's education, (iii) widow remarriage, and (iv) raising the age
of marriage for both males and females. The Prarthana Samaj had as its
prominent leaders Mahadeo Govind Ranade (1842-1901), R.G. Bhandarkar
(18371925) and N.G. Chandavarkar (1855-1923).
Young Bengal Movement and Henry Vivian Derozio (1809-31) During the late
1820s and early 1830s, there emerged a radical, intellectual trend among
the youth in Bengal, which came to be known as the 'Young Bengal
Movement'. A young Anglo-Indian, Henry Vivian Derozio, who taught at
the Hindu College from 1826 to 1831, was the leader and inspirer of
this progressive trend. Drawing inspiration from the great French
Revolution, Derozio inspired his pupils to think freely and rationally,
question all authority, love liberty, equality and freedom, and oppose
decadent customs and traditions. The Derozians also supported women's
rights and education. Also, Derozio was perhaps the first nationalist
poet of modern India.
The Derozians, however, failed to have a long-term impact. Derozio was
removed from the Hindu College in 1831 because of his radicalism. The
main reason for their limited success was the prevailing social
conditions at that time, which were not ripe for the adoption of radical
ideas. Further, support from any other social group or class was absent.
The Derozians lacked any real link with the masses; for instance, they
failed to take up the peasants' cause. In fact, their radicalism was
bookish in character. But, despite their
limitations, the Derozians carried forward Roy's tradition of public
education on social, economic and political questions. For instance,
they demanded induction of Indians in higher grades of services,
protection of ryots from oppressive zamindars, better treatment to
Indian labour abroad in British colonies, revision of the Company's
charter, freedom of press and trial by jury.
Later, Surendranath Banerjee was to describe the Derozians as "the
pioneers of the modern civilisation of Bengal, the conscript fathers of
our race whose virtues will excite veneration and whose failings will be
treated with gentlest consideration".
Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar The great scholar and reformer, Vidyasagar's
ideas were a happy blend of Indian and western thought. He believed in
high moral values, was a deep humanist and was generous to the poor. In
1850, he became the principal of Sanskrit College. He was determined to
break the priestly monopoly of scriptural knowledge, and for this he
opened the Sanskrit College to non-brahmins. He introduced western
thought in Sanskrit College to break the self-imposed isolation of
Sanskritic learning. Also, as an academician, he evolved a new
methodology to teach Sanskrit. He also devised a new Bengali primer and
evolved a new prose style.
Vidyasagar started a movement in support of widow remarriage which
resulted in legalisation of widow remarriage. He was also a crusader
against child marriage and polygamy. He did much for the cause of
women's education. As government inspector of schools, he helped
organize thirtyfive girls' schools many of which he ran at his own
expense. As secretary of Bethune School (established in 1849), he was
one of the pioneers of higher education for women in India.
The Bethune School, founded in Calcutta, was the first fruit of the
powerful movement for women's education that arose in the 1840s and
1850s. The movement had to face great difficulties. The young students
were shouted at and abused and sometimes even their parents subjected to
social boycott.
36
Many believed that girls who had received western education

slaves of their husbands.
would make
Bal Shastri Jambekar One of the pioneers in Bombay, he attacked

brahminical orthodoxy and tried to reform popular Hinduism He started
the weekly Darpan in 1832,
Students' Literary and Scientific Societies Also called the Gyan

Prasarak Mandalis they had two branchesMarathi and Gujaratiand were
formed by some educated young men in 1848. These Mandalis organized
lectures on popular sciences and social questions. One of their aims was
to start schools for girls.
Paramhansa Mandalis Founded in 1849 in Maharashtra, the founders of
these Mandalis believed in one God. They were primarily interested in
breaking caste rules. At their meetings food cooked by lower caste
people was taken by the members. These Mandalis also advocated widow
remarriage and women's education. Branches of Paramhansa Mandalis
existed in Poona, Satara and other towns of Maharashtra.
Satyashodhak Samaj and Jyotiba Phule
Jyotiba Phule belonged to the Mali (gardener) community and organized a
powerful movement against upper caste domination and brahminical
supremacy. Phule founded the Satyashodhak Samaj (Truth Seekers' Society)
in 1873, with the leadership of the Samaj coming from the backward
classes, Malis, Telis, Kunbis, Saris and Dhangars. The main aims of the
movement were (i) social service, and (ii) spread of education among
women and lower caste people. Phule's works, Sarvajanik Satyadharma and
Gulamgin, became sources of inspiration for the common masses. Phule
used the symbol of Rajah Bali as opposed to the, brahmins' symbol of
Rama. Phule aimed at the complete abolition of the caste system and
socio-economic inequalities; he was against Sanskritic Hinduism. This
movement gave a sense of identity to the depressed communities as a
class against the brahmins, who were seen as the exploiters. Phule
opened, with the help of his wife, a girls' school at Poona and was a
pioneer of, widow remarriage movement in Maharashtra.
Gopalhari Deshmukh Lokahitawadi, He advocated a reorganisation of Indian
society onrationalpmcIples and modern, humanistic,. secular values. He
attacked Hindu orthodoxy and supported social and religious equality. He
said, "If religion does not sanction social reform, then change
religion."
Gopal Ganesh Agarkar A strong advocate of the power of human reason, he
criticised from the blind dependence on tradition and false
glorification of the past.
The Servants of India Society Gopal Krishna Gokhale, the liberal leader
of Indian National Congress, founded the Servants of India Society in
1905. The aim of the society was to train national missionaries for the
service of India; to promote, by all constitutional means, the, true
interests of the Indian people; and to prepare a cadre of selfless
workers who were to devote their lives to the cause of the country in a
religious spirit. After Gokhale's death (1915), Srinivasa Shastri took
over as president:
Social Service League Another Gokhale follower Narayan Malhar Joshi
founded the Social Serince League in Bombay with an aim to secure for
the masses better and reasonable

conditions of life and work They
organized many schools, libraries, reading rooms, day nurseries and
cooperative societies. Their activities also included police court
agents' work, legal aid and advice to the poor and illiterate,
excursions for slum dwellers, facilities for gymnasia and theatrical
performances, sanitary work, medical relief and boys' clubs and scout
corps. Joshi also founded the All India Trade Union (1920).
The Ramakrishna Movement The didactic nationalism of the Brahma Samaj
appealed more to the intellectual elite in Bengal, while the average
Bengali found more emotional satisfaction in the cult of bhakti and
yoga. The teachings of Ramakrishna Paramhansa (1834-86), a poor priest
at the Kali temple in Dakshineshwar, Calcutta, formed the basis of the
Ramakrishna Movement. Two objectives of the movement were(i) to bring
into existence a band of monks dedicated
38
to a life of renunciation and practical spirituality, from among whom

teachers and workers would be sent out to spread the universal message
of Vedanta as illustrated in the life of Ramakrishna, and (ii) in
conjunction with lay disciples to carry on preaching, philanthropic and
charitable works, looking tapon all men, women and children,
irrespective of caste, creed or colour, as veritable manifestations of
the Divine. Parainhansa himself founded the Ramakrishna Math with his
young monastic disciples as a nucleus to fulfil the first objective. The
second objective was taken up by Swami Vivekananda after Ramakrishna's
death when he founded the Ramakrishna
Mission in 1897. The headquarters of the Mission are at Belur near
Calcutta.
Paramhansa sought salvation through traditional ways of renunciation,
meditation and bhakti amidst increasing westernisation and
modernisation. He recognised the fundamental oneness of all religions
and emphasised that Krishna, Hari, Ram, Christ, Allah are different
names for the same God, and that there are many ways to God and
salvation. Paramhansa's spirituality and compassion for the suffering
humanity inspired those who listened to him. He used to say, "Service of
man is the, service of God."
Narendranath Datta (1862-1902), who later came to be known as Swami
Vivekananda spread Ramakrishna's message and tried to reconcile it to
the needs of contemporary Indian society. He emerged as the preacher of
neo-Hinduism. Certain spiritual experiences of Ramakrishna, the
teachings of the Upanishads and the Gita and the examples, of the Buddha
and Jesus are the basis of Vivekananda's message to the world about
human values. He subscribed to the Vedanta which he considered a fully
rational system with a superior approach. His mission was to bridge the
gulf between ararnartha (service) and vyavahara (behaviour), and between
spirituality believed in the fundamental oneness of God and said, "For
our own motherland a junction of the two great systems, Hinduism and
Islam, is the only hope." Emphasising social action, he declared that
knowledge without

action is useless. He lamented the isolationist tendencies and the touchme-not attitude of Hindus in religious matters. He frowned at religion's
tacit approval of the opptession of the poor by the rich. He believed
that it was an insult to God
and humanity to teach religion to a
starving man. He called upon his countrymen to imbibe a spirit of
liberty, equality and free thinking.
Vivekananda was a great humanist and used the Ramakrishna Mission for
humanitarian relief and social work. The Mission stands for religious
and social reform. Vivekananda advocated the doctrine of servicethe
service of all beings.
is itself is religion. service, the Divine exists within man.
Vivekananda was for using technology and modern science in the service
of mankind. Ever since its inception, the Mission has been running a
number of schocies. It offers help to the affected ofcalamities like
famines, floods and epidemics. a worldwide organisation. It is a deeply
religious body, but it is not a proselytising body. It does not consider
itself to be a sect of Hinduism. In fact, this is one of the strong
reasons for the success of the Mission. Unlike the Arya Samaj, the
Mission recognises the utility and value of image worship in developing
spiritual fervour and worship of the eternal omnipotent God, although
it emphasises the essential spirit and not the symbols or rituals. It
believes that the philosophy of Vedanta will make a Christian a better
Christian, and a Hindu a better Hindu.
At the Parliament of Religions held at Chicago in 1893, Swami
Vivekananda made a great impression on people by his learned
interpretations. The keynote of his opening,address was the need for a
healthy balance between spiritualism and materialism. Envisaging a new
culture for the whole world, he called for a blend of the materialism of
the West and the spiritualism of the East into a new harmony to produce
happiness for mankind.
Vivekananda never gave a political message; still, he
41
infused into the new generation a sense of pride in India's past, a new
faith in India's culture, and a rare sense of confidence in India's
future. His emphasis was not only on personal salvation, but also on
social, good and reform. About his place in modern Indian history,
Subhash Bose wrote: "So far as Bengal is concerned Vivekananda may be
regarded as the spiritual father of the modern nationalist movement."
Dayanand Saraswati and Arya Samaj
The Arya Samaj Movement, revivalist in form though not in content, was
the result of a reaction to western influences. Its founder, Dayanand.
Saraswati (or Mulshankar, 1824-83) was born in the old Morvi state in
Gujarat in a brahmin family. He wandered as an ascetic for fifteen years

(1845-60) in search of truth. The first Arya Samaj unit was formally set
up by him at Bombay in 1875 and later the headquarters of the Samaj were
established at Lahore.
Dayanand's views were published in his famous work, Satyarth Prakash
(The True Exposition). Dayanand's vision of India ineuded a classless
and casteless society, a united India (religiously, socially and
nationally), and an India free from foreign rule, with Aryan religion
being the common religion of all He took inspiration from the Vedas and
considered them to be "India's Rock of Ages", the infallible and the
true original seed of Hinduism He gave the slogan "Back to the Vedas".
He had received education on Vedanta from a blind teacher named Swami
Virajananda in Mathura. Along with his emphasis on Vedic authority, he
stressed the significance of individual interpretation of the scriptures
and said that every person has the right of access to God. He criticised
later Hindu scriptures such as the Purcinas and the ignorant priests for
perverting Hinduism. Dayanand launched a frontal attack on Hindu
orthodoxy, caste rigidities, untouchability, idolatry, polytheism,
belief in magic, charms and animal sacrifices, taboo on sea voyages,
feeding the dead through shraddluzs, etc. Dayanand subscribed to the
Vedic notion of chaturvarna system in which a person was not born in any
caste but was identified as a brahmin, kshatriya, vaishya or shudra
according to the occupation the person followed.
The Samaj fixed the minimum marriageable age at twenty-five years for
boys and sixteen years for girls. Swami once lamented the Hindu race as
"the children of children". Intercaste marriages and widow remarriages
were also encouraged. Equal status for women was the demand of the
Samaj, both in letter and in spirit The Samaj also helped the people in
crises like floods, famines and earthquakes. It attempted to give a new
direction to education. The nucleus for this movement was provided by
the Dayanand AngloVedic (D.A.V.) schools, established first at Lahore in
1886, which sought to emphasise the importance of western education.
Swami Shraddhanand started the Gurukul at Hardwar in 1902 to impart
education in the traditional framework.
Dayanand strongly criticised the escapist Hindu belief in maya
(illusion) as the running theme of all physical existence and the aim of
human life as a struggle to attain moksha (salvation) through escape
from this evil world to seek union with God. Instead, he advocated that
God, soul and matter (prakriti) were distinct and every individual
t is the or t e eterna
trinciles overni
uman coffin uct. us
e attac ed the prevalent
popular belief that every individual contributed and got back from the
society according the principles of niyati (destiny) and karma (deeds).
He held the world to be a battlefield where every individual has to
salyanon
should be clearly understood that Dayanand's slogan of 'Back to the
Vedas' was a call for a revival of Vedic learning and Vedic purity of
religion and not a revival of Vedic times. He accepted modernity and
displayed a patriotic attitude to national problems.
The ten guiding principles of the Arya Samaj are

(i)
God is the primary source of all true knowledge;
(ii) God, as all-truth, all-knowledge, almighty, immortal,
creator of Universe, is alone worthy of worship;
(ii)
the Vedas are the right ee s, an t at human beings are
controlled by
42
books of true knowledge;

(iv) an Arya should always be ready to accept truth and abandon untruth;
(iii)
dharma, that is, due consideration of right and wrong,
should be the guiding principle of all actions;
(iv)
the principal aim of the Samaj is to promote world's wellbeing in the material, spiritual and social sense;
(v)
everybody should be treated with love and justice;
(vi)
ignorance is to be dispelled and knowledge increased;
(ix) one's own progress should depend on uplift of all
others;
(x) social well-being of mankind is> to be placed above an
individual's well-being.
The Arya Samaj's social ideals comprise, among others, the fatherhood of
God and brotherhood of Man, equality of all sexes, absolute justice and
fairplay between man and man and nation and nation. Dayanand also met
other reformers of the time,Keshub Chandra Sen, Ishwar Chandra
Vidyasagar, Ranade, Deshmukh, etc. The work of the Swami after his death
was carried forward by Lala Hansraj, Pandit Gurudutt, Lala Lajpat Rai
and Swami Shraddhanand, among others.
The Arya Samaj was able to give self-respect and selfconfidence to the
Hindus which helped to undermine the myth of superiority of whites and
the western culture. In its zeal to protect the Hindu society from the
onslaught of Christianity and Islam, the Samaj started the shuddhi
(purification) movement to reconvert to Hindu fold the converts to
Christianity and Islam. This led to increasing communalisation of social
life during the 1920s and later snowballed into communal political
consciousness.
Seva Sadan
A Parsi social reformer, M. Malabari, founded the Seva Sadan in 1885. The
organisation specialised in taking care of use women who were exploited
and then discarded by society. It catered to all castes and women with
education, medical and welfare services.
Deva Samaj Founded in 1887 at Lahore by Shiv Narain Agnihotri, this sect
emphasised of the soul, the suremac of the uru, and the need for good
action. It
43
called for an ideal social behaviour such as not accepting bribes,

avoiding intoxicants and non-vegetarian and keeping away from violemt
actions. Its teachings were corn fled
Dharma Sabha
Radhakant Deb founded this sabha in 1830. An orthodox society, it stood
for the preservation of the status quo in socio-religious matters,
opposing even the abolition of sati. However, it favouretion of western
education, even for girls.
Bharat Dharma
Mahamandala An all-India organisation of the orthodox educated Hindus,
it stood for a defence of orthodox Hinduism against the teachings of
the Arya Samaj, the Theosophists, and the Ramakrishna Mission. Other
organisations created to defend orthodox Hinduism were the Sanatana
Dharma Sabha (1895), the Dharma Maha Parishad in South India, and.
Dharma Mahamandaii in Bengal. These organisations combined in 1902 to
form the single organisation of Bharat Dharma Mahamandala, with
headquarters at Varanasi. This organisation sought to introduce proper
management of Hindu religious institutions, open Hindu educational
institutions, etc. Pandit Madan -Mohan Malaviya was a prominent figure
in this movement.
Radhaswami Movement
Tulsi Ram, a banker from Agra, also known as Shiv DayalSaheb, founded
this movement in 1861. The R. d. i , one supreme being supremacy of the
Spiritual attainment, they believe doeg not call for renunciation of the
worldly life. They consider all religions to be true. While the sect has
no belief in temples, shrines and sacred places, it considers as
necessary duties, works of faith and charity, service and prayer.
Sri Narayana Guru Dharma Paripalana (SNDP) Movement This movement was an
example of a regional movement born out of conflict between the
depressed, classes and upper non-Brahmin castes. It was started by. Sri
Narayana, Guru Swamy among the Ezhavas of Kerala, who were a caste
44
of toddy-tappers and were considered to be untouchables. The Ezhavas

were the single largest caste group in Kerala constituting 26 per cent
of the total population. Sri Narayana Guru initiated a programme of
actionthe Sri Narayana Guru Dharma Paripalana (SNDP) Yogarnin 1902.
The SNDP took of admission to public schools uitment to :government
services, (iii) access to roads and entriliesz. The movement as a whole
brought transformative structural changes such as upward social
mobility, shift in traditional distribution of power and a federation of
'backward castes' into a large conglomeration.
Vokkaliga Sangha
This Sangha in Mysore launched an
anti-brahmin movement in 1905.
Justice Movement
This movement in Madras Presidency was started by C.N. Mudaliar, T.M.
Nair and P. Tyagaraja to secure jobs and representation for the non-
brahmins in the legislature In 1917, Madras Presidency Association was

formed which demanded separate representation for the lower castes in
the legislature.
Self-Respect Movement
This movement was started by E.V. kaMaswamRarcrer, a Balija Naidu, in
the mid-1920s. The movementaimed at nothing short of a rejection of the
brahmanical religion and culture which Naicker felt was the prime
instrument of exploitation of the lower castes. He sought to undermine
the position of brahmin priests by formalising weddings without brahmin
priests.
Aravippuram Movement
On the occasion of Sivarathri in 1888, Sri Narayana Guru, despite
belonging to a lower caste, installed an idol of Siva at Aravippuram in
Kerala in his effort to show that the consecration of a god's image was
not a monopoly of the brahmins. On the wall of the temple he got
inscribed the words, "Devoid of dividing walls of caste or race, or
hatred of rival faith, we all live here in brotherhood." The event
inspired several socio-religious reform movements in the South,
especially the Temple Entry Movement.
45
Temple Entry Movement

Significant work in this direction had already been done by reformers
and intellectuals like Sri Narayana Guru, N. Kumaran Asan, T.K. Madhavan
etc. In 1924, Vaikom Satyagraha led by K.P. Kesava, was launched in
Kerala demanding the throwing open of Hindu temples and roads to the
untouchables. The satyagraha was reinforced by jathas from Punjab and
Madurai. Gandhi undertook a tour of Kerala in support of the movement.
Again in 1931 when the Civil Disobedience Movement was suspended, temple
entry movement was organized in Kerala. Inspired by K. Kelappan, poet
Subramaniyam Tirurnambu (the 'singing sword of Kerala') led a group of
sixteen volunteers to Guruvayur. Leaders like P. Krishna Pillai and A.K.
Gopalan were among the satyagrahis. Finally, in 1936 the Maharaja of
Travancore issued a proclamation throwing open all government-controlled
temples to all Hindus. A similar step was taken by the C.
Rajagopalachari administration in Madras in 1938.
Indian Sr :al Conference Founded by M.G. Ranade and Raghunath Rao, the
conference met annually from its first session in Madras in 1887 at the
same time and venue as the Indian National Congress. It focussed
attention on the social issues of importance; it could be called the
social reform cell of the Indian National Congress, in fact. The
conference advocated inter-caste marriages, opposed polygamy and
kulinism. It launched the "Pledge Movement" to inspire people to take a
pledge against child marriage.
Wahabi/Walliullah Movement Shah Walliullah (1702-62) inspired this
essentially revivalist response to western influences and the
degeneration which had set in among Indian Muslims. He was the first
Indian Muslim leader of the 18th century to organize Muslims around the
two-fold ideals of this movement: (i) desirability of harmony among the

four schools of Muslim jurisprudence which had divided the Indian
Muslims (he sought to integrate the best elements of the four schools);
(ii) recognition of the role of individual conscience in religion
46
where conflicting interpretations were derived from the Quran

Hadis.
and the
The teachings of Walliullah were further popularised by Shah Abdul Aziz

and Syed Ahmed Barelvi who also gave them a political perspective. India
was considered to be dar-ul-Harb (land of the kafirs) and it needed to
be converted to dar-ulIslam (land of Islam). Initially the movement was
directed at Sikhs in Punjab but after the British annexation of Punjab
(1849), the movement was directed against the British. The movement
fizzled out in the face of British military might in the 1870s.
Titu Mir's Movement
Mir Nithar Ali, popularly known as Titu Mir, was a disciple of Sayyid
Ahmed Raebarelvi, the founder of the Wahabi Movement. Titu Mir organized
the Muslim peasants of Bengal against the Hindu landlords and the
British indigo planters. The movement was not as militant as the British
records made it out to be; only in the last year of Titu's life was
there a confrontation between him and the British police. He was killed
in action in 1831.
Faraizi Movement
The movement, also called the Fara'idi Movement because of its emphasis
on the Islamic pillars of faith, was founded by Haji Shariat-Allah. Its
scene of action was East Bengal, and it aimed at the eradication of
social innovations current among the Muslims of the region. Under the
leadership of Haji's son, Dudu Mian, the movement became revolutionary
from
1840 onwards. He gave the movement an organisational system from
the village to the provincial level with a khalifa or authorised deputy
at every level. The Fara'idis organized a paramilitary forces armed with
clubs to fight the Hindu landlords and even the police. Dudu Mian was
arrested several times, and his arrest in 1847 finally weakened the
movement. The movement survived merely as a religious movement without
political overtones after the death of Dudu Mian in 1862.
Ahmadiya Movement
This movement was founded by
liberal
Mirza Ghulam Ahmed in 1889. It was based on
47
principles. It described itself as the standard-bearer of Mohammedan

Renaissance, and based itself, like the Brahmo Samaj, on the principles
of universal religion of all humanity, opposing jihad (sacred war
against non-Muslims). The movement spread western liberal education
among the Indian Muslims. However, the Ahmadiya Movement, like Baha'ism
which flourished in the West Asian countries, suffered from mysticism.
Sir Syed Ahmed Khan and the Aligarh Movement

The official view on the revolt of 1857 held the Muslims to be the main
conspirators. This view was further strengthened by the activities of
the Wahabis. But later, an opinion got currency among the rulers that
the Muslims could be used as allies against a rising tide of nationalist
political activity represented, among others, by the foundation of the
Indian National Congress. This was to be achieved through offers of
thoughtful concessions to the Muslims. A section of Muslims led by Syed
Ahmed Khan was ready to allow the official patronage to stimulate a
process of growth among Indian Muslims through better education and
employment opportunities.
Syed Ahmed Khan, born in 1817 in a respectable Muslim family, was a
loyalist member of the judicial service of the Government. After
retirement in 1876, he became a member of the Imperial Legislative
Council in 1878. His loyalty earned him a knighthood in 1888. He wanted
to reconcile western
scientific education with the teachings of the
Quran
to be interpreted in the light of contemporary rationalism and
science even though he also held the Quran to be the ultimate. He said
that religion, should be adaptable with time or else it would become
fossilised, and that religious tenets were not immutable. He advocated a
critical approach and freedom of thought and no dependence on tradition
or custom. He was also a zealous educationistas an official, he opened
schools in towns, got books translated into Urdu and started the
Mohammedan Anglo-Oriental College at Aligarh in 1875. He also struggled
to bring about an improvement in the position of women through better
education by
48
opposing purdah and polygamy, advocating easy divorce, and condemning

the system of piri and muridi. He believed in the fundamental underlying
unity of religions or 'practical morality'. He also preached the basic
commonality of. Hindu and Muslim interests.
He argued that Muslims should first concentrate on education and jobs
and try to catch up with their Hindu counterparts who had gained the
advantage of an early start. Active participation in politics at that
point, he felt, would invite hostility of the Government towards the
Muslim masses. Therefore, he opposed political activity by the Muslims.
Unfortunately, in his enthusiasm to promote the educational and
employment interests of the Muslims, he allowed himself to be used by
the colonial government in its obnoxious policy of divide and rule and,
in later years, started propagating divergence of interests of Hindus
and Muslims.
Syed's progressive social ideas were propagated through
Tandhib-ul-Akhlaq (Improvement of Manners and Morals).
his magazine
The Aligarh Movement emerged as a liberal, modern trend among the Muslim
intelligentsia based in Mohammedan Anglo-Oriental College, Aligarh. It
aimed at spreading (i) modern education among Indian Muslims without
weakening their allegiance to Islam; (ii) social reforms among Muslims
relating to purdah, polygamy, widow remarriage, women's education,

slavery, divorce, etc. The ideology of the followers of the movement was
based on a liberal interpretation of the Quran and they sought to
harmonise Islam with modern liberal culture. They wanted to impart a
distinct socio-cultural identity to Muslims on modern lines. Soon,
Aligarh became the centre of religious and cultural revival of the.
Muslim community.
The Deoband School
The Deoband Movement was organized by the orthodox section among the
Muslim ulema as a revivalist movement with the twin objectives of
propagating pure teachings of the Quran and Hadis among Muslims and
keeping alive the spirit of jiliad against the foreign rulers.
Religious and Social Reform MoveMents
49
The Deoband Movement was established in Deoband in Saharanpur district

(United Provinces) in 1866 by Mohammad Qasim Nanotavi (1832-80) and
Rashid Ahmed,cangohi (18281905) to train religious leaciers tor tne
iviusum conununuy.
contrast to> the Ahgarn ivievemenr, 4 L al of Muslim& through western
education and support of the British Government, the aim of the Deoband
Movement was moral and religious regeneration of the Muslim community.
The instruction imparted at Deoband was in original Islamic religion.
On the political front, the Deoband school welcomed the formation of the
Indian National Congress and in 1888 issued a fatwa (religious decree)
against Syed Ahmed Khan's organisations, The United Patriotic
Association and the 1V1ohammaden Anglo-Oriental Association. Some
critics attribute Deoband's support to the nationalists more to its
determined opposition to Syed Ahmed Khan than to any positive political
philosophy.
Mahmud-ul-,Flasan, the new Deoband leader, gave a political and
intellectual content to the religious ideas of the school. He worked'
'out a synthesis of Islamic principles and nationalist aspirations. The
Jamiat-ul-Ulema gave a concrete shape to Hasan's ideas of protection of
the religious and political rights of the Muslims in the overall context
of Indian unity and national objectives.
Shibli Numani, a supporter of the Deoband, school, favoured the
inclusion of English language and European sciences in the system of
education. He founded the Nadwatal Ulama and DarI hum in Lucknow in
1894-96. He believed in the idealism of the Congress and cooperation
between the Muslims Hindus of Iriaia to create a state in which both
could live amicably.
Parsi Reform Movements
The Rahnumai Mazdayasnan Sabha (Religious Reform Association) was founded
in 1851 by a, group of English-educated Parsis for the "regeneration of
the social conditions of the Parsis and the restoration of the
Zoroastrian religion to its pristine purity". The movement had
50

Naoroji Furdonji, Dadabhai Naoroji, K.R. Carna and S.S. Bengalee as its
leaders. The message of reform was spread by the newspaper Rast Goftar
(Truth-Teller). Parsi religious rituals and practices were reformed and
the Parsi creed redefined. In the social sphere, attempts were made to
uplift the status of Parsi women through removal of the purdah system,
raising the age of marriage and education. Gradually, the Parsis emerged
as the most westernised section of the Indian society.
Sikh Reform Movements
The Sikh community could not remain untouched by the rising tide of
rationalist and progressive ideas of the nineteenth century. The Singh
Sabha Movement was founded at Amritsar in 1873 with a two-fold
objective-(i) to make available modern western education to the Sikhs,
and (ii) to counter the proselytising activities of Christian
missionaries as well as Hindu revivalists. For the first objective, a
network of Khalsa schools was established by the Sabha throughout
Punjab. The Akali movement was an offshoot of the Singh Sabha Movement.
It aimed at liberating the Sikh gurudwaras from the control of corrupt
Udasi Mahants who were a loyalist and reactionary lot, enjoying
government patronage. The Government tried its repressive policies
against the non-violent non-cooperation satyagraha launched by the
Akalis in 1921, but had to bow before popular demands and passed the
Sikh Gurudwaras Act in 1922 (amended in 1925) which gave the control of
gurudwaras to the Sikh masses to be administered through Shiromani
Gurudwara Prabandhak Committee (SGPC) as the apex body.
The Akali Movement was a regional movement but not a communal one The
Akali leaders played a notable role in the national liberation struggle
though some dissenting voices were heard occasionally.
The Theosophical
A group of
Colonel M.S. who
the Theosophical
Movement
westerners led by Madame H.P. Blavatsky (1831-1891) and
were inspired by Indian thought and culture, founded
Society in United States in 1875.
In 1882, they shifted their headquarters to Adayar, on the outskirts of

Madras. The society believed that a special relationship could be
established between a person's soul and Gay contemplation, Ri-ayer,
revelation, etc. It accepted the Hindu beliefs in reincarnation and
karma, and drew inspiration from the philosophy of the Upanishads and
samkhya, yoga and Vedanta schools of thought. It aimed to work for
universal brotherhood of humanity without distinction of race, creed,
sex, caste or colour. The society also sought to investigate the
unexplained laws of nature and the powers latent in man. The
Theosophical Movement came to be allied with the Hindu renaissance. In
India, the movement became somewhat popular with the election of Annie
Besant (1847-1933) as its president after the death of Olcott in 1907.
Annie Besant had come to India in 1893. She laid the foundation of the
Central Hindu College in Benaras in 1898 where both Hindu religion and
western scientific subjects were taught. The college became the nucleus
for the formation of Benaras Hindu University in 1916. Annie Besant also
did much for the cause of the education of women.
The Theosophical Society provided a common denominator for the various
sects and fulfilled the urge of educated Hindus. However, to an average
Indian the Theosophist philosophy seemed to be vague and lacking a
positive programme; to that extent its impact was limited to a small
segment of the westernised class. As religious revivalists, the
Theosophists did not attain much success, but as a movement of
westerners glorifying Indian religious and philosophical traditions they
gave much needed self-respect to the Indians fighting British colonial
rule. Viewed from another angle, the Theosophists also had the effect of
giving a false sense of pride to the Indians in their outdated and
sometimes backwardlooking traditions and philosophy.
POSITIVE CONTRIBUTIONS
OF REFORM MOVEMENTS The orthodox sections of society could not accept
the scientific ideological onslaught of the socio-religious rebels. As a
result
52
of this, the reformers were subjected to abuse, persecution, issuing of

fatwas and evert assassination attempts by the reactionaries.
However, in spite of opposition, these movements contributed towards
liberation of the individual from the conformity born out of fear and
from uncritical submission to exploitation by the priests. The
translation of religious texts into vernacular languages, emphasis on an
individual's right to interpret, the scriptiffes ariasimplification of
rituals experience. The move-Me-as emphasised the human intellect's
capacity to think and reason. wTedinout corrupt elements, religious
leaders and pr-a-crices,
the reformers enabled their followers to meet the official taunt that
their religiisA,&sqw2E5ent andinfei:Kii. It gave the rising middle
classes the much needed to cling to, and served the purpose of reducing
the sense of humiliation which the conquest by a foreign power had
produced.
A realisation of the special needs of modern times, especially in terms
of scientific knowledge, and thus promoting a modern, this-worldly,
secular and rational outlook was a major contribution of these reform
movements. Socially, this attitude reflected in a basic change in the
notions of 'pollution and purity'. Although traditional values and
customs were a prominent target of attack from the reformers, yet the
reformers aimed at modernisation rather than outright westernisation
based on blind imitation of alien western cultural values. In fact, the
reform movements sought to create a favourable social climate for
modernisation. To that extent, these movements ended India's cultural
and intellectual isolation from the rest of the world. The reformers
argued that modern ideas and culture could be best imbibed by
integrating them into Indian cultural streams.
The underlying concern of these reformist efforts was revival of the

native cultural personality which had got distorted by colonial
domination. This cultural ideological struggle was to prove to be an
important instrument of
53
evolution of national consciousness and a part of Indian national

resolve to resist colonial cultural and ideological hegemony. However,
not all these progressive, nationalist tendencies were able to outgrow
the sectarian and obscurantist outlook. This was,possibly due to
divergent duality of cultural and political struggles, resulting in
cultural backwardness despite political advancement.
NEGATIVE ASPECTS OF REFORM MOVEMENTS
Qne of the major limitations of these religious reform movements was
that they had a narrow social base, namely the educated and urban
middle classes, while the needs of vast masses of peasantry and the
urban poor were ignored.
The tendency of reformers to appeal to the greatness of the past and, to
rely on scriptural authority encouraged mysticism m new garbs and
fostered pseudo-scientific thinking while exercising a check on hill
acceptance of the need for a modern scientific outlook. But, above all,
these tendencies contributed, at least to some extent, in
compartmentalising Hindus, Muslims, Sikhs and Parsis, as also alienating
high caste Hindus from low caste Hindus.
An overemphasis on religious and philosophical ,as aspects of
heritage,got somewhat magnified by insufficient emphasis on other
aspects of cultureart, architecture, literature, music, science and
technology. To make matters worse, the Hindu reformers co their praise
of the indian past to its ancient period and looked upon the medieval
period of Indian history essentially as an era of decadence. This teride
to create a notion of two separate peoples, on the one hand; on the
other, an uncritical praise of the past was not acceptable to the low
caste sections of society which had suffered under religiously
sanctioned exploitation precisely during the ancient period. Moreover,
the past itself tended to be placed into compartments on a partisan
basis. Many in the Muslim middle classes went to the extent of turning
to, the history of West Asia for their traditions and moments of pride.
54
The process of evolution of a composite culture which was evident

throughout Indian history showed signs of being arrested with the rise
of another form of consciousness communal consciousnessalong with
national consciousness among the middle classes.
Many other factors were certainly responsible for the birth of
communalism in modern times, but undoubtedly the nature of religious
reform movements also contributed to it. On the whole, however, whatever
the net outcome of these reform movements, it was out of this struggle
that a new society evolved in India.
Views
I regret to say that, the present system of religion adhered by the
Hindus is not well calculated to promote their political interests. it
is, I think, necessary that some change should' take place in their
religion at least for the sake of their political advantage and social
comfort, Raja Rammohan Roy.
No other religion preaches the dignity of humanity in such a lofty
strain as Hinduism and no other religion on earth treads upon the poor
and the low in such a fashion as Hinduism, Swami Vivekananda.
A country where millions have nothing to eat and where few thousand holy
men and brahmins suck the blood of the poor and do nothing at -all for
them, is not a country but a living hell. Is this religion or a dance of
death? Swami Viveicananda.
Nationalist power to stir up discontent would be immensely increased if
every cultivator could read, Bombay Governor, in a private letter to
the Viceroy (1911).
The rising middle clasres were politically inclined and were not so much
in search of a religion; but they wanted some cultural roots to cling on
to, that would reduce the sense of frustration and humiliation that
foreign conquest and rule had produced, Jawaharlal Nehru.
55
The dead and the buried are aead, buried and burnt once for all and the
dead past cannot, therefore, be revived except by a reformation df the
old materials into new organized forms. Mahadeo Govind Ranade
Unfortunately, no brahmin scholar has so far come forward to play the
part of a Voltaire who had the intellectual honesty to rise against the
doctrines of the Catholic church on which he was brought up. A Voltaire
among the brahmins would be a positive danger to the maintenance of a
civilisation which is contrived to maintain brahminic supremacy. B.R.
Ambedkar
Untouchability
untouchability
untouchability
Hinduism has a
question is one of life and death for Hinduism, if

lives, Hinduism perishes, and even India perishes; but if
is eradicated from the Hindu heart, root and branch, then
definite message for the world. M.K. Gandhi
Whoever worships the True God daily must learn to recognise

fellow countrymen as brethren. Keshub Chandra Sen
all his
Forget not that the lower classes, the ignorant, the poor, the
illiterate, the cobbler, the sweeper are thy flesh and blood, thy
brothers.
Swami Vivekananda
I want the culture of all lands to be blown about 'my house as freely as
possible. But I refuse to be blown off my feet by any. I refuse to live
in other people's houses as an interloper, a beggar or a slave. M.K.
Gandhi
Summary
FACTORS WHICH GAVE RISE TO REFORM MOVEMENTS
Presence of colonial government on Indian soil.
Various ills plaguing Indian societyobscurantism, superstition,
polytheism, idolatry, degraded position of women, exploitative caste
hierarchy.
Spread of education and increased awareness of the world.
Impact of modern western culture and consciousness of defeat by a
foreign power.
Summary
Rising :tide of nationalism and democracy during the late 19th
century.
SOCIAL BASE
Emerging middle class and western-educated intellectuals.
IDEOLOGICAL BASE
Rationalism, religious universalism, humanism, secularism.
SOCIAL REFORM COMPONENTS
Betterment of Position of Women
Degraded position due to Purdah system Early marriage
Unequal rights in marriage, divorce, inheritance
Polygamy
Female infanticide
Restrictions on widow remarriage
Sati
Lack of education
Major Contributors to Reforms

Social reform movements,
freedom struggle,
movements led by enlightened women,
free India's Constitution.
Legislative Measures for Women
Bengal Regulation (1829) banning sati
Bengal Regulations (1795, 1804)declaring infanticide illegal.
Hindu Widows' Remarriage Act, 1856.
Age of Consent Act, 1891
Sarda Act, 1930
Special Marriage Act, 1954
Hindu Marriage Act, 1955
Hindu Succession Act, 1956
Hindu Adoption and Maintenance Act Maternity Benefits Act, 1961

Equal Remuneration Act, 1976
Child Marriage Restraint (Amendment) Act, 1978
Suppression of Immoral Traffic Act in Women and Girls, 1956 (amended in
1986)
Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961 (amended in 1986)
STRUGGLE AGAINST CASTE-BASED EXPLOITATION
Factors Undermining Caste Rigidities
Forces unleashed by colonial administration
Social reform movements
National movement
Gandhi's campaign against untouchability
Stirrings among lower castes due to better education and
Free India's Constitution
employment
REFORM MOVEMENTS: AMONG HINDUS Bengal Raja Ram-mohan Roy and Brahmo
Samaj
Debendranath Tagore and Tattvabodhini Sabha
Keshub Chandra Sen and Brahmo Samaj of India Prarthana Samaj
Derozio and Young Bengal Movement Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar Western
India Bal Shastri Jambekar Students' Literary and Scientific Societies
Pararnhansa Mandalis
Jyotiba Phule and Satyashodhak Samaj Gopalhari Deshmukh Lokahitawadi'
Gopal Ganesh Agarkar Servants of India Society Southern India Sri
Narayana Dharma Paripalana Movement Vokkaliga Sangha Justice Movement
Self-respect Movement Temple Entry Movement All India
Ramakrishna Movement and Vivekananda
Dayanand Saraswati and Arya Samaj
Theosophical Movement
Summary
AMONG MUSLIMS
Wahabi/Walliullah Movement Ahmadiya Movement
Aligarh Movement Deoband Movement
Syed Ahmed Khan and
AMONG PARSIS
Rahnumai Mazdayasnan Sabha
AMONG SIKHS
Singh Sabha Movement
Akali Movement
POSITIVE CONTRIBUTIONS
Liberation of individual from conformity out of fear psychosis. Worship
made a more personal affair Cultural roots to the middle classesthus
mitigating the sense of humiliation; much needed self-respect gained
Fostered secular outlook Encouraged social climate for modernisation
Ended India's cultural, intellectual isolation from rest of the world
Evolution of national consciousness
NEGATIVE CONTRIBUTIONS
Narrow social base Indirectly encouraged mysticism Overemphasis on

religious, philosophical aspects of culture while underemphasising
secular and moral aspects Hindus confined their praise to ancient Indian
history and Muslims to medieval historycreated a notion of two separate
peoples and increased communal consciousness Historical process of
evolution of composite culture arrested to some extent.
CHAPTER 3
The Struggle Begins
MODERATE PHASE AND EARLY CONGRESS (1858-1905)
The rise and growth of Indian nationalism has been traditionally
explained in terms of Indian response to the stimulus generated by the
British Raj through creation of new institutions, new opportunities,
resources, etc. In other nationalism grew Eutly.was a result of colonial
policies reaction. In fact, it would be more correct to see Indian
nationalism as a product of a mix of various factors.
(i)
(ii)
Worldwide upsurge of the concepts of nationalism and right of

self-determination initiated by the French Revolution.
Indian Renaissance.
, (iii) Offshoot of modernisation initiated by the British
in India.
(iv) Strong reaction to British imperialist policies in
India.
FACTORS IN GROWTH OF MODERN NATIONALISM

Understanding of Contradiction in Indian and Colonial Interests
People came to realise that colonial rule was the major cause of India's
economic backwardness and that the interests of the Indians involved the
interests of all sections and classespeasants, artisans,
handicraftsmen, workers, intellectuals, the educated and the
capitalists. The nationalist movement arose to take up the challenge of
these contradictions inherent in the character and policies of colonial
rule.
Political, Administrative and Economic Unification of the Country
The British rule in the Indian subcontinent
extendedfrom the Himalayas
in the north to the Cape
Comorinirt the south and from Assam in the
east to Khyber Pass in the west. The British created a larger state than
that
59
60
of the Mauryas or the great Mughals. While Indian provinces were under
'direct' British rule, Indian states were under 'indirect' British rule.
The British sword imposed political unity in India. A professional civil
service, a unified judiciary and codified civil and criminal laws

throughout the length and breadth of the country imparted a new
dimension of political unity to the hitherto cultural unity that had
existed in India for centuries. The necessities of administrative
convenience, considerations of military defence and the urge for
economic penetration and commercial exploitation were the driving
forces behind the planned development of modern means of transport and
communication such as railways, roads, electricity and telegraph.
From the nationalists' point of view, this process of unification had a
two-fold effect:
(i) Economic fate of the people of different regions got linked
together; for instance, failure of crops in one region affected the
prices and supply in another region.
(ii) Modern means of transport and communication brought people,
especially the leaders, from different regions together. This was
important for exchange of political ideas and for mobilisation and
organisation of public opinion on political and economic issues.
Western Thought and Education The introduction of a modern system of
education afforded opportunities for assimilation of modern western
ideas. This, in turn, gave a new direction to Indian political thinking,
although the English system of education had been conceived by the
rulers in the interest of efficient administration. The liberal and
radical thought of European writers like Milton, Shelley, John Stuart
Mill, Rousseau, Paine, Spencer and Voltaire helped many Indians imbibe
modern rational, secular, democrAtic and nationalist ideas.
The English language helped nationalist leaders from different
linguistic regions to communicate with each other. Those among the
educated who took up liberal professions (lawyers, doctors, etc.) often
visited England for higher
The Struggle Begins 61
education. There they saw the working of modern political institutions
in a free country and compared that system with the Indian situation
where even basic rights were denied to the citizens. This everexpanding English educated class formed the middle class intelligentsia
who constituted the nucleus for the newly arising political unrest. It
was this section which provided leadership to the Indian political
associations.
Role of Press and Literature
The second half of the nineteenth century saw an unprecedented growth of
Indian owned English and vernacular newspapers, despite numerous
restrictions imposed on the press by the colonial rulers from time to
time. In 1877, there were about 169 newspapers published in vernacular
languages and their circulation reached the neighbourhood of 1,00,000.
The press while criticising official policies, on the one hand, urged
the people to unite, on the other. It also helped spread modern ideas of
self-government, democracy, civil rights and industrialization. The
newspapers, journals, pamphlets and nationalist literature helped in the
exchange of ,political
regions.
ideas among nationalist leaders from different
Rediscovery of India's Past

The historical researches by European scholars, such as Max Mueller,
Monier Williams, Roth and Sassoon, and by Indian scholars such as R.G.
Bhandarkar, R.L. Mitra and later Swami Vivekananda, created an entirely
new picture of India's past. This picture was characterized by welldeveloped political, economic and social institutions, a flourishing
trade with the outside world, a rich heritage in arts and culture and
numerous cities. The theory put forward by European scholars, that the
Indo-Aryans belonged to the same ethnic group from which other nations
of Europe had evolved, gave a psychological boost to the educated
Indians. The self-respect and confidence so gained helped the
nationalists to demolish colonial myths that India had a long history
of servility to foreign rulers.
Progressive Character of Socio-religious Reform Movements
These reform movements sought to remove social evils which divided the
Indian society; this had the effect
of bringing different sections together, and proved to be an
factor in the growth of Indian nationalism.
important
Rise of Middle Class Intelligentsia

British administrative and economic innovations gave rise to a new urban
middle class in towns. According to Percival Spear, "The new middle
class was a well-integrated all-India class with varied background but a
common, foreground of knowledge, ideas and values. It was a minority of
Indian society, but a dynamic minority. It had a sense of unity of
purpose and of hope.
This class, prominent because of its education, new position and its
close ties with the ruling class, came to the forefront. The leadership
to the Indian National Congress in all its stages of growth was provided
by this class.
Impact of Contemporary Movements Worldwide
Rise of a number of nations on the ruins of Spanish and Portuguese
empires in South America, and the national liberation movements of
Greece and Italy in general and of Ireland in particular deeply
influenced the nationalist ranks.
Reactionary Policies and Racial Arrogance of Rulers
Racial myths of white superiority were sought to be perpetuated by a
deliberate policy of discrimination and segregation. Indians felt deeply
hurt by this. Lytton's reactionary policies such as reduction of maximum
age limit for the I.C.S. examination 'from 21 years to 19 years (1876),
the grand Delhi Durbar of 1877 when the country was in the severe grip
of famine, the Vernacular Press Act (1878) and the Arms Act (1878)
provoked a storm of opposition in the country. Then came the Ilbert Bill
controversy. Ripon's Government had sought to abolish, "judicial
disqualification based on race distinctions" and to give the Indian
members of the covenanted civil service the same powers and rights as
those enjoyed by their European colleagues. Ripon had to modify the
bill, which almost defeated the original purpose, because of stiff
opposition from the European community.
It became clear, to the nationalists that justice and fair play could
not be expected where interests of the European community were involved.
However, the organized agitation
The Struggle Begins
63
by the Europeans to revoke the. Ilbert Bill also taught the

how to agitate for certain rights and demands.
nationalists
POLITICAL ASSOCIATIONS BEFORE THE INDIAN NATIONAL CONGRESS

The political associations in the early half of the nineteenth century
were dominated by wealthy and aristocratic elements, local or regional
in character, and through long petitions to the British Parliament
demanded
* administrative reforms,
* association of Indians with the administration, and
* spread of education.
The political associations of the second half of the nineteenth century
came to be increasingly dominated by the educated middle classthe
lawyers, journalists, doctors, teachers, etc. and they had a wider
perspective and a larger agenda.
Political Associations in Bengal
The Bangabhasha Prakasika Sabha was formed in 1836
Rammohan Roy.
by associates of Raja
The Zamindari Association, more popularly known as the 'Landholders'

Society', was founded to safeguard the interests of the landlords.
Although limited in its objectives, the Landholders' Society marked the
beginning of an organized political activity and use of methods of
constitutional agitation for the redressal of grievances.
The Bengal British India Society was founded in 1843 with the object of
the collection and dissemination of information relating to the actual
condition of the people of British India and to employ such other means,
of peaceful and lawful character as may appear calculated to secure the
welfare, extend the just rights and advance the interests of all classes
of our feliow subjects.
In 1851, both the Landholders' Society and the Bengal British India
Society merged into the British Indian Association. It sent a petition to
the British Parliament demanding
inclusion of some of its suggestions in the renewed Charter
Company, such as
of the
(i) establishment of a separate legislature of a popular Character

(iii)
separation of executive from judicial functions
(iv)
reduction in salaries of higher officers
(iv) abolition of salt duty, abkari and stamp duties.
These were partially accepted when the Charter Act of 1853 provided for
the addition of six members to the governorgeneral's council for
legislative purposes.
The East India Association was organized by Dadabhai Naoroji in 1866 in
LondbiiiO disctiSs the Indian question and influence public men in
England to promote Indian welfare. Later, branches of the association
were started in prominent Indian cities.
The Indian League was started in 1875 by Sisir Kumar Ghosh with the
object of "stimulating the sense of nationalism amongst the people" and
of encouraging political education.
The Indian Association of Calcutta superseded the Indian League and was
founded in 1876 by younger nationalists of Bengal led by Surendranath
Banerjee and Ananda Mohan Bose, who were getting discontented with the
conservative and pro-landlord policies of the British Indian
Association. The Indian Association of Calcutta was the most important
of preCongress associations and aimed to
(i) create a strong public opinion on political questions, and
(ii) unify Indian people on a common political
programme.
Branches of the association were opened in other towns and cities of
Bengal and even outside Bengal. The membership fee was kept low in order
to attract the poorer sections to the association.
Political Associations in Bombay
The Poona Sarvajanik Sabha was founded in 1867 by M.Mahadeo Govind
Ranade and others, with the object of serving as a bridge between the
government and the people.
The Struggle Begins
65
The Bombay Presidency Association was started by

Pherozshah Mehta and K.T. Telang in 1885.
Political Associations in Madras
The Madras Mahajan Sabha was founded in 1884 by
Subramaniya Aiyer and P. Anandacharlu.
Badruddin Tyabji,
M. Viraraghavachari, B.
PRE-CONGRESS CAMPAIGNS
These associations organized various campaigns before the firstallIndia associationthe Indian National Congress appeared on the scene.
These campaigns were
(i)
for imposition of import duty on cotton (1875)
(ii) for Indianisation of government service (1878-79)
(iii) against Lytton's Afghan adventure
(iv) against Arms Act (1878)
(v) against Vernacular Press Act (1878)
(vi) for right to join volunteer corps

(vii) against plantation labour and against Inland
Emigration Act
(viii) in support of Ilbert Bill
(ix) for an All India Fund for Political Agitation
(x) campaign in Britain to vote for pro-India party
(ii)
against reduction in maximum age for appearing in Indian
Civil Service; the Indian Association took up this question
and organized an all-India agitation against it, popularly
known as the Indian Civil Service agitation.
(iii)
INDIAN NATIONAL CONGRESSITS AIMS AND OBJECTIVES
Solid ground had thus been prepared for the establishment of an allIndia organisation. The final shape to this idea was given by a retired
English civil servant, A.O. Hume, who mobilised. leading intellectuals
of the time and with their cooperation organized the first session of
the Indian National Congress at Bombay in December 1885. As a prelude to
this, two sessions of the Indian National Conference had been held
in 1883 and 1885, which had representatives drawn from all major towns
of India. Surendranath Banerjee and Ananda Mohan Bose were the main
architects of the Indian National Conference.
The first session of the Indian National Congress was, attended by 72
delegates and presided over by Vomesh Chandra Bonnerjee. Hereafter, the
Congress met every year in December, in a different part of the country
each time. Some of the great presidents of the Congress during this
early phase were Dadabhai Naoroji (thrice president), 13adruddin Tyabji,
Pherozshah Mehta, P. Anandacharlu, Surendranath Banerjee, Romesh Chandra
Dutt, Ananda Mohan Bose and Gopal Krishna Gokhale. Other prominent
leaders included Mahadeo Govind Ranade, Bal Gangadhar Tilak, Sisir Kumar
Ghosh, Motilal Ghosh, Madan Mohan Malaviya, G. Subramaniya Aiyar, C.
Vijayaraghavachariar, Dinshaw E. Wacha.
In 1890, Kadambiny the first woman graduate of Caktiffa University
addressed the Congress session, which symbolised the commitment of the
freedom struggle to give the women of India their due status in national
life.
Apart from the Indian National Congress, nationalist activity was
carried out through provincial conferences and associations, newspapers
and literature.
Aims and Objectives of the Congress
These were to
(i) found a democratic, nationalist movement;
(ii) politicise and politically educate people;
(iii) establish the headquarters for a 'movement;
(iv) promote friendly relations among nationalist political workers from
different parts of the country;
(v) develop and propagate an anti-colonial nationalist ideology;
(vi) formulate and present popular demands before the Government with a
view to unifying the people over a common economic and political
programme;
(vii) develop and consolidate a feeling of national unity among people
irrespective of religion, caste or province.
(viii) carefully promote and nurture Indian nationhood.
Was It a Safety Valve?
There is a theory that Hume formed the Congress with the idea that it
would prove to be a 'safety valve' for releasing the growing discontent
of the Indians. To this end he convinced Lord Dufferin not to obstruct
the formation of the Congress. Modern Indian historians, however,
dispute the idea of 'safety valve'. In their opinion the Indian National
Congress represented the urge of the politically conscious Indians to
set up a national body to express the political and economic demands of
the Indians. If the Indians had convened such a body on their own, there
would have been unsurmountable opposition from the officials; such an
organisation would not have been allowed to form. In the circumstances,
as Bipin Chandra observes, the early Congress leaders used Hume as a
'lightning conductor' i.e., as a catalyst to bring together the
nationalistic forces even if under the guise of a 'safety valve'.
METHODS OF POLITICAL WORK OF THE EARLY MODERATES (1885-1905)
The national leaders like Dadabhai Naoroji, Pherozshah Mehta, D.E.
Wacha, W.C. Bonnerjee, S.N. Banerjee who dominated the Congress policies
during this period were staunch believers in 'liberalism' and 'moderate'
politics ancrainT-LobelaTe117d as Moderates To distin om the neonationalists of the early twentieth century who were referred to as the
Extremists.
The moderate political activity involved constitutional agitation within
the confines of law and showed a slow but orderly political progress.
The Moderates believed that the British basically wanted to be just to
the Indians but were not aware of the real conditions. Therefore, if
public opinion could be created, in the country and public demands be
presented to the Government through resolutions, petitions, meetings,
etc., the authorities would concede these demands gradually.
To achieve these ends, they worked on a two-pronged methodologyone,
create a consciousness and national spirit and then educate and unite
people on common political e
68
British Government and British public opinion to introduce reforms in

India on the lines laid out by the nationalists. For this purpose, a
British committee of the Indian National Congress was established in
London in 1899 which had Indiri as its organ. Dadabhai Naoroji spent a
portion of his life and income campaigning for India's case
abroad:in1890, it was decided to hold a session of the Indian National
Congress in London in 1892, but owing to the British elections

the proposal was postponed and never revived later.
of 1891
The Moderate leaders believed that political connections with Britain

were in India's interest at that stage of history and that the time was
not ripe for a direct challenge to the British rule. Therefore, it was
considered to be appropriate to try and transform the colonial rule to
approximate to a national rule.
CONTRIBUTIONS OF MODERATE NATIONALISTS
Economic Critique of British Imperialism
The early nationalists, led by Dadabhai Naoroji, R.C. Dutt, Dinshaw
Wacha and others, carefully analysed the political economy of British
rule in India, and put forward, the to explain British exploitation of
India. They opposed the transformation of a basically self-sufficient
Indian economy into a colonial economy (i.e., a supplier of raw materials
and fooes an importer of finished goods and a field of investment for
British capital). Thus, the Moderates were able to create an all-India
public opinion that British rule in India was the major cause of
India's poverty and economic backwardness.
To mitigate the deprivation characterising Indian life, the early
nationalists demanded severance of India's economic subservience to
Britain and development of an independent economy through involvement of
Indian capital and enterprise. The early nationalists demanded reduction
in land revenuer abolition of salt tax, improvement in working
conditions of plantation labour, reduction in military expenditure, and
encouragement to modern industry through tariff protection and direct
government aid. (Also refer to chapter on Economic Impact of British
Rule in India.)
Constitutional Reforms and Propaganda in Legislature
Legislative councils in India had no real official power till 1920. Yet,
work done in them by the nationalists helped the growth of the national
movement. The Imperial Legislative Council constituted by the Indian
Councils Act (1861) was an impotent bodydeSigned to disguise official
measures as having been passed by a > representative body. Indian
members were few in numberthirty years from 1862 to 1892 only for
brLfiye. Indians were nominated to it most of them being wealthy,
landed and, loyalist, interests. Only a handful of political figures and
intellectuals such as Ahmed Khan, Kristodas Pal, V.N. Mandlik, K.L.
Nulkar and Rashbehari Ghosh were nominated.
From 1885 to
were centred
1. expansion
councils,
2. reform of
control over
1892, the nationalist demands for constitutional reforms

around
of councilsi.e., greater participation of Indians in
councilsi.e., more powers to councils,
finances.
especially greater
The early nationalists worked with the long-term objective of a

democratic self-government. Their demands for constitutional reforms
were conceded in 1892 in the form of the Indian Councils Act.
These reforms were severely criticised at Congress sessions, where the

nationalists made no secret of their dissatisfaction with them. Now,
they demanded (i) a majority of elected Indians, and (ii) control over
the budget i.e., the 'power to vote upon and amend the budget. They gave
the slogan"No taxation without representation'. Gradually, the scope
of constitutional demands was widened and Dadabhai Naoroji (1904), Gopal
Krishna Gokhale (1905) and Lokmanya Tilak (1906) demanded selfgovernment like the self-governing colonies of Canada and Australia.
Also, leaders like Pherozshah Mehta and Gokhale put government policies
and proposals to severe criticism.
The British had intended to use the councils to incorporate the more
vocal among Indian leaders, so as to allow them to let off their
"political steam", while the impotent councils
Indian Councils Act 1892.
The main provisions of this Act were as follows.
Number of additional members in Imperial Legislative Councils and the
Provincial Legislative Councils was raised. In Imperial Legislative
Council, now the governor-general could have ten to sixteen nonofficials (instead of six to ten previously).
Some of these additional members could be indirectly elected Thus an
element of election was introduced for the first time.
Budget could be discussed.
Questions could be asked.
But there were certain limitations of these reforrns.
The officials retained their majority in the council, thus leaving
ineffective the non-official voice.
The 'reformed' Imperial Legislative Council met, during its tenure
till 1909, on an average for only thirteen days in a year, and the
number of unofficial Indian members present was only five out of twentyfour.
The budget could not be voted upon, nor could any amendments be made
to it.
Supplementaries could not be asked, nor could answers be discussed.
could afford to remain, deaf to their criticism. But the nationalists
were able to transform these councils into forums for;ventilating
popular grievances, for exposing the defects of an indifferent
bureaucracy, for criticising government policies/proposals, raising
basic economic issues, especially regarding public finance.
The nationalists were, thus, able to enhance their political stature and
build a national movement while undermining the political and moral
influence, of imperialist rule. This helped in generating antiimperialist sentiments among the public. But, at the same time, the
nationalists failed to widen the democratic base of the movement by not
including the masses, especially women, and not demanding the right to
vote for all.
Campaign for General Administrative Reforms

These included the following:
Indianisation of government service: on the economic
British civil servants expected very high emoluments
grounds that

while inclusion of Indians would be more economical; on political
grounds that, since salaries of British bureaucrats were remitted back
home and pensions paid in England, this amounted to economic drain; and
on moral grounds that Indians were being discriminated against by being
kept away from positions of trust and responsibility.
Separation from, executive functions.
CriticismotaaQ1qrrannicalbureaucracy and an expensive and
time-consuming judicial system.
Criticism aggressive forei:7n policy which resulted in Afghanistan war
and suppression of tribals in the North-West.
Increase in expenditure on welfare (i.e., health, sanitation),
educationespecial and technical irrigation works and improvement of
agriculture, agricultural banks for cultivators, etc.
Better treatment for Indian labour abroad in other British colonies, who
faced oppression and racial discrimination there.
Defence of Civil Rights These rights included the right to speech,
thought, association and expression an incessant campaign, the
nationalists were able to spread modern democratic ideas, and soon the
defence of civil rights became an integral part of the freedom struggle.
It was due to the increased consciousness that there was a great public
outrage at the arrest of Tilak and several other leaders and journalists
in 1897 and at the arrest and deportation of the Natu brothers without a
trial. (Also refer to chapter on Development of Press in India.)
AN EVALUATION OF THE EARLY NATIONALISTS
(i) They represented the most progressive forces of the time.
(ii) They were able to create a wide national awakening of all Indians
having common interests and the need to rally around a common programme
against a common enemy, and above all, the feeling of belonging to one
nation.
(iii) They trained people in political work and popularised modern
ideas.
(iv) They exposed the basically exploitative character of colonial rule,
thus undermining its moral foundations.
(v) Their political work was based on hard realities, and not on shallow
sentiments, religion, etc.
(vi) They were able to establish the basic political truth that India
should be ruled in the interest of Indians.
(vii) They created a solid base for a more vigorous, militant, massbased national movement in the following years.
(vii)
However, they failed to widen their democratic base and the
scope of their demands.
ROLE OF MASSES
The moderate phase ofthe national movement had a narrow social base and
the masses played a passive role. This was because the early nationalists
lacked political faith in the masses; they felt that there were
numerous' divisions and subdivisions in the Indian society, and the
generally ignorant and had conservative ideas and thoughts. These
heterogeneous elements had first to be welded into a nation before their
entry into the political sphere. But they failed to realise that it was
only during the freedom struggle and political participation that these
diverse elements were to come together. Because of the lack of mass
participation, the Moderates could not take militant political positions
against the authorities. The later nationalists differed from the
Moderates precisely on this point. Still, the early nationalists
represented the emerging Indian nation against colonial interests.
ATTITUDE OF THE GOVERNMENT
The British Indian Government was hostile to the Congress from the
beginning despite the latter's moderate methods and emphasis on loyalty
to the British Crown. The official attitude stiffened further after 1887
when the Government failed to persuade ,the Congress to confine itself
to social questions while the Congress was becoming increasingly
critical of the colonial rule. Now, the Government resorted to open
The Struggle Begins
73
condemnation of the Congress, calling the nationalists "seditious,

brahmins", "disloyal babus", etc,,Dufferin called, the Congress "a
factory of sedition". Later, the Government adopted a 'divide and rule'
policy towards the Congress., The officials encouraged reactionary
elements and Raja Shiv Prasad Singh of Benaras to organize the United
Patriotic Association to counter, Congress propaganda. The Government
also tried to divide the nationalists on the basis and, through a
policy of 'carrot and stick', pitted the Mocleratesaaain.st the
Extremists. But the Government failed' to check the rising tide of
Aationatism.
Views
"You don't realise our place in the history of our country. These
memonais are nominally auuresseuU IC reality they are addressed to the
people, so mat tney may learn how to think in these matters. This work
must be done for many years, without expecting any other results,
because politics of this kind is altogether new in this land." Justice
Mahadeo Govind Ranade to Gokhale (1891)
We cannot blame them for the attitude they adopted as pioneers of Indian
political reform any more than we can blame the brick and mortar that is
buried six feet deep in the foundation and, plinth of a modern edifice.
They have made possible the superstructure, storey by storey, by
colonial selfgovernment, home rule within the empire, swaraj and on the
top of all, complete independence. Pattabhi Sitaramayya
The period from 1858 to 1905 was the seed time of Indian nationalism;
and the early nationalists sowed the seeds well and deep. Bipin Chandra
It was at,best an opportunist movement. It opened opportunities for
treacheries and hypocrisies. It enabled some people to trade in the name
of patriotism. Lala Lajpat Rai
The Congress is tottering to its fall, and one of my great ambitions
while in India is to assist it to a peat:awl 14
74
A. Brief Histor'Y of Modern India
Summary
FACTORS IN GROWTH OF MODERN "NATIONALISM
Understanding of contradictions in Indian and colonial interests
Political, administrative and economic unification of the country.
Western thought and education
Role of press and literature
Rediscovery of India's past-historical researches
Rise of middle class intelligentsia
Impact of contemporary movements worldwide
Reactionary policies and racial arrogance of rulers
POLITICAL ASSOCIATIONS BEFORE INDIAN NATIONAL' CONGRESS
1836Bangabhasha Prakasika Sabha
Zamindari Association or Landholders' Society
1843Bengal British India Society
1851British Indian Association
1866East India Association
1875Indian League
1876Indian Association of Calcutta
1867Poona Sarvajanik Sabha
1885Bombay Presidency Association
1884Madras Mahajan Sabha
EARLY NATIONALIST METHODOLOGYConstitutional agitation within four walls
of law
Create public opinion in India and campaign for support to Indian
demands in England
Political education of people
Political connections with Britain in India's interests at that stage
Time not ripe for direct challenge to colonial rule
CONTRIBUTIONS OF MODERATE NATIONALISTS
Economic critique of British imperialism
Constitutional reforms and propaganda in legislature
Campaign for general administrative reforms
Defence of civil rights.
CHAPTER 4
National Movement-1905-1918
WHY MILITANT NATIONALISM GREW?
A radical trend of a militant nationalist approach to political activity
started emerging in the 1890s and it took a concrete shape by 1905. As
an adjunct to this trend, a revolutionary terrorist wing also took
shape. But why did this militant trend emerge?
1. Recognition of the True Nature of British Rule: Having seen that,
the Government was not conceding any of their important demands,
the more militant among those politically conscious got
disillusioned and started looking for a more effective mode of
political action. Also, the feeling that only an Indian Government
could bring India on a path of progress started attracting more
and more people. The economic miseries of the 1890s further
exposed the exploitative character of colonial rule. Severe
famines killed 90 lakh persons between 1896 and 1900. Bubonic
plague affected large areas of the Deccan. There were large-scale
riots in the Deccan. The nationalists were wide awake to the fact
that instead of giving more rights to the Indians, the Government
was taking away even the existing ones.
1892 The Indian Councils Act was criticised by nationalists as it failed
to satisfy them. 1897 The Natu brothers were deported without trial
and Tilak and others, imprisoned on charges of sedition. 1898
Repressive laws under IPC Section 124 A were further amplified with new
provisions under IPC Section 156 A 1899 Number of Indian members in
Calcutta Corporation were reduced.
75
1904 1904
Official Secrets Act curbed freedom of press. Indian Universities Act
ensured greater government control over universities, which it described
as factories producing political revolutionaries. Also, British rule
was no longer progressivesocially and culturally. It was suppressing
the spread of education, especially mass and technical education.
2. Growth of Confidence and Self-Respect: With this grew the faith in
self-effort. Tilak, Aurobindo and Bipin Chandra Pal repeatedly
urged the nationalists to rely on the character and capacities of
the Indian people. A feeling started gaining currency that only
the masses were capable of making the immense sacrifices needed to
win freedom.
3. Growth of Education: While, on the one hand, the spread of
education led to an increased awareness among the masses, on the
other hand, the rise in unemployment and underemployment among the
educated drew attention to poverty and the underdeveloped state of
the country's economy under colonial rule. This added to the

already simmering discontent among the more radical nationalists.
4. International Influences: Remarkable progress made by Japan after

1868 and its emergence as an industrial power opened the eyes of
Indians to the fact that economic progress was possible even by an
Asian country without any external help. The defeat of the
Italian army by Ethiopians (1896), the Boer wars (1899-1902) where
the British faced reverses and Japan's victory over Russia (1905)
demolished myths of European invincibility. Also, the nationalists
were inspired by the nationalist movements worldwidein Ireland,
Russia, Egypt, Turkey, Persia and China. The Indians realised that
a united people willing to make sacrifices could take on the
mightiest of empires.
5. Reaction to Increasing Westernisation: The new leadership felt the
stranglehold of excessive westernisation and sensed colonial designs to
submerge the Indian national
National Movement-1905-1918 77
Ifherkness
Views
If there is a sin in the world, it is weakness; avoid all weakness.
Weakness is sin, weakness' is death. Swami Vivekananda
The Extremists of today will be the Moderates of tomorrow, just as the
Moderates of today were the Extremists of yesterday. B.G. Tilak
What one Asiatic has done, others can. If Japan can drub Russia, India
can drub England with equal ease... let us drive the British into the
sea and take our place side by side with Japan among the great powers of
the world. Karachi Chronicle (June 18, 1905)
identity in the British Empire
The intellectual and moral inspiration of the new leadership was Indian.
Intellectuals like Swami Vivekananda, Bankim Chandra Chatterjee and
Swami Dayanand Saraswati inspired many young nationalists with their
forceful alai articulate arguments, painting India's past in brighter
colours than the British ideologues had. These thinkers exploded the
myth of western superiority by referring to the richness of Indian
civilisation in the past Dayartand's 'India for the Indians'.
6. Dissatisfaction with Achievements of Moderates: The
younger elements
within the Congress were dissatisfied with the achievements of the
Moderates first 15-20 years. They were strongly critical of the methods
of peaceful and constitutional agitation, popularly known as the "Three
'P's" prayer, petition andprotestand described these methods as
'political mendicancy'.
7. Reactionary Policies of Curzon: A sharp reaction was created in the
Indian mind by Curzon's seven-year rule in India which'was full of
missions, commissions and orrussions. He refused to recognise India as a

to Indian nationalists and the intelligentsia by describing their
activities as "ie-tfin:oflofgrs'. He spoke derogatorily of Indian
character in general. Administrative measures adopted during his rule
the Official Secrets Act, the Indian UniversitiesAct, the calcration Act
and,, above all, the partition of Bengalleft no doubts . in Indian
minds about the basically reactionary nature of British rule in India.
Existence of a Militant School, of Thought By the dawn of the twentieth
century, a band of nationalist thinkers had emerged who advocated a more
militant approach to political work. These included Raj Narain Bose,
Ashwini Kumar Datta, Aurobindo Ghosh and Bengal; Vishnu Shastri
Chiplunkar and Tilak. in Maharashtra; and Lala Lajpat Rai in Punjab. as
the most outstanding representative of this school of thought. The bask'
tenets of this school of thought were: hatred for foreign rule; since no
hope could be derived from it, Indians should work out their own
salvation;
swaraj to be the goal of national movement; direct political action
required; belief in capacity Of the masses to challenge the
authority;
personal sacrifices required and a true nationalist to be always ready
for it.
9. A Trained Leadership Had Emerged
This leadership could provide a proper diannelisation of the immense
potential for political struggle which the masses possessed and, as the
militant nationalists thought, were ready to give expression to. This
energy of the masses got a release during the movement against the
partition of Bengal, which acquired the form of the swadeshi agitation.
THE SWADESHI AND BOYCOTT MOVEMENT
The Swadeshi Movement had its genesis, in the anti-partition movement
which was started to oppose the British decision to partition Bengal.
The Government's decision to partition Bengal had been made public in
December 1903. The official reason. given for the decision was that
Bengal with a population of 78 million
(about a quarter of the population of British India) had become too big
to be administered. This was true to some extent, but the real motive
behind the partition plan was the British desire to weaken Bengal, the
nerve centre of Indian nationalism. This it sought to achieve by putting
the Bengalis under two administrations by dividing them (i) on the basis
of language (thus reducing the Bengalis to a minority in Bengal itself
as in the new proposal Bengal proper was to have 17 million Bengalis
and 37 million Hindi and Oriya speakers), and (ii) on the basis of
religion, as the western half was to be a Hindu majority area (42
million out of a total 54 million) and the eastern half was to be a
Muslim majority area (18 million out of a total of 31 million). Trying
to woo the Muslims, Curzon, the viceroy at that time, argued that Dacca
could become the capital of the new Muslim majority province, which
would provide them with a unity not experienced by them since the days
of old Muslim viceroys and kings. Thus, it was clear that the Government
was up to its old policy of propping up Muslim communalists to counter
the Congress and the national movement.
Anti-Partition Campaign Under Moderates (1903-05)
During this period, the leadership was provided by men like Surendranath
Banerjee, K.K. Mitra and Prithwishchandra Ray. The methods adopted were
petitions to the Government, public meetings, memoranda, and propaganda
through pamphlets and newspapers such as Hitabadi, Sanjibani and
Bengalee. Their objective was to exert sufficient pressure on the
Government through an educated public opinion in India and England to
prevent the unjust partition of Bengal from being implemented.
The Announcement Ignoring a loud public opinion against the partition
proposal, the Government announced partition of Bengal in July 1905.
Within days, protest meetings were held in small towns all over Bengal.
It was in these meetings that the pledge to boycott foreign goods was
first taken. On August 1905, with the passage of Boycott Resolution in
a massive meeting held in the Calcutta Town hall,
the formal proclamation of Swadeshi Movement was made. After this, the
leaders dispersed to other parts of Bengal to propagate the message of
boycott of Manchester cloth and Liverpool salt.
October 16, 1905, the day the partition formally came into force, was
observed as a day of mourning through out Bengal. People fasted, bathed
in the Ganga and walked barefoot in processions singing Bande Mataram
(which almost spontaneously became the theme song of the movement).
People tied rakhis on each other's hands as a symbol of unity of the two
halves of Bengal. Later in the day, Surendranath Banerjee and Ananda
Mohan Bose addressed huge gatherings (perhaps the largest till then
under the nationalist banner). Within a few hours of the meeting, Rs
50,000 were raised for the movement.
Soon, the movement spread to other parts of the countryin Poona and
Bombay under Tilak, in Punjab under Lala Lajpat Rai and Ajit Singh, in
Delhi under Syed Haider Raza, and Madras under Chidambaram Pillai.
The Congress's Position
The Indian National Congress, meeting in 1905 under the presidentship of
Gokhale, resolved to (i) condemn the partition of Bengal and the
reactionary policies of Curzon, and (ii) support the anti-partition and
Swadeshi Movement of Bengal.
The militant nationalists led by Tilak, Lajpat Rai, Bipin Chandra Pal
and Aurobindo Ghosh wanted the movement to be taken outside Bengal to
other parts of the country and go beyond a boycott of foreign goods to
become a full-fledged political mass struggle with the goal of attaining

swaraj. But the Moderates, dominating the Congress at that time, were
not willing to go that far. However, a big step forward was taken at the
Congress session held at Calcutta (1906) under the presidentship of
Dadabhai Naoroji, where it was declared that the goal of the Indian Tess
was 'selfgovernment or swaraj like the United Kingdom or the colonies.
The Moderate-Extremist dispute over the pia of the movement and
techniques of struggle reached a deadlock at the Surat session of the
Indian National Congress (1907) where the party split with serious
consequences for the Swadeshi Movement.
THE MOVEMENT UNDER MILITANT LEADERSHIP
After 1905, the Extremists acquired a dominant influence over the
Swadeshi Movement in Bengal. There were three reasons for this:
1. The Moderate-led movement had failed to yield results.
2. The divisive tactics of the Governments of both the Bengals had
embittered the nationalists.
3. The Government had resorted to suppressive measures, which included
atrocities on studentsmany of whom were given corporal punishment; ban
on public singing of Bande Mataram; restriction on public meetings;
prosecution and long imprisonment of swadeshi workers; clashes between
the police and the people in many towns; arrests and deportation of
leaders; and suppression of freedom of the press.
The Extremist Programme Emboldened by Dadabhai Naoroji's declaration at
the Calcutta session (1906) that selfgovernment or swaraj was to be the
goal of the Congress, the Extremists gave a call for passive resistance
in addition to swadeshi and boycott which would include a boycott of
government schools and colleges, government service, courts, legislative
councils, municipalities, government titles, etc. so as to, as Aurobindo
put it, "make the administration under present conditions impossible by
an organized refusal to do anything-which will help either the British
commerce in the exploitation of the country or British officialdom in
the administration of
The militant nationalists tried to transform the antipartition and
Swadeshi Movement into a mass struggle and gave the slogan of India's
independence from foreign rule. "Political freedom is the lifebreath of
a nation," declared Aurobindo. Thus, the Extremists gave the idea of
India's independence the central place in India's politics. The goal of
independence was to be achieved through self-sacrifice.
New Forms of Struggle
The militant nationalists put forward several fresh ideas at the
theoretical, propaganda and programme levels. Among the several forms of
struggle thrown up by the movement were
Boycott of foreign goods: This included boycott and public burning of
foreign cloth, boycott of foreign made salt or sugar, refusal by priests
to rihmlise marriages involving exchange of foreign goods, refusal by
washermen to wash foreign clothes. This form of protest met with great
success at the practical and popular level.
Public meetings and processions: These emerged as major methods of mass

mobilisation and simultaneously as forms of popular expression.
Corps of volunteers or 'samitis: Samitis such as the Swadesh Bandhab
Samiti of Ashwini Kumar Dutta (in Barisal) emerged as a very popular and
powerful method of mass mobilisation. These samitis, generated political
consciousness among the masses through magic lantern lectures, swadeshi
songs, physical and moral training to their members, social work during
famines and epidemics, organisation of schools, training in swadeshi
crafts and arbitration courts.
Imaginative use of traditional popular festivals and, melas: The idea
was to use such occasions as a means of reaching out to the masses and
spreading political messages. For instance,. Tilak's Ganapati and
Shivaji festivals became a medium of swadeshi propaganda not only in
western India, but also in Bengal. In, Bengal also, the traditional folk
theatre forms were used for this purpose.
Emphasis given to self-reliance or 'atma shaktz: This implied reassertion of national dignity, honour and confidence and social and
economic regeneration of the villages. In practical terms, it included
social reform di-id campaigns against caste oppression, early marriage,
dowry system, consumption of alcohol, etc.
Programme of swadeshi or national education: Bengal National College,
inspired by Tagore's Shantiniketan was set
up with Aurobindo Ghosh as its principal. Soon national schools and
colleges sprang up in various parts of the country. On August 15, 1906,
the National Council of Education was set up to organize a system of
educationliterary, scientific and technicalon national lines and under
national control. Education was to be imparted through the medium of
vernaculars. A Bengal Institute of Technology was set up for technical
education and funds were raised to send students to Japan for advanced
learning.
Swadeshi or indigenous enterprises
The swadeshi spirit also found expression in the establishment of
swadeshi textile mills, soap and match factories, tanneries, banks,
insurance companies, shops etc. These enterprises were based more on
patriotic zeal than on business acumen.
Impact in the cultural sphere
The nationalists of all hues took inspiration from songs written by
Rabindranath Tagore, Rajnikartt Sen, Dwijendralal Ray, Mukunda Das, Syed
Abu, Mohammad and others. Tagore's' Amar Sonar Bangla written on this
occasion was later to inspire the liberation struggle of Bangladesh and
was adopted by it as its 'national anthem.
In painting, Abanindranath Tagore broke the domination of Victorian
naturalism over Indian art and took inspiration from Mughal, Ajanta and
kajput paintings. Nandlal Bose, who left a major imprint on Indian art,
was the first recipient of a scholarship offered by the Indian Society
of Oriental Art, founded in 1907.
In science, JagdishChanclra Bose, Prafullachandra Roy and others

pioneered original research which was praised the world over.
EXTENT OF MASS PARTICIPATION
Students came out in large numbers to propagate and practise swadeshi,
and to take a lead in organising picketing of shops selling foreign
goods. Police adopted a repressive attitude towards the students.
Schools and colleges whose students participated in the agitation were
to be penalised by disaffiliating them or stopping of grants and
privileges to them. Students
84
who were found guilty of participation were to be disqualified for

government jobs or for government scholarships, and disciplinary action
fine, expulsion, arrest, beating, etc was to be taken against them.
Women, who were traditionally home-centred, especially those of the urban
middle classes, took active part in processions and picketing. From now
onwards, they were to play a significant role in the national movement.
Some of the Muslims participatedBarrister Abdul Rasul, Liaqat Hussain,
Guznavi, Maulana Azad (who joined one of the revolutionary terrorist
groups)but most of the upper and middle class Muslims stayed away or,
led by Nawab Salimullah of Dacca, supported the partition on the plea
that it would give them a Muslim-majority East Bengal.
Thus, the social base of the movement expanded to include certain
sections of the zamindars, the students, the women, and the lower middle
classes in cities and towns. An attempt was also made to give political
expression to economic grievances of the working class by organising
strikes in Britishowned concerns such as Eastern Indian Railways. But the
movement was not able to garner support of the Muslims, especially the
Muslim peasantry, because of a conscious government policy of divide and
rule helped by overlap of class and community at places. To further
government interests, the All India Muslim League was propped up in 1907
as an anti-Congress front and reactionary elements like Nawab
Salimullah of Dacca were encouraged.
ALL INDIA ASPECT
Movements in support of Bengal's unity and the swadeshi and boycott
agitation were organized in many parts of the country. Tilak, who played
a leading role in the spread of the movement outside Bengal, saw in
this the ushering in of a new chapter in the history of the national
movement. He realised that here was a challenge and an opportunity to
organize popular mass struggle against the British rule to unite the
country in a bond of common sympathy.
ANNULMENT OF PARTITION
It was decided to annul the partition of Bengal in 1911 mainly to curb
the menace of revolutionary terrorism. The annulment came as a rude
shock to the Muslim political elite. It was also decided to shift the
capital to Delhi as a sop to the Muslims, as it was associated with

Muslim glory, but the Muslims were not pleased. Bihar and Orissa were
taken out of Bengal and Assam was made a separate province.
WHY DID THE SWADESHI MOVEMENT FIZZLE OUT?
By 1908, the open phase (as different from the underground revolutionary
phase) of the movement was almost over This was due to many reasons1. There was severe government repression.
2. 2. The movement failed to create an effective organisation or a
party structure. It threw up an entire gamut of techniques that
came to be associated with Gandhian politicsnoncooperation,
passive resistance, filling of British jails, social reform and
constructive workbut failed to give these techniques a
disciplined focus.
3. The movement was rendered leaderless with most of the leaders either
arrested or deported by 1908 and with Aurobindo-Ghosh and Bipin. Chandra
Pal retiring from active politics.
4. Internal squabbles among leaders, magnified by the Surat split
(1907), did much harm to the movement.
5. The movement aroused the people but did not know how to tap the
newly released energy or how to find new forms to give expression to
popular resentment.
6. The movement largely remained confined to the upper and middle
classes and zamindars, and failed to reach the massesespecially the
peasantry.
7. Non-cooperation and passive resistance remained mere ideas.
8. It is difficult to sustain a mass-based movement at a high pitch for
too long.
86
Views
Bengal united is a power. Bengal divided will pull in several different
ways
One of our main objects is to split up and thereby to weaken a
solid body of opponents to our rule. Risley (home secretary to the
Government of India, 1904)
Swaraj or self-government is essential for the exercise of swadharma.
Without swaraj there could be no social reform, no industrial progress,
no useful education, no fulfilment of national life. That is what we
seek, that is why God has sent us to the world to fulfil Him. B.G.
Tilak
Swadeshism during the days of its potency coloured the entire texture of
our social and domestic life. Surendranath Banerjee.
Swaraj is the fulfilment of the ancient life of India under modern
conditions, the return of satyuga of national greatness, the resumption
by her of her great role of the teacher and guide, self-liberation of
the people for final fulfilment of the Vedantic idea in politics, that
is the true swaraj for India. Aurobindo Ghosh
ASSESSMENT
Despite its gradual decline into inactivity, the movement was
point in modern Indian history.
a turning
1. It proved to be a "leap forward" in more ways than one. Hitherto

untouched sectionsstudents, women, some sections of urban and
rural populationparticipated. All major trends of the national
movement, from conservative moderation to political extremism,
from revolutionary terrorism to incipient socialism, from
petitions and prayers to passive resistance and non-cooperation,
emerged during the Swadeshi Movement.
2.
The richness of the movement was not confined to the political sphere
alone, but encompassed art, literature, science and industry also.
2. People were aroused from slumber and now they learned to take bold
political positions and participate in new forms of political work.
3. The swadeshi campaign undermined the hegemony of colonial ideas
and institutions.
4. The future struggle was to draw heavily from the experience
gained.
Thus, with the coming of Swadeshi and Boycott
that the Moderates had outlived
Movement, it became clear
Differences Between Moderates and Extremists

Moderates
1. Social basezamindars and upper middle classes in towns.
2. Ideological
inspiration western liberal thought and European
history.
3. Believed
in England's providential mission in India.
4. Believed political connections with Britain to be in India's
social, political and cultural interests.
5. Professed loyalty to the British Crown.
6. Believed that the movement should be limited to middle class
intelligentsia; masses not yet ready for participation in political
work.
7. Demanded constitutional reforms and share for Indians in services.
8. Insisted on the use of constitutional methods only.
9. They were patriots and did not play the role of a comprador class.
Extremists
1. Social base
educated middle classes in towns and lower middle class.
2. Ideological inspirationIndian history, cultural heritage and Hindu
traditional symbols.
3. Rejected 'providential mission theory' as an illusion.
4. Believed
that political connections with Britain would
perpetuate British exploitation of India.
5. Believed that the British Crown was unworthy of claiming Indian
loyalty.
6. Had immense faith in the capacity of masses to participate and to
make sacrifices.
7. Demanded swaraj as panacea for Indian ills.

8. Did not hesitate to use extraconstitutional methods like boycott
and
passive resistance to achieve their objectives.
9. They were patriots who made sacrifices for the sake of the country.
88
their utility and their politics of petitions and speeches had become
obsolete. They had not succeeded in keeping pace with time, and this was
highlighted by their failure to get the support of the younger
generation for their style of politics. Their failure to work among the
masses had meant that their ideas did not take root among the masses.
Even the, propaganda by the Moderates did not reach the masses. No allIndia campaigns of the scale of Swadeshi and Boycott Movement had been
organized earlier by the Moderates and, in this campaign, they
discovered that they were not its leaders, which was rather natural.
The Extremist ideology and its functioning also lacked consistency. Its
advocates ranged from open members and secret sympathisers to those
opposed to any kind of political violence. Its leadersAurobindo, Tilak,
B.C. Pal and Lala Lajpat Raihad different perceptions of their goal.
For Tilak, swaraj meant some sort of self-government, while for
Aurobindo, it meant complete independence from foreign rule. But at the
politico-ideological level, their emphasis on mass participation and on
the need to broaden the social base of the movement was a progressive
improvement upon the Moderate politics. They raised patriotism from a
level of 'academic pastime' to one of 'service and sacrifice for the
country'. But the politically progressive Extremists proved to be social
reactionaries. They had revivalist and obscurantist undertones attached
to their thoughts. Tilak's opposition to the Age of Consent Bill (which
would have raised the marriageable age for girls from 10 years to 12
years, though his objection was mainly that such reforms must come from
people governing themselves and not under an alien rule), his organising
of Ganapati and Shivaji festivals as national festivals, his support
to
anti-cow killing
campaigns.,
etc. portrayed him as a Hindu
nationalist. Similarly B.C. Pal and Aurobindo spoke of a Hindu nation
and Hindu interests.
Though the seemingly revivalist and obscurantist tactics of the
Extremists were directed against the foreign rulers, they had the effect
of promoting a very unhealthy relationship
89
between politics and religion, the bitter harvests of which the

had to reap in later years.
Indians
THE SURAT SPLIT

The Congress split at Surat came in December 1907, around the time when
revolutionary terrorism had gained momentum. The two events were not
unconnected.
Run-up to Surat
In December ,19 at the Benaras session of the Indian National Congress

presided over by Gokhale, the Moderate-Extremist differences came to the
fore. The Extremists wanted to extend the Boycott and Swadeshi Movement
to regions outside Bengal and also to include all forms of associations
(such as government service, law courts, legislative councils, etc.)
within the boycott programme and thus start a nationwide mass movement.
The Extremists wanted a strong resolution supporting their programme at
the Benaras session. The Moderates, on the other hand, were not in
favour of extending the movement beyond Bengal and were totally opposed
to boycott of councils and similar associations. They advocated strictly
constitutional methods to protest against the partition of Bengal. As a
compromise, a relatively mild resolution condemning the partition of
Bengal and the reactionary policies of Curzon and supporting the
swadeshi and boycott programme in Bengal was passed. This succeeded in
averting a split for the moment.
At the Calcutta session of the Congress in December 1906, the Moderate
enthusiasm had cooled a bit because of the popularity of the Extremists
and the revolutionary terrorists and because of communal riots. Here, the
Extremists wanted either Tilak or Lajpat Rai as the president, while the
Moderates proposed the name of Dadabhai Naoroji, who was widely
respected by all the nationalists. Finally, Dadabhai Naoroji was elected
as the president and as a concession to the militants, the goal of the
Indian National Congress was defined as swarajya or self-government like
the United Kingdom or the colonies'. Also a resolution supporting the
programme of swadeshi, boycott and national education
90
was passed. The word swaraj was mentioned for the first time, but its
connotation was not spelt out, which left the field open for differing
interpretations by the Moderates and the Extremists.
The Extremists, emboldened by the proceedings at the Calcutta session,
gave a call for wide passive resistance and boycott of schools,
colleges, legislative councils, municipalities, law courts, etc. The.
Moderates, encouraged by the news that council reforms were on the
anvil, decided to tone down the Calcutta programme. The two sides seemed
to be heading for a showdown. The Extremists thought that the people had
been aroused and the battle for freedom had begun. They felt the time
had come for the big push to drive the British out and considered the
Moderates to be a drag on the movement. They concluded that it was
necessary to part company with the Moderates, even if it meant, a split
in the Congress. The Moderates thought that it would be dangerous at
that stage to associate with the Extremists whose anti-imperialist
agitation, it was felt, would be ruthlessly suppressed by the mighty
colonial rule. The Moderates saw in the council reforms an opportunity
to realise their dream of Indian participation in the administration.
Any hasty action by the Congress, the Moderates felt, under Extremist
pressure was bound to annoy the Liberals in power in England then. The
Moderates were no less willing to part company with the Extremists.
The Moderates did not realise that the council reforms were meant by the
Government more to isolate the Extremists than to reward the Moderates.
The Extremists did not realise that the Moderates could act as their
outer line of defence in face of state repression. Both sides did not
realise that in a vast country like India ruled by a powerful
imperialist country, only a broad-based nationalist movement could
succeed.
The Extremists wanted the 1907 session to be held in Nagpur (Central
Provinces) with Tilak or Lajpat Rai as the president and reiteration of
the swadeshi, boycott and national education resolutions. The Moderates
wanted the session at Surat in order to exclude Tilak from the
presidency,
since a leader from the host province could not be session president
(Surat being in Tilak's home province of Bombay). Instead, they wanted
Rashbehari Ghosh as the president and sought to drop the resolutions on
swadeshi, boycott and national education. Both sides adopted rigid
positions, leaving no room for compromise. The split became inevitable,
and the Congress was now dominated by the Moderates who lost no time in
reiterating Congress commitment to the goal of selfgovernment within the
British Empire and to constitutional methods only to achieve this goal.
The Government launched a massive attack on the Extremists. Between 1907
and 1911, five new laws were enforced to check anti-government activity.
These legislations included the Seditious Meetings Act, 1907; Indian
Newspapers (Incitement to Offences) Act, 1908; Criminal Law Amendment
Act, 1908; and the Indian Press Act, 1910. Tilak, the main Extremist
leader, was sent to Mandalay (Burma) jail for six years. Aurobindo and
B.C. Pal retired from active politics. Lajpat Rai left for abroad. The
Extremists were not able to organize an effective alternative party to
sustain the movement. The Moderates were left with no popular base or
support, especially as the youth rallied behind, the Extremists.
After 1908, the national movement as a whole declined for a time. In
1914, Tilak was released and he picked up the threads of the movement.
THE GOVERNMENT STRATEGY The British Government in India had been hostile
to the Congress from the beginning. Even after the Moderates, who
dominated the Congress from the beginning, began distancing themselves
from the militant nationalist trend which had become visible during the
last decade of the nineteenth century itself, government hostility did
not stop. This was because, in the Government's view, the Moderates
still represented an anti-imperialist force consisting of basically
patriotic and liberal intellectuals..
With the coming of Swadeshi and Boycott Movement
91
92
and the emergence of militant nationalist trend in a big way, the

Government modified its strategy towards the nationalists. Now, the
policy was to be of 'rallying them' (John Morley the secretary of state)
or the policy of 'carrot and stick'. It may be described as a three-
pronged approach of repression, conciliation, suppression. In the first

stage, the Extremists were to be repressed mildly, mainly to frighten
the Moderate& In the second stage, the Moderates were to be placated
through some concessions, and hints were to be dropped that more
reforms would be forthcoming if the distance from the Extremists was
maintained. This was aimed at isolating the Extremists. Now, with the
Moderates on its side, the Government could suppress the Extremists with
its full might. The Moderates could then be ignored.
Unfortunately, neither the Moderates nor the Extremists understood the
implications of the strategy. The Surat split suggested that the policy
of carrot and stick had brought rich dividends to the Government.
REVOLUTIONARY TERRORISM
Revolutionary terrorism was a by-product of the process of the growth of
militant nationalism in India. It acquired a more activist form as a
fallout of the Swadeshi and Boycott Movement.
After the decline of the open movement, the younger nationalists who had
participated in the movement found it impossible to disappear into the
background. They looked for avenues to give expression to their
patriotic energies, but were disillusioned by the failure of the
leadership, even from the Extremists, to find new forms of struggle'to
bring into practice the new militant trends The Extremist leaders,
although they called upon the youth to make sacrifices, failed to create
an effective organisation or find new forms of political work to tap
these revolutionary energie& The youth, finding all avenues of peaceful
political protest closed to them under government repression, thought
that if nationalist goals of independence were to be met, the British
must be expelled physically.
93
The Revolutionary Terrorist Programme

The revolutionary terrorists considered but did not find it practical
at that stage the options of creating a violent mass revolution
throughout the country or, of trying to subvert the loyalties of the
Army. Instead they opted to follow in the footsteps of Russian
nationalists or the Irish nationalists. This methodology involved
individual heroic actions, such as organising assassinations of unpopular
British officials and of traitors and informers among the
revolutionaries themselves; conducting swadeshi dacoities to raise funds
for revolutionary activities; and (during the First World War)
organising military conspiracies with expectation of help from the
enemies of Britain.
The idea was to strike terror in the hearts of the rulers, arouse people
and remove the fear of authority from their minds. The revolutionaries
intended to inspire the people by appealing to their patriotism,
especially the idealist youth who would finally drive the British out.
The Extremist leaders failed to ideologically counter the
revolutionaries by not highlighting the difference between a revolution
based on activity of the masses and one based on individual terrorist
activity, thus
root.
allowing the individualistic terrorist activities to take
A Survey of Revolutionary Terrorist Activities

Following is a brief survey of revolutionary terrorist activities in
different parts of India and abroad before the First World War.
Bengal By the 1870s, Calcutta's student community was honeycombed with
secret societies, but these were not active. The first revolutionary
groups were organized in 1902 in Midnapore (under jnanendranath Basu)
and in Calcutta (the Anushilan Samiti founded by Promotha Mitter, and
including jatindranath Banerjee, Barindra Kumar Ghosh and others.) But
their activities were limited to giving physical and moral training to'
the members and remained insignificant till 1907- 08. In April 1906, an
inner circle within Anushilan (Barindra Kumar Ghosh, Bhupendranath
Dutta) started the weekly Yugantar and conducted a few abortive
'actions'. By 1905-06, several newspapers had started advocating
revolutionary terrorism. For instance, after severe police brutalities
on
94
participants of the Barisal Conference, the Yugantar wrote "The remedy

lies with the people. The 30 crore people inhabiting India must raise
their 60 crore hands to stop this curse of oppression. Force must be
stopped by force." Rashbehari Bose and Sachin Sanyal had organized a
secret society covering far-flung areas of Punjab, Delhi and United
Provinces while some others like Hernachandra Kanungo went abroad for
military and political training. In 1907, an abortive attempt was made
on the life of the very unpopular West Bengal Lt. Governor, Fuller, by
the Yugantar group. In 1908, Prafulla Chaki and Khudiram Bose threw a
bomb at a carriage supposed to be carrying a particularly sadistic white
judge, Kingsford, in Muzaffarnagar. Two ladies, instead, got killed.
Prafulla Chaki shot himself dead while Khudiram Bose was tried and
hanged. The whole gang was arrested including the Ghosh brothers,
Aurobindo and Barindra, who were tried in the Alipore conspiracy case.
During the trial, Narendra Gosain, who had turned approver, was shot
dead in jail. In February 1909, the public prosecutor was shot dead in
Calcutta and in February 1910, a deputy superintendent of police met
the same fate while leaving the Calcutta High Court. In 1908, Barrah
dacoity was organized by Dacca Anushilan under Pulin Das. Rashbehari
Bose and Sachin Sanyal staged a spectacular bomb attack on Viceroy
Hardinge while he was making his official entry into the new capital in
a procession through Chandni Chowk in Delhi in December 1912.
The newspapers and journals advocating revolutionary terrorism included
Sandhya and Yugantar in Bengal, and Kal in Maharashtra. In the end,
revolutionary terrorism emerged as the most substantial legacy of
swadeshi Bengal which had a spell on educated youth for a generation or
more. But, an overemphasis on religion kept the Muslims aloof while it
encouraged quixotic heroism. No involvement of masses was envisaged,
which, coupled with, the narrow upper caste social base of the movement
in Bengal, severely limited the scope of the revolutionary terrorist
activity. Lacking a mass base,

state repression.
it failed to withstand the weight of
Maharashtra, The first of the revolutionary activities here was the
organisation of the Ramosi Peasant Force by Vasudev Balwant Phadke in
1879, which aimed to rid the country of the British by instigating an
armed revolt by disrupting communication lines. It hoped to raise funds
for its activities through dacoities. It was suppressed prematurely.
During the 1890s, Tilak propagated a spirit of militant nationalism,
including use of violence through Ganapati and Shivaji festivals and his
journals Kesari and Maratta. Two of his disciplesthe Chapekar brothers,
Damodar and Balkrishnamurdered the Plague Commissioner of Poona, Rand,
and one Lt. Ayerst in 1897. Savarkar and his brother organized Mitra
Mela, a secret society, in 1899 which merged with Abhinav Bharat (after
Mazzinni's 'Young Italy') in 1904. Soon Nasik, Poona and Bombay emerged
as centres of bomb manufacture. In 1909, Jackson, the district
magistrate of Nasik, was killed.
Punjab, The Punjab extremism was fuelled by issues such as frequent
famines coupled with rise in land revenue and irrigation tax, practice
of 'begar' by zamindars and by the events in Bengal. Among those active
here were Lala Lajpat Rai who brought out Punjabee (with its motto of
self-help at any cost) and Ajit Singh (Bhagat Singh's uncle) who
organized the extremist Anjurnan-i-Mohisban-i-Watan in Lahore with its
journal, Bharat Mata. Before Ajit Singh's group turned to extremism, it
was active in urging non-payment of revenue and water rates among Chenab
colonists and Bari Doab peasants. Other leaders included Aga Haidar,
Syed Haider Raza, Bhai Parmanand and the radical Urdu poet, Lalchand
Falak'.
Extremism in the Punjab died down quickly after the Government struck in
May 1907 with a ban on political meetings and the deportation of Lajpat
Rai and Ajit Singh. After this, Ajit Singh and a few other associates
Sufi Ambaprasad, Lalchand, Bhai Parmanand, Lala Hardayal developed into
full-scale revolutionary terrorists.
96
Abroad, The need for shelter, the possibility of bringing out

revolutionary literature that would be immune from the. Press Acts and
the quest for arms took Indian revolutionaries abroad. Shyamji
Krishnavarma had started in London in 1905 an Indian Home Rule Society
'India House'as a centre for Indian students, a scholarship scheme to
bring radical youth from India, and a journal The Sociologist.
Revolutionaries such as Savarkar and Hardayal became the members of
India House. Madanlal Dhingra of this circle assassinated, the India
office bureaucrat Curzon Wyllie in 1909. Soon London became too
dangerous for the revolutionaries, particularly after Savarkar had been
extradited in 1910 and transported for life in the Nasik conspiracy
case. New centres emerged on the continent Paris and Genevafrom where
Madam Bhikaji Cama, a Parsi revolutionary who had developed contacts
with French socialists and who brought out Bande Mataram, and Ajit Singh
operated. And after 1909 when Anglo-German relations deteriorated,

VirendranathChattopadhyaya chose Berlin as his base.
Views
Thee ultimate object of the revolutionaries is not terrorism but
revolution and the purpose of the revolution is to install a national
government. Subhash Chandra Bose
Will you not see the writing that these terrorists are writing with
their blood. M.K. Gandhi
Neither rich nor able, a poor son like myself can offer nothing but his
blood on the altar of mother's, deliverance. may I be reborn of the same
mother and may I redie in the same sacred cause, till my mission is done
and she stands free for the good of humanity and to the glory of God.
Madanlal Dhingra.
God has not conferred upon the foreigners the grant inscribed on a
copper plate of the kingdom of Hindustan. Do not circumscribe your
vision a frog in a well; get out of the venal and enter the extremely
high atmosphere of the mar tinagvaa usta and consider the actions of
great men. Tilak in Kesari (June 15, 1897).
MORLEY-MINTO REFORMS1909
The Morley-Minto Reforms, so named after Morley, the secretary of state,
and Minto, the viceroy at that time, were preceded by two important
events. In
1906, a group of Muslim elites called led by the Agha
Khan, met Lord Minto and demanded separate electorates for the Muslims
and representation in excess of their numerical strength in view of 'the
value of the contribution' Muslims were making to the defence of the
empire'. The same group quickly took over the Muslim League, initially
floated by Nawab Salimullah of Dacca along with Nawabs Mohsin-u1Mulk and
Waqar-ul-Mulk in December 1906. Muslim League intended to preach loyalty
to the empire and to keep the Muslim intelligentsia away from the
Congress.
The Reforms
The number of elected members in the Imperial Legislative Council and
the Provincial Legislative Councils was increased. In the Provincial
Councils, non-official majority was introduced, but since some of these
non-officials were nominated and not elected, the overall non-elected
majority remained.
In the Imperial Legislative Council, of the total 68 members, 36 were
to be the officials and of the 32 non-officials, 5 were to be nominated.
Of the 27 elected non-officials, 8 seats were reserved for the Muslims
under separate electorates (only Muslims could vote here for the Muslim
candidates), while 6 seats were, reserved for the British capitalists, 2
for the landlords and 13 seats came under general electorate. The
elected members were to be indirectly elected. The local bodies were to
elect an electoral college, which in turn would elect members of
provincial legislatures, who in turn would elect members of the central
legislature.
Besides separate electorates for the Muslims, representation in excess

of the strength of their population was accorded to the Muslims. Also,
the income qualification for Muslim voters was kept lower than that for
Hindus. Powers of legislatures both at the centre and in provinces were
enlarged and the legislatures could now pass
98
resolutions (which may not be accepted), ask questions and

supplementaries, vote separate items in the budget but the budget as a
whole could not be voted upon.
One Indian was to be appointed to the viceroy's executive council
(Satyendra Sinha was the first to be appointed in 1909).
Evaluation
The reforms of 1909 afforded no answer and could afford no answer to the
Indian political problem. Lord Morley made it clear that colonial selfgovernment (as demanded by the Congress) was not suitable for India, and
he was against introduction of, parliamentary or responsible government
in India. He said, "If it could be said that this chapter of reforms led
directly or indirectly to the establishment of a parliamentary system in
India, I, for one, would have nothing at all to do with it."
The 'constitutional' reforms were, in fact, aimed at dividing the
nationalist ranks by confusing the Moderates and at checking the growth
of unity among Indians through the obnoxious instrument of separate
electorates. The Government aimed at rallying the Moderates and the
Muslims against the rising tide of nationalism. The officials and the
Muslim leaders often talked of the entire community when they talked of
the separate electorates, but in reality it meant the appeasement of a
small section of the Muslim elite only.
Besides, the system of election was too indirect and it gave the
impression of infiltration of legislators through a number of sieves.
And, while parliamentary forms were introduced, no responsibility was
conceded, which sometimes led to thoughtless and irresponsible criticism
of the Government. Only some members like Gokhale put to constructive
use the opportunity to debate in the councils by demanding universal
primary education, attacking repressive policies and drawing attention
to the plight of indentured labour and Indian workers in South Africa.
The reforms of 1909 gave to the people of the country a shadow rather
than substance. The people had demanded self-government but what they
were given was 'benevolent despotism'.
National movement 1905-1918
99
Views
Reforms may not save the Raj, but if they don't, nothing else will.
Lord Morley.
The reforms of 1909 afforded no answer, and could afford no answer to
Indian problems. Montford Report.
Political barrier was created round them, isolating them from the rest
of India and reversing the unifying and amalgamating process which had
been going on for centuries. The barrier was a small one at first, for
the electorates were very limited, but with every extension of franchise
it grew and affected the whole structure of political and social life
like some canker which corrupted, the entire system. Jawaharlal Nehru.
FIRST WORLD WAR AND NATIONALIST RESPONSE
In the First World War (1914-1919), Britain allied with France, Russia,
USA, Italy and Japan against Germaney Austria Hungary and This period saw
the maturing of Indian nationalism. The nationalist response to British
participation in the War was three-fold:
(i) the Moderates supported the empire in the War as a matter of duty;
(ii) the extremists, including Tilak (who was released in June 1914),
supported the war efforts in the mistaken belief that Britain would repay
India's loyalty with gratitude in the form of self-government;
(iii) the revolutionaries decided to utilise the opportunity to wage a
war and liberate the country.
The Indian supporters of British war efforts failed to see that the
imperialist powers were fighting precisely to safeguard their own
colonies and markets.
Revolutionary Activity during First World War
The revolutionary activity was carried out through the Ghadr Party in
North America, Berrin Committee in Europe and some scattere mutinies by
Indian soldiers, such as the one
In Singapore. In India, for revolutionaries striving for immediate
complete independence, the War seemed a heaven-sent opportunity,
draining India of troops (the number of white soldiers went down at one
point to only 15,000), and raising the possibility of financial and
military help from Germany and Turkeythe enemies of Britain.
The Ghadr
The Ghadr Party was a revolutionary group organized around a weekly
newspaper The Ghadr with its headquarters at San Francisco and branches
along the US coast and in the Far East.
These revolutionaries included mainly ex-soldiers and peasants who had
migrated from the Punjab to the USA and Canada in search of better
employment opportunities. They were based in the US and Canadian cities
along the western (Pacific) coast. Pre-Ghadr revolutionary activity had
been carried on by Ramdas Puri, G.D. Kumar, Taraknath Das, Sohan Singh
shakna and Lala Hardayal who reachecTifiWe. Finally in 1913, the Ghadr
was established. To carry out revolutionary activities, the earlier
activists had set up a 'Swadesh Sevak Home' at Vancouver and 'United
India House' in Seattle.
The Ghadr programme was to organize assassinations of officials, publish
revolutionary and anti-imperialist literature, work among Indian troops
stationed abroad, procure arms

all British colonies.
and bring about a simultaneous revolt in
The moving spirits behind the Ghadr Party were Lala Hardayal,
Ramchandra, Bhagwan Singh, Kartar Singh Saraba, Bark Bhai Parmanand. The
Chiarites intended to Yring about a revolt in India. Their plans were
encouraged by two events in 1914the Maru incident and the outbreak of
the First World War.
Komagata Maru Incident
The importance of this event lies in the fact that it created an
explosive situation in the Punjab. Komagata Maru was the name of a ship
which was carrying 370 passengers, mainly Sikh and Punjabi Muslim
would-be immigrants, from Singapore to Vancouver. They were turned back
by Canadian authorities after two months of privation and uncertainty. It
was generally believed that the Canadian authorities were influenced by
the British Government. The ship finally anchored at Calcutta in
September 1914. The inmates refused to board the Punjab-bound train. In
the ensuing with the police at Budge Budge near Calcutta, 22 persons
died.
Inflamed by this and with the outbreak of the War, the Ghadr leaders
decided to launch a violent attack on British rule in India. They urged
fighters to go to India. Kartar Singh Saraba. and Raghubar Dayal Gupta
left for India. Bengal revolutionaries were contacted; Rashbehari Bose
and Sachin Sanyal were asked to lead the movement. Political dacoities
were committed to raise funds. The Punjab political dacoities of
january-February 1915 had a somewhat new social content. In at least 3
out of the 5 main cases, the raiders targeted the moneylenders and the
debt records before decamping with the cash. Thus, an explosive
situation was created in Punjab. The Ghadrites fixedyeil,1915as the date
for an armed revolt in Ferozepur, Lahore. and The plan was foiled at
the last moment due to treachery. The authorities took immediate action,
aided by the Defence of India Rules, 1915. Rebellion regiments were
disbanded, leaders arrested and deported and 45 of them hanged.
Rashbehari
Bose fled to Ja an from where he and Abani Mukherji made
many efforts to sen while Sachin Sanyal was transported for life.
The British met the wartime threat by a formidable battery of repressive
measuresthe most intensive since 1857and above all by the Defence of
India Act passed, in March 1915 primarily to smash the Ghadr movement.
There were large scale detentions without trial, special courts giving
extremely severe sentences, numerous court-martials of armymen. Apart
from the Bengal terrorists and the Punjab Chadrites, radical panIslamistsAli brothers, Maulana Azad, Hasrat Mohaniwere interned for
years.
Evaluation of Ghadr
The achievement of the Ghadr movement lay in the realm of ideology. It
enreached militant nationalism with a completely secular approach. Aut
102
and militarily, it failed, to achieve much because it lacked an

organized and sustained leadership, underestimated the extent of
preparation required at every levelorganisational, ideological,
financial and tactical strategicand perhaps Lala Hardayal was unsuited
for the job of an organiser.
Revolutionaries in Europe
The Berlin Committee for Indian Independence was established in 1915
byadhyay, Bhupendranath Dutta, Lala Hardayal and foreign office under
Zimmerman Plan'. These revolutionaries the Indian settlers abroad to
send volunteers and arms to India to incite rebellion arngng indian
troops there and to even organize an armed invasion of British India to
liberate the country.
The Indian
Turkey and
war (POWs)
countries.
Obaidullah
government
revolutionaries in Europe sent missions to Baghdad, Persia,

Kabul to work among Indian troops and the Indian prisoners of
and to incite anti-British feelings among the people of these
One mission under Raja Mahendra PratapSitarkatullah and
Sindhi went to Kabul to organize a
rovisional Indian
there with the help of crown prince.
Mutiny in Singapore
Among the scattered mutinies during this period, the most notable was in
Singapore on February 15, 1915 by Punjabi Muslim 5th Light Infantry and
the 36th Sikh battalion under Jamadar Chisti Khan, Jamadar Abdul Gani
and Subedar Daud Khan. It was crushed after a fierce battle in which
many were killed. Later, 37 persons were executed and 41 transported for
life.
Revolutionary Activity in India during War
The revolutionary activity in India in this period was concentrated in
Punjab and Bengal, The Bengal plans were part of a far-flung conspiracy
organized by Rashbehari Bose and Sachin Sanyal in cooperation with
returned Ghadrites in Punjab. In August 1914, the Bengal revolutionaries
reaped a rich haul of 50 Mauser pistols and 46,000 rounds of ammunition
from the Rodda firm in Calcutta through a sympathetic employee. Most
Bengal groups were organized under Jatin Mukherji (or Bagha Jatin) and
planned disruption of railway lines, seizure of Fort William and landing
of German arms. These plans were ruined due to poor coordination, and
Bagha Jatin died a hero's death near Balasore on the Orissa coast in
September 1915.
There was a temporary respite in revolutionary activity after the War
because the release of prisoners held under the Defence of India Rules
cooled down passions a bit; there was an atmosphere of conciliation
after Montagu's August 1917 statement and the talk of constitutional
reforms; and the coming of Gandhi on the scene with the programme of
nonviolent non-cooperation promised new hope.
HOME RULE LEAGUE MOVEMENT

The Home Rule Movement was the Indian response to the First World War in
a less charged but a more effective way than the response of Indians
living abroad which took the form of the romantic Ghadr adventure.
The Indian Home Rule Leagues were organized on the lines of the Irish
Home Rule Leagues and they represented the emergence of a new trend of
aggressive politics. Annie Besant and Tilak were the pioneers of this
new trend.
Factors Leading to the Movement
Some of the factors were as follows:
(i) A section of nationalists felt that popular pressure was required to
attain concessions from the Government.
(ii) The Moderates were disillusioned with the MorleyMinto reforms.
(iii) People were feeling the burden of wartime miseries caused by high
taxation and a rise in prices, and were ready to participate in any
aggressive movement of protest.
(iv) The War, being fought among the major imperialist powers of the day
and backed by naked propaganda against each other, exposed the myth of
white superiority.
(v) Tilak was ready to assume leadership after his release in June 1914,
and had made conciliatory gestures to reassure the Government of his
loyalty and to the Moderates that he wanted, like the Irish Home Rulers,
a reform of the

National Movement1905-1918 105
administration and not an overthrow of the Government. He also said that
the acts of violence had only served to retard the pace, of political
progress in India. He urged all Indians to assist the British Government
in its hour of crisis.
(vi) Annie Besant, the Irish theosophist based in India since 1896, had
decided to enlarge the sphere of, her activities to include the building
of a movement for Home Rule on the lines of the Irish Home Rule Leagues.
The Leagues
Both Tilak and Besant realised that the sanction of a Moderate-dominated
Congress as well as full cooperation of the Extremists was essential for
the movement to succeed. Having failed at the 1914 session of the
Congress to reach a Moderate-Extremist rapprochement, Tilak and Besant
decided to revive political activity on their own.
By early 1915, Annie Besant had launched a campaign to demand selfgovernment for India after the war on the lines of white colonies. She
campaigned through her newspapers, New India ind Commonweal, and through
public meetings and conferences. At the annual session of the Congress
in 1915 the efforts of Tilak and Besant met with some success. It was
decided that the Extremists be admitted to the Congress. Although Besant
failed to get the Congress to approve her scheme of Home Rule Leagues,
the Congress did commit itself to a programme of educative propaganda
and to a revival of local-level Congress committees. Not willing to wait
for too long, Besant laid the condition that if the Congress did not
implement its commitments, she would be free to set up her own League
which she finally had to, as there was no response from the Congress.
Tilak and Annie Besant set up their separate leagues to avoid
friction.
any
Tilak's League was set up in April 1916 and was restricted to

Maharashtra (excluding Bombay city), Karnataka, Central Provinces and
Berar. It had six branches and the demands included swarajya, formation
of linguistic states and education in the vernacular. Languages.
Besant's League was set up in September 1916 in Madras
rest of India (including Bombay city). It had
and covered the
200 branches, was loosely organized as compared to Tilak's League and

had George Arundale as the organising secretary. Besides Arimdale, the
main work was done by B.W. Wadia and C.P. Ramaswamy Aiyar.
The Home Rule agitation was later joined by Motilal Nehru, Jawaharlal
Nehru, Bhulabhai Desai, Chittaranjan Das, Madan Mohan Malaviya, Mohammad
Ali jinnah, Tej Bahadur Sapru and Lala Lajpat Rai. Some of these leaders
became heads of local branches. Many of the Moderate Congressmen who
were disillusioned with. Congress inactivity, and some members of
Gokhale's Servants of India Society also joined the agitation. However,
Anglo-Indians, most of the Muslims and nonbrahmins from South did not
join as they felt Home Rule would mean rule of the Hindu majority,
mainly the high caste.
The Home Rule League Programme
The League campaign aimed to convey to the common man the message of
Home Rule as self-government. It carried a much wider appeal than the
earlier mobilisations did and also attracted the hitherto 'politically
backward' regions of Gujarat and Sindh. The aim was to be achieved by
promoting political education and discussion through public meetings,
organising libraries and reading rooms containing books on national
politics, holding conferences, organising classes for students on
politics, propaganda through newspapers, pamphlets, posters, illustrated
post-cards, plays, religious songs, etc., collecting funds, organising
social work, and participating in local government activities. The
Russian Revolution of 1917 proved to be an added advantage for the Home
Rule campaign.
Government Attitude
The Government came down with severe repression, especially in Madras
where the students were prohibited from attending political meetings. A
case was instituted against Tilak which was rescinded by the High
Court. Tilak was barred from entering the Punjab and Delhi. In June
1917, Annie Besant and her associates, B.P. Wadia and George Arundale,
were arrested. This invited nationwide protest. In a dramatic, gesture,
Sir S. Subramaniya Aiyar

a programme
renounced his knighthood while Tilak advocated

of passive resistance. The repression only served to harden the attitude
of the agitators and strengthen their resolve to resist the Government.
Montagu, the secretary of state, commented that "Shiva cut his wife into
fifty-two pieces only to discover that he had fifty-two wives. This is
what happens to the Government of India when it interns Mrs Besant." The
Government released Besant in September 1917.
Why the Agitation Faded Out by 1919
(i) There was a lack of effective organisation.
(ii) Communal riots were witnessed during 1917-18.
(iii) The Moderates who had joined the Congress after Besant's arrest
were pacified by talk of reforms (contained in Montagu's statement of
August 1917 which held selfgovernment as the long-term goal of the
British rule in India) and Besant's release.
(iv) Talk of passive resistance by the Extremists kept the Moderates off
from activity from September 1918 onwards.
(v) Montagu-Chelmsford reforms which became known in July 1918 further
divided the nationalist ranks.
(vi) Tilak had to go abroad (September 1918) in connection with a case
while Annie Besant vacillated over her response to the reforms and the
techniques of passive resistance. With Besant unable to give a positive
lead and Tilak away in England, the movement was left leaderless.
Positive Gains (i)
The movement shifted the emphasis from the educated elite to the masses
and permanently deflected the movement from the course mapped by the
Moderates.
(ii) It created an organisational link between the town and the country,
which was to prove crucial in later years when the movement entered its
mass phase in a true sense.
(iv)
It created a generation of ardent nationalists.
(iv) It prepared the masses for politics of the Gandhian
style.
(v) The August 1917 declaration of Montagu and the Montford reforms were
influenced by the Home Rule agitation.
(vi) Tilak's and Besant's efforts in the Moderate-Extremist
reunion at Lucknow (1916) revived the Congress as an effective
instrument of Indian nationalism.
(viii)
It lent a new dimension and a sense of urgency to the
national movement.
(ix)
LUCKNOW SESSION OF THE INDIAN NATIONAL CONGRESS-1916
Readmission of Extremists to Congress
The Lucknow session of the Indian National Congress, presided over by a
Moderate, Ambika Charan Majumdar, finally readmitted the Extremists led
by Tilak to the Congress fold. Various factors facilitated this reunion:
(i)
Old controversies had become meaningless now.

(ii) Both the Moderates and the Extremists realised that the
split had led to political inactivity.
(iii) Annie Besant and Tilak had made vigorous efforts for the reunion.
To allay Moderate suspicions, Tilak had declared that he supported a
reform of administration and not an overthrow of the Government. He also
denounced acts of violence.
(ii)
The death of two Moderates, Gokhale and Pherozshah Mehta,
who had led the Moderate opposition to the Extremists,
facilitated the reunion.
Lucnow Pact between Congress and Muslim League
Another significant development to take place at Lucknow was the coming
together of the Muslim League and the Congress and the presentation of
common demands by them to the Government. This happened at a time when
the Muslim League, now dominated by the younger militant nationalists,
was coming closer to the Congress objectives and turning increasingly
anti-imperialist. There were many reasons for this shift in the League's
position:
(i) Britain's refusal to help Turkey (ruled by the Khalifa who claimed
religio-political leadership of all Muslims) in its wars in the Balkans
(1912-13) and with Italy (during 1911) had infuriated the Muslims.
(ii) Announcement of cancelation partition of Bengal in 1911 had
annoyed those sections of Muslims who had supported the partition.
(iii) The refusal of the British Government in India to set up a
university at Aligarh with powers to affiliate colleges all over India
also alienated some Muslims.
(iv) The younger League members were turning to bolder nationalist
politics and were trying to outgrow the limited political outlook of the
Aligarh school. The Calcutta session of the Muslim League (1912) had
committed the League to "working with other groups for a system of
selfgovernment suited to India, provided it did not come in conflict
with its basic objective of protection of interests of the Indian
Muslims". Thus, the goal of self-government similar to that of the
Congress brought both sides closer.
(v) Younger Muslims were infuriated by the government repression during
the War. Maulana Azad's Al Hilal and Mohammad Ali's Comrade faced
suppression while the Ali brothers, Maulana Azad and Hasrat Mohani faced
internment. This generated anti-imperialist sentiments among the "Young
Party".
While the League agreed to present joint constitutional demands with the
Congress to the Government, the Congress accepted the Muslim League's
position on separate electorates. The joint demands were
* Government should declare that it would confer selfgovernment on
Indians at an early date.
The legislative councils should be further expanded with an elected
majority and more powers be given to them.
Half the members of the viceroy's executive council should be Indians.
View
After nearly ten years of painful separation and wanriprinag through the
wilderness of misunderstanding and mazes ofunpleasant controversies. Both
wings of Indian Nationalist Party have come to realise the fact that
united they stand, but divided. A.C. Majumdar (president of the Lucknow
session of the INC-1916).
Negative Fallout
While the effort of the Congress and the Muslim League to put up a
united front was a far-sighted one, the acceptance of the principle of
separate electorates by the Congress implied that the Congress and the
League came together as separate political entities. This was a major
landmark in the evolution of, the two-nation theory by the Muslim
League. Secondly, while the leaders of the two groups came together,
efforts to bring together the masses from the two communities were not
considered.
Positive Gains
Despite being a controversial decision, the acceptance of the principle
of separate electorates represented a serious desire to allay minority
fears of majority domination. Secondly, there was a large amount of
enthusiasm generated among the people by this reunion. Even the
Government decided to placate the nationalists by declaring its
intention to grant self-government to Indians, as contained in Montagu's
August 1917 declaration.
MONTAGU'S STATEMENT-AUGUST 1917 "The government policy is of an
increasing participation of Indians in every branch of administration
and gradual development institutions with a view to the
progressive realisation of responsible government
an of the
Importance of Montagu's Statement From now onwards, the demand by
nationalists for self-government or Home Rule could not be termed as
seditious since attainment of selfgovernment for Indians now became a
government policy, unlike Morley's statement in 1909 that the reforms
were not intended to give self-government to India.
Indian Objections
The objections of the Indian leaders to Montagu's statement were twofold(i) No specific time frame was given.
(iii)
The Government alone was to decide the nature and the timing
of advance towards a responsible government, and the Indians
were resentful that the British would decide what was good
and what was bad for Indians.
Summary
WHY MILITANT NATIONALISM GREW
1. Realisation that the true nature of British rule was exploitative, and
that the Government, instead of conceding more, was taking away even
what existed.
2. Growth of self-confidence and self-respect.
3. Impact of growth of educationincrease in awareness and unemployment.
4. International influences and events which demolished the myth of
white/European supremacy. These included emergence of Japanan Asian
countryas an industrial power Abyssinia's (Ethiopia) victory over
Italy. Boer Wars (1899-1902) in which the British faced reverses.
Japan's victory over Russia (1905). nationalist movements worldwide.
5. Reaction to increasing westemisation.
6. Dissatisfaction with the achievements of Moderates.
7. Reactionary policies of Curzon such as the Calcutta Corporation Act
(1899), the Official Secrets Act (1904), the Indian Universities Act
(1904) and partition of Bengal (1905).
8. Existence of a militant school of thought.
9. Emergence of a trained leadership.
THE EXTREMIST IDEOLOGY
(i)
Hatred for foreign rule
(ii) Belief in the capacity of masses
(ii)
Swarajya as goal
(iii)
Advocacy of direct political action and self-sacrifice.
THE SWADESHI AND BOYCOTT MOVEMENT Began as a reaction to
partition of Bengal which became known in 1903, was formally
announced in July 1905 and came into force in October 1905.
The motive behind partition was to weaken Bengal which was
the nerve centre of Indian nationalist activity; the
official reason given for the partition was that Bengal had
become too big to administerwhich was true but only to some
extent. Moderate-led anti-partition movement (1903-05) was
under Surendranath Banerjee, K.K: Mitre, Prithwishchandra
Ray. Methods included public meetings, petitions, memoranda,
propaganda through newspapers and pamphlets.
Summary
The movement under Extremists (1905-08) was led by Tilak, Bipin Chandra
Pal, Lajpat Rai, Aurobindo Ghosh. Methods included boycott of foreign
cloth and other goods, public meetings and processions, forming corps of
volunteers or samitis, use of traditional popular festivals and metes
for propaganda, emphasis on self-reliance or atma shakti, launching
programme of swadeshi or national education, swadeshi or indigenous
enterprises, initiating new trends in Indian painting, songs, poetry,
pioneering research in science and later calling for boycott of schools,
colleges, councils, government service, etc.
Extremists took over because of the failure of the Moderates to achieve
positive results, divisive tactics of Governments of both Bengals,
severe government repression.
Extent of mass participationstudents, women, certain sections of

zamindari, some lower middle and middle classes in towns and cities
participated for the first time while the Muslims generally kept away.
Annulment of Partition mainly to curb the 'menace' of revolutionary
terrorism.
Why Swadeshi Movement fizzled out by 1908?
Severe government repression.
Lack of effective organisation and a disciplined focus.
With arrest, deportation of all leaders, the movement left
Split in nationalist ranks.
Narrow social base.
leaderless.
Achievements "A leap forward" because hitherto untouched sections

participated, major trends of later movement emerged; richness of the
movement extended to culture, science and literature; people educated in
bolder form of politics; colonial hegemony undermined.
MAJOR CAUSE OF MODERATE-EXTREMIST SPLIT AT SURAT (1907)
Moderates wanted to restrict the Boycott Movement to Bengal and to a
boycott of foreign cloth and liquor. Extremists wanted to take the
movement to all parts of the country and include within its ambit all
forr; of association with the Government through a boycott of schools,
colleges, law courts, legislative councils, government service,
municipalities etc.
Summary
GOVERNMENT ACTS FOR REPRESSION OF SWADESHI MOVEMENT
Seditious Meetings Act (1907)
Criminal ,Law (Amendment) Act (1908)
Indian Newspapers (Incitement to Offences) Act (1908)
Explosive Substances Act (1908)
Indian Press Act (1910)
REVOLUTIONARY TERRORISM
Reasons for emergence
Younger elements not ready to retreat after the decline of open phase.
Leadership's failure to tap revolutionary energies of the youth.
Government repression left no peaceful avenues open for protest.
Ideology
Assassinate unpopular officials, thus strike terror in hearts of rulers
and arouse people to expel the British physically; based on individual
heroic actions on lines of Irish nationalists or Russian nihilists and
not a mass-based countrywide struggle.
REVOLUTIONARY ACTIVITY BEFORE FIRST WORLD WAR
Bengal 1902First revolutionary groups in Midnapore and Calcutta (The
Anushilan Samiti)
1906Yugantar, the revolutionary weekly started By
1905-06Several newspapers started advocating revolutionary terrorism.
1907Attempt on life of governor of East Bengal.

1908Prafulla Chaki and Khudiram Bose attempt to murder
Magistrate, Kingsford.
Muzaffarpur
Alipore conspiracy case involving Aurobindo. Ghosh, Barindra Kumar Ghosh

and others.
1908Barrah dacoity by Dacca Anushilan.
1912Bomb thrown at Viceroy Hardinge by Rashbehari Boss and Sachin
Sanyal
Sandhya, Yugantarnewspapers advocating revolutionary activity.
Maharashtra
1879Ramosi Peasant Force by Vasudev Balwant Phadke.
1890sTilak's attempts to propagate militancy among the youth through
Shivaji and Ganapati festivals, and his journals Kesari and Maharatta.
Summary
1897Chapekar brothers kill Rand, the plague commissioner of Poona and
Lt. Ayerst.
1899Mitra Melaa secret society organized by Savarkar and his brother.
1904Mitra Mela merged with Abhinav Bharat.
1909District Magistrate of NasikJacksonkilled.
Punjab
Revolutionary activity by Lala Lajpat Rai, Ajit Singh, Aga Haidar
Haidar Raza, Bhai Parmanand, Lalchand 'Falak', Sufi Ambaprasad.
Syed
Abroad
1905Shyamji Krishnavarma, set up Indian Home Rule Society and India
House and brought out journal The Sociologist in London.
1909Madan Lal Dhingra murdered Curzon-Wyllie.
Madame Bhikaji Cama operated from Paris and Geneva and brought out
journal Bande. Mataram. Ajit Singh also active.
MORLEY-MINTO REFORMS
Number of elected members in Imperial and Provincial Legislative
Councils increasedelected non-officials still in minority.
Separate electorates, introduced for Muslims.
Elected non-officials to be elected indirectlythus elections introduced
for the first time.
Legislatures could pass resolutions, ask questions and supplementaries,
vote separate items of the budget.
One Indian to be on viceroy's executive council.
Aimed at dividing the nationalist ranks and at rallying the Moderates
and the Muslims to the Government's side.
No responsibility entrusted to legislatorsthis resulted in thoughtless
criticism sometimes.
System of election was too indirect.
REVOLUTIONARY ACTIVITY DURING FIRST WORLD WAR
In North America, the Ghadr was organized by Lala Hardayal, Ramchandra,

Bhawan Singh, Kartar Singh Saraba, Barkatullah, Bhai Parmanand.
The Ghadr Programme
Assassinate officials.
Publish revolutionary literature.
Work among Indian troops abroad and raise funds.
Bring about a simultaneous revolt in all colonies of Britain.
Summary
Attempt to bring about an armed revolt in India on February 21, 1915
amidst favourable conditions created by the outbreak of First World War
and the Komagaia Mani incident (September 1914). The plan was foiled due
to treachery.
Defence of India Act, 1915 passed primarily to deal with the Ghadrites.
In Europe Berlin Committee for Indian Independence established by
Virendranath Chattopadhyay and others.
Missions sent to Baghdad, Persia, Turkey, Kabul.
In India Bagha Jatin organized revolutionary activity in Bengal and died
in an encounter (1915) in Balasore.
HOME RULE LEAGUE MOVEMENT Manifestation of a trend of aggressive
politics in national movement; was pioneered by Tilak and Annie Besant
on lines of a similar movement in Ireland.
Factors Favouring the Movement
1. Need being felt for popular pressure to attain concessions.
2. Disillusionment with Morley-Minto Reforms.
3. Wartime miseriespublic ready to protest.
4. Tilak, Besant ready to assume leadership.
Aim of the Movement
To convey to the common man the
concept of Home Rule as self-government.
Tilak's LeagueStarted in April 1916 and operated in Maharashtra,

Karnataka, Central Provinces and Berar; had six branches.
Besant's LeagueStarted in September 1916 and operated in rest of India;
had 200 branches.
Later, the leagues were joined by others including Moderate Congressmen.
Methods used
Organising discussions, reading rooms, propaganda through public
meetings, newspapers, pamphlets, posters, etc.
Positive Gains Emphasis shifted to the masses permanently;
organisational link established between town and country; prepared a
generation of ardent nationalists, influenced Moderate-Extremist reunion
at Lucknow (1916).
LUCKNOW SESSION OF INC-1916
Extremists readmitted to Congress League-Congress put up joint demands
under Lucknow Pact. Congress accepted League's position on separate
electorates.
CHAPTER 5
Era of Mass Nationalism
Towards the end of the First World War, various forces were at work in
India and on the international scene. After the end of the war, there
was a resurgence of nationalist activity in India and in many other
colonies in Asia and Africa. The Indian struggle against imperialism
took a decisive turn towards a broad-based popular struggle with the
emergence of Mohandas Karanchand Gandhi on the Indian political scene.
WHY NATIONALIST RESURGENCE NOW
1. Post-War Economic Hardships
All Indians were experiencing hardships on various fronts.
Industry First, an increase in prices, then a recession coupled
with increased foreign investment brought many industries to the
brink of closure and loss. They now demanded protection against
imports besides government aid.
Workers and Artisans: This section of the populace faced unemployment
and bore the brunt of high prices. Peasantry Faced with high taxation and
poverty, the peasant waited for a lead to protest.
Soldiers Soldiers who returned from battlefields abroad gave an idea of
their wide experience to the rural folk.
Educated Urban Classes: This section was facing unemployment.
These hardships coupled with high expectations of political gains from
the Government created a charged atmosphere in the country.
2. Nationalist Disillusionment with Imperialism
Worldwide The Allied powers, to rally the colonies to their
during the war, had promised them an era of democracy
side
115
116
and self-determination after the war. During the war, both sides had
launched vicious propaganda to malign each other and expose each other's
uncivilised colonial record. But. soon it became clear from the Paris
Peace Conference and other peace treaties that the imperialist powers
had no intentions of loosening their hold over the colonies; in fact
they went on to divide the colonies of the vanquished powers among
themselves. All this served to erode further the myth of the cultural
and military superiority of the whites. As a result the post-war period
saw a resurgence of: militant nationalist activity throughout Asia and
Africa, in Turkey, Egypt, Ireland, Iran, Afghanistan, Burma, Malaya,
Philippines, Indonesia, Indo-China, China and Korea.
3. Impact of Russian Revolution (November 7, 1917)
The Bolshevik Party of workers overthrew the Czarist regime and

founded the first socialist state, the Soviet Union, under the
leadership of V.I. Lenin. The Soviet Union unilaterally renounced the
Czarist imperialist rights in China and the rest of Asia, gave rights
of self-determination to former Czarist colonies in Asia and gave
equal status to the Asian nationalities within its borders.
The October Revolution brought home the message that immense power lay
with the people and the masses were capable of challenging the mightiest
of tyrants provided they were organized, united and determined.
The Government, not prepared to part with or even share its power with
the Indians, once again resorted to the policy of 'carrot and stick'.
The carrot was represented by the Montagu-Chelmsford Reforms, while
measures such as the Row latt Act represented the stick.
MONTAGU-CHELMSFORD REFORMS AND GOVERNMENT OF INDIA ACT, 1919
In line with the government policy contained in Montagu's statement
(August 1917), the Government announced further constitutional reforms
in July 1918, known as MontaguChelmsford or Montford Reforms. Based on
these, the
Government of India Act, 1919 was enacted. The main features of the
Montford Reforms were as follows.
(i) Provincial Government-Introduction of Dyarchy Executive: Dyarchy,
i.e., rule of twoexecutive councillors and popular ministers was
introduced. The governor was to be the executive head in the province.
(ii) Subjects were divided into two lists: "reserved" which included
subjects such as law and order, finance, land revenue, irrigation, etc.,
and "transferred" subjects such as education, health, local government,
industry, agriculture, excise, etc. The "reserved" subjects were to be
administered by the governor through his executive council of
bureaucrats, and the "transferred" subjects were to be administered by
ministers nominated from among the elected members of the legislative
council.
(iii) The ministers were to be responsible to the legislature and had to
resign if a no-confidence motion was passed against them by the
legislature, while the executive councillors were not to be responsible
to the legislature.
(iv) In case of failure of constitutional machinery in the province the
governor could take over the administration of "transferred" subjects
also.
(iv)
The secretary of state and the governor-general could
interfere in respect of "reserved" subjects while in respect
of the "transferred" subjects, the scope for their
interference was restricted.
(v)
Legislature
(i) Provincial Legislative Councils were further expanded-70% of the
members were to be elected.
(ii) The system of communal and class electorates was further
consolidated.
(iv)
Women were also given the right to vote.

(iv) The Legislative Councils could initiate legislation but
the governor's assent was required. The governor could veto
bills and issue ordinances.
(v) The Legislative Councils could reject the budget but the governor
could restore it, if necessary.
(vi) The legislators enjoyed freedom of speech.
118
(vii)

Central GovernmentStill Without Responsible Government
Executive
(i) The governor-general was to be the chief executive authority.
(ii) There were to be two lists for administrationcentral and
provincial.
(iii) In the viceroy's executive council of 8, three were to be Indians.
(iv) The governor-general retained full control over the "reserved"
subjects in the provinces.
(v)
The governor-general could restore cuts in grants, certify
bills rejected by the Central Legislature and issue
ordinances.
Legislature
(i) A bicameral arrangement was introduced. The lower house or Central
Legislative Assembly would consist of 144 members (41 nominated and 103
elected-52 General, 30 Muslims, 2 Sikhs, 20 Special) and the upper house
or Council of State would have 60 members (26 nominated and 34 elected20 General, 10 Muslims, 3 Europeans and 1 Sikh).
(ii) The Council of State had a tenure of 5 years and had only male
members, while the Central Legislative Assembly had a tenure of 3 years.
(iii) The legislators could ask questions and supplementaries, pass
adjournment motions and vote a part of the budget, but 75% of the budget
was still not votable.
(v)
Some Indians found their way into important committees
including finance.
(vi)
Drawbacks
The reforms had many drawbacks
(i)
Franchise was very limited.
(ii) At the centre, the legislature had no control over the
governor-general and his executive council.
(ii)
Division of subjects was not satisfactory at the centre.
(iv) Allocation of seats for Central Legislature to provinces
was based on 'importance' of provincesfor instance,
Punjab's military importance , and Bombay's commercial
importance.
(v) At the level of provinces, division of subjects and parallel
administration of two parts was irrational and hence unworkable.
(vi) The provincial ministers had no control over finances and over the
bureaucrats, leading to constant friction between the two. Ministers
were often not consulted on important matters too; in fact, they could
be overruled by the governor on any matter that the latter considered
special.
On the home government (in Britain), front the Government change; the
secretary state was henceforth to be out of the' British exchequer.
Views
When the Cabinet used the expression 'ultimate self-government' they
probably contemplated an intervening period of 500 years. Lord Curzon.
The Government of India Act, 1919 forged fresh fetters for the people.
Subhash Chandra Bose.
The Montford Reforms were only a method of further draining India of her
wealth and of prolonging her servitude. M.K. Gandhi.
The dyarchy of the double executive was open to almost every theoretical
objection that the armoury of political philosophy can supply.
P.E. Roberts.
Congress' Reaction
The Congress met in a special session in August 1918 at Bombay under
Hasan Imam's presidency and declared the reforms to be "disappointing"
and "unsatisfactory" and demanded effective self-government instead.
ROWLATT ACT
While, on the one hand, the Government dangled the carrot of
constitutional reforms, on the other hand, it decided to arm itself
with extraordinary powers to suppress any discordant voices against the
reforms. In March 1919, it passed the
120
Rowlatt Act even though every single Indian member of the Central
Legislative Council opposed it. This Act authorised the Government to
imprison any person without trial and conviction in a court of law, thus
enabling the Government to suspend the right of habeas corpus which had
been the foundation of civil liberties in Britain.
EMERGENCE OF GANDHI
Early Career and Experiments with Truth in South Africa
Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi was born on October 2, 1869 in Porbandar in
the princely state of Kathiawar in Gujarat. His father was a diwan
(minister) of the state. Having studied law in England, Gandhi had gone
to South Africa in relation with a case involving his client, Dada
Abdullah. In South Africa he witnessed the ugly face of white racism and
the humiliation and contempt to which Asians who had gone to South
Africa as labourers were subjected. He decided to stay in South Africa
to organise the Indian workers to enable them to fight for their rights.
He stayed there till 1914 after which he returned to India.
Indians in South Africa consisted of three categoriesthe indentured
Inalan labour, mainly from had migrated to South Africa after 1890 to
work on sugar plantations;the merchantsmostly Meman Muslims who had
followed the labourers; and the ex-indentured labourers who had settled
down witeir children in South Africa after the expiry of their
contracts. These Indians were mostly illiterate and had little or no
knowledge of English. They accepted racial discrimination as a part of

their daily existence. The disabilities these Indian immigrants had to
suffer were many. They were denied the right to vote. They could reside
only in prescribed locations which were insanitary and congested. In
some colonies, Asians and Africans could not stay out of doors after 9
PM nor could they use public footpaths.
Moderate Phase of Struggle (1894-1906)
During this phase, Gandhi relied on sending petitions and memorials to
the authorities in South Africa and in Britain, hoping that once the
authorities were informed of the plight of Indians, they would take
sincere steps to redress their grievances as the Indians were, after
all, British subjects. To unite different sections of Indians, Indian
Congress and started
Phase of Passive Resistance or Satyagraha (1906-1914)
The second phase, which began in 1906, was characterised by the use of
the method of passive resistance or civil disobedience, which Gandhi
named satyagraha.
Satyagraha against Registration Certificates (1906)
A new legislation in South Africa made it compulsory for Indians there
to carry at all times certificates of registration with their
fingerprints. The Indians under Gandhi's leadership decided not to
submit to this discriminatory measure. Gandhi formed the Passive
Resistance Association to conduct the campaign. The Government jailed
Gandhi and others who refused to register themselves. Later, the
authorities used deceit to make these defiant Indians register
themselves. The Indians under the leadership of Gandhi retaliated by
publicly burning their registration certificates.
Campaign against Restrictions on Indian Migration
The earlier campaign was widened to include protest against a new
legislation imposing restrictions on Indian migration. The Indians
defied this law by crossing over from one province to another and by
refusing to produce licences. Many of these Indians were jailed.
Setting up of Tolstoy Farm
As it became rather difficult to sustain the high pitch of the struggle,
Gandhi decided to devote all his attention to the struggle. The Tolstoy
Farm was meant to house the families of the satynd to give them a way
to sustain themselves.
Campaign against Poll Tax and Invalidation of Indian Marriages
A poll tax of three pounds was imposed on all exindenturediiiclusion of
demands for the abolition of poll tax (which was too much for the poor
ex-indentured Indians who earned less than ten shillings a month) in the
122
ongoing struggle further widened the base of the campaign. Fuel was
added to the fire by a Supreme Court order which invalidated all
marriages not conducted according to Christian rites and by the
registrar of marriages. By implication, Hindu, Muslim and Parsi
marriages were illegal and children born out of such marriages,
illegitimate. The Indians treated this judgement as an insult to the
honour of their women and many women were drawn into the movement
because of this indignity.
The Indians protested by illegally migrating from Natal into Transvaal.
The Government held these Indians in jails. Miners and plantation
workers went on a lightning strike. In India, Gokhale toured the whole
country mobilising public opinion in support of the Indians in South
Africa. Even the viceroy, Lord Hardinge, condemned the repression and
called for an impartial enquiry. Eventually, through a series of
negotiations involving Gandhi, Lord Hardinge, C.F. Andrews and General
Smuts, an agreement was reached by which the Government of South Africa
conceded the major Indian demands relating to the poll tax, the
registration certificates and marriages solemnised according to Indian
rites, and promised to treat the issue of Indian immigration in a
sympathetic manner.
Gandhi's Experience in South Africa
(i) Gandhi found that the masses had immense capacity to participate in
and sacrifice for a cause that moved them.
(ii) He was able to unite Indians belonging to different religions and
classes, and men and women alike under his leadership.
(iii) He also came to realise that at times the leaders have to take
decisions unpopular with their enthusiastic supporters.
(iii)
He was able to evolve his own style of leadership and
politics and new techniques of struggle on a limited scale,
untrammelled by the opposition of contending political
currents.
Gandhi's Technique of Satyagraha
Gandhi evolved the technique during his stay in South Africa. It was
based on truth and non-violence. Its basic tenets were
National Movement 1919-1939 123
A satyagrahi was not to submit to what he considered as wrong, but was
to always remain truthful, non-violent and fearless.
He should be ready to accept suffering in his struggle against the
evil doer. This suffering was to be a part of his love for truth. Even
while carrying out his struggle against the evil doer, a true satyagrahi
would love the evil-doer; hatred would be alien to his nature. A true
satyagrahi would never bow before the evil, whatever the consequence.
Only the brave and strong could practise satyagraha, which was not for
the weak and cowards. Even violence was preferred to cowardice. Thought
was never to be separated from practice.
GANDHI IN INDIA
Gandhi returned to India in January 1915. His efforts in South Africa
were well known not only among the educated but also among the masses.
He decided to tour the country the next one year and see for himself the
condition of the masses. He also decided not to take any position on any
political matter for at least one year. As for the political currents
prevalent at that time in India, he was convinced about the limitations
of moderate politics and was also not in favour of Home Rule agitation
which was becoming popular at that time. He thought that it was not the
best time to agitate for Home Rule when Britain was in the middle of a
war. He was convinced that the only technique capable of meeting the
nationalist aims was a non-violent satyagraha. He also said that he
would join no political organisation unless it too accepted the creed of
non-violent satyagraha.
During 1917 and 1918, Gandhi was involved in three strugglesin
Champaran, Ahmedabad and Khedabefore he launched the Rowlatt
Satyagraha.
Champaran Satyagraha (1917)First Civil Disobedience
Gandhi was requested by Rajkumar Shukla to look into the
problems of the indigo planters, of Champaran in Bihar. The European
planters had been forcing peasants to grow indigo on 3/20 of the total
land (called tinkathia system). When towards the end of the nineteenth
century German synthetic dyes replaced indigo, the European planters
demanded high rents and illegal dues from the peasants in order to
maximise their profits before the peasants could shift to other crops.
Besides, the peasants were forced to sell the produce at prices fixed by
the Europeans.
When Gandhi, joined now by Rajendra Prasad, Mazharul-Haq, Mahadeo Desai,
Narhari Parekh, J.B. Kripalani, reached Charnparan to probe into the
matter, the authorities ordered him to leave the area at once. Gandhi
defied the order and preferred to face the punishment. This passive
resistance or civil disobedience of an unjust order was a novel method
at that time. Finally, the authorities retreated and permitted Gandhi
to make an enquiry. Now, the Government appointed a committee to go into
the matter and nominated Gandhi as a member. Gandhi was able to convince
the authorities that the tinkathia system should be abolished and that
the peasants should be compensated for the illegal dues extracted from
them. As a compromise with the planters, he agreed that only 25 per cent
of the money taken should be compensated.
Within a decade, the planters left the area. Gandhi had
battle of civil disobedience in India.
won the first
Ahmedabad Mill Strike (1918)First Hunger Strike

Gandhi now intervened in a dispute between mill owners of Ahmedabad and
the workers over the issue of discontinuation of the plague bonus.
Gandhi asked the workers to go on a strike and demand a 35 per cent
increase in wages. The employers were willing to concede a 20 per cent
bonus only. Gandhi advised the workers to remain non-violent while on
strike. He undertook a fast unto death to strengthen the workers'
resolve, but the fast also had the effect of putting pressure on mill
owners who finally agreed to give the workers a 35 per cent increase in
wages.
Kheda Satyagraha (1918)First Non-Cooperation
Because of drought in 1918, the crops failed in Kheda district of
Gujarat. Revenue Code,, if the yield was less than one-fourth the normal
produce, the farmers were entitled to remission. The authorities refused
to grant remission. Gandhi supported the peasants' cause and asked them
to withhold revenue. The authorities, not willing to openly concede the
peasants' demands, issued secret instructions that only those who could
afford to pay should pay. During the Kheda Satyagraha, many young
nationalists such as Sardar Patel and Indulal Yaanik became Gandhi's
followers.
GAINS FROM CHAMPARAN, AHMEDABAD AND KHEDA
Gandhi demonstrated to the people the efficacy of his technique of
satyagraha.
He found his feet among the masses and came to have a surer
understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of the masses. He
akquired respect and commitment of many, especially the youth.
SATYAGRAHA AGAINST THE ROWLATT ACTFIRST MASS STRIKE
Just when the nationalists were expecting post-War constitutional
concessions, the Government came out with the repressive Rowlatt Act
which the nationalists took as an insult. Gandhi called for a nationwide
protest in February 1919. But soon, having seen the constitutional
protest fail, Gandhi organised a Satyagraha Sabha and roped in younger
members of Home Rule Leagues and the Pan Islamists. The forms of
protest finally chosen included observance of a nationwide hartal
(strike) accompanied by fasting and prayer, and civil disobedience
against specific laws, and courting arrest and imprisonment.
There was a radical change in the situation by now
(i)
The masses had found a direction; now they could "act"
instead of just giving verbal expression to their grievances.
126
(ii) From now onwards, peasants, artisans and the urban poor were to
play an increasingly important part in the struggle.
(ii)
Orientation of the national movement turned to the masses
permanently. Gandhi said that salvation would come when
masses were awakened and became active in politics.
Satyagraha was to be launched on April 6 1919 but even before that there
were
arge-scale violent, anti-British demonstrations in Calcutta,
Bombay, Delhi, Ahmedabad, etc. Especially in Punjab, the situation had
become very explosive due to wartime repression, forcruitments and
ravages of disease, and the Army had to be called in. April 1919 saw
the biggest and the most violent anti-British upsurge since 1857.
JALLIANWALA BACH MASSACRE (APRIL 13,1919)
On Baisakhi day, a large, crowd of people mostly from neighbouring
villages, unaware of the prohibitory orders in the city, had gathered in
this small park to protest against the arrest of their leaders,

Saifuddin Kitchlew and Satya al. The Army surrounded the aring unmoor
orders from General Dyer and blocked the only exit point and opened fire
on the unarmed crowd killing around1000. The incident was followed by
uncivilised brutalities on the inhabitants of Amritsar. The entire
nation was stunned. Rabindranath Tagore renounced his knighthood in
protest. Gandhi by atmosphere of violence and withdrew the movement on
April 18, 1919.
KHILAFAT AND NON-COOPERATION MOVEMENT
During 1919-22, the British were opposed through two mass movementsthe
Khilafat and Non-Cooperation. Though the two movements emerged from
separate issues, they adopted a common programme of actionthat of nonviolent noncooperation. The Khilafat issue was not directly linked to
Indian politics but it provided the immediate background to the movement
and gave an added advantage of cementing Hindu-Muslim unity against the
British'.
Background
The background to the two movements was provided by a series of events
after the First World War which belied all hopes of the Government's
generosity towards the Indian subjects. The year 1919, in particular,
saw a strong feeling of discontent among all sections of Indians for
various reasons1. The economic situation of the country in the post-War years had
become alarming with a rise in prices of commodities, decrease in
production of Indian industries, increase in burden of taxes and rents
etc. Almost all sections of society suffered economic hardship due to
the war and this strengthened the anti-British attitude.
2. The Rowlatt Act, the imposition of martial law in Punjab and the
Jallianwalla Bagh massacre exposed the brutal and uncivilised face of
the foreign rule. The Hunter Commission on thee Punjab atrocities proved
to be an eyewash. In fact, the House of Lords (of the British
Parliament) endorsed General Dyer's action and the British public showed
solidarity with General Dyer by helping The Morning Post collect 30,000
pounds for him.
4. ,The Montagu-Chelmsford Reforms with their illconceived scheme of
dyarchy failed to satisfy the rising demand of the Indians for selfgovernment.
The post-First World War period also saw the preparation of the ground
for common political action by Hindus and Muslims
(i)
the Lucknow Pact (1916) had stimulated CongressMuslim League
cooperation;
(ii)
(ii) the Rowlatt Act agitation brought Hindus and Muslims,
and also other sections of the society, together; and
(iii)
(iii) radical nationalist Muslims like Mohammad Ali, Abul
Kalam Azad, Hakim Ajmal Khan and Hasan Imam had now become
more influential than the conservative Aligarh school
elements who had dominated the League earlier. The younger
elements advocated militant nationalism and active
participation in the nationalist

anti-imperialist sentiments.
movement. They had strong
In this atmosphere emerged the Khilafat issue around

historic Non-Cooperation Movement.
which developed the

In February 1920, Gandhi announced that the issues of the Punjab, wrongs
and constitutional advance had been overshadowed by the Khilafat question
and that he would soon lead a movement of non-cooperation if the terms
of the peace treaty failed to satisfy the Indian Muslims.
May 1920
The Treaty of Sevres with Turkey, signed in
dismembered Turkey.
May 1920, completely
June 1920
An all-party conference at Allahabad approved a programme of boycott of
schools, colleges and law courts, and asked Gandhi to lead it.
August 01, 1920
The Khilafat Committee started a campaign of non-cooperation and the
movement was formally launched. (Tilak had, incidentally, breathed his
last on August 1, 1920.)
September 1920
At a special session in Calcutta, the Congress approved a noncooperation programme till the Punjab and Khilafat wrongs were removed
and swaraj was established. The programme was to include
boycott of government schools and colleges; boycott of law courts
and dispensation of justice through panchayats instead;
boycott of Legislative Councils; (there were some differences over
this as some leaders like C.R. Das were not willing to include a boycott
of councils, but bowed to. Congress discipline; these leaders boycotted
elections held in November 1920 and the majority of the voters too
stayed away); boycott of foreign cloth and use of khadi instead; also
practice of hand-spinning to be done;
renunciation of government honours and titles;
the second phase could include mass civil disobedience including
resignation from government service, and non-payment of taxes.
During the movement, the participants were supposed to work for HinduMuslim unity and for removal of untouchability, all the time remaining
non-violent.
December 1920 At the Nagpur session of the Indian National Congress
(i) the programme of non-cooperation was endorsed;
(ii) an important change was made in Congress creed: now, instead of
having the attainment of self-government through constitutional means as
its goal, the Congress decided to have the attainment of swaraj through
peaceful and legitimate means, thus committing itself to an

extraconstitutional mass struggle;
(iii) some important organisational changes were made: a Congress
Working Committee (CWC) of 15 members was set up to lead the Congress
from now onwards; Provincial Congress Committees on linguistic basis
were organised; ward committees was organised; and entry fee was reduced
to four arenas;
(iv)
Gandhi declared that if the non-cooperation programme was
implemented completely, swaraj would be ushered in within
airear.
(v)
Many groups of revolutionary terrorists, especially those from Bengal,
also pledged support to the Congress programme. At this stage, some
leaders like Mohammad Ali jinnah, Annie Besant, G.S. Kharpade and B.C.
Pal left the Congress as they believed in a constitutional and lawful
struggle while some others like Surendranath Banerjee founded the Indian
National Liberal Federation and played a minor role in national politics
hence forward.
The adoption by the Congress of the non-cooperation movement initiated,
earlier by the Khilafat Committee gave it a new energy, and the years
1921 and 1922 saw an unprecedented popular upsurge.
Spread of the Movement
Gandhi accompanied by the Ali brothers undertook a nationwide tour.
About 90,000 students left government schools and colleges and joined
around 800 national schools and colleges which cropped up during this
time. These educational institutions were organised under the leadership
of Acharya Narendra Dev, C.R. Das, Lala Lajpat Rai, Zakir Hussain,
Subhash Bose (who became the principal of National College at Calcutta)
and included Jamia Milli& at Aligarh, Kashi Vidyapeeth, Gujarat
Vidyapeeth and Bihar Vidyapeeth.
Many lawyers gave up their practice, some of whom were Motilal Nehru,
Jawaharlal Nehru, C.R. Das, C. Rajagopalachari, Saifuddin Kitchlew,
Vallabhbhai Patel, Asaf Ali, T. Prakasam <and Rajendra Prasad. Heaps of
foreign cloth were burnt publicly and their imports fell by half.
Picketing of shops selling foreign liquor and of toddy shops was
undertaken at many places. Tilak Swaraj Fund was oversubscribed and one
crore rupees collected. Congress volunteer corps emerged as the parallel
police.
In July 1921, the Ali brothers gave a call to the Muslims to resign from
the Army as that was unreligious. The Ali brothers were arrested for
this in September. Gandhi echoed their call and asked local Congress
committees to pass similar resolutions to that effect.
Now, the Congress gave a call to local Congress bodies to start civil
disobedience if it was thought that the people were ready for it.
Already, a no-tax movement against union board taxes in Midnapore
(Bengal) and in Guntur (Andhra) was going on.
In Assam, strikes in tea plantations, steamer services, Assam-Bengal

Railways had been organised. J.M. Sengupta was a prominent leader in
these strikes.
In November 1921, the visit of the Prince of Wales to
strikes and demonstrations.
India invited
The spirit of defiance and unrest gave rise to many local struggles such
as Awadh Kisan Movement (UP), Eka Movement (UP), Mappila Revolt
(Malabar) and the Sikh agitation for the removal of mahants in Punjab.
Government Response Talks between Gandhi and Reading, the viceroy, broke
down in May 1921 as the Government wanted Gandhi to urge the Ali
brothers to remove those portions from speeches which suggested
violence. Gandhi realised that the Government was trying to drive a
wedge between him and the Khilafat leaders and refused to fall into the
trap. In December, the Government came down heavily on the protestors.
Volunteer rcorps were declared illegal, public meetings were banned, the
press was gagged and most of the leaders barring Gandhi were arrested.
The Last Phase of the Movement
Gandhi was now under increasing pressure from the Congress rank and file
to start the civil disobedience programme and the Ahmedabad session in
1921 (presided over, incidentally, by C.R. Das while still in jail;
Hakim Ajmal Khan was the acting president) appointed Gandhi the sole
authority on the issue.
On February 1, 1922 Gandhi threatened to launch civil
Bardoli (Gujarat) if
(1) political prisoners were not released, and
(2) press controls were, not removed.
The movement had hardly begun before it was brought to
disobedience from
an abrupt end.
Chauri Chaura Incident

A small sleepy village named ChauriChaura (Gorakhpur district, UP) has
found a place in history books due to an incident of violence on
February 5, 1922 which was to prompt Gandhi to withdraw the movement.
The police here had beaten up the leader of a group of volunteers
campaigning against liquor sales and high food prices, and then opened
fire on the crowd which had come to protest before the police station.
The agitated crowd torched the police station with policemen inside who
had taken shelter there; those who tried to flee were hacked to death
and thrown back into the fire. Twenty-two policemen were killed in the
violence. Gandhi, not happy with the increasingly violent trend of the
movement, immediately announced the withdrawal of the movement.
The CWC met at Bardoli in February 1922 and resolved to stop all
activity that led to breaking of law and to get down to constructive
work, instead, which was to include Potilarisition of jchail national r
temperance, for mitouchabilitv.
Most of the nationalist leaders including C.R. Das, Motilal Nehru,

Subhash Bose, Jawaharlal Nehru, however, expressed their bewilderment at
Gandhi's decision to withdraw the movement.
In March 1922 Gandhi was arrested and sentenced to
made the occasion memorable by a
six years in jail. He

magnificent court speech: "I am here, therefore, to invite and submit
cheerfully to the highest penalty that can, be inflicted upon me for
what in law is deliberate crime, and what appears to me to be the
highest, duty of a citizen."
Why Gandhi Withdrew the Movement
Gandhi felt that people had not learnt or fully understood the method of
nonviolence. Incidents like Chauri-Chaura could lead to excitement and
fervour, turning the movement generally violent. A violent movement
could be easily suppressed by the colonial regime who could use the
incidents of violence as an excuse to use the armed might of the state
against the protestors.
The movement was also showing signs of fatigue. This was natural as it
is not possible to sustain any movement at a high pitch for very long.
The Government seemed to be in no mood for negotiations.
The central theme of the agitationthe Khilafat questionalso dissipated
soon. In November 1922, the people of Turkey rose under Mustafa Kamal
Pasha and deprived the Sultan of political power. Turkey was made a
secular state. Thus, the Khilafat question lost its relevance. A
European style of legal system was established in Turkey and extensive
rights granted to women. Education was nationalised and modern
agriculture and industries developed. In 1924, the caliphate was
abolished.
Evaluation of Khilafat Non-Cooperation Movement
The movement brought the urban Muslims into, the national movement, but
at the same time it communalised the national politics to an extent.
Although Muslim sentiments were a manifestation of the spread of a wider
anti-imperialist feeling, the national leaders failed to raise the
religious political consciousness of the Muslims to a level of secular
political consciousness.
With the Non-Cooperation Movement, nationalist sentiments reached every
nook and corner of the country and politicised every strata of
populationthe artisans, peasants, students, urban poor, women, traders
etc. It was this politicisation and activisation of millions of men and
women
which imparted a revolutionary character to the national movement.
Colonial rule was based on two mythsone, that such a rule was in the
interest of Indians and two, that it was invincible. The first myth had
been exploded by the economic critique by Moderate nationalists. The
second myth had been challenged by satyagraha through mass struggle.
Now, the masses lost the hitherto all-pervasive fear of the colonial
rule and its mighty repressive organs.
Views
To sound the order of retreat lust when public enthusiasm was reaching
the boiling point was nothing short of a national calamity. The principal
lieutenants of the Mahatma, Desnbandhu Das, Pandit Motilal Nehru and
Lala Lajpat Rai, who were all in prison, shared the popular resentment.
Subhas Chandra Bose.
A mass wave of revolutionary unrest in India in 1919 (evident from the
labour unrest and strike wave of 1919-20 and peasant protests in UP and
Bihar)
worked as a kind of popular ground-swell virtually forcing
the leadership to a radical posture Gandhi and the Congress bigwigs
sensed that a revolutionary mass movement was in the offing. They
decided to take over the leadership to keep the movement a 'controlled'
affair and 'within safe channels'. The movement was called off just when
the masses seemed to be taking the initiative. Marxist Interpretation
I would suffer every humiliation, every torture, absolute ostracism and
death itself to prevent the movement from becoming violent. M.K. Gandhi,
in Young India, February 16, 1922.
SWARAJISTS AND NO-CHANGERS
Genesis of Congress-Khilafat Swarajya Party
After Gandhi's arrest (March 1922), there was disintegration,
disorganisation and demoralisation among nationalist ranks. A debate
started among Congressmen on what to do during the transition period,
i.e., the passive phase of the movement.
One section led by C.R. Das, Motilal Nehru and Ajmal
Khan wanted an end to the boycott of legislative councils so that the
nationalists could enter them to expose the basic weaknesses of these
assemblies and use these councils as an arena of political struggle to
arouse popular enthusiasm They wanted, in other words, to 'end or mend'
these councils, i.e., if the Government did not respond to the
nationalists' demands, then they would obstruct the working of these
councils.
Those advocating entry into legislative councils came to be known as the
Swarajists, while the other school of thought led by Vallabhbhai Patel,
Rajendra Prasad, C. Rajagopalachari and M.A. Ansari came to be known as
the 'No-changers'. The 'No-changers' opposed council entry, advocated
,concentration on constructive work, and continuation of boycott and
noncooperation, and quiet preparation for resumption of the suspended
civil disobedience programme.
The differences over the question of council entry between the two
schools of thought resulted in the defeat of the Swarajists' proposal of
'ending or mending' the councils at the Gaya session of the Congress
(December 1922). C.R Das and Motilal Nehru resigned from the
presidentship and secretaryship respectively of the Congress and
announced the formation of Congress-Khilafat Swarajya Party, with C.R.
Das as the president and Motilal Nehru as one of the secretaries.
Swarajists' Arguments
The Swarajists argued that entering the councils would not negate the
non-cooperation programme; in fact, it would be like carrying on the
movement through other meansopening a new front.
In a time of political vacuum, council work would serve to enthuse the
masses and keep up their morale. Entry of nationalists would deter the
Government from stuffing the councils with undesirable elements who may
be used to provide legitimacy to government measures.
Their only intention was to use the councils as arena of political
struggle; they had no intention to use the councils as organs for
gradual transformation of colonial rule.
No-Changers' Arguments
The No-Changers argued that parliamentary work would lead to neglect of
constructive work, loss of revolutionary zeal and to political
corruption. Constructive work would prepare everyone for the next phase
of civil disobedience.
But at the same time both sides wanted to avoid a 1907 type split and
kept in touch with Gandhi who was in jail. Both sides also realised the
significance of putting up a united front to get a mass movement to
force the Government to introduce reforms, and both sides accepted the
necessity of Gandhi's leadership of a united nationalist front. Keeping
these factors in mind, a compromise was reached at a meeting in Delhi in
September 1923.
The Swarajists were allowed to contest elections as a group within the
Congress. The Swarajists accepted the Congress programme with only one
differencethat they would join legislative councils. The elections to
the newly constituted Central Legislative Assembly and to provincial
assemblies were to be held in November 1923.
The Swarajist Manifesto for Elections Released in October 1923, the
manifesto took a strong anti-imperialist line. It said the guiding
motive of the British in governing India is to secure selfish interests
of their own country; the so-called reforms are only a blind to further
the said interests under the pretence of granting a responsible
government, the real objective being to continue exploitation of the
unlimited resources of the country by keeping. Indians permanently in a
subservient position to Britain; the Swarajists would present the
nationalist demand of self-government in councils.
if this demand was rejected, they would adopt a policy of uniform,
continuous and consistent obstruction within the councils to make
governance through councils impossible; councils would thus be wrecked
from within by creating deadlocks on every measure.
Gandhi's Attitude
Gandhi was initially opposed to the Swarajist proposal of council entry.
But after his release from prison on health grounds in February 1924, he
gradually
moved towards a reconciliation with the Swarajists because
1. he felt public opposition to the programme of council entry would be
counter-productive;
2. in the November 1923 elections, the Swarajists had managed to win 42
out of 141 elected seats and a clear majority in the provincial assembly
of Central Provinces and, in legislatures, had joined hands with the
Liberals and the independents like Jinnah and Malaviya; the courageous
and uncompromising manner in which the Swarajists functioned convinced
him that they would not become just another limb of colonial
administration;
3. there was a government crackdown on revolutionary terrorists and the
Swarajists towards the end of 1924; this angered Gandhi and he expressed
his solidarity with the Swarajists by surrendering to their wishes.
Swarajist Activity in Councils
By 1924, the Swarajist position had weakened because of widespread
communal riots, split among Swarajists themselves on communal and
Responsivist-Non-responsivist lines, and the death of C.R. Das in 1925
weakened it further. The Responsivists among SwarajistsLala Lajpat
Rai, Madan Mohan Malaviya and N.C. Kelkaradvocated cooperation with the
Government and holding of office wherever possible to protect the socalled Hindu interests. They accused the Non-responsivists like Motilal
Nehru of being anti-Hindu and a beef-eater. Thus, the main leadership of
the Swarajya Party reiterated faith in mass civil disobedience and
withdrew from legislatures in March 1926, while another section of
Swarajists went into the 1926 elections as a party in disarray, and did
not fare well. In 1930, the Swarajists finally walked out as a result of
the Lahore Congress resolution on purna swaraj and the beginning of the
Civil Disobedience Movement (1930-34).
Their Achievements
1. With coalition partners, they outvoted the Government several times,
even on matters relating to budgetary grants, and passed adjournment
motions.
2. They agitated through powerful speeches on selfgovernment, civil
liberties and industrialisation.
3. Vithalbhai Patel was elected speaker of Central Legislative Assembly
in 1925.
4. A noteworthy achievement was the defeat of the Public Safety Bill in
1928 which was aimed at empowering the Government to deport undesirable
and subversive foreigners (because the Government was alarmed by the
spread of socialist and communist ideas and believed that a crucial role
was being played by the British and other foreign activists being sent
by the Commintern).
5. By their activities, they filled the political vacuum at a time when

the national movement was recouping its strength.
6. They exposed the hollowness of the Montford scheme.
7. They demonstrated that the councils could be used creatively.
Their Drawbacks
1. The Swarajists lacked a policy to coordinate their militancy inside
legislatures with the mass struggle outside. They relied totally on
newspaper reporting to communicate with the public.
2. An obstructionist strategy had its limitations.
3. They could not carry on with their coalition partners very far
because of conflicting ideas, which further limited their
effectiveness.
4. They failed to resist the perks and privileges of power and office.
5. They failed to support the peasants' cause in Bengal and lost support
among Muslim members who were propeasant.
Constructive Work by'No-Changers
1. Ashrams sprang up where young, men and women worked, among tribals
and lower castes (especially in Kheda and Bardoli areas of Gujarat),
and popularised charkha and khadi.
2. National schools and colleges were set up where students were trained
in a non-colonial ideological framework.
3. Significant work was done for Hindu-Muslim unity, removing
untouchability, boycott of foreign cloth and liquor, and for flood
relief.
4. The constructive workers served as the backbone of civil
disobedience as active organisers.
5.
A Critique of Constructive Work
National education benefited the urban lower middle classes and the rich
peasants only. Enthusiasm for national education surfaced in the
excitement of the movement only In passivity, the lure of degrees and
jobs took the students to official schools and colleges.
Popularisation of khadi was an uphill task since it was
the imported cloth.
costlier than
While campaigning about the social aspect of untouchability, no emphasis

was laid on the economic grievances of the landless and agricultural
labourers comprising mostly the untouchables.
Although the Swarajists and the No-changers worked in their separate
ways, they kept on best of terms with one another and were able to unite
whenever the time was ripe for a new political struggle.
EMERGENCE OF NEW FORCES DURING THE 1920s
The third decade of the twentieth century is a watershed in modern
Indian history in more ways than one. While, on the one hand, this
period marked the entry of Indian masses into the national movement, on
the other hand, this period saw the basic crystallisation of the main
political currents on the national scene. These diverse political
currents owed their origin partly to the coming on the scene of the
Gandhian philosophy of satyagraha based on truth and non-violence, as
they embodied a positive or negative reaction to it The international
influence on Indian political thinkers during this phase was also more
pronounced than before. The new forces to emerge during the 1920s
included:
1. Spread of Marxism and Socialist Ideas
These ideas inspired many socialist and communist groups to come into
existence and resulted in the rise of a left wing, within the
Congress, represented by Jawaharlal Nehru and Subhash
Bose. These young nationalists, inspired by the Soviet Revolution and
dissatisfied with Gandhian ideas and political programme, began
advocating radical solutions for economic, political and social ills of
the country; These younger nationalists
* were critical both of Swarajists and No-changers, advocated amore
consistent anti-imperialist line in the form of a slogan for purna
swarajya (complete independence).
*were influenced by art awareness, though still vague, of international
currents, stressed the need to combine nationalism and antiimperialism
with social justice and simultaneously raised the question of internal
class oppression by capitalists and landlords.
Among the communist groups, the Communist Party of India (CPI) was
formed in 1920 in Tashkent (now, the capital of Uzbekistan) by M.N. Roy,
Abani Mukherji and others after the second Congress of Commintern. M.N.
Roy was also the first to be elected to the leadership of Commintern.
In 1924, many communistsS.A. Dartge, Muzaffar Ahmed, Sh.aukoa Usmani,
Nalini Guptawere jailed in the Kanpur Bolshevik conspiracy case.
In 1925, the Indian Communist Conference at Kanpur
foundation of the CPI.
formalised the
In 1929, the Government crackdown on communists resulted in the arrest

and trial of 31 leading communists, trade unionists and left-wing
leaders who were tried at Meerut in the famous Meerut conspiracy case.
Workers' and peasants' parties were organised all over the country and
they propagated Marxist and communist ideas. All these communist groups
and workers' and peasants' parties remained an integral part of the
national movement and worked within the Congress.
2. Activism of Indian Youth
All over, students' leagues were being established and students
conferences were being held. In 1928, Jawaharlal Nehru presided
over the All Bengal Students' Conference.
142
3. Peasants' Agitations In the United Provinces
These agitations were for revision of tenancy laws, including

lower rents, protection against eviction and relief from
indebtedness. Similar peasant agitations took place in the. Rampa
region of Andhra, in Rajasthan, in ryotwari areas of Bombay and
Madras. In Gujarat, the Bardoli Satyagraha was led by Patel
(1928).
4. Growth of Trade Unionism
The trade union movement was led by All India Trade Union Congress
(AITUC) founded in 1920. Lala Lajpat Rai was its first president
and Dewan Chaman Lal its general secretary. Tilak was also one of
the moving spirits. The major strikes during the 1920s included
those in Kharagpur Railway Workshops,Tata Iron and Steel Works
(Jamshedpur), Bombay Textile Mills (this involved 1,50,000 workers
and went on for 5 months), and Buckingham Carnatic Mills. In 1928,
there were a number of strikes involving 5 lakh workers. In 1923,
the first May Day was celebrated in India in Madras.
5. Caste Movements
As in earlier periods, the varied contradictions of the Indian
society found expression in caste associations and movements.
These movements could be divisive, conservative and at times
potentially radical, and included:
Justice Party (Madras) Self-respect movement (1925) under "Periyar"
E.V. Ramaswamy Naicker (Madras)
Satyashodhak activists in Satara (Maharashtra)
Bhaskar Rao Jadhav (Maharashtra)
Mahars under Ambedkar (Maharashtra)
Radical Ezhavas under K. Aiyappan and C. Kesavan in Kerala
Yadays in Bihar for improvement in social status
Unionist Party under Fazl-i-Hussain (Punjab).
6. Revolutionary Terrorism with a Turn towards Socialism
This line was adopted by those dissatisfied with the nationalist
strategy of the political struggle with its emphasis on non-violence.
In this also, two strands developed
Hindustan Republican Association (H.R.A.)in PunjabUP-Bihar
Yugantar, Anushilan groups and later Chittagong Revolf Group under
Surya Senin Bengal
REVOLUTIONARY TERRORISM DURING THE 1920s
Why Attraction for Revolutionary Terrorism after Non-Cooperation
Movement
The revolutionaries had faced severe repression during the First World
War. But in early 1920, many were released by the Government under a
general amnesty to create a harmonious environment for the Montford
Reforms to work. Soon, Gandhi launched the Non-Cooperation Movement.
Under the persuasion of Gandhi and C.R. Das, many terrorist groups
either agreed to join the non-cooperation programme or suspended their
activities to give the nonviolent Non-Cooperation Movement a chance.
But the sudden withdrawal of the Non-Cooperation Movement left many of

them disillusioned; they began to question the basic strategy of
nationalist leadership and its emphasis on non-violence and began to
look for alternatives. But since these younger nationalists were not
attracted to the parliamentary work of the Swarajists or to the patient,
undramatic, constructive work of the No-changers, they were drawn to the
idea that violent methods alone would free India. Thus, revolutionary
terrorism was revived.
Nearly all major leaders of revolutionary terrorist policies had been
enthusiastic participants in the Non-Cooperation Movement and included
Jogesh Chandra Chatterjee, Surya Sen, Bhagat Singh, Sukhdev,
Chandrasekhar Azad, Shiv Verma, Bhagwaticharan Vohra, Jaidev Kapur and
Jatin Das. Two separate strands of revolutionary terrorist groups
emerged during this periodone operating in Punjab-UP-Bihar and the
other in Bengal.
Major Influences
1. Upsurge of working class trade unionism after the War; the
revolutionaries wanted to harness the revolutionary potential of the new
emergent class for nationalist revolution.
144
2. Russian Revolution (1917) and the success of the young Soviet state
in consolidating itself.
3. Newly sprouting communist groups with their emphasis on Marxism,
socialism and the proletariat.
4. Journals publishing memoirs and articles extolling the self-sacrifice
of revolutionaries, such as Atmasakti, Sarathi and Bijou
5. Novels and books such as Bandi Jiwan by Sachin Sanyal and Maher Dabi
by Sharatchandra Chatterjee (a Government ban only enhanced its
popularity).
In Punjab-UP-Bihar
The revolutionary terrorist activity in this region was dominated by the
Hindustan Republican Association/Army or HRA (later renamed Hindustan
Socialist Republican Association or HSRA). The HRA was founded in
October 1924 in Kanpur by Ramprasad Bismil, Jogesh Chandra Chatterjee
and Sachin Sanyal, with an aim to organise an armed revolution to
overthrow the colonial government and establish in its place a Federal
Republic of United States of India whose basic principle would be adult
franchise.
Kakori Robbery (August 1925)
The most important "action" of the HRA was the Kakori robbery. The men
held up the 8-Down train at Kakori, an obscure village near Lucknow,
and looted its official railway cash. Government crackdown after the
Kakori robbery led to arrests of many, of whom 17 were jailed, four
transported for life and four Bismil, Ashfaqullah, Roshan Singh and
Rajendra Lahiriwere hanged. Kakori proved to be a setback.
The HSRA Determined to overcome the Kakori setback, the younger
revolutionaries, inspired by socialist ideas, set out to reorganise
Hindustan Republic Association at a historic meeting in the ruins of

Ferozshah Kotla in Delhi (September 1928). The participants included
Bhagat Singh, Sukhdev, Bhagwaticharan Vohra from Punjab and Bejoy Kumar
Sinha, Shiv Verma and Jaidev Kapur from UP. The HSRA decided to work
under a collective leadership and adopted socialism as its official
goal.
Saunders' Murder (Lahore, December 1928)
Just when the HSRA revolutionaries had begun to move away from
individual heroic action and terrorism, the, death of Sher-i-Punjab Lala
Lajpat Rai due to lathi blows received during a lathicharge on an
anti-Simon Commission procession (October 1928) led them once again to
take to individual assassination. Bhagat Singh, Azad and Rajguru shot
dead Saunders, the police official responsible for the lathicharge in
Lahore. The assassination was justified in these words: "The murder of a
leader respected by millions of people at the unworthy hands of an
ordinary police officer was an insult to the nation. It was the bounden
duty of young men of India to efface it we regret to have had to kill'a
person but he was part and parcel of that inhuman and unjust order which
has to be destroyed."
Bomb in the Central Legislative Assembly (April 1929)
The HSRA leadership now decided to let the people know about its changed
objectives and the need for a revolution by the masses. Bhagat Singh and
Batukeshwar Dutt were asked to throw a bomb in the Central Legislative
Assembly on April 8, 1929 against the passage of the Public Safety Bill
and Trade Disputes Bill aimed at curtailing civil liberties of citizens
in general and workers in particular. The bombs had been deliberately
made harmless and were aimed at making 'the deaf hear'. The objective
was to get arrested and to use the trial court as a forum for propaganda
so that people would become familiar with their movement and ideology.
Bhagat Singh, Sukhdev and Rajguru were tried in the Lahore conspiracy
case. Many other revolutionaries were tried in series of other cases. In
jail, these revolutionaries protested against the horrible conditions
through a fast, and demanded honourable and decent treatment as,
political prisoners. Jatin 4)as became the first martyr on the 64th day
of his fast. Defence of these young revolutionaries was organised by
Congress leaders. Bhagat Singh became a household name.
Azad was involved in a bid to blow up Viceroy Irwin's
in December 1929. During 1930 there were
146
train near Delhi
a series of terrorist actions in Punjab and UP towns (26

1930 in Punjab alone).
incidents in
Azad was killed in a police encounter in a park in Allahabad in February

1931. Bhagat Singh, Sukhdev and Rajguru were hanged on March 23, 1931.
In Bengal During the 1920s many revolutionary groups reorganised their

underground activities, while many continued working under the Congress,
thus getting access to the masses and providing an organisational base
to the Congress in towns and villages. Many cooperated with C.R. Das in
his Swarajist work. After Das's death (1925), the Bengal Congress broke
up into two factionsone led by J.M. Sengupta (Anushilan group joined
forces with him) and the other led by Subhash Bose (Yugantar group
backed him).
The actions of the reorganised groups included an assassination attempt
on the notorious Calcutta Police Commissioner, Charles Tegart. another
man named Day got killed) by Gopinath Saha in 1924. The Government,
armed with a new ordinance, came down heavily on revolutionaries. Many
including Subhash Bose were arrested. Gopinath Saha was hanged.
Because of government repression and factionalism among the
revolutionaries, revolutionary activity suffered a setback, but soon
many of them started regrouping. Among the new "Revolt Groups", the most
active and famous was the Chittagong group under Surya Sen.
Chittagong Armoury Raid (April 1930) Surya Sen had participated in the
Non-Cooperation Movement and had become a teacher in the national school
in Chittagong. He was imprisoned from 1926 to 1928 for revolutionary
activity and afterwards continued working in the Congress. He was the
secretary of the Chittagong District Congress Committee. He used to say
"Humanism is a special virtue of a revolutionary." He was a lover of
poetry and an admirer of Tagore and Qazi Nazrul Islam.
Surya Sen decided to organise an armed rebellion along
associatesAnant Singh, Gariesh Ghosh and Lokenath
with his

Baul to show that it was possible to challenge the armed might of the
mighty British Empire. They had planned to occupy two main armouries in
Chittagong to seize and supply arms to the revolutionaries to destroy
telephone and telegraph lines and to dislocate the railway link of
Chittagong with the rest of Bengal. The raid was conducted in April 1930
and involved 65 activists under the banner of Indian Republican Army
Chittagong Branch. The raid was quite successful; Sen hoisted the
national flag, took salute and proclaimed a provisional revolutionary
government. Later, they dispersed into neighbouring villages and raided
government targets.
Surya Sen was arrested in February 1933 and hanged in January 1934, but
the Chittagong raid fired the imagination of the revolutionary-minded
youth and recruits poured into the revolutionary terrorist groups in a
steady stream.
Official Reaction
There was panic at first and then severe government repression. Armed
with 20 repressive Acts, the Government let loose the police on the
revolutionaries. In Chittagong, several villages were burned and
punitive fines imposed on many others. In 1933, Jawaharlal Nehru was

arrested for sedition and given two years' sentence because he had
condemned imperialism and praised the heroism of the revolutionaries.
Ideological Rethinking
A real breakthrough was made by Bhagat Singh and his comrades in terms
of the revolutionary ideology, forms of revolutionary struggle and the
goals of revolution. The rethinking had begun in the mid-1920s. The
Founding Council of HRA had decided to preach revolutionary and
communist principles, and the HRA Manifesto (1925) declared that the
"HRA stood for abolition of all systems which made exploitation of man
by man possible". HRA's main organ Revolutionary had proposed
nationalisation of railways and other means of transport and of heavy
industries such as ship building and steel. HRA had also decided to
start labour and peasant organisations and work for an organised and
armed revolution". During their last days (late 1920s).
These revolutionaries had started moving away from individual
action and terrorism towards mass politics.
heroic
Bismil, during his last days, appealed to the youth to give up pistols
and revolvers, not to work in revolutionary conspiracies and instead
work in an open movement. He urged the youth to strengthen Hindu-Muslim
unity, unite all political groups under the leadership of the Congress.
Bismil affirmed faith in communism and the principle that "every human
being has equal rights over the products of nature".
The famous statement of the revolutionary position is contained in the
book The Philosophy of the Bomb written by Bhagwaticharan Vohra.
Even before his arrest, Bhagat Singh had moved away from belief in
terrorism and individual heroic action to Marxism and the belief that a
popular broad-based movement alone could lead to a successful
revolution. In other words, revolution could only be "by the masses, for
the masses". That is why Bhagat Singh helped establish the Punjab
Naujawan Bharat Sabha (1926) as an open wing of revolutionaries to
carry out political work among the youth, peasants and workers, and it
was to open branches in villages. Bhagat and Sukhdev also organised the
Lahore Students' Union for open, legal work among students. Bhagat and
his comrades also realised that a revolution meant organisation and
development of a mass movement of the exploited and the suppressed
sections by the revolutionary intelligentsia. Bhagat used to say, "real
revolutionary armies are in villages and factories."
What then was the need for individual heroic action?
Firstly, because of the rapidity of change in thinking, effective
acquisition of new ideology is a prolonged and historical process.
Secondly, these young intellectuals faced the classic dilemma of how to
mobilise people and recruit them. Here, they decided to opt for
propaganda by deed, i.e., through individual heroic action and by using
courts as a forum for revolutionary propaganda.
Redefining Revolution
Revolution was no longer equated
objective was to be national
with militancy and violence. Its

liberationimperialism was to be overthrown but beyond that a new
socialist order was to be achieved, ending "exploitation of man by man".
As Bhagat Singh said in the court, "Revolution does not necessarily
involve sanguinary strife, nor is there a place in it for personal
vendetta. It is not the cult of bomb and pistol. By revolution we mean
the present order of things, which is based on manifest injustice, must
change".
Bhagat fully accepted Marxism and the class approach to society
"Peasants have to free themselves not only from the foreign yoke, but
also from the yoke of landlords and capitalists." He also said, "The
struggle in India will continue; so long as a handful of exploiters
continue to exploit labour of common people to further their own
interests. It matters little whether these exploiters are British
capitalists, British and Indian capitalists in alliance, or even purely
Indians." He defined socialism scientifically as abolition of
capitalism and class domination.
Bhagat was fully and consciously seculartwo of the six rules drafted by
Bhagat for the Punjab Naujawan Bharat Sabha were that its members would
have nothing to do with communal bodies and that they would propagate a
general feeling of tolerance among people, considering religion to be a
matter of personal belief. Bhagat also saw the importance of freeing
people from the mental bondage of religion and superstition"to be a
revolutionary, one required immense moral strength, but one also
required criticism and independent thinking".
Aspects of the New Phase of Terrorist Movement in Bengal
Some noteworthy aspects were as follows.
There was a large-scale participation of young women especially under
Surya Sen. These women provided shelter, carried messages and fought
with guns in hand. Prominent women revolutionaries in Bengal during this
phase included Pritilata Waddedar, who died conducting a raid; Kalpana
Dutt who was arrested and tried along with Surya Sen and given a life
sentence; Santi Ghosh and Suniti Chandheri, school girls
of Comilla, who shot dead the district magistrate. (December 1931); and
Bina Das who fired point blank at the Governor while receiving her
degree at the convocation (February 1932).
There was an emphasis on group action aimed at organs of the colonial
state, instead of individual action. The objective was to set an example
before the youth and to demoralise the bureaucracy.
Some of the earlier Hindu religiosity was shed, and there were no more
rituals like oath-taking, and this facilitated participation by Muslims.
Surya Sen had Muslims such as Satar,

Tunu Mian in his group.
Mir Ahmed, Fakir Ahmed Mian and
Some Drawbacks
The movement retained some conservative elements. It failed to evolve
broader socio-economic goals. Those working with Swarajists failed to
support the cause of Muslim peasantry against zamindars in Bengal.
GROWTH OF COMMUNALISM
Characteristic Features of Indian Communalism
Communalism is basically an ideology which evolved through three broad
stages in India
(i) Communal Nationalism: the notion that since a group or a section of
people belong to a particular religious community, their secular
interests are the same, i.e., even those matters which have got nothing
to do with religion affect all or them equally.
(ii) Liberal Communalism: the notion that since two religious
communities have different religious interests, they have different
interests in the secular sphere also (i.e., in economic, political and
cultural spheres).
(iii)
Extreme Communalism: the notion that not only different
religious communities have different interests, but these
interests are also incompatible i.e., two communities cannot
co-exist because the interests of one community come into
conflict with those of the other.
There is nothing unique about Indian communalism. It
the conditions which have, in other societies,
National Movement 1919-1939
was the result of
151
produced similar phenomena and ideologies such as Fascism, antiSemitism, racism, the Catholic-Protestant conflict in Northern Ireland
and the Christian-Muslim conflict in Lebanon.
Bypassing basic economic interests, the communalists
interests which do not exist.
claim to protect
Communalism is a modern phenomenonrooted in modern social, economic and

political colonial structurethat emerged out of modern politics based
on mass mobilisation and popular participation.
Its social roots lay in the rising middle classes who propagated
imaginary communal interests to further their own economic interests
communalism was a bourgeois question par excellence.
Communalists were backed in their communal campaign by the colonial
administration. Communalism was the channel through which colonialists
expanded their social base.
Communalists and colonialists were helped in their sinister motives by
the fact that often socio-economic distinctions in Indian society
coincided with religious distinction& The inherent class contradictions
were given a post-facto communal colouring by the vested interests.
Conservative social reactionary elements gave full support

communalism.
to
Religiosity itself did not amount to communalism but in a country where

lack of education and low awareness of the outside world was a sad
reality, religion had the potential of becoming, and was used as, a
vehicle of communalism
Reasons for Growth of Communalism
Communalism was rooted in modern economic, political and social
institutions where new identities were, emerging in a haphazard manner
even as the old, pre-modern identities had not ;Iiminished. A clash of
this fundamental dichotomy gave rise to a communal ideology.
Socio-economic reasons
The professional classes and the bourgeoisie emerged later among the
Muslims than among the Hindus. There was rivalry for jobs, trade and
industry between the two communities. The Muslim bourgeoisie used all
the lower middle classes of the Muslims against the Hindu
further their class interests.
bourgeoisie to
Because of the economic backwardness of India and rampant unemployment,

there was ample scope for the colonial government to use concessions,
favours and reservations to fuel communal and separatist tendencies.
Also, modern political consciousness was late in developing among the
Muslims and the dominance of traditional reactionary elements over the
Muslim masses helped a communal outlook to take root.
British' policy of divide and rule
Muslims were generally looked upon with, suspicion initially,
especially after the Wahabi and 1857 revolts, and were subjected to
repression and discrimination by the Government. Also, the introduction
of English education had undermined. Arabic and Persian learning which
added further to the economic backwardness and exclusion of the Muslims
from service.
After the 1870s, with signs of the emergence of Indian nationalism and
growing politicisation of the educated middle classes, the Government
reversed its policy of repression of Muslims and, instead, decided to
rally them behind it through concessions, favours and reservations, and
used them against nationalist forces. The Government used persons like
Sir Syed Ahmed Khan to counter the growing influence of the Congress.
Sir, Syed Khan had a broadminded and reformist outlook initially but
latei he started supporting the colonial government, exhorting the
Muslim masses to stay away from the Congress and not to get politicised.
He also started talking of separate interests of Hindus and Muslims.
Communalism in history writing
Initially suggested by imperialist historians and later adopted by some
chauvinist Indian historians, the communal interpretation of Indian
history portrayed the ancient phase as the Hindu phase and the medieval
phase as the Muslim phase. The conflicts of ruling classes during the
medieval phase were distorted and exaggerated as Hindu-Muslim conflicts.
Side-effects of socio-religious reform movements
Reform movements such as Wahabi Movement among Muslims and
Shuddhi among Hindus with their militant overtones made the role of
religion more vulnerable to communalism Reforms, at times, were seen as
a process of insulating one community from the influence of another
religious community.
Side-effects of militant nationalism
The early nationalists made conscious efforts to remove minority fears.
Dadabhai Naoroji, presiding over the second. Congress session (1886),
declared the intentions of the Congress not to raise socioreligious
questions in its forums. In 1889 the Congress decided not to take up any
issue opposed by the Muslims. But later, with the coming of militant
nationalism, a distinct Hindu nationalist tinge was palpable in the
nationalist politics. For instarce, Tilak's Ganapati and Shivaji
festivals and anti-cow slaughter campaigns created much suspicion.
Aurobindo's vision, of an Aryanised world, Swadeshi Movement with
elements like dips in the Ganga and revolutionary terrorism with oathtaking before goddesses were hardly likely to enthuse Muslims into these
campaigns in a big way. The communal element in the Lucknow Pact (1916)
and the Khilafat agitation (1920-22) was too visible to be of
insignificant consequences.
Communal reaction by majority community
Naturally, the minority communalism met with a reaction from the
majority community which set up militant organisations like the Hindu
Mahasabha (established in 1915) and Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS
established in 1925). The resultant one-upmanship of different versions
of communal tendencies was one factor which deterred any effective
counter-offensive against communalism
Evolution of the Two-Nation Theory
The development of the two-nation theory over the years is as follows:
1887: There was a frontal attack on the Congress by Dufferin, the
viceroy, and Colvin, the Lt. Governor of the United Provinces. Syed
Ahmed Khan and Raja Shiv Prasad of Blunga were propped up as an antiCongress front by the Government. Syed Ahmed Khan appealed to the
educated Muslims to stay away from the Congress, although some
154
Muslims did join the Congress. These included Badruddin

Musharraf A. Bhimji and Hamid Ali Khan.
Tyabji, Mir
1906: Agha Khan led aMuslim delegation (called the Shimla delegation) to
the viceroy, Lord Minto, to demand separate electorates for Muslims at
all levels and that the Muslim representation should be commensurate not
only with their numerical strength but also with their "political
importance and their contribution to the British Empire". Minto assured

them of special communal representation in excess of their population
for their "extraordinary service" to the empire.
1907: The All India Muslim League was founded by Agha Khan, Nawab
Salimullah of Dacca, Nawab Mohsin-ul-Mulk and Nawab Waqar-ul-Mulk to
preach loyalty to the British Government and to keep the Muslim
intelligentsia away from the Congress.
1909: Separate electorates were awarded under MorleyMinto Reforms.
1909: Punjab Hindu Sabha was founded by U.N. Mukherji
1915: First session of All India Hindu Mahasabha was
aegis of the Maharaja of Qasim Bazar.
and Lal Chancl.

held under the
1912-24: During this period, the Muslim League was dominated by younger
Muslim nationalists such as Mohammad Ali, Maularia Azad and Jinnah. But
their nationalism was inspired by a communal view of political
questions.
1916: The Congress accepted the Muslim League demand of separate
electorates and the Congress and the League presented joint demands to
the Government. But the Congress and the League came together as
separate political entities and the Congress gave political legitimacy
to the existence of the Muslim League.
1920-22: Muslims participated in the Rowlatt and Khilafat NonCooperation agitations but there was a communal element in the political
outlook of Muslims.
1920s: The shadow of communal riots loomed large over the country. The
Arya Samajists started Shuddhi (purification) and Sangathan
(organisation) movements. The Shuddhi

movement was aimed at reconverting to Hinduism the converts to Islam.
The Muslims started the Tabligh and Tanzeem movements in retaliation.
Some nationalists also turned communal. The Swarajists were divided
along communal lines and the Responsivists among them joined the Hindu
Mahasabha. The Ali brothers, after having put up a spectacular united
front with the Congress, accused the Congress of protecting only Hindu
interests.
The Congress failed to evolve a suitable strategy to
communalism.
counter the rise of
1928: The Nehru Report on constitutional reforms as suggested by the

Congress was opposed by Muslim hardliners and the Sikh League. Jinnah
proposed fourteen points demanding separate electorates and reservation
for Muslims in government service and self-governing bodies. By

negotiating with the Muslim League, the Congress made a number of
mistakes:
1. It gave legitimacy to the politics of the League, thus giving
recognition to the division of society into separate communities with
separate interests.
2. It undermined the role of secular, nationalist Muslims.
3. Concessions to one community prompted another community to demand
similar concessions.
4. This diverted attention from launching all-out attack on communalism.
1930-34: Some Muslim groups, such as Jamaat-i-ulernai-Hind, State of
Kashmir and Khudai Khidmatgars participated in the Civil Disobedience
Movement but overall the participation of. Muslims was nowhere near the
level of Khilafat agitation. While the Congress stayed away from two of
the three round table conferences held in London to discuss further
constitutional reforms, the communalists attended all three of them.
1932: Communal Award accepted all Muslim communal
the 14 points.
demands contained in
After 1937: After the Muslim League performed badly in the 1937
provincial elections, it decided to resort to extreme
communalism. There began a tendency to project the Muslims, not as a
minority but as a separate nation (in the early 1930s this idea of a
separate Muslim nation was proposed by a young Muslim intellectual
Rahrnat All and later developed further by poet Iqbal). From now
onwards, communalism was organised as a mass movement with its base
among middle and upper classes. Vicious propaganda was launched against
the Congress by Z.A. Suleri, F.M. Durrani, Fazl-ul-Haq, etc. Extreme
communalism was based on fear, hatred and violence of word and deed.
Till 1937 there had been liberal communalism, centred around safeguards
and reservations. It was communal while upholding certain liberal,
democratic, humanistic and nationalistic values and the notion that
these diverse communities could be welded together into one nation in
one national interest.
The extreme communalism of Muslims found its echo in militant communal
nationalism of Hindus represented by organisations such as the Hindu
Mahasabha and RSS and thoughts of leaders like Golwalkar. There were
several reasons for the advent of extreme communalism.
1. With increasing radicalisation, the reactionary elements searched for
a social base through channels of communalism.
2. The colonial administration had exhausted all other means to divide
nationalists.
3. Earlier failures to challenge communal tendencies had emboldened the
communal forces.
1937-39: Jinnah blocked all avenues for conciliation by forwarding the
impossible demand that the Congress should declare itself a Hindu
organisation and recognise the Muslim

of the Indian Muslims.
League as the sole representative
March 24, 1940: The 'Pakistan Resolution' was passed at the Lahore
session of the Muslim League calling for "grouping of all geographically
contiguous Muslim majority areas (mainly north-western and eastern
India) into independent states in which the constituent units shall be
autonomous and sovereign,
Views
The question of majority and minority community is a creation of the
British Government and would disappear with their withdrawal. M.K.
Gandhi
We divide and they rule. Maulana Mohammad All
After 1940 it was clear as daylight to the Muslims that their real
destiny was neither a second class citizenship in a uni national Hindu
state, nor even the doubtful partnership in a multinational India but a
separate nationhood with a separate homeland.
History of Freedom Movement of Pakistan
The independent sovereign nation of Pakistan was born in the Muslim
University of Aligarh. Agha Khan and adequate safeguards to Muslims in
other areas where they are in a minority".
During Second World War The British Indian Government a virtual veto to
the League on political settlement. The League made full use of this
privilege and stuck to its demand of a separate Pakistan throughout the
negotiations under the August Offer, Cripps' proposals, Shimla
Conference and Cabinet Mission Plan. Finally, it got what it had aspired
foran independent Pakistan comprising Muslim majority areas of Punjab,
Sindh, Baluchistan, North-West Frontier Province and Bengal in 1947.
ANTI-SIMON COMMISSION UPSURGE
There was a chorus of protest by all Indians against the appointment of
an all-white, seven-member Indian Statutory Commission, popularly known
as the Simon Commission (after the name of its chairman Sir John Simon),
on November 8, 1927. The commission was to recommend to the Government
whether India was ready for further constitutional reforms and on what
lines. (Although constitutional reforms were due only in 1929, the
Conservative Government, then in power
in Britain, feared defeat by the Labour Party and thus did not want to
leave the question of the future of Britain's most priced colony in
"irresponsible Labour hands".) The Conservative Secretary of State, Lord
Birkenhead, who had constantly talked of the inability of Indians to
formulate a concrete scheme of constitutional reforms which had the
support of wide sections of Indian political opinion, was responsible
for the appointment of the Simon Commission.
The Indian response against the commission was immediate and nearly
unanimous. What angered the Indians most was the exclusion of Indians
from the commission and the basic notion behind the exclusion that
foreigners would discuss and decide upon India's fitness for selfgovernment. This notion was seen as a violation of the principle of
selfdetermination, and a deliberate insult to the self-respect of
Indians.
Congress Response
The Congress session in Madras (December 1927) meeting under the
presidency of M.A. Ansaii decided to boycott the commission "at every
stage and in every form". Meanwhile Nehru succeeded in getting a snap
resolution passed at the session, declaring complete independence as the
goal of the Congress.
Those who decided to support the Congress call of boycott included the
Liberals of the Hindu Mahasabha and the majority faction of the Muslim
League under Jinnah. Some others, such as the Unionists in Punjab and
the Justice Party in the south, decided not to boycott the commission.
Public Response
The commission landed in Bombay on February 3, 1928. On that day, a
countrywide hartal was organised and mass rallies held. Wherever the
commission went, there were black flag demonstrations, hartals and
slogans of 'Simon Go Back'.
A significant feature of this upsurge was that a new generation of youth
got their first taste of political action. They played the most active
part in the protest, giving it a militant flavour. The youth leagues and
conforences got a real fillip. Nehru and Subhash emerged as leaders of
this new wave
of youth and students. Both travelled extensively, addressed and
presided over conferences. This upsurge among the youth also provided a
fertile ground for the germination and spread of new radical ideas of
socialism reflected in the emergence of groups such as the Punjab
Naujawan Bharat Sabha, Workers' and Peasants' Parties and Hindustani
Sewa Dal (Karnataka).
Police Repression
The police came down heavily on demonstrators; there were lathicharges
not sparing even the senior leaders. Jawaharlal Nehru and G.B. Pan; were
beaten up in Lucknow. Lala Lajpat Rai received severe blows on his
chest in October 1928 which proved fatal and he died on November 17,
1928.
Impact of Appointment of Simon Commission
The impact of the appointment of the Simon Commission on
politics was two-fold:
Indian
(i)
(ii)
It gave a stimulus to radical forces demanding not just

complete independence but major socio-economic reforms on
socialist lines.
The challenge of Lord Birkenhead to Indian politicians to
produce an agreed constitution was accepted by various
political sections, and thus prospects for Indian unity
seemed bright at that point of time.
NEHRU REPORT
As an answer to Lord Birkenhead's challenge, an All Parties Conference
met in February 1928 and appointed a subcommittee under the chairmanship
of Motilal Nehru to draft a constitution. This was the first major
attempt by the Indians to draft a constitutional framework for the
country. The committee included Tej Bahadur Sapru, Subhash Bose, M.S.
Aney, Mangal Singh, Ali Imam, Shuab Qureshi and G.R. Pradhan as its
members. The report was finalised by August 1928. The recommendations of
the Nehru Committee were unanimous except in one respectwhile the
majority favoured the "dominion status" as the basis of the
Constitution, a section of it wanted "complete independence" as the
basis, with the majority section giving the latter section liberty of
action.
Main Recommendations
The Nehru Report confined itself to British India, as it envisaged the
future link-up of British India with the princely states on a federal
basis. For the dominion it recommended:
1. Dominion status on lines of self-governing dominions as the form of
government desired by Indians (much to the chagrin of younger, militant
sectionNehru being prominent among them).
2. Rejection of separate electorates which had been the basis of
constitutional reforms so far; instead, a demand for joint electorates
with reservation of seats for Muslims at the centre and in provinces
where they were in minority (and not in those where Muslims were in
majority, such as Punjab and Bengal) in proportion to the Muslim
population there with right to contest additional seats.
3. Linguistic provinces.
4. Nineteen fundamental rights including equal rights for women, right
to form unions, and universal adult suffrage.
5. Responsible government at the centre and in provinces
The Indian Parliament at the centre to consist of a 500member House of
Representatives elected on the basis of adult suffrage, a 200-member
Senate to be elected by provincial councils; the House of
Representatives to have a tenure of 5 years and the Senate, one of 7
years; the central government to be headed by a governor-general,
appointed by the British Government but paid out of Indian revenues, who
would act on the advice of the central executive council responsible to
the Parliament.
Provincial councils' to have a 5-year tenure, headed by a- governor
acting on the advice of the provincial executive council.
6. Full protection to cultural and religious interests of Muslims.
7. Complete dissociation of state from religion.
The Muslim and Hindu Communal Responses

Though the process of drafting a constitutional framework was begun
enthusiastically and unitedly by political leaders, communal differences
crept in and the Nehru Report got involved in controversies over the
issue of communal representation.
Earlier, in December 1927, a large number of Muslim leaders had met at
Delhi at the Muslim League session and evolved four proposals for Muslim
demands to be incorporated in the draft constitution. These proposals,
which were accepted by the Madras session of the Congress (December
1927), came to be known as the 'Delhi Proposals'. These were
* joint electorates in place of separate electorates with reserved seats
for Muslims;
* one-third representation to Muslims in Central Legislative Assembly;
* representation to Muslims in Punjab and Bengal in proportion to their
population;
* formation of three new Muslim majority provinces Sindh, Baluchistan
and North-West Frontier Province.
However, the Hindu Mahasabha was vehemently opposed to the proposals for
creating new Muslim-majority provinces and reservation of seats for
Muslims majorities in Punjab and Bengal (which would ensure Muslim
control over legislatures in both). It also demanded a strictly unitary
structure. This attitude of the Hindu Mahasabha complicated matters. In
the course of the deliberations of the All Parties Conference, the
Muslim League dissociated itself and stuck to its demand for reservation
of seats for Muslims, especially in the Central Legislature and in
Muslim majority provinces. Thus, Motilal Nehru and other leaders
drafting the report found themselves in a dilemma: if the demands of the
Muslim communal opinion were accepted, the Hindu communalists would
withdraw their support, if the latter were satisfied, the Muslim leaders
would get estranged.
The concessions made in the Nehru Report to Hindu communalists included
the following:
1. Joint electorates proposed everywhere but reservation for Muslims
only where in minority;
2. Sindh to be detached from Bombay only after
dominion status was granted and subject to weightage to Hindu minority
in Sindh;
3. Political structure proposed was broadly unitary, as residual
powers rested with the centre.
Amendments Proposed by Jinnah
At the All Parties Conference held at Calcutta in December 1928 to
consider the Nehru Report, Jinnah, on behalf of the Muslim League,
proposed three amendments to the report:
1. One-third representation to Muslims in the Central Legislature
2. Reservation to Muslims in Bengal and Punjab legislatures

proportionate to their population, till adult suffrage was established
3. Residual powers to provinces.
These demands not being accommodated, Jinnah went back to the Shafi
faction of the Muslim League and in March 1929 gave fourteen points
which were to become the basis of all future propaganda of the Muslim
League.
jinnah's Fourteen Demands
1. Federal Constitution with residual powers to provinces.
2. Provincial autonomy.
3. No constitutional amendment by the centre without the concurrence of
the states constituting the Indian federation.
4. All legislatures and elected bodies to have adequate representation
of Muslims in every province without reducing a majority of Muslims in a
province to a minority or equality.
5. Adequate representation to Muslims in the services and in selfgoverning bodies.
6. One-third Muslim representation in the Central Legislature.
7. In any cabinet at the centre or in the provinces, onethird to be
Muslims.
8. Separate electorates.
9. No bill or resolution in any legislature to be passed if threefourths of a minority community consider such a bill or resolution to be
against their interests.
10. Any territorial redistribution not to affect the Muslim majority in
Punjab, Bengal and NWFP.
11. Separation of Sindh from Bombay.
12. Constitutional reforms in the NWFP and Baluchistan.
13. Full religious freedom to all communities.
14. Protection of Muslim rights in religion, culture, education and
language.
Not only were the Muslim League, the Hindu Mahasabha and the Sikh
communalists unhappy about the Nehru Report, but the younger section of
the Congress led by Jawaharlal Nehru and Subhash Bose were also angered.
The younger section regarded the idea of dominion status in the report
as a step backward, and the developments at the All Parties Conference
strengthened their criticism of the dominion status idea. Nehru and
Subhash Bose rejected the Congress' modified goal and jointly set up the
Independence for India League.
THE RUN-UP TO CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE MOVEMENT
Calcutta Session of Congress (December 1928)
Here, the Nehru Report was approved but the younger elements led by
Nehru, Subhash and Satyamurthy expressed their dissatisfaction with the
dominion status as the goal of Congress. Instead, they demanded that the
Congress adopt purna swaraj or complete independence as its goal. The
older leaders like Gandhi and Motilal Nehru wished that the dominion
status demand not be dropped in haste, as consensus over it had been
developed with great difficulty over the years. They suggested that a
two-year grace period be given to the Government to accept the demand

for a dominion status. Later, under pressure from the younger elements,
this period was reduced to one year Now, the Congress decided that if
the Government did not accept, a constitution based on dominion status
by the end of the year, the Congress would not only demand complete
independence but would also launch a Civil Disobedience Movement to
attain its goal.
Political Activity during 1929
Gandhi travelled incessantly during 1929 preparing people for direct
political actiontelling the youth to prepare for the fiery ordeal,
helping to organise constructive work in villages and redressing
specific grievances (on lines of Bardoli agitation of 1928).

The Congress Working Committee (CWC) organised a Foreign Cloth Boycott
Committee to propagate an aggressive programme of foreign cloth boycott
and public burning of foreign cloth. Gandhi initiated the campaign in
March 1929 in Calcutta and was arrested. This was followed by bonfires
of foreign clothes all over the country.
Other developments which kept the political temperature high during 1929
included the Meerut Conspiracy Case (March), bomb explosion in Central
Legislative Assembly by Bhagat Singh and B.K. Dutt (April) and the
coming to power of the Labour Government led by Ramsay MacDonald in
England in May.
Irwin's Statement (October 31, 1929) "It is implicit in the 1917
declaration (Montagu's statement) that the natural issue of India's
progress, as contemplated there, is the attainment of dominion status."
He also promised a Round Table Conference when the
submitted its report.
Simon Commission
Delhi Manifesto
On November 2, 1929, a conference of prominent national leaders issued a
"Delhi Manifesto" which demanded
1. that the purpose of the Round Table Conference (RTC) should be to
formulate a scheme for implementation of the dominion status (thus
acting as a constituent assembly) and the basic principle of dominion
status should be immediately accepted;
2. that the Congress should have majority representation at the

conference;
3. amnesty and a general policy of conciliation;
Viceroy Irwin rejected these demands on December 23, 1929. The stage of
confrontation was to begin now.
Lahore Congress and Purna Swaraj
Jawaharlal Nehru, who had done more than anyone else to popularise the
concept of purna swaraj, was nominated the president for the Lahore
session of the Congress (December 1929) mainly due to Gandhi's backing,
(15 out of 18 Provincial Congress Committees had opposed Nehru). Nehru
was chosen
because of the appositeness of the occasion (Congress' acceptance of
complete independence as its goal), and to acknowledge the upsurge of
youth which had made the anti-Simon campaign a huge success.
Nehru declared in his presidential address, "We have now an open
conspiracy to free this country from foreign rule and you, comrades, and
all our countrymen and countrywomen are invited to join it" Further
explaining that liberation did not mean only throwing off the foreign
yoke, he said "I must frankly confess that I am a socialist and a
republican, and am no believer in kings and princes, or in the order
which produces the modern kings of industry, who have greater power of
the lives and fortunes of men than even the kings of old, and whose
methods are as predatory as those of the old feudal aristocracy."
Spelling out the methods of struggle, he said, "Any great movement for
liberation today must necessarily be a mass movement, and mass movements
must essentially be peaceful, except in times of organised revolt".
The following major decisions were taken at the Lahore session1. the RTC to be boycotted;
2. complete independence declared as the aim of the Congress;
3. CWC authorised to launch a programme of civil disobedience including
non-payment of taxes and all members of legislatures asked to resign
their seats;
4. January 26, 1930 fixed as the first Independence Day, to be
celebrated everywhere.
December 31, 1929 At midnight on the banks of River Ravi, the newly
adopted tricolour flag of freedom was hoisted amidst slogans of Inquilab
Zindabad.
January 26, 1930 Public meetings were organised all over the country in
villages and towns and the independence pledge was read out in local
languages and the national flag was hoisted. This pledge made the
following points:
It is the inalienable right of Indians to have freedom.
The British Government in India has not only deprived us of freedom

and exploited us, but has also ruined us economically, politically,
culturally and spiritually. India must therefore sever the British
connection and attain purna swaraj or complete independence.
We are being economically ruined by high revenue, destruction of
village industries with no substitutions made, while customs, currency
and exchange rate are manipulated to our disadvantage.
No real political powers are givenrights of free association are
denied to us and all administrative talent in us is killed.
Culturally, the system of education has torn us from our moorings.
Spiritually, compulsory disarmament has made us unmanly.
We hold it a crime against man and God to submit any longer to British
rule. We will prepare for complete independence by withdrawing, as far
as possible, all voluntary association from the British Government and
will prepare for civil disobedience through non-payment of taxes. By
this an end of this inhuman rule is assured.
We will carry out the Congress instructions for purpose of
establishing purna swaraj.
CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE MOVEMENT
Gandhi's Eleven Demands
To carry forward the mandate given by the Lahore Congress, Gandhi
presented eleven demands to the Government and gave an ultimatum of
January 31, 1930 to accept or reject these demands. The demands were as
follows.
Issues of General Interest
1. Reduce expenditure on Army and civil services by 50 per cent.
2. Introduce total prohibition.
3. Carry out reforms in Criminal Investigation Department (CID).
4. Change Arms Act allowing popular control of issue of firearms
licences.
5. Release political prisoners.
6. Accept Postal Reservation Bill.
Specific Bourgeois Demands
7. Reduce rupee-sterling exchange ratio to is 4d 8. Introduce textile
protection.
9. Reserve coastal shipping for Indians.
Specific Peasant Demands
10. Reduce land revenue by 50 per cent.
11. Abolish salt tax and government's salt monopoly.
February 1930
With no positive response forthcoming from the Government on these
demands, the Congress Working Committee invested Gandhi with full powers
to launch the Civil Disobedience Movement (CDM) at a time and place of
his choice. By February-end, Gandhi had decided to make, salt, the
central formula for the CDM.
Why Salt was Chosen as the Central Formula?
1. As Gandhi said, "There is no other article like salt, outside water,

by taxing which the Government can reach the starving millions, the
sick, the maimed and the utterly helpless. It is the most inhuman poll
tax the ingenuity ofr man can devise."
2. Salt in a flash linked the ideal of swaraj with a most concrete and
universal grievance of the rural poor (and with no socially divisive
implications like a no-rent campaign).
3. Salt afforded a paltry but psychologically important income, like
khadi, for the poor through self-help.
4. Like khadi, again, it offered to the urban adherents the opportunity
of a symbolic identification with mass suffering.
Dandi March (March 12-April 6, 1930)
On March 2, 1930, Gandhi informed the viceroy of his plan of action.
According to this plan (few realised its significance when it was first
announced), Gandhi, along with a band of seventy-eight members of
Sabarmati Ashram, was to march from his headquarters in Ahmedabad
through the villages of Gujarat
for 240 miles. On reaching the coast at Dandi, the salt law was
violated by collecting salt from the beach.
to be
Even before the proposed march began, thousands thronged to the ashram.
Gandhi gave the following directions for future action. Wherever
possible civil disobedience of the salt law should be started. Foreign
liquor and cloth shops can be picketed.
We can refuse to pay taxes if we have the requisite strength. Lawyers
can give up practice.
Public can boycott law courts by refraining from litigation.
Government servants can resign from their posts.
All these should be subject to one conditiontruth and non-violence as
means to attain swaraj should be faithfully adhered to.
Local leaders should be obeyed after Gandhi's arrest.
The historic march, marking, the launch of the Civil Disobedience
Movement, began on March 12, and Gandhi broke the salt law by picking up
a handful of salt at Dandi on April 6. The violation of the law was seen
as a symbol of the Indian people's resolve not to live under Britishmade laws and therefore under British rule. The march, its progress and
its impact on the people was well covered by newspapers. In Gujarat, 300
village officials resigned in answer to Gandhi's appeal. Congress
workers engaged themselves in grassroot level organisational tasks.
Spread of Salt Disobedience
Once the way was cleared by Gandhi's ritual at Dandi, defiance of the
salt laws started all over the country. In Tamil Nadu, C.
Rajagopalachari led a march from Tiruchirapally to Vedaranniyam. In
Malabar, K. Kelappan led a march from Calicut to Poyannur. In Assam,
satyagrahis walked from Sylhet to Noakhali (Bengal) to make salt. In
Andhra, a number of sibirams (camps) came up in different districts as
headquarters of salt satyagraha.
Nehru's arrest in April 1930 for defiance of the salt law

evoked huge demonstrations in Madras, Calcutta and Karachi. Gandhi's
arrest came on May 4, 1930 when he had announced that he would lead a
raid on Dharsana Salt Works on the west coast. Gandhi's arrest was
followed by massive protests in Bombay, Delhi, Calcutta and in Sholapur,
where the response was the fiercest. After Gandhi's arrest, the CWC
sanctioned:
non-payment of revenue in Ryotwari areas;
no chowkidara tax campaign in zamindari areas; and
violation of forest laws in the Central Provinces.
Other Forms of Upsurge
Other areas in the country showed different forms of protest.
Chittagong, Surya Sen's Chittagong Revolt Group carried out a raid on
two armouries and declared the establishment of a provisional
government.
Peshawar, Here, Khan Abdul Gaffar Khan's educational and social reform
work among the Pathans had politicised them. Gaffar Khan, also called
Badshah Khan and Frontier Gandhi, had started the first Pushto political
monthly Pukhtoon and had organised a volunteer brigade 'Khudai
Khidmatgars', popularly known as the 'Red-Shirts', who were pledged to
the freedom struggle and non-violence.
On April 23, 1930, the arrest of Congress leaders NWFP led to mass
demonstrations in Peshawar which was virtually in the hands of the
crowds for more than a week till order was restored on May 4. This was,
followed by a reign of terror and martial law. It was here that a
section of Garhwal Rifles soldiers refused to fire on an unarmed crowd.
This upsurge in a province with 92 per cent Muslim population left the
British Government nervous.
Sholapur, This industrial town of southern Maharashtra saw the fiercest
response to Gandhi's arrest. Textile workers went on a strike from May 7
and along with other residents burnt liquor shops and other symbols of
government authority such as railway stations, police stations,
municipal buildings, law courts, etc. The activists established a
virtual parallel government which could only be dislodged with martial
law after May 16.
Dharsana, On May 21, 1930, Sarojini Naidu, Imam Sahib and Manila
(Gandhi's son) took up the unfinished task of leading a raid on
Dharsana Salt Works. The unarmed and peaceful crowd was met with a
brutal lathicharge which left 2 dead and 320 injured. This new form of
salt satyagraha was eagerly adopted by people in Wadala (Bombay),
Karnataka (Sanikatta Salt Works), Andhra, Midnapore, Balasore, Puri and
Cu ttack.
Bihar, A campaign was organised for refusal to pay chowkidara tax and a
call was given for resignation of chowkidars and influential members of
chowlcidari panchayat who appointed these chowkidars. This campaign was
particularly successful in Monghyr, Saran and Bhagalpur. The Government
retaliated with beatings, torture and confiscation of property.
Bengal, Anti-chowkidara tax and anti-union board tax campaign here was
met with repression and confiscation of property.
Gujarat, The impact was felt in Anand, Borsad and Nadiad areas, in Kheda
district, Bardoli in Surat district and Jambusar in Bharuch district. A
determined no-tax movement was organised here which included refusal
to< pay, land revenue. Villagers crossed the border into neighbouring
princely states (such as Baroda) with their families and belongings and
camped in the open for months to evade, police repression. The police
retaliated by destroying their property and confiscating their land.
Maharashtra, Karnataka, Central Provinces, These areas saw defiance of
forest laws such as grazing and timber restrictions and public sale of
illegally acquired forest produce.
Assam, A powerful agitation was organised against the infamous
'Cunningham circular' which forced parents, guardians and students to
furnish assurances of good behaviour.
United Provinces, A no revenue campaign was organised; a call was given
to zamindars to refuse to pay revenue to the Government. Under a no rent
campaign, a call was given to tenants against zamindars. Since most of
the zamindars were loyalists, the campaign became virtually a no rent
campaign. The activity picked up speed in October 1930, especially in
Agra and Rai Bareilly.
Manipur and Nagaland, These areas took a brave part in the movement. At
the young age of thirteen, Rani Gaidinliu of Nagaland raised the banner
of revolt against foreign rule. She was captured in 1932 and sentenced
to life imprisonment.
Mobilisation of masses was also carried out through prabhat pheries,
vanar senas, manjari senas, secret patrilcas and magic lantern shows.
Impact of Agitation
1. Imports of foreign cloth and other items fell.
2. Government income from liquor, excise and land revenue fell.
3. Elections to Legislative Assembly were largely boycotted.
Extent of Mass Participation
Several sections of the population participated in the movement.
Women
Gandhi had specially asked women to play a leading part in the movement.
Soon, they became a familiar sight, picketing outside liquor shops,
opium dens and shops selling foreign cloth. For Indian women, the
movement was the most liberating experience and can truly be said to
have marked their entry into the public sphere.
Students
Along with women, students and youth played

boycott of foreign cloth and liquor.
the most prominent part in
Muslims
The Muslim participation was nowhere near the 1920-22 level because of
appeals by Muslim leaders to Muslim masses to stay away from the
movement and because of, active government encouragement to communal
dissension. Still, some areas such as the NWFP saw an overwhelming
participation. Middle class Muslim participation was quite significant
in Senhatta, Tripura, Gaibandha, Bagura and Noakhali. In Dacca, Muslim
leaders, shopkeepers, lower class people and upper class women were
active. The Muslim weaving community in Bihar, Delhi and Lucknow were
also effectively mobilised.
172
Merchants and Petty Traders

They were very enthusiastic. Traders' associations,and commercial bodies
were active in implementing the boycott, especially in Tamil Nadu and
Punjab.
Tribals
Tribals were active participants in Central
Karnataka.
Provinces, Maharashtra and
Workers
The workers participated in Bombay, Calcutta,
Madras, Sholapur, etc.
Peasants were active in UP, Bihar and Gujarat.

Government ResponseEfforts for Truce
The Government's attitude throughout 1930 was ambivalent; it was
puzzled and perplexed. It faced the classic dilemma of 'damned if you
do, damned if you don'tif force was applied, the Congress cried
'repression', and if little was done, the Congress cried 'victory'.
Either way the hegemony of the Government was eroded. Even ,Gandhi's
arrest came after much vacillation. But once the repression began, the
ordinances banning civil liberties were freely used, including gagging
of the press. Provincial governments were given freedom to
civildisobedience organisations. The CWC was, however, declared illegal
till June. Lathicharge and firirig on unarmed crowds left several killed
and wounded, while 90,000 satyagrahis Including Gandhi and other
Congress leaders were imprisoned.
The government repression and publication of the Simon Commission
Report, which contained no mention of dominion status and was in other
ways also a regressive document, further upset even moderate political
opinion.
In July 1930 the viceroy suggested a round table conference (RTC) and
reiterated the goal of dominion status. He also accepted the suggestion
that Tej Bahadur Sapru and M.R. Jayakar be allowed to explore the
possibility of peace between the Congress and the Government.
In August 1930 Motilal and Jawaharlal Nehru were taken to Yeravada Jail
to meet Gandhi and discuss the possibility of a settlement. The Nehrus
and Gandhi unequi-vocally reiterated the demands of:
1. right of secession from Britain;
2. complete national government with control over defence and firtance;
and
3. an independent tribunal to settle Britain's financial claims.
Talks broke down at this point.
FIRST ROUND TABLE CONFERENCE (NOVEMBER 1930-JANUARY 1931)
This was the first ever conference arranged betWeen the British and the
Indians as equals. While the Congress and most business
leaders'boycotted the First RTC, the Muslim League, the Hindu Mahasabha,
the Liberals and princes attended i.t Virtually every delegate reiterated
that a constitutional discussion to which the Congress was not a party
was meaningless. Also, at the conference, the British Prime Minister
hinted at an olive branch to the Congress and expressed the hope that
the Congress would attend the next RTC.
GANDHI-IRWIN PACT
On January 25, 1931 Gandhi and all other members of the CWC were
released unconditionally. The CWC authorised Gandhi to initiate
discussions with the viceroy. As a result of these discussions,apact was
signed between the viceroy, representing the British Indian Government,
and Gandhi, representing the Indian people, in Delhi on February 14,
1931. This Delhi Pact, also known as the Gandhi-Irwin Pact, placed the
Congress on an equal footing with the Government.
Irwin on behalf of the Government agreed on
1. immediate release of all political prisoners not convicted of
violence;
2. remission of all fines not yet collected;
3. return of all lands not yet sold to third parties;
4. lenient treatment to those government servants who had resigned;
5. right to make salt in coastal villages for personal consumption (not
for sale);
6. right to peaceful and non-aggressive picketing; and
7. withdrawal of emergency ordinances.
The viceroy, however, turned down two of Gandhi's demands
(i)
public inquiry into police excesses, and
(ii)
commutation of Bhagat Singh and his comrades' death sentence
to life sentence.
Gandhi on behalf of the Congress agreed
(i)
to suspend the civil disobedience movement, and
(ii)
(ii) to participate in the next RTC on the constitutional
question around the three Finch-pins of federation, Indian
responsibility, and reservations-and safeguards that may be
necessary in India's interests (covering such areas as

defence, external affairs, position of minorities, financial
credit of India and discharge of other obligations).
(iii)
EVALUATION OF CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE MOVEMENT
Was Gandhi-Irwin Pact a Retreat?
Gandhi's decision to suspend the civil disobedience movement as agreed
under the Gandhi-Irwin Pact was, not a retreat, because:
(i)
mass movements are necessarily short-lived;
(ii) capacity of the masses to make sacrifices, unlike that
of the activists, is limited; and
(iii) there were signs of exhaustion after September 1930, especially
among shopkeepers and merchants, who had participated so
enthusiastically.
No doubt, youth were disappointed. They had participated
enthusiastically and wanted the world to end with a bang and not with a
whimper. Peasants of Gujarat were disappointed because their lands were
not restored immediately (indeed, were restored only during the rule of
the Congress ministry in the province). But vast masses of people were
jubilant that the Government had to regard their movement as significant
and treat their leader as an equal, and sign a pact with him. The
political prisoners when released from jails were given a hero's
welcome.
Compared to Non-Cooperation Movement
1. The stated objective this time was complete independence and not just
remedying two specific wrongs and a vaguely-worded swaraj.
2. The methods involved violation of law from the very beginning and not
just non-cooperation with foreign rule.
3. There was a decline in forms of protests involving the
intelligentsia, such as lawyers giving up practice, students giving up
government schools to join national schools and colleges.
4. Muslim participation was nowhere near the NonCooperation Movement
level.
5. No major labour upsurge coincided with the movement.
6. But massive participation of peasants and business groups compensated
for decline of other features.
7. The number of those imprisoned was about three times more this time.
8. The Congress was organisationally stronger.
Views
India is one vast prison-house. I repudiate this law. M.K. Gandhi to
Lord.
Gandhi was the best policeman the British had in India. Ellen Wilkinson.
Dandi March is the kindergarten stage of revolution' based on the notion
that King Emperor can be unseated by boiling water in a kettle.
Brailsford, an English journalist.
Irwin
ia.
based boiling malist
KARACHI CONGRESS SESSION 1931

In March 1931, a special session of the Congress was held at Karachi to
endorse the Gandhi-Irwin or Delhi Pact. Six days before the session
(which was held on March 29) Bhagat Singh, Sukhdev and Rajguru had been
executed. Throughout Gandhi's route to Karachi, he was greeted with
black flag demonstrations by the Punjab Naujawan Bharat Sabha, in
protest against his failure to secure commutation of the death sentence
for Bhagat and his comrades.
Congress Resolutions at Karachi
While disapproving of and dissociating itself from political violence,
the Congress admired the "bravery" and "sacrifice" of the three martyrs.
176
The Delhi Pact was endorsed.

The goal of purna swaraj was reiterated. Two resolutions were
adoptedone on Fundamental Rights and the other on National Economic
Programme which made the session particularly memorable. The resolution
on Fundamental Rights guaranteed
* free speech and free press
* right to form associations
* right to assemble
* universal adult franchise
* equal legal rights irrespective of caste, creed and sex
* neutrality of state in religious matters
* free and compulsory primary education
* protection to culture, language, script of minorities and linguistic
groups
The resolution on National Economic Programme included
* substantial reduction in rent and revenue
* exemption from rent for uneconomic holdings
* relief from agricultural indebtedness
* control of usury
* better conditions of work including a living wage, limited hours of
work and protection of women workers
* right to workers and peasants to form unions
* state ownership and control of key industries, mines and means of
transport.
This was the first time the Congress spelt out what swaraj would mean
for the masses"in order to end exploitation of masses, political
freedom must include economic freedom of starving millions."
The Karachi Resolution was to remain, in essence, the
and economic programme of the Congress in ter years.
SECOND RTC AND SECOND CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE MOVEMENT
basic political
The Second Round Table Conference, which the Congress had

attend under the Delhi Pact, was held in London
agreed to

in December 1931. Not much was expected from the conference because of
the following reasons.
1. The Right Wing in Britain led by Churchill strongly objected to the
British Government negotiating with the Congress on an equal basis.
They, instead, demanded a strong government in India. The Labour Prime
Minister Ramsay MacDonald headed a Conservative-dominated cabinet with a
weak and reactionary secretary of state, Samuel Hoare.
2. An overwhelming majority of RTC delegates were conservative,
loyalist, reactionary and communal, men who had been used by the
colonial government to assert that the Congress did not represent all
Indians vis-a-vis imperialism, and to neutralise Gandhi and his efforts.
3. The session soon got deadlocked on the question of the minorities.
Separate electorates were being demanded by the Muslims, depressed
classes, Christians and Anglo-Indians. All these came together in a
"Minorities' Pact". Gandhi fought desperately against this concerted
move to make all constitutional progress conditional on the solving of
this issue.
4. Princes were also not as enthusiastic about a federation, especially
after the possibility of the formation of a Congress government at the
centre had receded after the suspension of civil disobedience movement
The session ended with MacDonald's announcement of:
(i)
two Muslim majority provincesNWFP and Sindh;
(ii)
the setting up of Indian Consultative Committee;
(iii) three expert committeesfinance, franchise and states;
and
(iv) the prospect of a unilateral British Communal Award if Indians
failed to agree.
The Government failed to concede the basic Indian demand of freedom.
Gandhi returned to India on December 28, 1931. On December 29, the CWC
decided to resume the civil disobedience movement.
During Truce Period (March-December 1931), Some activity during this
period kept alive the spirit of defiance. In the United Provinces, the
Congress had been leading a
movement for rent reduction and against summary evictions.
In the NWFP, severe repression had been unleashed against the Khudai
Khidmatgars and the peasants led by them who were agitating against the
brutal methods of tax-collection by the Government. In Bengal, draconian
ordinances and mass detentions had been used, in the name of fighting
terrorism. In September 1931, there was a firing incident on political
prisoners in Hijli Jail.
Changed Government Attitude

The higher British officials had drawn their own lessons from the Delhi
Pact which had raised the political prestige of the Congress and the
political morale of the people and had undermined British prestige. They
were now determined to reverse this trend. There were three main
considerations in British policy:
1. Gandhi would not be permitted to build up the tempo for a mass
movement again.
2. Goodwill of the Congress was not required, but the confidence of
those who supported the British against the Congressgovernment
functionaries, loyalists, etc.was very essential.
3. The national movement would not be allowed to consolidate itself in
rural areas.
After the CWC had decided to resume the civil disobedience movement, the
new Viceroy Willingdon refused a meeting with Gandhi on December 31. On
January 4, 1932, Gandhi was arrested.
Government Action
A series of repressive ordinances were issued which ushered in a virtual
martial law, though under civilian control, or a "Civil Martial Law".
Congress organisations at all levels were banned; arrests were made of
activists, leaders, sympathisers; properties were confiscated; Gandhi
ashrams were occupied. Repression was particularly harsh on women. Press
was gagged and nationalist literature, banned.
Popular Response
People responded with anger. Though unprepared, the response was
massive. In the first four months alone, about 80,000 satyagrahis, mostly
urban and rural poor, were jailed. Other forms of protest, included
picketing of shops selling liquor and foreign cloth, illegal gatherings,
non-violent demonstrations, celebrations of national days, symbolic
hoistings of national flag, non-payment of chowkidara tax, salt
satyagraha, forest law violations and installation of a secret radio
transmitter near Bombay. This phase of the civil disobedience movement
coincided with upsurges in two princely statesKashmir and Alwar. But
this phase of the movement could not be sustained for long because
(i) Gandhi and other leaders had no time to build up the tempo; and
(ii) the masses were not prepared.
Finally in-April 1934, Gandhi decided to withdraw the civil disobedience
movement. Though people had been cowed down by superior force, they had
not lost political faith in the Congressthey had won freedom in their
hearts.
COMMUNAL AWARD AND POONA PACT
The Communal Award was announced by the British Prime Minister, Ramsay
MacDonald, in August 1932. This was yet another expression of British
policy of divide and rule.
The Muslims, Sikhs and Christians had already been recognised as
minorities. The Communal Award declared the depressed classes also to be
minorities, and entitled them to separate electorates'.
Congress Stand Though opposed to separate electorates, the Congress was

not in favour of changing the Communal Award without the consent of the
minorities. Thus, while strongly disagreeing with the Communal Award,
the Congress decided neither to accept it nor to reject it.
The effort to separate the depressed classes from the rest of the Hindus
by treating them as separate political entities was vehemently opposed
by all the nationalists.
Gandhi's Response
Gandhi saw the Communal Award
nationalism. He thought it
as an attack on Indian unity and
National Movement 1919-1939 180 A Brief History of Modern India

was harmful to both Hinduism and to the depressed classes since it
provided no answer to the socially degraded position of the depressed
classes. Once the depressed classes were treated as a separate political
entity, he argued, the question of abolishing untouchability would get
undermined, while separate electorates would ensure that the
untouchables remained untouchables in perpetuity. He said that what was
required was not protection of the so called interests of the depressed
classes but root and branch eradication of untouchability
Gandhi demanded that the depressed classes be elected through joint and
if possible a wider electorate through universal franchise, while
expressing no objection to the demand for a larger number of reserved
seats. And to press for his demands, he went on an indefinite fast on
September 20, 1932 Now leaders of various persuasions, including B.R.
Ambedkar, M.C. Rajah and Madan Mohan Malaviya got together to hammer out
a compromise contained in the Poona Pact.
Poona Pact was Signed by B.R. Ambedkar on behalf of the depressed
classes in September 1932, the Pact abandoned separate electorates for
the depressed classes. But the seats reserved for the depressed classes
were increased from 71 to 147 in provincial legislatures and 18 per cent
of the total in the central legislature.
The Poona Pact was accepted by the Government as an
Communal Award.
amendment to the
GANDHI'S HARIJAN CAMPAIGN Determined to undo the divisive intentions of

the Government's divide and rule policy, Gandhi gave up all his other
preoccupations and launched a whirlwind campaign against untouchability
first from jail and after his release in August 1933 from the outside.
While in jail, he had set up the All India AntiUntouchability League in
September 1932 and had started the
181
weekly Harijan in January 1933. After his release, he shifted to the
Satyagraha Ashram in Wardha as he had vowed in 1930 not to return to
Sabarmati Ashram unless swaraj was won.
Starting from Wardha, he conducted a Harijan tour of the country in the

period from November 1933 to July 1934, covering 20,000 km, collecting
money for his newly set up Harijan Sevak Sangh, and propagating removal
of untouchability in all its forms. He urged political workers to go to
villages and work for social, economic, political and cultural
upliftment of the Harijan. He undertook two fasts on May 8 and August
16, 1934to convince his followers of the seriousness of his effort and
the importance of the issue. These fasts created consternation in
nationalist ranks throwing many into an emotional crisis.
Throughout his campaign, Gandhi was attacked by orthodox and reactionary
elements. These elements disrupted his meetings, held black flag
demonstrations against him and accused him of attacking Hinduism. They
also offered support to the Government against the Congress and the
Civil Disobedience Movement. The Government obliged them by defeating
the Temple Entry Bill in August 1934. Orthodox Hindu opinion in Bengal
was against the acceptance of permanent caste Hindu minority status by
the Poona Pact.
Gandhi's Thoughts on Caste
Throughout his Harijan tour, social work and fasts, Gandhi stressed on
certain themes: He put forward a damning indictment of Hindu society for
the kind of oppression practised on Harijans.
He called for the root and branch eradication of untouchability
symbolised by his plea to throw open temples to the untouchables.
He stressed the need for caste Hindus to do "penance" for untold
miseries inflicted on Harijans. For this reason he was not hostile to
his critics such as He said, "Hinduism dies if untouchability lives,
untouchability has to die if Hinduism is to live."
His entire campaign was based on principles of
humanism and reason
He said that the shastras do not sanction untouchability, and if they
did, they should be ignored as it was against human dignity.
Gandhi was not in favour of mixing up the issue of removal of
untouchability with that of inter-caste marriages and inter-dining
because he felt that such restrictions existed among caste Hindus and
ambrig Harijans themselves, and because the all-India campaign at the
time was directed against disabilities specific to Harijans.
Similarly, he distinguished between abolition of untouchability and
abolition of caste system as such On this point he differed from
Ambedkar who advocated annihilation of the caste system to remove
untouchability. Gandhi felt that whatever the limitations and, defects
of the varnashram system, there was nothing sinful about it, as there
was about untouchability. Untouchability, Gandhi felt, was a product of
distinctions of high and low and not of the caste system itself. If, it
could be purged of this distinction, the varnashram could function in a
manner whereby each caste would be complementary to the other rather
than being higher or lower. Anyway, that believers and critics of the
caste system should come together in the fight against untouchability,

the opposition to which is common to both, was his message.
He believed that the removal of untouchability would have,a positive
impact on communal and other questions since opposition to
untouchability meant opposing the notion of highness and lowness. He was
opposed to using compulsion against the orthodox Hindus whom he called
sanatanis. They were to be won over by persuasion, by appealing to
"their reason and their hearts". His fasts were aimed at inspiring
friends and followers to redouble their anti-untouchability work.
Gandhi's Harijan campaign included a programme of internal reform by
Harijans covering education, cleanliness, hygiene, giving up eating of
beef and carrion and consumption of liquor, and removing untouchability
among themselves.
Impact of the Campaign
Gandhi repeatedly described the campaign as not a political movement but
as being primarily meant to purify Hinduism and Hindu society.
Gradually, the campaign carried the message of nationalism to Harijans
who also happened to be the agricultural labourers in most parts of the
country, leading to their increasing participation in the national and
peasant movements.
STRATEGIC DEBATE Following the withdrawal of the civil disobedience
movement
There was a two-stage debate on the future strategy of the nationalists
firstly, what course the national movement should take in the immediate
future, i.e., during the phase of nonmass struggle (1934-35), and
secondly, in 1937, over the question of office acceptance in the context
of provincial elections held under the autonomy provisions of the
Government of India Act, 1935. (The first stage is discussed below. The
second stage is discussed later in this chapter.)
THE FIRST STAGE DEBATE
At this stage three perspectives were put forward. The first two were
traditional responses, while the third one represented the rise of a
strong leftist trend within the Congress. The three perspectives were as
follows.
1. There should be constructive work on Gandhian lines. There should be
constitutional struggle and participation in elections to the Central
Legislature (due in 1934) as advocated by M.A. Ansari, Asaf Ali,
Bhulabhai Desai, S. Satyarnurthy and B.C. Roy among others. They argued
that:
in a period of political apathy, elections and council work could be
utilised to keep up the political interest and morale of the people;
participation in elections and council work did not amount to faith in
constitutional politics;
another political front would help build up Congress and prepare the
masses for the next phase;
184
this approach would give the Congress a certain amount of prestige and
confidence, and a strong presence in councils would serve as an
equivalent to the movement.
4. A strong leftist trend within the Congress represented by Nehru
was critical of both constructive work and council entry in place
of the suspended civil disobedience movement as that would
sidetrack political mass action and divert attention from the main
issue of struggle against colonialism. Instead, this section
favoured resumption and continuation of non-constitutionalist mass
struggle, because the situation was still revolutionary owing to
continued economic crisis and the readiness of the masses to
fight.
5.
Nehru's Vision
Nehru said, "The basic goal before Indian people as before people of
the world is abolition of capitalism and establishment of socialism!'
He considered the withdrawal of the civil disobedience movement and
council entry "a spiritual defeat", "a surrender of ideals" and "a
retreat from revolutionary to reformist mentality".
He suggested that the vested interests be revised in favour of the
masses by taking up economic and class demands of peasants and workers,
and landlords and capitalists, organising masses in their class
organisationskisan sabhas and trade unions. He argued that these class
organisations should be allowed to affiliate with the Congress, thus
influencing its policies and activities. There could be no genuine
antiimperialist struggle, he said, without incorporating the class
struggle of the masses.
Nehru's Opposition to Struggle-Truce-Struggle Strategy
A large number of Congressmen led by Gandhi believed that a mass phase
of movement (struggle phase) had to be followed by a phase of reprieve
(truce phase) before the next stage of mass struggle could be taken up.
The truce pbriod, it was argued, would enable the masses to recoup their
strength to fight and also give the Government a chance to respond to
the demands of the nationalists. The masses could not go on sacrificing
indefinitely. If the Government did not
respond positively, the movement could be resumed again with the
participation of the masses. This was the StruggleTruce-Struggle or S-T-S
strategy.
Criticising the S-T-S strategy, Nehru argued that the Indian national
movement had reached a stage, after the Lahore Congress call for purna
swaraj programme, in which there should, be a continuous confrontation
and conflict with imperialism till it was overthrown. He advocated
maintenance of a "continuous direct action" policy by the Congress and
without the interposition of a constitutionalist phase. Real power, he
said, cannot be won by two annas and four annas. Against an S-T-S
strategy, he suggested a Struggle-Viciory (S-V) strategy.
Finally, Yes to Council Entry Nationalists with apprehension and British

officials with hope expected a split in the Congress on Surat lines
sooner or later, but Gandhi conciliated the proponents of council entry
by acceding to their basic demand of permission to enter the
legislatures. He said, "Parliamentary politics cannot lead to freedom
but those Congressmen who could not, for some reason, offer satyagraha
or devote themselves to, constructive work should not remain unoccupied
and could express their patriotic energies through council work provided
they are not sucked into constitutionalism or self-serving." Assuring
the leftists, Gandhi said that the withdrawal of the civil disobedience
movement, did not mean bowing down before opportunists or compromising
with imperialism
In May 1934, the All India Congress Committee (AICC) met at Patna to set
up a Parliamentary Board to fight elections under the aegis of the
Congress itself.
Gandhi was aware that he was out of tune with powerful trends in the
Congress. A large section of the intelligentsia favoured parliamentary
politics with which he was in fundamental disagreement. Another section
was estranged, from the Congress because of Gandhi's emphasis on the
spinning wheel as the "second lung of the nation". The
socialists led by Nehru also had differences with Gandhi. In October
1934, Gandhi announced his resignation from the Congress to serve it
better in thought, word and deed. Nehru and the socialists thought that
the British must first be expelled before the struggle for socialism
could be waged, and in an anti-imperialist struggle unity around the
Congress, still the only anti-imperialist mass organisation, was
indispensable. Thus it was better, they felt, to gradually radicalise
the Congress than to get isolated from the masses. The right wing was
no less accommodating. In the elections to the Central Legislative
Assembly held in November 1934, the Congress captured 45 out of 75 seats
reserved for Indians.
GOVERNMENT OF INDIA ACT, 1935
Amidst the struggle of 1932, the Third RTC was held in November, again
without Congress participation. The discussions led to the formulation
of the Act of 1935.
Main Features
The Government of India Act was passed by the British Parliament in
August 1935. Its main provisions were as follows.
1. An All India Federation
It was to comprise all British Indian provinces, all chief
commissioner's provinces and Indian states. The federation's
formation was conditional on the fulfilment of two conditions:
(i)-states with allotment of 52 seats in the proposed Council of
States should agree to join the federation;
(ii) aggregate population of states in the above category should
be 50 per cent of the total population of all Indian states.
Since these conditions were not fulfilled, the proposed federation never
came up. The Central Government carried on upto 1946 as per the
provisions of Government of India Act, 1919.
2. Federal Level Executive
Governor-general was the pivot of the entire Constitution.
Subjects to be administered were divided into reserved and transferred
subjects. Reserved subjectsforeign affairs,
defence, tribal areas and ecclesiastical affairswere to be exclusively
administered by the governor-general on the advice of executive
councillors. Executive councillors were not to be responsible to the
Central Legislature: Transferred subjects included all other subjects
and were to be administered by the governor-general on the advice of
ministers elected by the legislature. These ministers were to be
responsible to the federal legislature and were to resign on losing the
confidence of the body.
Governor-general could act in his individual judgement in the
discharge of his special responsibilities for the security and
tranquillity of India.
Legislature
The bicameral legislature was to have an upper house (Council of States)
and a lower house (Federal Assembly). The Council of States was to be a
260-member house, partly directly elected from British Indian provinces
and partly (40 per cent) nominated by the princes. The Federal Assembly
was to be a 375-member house, partly indirectly elected from British
Indian provinces and partly (one-third) nominated by the princes. Oddly
enough, election to the Council of States was direct and that to the
Federal Assembly, indirect.
Council of States was to be a permanent body with one-third members
retiring every third year. The duration of the assembly was to be 5
years. The three lists for legislation purposes were to be federal,
provincial and concurrent.
Members of Federal Assembly could move a vote of no-confidence against
ministers. Council of States could not move a vote of no-confidence.
The system of religion-based and class-based electorates was further
extended.
80 per cent of the budget was non-votable.
Governor-general had residuary powers. He could
(a) restore cuts in grants,
(b) certify bills rejected by the legislature,
(c) issue ordinances and
(d) exercise his veto.
3. Provincial Autonomy
Provincial autonomy replaced dyarchy.
Provinces were granted autonomy and separate legal identity.
Provinces were freed from "the superintendence, direction" of the
secretary of state and governor-general. Provinces henceforth derived
their legal authority directly from the British Crown. Provinces were
given independent financial powers and resources. Provincial governments

could borrow money on their own security.
Executive
Governor was to be the Crown's nominee and representative to exercise
authority on the king's behalf in a province.
Governor was to have special powers regarding minorities, rights of
civil servants, law and order, British business interests, partially
excluded areas, princely states, etc.
Governor could take over and indefinitely run administration.
Legislature
Separate electorates based on Communal Award were to be made
operational.
All members were to be directly elected. Franchise was extended; women
got the right on the same basis as men. Ministers were to administer all
provincial subjects in a council of ministers headed by, a premier.
Ministers were made answerable to and removable by the adverse vote of
the legislature.
Provincial legislature could legislate on subjects in provincial and
concurrent lists. 40 per cent of the budget was still not votable.
Governor could
(a) refuse assent to a bill,
(b) promulgate ordinances,
(c) enact governor's Aets.
Evaluation of the Act
Numerous 'safeguards' and 'special responsibilities' of the governorgeneral worked as brakes in proper functioning of the Act.
The process of constitutional advance in India is determined by the need
to attract, Indian col000ralors Iv Raj.
In provinces, the governor still had extensive powers.
The Act enfranchised 14 per cent of British Indian population.
The extension of the system of communal electorates and representation
of various interests promoted separatist tendencies which culminated in
partition of India.
The Act provided a rigid Constitution with no possibility of internal
growth. Right of amendment was reserved with the British Parliament.
Views
We framed the Act of 1935 because we thought that was the best way of
maintaining British iniiuence India. Lord Linlithgow, viceroy (1936-43).
We are provided with a car, ell brakes and no engine. Jawaharlal Nehru.
The Long-Term British Strategy
Suppression could only be a short-term tactic. in the long run, the
strategy was to weaken the movement and integrate large segments of the
movement into colonial, constitutional and administrative structure.
Reforms would revive political standing of constitutionalist liberals
and Moderates who had lost public support during the Civil Disobedience
Movement.
Repression earlier and reforms now would convince a large section of

Congressmen of the ineffectiveness of an extra-legal struggle.
Once Congressmen tasted power, they would be reluctant to go back to
politics of sacrifice.
Reforms could be used to create dissensions within Congressright wing
to be placated through constitutional concessions and radical leftists
to be crushed through police measures.
190
Provincial autonomy would create powerful provincial leaders who would

gradually become autonomous centres of political power. Congress would
thus be provincialised and central leadership would get weakened.
Nationalists' Response
The 1935 Act was condemned by nearly all sections and unanimously
rejected by the Congress. The Congress demanded, instead, convening of a
Constituent Assembly elected on the basis of adult franchise to frame a
Constitution for independent India.
THE SECOND STAGE DEBATE
In early 1937, elections to provincial assemblies were announced and
once again the debate on the future strategy to be adopted began.
Everyone agreed that the 1935 Act was to be opposed root and branch but
it was not clear how it was to be done in a period when a mass movement
was not yet possible. There was full agreement that the Congress should
fight these elections on the basis of a detailed political and economic
programme, thus deepening, the anti-imperialist consciousness of the
people. But what to do after the elections was not yet clear. If the
Congress got majority in a province, was it to agree to form a
government?
There were sharp differences over these questions among the
nationalists. The two sides of the debate soon got identified with the
emerging ideological divide along the left and right lines.
Nehru, Subhash, Congress socialists arrf communists were opposed to
office acceptance and thereby in the working of the 1935 Act because
they argued that it would negate the rejection of the Act by the
nationalists. It would be like assuming responsibility without power.
Also, it would take away the revolutionary character of the movement as
constitutional work would sidetrack the main issues of freedom, economic
and social justice, and removal of poverty.
As a counter-strategy, the leftists proposed entry into
the councils With an aim to create deadlocks, thus making the working of
the Act impossible (older Swarajist strategy). And, as a long-term
strategy, they advocated an increased reliance on workers and peasants,
integration of their class organisations into the Congress, thus
imparting a socialist direction to

resumption of a mass movement.
the Congress and preparing for the
The proponents of office acceptance argued that they were equally

committed to combating the 1935 Act, but work in legislatures was to be
only a short-term tactic since option of a mass movement was not
available at the time, and mass struggle alone was capable of winning
independence. Capture or rejection of office was not a matter of
socialism but of strategy. They agreed that there was a danger of being
sucked in by wrong tendencies, but the answer was to fight these
tendencies and not to abandon offices. The administrative field should
not be left open to pro-government reactionary forces. Despite limited
powers, provincial ministries could be used to promote constructive
work.
Gandhi's Position
He opposed office acceptance in the. CWC meetings but by the beginning
of 1936, he was willing to give a trial to the formation of Congress
ministries.
In its sessions at Lucknow in early 1936 and Faizpur in late 1937, the
Congress decided to fight elections and postpone the decision on office
acceptance to the post-election phase. In February 1937, elections to
the provincial assemblies were held.
Congress Manifesto for Elections
The Congress manifesto reaffirmed total rejection of the 1935 Act, and
promised release of prisoners, removal of disabilities on the basis of
gender and caste, radical transformation of the agrarian system,
substantial reduction of rent and revenue, scaling down of rural debts,
cheap credit and right to form trade unions and to strike.
Gandhi did not attend a single election meeting.
Congress' Performance
The Congress contested 716 out of 1161 seats. It got a majority in all
provinces, except in Bengal, Assam, Punjab, Sindh and NWFP, and emerged
as the largest party in Bengal, Assam and NWFP. Because of this
performance, the prestige of the Congress rose and Nehru reconciled to
the dominant strategy of S-T-S.
28 MONTHS OF CONGRESS RULE IN PROVINCES
Congress ministries were formed in Bombay, Madras, Central Provinces,
Orissa, United Provinces, Bihar and later in NWFP and Assam also.
Gandhi's Advice
Gandhi advised Congressmen to hold these offices lightly and not
tightly. The offices were to be seen as 'crowns of thorns' which had
been accepted to see if they quickened the pace towards the nationalist
goal. Gandhi advised that these offices should be used in a way not
expected or intended by the British.
There was great enthusiasm among the people; suppressed mass energy had
got released. There was an increase in the prestige of the Congress as
it had showed that it could not only lead people but could also use
state power for their benefit. But the Congress ministries had some
basic limitations: they could not, through their administration, change
the basic imperialist character of the system and could not introduce a
radical era.
Work Under Congress Ministries
Civil Liberties
The Congress ministries did much to ease curbs on civil liberties:
Laws giving emergency powers were repealed.
Ban on illegal organisations, such as the. Hindustan Seva Dal and
youth Leagues, and on certain books and journals was lifted.
Press restrictions were lifted. Newspapers were taken out of black
lists.
Confiscated arms and arms licences were restored.
Police powers were curbed and CID stopped shadowing politicians.
Political prisoners, and revolutionaries were released, and deportation
and internment orders were revoked.
In Bombay lands confiscated during the civil disobedience movement
were restored.
Pensions of officials associated with civil disobedience movement were
restored.
Gandhi urged Congressmen to prove that the Congress could rule with
least assistance from the police and the Army. But there were certain
blemishes in the performance of the Congress ministries regarding civil
liberties. Yusuf Maherally, a socialist, was arrested by the Madras
Government for inflammatory speeches and later released. S.S. Batliwala,
a socialist, was arrested by the Madras Government for seditious speech
and given six months' sentence. Then, K.M. Munshi, the Bombay Home
Minister, used the CID against communists and leftists.
Agrarian Reforms
There were certain basic constraints before the Congress ministries
could undertake a complete overhaul of the agrarian structure by
completely abolishing zamindari. These constraints were
(i)
The ministries did not have adequate powers.
(ii) There were inadequate financial resources as a lion's
share was appropriated by the Government of India.
(iii) Strategy of class adjustments was another hurdle since zamindars,
etc had to be conciliated and neutralised.
(iv) There was constraint of time since the logic of Congress politics
was confrontation and not cooperation with colonialism.
(iv)
War clouds had started hovering around 1938.
(v)
The reactionary second chamber (Legislative Council)
dominated by landlords, moneylenders and capitalists in
United Provinces, Bihar, Bombay, Madras and Assam had to be
conciliated as its support was necessary for legislations.
194
(vii) The agrarian structure was too complex and complicated.

In spite of there constraints, the Congress ministries managed to
legislate a number of laws relating to land reforms, debt relief, forest
grazing fee, arrears of rent, land tenures, etc.
But most of these benefits went to statutory and occupancy tenants while
sub-tenants did not gain much. Agricultural labourers did not benefit as
they had not been mobilised.
Attitude Towards Labour
The basic approach was to advance workers' interests while promoting
industrial peace. This was sought to be achieved by reducing strikes as
far as possible and by advocating compulsory arbitration prior to
striking before the established conciliation machinery. Goodwill was
sought to be created between labour and capital with mediation of
ministries, while at the same time efforts were made to improve workers'
condition and secure wage increases for them.
The ministries treated militant trade union protests as law and order
problems, and acted as mediators as far as possible. This approach was
largely successful but not so in Bombay. Also, leftist critics were not
satisfied by this approach. Generally, the ministries took recourse to
Section 144 and arrested the leaders.
Nehru was unhappy about these repressive measures, but in public
supported the ministries to protect them from petty and petulant
criticism. Although Gandhi was against militant and violent methods, he
stood for political education of the masses. He felt that the popular
base of the Congress should not erode. He appealed to Congressmen
against frequent resort to colonial laws and machinery.
Social Welfare Reforms
These included the following Prohibition imposed in certain areas.
Measures for welfare of Harijans takentemple entry, use of public
facilities, scholarships, an increase in their numbers in government
service and police, etc.
Attention given to primary, technical and higher education and to
public health and sanitation.
Encouragement give to khadi through subsidies and other measures.
Prison reforms undertaken.
Encouragement given to indigenous enterprises.
Efforts taken to develop planning through National Planning Committee
set up under Congress President Subhash Bose in 1938.
Extra-Parliamentary Mass Activity of Congress
Such activities included
launching of mass literacy campaigns,
setting up of Congress police stations and panchayats,
Congress Grievance Committees presenting mass petitions to
Government, and
states peoples' movements.

Evaluation
Though by 1939 internal strifes, opportunism and hunger for power had
started surfacing among Congressmen, yet they were able to utilise
council work to their advantage to a great extent. The 28-month Congress
rule was also significant for the following reasons. The contention that
Indian self-government was necessary for radical social transformation
got confirmed. Congressmen demonstrated that a movement could use state
power to further its ends without being co-opted.
The ministries were able to control communal riots.
The morale of the bureaucracy came down.
Council work helped neutralise many erstwhile hostile elements
(landlords, etc).
People were able to perceive the shape of things to come if
independence was won.
Administrative work by Indians further weakened the myth that Indians
were not fit to rule.
Congress ministries resigned in October 1939 after the
Second World War.
196
outbreak of the
Summary
WHY NATIONALIST UPSURGE AT END OF WAR?
Post-War economic hardship.
Nationalist disillusionment with imperialism worldwide.
Impact of Russian Revolution.
MONTAGU-CHELMSFORD REFORMS Dyarchy in provinces. Two listsreserved and
transferredfor administration. Reserved subjects to be administered by
governor through executive council and transferred subjects to be
administered by ministers from legislative council.
Extensive powers to governor, governor-general and secretary of state
for interference. Franchise expanded, powers also extended. Governorgeneral to administer with an executive council of 8 three to be
Indians. Two lists for administrationcentral and provincial. Bicameral
central legislatureCentral Legislative Assembly as the lower house and
Council of States as the upper house.
Drawbacks
Dyarchy arrangement too complex and irrational to be functional.
executive not responsible to legislature.
Limited franchise.
Central
GANDHI'S ACTIVISM IN SOUTH AFRICA (1893-1914) Set up Natal Indian

Congress and started Indian Opinion.
Satyagraha against registration certificates.
Campaign against restrictions on Indian migration.
Campaign against poll tax and invalidation of Indian marriages.
Gandhi's faith in capacity of masses to fight established; he was able
to evolve his own style of leadership and politics and techniques of
struggle.
GANDHI'S EARLY ACTIVISM IN INDIA

Champaran Satyagraha (1917)First Civil Disobedience.
Ahmedabad Mill Strike (1918)First Hunger Strike.
Kheda Satyagraha (1918)First Non-Cooperation.
Rowlett Satyagraha (1918)First mass-strike.
Summary
KHILAFAT-NON-COOPERATION MOVEMENT
Three demands1. Favourable treaty for Turkey
2. Redrassal of Punjab wrongs
3. Establishment of swaraj.
Techniques used
Boycott of government-run schools, colleges, law courts, municipality
and government service, foreign cloth, liquor; setting up of national
schools, colleges, panchayats and using khadi; second stage to include
civil disobedience by nonpayment of taxes.
Nagpur Congress Session (December 1920)Congress goal changed to
attainment of swaraj through peaceful and legitimate means from
attainment of self-government through constitutional means.
Chauri-Chaura Incident (February 5, 1922) Violence by agitated mob
prompted Gandhi to withdraw movement.
SWARAJISTS AND NO-CHANGERS
Swarajists advocated council entry after withdrawal of NonCooperation
Movement with an aim to end or mend the councils. No-changers advocated
constructive work during transition period.
EMERGENCE OF NEW FORCES DURING 1920S
1. Spread of Marxism and socialist ideas
2. Activism of Indian youth
3. Peasants' agitations
4. Growth of trade unionism
5. Caste movements
6. Revolutionary terrorism with a tilt towards socialism.
ACTIVITIES OF HRA HSRA Established-1924 Kakori robbery-1925
Reorganised-1928 Saunders' murder-1928 Bomb in Central Legislative
Assembly-1929 Bid to blow up viceroy's train-1929 Azad killed in police
encounter-1931 Bhagat Singh, Rajguru, Sukhdev hanged-1931.
Summary
REVOLUTIONARIES IN BENGAL Attempt on life of Calcutta police
commissioner-1924 Surya Sen's Chittagong Revolt Group and Chittagong
robberies1930.
REASONS FOR GROWTH OF COMMUNALISM

1. Socio-economic backwardness concessions used as a tool to
communalism by colonial rulers.
2. British policy of divide and rule.
3. Communalism in history writing.
4. Chauvinist elements of sobio-religious reform movements.
5. Side-effects of militant nationalism.
6. Communal reaction by majority community.
fuel
SIMON COMMISSION Came in 1928 to explore possibility of further

constitutional advance. Boycotted by Indians because no Indian
represented in the commission.
NEHRU REPORT (1928) First Indian effort to draft constitutional scheme.
Recommended
* dominion status
* not separate electorates, but
joint electorates with reserved seats
for minorities.
* linguistic provinces.
* 19 fundamental rights.
* responsible government at centre and in provinces.
CALCUTTA CONGRESS SESSION (DECEMBER 1928) One year ultimatum to
Government to accept dominion status or else civil disobedience to be
launched for complete independence.
LAHORE CONGRESS SESSION (DECEMBER 1929) Congress adopted complete
independence as its goal. Congress decided to launch a civil
disobedience movement. January 26, 1930 celebrated as the first
Independence Day all over the country.
DANDI MARCH (MARCH 12-APRIL 6, 1930). Led by Gandhi; resulted in spread
of salt satyagraha to Tamil Nadu, Malabar, Andhra, Assam, Bengal.
Spread of the movement
Khudai Khidmatgars active in NWFP.
Textile workers active in Sholapur.
199
Summary
Salt satyagraha in Dharsana. No-chowkidara tax campaign in Bihar. Antichowkidara and anti-union-board tax in Bengal. No-tax movement in
Gujarat. Civil disobedience of forest laws in Maharashtra, Karnataka and
Central Provinces. Agitation against "Cunningham Circular" in Assam. No
rent campaign in UP. Mass participation of women, students, some
sections of Muslims, merchants and petty traders, tribals, workers and
peasants.
FIRST RTC (NOVEMBER 1930-JANUARY 1931) Congress did not attend.
GANDHI-IRWIN PACT (MARCH 1931) Congress agreed to attend Second RTC
and to withdraw CDM.
KARACHI CONGRESS SESSION (MARCH 1931) Endorsed Delhi Pact between

Gandhi and Irwin. Passed resolutions on economic programme and
fundamental rights.
SECOND RTC (DECEMBER 1931) Right wing in Britain against concessions
to Indians. Session got deadlocked on question of safeguards to
minorities. December 1931 - April 1934 Second phase of CDM.
COMMUNAL AWARD (1932) Provided separate electorates to depressed
classes. Nationalists felt this to be a threat to national unity.
Gandhi's fast unto death (September 1932) led to Poona Pact which
abandoned separate electorates for depressed classes in favour of
increased reserved seats for them.
GOVERNMENT OF INDIA ACT, 1935 Proposedan All India Federation;
bicameral legislature at the centre; provincial autonomy; three lists
for legislationfederal, provincial and concurrent. At centre, subjects
to be administered divided into reserved and transferred categories.
Provincial legislators to be directly elected. Early 1937elections to
provincial assemblies held. Congress ministries formed in Bombay,
Madras, Central Provinces, United Provinces, Bihar, Orissa, Assam and
NWFP.
200
CHAPTER 6
National Movement Towards
Freedom and Partition 1939-1947
SECOND WORLD WAR AND NATIONALIST 'RESPONSE

September 1, 1939: Germany attacks Poland, Second World War starts.
September 3, 1939: Britain declares war against Germany and declares
India's support for the war without consulting Indian opinion.
June 1941: Germany attacks Russia and Russia is dragged into the War.
December 1941: Japan attacks Pearl Harbour. March 1942: After having
overrun almost the whole of SouthEast. Asia, Japan occupies Rangoon.
Congress Position Before War
The Congress' hostility to Fascism, Nazism, militarism and imperialism
had been much more consistent than the British record. But the Indian
offer to cooperate in the war effort had two basic conditions:
1. After the war, a constituent assembly should be convened to determine
political structure of a free India.
2. Immediately, some form of a genuinely responsible government should
be established at the centre.
The offer was rejected by Linlithgow, the viceroy. The Congress argued
that these conditions were necessary to win public opinion for war.
CWC Meeting at Wardha (September 10-14, 1939): Different opinions were
voiced on the question of Indian support to British war efforts
Gandhi advocated an unconditional support to the Allied powers as he

made a clear distinction between the democratic states of Western Europe
and the totalitarian Nazis.
Subhash Bose and the socialists argued that the war was an imperialist
one since both sides were fighting for gaining or defending colonial
territories. Therefore, the question of supporting either of the two
sides did not arise. Instead,
advantage should be taken of the situation to wrest freedom
immediately starting a civil disobedience movement.
by
Nehru made a sharp distinction between democracy and Fascism. He

believed that justice was on the side of Britain, France and Poland, but
he was also convinced that Britain and France were imperialist powers,
and that the war was the result of the inner contradictions of
capitalism maturing since the end of World War I. He, therefore,
advocated no Indian participation till India itself was free. However,
at the, same time, no advantage was to be taken of Britain's difficulty
by starting an immediate struggle.
The CWC resolution condemned Fascist aggression. It said that
(i)
India could not be party to a war being fought ostensibly
for democratic freedom, while that freedom was being denied
to India;
(ii)
if Britain was fighting for democracy and freedom, it should
prove it by ending imperialism in its colonies and
establishing full democracy in India;
(iii)
the Government should declare its war aims soon and, also,
as to how the principles, of democracy were to be applied to
India.
The Congress leadership wanted to give every chance to the viceroy and
the British Government
Government's Response
The Government's response was entirely negative. Linlithgow, in his
statement (October 17, 1939), tried to use the Muslim League and the
princes against the Congress. The Government
refused to define British war aims beyond stating that Britain was
resisting aggression;
said it would, as part of future arrangement, consult "representatives
of several communities, parties and interests in India, and the Indian
princes" as to how the Act of 1935 might be modified;
said it would immediately set up a "consultative committee" whose
advice could be sought whenever required.
Government's Hidden Agenda Linlithgow's statement
but a part of general British policy
202
was not an aberration,
"to take advantage of the war to regain the lost ground from the
Congress" by provoking the Congress into a confrontation with the
Government. and then using the extraordinary situation to acquire

draconian powers. Even before the declaration of war, emergency powers
had been acquired for the centre in respect of provincial subjects by
amending the 1935 Act. Defence of India ordinance had been enforced the
day the war was declared, thus restricting civil liberties. In May 1940,
a top secret Draft Revolutionary Movement Ordinance had been prepared,
aimed at launching crippling pre-emptive strikes on the Congress. The
Government could then call upon the Allied troops stationed in India. It
could also win an unusual amount of liberal and leftist sympathy all
over the world by painting an aggressive Congress as being pro-Japan and
pro-Germany.
British Indian reactionary policies received full support from Prime
Minister Winston Churchill and the Secretary of State, Zetland, who
branded the Congress as a purely Hindu organisation.
It became clear that the British Government had no intention of
loosening its hold, during or after the war, and was willing to treat
the Congress as an enemy. Gandhi readed sharply to the Government's
insensitivity to Indian public opinion "there is to be no democracy for
India if Britain can prevent it." Referring to the minorities and other
special interests, Gandhi said, "Congress will safeguard minority
rights provided they do not advance claims inconsistent with India's
independence."
On October 23, 1939, the CWC meeting rejected the viceregal statement as
a reiteration of the old imperialist policy, decided not to support the
war, and called upon the Congress ministries to resign in the provinces.
status of
Westminster variety, after the war 411LtezolLoLtitisholicy
in India."
Debate on the 'Question of Immediate Mass Satyagraha After Linlithgow's
statement of October 1939, the debate on the question of immediate mass
struggle began once again. Gandhi and his supporters were not in favour
of an immediate struggle because they felt that the
Allied cause was just; communal, sensitivity and lack of Hindu-Muslim
unity could result in communal riots; Congress organisation was in
shambles and the atmosphere was not conducive for a mass struggle; and
masses were not ready for a struggle. They instead advocated toning up
the Congress organisation, carrying on political work among the masses,
and negotiating till all possibilities of a negotiated settlement were
exhausted. Only then would the struggle be begun.
The views of the dominant leadership were reflected in the Congress
resolution at the Ramgarh session (March 1940)"Congress would resort to
civil disobedience as soon as the Congress organisation is considered
fit enough or if circumstances precipitate a crisis."
A coalition of leftist groupsSubhash Bose and his Forward Bloc,
Congress Socialist Party, Communist Party, the Royistscharacterised the
war as an imperialist war giving an opportunity to attain freedom
through an all-out struggle against British imperialism. This group was
convinced that the masses were ready for action, only waiting for a call
from the leadership. They accepted hurdles, such as communalism and the
shortcomings of the Congress organisation, but thought that these would
be automatically swept away in the course of a struggle. They urged the
Congress leadership to launch an immediate mass struggle.
Bose even proposed a parallel Congress to organise an immediate mass
struggle if the Congress leadership was not willing to go along with
them, but the CSP and CPI differed with Bose on this
Nehru considered the Allied powers as imperialists and
and political perception leant towards the idea
204
his philosophy
of an early struggle but that would have undermined the fight against
Fascism He finally went along with Gandhi and the Congress majority.
Pakistan Resolution-Lahore (March 1940)
The Muslim League passed a resolution calling for "grouping of
geographically contiguous areas where Muslims are in majority (NorthWest, East) into independent states in which constituent units shall be
autonomous and sovereign and adequate safeguards to Muslims where they
are in minority".
AUGUST OFFER Hitler's astounding success and the fall of Belgium,
Holland and France put England in a conciliatory mood. To get Indian
cooperation in the war effort, the viceroy announced the August Offer
(August 1940) which proposed:
dominion status as the objective for India.
expansion of viceroy's executive council. setting up of a constituent
assembly after the war. Indians would decide the constitution according
to their social, economic and political conceptions, subject to
fulfilment of the obligation of the Government regarding defence,
minority rights, treaties with states, all India services.
no future constitution to be adopted without the consent of
minorities.
The Congress rejected the August Offer. Nehru said, "Dominion status
concept is dead as a door nail." Gandhi said that the declaration had
widened the gulf between the nationalists and the British rulers.
The Muslim League welcomed the veto assurance given to the League, and
reiterated its position that partition was the only solution to the
deadlock.
Evaluation
For the first time, the inherent right of Indians to frame their
constitution was recognised and the Congress demand for a constituent
assembly was, conceded. Dominion status was explicitly offered.
In July 1941, the viceroy's executive council was enlarged
to give the Indians a majority of 8 out of 12 for the first time, but
the whites remained in charge of defence, finance and home. Also, a
National Defence Council was set up with purely advisory functions.
INDIVIDUAL SATYAGRAHAS
The Government had taken the adamant position that no constitutional
advance could be made till the Congress came to an agreement with the
Muslim leaders. It issued ordinance after ordinance taking away the
freedom of speech and that of the press and the right to organise
associations. Towards the end of 1940, the Congress once again asked
Gandhi to take command. Gandhi now began taking steps which would lead
to a mass struggle within his broad strategic perspective. He decided to
initiate a limited satyagraha on an individual basis by a few selected
individuals in every locality.
The aims of launching individual satyagraha were
(i)
to show that nationalist patience was not due to weakness;
(ii)
to express people's feeling that they were not interested in
the war they made no distinction between Nazism and the
double autocracy that ruled India; and
(iii)
to give another opportunity to the Government to accept
Congress' demands peacefully.
The demand of the satyagrahi would be the freedom of speech against the
war through an anti-war declaration. If the Government did not arrest
the satyagrahi, he or she would not only repeat it but move into
villages and start a march towards Delhi, thus precipitating a movement
which came to be known as the "Delhi Chalo Movement".
Vinoba Bhave was the first to offer the satyagraha and
Nehru, the second. By May 1941, 25,000 people had been
individual civil disobedience.
convicted for
The Congress leaders, released in December 1941, were anxious to defend

Indian territory and go to the aid of the Allies. The CWC overrode
Gandhi's and Nehru's objections and passed a resolution offering to
cooperate with the Government in the defence of India, if
(i)
full independence was given after the war, and
(ii)
substance of power was transferred immediately.
It was at this time that Gandhi designated Nehru as his
chosen successor.
CRIPPS MISSION
In March 1942, a mission headed by Stafford Cripps was sent to India
with constitutional proposals to seek Indian support for the war.
Stafford Cripps was a left-wing Laborite, the leader of the House of
Commons and a member of the British War Cabinet who had actively
supported the India national movement.
Why Cripps Mission was Sent?

Because of the reverses suffered by Britain in South-East Asia, the
Japanese threat to invade Indi seoled real now and Indian support became
crucia
There was pressure on Britain from the Allies (USA, USSR, China) to
seek Indian cooperation.
Indian nationalists had agreed to support the Allied cause if
substantial power was transferred immediately and complete independence
given after the war.
Main Proposals
The main proposals of the mission were as follows.
1. An Indian Union with a dominion status would be set up; it would be
free to decide its relations with the Commonwealth and free to
participate in. the United Nations and other international bodies.
2. After the end of the war, a constituent assembly would be convened to
frame a new constitution. Members of this assembly would be partly
elected by the provincial assemblies through proportional representation
and partly nominated by the princes.
3. The British Government would accept the new constitution subject to
two conditions: (i) any province not willing to join the Union could
have a separate constitution and form a separate Union, and (ii) the new
constitutionmaking body and the British Government would negotiate a
treaty to effect the transfer of power and to safeguard racial and
religious minorities.
4. In the meantime, defence of India would remain in British hands and
the governor-general's powers would remain intact.
Departures from the Past and Implications
The proposals differed from those offered in the past in many respects
The making of the constitution was to be solely in Indian hands now
(and not "mainly" in Indian handsas contained in the August Offer). A
concrete plan was provided for the constituent, assembly.
Option was available to any province to have a separate constitutiona
blueprint for India's partition.
Free India could withdraw from the Commonwealth.
Indians were allowed a large share in the administration in the
interim period.
Why Cripps Mission Failed?
The Cripps Mission proposals failed to satisfy Indian nationalists and
turned out to be merely a propaganda device for US and Chinese
consumption. Various parties and groups had objections to the proposals
on different points
The Congress objected to
(i) the offer of dominion status instead of a provision for complete
independence.
(ii) representation of the states by nominees and not by elected
representatives.
(iii)
right to provinces to secede as this went against the
principle of national unity.
(iv)
absence of any plan for immediate transfer of power and

absence of any real share in defence; the governorgeneral's
supremacy had been retained, and the demand for governorgeneral being only the constitutional head had not been
accepted.
Nehru and Maulana Azad were the official negotiators
for the Congress.
The Muslim League

(i) criticised the idea of a single Indian Union.
(ii) did not like the machinery for the creation of a constituent
assembly and the procedure to decide on the accession of provinces to
the Union.
(iv)
thought that the proposals denied to the Muslims the right
to self-determination and the creation of Pakistan.
Other groups also objected to the provinces' right to secede. The
,Liberals considered the secession proposals to be against the unity and
security of India. The Hindu Mahasabha criticised the basis of the
right to secede. The depressed classes thought that partition would
leave them at the mercy of the caste Hindus. The Sikhs objected that
partition would take away Punjab from them.
The explanation that the proposals were meant not to supersede the
August Offer but to clothe general provisions with precision put British
intentions in doubt.
The incapacity of Cripps to go beyond the Draft Declaration and the
adoption of a rigid "take it or leave it" attitude added to the
deadlock. Cripps had earlier talked of "cabinet" and "national
government" but later he said that he had only meant an expansion of the
executive council.
The procedure of accession was not well-defined. The decision on
secession was to be taken by a resolution in the legislature by a 60%
majority. If less than 60% of members supported it, the decision was to
be taken by a plebiscite of adult males of that province by a simple
majority. This scheme weighed against the. Hindus in Punjab and Bengal
if they wanted accession to the Indian Union.
It was not clear as to who would implement and
effecting the transfer of power.
interpret the treaty
Churchill (the British prime minister), Amery (the secretary of state),

Linlithgow (the viceroy) and Ward (the commander-in-chief) consistently
torpedoed Cripps' efforts.
Talks broke down on the question of the viceroy's veto. Gandhi described
the scheme as "a post-dated cheque"; Nehru pointed out that the
"existing structure and autocratic powers would remain and a few of us
will become the viceroy's liveried camp followers and look after
canteens and the like".
Stafford Cripps returned home leaving behind a frustrated and embittered

Indian people, who, though still sympathising with the victims of
Fascist aggression, felt that the existing situation in the country had
become intolerable and that the time had come for a final assault on
imperialism.
QUIT INDIA MOVEMENT
After Cripps departure, Gandhi framed a resolution calling for British
withdrawal and a non-violent non-cooperation movement against any
Japanese invasion. The CWC meeting at Wardha (July 14, 1942) accepted
the idea of a struggle.
Why Start a Struggle Now
The reasons were several:
1. The failure of the Cripps Mission to solve the constitutional
deadlock exposed Britain's unchanged attitude on constitutional advance
and made it clear that any more silence would be tantamount to accepting
the British right to decide the fate of Indians without consulting them.
2. There was popular discontent because of rising prices and shortage of
rice, salt, etc. and because of factors such as commandeering of boats
in Bengal and Orissa. There were fears of Britain following a scorched
earth policy in Assam, Bengal and Orissa against possible Japanese
advance.
3. News of reverses' suffered by the British in South-East Asia and an
imminent British collapse enhanced popular willingness to give
expression to discontent. Popular faith in
210
the stability of British rule was so low that people were withdrawing
deposits from banks and post offices.
4. The manner in which the British evacuated from South-East Asia
leaving the subjects to their fate (two roads were providedBlack Road
for Indian refugees and White Road exclusively for European refugees),
and the rout by an Asian power shattered white prestige and exposed the
racist tendencies of the rulers.
5. The leadership wanted to condition the masses for a possible Japanese
invasion.
AICC MeetingGowalia Tank, Bombay (August 8, 1942) The Quit India
Resolution was ratified and the meeting resolved to
demand an immediate end to British rule in India.
declare commitment of free India to defend itself against all types
of Fascism and imperialism.
form a provisional Government of India after British withdrawal.
sanction a civil disobedience movement against British rule.
Gandhi was named the leader of the struggle.
Gandhi's General Instructions to Different Sections
These were spelt out at the Gowalia Tank meeting but not actually
issued. They were directed at various sections of society.
Government servants: Do not resign but declare your allegiance to the
Congress.
Soldiers: Do not leave the Army but do not fire on compatriots.

Students: If confident, leave studies.
Peasants: If zamindars are anti-government, pay mutually agreed
rent, and if zamindars are pro-government, do not pay rent.
Princes: Support the masses and accept sovereignty of your people.
Princely states' people: Support the ruler only if he
is anti-government and declare yourselves to be a part of the
nation.
Indian
Gandhi followed up with the now-famous exhortation: "Here is a mantra, a

short one, that I give you You may imprint it on your hearts and let
every breath of yours give expression to it The mantra is 'Do or Die'.
We shall either free India or, die in the attempt; we shall not live to
see the perpetuation of our slavery."
Spread of the Movement
Gandhi had carefully built the tempo through individual civil
disobedience movements, organisational revamping and a consistent
propaganda campaign. The Government, however, was in no mood to either
negotiate with the Congress or wait for the movement to be formally
launched. In the early hours of August 9, in a single sweep, all the top
leaders, of the Congress were arrested and taken to unknown
destinations. Removal of established leaders left the younger and
militant elements at their own initiative.
Public on Rampage
The general public attacked symbols of authority, hoisting national
flags forcibly on public buildings. Satyagrahis offered themselves up to
arrest, bridges were blown up, railway tracks were removed and telegraph
lines were cut. This kind of activity was most intense in eastern UP
and Bihar. Students responded by going on strikes in schools and
colleges, participating in processions, writing and distributing illegal
news sheets (patrikas) and acting as couriers for underground networks.
Workers went on strike in Ahmedabad, Bombay, Jamshedpur, Ahmednagar and
Poona.
Underground Activity
This was undertaken by the Socialists, Forward Bloc members, Gandhi
ashramites, revolutionary terrorists and local organisations in Bombay,
Poona, Satara, Baroda and other parts of Gujarat, Karnataka, Kerala,
Andhra, UP, Bihar and Delhi. Underground activity was carried out by
Rammanohar Lohia, Jayaprakash Narayan, Aruna Asaf Ali, Usha Sharma, Biju
Patnaik, Chhotubhai Puranik, Achyut Patwardhan, Sucheta Kripalani and
R.P. Goenka. Usha Sharma started an underground radio in
Bombay. This phase of underground activity was meant to keep up popular

morale by continuing to provide a line of command and guidance to
distribute arms and ammunition.
Parallel Governments
Parallel governments were established at many places:
Ballia (in August 1942 for a week)under Chittu Pandey. He got many
Congress leaders released.
Tamluk (Midna pore, from December 1942 to September 1944)which
undertook cyclone relief work, sanctioned grants to schools, supplied
paddy from the rich to the poor, organised Bidyut Bahinis etc.
Satara (mid-1943 to 1945)named "Prati Sarkar", was organised under
leaders like Y.B. Chavan, Nana Patil, etc. Village libraries and
Nyayaclan Mandals were organised, prohibition campaigns were carried on
and 'Gandhi marriages' were organised.
Active help was provided by businessmen (through donations, shelter and
material help), students (acting as couriers), simple villagers (by
refusing information to authority), pilots and train drivers (by
delivering bombs and other material) and government officials including
police (who passed on secret information to activists).
Extent of Mass Participation
The participation was on many levels. Youth, especially the students of
schools and colleges, remained in the forefront. Women, especially
school and college girls, actively participated, and included Aruna Asaf
Ali, Sucheta Kripalani and Usha Mehta. Workers went on strikes and faced
repression. Peasants of all strata were at the heart of the movement.
Even some zamindars participate EirhWe peasants concentrated their
offensive on symbols of authority and there was complete absence of
anti-zamindar violence. Government officials, especially those
belonging to lower levels in police and administration, participated
resulting in erosion of government loyalty. Muslims helped by giving
shelter to underground Activists. There were no communal clashes during
the movement. Communists, despite their anti-war line, felt the
irresistible pull of the movement. Princely states showed a low-key
response.
Government Repression
Although martial law was not applied, the repression was severe.
Agitating crowds were lathi-charged, tear-gassed and fired Upon. The
'number of those killed is estimated at 10,000. The press was muzzled.
The military took over, many cities; police and secret service reigned
supreme. Rebellious villages were fined heavily and in many< villages,
mass flogging was done.
Estimate
Main storm centres of the movement were eastern UP, Bihar, Midnapore,
Maharashtra, Karnataka. Students, workers and peasants were the backbone
of the movement while the upper classes and the bureaucracy remained
largely loyal. Loyalty to Government suffered considerable erosion. This
also showed how deep nationalism had reached.
The movement established the truth that it was no longer possible to
rule India without the wishes of Indians.
The element of spontaneity was higher than before, although a certain

degree of popular initiative had been sanctioned by the leadership
itself, subject to limitations of instructions. Also, the Congress had
been ideologically, politically and organisationally preparing for the
struggle for a long time. The great significance was that the movement
placed the demand for independence on the immediate agenda of the
national movement. After Quit India, there could be no retreat.
In this struggle, the common people displayed unparalleled heroism and
militancy. The repression they faced was the, most brutal, sand the
circumstances under which resistance was offered were most adverse.
February 1943 Gandhi, started a fast as an answer to an exhortation to
the Government to condemn violence; the fast was of the state. The
popular response to the news of the fast was immediate and
overwhelming. Protests were organised at home and abroad through
hartals, demonstrations and strikes. Three members of the viceroy's
executive council resigned. The fast achieved the following purposes
public morale was raised.
anti-British feeling was heightened.
an opportunity was provided for political activity.
Government's high-handedness was exposed. Gandhi got the better of his
opponents and refused to oblige by dying. March 23, 1943 Pakistan Day
was observed.
FAMINE OF 1943
The worst-affected areas were south-west Bengal comprising the TamlukContai-Diamond Harbour region, Dacca, Faridpur, Tippera and Noakhali.
Around 1.5 to 3 million people perished in this basically man-made
famine, the epidemics (malaria, cholera, small pox), malnutrition and
starvation. The fundamental causes of the famine were as follows.
1. The need to feed a vast Army diverted foodstuffs.
2. Rice imports from Burma and South-East Asia had been stopped.
3. The famine got aggravated by gross mismanagement and deliberate
profiteering; rationing methods were belated and were confined to big
cities.
RAJGOPALACHARI FORMULA
Meanwhile, efforts were on to solve the ongoing constitutional crisis,
and some individuals also tried to come up with constitutional proposals.
C. Rajagopalachari, the veteran Congress leader, prepared a formula for
Congress-League cooperation. It was a tacit acceptance of the League's
demand for Pakistan. Gandhi supported the formula. The main points in CR
Plan were:
Muslim League to endorse Congress demand for independence.
League to cooperate with Congress in forming a provisional government
at centre.
After the end of the war, the entire population of Muslim majority
areas in the North-West and North-East India to decide by a plebiscite,
whether or not to form a separate sovereign state.
In case of acceptance of partition, agreement to be made jointly for

safeguarding defence, commerce, communications, etc.
The above terms to be operative only if England transferred full powers
to India.
jinnah's Objections
Jinnah wanted the Congress to accept the two-nation theory. He wanted
only the Muslims of North-West and North-East to vote in the plebiscite
and not the entire population. He also opposed the idea of a common
centre. While the Congress was ready to cooperate with the League for
the independence of the Indian Union, the League did not care for
independence of the Union. It was only interested in a separate nation.
Hindu leaders led by Vir Savarkar condemned the CR
Plan.
DESAI-LIAQAT PACT
Efforts continued to end the deadlock. Bhulabhai Desai, leader of the
Congress Party in the Central Legislative Assembly, met Liaqat Ali Khan,
deputy leader of the Muslim League in that Assembly, and both of them
came up with the draft proposal for the formation of an interim
government at the centre, consisting of
an equal number of persons nominated by the Congress and the League in
the central legislature.
20% reserved seats for minorities. No settlement could be reached
between the Congress
and the League on these lines, but the fact that a sort of parity between
the Congress and the League was decided upon, which had far-reaching
consequences.
AVELL PLAN
Although the war in Europe came to an end in May 1945, the Japanese
threat still remained. The Conservative Government in Britain led by
Churchill was keen to reach a solution on the constitutional question in
India. The viceroy, Lord Wavell was permitted to start negotiations with
Indian leaders. Congress leaders were released from jails in June 1945.
Why the Government was Keen on a Solution Now
1. The general election in England was scheduled for mid-1945. The
Conservatives wanted to be seen as sincere on reaching a solution.
2. There was pressure from the Allies to seek further Indian cooperation
in the war.
3. The Government wanted to divert Indian energies into channels more
profitable for the British.
The Plan
The idea was to reconstruct the governorgeneral's executive council
pending the preparation of a new constitution. For this purpose, a
conference was convened by the viceroy, Lord Wavell, at Shimla in June
1945. The main proposals of the Wavell Plan were as follows.
With the exception of the governor-general and the commander-in-chief,
all members of the executive council were to be Indians.
Caste Hindus and Muslims were to have equal representation.

The reconstructed council was to function as an interim government
within the framework of the 1935 Act (i.e. not responsible to the
Central Assembly).
Governor- general was to exercise his veto on the advice of ministers.
Representatives of different parties were, to submit a joint list to
the viceroy for nominations to the executive
council. If a joint list was not possible, then separate lists were
be submitted.
Possibilities were to be, kept open for negotiations on a new
constitution once the war was finally won.
to
Muslim League's Stand

The League wanted all Muslim members to be League nominees, because it
feared that since the aims of other minoritiesdepressed classes, Sikhs,
Christians, etc. were the same as those of the Congress, this
arrangement would reduce the League:to a one-third minority. (Wave
wanted Khizr Hyatt Khan as the Muslim representative from Western
Punjab.) The League claimed some kind of veto in the council with
decisions opposed' to Muslims needing a two-thirds majority for
approval.
Congress Stand
The Congress objected to the plan as "an attempt to reduce the Congress
to the status of a purely caste Hindu party and insisted on its right to
include members of all communities among its nominees".
Wavell's Mistake
Wavell announced a breakdown of talks thus giving the League a virtual
veto. This strengthened the League's position, as was evident from the
elections in 1945-46, and boosted Jinnah's position; and exposed the
real character of the Conservative Government of Churchill.
THE INDIAN NATIONAL ARMY
The idea of the Indian National Army (INA) was first conceived in Malaya
by Mohan Singh, an Indian officer of the British Indian Army, when he
decided not to join the retreating British Army and instead turned to
the Japanese for help.
The First Phase
The Japanese handed over the Indian prisoners of war (POWs) to Mohan
Singh who tried to recruit them into an Indian National Army. After the
fall of Singapore, Mohan Singh further got 45,000 POWs into his sphere
of influence. By the end of 1942, 40,000 men were ready to join the
INA. The INA intended to go into action only on invitation of the Indian
National Congress and the people of India. It was also seen by many as a
check against the misconduct of
the Japanese against Indians in South-East Asia and a bulwark

future Japanese occupation of India.
against a
The outbreak of the Quit India Movement gave a fillip to the INA as
well. In September 1942, the first division of the INA was formed with
16,300 men. With the Japanese contemplating an Indian invasion, the idea
of an armed wing of INA seemed more relevant to them. But soon, serious
differences emerged between the Indian Army officers led by Mohan Singh
and the Japanese over the role to be played by the INA. Actually, the
Japanese wanted a token force of 2,000 only while Mohan Singh wanted to
raise an army of 2,00,000.
The Second Phase
The next phase began with the arrival of Spbhash Bose in Singapore in
July 1943. Earlier, he had left the Congress after having developed
differences with Gandhi and had formed the Forward Bloc in 1940: In
March 1941, he escaped from India, where he had been under house
arrest, and approached the Russian leaders for help against. Britain.
When in June 1941 the Soviet Union joined the war on behalf of the
Allies, Bose went to Germany and from there he reached Japan in February
1943. He asked for Japanese help for an armed struggle against the
British rule. He came to Singapore in July 1943 where he was assisted
by Rashbehari Bose and others, such as the Indian residents of SouthEast Asia and the Indian POWs from Burma, Malaya and Singapore. In
October 1943, he set up a Provisional Indian Government with
headquarters at Rangoon and Singapore. This Provisional Government was
recognised by the Axis powers. Recruits were trained and funds collected
for the INA. Even a women's regiment called the Rath Jhansi Regiment was
formed. In July 1944, Subhash Bose asked for Gandhi's blessings for
"India's last war of independence".
One INA battalion commanded by Shah Nawaz was allowed to accompany the
Japanese Army to the Indo-Burma front and participate in the Imphal
campaign. But the discriminatory treatment by the Japanese, which
included being denied rations and arms and being made to do menial work
for the Japanese units, completely demoralised the INA units.
National movement 1939-1947 219
The failure of the Imphal campaign and the steady Japanese retreat
thereafter quashed any hopes of the INA liberating the nation. The
retreat continued till mid-1945 and ended only with the final surrender
to the British in South-East Asia.
But when the INA POWs were brought back to India after the war to be
court-martialled, a powerful movement emerged in their defence.
POST-WAR NATIONAL UPSURGEJUNE 1945 TO FEBRUARY 1946
Two basic strands of national upsurge can be identified during the last
two years of British rule
(i) tortuous negotiations involving the Government, Congress and Muslim
League, increasingly accompanied by communal violence and culminating in
freedom and the partition.
(ii) sporadic, localised and often extremely militant and united mass
action by workers, peasants and states' peoples which took the form of a
countrywide strike wave. This kind of activity was occasioned by the INA
Release Movement, Royal Indian Navy (RIN) revolt, Tebhaga movement,
Worli revolt, Punjab Kisan Morchas, Travancore peoples' struggle
(especially the Punnapra-Vayalar episode) and the Telangana peasant
revolt.
When the Government lifted the ban on the Congress and released the
Congress leaders in June 1945, they expected to find a demoralised
people. Instead, they found tumultuous crowds impatient to do something.
Popular energy resurfaced after three years of repression. People's
expectations were heightened, by the release of their leaders. The
Wavell Plan backed by the Conservative Government in Britain failed to
break the constitutional deadlock.
In July 1945, Labour Party formed the Government in Britain. Clement
Attlee took over as the new prime minister and Pethick Lawrence as the
new secretary of state.
In August 1945, elections to central and provincial
announced.
assemblies were

In September 1945, it was announced that a constituent assembly would be
convened after the elections and that the Government was working
according to the spirit of the Cripps Offer.
Why a Change in Government's Attitude
1. The end of the War resulted in a change in balance of global power
the UK was no More a power while the USA and USSR emerged as
superpowers, both of which favoured freedom for India.
2. The new Labour Government was more sympathetic to Indian demands.
3. Throughout Europe, there was a wave of socialist radical governments.
4. British soldiers were weary and tired and the British economy lay
shattered.
5. There was an anti-imperialist wave in South-East Asiain Vietnam and
Indonesiaresisting efforts to replant French and Dutch rule.
6. Officials feared another Congress revolt, a revival of 1942 situation
but much more dangerous because of a likely combination of attacks on
communications, agrarian revolts, labour trouble, army disaffection
joined by government officials and the police in the presence of INA men
with some military experience.
7. Elections were inevitable once the war ended since the last elections
had been, held in 1934 for the centre and in 1937 for the provinces.
The British would have had to retreat; the Labour

quickened the process somewhat.
Government only
CONGRESS ELECTION CAMPAIGN AND INA TRIALS

Elections were held during the winter of 1945-46. The most significant
feature of the election campaign was that it sought to mobilise the
Indians against the British; it did not just appeal to the people for
votes.
The election campaign expressed, the nationalist
state repression of the 1942 Quit India
sentiments against the

upsurge. This was done by the glorification of martyrs and condemnation
of officials. The brave resistance of the leaderless people was lauded;
martyrs' memorials were set up; relief funds were collected for
sufferers; the officials responsible for causing pain were condemned;
and promises of enquiry and threats of punishment to guilty officials
were spelt out.
The Government failed to check such speeches. This had a devastating
effect on the morale of the services. The prospect of the return of
Congress ministries, especially in those provinces where repression had
been most brutal, further heightened these fears. A 'gentleman's
agreement' with the Congress seemed necessary to the Government.
Mass pressure against the trial of INA POWs, sometimes described as "an
edge of a volcano", brought about a decisive shift in the Government's
policy. The. British had initially decided to hold public trials of
several hundreds of INA prisoners besides dismissing them from service
and detaining without trial around 7000 of them. They compounded the
folly by holding the first trial in the Red Fort at Delhi in November
1945 and putting on dock together a Hindu, Prem Kumar Sehgal, a Muslim,
Shah Nawaz Khan and a Sikh, Gurbaksh Singh Dhillon.
Another issue was provided by the use of Indian Army units in a bid to
restore French and Dutch colonial rule in Vietnam and Indonesia which
enhanced the anti-imperialist feeling among a section of urban
population and the Army.
Congress Support for INA Prisoners
At the first postWar Congress session in September 1945 at Bombay, a
strong resolution was adopted declaring Congress support for the INA
cause.
Defence of INA prisoners in the court was organised by Bhulabhai
Desai, Tej Bahadur Sapru, Kailash Nath Katju, Nehru and Asaf Ali.
INA Relief and Enquiry Committee distributed small sums of money and
food, and helped arrange employment for the affected. Fund collection
was organised.
The INA AgitationA Landmark on Many Counts The high pitch and intensity
at which the campaign for the release of INA prisoners was conducted was
unprecedented. The agitation got wide publicity through extensive press
coverage with daily editorials, distribution of pamphlets often
containing threats of revenge, grafitti conveying similar messages,
holding of public meetings and celebrations of INA Day (November 12,
1945) and INA week (November 5-11).
The campaign had a wide geographical reach and witnessed the
participation of diverse social groups and political parties. While the
nerve centres of the agitation were Delhi, Bombay, Calcutta, Madras, UP
towns and Punjab, the campaign spread to distant places such as Coorg,
Baluchistan and Assam. The forms of participation included fund
contributions made by many people from film stars, municipal committees,
Indians living abroad and gurudwaras to tongawallas; participation in
meetings; shopkeepers closing shops; political groups demanding release
of prisoners; contributing to INA funds; student meetings and boycott of
classes; organising kisan conferences and All India Women's Conference
demanding release of INA prisoners.
Those who supported the INA cause in varying degrees, apart from the
Congress, included the Muslim League, Communist Party, Unionists,
Akalis, Justice Party, Ahrars in Rawalpindi, Rashtriya Swayamsevak
Sangh, Hindu Mahasabha and the Sikh League.
Pro-INA sentiments surfaced in traditional bulwarks of the Raj.
Government employees collected funds. The loyalists the gentlemen with
titlesappealed to the Government to abandon trials for good IndianBritish relations. Men of the armed forces were unexpectedly sympathetic
and attended meetings, received those released (often in uniforms) and
contributed funds.
The central theme became the right of Britain to decide a matter
concerning Indians. Britain realised the political significance of the
INA issue, which with each day assumed more and more of an 'Indian
versus British' colour.
THREE UPSURGESWINTER OF 1945-46
The nationalist sentiment which reached a crescendo around the INA
trials developed into violent confrontations with the authority in the
winter of 1945-46. There were three major upsurges1. November 21, 1945in Calcutta over the INA trials.
2. February 11, 1946in Calcutta against the seven-year sentence to INA
officer Rashid Ali.
3. February 18, 1946in Bombay, strike by the Royal Indian Navy Ratings.
All three upsurges showed a similar three-stage pattern
I. When a Group Defies Authority and is Repressed
Upsurge 1 (November 21, 1945): A student procession comprising some
Forward Bloc sympathisers, Student Federation of India (SFI) activists
and Islamia College students who had tied together the League, Congress
and red flags as a symbol of anti-imperialist unity marched to Dalhousie
Squarethe seat of government in Calcutta. These protestors refused to
disperse and were lathicharged. They retaliated by throwing stones and

brickbats. The police resorted to firing in which two persons died.
Upsurge 2 (February 11, 1946): The protest was led by Muslim League
students in which some Congress and communist students' organisations
joined. Some arrests provoked the students to defy Section 144. There
were more arrests and the agitating students were lathicharged.
Upsurge 3 (February 18, 1946): 1100 naval Ratings of HMIS Talwar went on
a strike to protest against
* racial discrimination (demanding equal pay for Indian and white
soldiers)
* unpalatable food
* abuse by superior officers
* arrest of a rating for scrawling. 'Quit India' on HMIS Talwar
* INA trials
* use of Indian troops in Indonesia, demanding their withdrawal.
224

I.
The rebellous ratings hoisted the tricolour, crescent and the

hammer and sickle flags on the mast of the rebel fleet. Other
ratings soon joined and they went around Bombay in lorries
holding Congress flags threatening Europeans and policemen.
Crowds brought food to the ratings and shopkeepers invited them
to take whatever they needed.
II. When the City People Join In This phase was marked by a virulent
anti-British mood resulting in the virtual paralysis of Calcutta and
Bombay. There were meetings, processions, strikes, hartals, attacks on
Europeans, police stations, shops, tram depots, railway stations, banks,
and forcible stopping of rail and road traffic by squatting on tracks
and barricading of streets.
II.
When People in Other Parts of the Country Express Sympathy and
Solidarity While the students boycotted classes and organised
hartals and processions to express sympathy with other students
and the ratings, there were sympathetic strikes in military
establishments in Karachi, Madras, Visakhapatnam, Calcutta,
Delhi, Cochin, Jamnagar, Andamans, Bahrain and Aden. There
were strikes by the Royal Indian Air Force in Bombay, Poona,
Calcutta, Jessore and Arnbala. Patel and Jinnah persuaded the
ratings to surrender on February 23 with an assurance that
national parties would prevent any victimisation.
Evaluation of Potential and Impact of the Three Upsurges
The three upsurges were significant in many ways
Fearless action by masses was an expression of militancy in the
popular mind.
Revolt in the armed forces had a great liberating effect on the minds
of people.
RIN revolt was seen as an event marking the end of British rule as
finally as the Independence Day.
These upsurges prompted the British to extend some concessions:
On December 1, 1946, the Government announced that only those INA

members accused of murder or brutal treatment of fellow prisoners would
be brought to trial.
Imprisonment sentences passed against the first batch were remitted in
January 1947.
Indian soldiers were withdrawn from Indo-China and Indonesia by February
1947.
The decision to send a parliamentary delegation to India (November 1946)
was taken.
The decision to send Cabinet Mission was taken in January 1946.
But could the communal unity witnessed during these events, if built
upon, have offered a way out of the communal deadlock? Or, in other
words, what was the potential of these upsurges?
These upsurges were in the nature of direct and violent conflict with
authority, which had obvious limitations. Only the more militant
sections could participate.
These upsurges were short-lived and were confined to a few urban centres
while the general INA agitation reached the remotest villages.
Communal unity witnessed was more organisational than a unity among the
people. Muslim ratings went to the League to seek advice and the rest to
the Congress and the Socialists.
Despite considerable erosion of the morale of the bureaucracy, the
British infrastructure to repress was intact. They were soon able to
control the situation. It was a Maratha battalion in Bombay that rounded
up the ratings and restored them to their barracks.
Congress Strategy
The leftists claim that the Congress indifference to the revolutionary
situation arose because of two considerationsthat the situation would
go out of its control and that disciplined armed forces were vital in a
free India. They also claim that if the Congress leaders had not
surrendered to power play, a different path to independence would have
emerged. But actually these upsurges were an extension of earlier
nationalist activity fostered by the Congress
226
through its election campaign. advocacy of the INA cause

highlighting of the excesses of 1942.
and
These upsurges were distinguishable from the earlier activity because of

their form of articulation. These were violent challenges to the
authority while the earlier activity was a peaceful demonstration of
national solidarity.
The Congress did not officially support these upsurges
tactics and timing.
because of their
Negotiations had been an integral part of the Congress strategy, to be

explored before a mass movement could be launched, especially when the
British were seen to be preparing to leave soon.
If union at the barricade is honest, there should be a

constitutional front also.
union at the
Gandhi remarked that the mutiny was badly advised: if they mutinied for
India's freedom, they were doubly wrong; if they had any grievances,
they should have waited for the guidance of leaders.
ELECTION RESULTS
Congress' Performance
It got 91% of non-Muslim votes.
It captured 57 out of 102 seats in the Central Assembly. In the
provincial elections, it got a majority in most provinces except in
Bengal, Sindh and Punjab. The Congress majority provinces included NWFP
and Assam which were being claimed for Pakistan.
Muslim League's Performance
It got 86.6% of the Muslim votes.
It captured the 30 reserved seats in the Central Assembly.
In the provincial elections, it got a majority in Bengal and Sindh.
Unlike in 1937, now the League clearly established itself as the
dominant party among Muslims.
Punjab, A Unionist-Congress-Akali coalition under Khizr
assumed power.
Hyatt Khan

Significant Feature of Elections
The elections witnessed communal voting in contrast to the strong antiBritish unity shown in various upsurges due to
1. separate electorates,
2. limited franchisefor the provinces, less than 10% of the population
could vote and for the Central Assembly, less than 1% of the population
was eligible.
THE CABINET MISSION
The Attlee
Government announced in February 1946 the decision to send
a high-powered mission of three British Cabinet members (Pethick
Lawrence, Secretary of State for India; Stafford Cripps, President of
the Board of Trade; and A.V. Alexander, First Lord of Admiralty to India
to find out ways and means for a negotiated, peaceful transfer of power
to India.
Why British Withdrawal Seemed Imminent Now?
1. The success of nationalist forces in the struggle for hegemony was
fairly evident by the end of the War. Nationalism had penetrated into
hitherto untouched sections and areas.
2. There was a demonstration among the bureaucracy and the loyalist
sections, because the paucity of ICS recruits and a policy of
Indianisation had ended the British domination of the ICS as early as
the First World War and by 1939, there existed British-Indian parity.
The long war had caused weariness and economic worries. Now only a
depleted, warweary bureaucracy battered by 1942 events remained.
3. The British strategy of conciliation and repression had its

limitations and contradictions
* after Cripps' Offer there was little left to offer for conciliation
except full freedom;
* when non-violent resistance was repressed with force, the naked force
behind the Government stood exposed, while if the Government did not
clamp down on "sedition" or made offers for truce, it was seen to be
unable to wield authority, and its prestige suffered;
* efforts to woo the Congress dismayed the loyalists.
3. This policy of an unclear mix presented a dilemma for the services,
who nevertheless had to implement it. The prospect of Congress
ministries coming to power in the provinces further compounded this
dilemma.
4. Constitutionalism or Congress Raj had proved to be a big moralebooster and helped in deeper penetration of patriotic sentiments.
5. Demands of leniency for INA prisoners from within the Army and the
revolt of RIN Ratings had raised fears that the armed forces may not be
as reliable if the Congress, started a 1942-type mass movement, this
time aided by provincial ministries.
6. The only alternative to an all-out repression of a mass movement was
an entirely official rule which seemed impossible now because the
necessary numbers and efficient, officials were not available.
7. The Government realised that a settlement was necessary for burying
the ghost of a mass movement and for good future Ind o-British
relations.
Now the overarching aim of the British policy-makers was a graceful
withdrawal, after a settlement on the modalities of the transfer of
power and nature of post-imperial IndiaBritain relations.
On the Eve of Cabinet Mission Plan
The Congress demanded that power be transferred to one centre and that
minorities' demands be worked out in a framework ranging from autonomy
to Muslim-majority provinces to self-determination or secession from the
Indian Unionbut, only after the British left.
The British bid for a united and friendly India and an active partner in
defence of the. Commonwealth, because a divided India would lack in
defence and would be a blot on Britain's diplomacy.
The British policy in 1946 clearly Deflected this preference for a
united India, in sharp contrast to earlier declarations. On March 15,
1946, the British. Prime Minister Clement Attlee said: "though mindful
of the rights of minorities cannot allow a minority to place their veto
on advance of the majority." This was a far cry from the Shimla
conference where Wavell had allowed Jinnah to wreck the conference.
Cabinet Mission in India
The mission reached Delhi on March 24, 1946. It had prolonged

discussions with Indian leaders of all parties and groups on the issues
of
(i)
interim government,
(ii)
principles and procedures for framing a new Constitution
giving freedom to India.
As the Congress and the League could not come to any agreement on the
fundamental issue of the unity or partition of India, the mission put
forward its own plan for the solution of the constitutional problem in
May 1946.
Cabinet Mission PlanMain Points
Rejection of the demand for a full-fledged Pakistan, because
(i) the Pakistan so formed would include a large nonMuslim population-38%
in the North-West and 48% in the North-East;
(ii) the very principle of communal self-determination would claim
separation of Hindu-majority Western Bengal and Sikh- and Hindudominated 'Ambala and Jullundur divisions of Punjab (already some Sikh
leaders were demanding a separate state if the country was partitioned);
(iii) deep-seated regional ties would be disturbed if Bengal and Punjab
were partitioned;
(iv) partition would entail economic and administrative problems, for
instance, the problem of communication between the western and eastern
parts of Pakistan; and
(v)
the division of armed forces would be dangerous.
Grouping of existing provincial assemblies into three
sections
Section-A: Madras, Bombay, Central Provinces, United Provinces, Bihar
and Orissa (Hindu-majority provinces).
Section-B: Punjab, North-West Frontier Province and Sindh (Muslimmajority provinces).
Section-C: Bengal and Assam (Muslim-majority provinces).
Three-tier executive and legislature at provincial, section and union
levels.
A constituent assembly to be elected by provincial assemblies by
proportional representation (voting in three groupsGeneral, Muslims,
Sikhs). This constituent Assembly to be a 389-member body with
provincial assemblies sending 292, chief commissioner's provinces
sending 4, and princely states sending 93 members.
This was a good, democratic method not based on weightage.
In the constituent assembly, members from groups A, B and C were to
sit separately to decide the constitution for provinces and if possible,
for the groups also. Then, the whole constituent assembly (all three
sections A, B and C combined) would sit together to formulate the Union
constitution.
A common
centre would
control
defence, communication and
external affairs. Communal questions in central legislature were to be
decided by a simple majority of both communities present and voting.
Provinces were to have full autonomy and residual powers. Princely

states were no longer to be under paramountcy of British Government They
would be free to enter into an arrangement with successor governments or
the British Government.
After the first general elections, a province was to be free to come
out of a group and after 10 years, a province was to be free to call for
a reconsideration of the group or the Union constitution.
Meanwhile, an interim government to be formed from the constituent
assembly.
Different Interpretations of the Grouping Clause: Each
looked at the plan from its own point of view.
party
or group
Congress: The Cabinet Mission Plan is against Pakistan since grouping is

optional; one constituent assembly is envisaged; League's veto is gone.
Muslim League: Pakistan is implied in compulsory grouping. (The Mission
later clarified that the grouping was compulsory.)
Main Objections
Different parties objected to the plan on different points.
Congress
Provinces should not have to wait till the first general elections to
come out of a group. They should have the option of not joining a group
in the first place. (Congress had the Congress-ruled provinces of NWFP
and Assam in mind which had been included in groups B and C
respectively.)
Compulsory grouping contradicts the oft-repeated insistence on
provincial autonomy.
Absence of provision for elected members from the princely states in
the constituent assembly (they could only be nominated by the princes)
was not acceptable.
League
Grouping should be compulsory with sections B and C developing into
solid entities with a view to future secession into Pakistan.
The League had thought that the Congress would reject the plan, thus
prompting the Government to invite the League to form the interim
government.
Acceptance
The Muslim League on June 6 and the Congress on June 24, 1946 accepted
the long-term plan put forward by the Cabinet Mission.
Wavell's "Breakdown Plan"
Wavell presented this plan to the Cabinet Mission in May 1946 which
visualised a middle course between "repression" and "scuttle". This plan
envisaged the withdrawal of the British Army and officials to the Muslim
provinces of North-West and NorthEast and handing over the rest of the
country to the Congress. Though superseded by the Cabinet Mission Plan,
Wavell's plan was an evidence of
British recognition of the impossibility of suppressing any future
Congress-led rebellion.
desire in some high official circles to make a "Northern

Pakistan.
Ireland" of

July 1946 Elections were held in provincial assemblies for the
Constituent Assembly. July 10, 1946 Nehru stated, "We are not bound by a
single thing except that we have decided to go into the Constituent
Assembly (implying that the Constituent Assembly was sovereign and would
decide the rules of procedure). The big probability is that there would
be no grouping as NWP and Assam would have objections to joining
sections B and C."
July 29, 1946 The
League withdrew its acceptance of the long-term plan in response to
Nehru's statement and gave a call for "direct action" from August 16 to
achieve Pakistan.
COMMUNAL HOLOCAUST AND THE INTERIM GOVERNMENT
From August 16, 1946, the Indian scene was rapidly transformed. There
were communal riots on an unprecedented scale, which left around 5000
dead.
the worst-hit areas were Calcutta, Bombay, Noakhali,
Garhmukteshwar (UP).
Bihar and
Changed Government Priorities

Wavell was now eager to somehow get the Congress into the Interim
Government, even if the League stayed out (a departure from Wavell's
stand during the Shimla conference). This attitude was against the
League's insistence that all settlements be acceptable to it and against
earlier government postures of encouraging communal forces, of denying
the legitimacy of nationalism, and of denying the representative nature
of Congress.
Thus, continuance of British rule had demanded one stance from Britain,
and the withdrawal and post-imperial links dictated a contrary posture.
Interim Government Sworn In
Fearing mass action by the Congress, a Congress-dominated Interim
Government headed by Nehru was sworn in on September 2, 1946 with Nehru
still insisting on his party's opposition to the compulsory grouping.
Despite the title, the Interim Government was little more than a
continuation of the old executive of the viceroy. (Wavell overruled the
ministers on the question of the release of INA prisoners in his very
last cabinet meeting in March 1947).
Wavell quietly brought the Muslim League into the Interim Government on
October 26, 1946. The League was allowed to join
without giving up the 'direct action, despite its rejection of the
Cabinet Mission's long-term and short-term plans,
despite insistence on compulsory grouping with decisions being taken

by a majority vote by a section as a whole (which would reduce the
opponents of Pakistan in Assam and NWFP to a position of helpless
minority).
Obstructionist Approach and Ulterior Motives of League
The League did not attend the Constituent Assembly which had its first
meeting on December 9, 1946. Consequently, the Assembly had to confine
itself to passing a general "Objectives Resolution" drafted by Nehru
stating the ideals of an independent sovereign republic with autonomous
units, adequate minority safeguards and social, political and economic
democracy.
The League refused to attend informal meetings of the cabinet to take
decisions. The League questioned the decisions and appointments made by
the Congress members. Liaqat Ali Khan as the finance minister hamstrung
the functioning of other ministries.
The League had only sought a foothold in the Government to
Pakistan. For them, it was a continuation of the civil war
means. The Congress demand that the British get the League
attitude in the Interim Government or quit had been voiced
the League joined the Interim Government.
fight for
by other
to change its
ever since
In February 1947, nine Congress members of the cabinet wrote to the

viceroy demanding the resignation of League members and threatening the
withdrawal of their own nominees
. The last straw came with the League demanding the dissolution of the
Constituent Assembly. A crisis seemed to be developing rapidly.
ATTLEE'S STATEMENT-FEBRUARY 20, 1947 The main points outlined in the
British Prime Minister Clement Attlee's statement are given below.
A deadline of June 30, 1948 was fixed for transfer of power even if
the Indian politicians had not agreed by that time on the constitution.
The British would relinquish power either to some form of central
government or in some areas to the existing provincial governments if
the Constituent Assembly was not fully representative i.e., if the
Muslim majority provinces did not join.
British powers and obligations vis-a-vis the princely states would
lapse with transfer of power, but these would not be transferred to any
successor government in British
Mountbatten would replace Wavell as the viceroy.
The statement contained clear hints of partition and even Balkanisation
of the country into numerous states and was, in essence, a reversion of
the. Cripps Offer.
Why a Date Fixed by Government for Withdrawal?
The Government hoped that a fixed date would shock the
agreement on the main question.
parties into an
The Government was keen to avert the developing constitutional crisis.

The Government hoped to convince the Indians of British sincerity.
The Government could not deny the truth in Wavell's assessment that an
irreversible decline of the Government's authority had taken place.
Congress' Stand
The provision of transfer of power to more than one centre was
acceptable to Congress because it meant that the existing Assembly could
go ahead and frame a Constitution for the areas represented by it, and
it offered a way out of the existing deadlock.
But the illusory hopes of a settlement were soon shattered as the
statement proved to be a prelude to the final showdown. The League
launched a civil disobedience movement to overthrow the coalition
government in Punjab, as it felt emboldened by the statement.
TOWARDS PARTITION
The communal riots and the unworkability of the CongressLeague coalition
compelled many in early 1947 to think in terms of accepting the so far
unthinkable partition. The most insistent demand now came from the Hindu
and Sikh communal groups in Bengal and Punjab who were alarmed at the
prospect of compulsory grouping which might find them in Pakistan. The
Hindu Mahasabha in Bengal was assessing the feasibility of a separate
Hindu province in West Bengal.
On March 10, 1947, Nehru stated that the Cabinet Mission's was the best
solution if carried out; the only real alternative was the partition of
Punjab and Bengal.
In April 1947, Congress President Kripalani communicated to the Viceroy
"rather than have a battle, we shall let them have their Pakistan
provided you allow Bengal and Punjab to be partitioned in a fair
manner."
Mountbatten as the Viceroy
Mountbatten proved more decisive and quick in taking decisions than his
predecessors because he was informally given more powers,to decide
things on the spot, and he had the advantage of a firm decision of the
British Government to quit at the earliest. His task was to explore the
options of unity and division till October 1947 and then advise the
British Government on the form of transfer of power. But he soon
discovered that the broad contours of the scenario to emerge were
discernible even before he came. The Cabinet Mission Plan was a dead
horse and Jinnah was obdurate that he would settle for nothing less
than a sovereign state. But a serious attempt at unity would involve
supporting those forces which wanted a unified India and countering
those who opposed it. Mountbatten preferred to woo both sides.
MOUNTBATTEN PLAN, JUNE 3, 1947
The freedom with partition formula was coming to be widely accepted well
before Mountbatten came. One major innovation (actually suggested by
V.P. Menon) was the immediate transfer of power on the basis of grant of
dominion status (with ''a right of secession), thus obviating the need
to wait for an agreement in the Constituent Assembly on a new political
structure.
Main Points
The important points of the plan were
Punjab and Bengal would meet in two, groups Hindus and Muslims, to
vote for partition. If a simple majority of either group voted for
partition, then these provinces would be partitioned.
In case of partition, two dominions and two constituent assemblies
would be created.
Sindh would take its own decision.
Referendum: in NWFP and Sylhet district of Bengal would decide the
fate of these areas.
Since the Congress had conceded a unified India, all their other
points would be met
(i) independence for princely states ruled out, they would either join
India or Pakistan.
(ii) independence for Bengal ruled out.
(iii) accession of Hyderabad to Pakistan ruled out (Mountbatten
supported the Congress on this).
Freedom would come on August 15, 1947.
A boundary commission would be set up if partition was to be
effected.
Thus, the League's demand was conceded to the 'extent that Pakistan
would be created and the Congress' position on unity was taken into
account to make Pakistan as small as possible. Mountbatten's formula was
to divide India but retain maximum unity.
Why Congress Accepted Dominion Status?
The Congress was willing to accept dominion status despite its being
against the Lahore Congress (1929) spirit because
(i) it would ensure a peaceful and very quick transfer of power;
(ii) it was more important for the Congress to assume authority to check
the explosive situation; and
(iii) it would allow for some much needed continuity in bureaucracy and
army.
For Britain, the dominion status offered a chance to keep India in the
Commonwealth, even if temporarily, considering the economic strength,
defence potential and greater value of trade and investment in India.
Rationale for an Early Date (August 15, 1947)
Britain wanted to secure Congress' agreement to the dominion status.
the same time the British could escape the responsibility for the
communal situation.
At
The plan was put into effect without the slightest delay. The
Legislative Assemblies of Bengal and Punjab decided in favour of
partition of these two provinces. Thus, East Bengal and West Punjab
joined Pakistan; West Bengal and East Punjab remained with the Indian
Union. The referendum in Syihet resulted in the orporation of that

district in East Bengal. Two boundary commissions, one in respect of
each province, were constituted to demarcate the boundaries of the new
provinces. The referendum in NWFP decided in favour of Pakistan, the
Provincial Congress refraining from the referendum. Baluchistan and
Sindh threw in their lot with Pakistan.
INDIAN INDEPENDENCE ACT On July 18, 1947
the British Parliament ratified the Mountbatten Plan as the
"Independence of India Act-1947". The Act was implemented on August 15,
1947.
The Act provided for the creation of two independent dominions of India
and Pakistan with effect from August 15, 1947. Each dominion was to have
a governor-general to be responsible for effective operation of the Act.
The constituent assembly of each new dominion was to exercise the
powers of the legislature of that dominion, and the existing Central
Legislative Assembly and the Council of States were to be
Plan Balkan
Between March and May of 1947, Mountbatten decided that the Cabinet
Mission Plan had become untenable and formulated an alternative plan.
This plan envisaged the transfer of power to separate provinces (or to a
confederation, if formed before the transfer), with Punjab and Bengal
given the option to vote for partition of their provinces. The various
units thus formed along with the princely states (rendered independent
by lapse of paramountcy) would have the option of joining India or
Pakistan or remaining separate. The plan was quickly abandoned after
Nehru reacted violently to it.
automatically dissolved
For the transitional period, i.e., till a new constitution was adopted
by each dominion, the governments of the two dominions were to be
carried on in accordance with the Government of India Act, 1935.
As per the provisions of the Indian Independence Act, 1947, Pakistan
became independent on August 14 while India got its freedom on August
15, 1947. M.A. Jinnah became the first Governor-General of Pakistan.
India, however, decided to request Lord Mountbatten to continue as the
GovernorGeneral of India.
PROBLEMS OF EARLY WITHDRAWAL
The breakneck speed of events under Mountbatten caused anomalies in
arranging partition details and totally failed to prevent the Punjab
massacre, because
there were no transitional institutional structures within which
partition problems could be tackled.
Mountbatten had hoped to be the common GovernorGeneral of India and.
Pakistan, thus providing the necessary link, but Jinnah wanted the
position for himself in Pakistan.
there was a delay in announcing the Boundary Commission Award (under

Radcliffe); the award was ready by August 12, 1947 but Mountbatten
decided to make it public after August 15 only so that the
responsibility would not fall on the British.
INTEGRATION OF STATES
During 1946-47 there was a new upsurge of State. People's Movement
demanding political rights and elective representation in the
Constituent Assembly. Nehru presided over the All India State People's
Conference sessions in Udaipur (1945) and Gwalior (April 1947). He
declared that the states refusing to join the Constituent Assembly would
be treated as hostile. In July 1947, Vallabhbhai Patel took charge of
the new States' Department. Under Patel, the incorporation of Indian
states took place in two phases with a skilful combination of baits and
threats of mass pressure in both:
Phase I, By August 15, 1947, all states except Kashmir, Hyderabad and
Junagarh had signed an Instrument of Accession with the Indian
Government, acknowledging central authority over defence, external
affairs and communication. The princes agreed to this fairly easily
because
(1) they were "surrendering" only what they never had (these three
functions had been a part of the British paramountcy) and
(2) there was no change in the internal political structure.
Phase II, The second phase involved a much more difficult process of
"integration" of states with neighbouring provinces or into new units
like the Kathiawar Union, Vindhya and Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan or
Himachal Pradesh alongwith internal constitutional changes in states
which for some years retained their old boundaries (Hyderabad, Mysore,
TravancoreCochin). This phase was accomplished within a year. The
principal bait offered was a generous privy purse while some princes
were made governors and rajpramukhs in free India.
This rapid political unification of the country after
Patel's greatest achievement.
independence was
WHY CONGRESS ACCEPTED PARTITION?

The Congress was only accepting the inevitable due to the long-term
failure to draw Muslim masses into the national movement. The partition
reflects the success-failure dichotomy of the Congress-led antiimperialist movement.
The Congress had a two fold task(i) structuring diverse classes,
communities, groups and regions into a nation, and (ii) securing
independence for this nation. While the Congress succeeded in building
up sufficient national consciousness to exert pressure on the British to
quit India, it failed in completing the task of welding the nation,
especially in integrating the Muslims into the nation.
Only an immediate transfer of power could forestall the spread of
'direct action' and communal violence. The virtual collapse of the
Interim Government also made the notion of Pakistan appear unavoidable.
The partition plan ruled out independence for the princely states which
could have been a greater danger to the Indian unity as it would have
meant Balkanisation of the country.
Acceptance of partition was only a final act of the process of stepby-step concessions to the League's championing of a separate Muslim
state.
During Cripps Mission (1942), autonomy of Muslim majority provinces was
accepted.
During Gandhi-Jinnah talks (1944), Gandhi accepted the right of selfdetermination of Muslim-majority provinces.
After the Cabinet Mission Plan (1946) Congress conceded the possibility
of Muslim majority provinces setting up a separate constituent assembly.
Later, the Congress accepted, without demur, that grouping was
compulsory (December 1946).
Official reference to Pakistan came in March 1947; CWC resolution stated
that Punjab (and by implication, Bengal) must be partitioned if the
country was divided.
3rd June Plan: Congress accepted partition. While loudly asserting the
sovereignty of the Constituent Assembly, the Congress quietly accepted
compulsory grouping and accepted the partition most of all because it
could not stop the communal riots.
There was nevertheless much wishful thinking and lack
of appreciation of the dynamics of communal feeling by the Congress,
especially Nehru "Once the British left, Hindu-Muslim differences would
be patched up and a free,, united India would be built up."
"Partition is only temporary." "Partition would be peacefulonce
Pakistan was conceded, what was there to fight for?"
The communalism of the 1920s and the 1930s was different from that in
the 1940s. Now it was an all-out effort for an assertive "Muslim
nation". Congress leadership underestimated the potential of this type
of communalism.
Gandhi's Helplessness
Gandhi felt helpless because there had been a communalisation of the
people. He accepted partition because the people wanted it. How could
there be a movement to fight communalism based on a communalised
people? He asked the Congressmen, however, not to accept it in their
hearts.
Views
I have not become His Majesty's first Minister to preside over the
liquidation of the British Empire. Winston Churchill.
The British Cabinet saw the growing rift between the Congress and the
Muslim League as their trump card. Both Linlithgow and the Cabinet
looked to the rivalry of the Congress and the League as their most
useful weapon against the demands of either. B.R. Tomlinson.
Our time in India is limited and our power to control events almost
gone. We have only prestige and previous momentum to trade on and these
will not last long. Lord Wavell (October 1946).
The offer of Cripps really gave us nothing. If we accepted his offer, we
might have cause to rule it in future. In case the British went back on
their word, we should not even have the justification for launching a
fresh struggle. War had given India
an opportunity for achieving her freedom. We must not lose it by
depending upon a mere promise. Maulana Abul Kalam Azad.
The British were neither the foes of the Hindus nor friends of the
Muslims. They set up Pakistan not as a gesture of friendship towards
the Muslims, but under the compulsions of their international policies.
Wall Khan.
It was not so much that Britain pursued a policy of divide and rule as
that the process of devolving power by stages in a politically and
socially desperate country was inherently divisive. R.J. Moore.
The truth is that we were tired men, and we were getting on in years
too. Few of us could stand the prospect of going to prison againand if
we had stood out for a united India as we wished it, prison obviously
awaited us. We saw the fires burning in the Punjab and heard everyday of
the killings. The plan for partition offered a way out and we took it.
Jawaharlal Nehru.
I felt that if we did not accept partition, India would be split into
many bits and would be completely ruined. My experience of office for
one year convinced me that the way we have been proceeding would lead us
to disaster. We would not have had one Pakistan but several. We would
have had Pakistan cells in every office. Sardar Patel.
Congress, as well as the Muslim League, had accepted partition. The real
position was, however, completely different. The acceptance was only in
a resolution of the AICC of the Congress and on the register of the
Muslim League. The people of India had not accepted partition with free
and open minds. Some had accepted it out of sheer anger and resentment
and others out of a sense of despair. Maulana Azad.
I alone with the help of my Secretary and my typewriter won Pakistan. for
the Muslims. M.A. Jinnah.
Summary
CONGRESS STAND ON EVE OF WORLD WAR II:
It would cooperate in war if
(i)
freedom was given after the War.
(ii)
some form of genuinely responsible government was
immediately set up.
September 1, 1939: World War-II broke out and Britain
declared India's support for war. September 10-14, 1939: At
CWC meeting at Vardha: Gandhi was for unconditional support
to Britain's war efforts. Subhash Bose and Leftists were, for
taking advantage of Britain's difficulties and starting a
mass movement to dislodge colonialism. Nehru recognised the

imperialist nature of the war, but was against taking
advantage of Britain's difficulties, as well as against
Indian participation in war. The CWC resolvedNo Indian
participation unless freedom is granted; Government should
declare its war aims soon. LINLITHGOW'S STATEMENT (OCTOBER
17, 1939) Britain's war aim is to resist aggression. All
interest groups are to be consulted to modify 1935 Act for
future. Immediately a "consultative committee" is to be
formed for advising functions.
CONGRESS' RESPONSE
No Indian support to the war Congress ministries in
provinces to resign But no immediate mass struggle to be
launched. MARCH 1940 "Pakistan Resolution" passed at Lahore
session of Muslim League AUGUST OFFER (AUGUST 1940).
Dominion status to be the long-term objective After the war.
constituent assembly to be formed comprising mainly Indians
Summary
Minorities consent to be essential for any future settlement.
Congress rejected the Offer
OCTOBER 1940 Congress launched individual civil disobedience movement;
25000 satyagrahis courted arrest;
MARCH 1942 Japan reached Rangoon after having overrun almost the whole
of South-East Asia.
CRIPPS MISSION (MARCH 1942) It offered
an Indian Union with dominion status, with right to withdraw from
Commonwealth.
after war, a constituent assembly elected by provincial assemblies to
frame the constitution.
freedom to any province unwilling to join the Union to have a separate
agreement with Britain. Meanwhile, defence of India to remain in British
hands.
The Congress objected to
*
dominion status
*
right of provinces to secede
*
no immediate transfer of power
*
retention of governor-general's supremacy.
The Muslim League objected to
*
Pakistan not being explicitly offered.
the machinery for creation of Constituent Assembly.
QUIT INDIA MOVEMENT
Why launch a movement now?
Failure of Cripps Offer, an evidence of British lack of will to concede

Indian demands.
Public discontent against wartime hardships.
A feeling of imminent British collapse.
Indian leadership's desire to prepare masses for possible Japanese
invasion.
AICC Meeting (BombayAugust 8, 1942).
The meeting ratified Quit India Resolution.
August 9, 1942 All prominent leaders arrested.
Major Activity
Public on rampage, especially Eastern UP, Bihar, Bengal attacking
symbols of authority.
Underground activity.
to provide a line of command.
Parallel governments in Ballia (UP), Tamluk (Bengal) and Satara
(Maharashtra).
Sections participating included youth, women, workers, peasants,
government officials, some communists.
February 1943: Gandhi started a fast.
March 23, 1943: Pakistan Day observed.
C. RAJAGOPALACHARI FORMULA (MARCH 1944) League should immediately
support independence for India and cooperate in Interim Government After
War.
Muslim majority areas to exercise right to self-determination In case of
partition, common centre for defence, commerce, communications, etc.
Jinnah rejected the offer as he wanted Congress to accept the two-nation
theory.
DESAI-LIAQAT PACT Congress and League nominees to have equal
representation in Central Executive.
20% of seats reserved for minorities.
WAVELL PLAN (SHIMLA CONFERENCE-JUNE 1945)
An all-Indian executive council except the governor-general and
commander-in-chief Equal representation for caste Hindus and Muslims.
Muslim League wanted all Muslims to be its nominees and
claimed a communal veto in the executive council. Congress objected to it
being painted purely as a caste Hindu party.
LAST TWO YEARS OF BRITISH RULE : Two basic strands
1. Tortuous negotiations resulting in freedom and partition, accompanied
by communal violence .
2. Sporadic, localised mass action.
July 1945 Labour Government comes to power in Britain.
August 1945 Elections to central and provincial assemblies announced.
Summary
September 1945 Announcement of a Constituent Assembly after War.
A change in Government's attitude due to
Change in global power equations;
UK no longer a power
Labour Government sympathetic to India;
Tired British soldiers and shattered British economy;
Anti-imperialist wave throughout Asia ;
Officials feared another Congress revolt.
Two Main Election Planks for Congress
1. Repression of 1942
2. Mass pressure against trial of INA POWs.
INA AgitationMain Features
Had unprecedented, high pitch and intensity.
Had wide geographical and social spread.
Penetrated traditional bulwarks of Raj.
Government employees and loyalists With each day, became a purely India
versus Britain, issue
Three Upsurges
1. November 21, 1945 in Calcutta over INA trials.
2. February 11, 1946 in Calcutta over seven-year sentence to an INA
officer.
3. February 18, 1946 in Bombay, strike by Royal Indian Navy Ratings.
Congress did not support these upsurges because of their timing and
tactics .
Election Results
CONGRESS won 57 out of 102 seats in Central Assembly got majority in
Madras, Bombay, UP, Bihar, Orissa and Central Provinces and coalition
partner with Unionists and Akalis in Punjab.
MUSLIM LEAGUE won 30 reserved seats in Central
Bengal, Sindh.
Assemblygot majority in
Why British Withdrawal Seemed Imminent by 1946

1. Success of nationalist forces in struggle for hegemony.
2. Demoralisation among bureaucracy and the loyalist sections.
Summary
3. Limitations of British strategy of conciliation and repression.
4. Demands of leniency for INA by armymen and RIN ratings' revolt.
5. An entirely official rule was impossible.
Main Aim of Government Policy Now
A graceful withdrawal after settlement on modalities of
power, and post-imperial Indo-British relations.
transfer of
CABINET MISSION Proposals

Rejection of Pakistan.
Grouping of existing assemblies into three sections A, B, C.
Three-tier executive and legislature at province, princely states and
union level Provincial assemblies to elect a constituent assembly.
Common centre for defence, communications, external affairs.
Provinces to have autonomy and residual powers.

Princely states free to have an arrangement with the successor
government or the British Government In future, a province free to come
out of the section or the union Meanwhile, an interim government to be
formed from constituent assembly.
Interpretation
Congress claimed that the grouping was optional while the League thought
that the grouping was compulsory. Mission decided the matter in the
League's favour.
Acceptance League, followed by Congress, accepted Cabinet Mission
proposals in June 1946.
Further Developments: July 1946 League withdrew from the Plan after
Nehru's press statement, and gave a call for "direct action" from August
16, 1946.
September 1946 An Interim Government headed by Nehru sworn in.
October 1946 League joins Interim Government and follows an
obstructionist approach.
February 1947 Congress members demand removal of
Summary
League members; League demands dissolution of Constituent Assembly.
ATTLEE'S STATEMENT (FEBRUARY 20, 1947) June 30, 1948 as deadline for
transfer of power.
Power may be transferred to one centre or in some areas to existing
provincial governments.
MOUNTBATTEN PLAN JUNE 3, 1947
Punjab and Bengal Assemblies to take decision on partition. Sindh to take
its own decision Referendum to be held in NWFP and Sylhet district.
Two dominions to be created if partition is to take place, with two
Constituent Assemblies.
Freedom to be granted on August 15, 1947
JULY 18, 1947 British Parliament passes the "Indian Independence Act
1947" which is implemented on August 15, 1947.
CHAPTER 7
Administrative Changes
After 1857
The British were quick to learn from their experience of 1857an
organised mass action could pose a serious challenge to the existence of
British rule in India. The ruler subject gap was sought to be narrowed so
as to reduce, if not eliminate altogether, the alienation of the masses
from the administration. Also, association of natives in administration

could give the rulers an opportunity to have a better idea of the
customs, traditions and values of the people they were supposed to rule.
This could help them handle more tactfully an 1857-like situation.
The second half of the nineteenth century saw further spread and
intensification of the industrial revolution. The emergence of new
industrial powersthe USA, Japan and European countriesand a cut-throat
competition for colonies and sub-colonies for raw materials, markets for
manufactured goods and capital investment were the highlights of this
new phenomenon. The British supremacy in the world in finance and
manufactured goods trade came to an end. At this point, there were
large-scale British capital investments in railways and loans to the
Government of India, and to a smaller extent in tea plantations, coalmining, jute mills, shipping, trade and banking.
All these factors combined to inaugurate a new stage of colonialism in
India. The prime concern of the colonial authority in India was to
consolidate its position here to secure British economic and commercial
interests against political dangers and to extend its sphere to other
parts of the world, wherever and whenever possible. There was a renewed
upsurge of imperial control and imperialist ideology which
249
Administrative Changes After 1857 251
was reflected in the reactionary policies during the vice-royalties of
Lytton, Dufferin, Lansdowne, Elgin and, above all, Curzon. The changes
in the governmental structure and policies in India were to shape the
destiny of modern India in many ways.
ADMINISTRATION: CENTRAL, PROVINCIAL, LOCAL
Central Government The Act for Better 1858 transferred the power to
govern from the East India Company to the British Crown. The Company's
limitations in administering the country in complex situations had been
exposed by the revolt of 1857; besides, there was not much
accountability. Now, the power to govern was to be wielded through a
secretary of state (earlier this power was exercised by directors of the
Company and the Board of Control). The secretary of state was to be a
member of the British cabinet, and was to be assisted by a council of
15. He was answerable to the British Parliament. All initiatives and
final decisions rested with the secretary and the council was only
advisory in nature. (Thus the dual system introduced by Pitt's India
Act; 1784 came to an end.) Also, the ultimate power over India remained
with Parliament.
The Government in India was to be carried on, as before, by the
governor-general whose prestige, if not authority, increased with the
new title of viceroy given to him. The viceroy was to be assisted by an
executive council whose members were to act as the heads of various
departments, as well as viceroy's official advisors.
The concentration of the main authority in the hands of the secretary of

state based in London, on the one hand, gradually reduced the viceroy to
a subordinate status and further' urther alienated the Indian public
opinion from the government.
policy-making. On the other hand, it had the effect of increasing the
influence of British industrialists, merchants and bankers over
government policy in India. This made the Indian administration even
more reactionary than it had been before 1858.
By the Indian Councils Act, 1861, a fifth member, who was to be a jurist
was added to viceroy's executive council. For legislative purposes, the
viceroy could add. six to twelve additional members, of whom at least
half had to be nonofficials who could be either Indian or English. The
legislative council so constituted possessed no real powers and was
merely advisory in nature. Its weaknesses were as follows
It could not discuss important matters, and no financial matters at
all without previous approval of the Government.
It had no control over the budget.
It could not discuss executive action.
Final passing of the bill needed the viceroy's approval.
Even if approved by the viceroy, the secretary of state could disallow
a legislation.
Indians associated as non-officials were members of elite sections
onlyprinces, landlords, diwans, etc.and were not representative of the
Indian opinion.
The viceroy could issue ordinances (of 6 months validity) in case of
emergency.
The only important function of the legislative council was to endorse
official measures and give thertl the appearance of having been passed
by a legislative body. The British Government in India remained, as
before, an alien despotism.
Provincial Government The Indian Councils Act 1861 returned the
legislative powers to provinces of Madras and Bombay which had been
taken away in 1833. Later, legislative councils were established in
other provinces. The three presidencies of Bombay, Madras and Calcutta
enjoyed more rights and powers compared to other provinces. The
presidencies were administrated by a governor and his executive council
of three who were appointed by the Crown, while other provinces were
administered by lieutenant governors and chief commissioners appointed
by the governorgeneral.
In the following decades, some steps towards financial decentralisation
were taken, but these were more in the nature of administrative
reorganisation aimed at increasing revenues
and reducing expenditure and these did not in any way
towards provincial autonomy.
indicate progress
The granting of fixed sums out of central revenues for administration

of certain services like police, jails, education, medical services and
roads to provincial governments signified the first step in the
direction towards bifurcating central and provincial finances in 1870 by
Lord Mayo. Now; the provincial governments were asked to administer
these services as they liked.
Certain other heads of expenditure like land revenue, excise, general
administration and law and justice were transferred to provinces in 1877
by Lord Lytton. Besides this, a provincial government was to receive a
fixed share of the income realised within that province from sources
like stamps, excise and income tax.
In 1882, all sources of revenue were divided into three groupsgeneral
(going entirely to centre), provincial (going entirely to the provinces)
and those to be divided between the centre and the provinces.
Nevertheless, the central government remained supreme and retained
detailed control over provinces. This was inevitable since both the
central and provincial governments were completely subordinated to the
secretary of state and the British Government.
Local Bodies
It was decided to decentralise administration by promoting local
government through municipalities and district boards which would
administer local services like education, health, sanitation, water
supply, roads and other basic amenities financed through local taxes.
There were many factors which made it necessary for the British
Government in India to work towards establishing local bodies.
Firstly, financial difficulties faced by the Government due to
overcentralisation made decentralisation imperative. Secondly, it became
necessary that modern advances in civic amenities in Europe be
transplanted in India, considering India's increasing economic contacts
with Europe. Thirdly, the rising tide of nationalism had improvement in
basic facilities as a point on its agenda. Fourthly, a section of British
policy makers saw association of Indians with the administration in some
form or the, other, without undermining the British supremacy in India,
as an instrument to check the increasing politicisation of Indians.
Fifthly, the utilisation of, local taxes for local welfare could be used
to counter any public criticism of British reluctance to draw upon an
already overburdened treasury or to tax the rich upper classes.
The important stages in the evolution of local government can be
identified as follows.
Between 1864 and 1868 Local bodies were first formed in this period but
in most cases consisted of nominated members and were headed by district
magistrates. Thus, these were seen not more than as instruments of
additional tax collection.
Mayo's Resolution of 1870
Financial decentralisation was a legislative devolution inaugurated by
the Indian Councils Act of 1861. part from the annual grant from
imperial Government, the provincial governments were authorised to

resort to local taxation to balance their budgets. This was done in
context of transfer of certain departments of administration, such as
medical services, education and roads, to the control of provincial
governments. This was the beginning of local finance. Mayo's Resolution
emphasised, "Local interest, supervision and care are necessary for
success in the management of the funds devoted to education, sanitation,
medical relief and local public works."
The various provincial governments such as in Bengal, Madras, NorthWestern Province, Punjab, passed municipal acts to implement the policy
outlined.
Ripon's Resolution of 1882
The Government of Ripon desired the provincial governments to apply in
case of local bodies the same principle of financial decentralisation
which Lord Mayo's Government had begun towards them. The main points of
the resolution were as follows.
Development of local bodies advocated to improve the
administration and as an instrument of political and popular education;
Policy of administrating local affairs through urban and rural local
bodies charged with definite duties and entrusted with suitable sources
of revenues;
Non-officials to be in majority in these bodies, who could be elected
if the officials thought that it was possible to introduce elections;
Non-officials to act as chairpersons to these bodies; Official
interference to be reduced to the minimum and to be exercised to revise
and check the acts of local bodies, but not to dictate policies;
Official executive sanction required in certain cases, such as raising
of loans, alienation of municipal property, imposition of new taxes,
undertaking works costing more than a prescribed sum, framing rules and
bye-laws, etc.
In pursuance of this resolution many Acts were passed between 1883 and
1885 which greatly altered the constitution, powers and functions of
municipal bodies in India. But, an era of effective local self-governing
bodies was still a dream unfulfilled. The existing local bodies had
various drawbacks.
The elected members were in a minority in all district boards and in
many of the municipalities;
The franchise was very limited; District boards continued to be
headed by district officials, though non-officials gradually came to
head the municipalities;
The Government retained strict control, and it could suspend or
supersede these bodies at will.
The bureaucracy, in fact, did not share the liberal views of the viceroy
and thought that the Indians were unfit for selfgovernment. The closing
decades of the 19th century were a period of imperialism, and the high
priest of that creed, Lord' Curzon, actually took steps to increase
official control over local bodies.
Royal Commission on Decentralisation (1908)

Pointing out the lack of financial resources as the great stumbling
block
in the effective functioning of local bodies, the commission made the
following recommendations.
(i) It emphasised that village panchayats should be entrusted with more
powers like judicial jurisdiction in petty cases, incurring expenditure
on minor village works, village schools, small fuel and fodder reserves,
etc. The panchayats should be given adequate sources of income.
(ii) It emphasised the importance of sub-district boards to be
established in every taluka or tehsil, with separate spheres of duties
and separate sources of revenue for sub-district boards and the district
boards.
(iii) It urged the withdrawal of existing restrictions on their powers
of taxation, and also, the stoppage of regular grants-in-aid from
provincial governments except for undertaking large projects.
(iv) The municipalities might undertake the responsibility for primary
education and, if willing, for middle vernacular schools, otherwise the
Government should relieve them of any charges in regard to secondary
education, hospitals, relief, police, veterinary works, etc.
The Government of India Resolution of 1915 contained the official views
on the recommendations of the Decentralisation Commission, but most of
the recommendations remained on paper and the condition of local bodies
continued to be as it was left by Lord Ripon.
The Resolution of May 1918
This resolution reviewed the entire question of local self-government in
the light of the announcement of August 20, 1917, which had declared
that the future direction of constitutional advance was towards grant
of responsible government to the people of India and the first step
towards the progressive realisation of that ideal was to be in the
sphere of local self-government.
The resolution suggested that the local bodies be made as representative
as possible of the people with real and not nominal authority vested in
them.
Under Dyarchy Local self-government was made a
under popular ministerial control by
'transferred' subject

Government of India Act, 1919, and each province was allowed to develop
local self-institutions according to provincial needs and requirements.
But, since finance was a 'reserved' subject under the charge of an
executive councillor, the Indian ministers could not do much work in the
sphere of local selfgovernment for lack of funds.
The Simon Commission (May. 1930) pointed out the lack of progress of
village panchayats except in UP, Bengal and Madras. The commission
suggested the retrograde step of increasing provincial control over

local bodies for the sake of efficiency. The commission also adversely
commented on reluctance of elected members to impose local taxes and
observed that, generally speaking, the management of finances of local
bodies had deteriorated since the introduction of the reforms of 1919.
The Government of India Act, 1935 and After The provincial autonomy
ushered in by the Government of India Act, 1935 gave further impetus to
the development of local self-governing institutions in India. Portfolio
finance being under the control of popular ministries, . now the funds
could be made available for development of local bodies. Further, the
demarcation of taxation between provincial and local finance which
prevailed since the reforms of 1919 was scrapped. New Acts were passed
in the provinces giving more authority to local bodies.
However, financial resources and power of taxation of local institutions
remained more or less at the same level as in the days of Ripon. Rather,
after 1935, certain new restrictions were placed on powers of local
bodies to levy or enhance terminal taxes on trades, callings and
professions and municipal property. The provincial governments seemed to
have ignored the liberal policy of granting wide powers of taxation to
local institutions as recommended by the Decentralisation Commission.
The Constitution of free India directs the state governments to
organise village panchayats as effective organs of local self-government
(Article 40). The Seventy-third and
Seventy-fourth Amendments are aimed at plugging the
loopholes in the structure of local self-governing institutions
and urban areas.
in rural
CHANGES IN THE ARMY After 1857

There was a systematic reorganisation of the Army since, as Dufferin
warned in December 1888, "the British should always remember the lessons
which were learnt with such terrible experience 30 years ago."
To prevent the recurrence of another revolt was the main reason behind
this reorganisation. Also, the Indian Army was to be used to defend the
Indian territory of the empire from other imperialist powers in the
regionRussia, Germany, France, etc. The Indian branch of the army was
to be used for expansion in'Asia and Africa, while the British section
was to be used as an army of occupationthe ultimate guarantee of
British hold over India.
To begin with, domination of the European branch over the Indian
branches was ensured. The commissions of 1859 and 1879 insisted on the
principle of a one-third white army (as against 14% before 1857).
Finally, the proportion of Europeans to Indians was carefully fixed at
one to two in the Bengal Army and two to five in the Madras and Bombay
Armies. Strict European monopoly over key geographical locations and
departments, such as artillery, tanks and armed corps, was guaranteed.
Even the rifles given to Indians were of an inferior till 1900, and
Indians were not allowed in these high departments till the Second World
War. No Indians were allowed in the officer rank, and, the highest rank
an Indian could reach till 1914 was that of a subedar (only from 1918
onwards were Indians allowed in the commissioned ranks). As late as
1926, the Indian Sandhurst Committee was visualising a 50% Indianised
officer cadre for 1952.
The India branch was reorganised on basis of the policy of balance and
counterpoise or divide and rule. The 1879 Army Commission had
emphasised"Next to the grand counterpoise of a sufficient
uropean
force comes the counterpoise of
natives against natives. An ideology of 'martial races' and 'nonmartial races', which assumed that good soldiers could come only from
some specific communities, developed particularly from the late 1880s,
under Lord Roberts, the commander-in-chief from 1887 to 1892. It was
used to justify a discriminatory recruitment policy directed towards
Sikhs, Gurkhas and Pathans who had assisted in the suppression of the
revolt and were relatively marginal social groups therefore less likely
to be affected by nationalism. The soldiers from Awadh, Bihar, Central
India and South India who had participated in the revolt were declared
to be non-martial. Moreover, caste and communal companies were
introduced in all the regiments and Indian regiments were made a mixture
of various socio-ethnic groups so as to balance each other. Communal,
caste, tribal and regional consciousness was encouraged to check the
growth of nationalist feelings among soldiers. Charles Wood, the
secretary of state for India, said, "I wish to have a different and
rival spirit in different regiments, so that Sikh might fire into Hindu,
Gorkha into either, without any scruple in case of need." Finally,
conscious efforts were made to isolate the soldiers from life and
thoughts of rest of the population through measures such as preventing
newspapers, journals and nationalist publications from reaching them.
On the whole, the British Indian Army remained a costly
machine.
military
PUBLIC SERVICES
Just as their systematic exclusion from law and policy-making bodies,
the Indians were mostly kept out of the institutions responsible for
policy implementation such as the Indian bureaucracy and other like
spheres of administration. European supremacy was assured in the civil
service also. This was done in mainly two ways.
Firstly, although Indians had 'started' making it to the coveted ranks
of the Indian Civil Services ever since Satyendranath Tagore became the
first Indian to do so in 1863. entering the civil services was still
extremely difficult for the Indians. The entrance examination for ICS
was held in London in English medium only, and the subjects included
classical Greek and Latin learning. Moreover, the maximum age for
appearing at the examination was reduced from twenty-three in 1859 to
nineteen in 1878 under Lytton. Secondly, all key positions of power and
authority and those which were wellpaid were occupied by the Europeans.
Despite slow Indianisation after 1918 under nationalist pressure, key
positions continued to be occupied by Europeans. But gradually, the
Indians came to realise that Indianisation of civil service had not, in
any way, transferred effective power to Indian hands. The Indian members
of the civil service continued to serve imperialist interests of their
British masters. (Also refer to chapter on "Development of Civil Service
under the British".)
PRINCELY STATES
Relations with princely states were to be guided by a twopoint policy
using and perpetuating them as bulwark of the, empire and subordinating
them completely to British authority (the policy of subordinate union).
To cultivate these states as a buffer against future political unrest
and to reward them for their loyalty during the revolt of 1857, the
policy of annexation was abandoned. The new policy was to depose or
punish but not annex. Also, territorial integrity of states was
guaranteed and it was announced that their right to adopt an heir would
be respected.
The subordination of princely states to British authority was completed
when the fiction of Indian states standing in a status of equality with
the Crown as independent, sovereign states ended with the Queen adopting
the title of Kaiseri-i-Hind (Queen Empress of India) in 1876, to
emphasise British sovereignty over entire India. It was later made
clear by Lord Curzon that the princes ruled their states merely as
agents of the British Crown. With paramountcy, the British
Government exercised the right to interfere in the internal affairs of
states through their residents or by appointing and dismissing
ministers and officials.
The British were helped further in their encroachment by modern
developments in communicationrailways, roads, telegraph, canals, post
offices, etc. The motive for interference was also provided by the rise
of nationalist, democratic sentiments in these states, the suppression
of which, the British realised, was essential for their survival. As a
positive side to these modern political movements, the British helped
these states adopt modern administrative institutions. (Also refer to
chapter on "Indian States under. British Rule".)
ADMINISTRATIVE POLICIES Contrary to their pre-1857 intentions of trying
to modernise India on progressive lines, now the administration adopted
blatantly reactionary policies on the pretext that Indians were not fit
for self-governance and needed British presence in their
Divide and Rule
Determined to avoid a united mass action challenging their authority,
the British rulers in India decided to practice a naked policy of divide
and rule, by putting princes against states' people, region against

region, province against province, caste against caste and Hindus
against Muslims.
After an immediate spell of repression against Muslims, following the
1857 revolt, the authorities decided, after 1870, to use the middle and
upper educated classes among Muslims against the rising tide of
nationalism, using conflicts over scarce resources in education,
administrative jobs and later political spoils (which were inherent in
the very logic of colonial underdevelopment) as a tool to create a split
along religious lines among educated Indians.
Hostility to Educated Indians
The emerging middle class nationalist leadership was analysing the
exploitative, colonial character of British rule and demanding Indian
participation in administration. At a time when the nationalist movement
was born (Indian National Congress was founded in 1885), the British
interpreted the moves as a challenge to their authority and adopted a
hostile attitude to such leadership. In fact, from then onwards, they
opposed all those who stood for modern education.
Attitude towards the Zamindars
In their pursuit of reactionary policies and hope to expand their social
base, the British looked for alliances with the most reactionary of
social groupsthe princes, zamindars, etc. The British intended to use
them as a counterweight against nationalist-minded intelligentsia. Now,
the zamindars and landlords were hailed as the 'natural' and
'traditional' leaders of people. Lands of most of the Awadh taluqclars
confiscated prior to 1857 were restored to them. The interests and
privileges of zamindars and landlords were protected in opposition to
those of the peasants; the former in turn saw the British as guarantors
of their very existence and became their firm supporters.
Attitude towards Social Reforms
Having decided to side with the reactionary elements of Indian society,
the British withdrew support to social reforms, which they felt had
aroused the wrath of orthodox sections against them. Also, by
encouraging caste and communal consciousness, the British helped the
reactionary forces.
Underdeveloped Social Services
A disproportionately large expenditure on army and civil administration
and the cost of wars left little to be spent on social services like
education, health, sanitation, physical infrastructure, etc. a legacy
which still haunts this country. And whatever facilities were
established catered to the elite sections and urban areas.
Labour Legislations
As in the early stages of industrial revolution in Europe, the working
conditions in factories and plantations in nineteenth-century India were
miserable. Working hours were longfor women and children as well as for
menand wages were low. In overcrowded, poorly ventilated and poorly

lighted working places, the safety measures were practically nonexistent.
262
Ironically, the first-ever demand for regulation of the condition of

workers in factories in India came from the Lancashire textile
capitalist lobby. Apprehending the emergence of a competitive rival in
the Indian textile industry under conditions of cheap and unregulated
labour, they demanded the appointment of a commission for investigation
into factory conditions. The first commission was appointed in 1875
although the first Factory Act was not passed before 1881.
The Indian Factory Act, 1881 dealt primarily with the problem of child
labour (between 7 and 12 years of age). Its significant provisions were:
* employment of children under 7 years of age prohibited,
* working hours restricted to 9 hours per day for children,
* children to get four holidays in a month,
* hazardous machinery to be properly fenced off.
The Indian Factory Act, 1891
* increased the minimum age (from 7 to 9 years) and the maximum (from 12
to 14 years) for children,
* reduced maximum working hours for children to 7 hours a day,
* fixed maximum working hours for women at 11 hours per day with an oneand-a-half hour interval (working hours for men were left unregulated),
* provided weekly holiday for all.
But these laws did not apply to British-owned tea and coffee
plantations where the labour was exploited ruthlessly and treated like
slaves. The Government helped these planters by passing laws such as
those which made it virtually impossible for a labourer to retuse to
work once a contract was entered into. A breach of contract was a
criminal offence, with a planter having the right to get the defaulting
labourer arrested.
More labour laws were passed under nationalist pressures in the
twentieth century but the overall working conditions remained deplorable
as ever.
Restrictions on Freedom of the Press
The nationalists had been quick to use new advancements in press
technology
to educate public opinion and influence government policies through
criticism and censure and later to arouse national consciousness.
In 1835, Metcalfe had lifted restrictions imposed on the Indian press.
But Lytton, fearing an increased influence of the nationalist press on
public opinion, imposed restrictions on Indian language press through
the infamous Vernacular Press Act, 1878. This Act had to be repealed
under public protest in 1882. After that, the press enjoyed relative
freedom for about two decades, but was under repression again in the
wake of swadeshi and anti-partition movement as restrictions were
imposed in 1908 and 1910. (Also refer to chapter on "Development of
Press in India".)
White Racism
The notion of white superiority was maintained very carefully by the
colonial rulers by systematically excluding the Indians from higher
grades of services both civil and militaryfrom railway compartments,
parks, hotels, clubs, etc., and by public display of racial arrogance
through beatings, blows and even murders (reported as accidents). As
Elgin once wrote, "We could only govern by maintaining the fact that we
were the dominant racethough Indians in services should be encouraged,
there is a point at which we must reserve the control to ourselves, if
we are to remain at all."
FOREIGN POLICY
The pursuance of a foreign policy, guided by interest of British
imperialism, often led to India's conflicts with neighbouring countries.
These conflicts arose due to various reasons. Firstly, political and
administrative consolidation of the country coupled with the
introduction of modern means of communication impelled the Government of
India to reach out for natural, geographical frontier for internal
cohesion and defence which sometimes resulted in border clashes.
Secondly, the British Government had as its major aims in Asia and
Africa
(i)
protection of the invaluable Indian empire;
(ii)
expansion of British commercial and economic interests;
(iii) keeping other European imperialist powers, whose colonial
interests came in conflict with those of the British, at an arm's length
in Asia and Africa.
These aims led to British expansion and territorial conquests outside
India's natural frontiers, and to conflicts with other imperialist
European powers such as Russia and France.
While the interests served were British, the money spent and the blood
shed was Indian. A general survey of India's relations with its
neighbours is as follows.
Bhutan, The occupation of Assam in 1816 brought the British into close
contacts with the mountain state of Bhutan. Frequent raids by the
Bhutanese into adjoining territories in Assam and Bengal, bad treatment
meted out to Elgin's envoy in 1863-64 and the treaty imposed on him, by
which the British were forced to surrender the passes leading to Assam,
led to British annexation of these passes and the stopping of allowance
paid to the Bhutanese. In 1865 the Bhutanese were forced to surrender
the passes in return for an annual subsidy. It was the surrendered
district which became a productive area with tea gardens.
Nepal, The British desire to reach out to natural geographical frontiers

brought them into conflict first of all with the northern hill kingdom
of Nepal. In 1814, a border clash resulted in a full-fledged war which
ended with a treaty in favour of the British. As per the treaty,
* Nepal accepted a British resident,
* Nepal ceded the districts of Garhwal and Kumaon, and abandoned claims
to Terai,
* Nepal also withdrew from Sikkim.
This agreement brought many advantages to the British
* the British empire now reached the Himalayas;
* it got better facilities for trade with Central Asia;
* it acquired sites for hill stations, such as Shin-ila, Mussorie and
Nainital;
* the Gorkhas joined the British Indian Army in large numbers.
Burma The expansionist urges of the British, fuelled by the, lure of,
forest resources, market for British manufactures and the need to check
French ambitions in Burma and rest Of South-East Asia, finally resulted
in the annexation of Burma after three wars.
The First Burma War (1824-26) was fought when the Burmese expansion
westwards and occupation of Arakan and Manipur, and the threat to Assam
and Brahmaputra Valley led to continuous friction along the ill-defined
border between Bengal and Burma, in the opening decades of the
nineteenth century. The British expeditionary forces occupied Rangoon in
May 1824 and reached within 72 km of the capital at Ava. Peace was
established in 1826 with the Treaty of Yandabo which provided that the
Government of Burma
* pay one crore rupees as war compensation,
* cede its coastal provinces of Arakan and Tenasserim,
* abandon claims on Assam, Cachhar and jaintia,
* recognise Manipur as an independent state,
* negotiate a commercial treaty with Britain,
* accept a British resident at Ava, while posting a Burmese envoy at
Calcutta.
These terms allowed the British to acquire most of Burma's coastline and
also a firm base in Burma for future expansion.
Second Burma war was the result of almost wholly commercial greed. The
British merchants were keen to get hold of timber resources of upper
Burma and also sought further inroads into the Burmese market This
time, the British occupied Pegu, the only remaining coastal province of
Burma. An intense guerrilla resistance had to be overcome before
complete British control of lower Burma could be established.
At the time of the Third Burma War 1885 Burma was ruled by King Thibaw.
The British merchants of Rangoon and lower Burma had been complaining
about the step-motherly treatment by Thibaw, who had also been
negotiating commercial treaties with rival powers of France, Germany and
266
Italy. The French also planned to lay a rail link from Mandalay to the
French territory, at a time when the British were in conflict with the
French in Niger, Egypt and Madagascar. A humiliating fine had been
imposed on a British timber company by Thibaw. Dufferin ordered the

invasion and final annexation of upper Burma in 1885.
The British had to face a strong guerrilla uprising in the whole of
Burma soon after, and a nationalist movement after the First World War.
The Burmese nationalists joined hands with the Indian National Congress.
To weaken this link, Burma was separated from India in 1935. The Burmese
nationalist movement further intensified under U Aung San during the
Second World War, which finally led to independence for Burma on January
4, 1948.
Afghanistan, The problem of imperial defence and search for a scientific
frontier towards the north-west brought the English into a clash with
the hardy Afghans. In the early nineteenth century, increased Russian
influence in Persia replaced British influence and thwarted an English
scheme for establishment of a new route by River Euphrates to India.
Especially after the Treaty of Turkomanchai (1828), the English got
alarmed about possible Russian plans for India. Soon, there was a search
for a scientific frontier from the Indian side. Passes of the north-west
seemed to hold the keys to gateway of India. The need was felt for
Afghanistan to be under control of a friendly prince.
Auckland, who came to India as the governor-general in 1836, advocated a
forward policy. The Arnir of Afghanistan, Dost Mohammed, wanted British
friendship but made it conditional on the British to help him recover
Peshawar from Sikhsa condition which the British Government in India
rejected. Dost Mohammed now turned to Russia and Persia for help. This
prompted the Government to go ahead with the forward policy, and a
tripartite treaty (1838) was entered into by the British, Sikhs and Shah
Shuja (who had been deposed from the Afghan throne in 1809 and had been
living since then as a British pensioner at Ludhiana). The treaty
provided that
* Shah Shuja be enthroned with the armed help of the Sikhs; Company to
remain in the background, 'jingling the money-bag'.
* Shah Shuja conduct foreign affairs with the advice of the Sikhs and
the British.
* Shah Shuja give up his sovereign rights over Amirs of Sindh in return
for a large sum of money.
* Shah Shuja recognise Maharaja Ranjit Singh's (the Sikh ruler) claims
over the Afghan territories on the right bank of River Indus.
But soon, there was a drastic change in political situation of the area
because of the removal of the original irritants Persia lifted siege of
Herat and Russia recalled envoy from Kabul. Nevertheless the British
decided to go ahead with their forward policy. This resulted in the
First Afghan War (1838- 42). The British intention was to establish a
permanent barrier against schemes of aggression from the north-west.
An English army entered triumphantly into Kabul (August 1839) after a
successful attack. Most-of the tribes had already been won over by
bribes. Dost Mohammed ,surrendered (1840) and Shah Shuja was made the
Amir of Afghanistan. But Shah Shuja was unacceptable to the Afghans. As
the British withdrew, the Afghans rose in rebellian, killing the

garrison commander in Kabul. The British were compelled to sign a
treaty (1841) with Afghan chiefs by which they agreed to evacuate
Afghanistan and restore Dost Mohammed. The grandiose plan exploded like
a balloon. Under a new expedition, the British reoccupied Kabul in
September 1842, but having learned their lessons well, they arrived at
a settlement with Dost Mohammed by which the British evacuated Kabul and
recognised him as the independent ruler of Afghanistan.
The First Afghan War cost India one-and-a-half crore
20,000 men.
John Lawrence (governor-general from 1864 to 1869)
masterly inactivity which was a reaction
rupees and nearly
adopted a policy of

to disasters of the First Afghan War (1838-42) and an outcome of
practical common sense and an intimate knowledge of the frontier problem
and of Afghan passion for independence. Even when Dost Mohammed died in
1863, there was no interference in the war of succession. Lawrence's
policy rested on fulfilment of two conditions
(i)
peace at frontier was not disturbed, and
(ii)
no candidate in civil war sought foreign help.
As Sher Ali established himself on throne, Lawrence tried
to cultivate friendship with him. With the arrival of Lytton
in 1876, there was a perceptible policy change. The new
foreign policy was of 'proud reserve' of having scientific
frontiers and safeguarding 'spheres of influence'. According
to Lytton, the relations with Afghanistan could no longer be
left ambiguous. Lytton made an offer of a favourable treaty
to Sher Ali, but the Amir wanted friendship with both his
powerful neighbours, Russia and England, while keeping both
of them at an arm's length. Later, Sher Ali refused to keep
a British envoy in Kabul though He had allowed a Russian
envoy in Kabul. Lytton was stunned, and when the Russians
withdrew their envoy from Kabul, Lytton decided to invade
Afghanistan (Second Afghan war 1878-80). Sher Ali fled in
face of British invasion and The treaty of Gandamak (May
1879) was signed with Yakub Khan, the eldest son of Sher
Ali. The treaty provided that
* the Amir conduct his foreign policy with the advice of Government of
India,
* a permanent British resident be stationed at Kabul,
* the Government of India give the Amir all support against foreign
aggression, and an annual subsidy.
But soon, Yakub had to abdicate under popular pressure and the British
had to recapture Kabul and Kandhar. Lytton chalked out a plan for
dismemberment of Afghanistan, but could not carry it out. Ripon
abandoned this plan and decided on a policy of buffer state. Abdur
Rahman agreed not to
maintain political relations with any other power except the

thus losing control over the foreign policy.
British,
After the First World War and the Russian Revolution (1917), Afghans
demanded full independence. Habibullah (who succeeded Abdur Rahman in
1901) was killed in 1919 and the new ruler Amamullah declared open war
on the British. Peace came in 1921 when Afghanistan recovered
independence in foreign affairs.
North-West Frontier
The successive Indian rulers tried to reach out of this region lying
between the Indus and Afghanistan in search for scientific frontier. The
conquest of Sindh (1843) and annexation of Punjab (1849) carried British
boundaries beyond Indus and brought them in contact with Baluch and
Pathan tribes, who were mostly independent, but the Amir of Afghanistan
claimed nominal sovereinty over them.
During the 1840s, John Jacob established a system of mobile defence
patrols in Sindh and also reclaimed wasteland and started cultivation.
Lord Dalhousie adopted a conciliatory approach towards tribes and set up
a series of fortified posts to check raids. Since 1849 the frontier
policy of the British was guided by the non-interventionist school of
Lord Lawrence. But, the arrival of Lytton in 1876 marked the end of
masterly inactivity. The English policymakers realised the importance
of having a scientific frontier, particularly after the Second Afghan
War and occupation of Afghan territory. Lansdowne (viceroy during 188894) gave further impetus to this forward policy. During 1870s, several
administrative measures were also adopted in the frontiercivil officers
were encouraged to learn Pashtu or Baluchi, a local force as auxiliary
to Punjab Frontier Force was established, and colonies of Afridis,
Waziris, Gurchanis, Bhittanis and Bugtis were formed in the British
territory.
During 1891-92, the British occupation of Hunza, Nagar
valley, which were passes commanding
in Gilagit

communications with Chitral, alarmed Abdur Rahman (the Amir of
Afghanistan). A compromise was finally reached by drawing a boundary
line known as Durand Line between Afghan and British territories. Amir
received some districts and his subsidy was increased. But the Durand
Agreement (1893) failed to keep peace and soon there were tribal
uprisings. To check these, a permanent British garrison was established
at Chitral and troops posted to guard Malakand Pass, but tribal
uprisings continued till 1898.
Curzon (the viceroy between 1899 and 1905), followed a policy of
withdrawal and concentration. British troops withdrew from advanced
posts which were replaced by tribal levies, trained and commanded by
British officers. He also encouraged the tribals to maintain peace. He
created the North-West Frontier Province directly under the Government
of India (earlier, it was under control of the lieutenant governor of
Punjab). Overall, Curzon's policies resulted in a peaceful north-west
frontier. The peaceful conditions continued thereafter with occasional

tribal uprisings. In January 1932, it was announced that the NWFP was to
be constituted as a governor's province. Since 1947, the province
belongs to Pakistan.
Tibet, Tibet was ruled by a theocracy of Buddhist monks (lamas) under
nominal suzerainty of China. The British efforts to establish friendly
and commercial relations with Tibet had not yielded any result in the
past and a deadlock had been reached by the time of Curzon's arrival in
India. The Chinese suzerainty over Tibet was ineffective and Russian
influence at Lhasa was increasing. There were reports of Russian arms
and ammunition finding way into Tibet. Curzon felt alarmed and sent a
small Gorkha contingent under Colonel Younghusband on a special mission
to Tibet to oblige Tibetans to come to an agreement. The Tibetans
refused to negotiate and offered non-violent resistance. Younghusband
pushed his way into Lhasa (August 1904) while the Dalai Lama fled.
Younghusband
dictated terms to the Tibetan officials which provided that
* Tibet would pay an indemnity of Rs 75 lakh at the rate of one lakh
rupees per annum,
* as a security for payment, the Indian Government would occupy the
Chumbi Valley (territory between Bhutan and Sikkim) for 75 years,
* Tibet would respect frontier of Sikkim, * Trade marts would be opened
at Yatung, Gyantse, Gartok.
* Tibet wouldriot grant any concession for railways, roads, telegraph,
etc to any foreign state, but give Great Britain some control over
foreign affairs of Tibet.
But later, on the insistence of the secretary of state and true to the
pledge given to Russia, the treaty was revised reducing the indemnity
from Rs 75 lakh to Rs 25 lakh and providing for evacuation of Chumbi
valley after three years (the valley was actually evacuated in January
1908).
The Younghusband mission mainly served the purpose of gratifying the
imperialist tendencies of the viceroy and no permanent result followed.
Only China gained out of the whole affair because the Anglo-Russian
convention of 1907 provided that the two great powers would not
negotiate with Tibet, except through the intermediary of . the Chinese
Government. Still, Curzon's policy counteracted all Russian schemes in
Tibet.
Views
All experience teaches us that where a dominant race rules another, the
mildest form of government is despotism. Charles Wood (the secretary of
state for India).
Systems of nomination, representation and election were all means of
enlisting Indians to work for imperial ends. Anil Seal
I am sorry to hear of the increasing friction between the Hindus and
Mohammedans in the north-west and the Punjab. One
272
hardly knows what to wish, for unity of ideas and action could be very
dangerous politically; divergence of ideas and collision are administratively troublesome. Of the two, the latter is least risky, though it
throws anxiety and responsibility upon those on the spot where the
friction exists. Hamilton (secretary of state, 1897)
The English were an imperial race, we were told, with Godgiven right to
govern us and keep us in subjection; if we protested, we were reminded
of the tiger qualities of an imperial race. Jawaharlal Nehru.
for either was highly doubtful. F.G. Hutchins .
Administrative Changes After 1857
273
Summary
CHANGED SITUATION AFTER 1857.
Shock of revolt of 1857.
Emergence of new colonial powers.
British supremacy in world economy challenged.
Large-scale British capital investment in India.
CHANGES IN GOVERNMENT AT THE CENTRE.
The Crown assumed the power to governto be exercised through a
secretary of state.
Indians could be associated with legislative process in Imperial
Legislative Council, which had very limited power.
CHANGES IN PROVINCIAL ADMINISTRATION.
A process of financial and administrative devolution initiated in
1870. Half-hearted and inadequate measures, aimed at increasing revenue
only, introduced. CHANGES IN LOCAL BODIES A process of decentralisation
initiated in 1860s. Ripon's Resolution of 1882, a positive step.
Overall paucity of funds and absence of real powers.
CHANGES IN THE ARMY Supremacy of European branch ensured.
Indian branch to be reorganised on the basis of balance and
counterpoise.
Indians to be excluded from important and strategic locations and
branches.
The Army to be used for the defence of the empire and its expansion,
and to promote commercial interests of Great Britain.
PUBLIC SERVICES Very tough for Indians to be able to enter it.
Subordinate them to British authority.
ADMINISTRATIVE POLICIES Divide and Rule.
Hostility to educated Indians.
Zamindars and landlords propped as counterweights to the nationalists.
Reversal of policy of support to social reforms.
Social services ignored.
Half-hearted and inadequate labour legislations introduced.
Stifling of press wherever seen to be helping the nationalist upsurge.
Racial arrogance.
FOREIGN POLICY Reach out to natural geographical frontiers for
internal cohesion and defence.
Keep other European powers at an arm's length.
Promote British economic and commercial interests.
CHAPTER 8
Economic Impact of
British Rule in India
The major difference between the British colonists in India and earlier
invaders was that none of the earlier invaders made any structural
changes in Indian economy or drained away India's wealth as tribute.
British rule in India caused a transformation of India's economy, into a
colonial economy, i.e., the structure and operation of Indian economy
were determined by the interests of the British economy.
A detailed survey of the economic impact of British rule follows.
DEINDUSTRIALISATIONRUIN OF ARTISANS AND HANDICRAFTSMEN
Cheap and machine-made imports flooded the Indian market after the
Charter Act of 1813 allowing one-way free trade for the British
citizens. On the other hand, Indian products found it more and more
difficult to penetrate the European markets. After 1820, European
markets were virtually closed to Indian exports. The newly introduced
rail network helped the European products to reach the remotest corners
of the country.
The loss of traditional livelihood was not accompanied by a process of
industrialisation in India, as had happened in other rapidly
industrialising countries of the time. This resulted in
deindustrialisation of India at a time when Europe was witnessing a
reintensified Industrial Revolution. This happened at a time when
Indian artisans and handicraftsmen were already feeling the crunch due
to loss of patronage by princes and the nobility, who were now under the
influence of new western tastes and values.
274 Economic Impact of British Rule in India
275
Another feature of deindustrialisation was the decline of many cities
and a process of ruralisation of India. Many artisans, faced with
diminishing returns and repressive policies (in Bengal, during the
Company's rule, artisans were paid low wages and forced to sell their
products at low prices), abandoned their professions, moved to villages
and took to agriculture. This resulted in increased pressure on land. An
overburdened agriculture sector was a major cause of poverty during
British rule and this upset the village economic set-up. From being a
net exporter, India became a net importer.
IMPOVERISHMENT OF PEASANTRY
The Government, only interested in maximisation of rents and in securing
its share of revenue, had enforced the Permanent Settlement system in
large parts. Transferability of land was one feature of the new
settlement which caused great insecurity to the tenants who lost all
their traditional rights in land. There was little spending by
Government on improvement of land productivity. The zamindars, with
increased powers, resorted to summary evictions, demanded illegal dues
and 'begar' to maximise their share in the produce and, as such, had no
incentive to invest for improvement of agriculture. The overburdened

peasants had to approach the money-lenders to be able to pay their dues
to the zamindars. The moneylender, who was often also the village grainmerchant, forced the farmer to sell the produce at low prices to clear
his dues. The powerful money-lender was also able to manipulate the
judiciary and law in his favour.
The peasant turned out to be the ultimate sufferer under the triple
burden of the Government, zamindar and moneylender. His hardship
increased at the time of famine and scarcity. This was as much true for
the zamindari areas as for areas under Ryotwari and Mahalwari systems.
EMERGENCE OF NEW LAND RELATIONS, RUIN OF OLD ZAMINDARS
By 1815, half the total land in Bengal had passed into new
new zamindars, with increased powers but with
hands. The

little or no avenues for new investments, resorted to landgrabbing and
sub-infeudation. Increase in number of intermediaries to be paid gave
rise to absentee landlordism and increased the burden on the peasant.
Since the demand for land was high, prices went up and so did the
liabilities of the peasant. With no traditional or benevolent ties with
the tenants, the zamindar had no incentive to invest in the improvement
of agriculture. The interests of the zamindars lay only in the
perpetuation of British rule and in opposing the national movement.
STAGNATION AND DETERIORATION OF AGRICULTURE
The cultivator had neither the means nor any incentive to invest in
agriculture. The zamindar had no roots in the villages, while the
Government spent little on agricultural, technical or mass education.
All this, together with fragmentation of land due to sub-irtfeudation,
made it difficult to introduce modern technology which caused a
perpetually low level of productivity.
COMMERCIALISATION OF INDIAN AGRICULTURE
In the latter half of the nineteenth century, another significant trend
was the emergence of the commercialisation of agriculture. So far,
agriculture' had been a way of life rather than a business enterprise.
Now agriculture began to be influenced by commercial considerations.
Certain specialised crops began to be grown not for consumption in the
village but for sale in the national and even international markets.
Commercial crops like cotton, jute, groundnut, oilseeds, sugarcane,
tobacco, etc were more remunerative than foodgrains. Again, the
cultivation of crops like condiments, spices, fruits and vegetables
could cater to a wider market. Perhaps, the commercialisation trend
reached the highest level of development in the plantation sector, i.e.,
in tea, coffee, rubber, indigo, etc., which was mostly owned by
Europeans and the produce was for sale in a wider market.
The new market trend of commercialisation and
Economic Impact of British Rule in India
277
specialisation was encouraged by many factorsspread of money economy,

replacement of custom and tradition by 'competition and contract,
emergence of a unified national market, growth of internal trade,
improvement in communications through rail and roads and boost to
international trade given by entry of British finance capital, etc.
For the Indian peasant, commercialisation seemed a forced process. There
was hardly any surplus for him to invest in commercial crops, given the
subsistence level at which he lived, while commercialisation linked
Indian agriculture with international market trends and their
fluctuations. For instance, the cotton of the 1860s pushed up prices but
this mostly benefited the intermediaries, and when the slump in prices
came in 1866, it hit the cultivators the most, bringing in its turn
heavy indebtedness, famine and agrarian riots in the Deccan in the
1870s. Thus, the cultivator hardly emerged better from the new
commercialisation trend.
DEVELOPMENT OF MODERN INDUSTRY
It was only in the second half of the nineteenth century that modern
machine-based industries started coming up in India. The first cotton
textile mill was set up in 1853 in Bombay by Cowasjee Nanabhoy and the
first jute mill came up in 1855 in Rishra (Bengal). But most of the
>modern industries were foreign-owned and controlled by British managing
agencies.
There was a rush of >foreign capital in India at this time due to
prospects of high profits, availability of cheap labour, cheap and
readily available raw material, ready market in India and the
neighbours, diminishing avenues for investments at home, willingness of
the administration to provide all help, and ready markets abroad for
some Indian exports such as tea, jute and manganese.
Indian-owned industries came up in cotton textiles and jute in the
nineteenth century and in sugar, cement, etc in the twentieth century.
Indian-owned industries suffered from many handicaps credit problems, no
tariff protection by
Government, unequal competition from foreign companies, and stiff
opposition from British capitalist interests who were backed by sound
financial and technical infrastructure at home.
The colonial factor also caused certain structural and institutional
changes. The industrial development was characterised by a lopsided
patterncore and heavy industries and power generation were neglected
and some regions were favoured more than the others causing regional
disparities. These regional disparities hampered the process of nation
building. In the absence of careful nurturing of technical education,
the industry lacked sufficient technical manpower. Socially, the rise of
an industrial capitalist class and the working class was an important
feature of this phase.
RISE OF INDIAN BOURGEOISIE

Indian traders, moneylenders and bankers had amassed some wealth as
junior partners of English merchant capitalists in India. Their role
fitted in the British scheme of colonial exploitation. The Indian
moneylender provided loans to hardpressed agriculturists and thus
facilitated the state collection of revenue. The Indian trader carried
imported British products to the remotest corners and helped in the
movement of Indian agricultural products for exports. The indigenous
bankers helped both in the process of distribution and collection. But,
the colonial situation retarded the development of a healthy and
independent industrial bourgeoisie, and its development was different
from other independent countries like Germany and Japan.
ECONOMIC DRAIN
The term 'economic drain' refers to a portion of national product of
India which was not available for consumption of its people, but was
being drained away to Britain for political reasons and India was not
getting adequate economic or material returns for it. The drain theory
was put forward by Dadabhai Naoroji in his book Poverty and British Rule
in India. The major components of this drain were salaries and
Economic Impact of British Rule in India 279
pensions of civil and military officials, interests on loans taken by
the Indian Government from abroad, profits on foreign investment in
India, stores purchased in Britain for civil and military departments,
payments to be made for shipping, banking and insurance services which
stunted the growth of Indian enterprise in these services.
The drain of wealth checked and retarded capital formation in India
while the same portion of wealth accelerated the growth of British
economy. The surplus from British economy re-entered India as finance
capital, further draining India of its wealth. This had immense effect
on income and employment potential within India.
FAMINE AND POVERTY
Regular recurrence of famines became a common feature of daily existence
in India. These famines were not just foodgrain scarcity-based
phenomena, but were a direct result of poverty unleashed by colonial
forces in India. Between 1850 and 1900, about 2.8 crore people died in
famines.
NATIONALIST CRITIQUE OF COLONIAL ECONOMY
The early intellectuals of the first half of the nineteenth century
supported British rule under the impression that it would modernise the
country based on latest technology and capitalist economic organisation.
After the 1860s, disillusionment started to set in among the politically
conscious and they began to probe into the reality of British rule in
India.
The foremost among these economic analysts was Dadabhai Naoroji, the
'Grand Old Man of India', who after a brilliant analysis of the colonial
economy put forward the theory of economic drain in Poverty and British
Rule in India. Other economic analysts included Justice Mahadeo Govind

Ranade, Romesh Chandra Dutt (The Economic History of India), Gopal
Krishna Gokhale, G. Subramaniya Ayer and Prithwishchandra. Ray. The
essence of nineteenth century colonialism, they said, lay in the
transformation of India into a supplier of foodstuffs and raw-materials
to the metropolis,
Economic impact of British Rule in India
281
a market for metropolitan manufacturers and a field for investment of

British capital. These early nationalist analysts organised intellectual
agitations and advocated a complete severance of India's economic
subservience to Britain and the development of an independent economy
based on modern industries.
The basic assertion of these early intellectuals was that India was
poor and growing poorer due to British imperialism, and since the causes
of India's economic backwardness were man-made, they were explainable
and removable. The problem of poverty was seen as a problem of raising
productive capacity and energy of the people or as a problem of national
development, thus making poverty national issue. This helped in rallying
all sections of society around common economic issues. Also, development
was equated with industrialisation. This industrialisation was to be
based on Indian and not foreign capital because, according to the early
nationalists, foreign capital replaced and suppressed instead of
augmenting and encouraging Indian capital. This suppression caused
economic drain, further strengthening British hold over India. The
political consequences of foreign capital investments were equally
harmful as they caused political subjugation and created vested
interests which sought security for investors, thus perpetuating the
foreign rule.
These analysts exposed the force of British arguments that the growth of
foreign trade and railways implied development for India. They argued
back that the pattern of foreign trade was unfavourable to India. It
relegated India to a position of importer of finished goods and exporter
of raw materials and foodstuffs. The development of railways, they
argued, was, not coordinated with India's industrial needs and it
ushered in a commercial rather than an industrial revolution. The net
effect of the railways was to enable foreign goods to outsell indigenous
products. Further, the benefits from impetus to steel, machinery and
capital investment in railways accrued to the British. G.V. Joshi
remarked, "Expenditure on railways should be seen as an Indian subsidy to
British industries."
The nationalists claimed that one-way free trade was ruining Indian
handicrafts industry, exposing it to premature, unequal and unfair
competition, while tariff policy was guided by British capitalist
interests. On the finance front, taxes were levied to overburden the
poor, sparing British capitalists and the bureaucrats. They demanded
reduction of land revenue, abolition of salt tax, imposition of income
tax and excise duties on consumer goods consumed by the rich middle
classes. The government expenditure, it was argued, was meant to serve

colonial needs only, while development and welfare were ignored.
The drain theory incorporated all threads of the nationalist critique
that it denuded India of its productive capital. According to
nationalist estimates, the economic drain at that time was
* more than the total land revenue, or half the total government revenue,
or one third of the total savings (in today's terms, it amounted to 8
per cent of the national product).
The concept of drainone country taking away wealth from another
countrywas easily grasped by a nation of peasants for whom exploitation
was a matter of daily experience.
The nationalist agitation on economic issues served to undermine the
ideological hegemony of alien rulers over Indian minds that the foreign
rule was in the interest of Indians, thus exposing the myth of its moral
foundations. It was also shown clearly that India was poor because it
was being ruled for British interests. This agitation, was one of the
stimulants for intellectual unrest and spread of national consciousness
during the moderate phase of freedom struggle (1875-1905)the seed-time
of national movement.
Till the end of the 19th century, the nationalists had been
some share in political power and control over the
282
demanding
purse. During the first decade of the 20th century, they started
demanding self-rule, like United Kingdom or the colonies, and prominent
among such nationalists was Dadabhai Naoroji.
Views
Where foreign capital has been sunk in a country. the administration of
that country becomes at once the concern of the bondholders. The Hindu
(September 1889).
It is not the pitiless operations of economic laws, but it is the
thoughtless and pitiless action of the British policy; it is the
pitiless eating of India's substance in India, and the further pitiless
drain to England; in short, it is the pitiless perversion of economic
laws by the sad bleeding to which India is subjected, that is destroying
India. Dadabhai Naoroji.
Taxation raised by the King, says the Indian poet, is dike the moisture
sucked up by the sun, to be returned to the earth as fertilising rain;
but the moisture raised from the Indian soil now descends as fertilising
rain largely on other lands, not on India. R.C. DIM.
Trade cannot thrive without efficient administration, while the latter
is not worth attending to in the absence of profits of the former. So,
always with the assent and often to the dictates of the Chamber of
Commerce, the Government of India is carried on, and this is the 'White
Man's Burden'. Sachidanand Sinha.
Under the native despot the people keep and enjoy what they produce,
though at times they suffer some violence. Under ,the British Indian
despot, the man is at peace, there is no violence; his substance is

drained away, unseen, peaceably and subtly he starves in peace, and
peaceably perishes in peace, with law and order. Dadabhai Naoroji.
The misery hardly finds a parallel in the history of commerce; the bones
of cotton weavers are bleaching the plains of north India. William
Bentinck.
Economic Impact of British Rule in India
283
Summary
ECONOMIC IMPACT OF BRITISH RULE
Deindustrialisationruin of artisans and handicraftsmen.
Impoverishment of peasantryruralisation of India.
Emergence of new land relationsruin of old zamindars.
Stagnation and deterioration of agriculture.
Commercialisation of Indian agriculture.
Development of modern industry.
Rise of Indian national bourgeoisie.
Economic drain.
Famine and poverty.
NATIONALIST CRITIQUE
India getting poorer due to colonial exploitation.
Problem of povertya national problem of raising productive capacities
and energy.
Development equated with industrialisation, which should take place
through Indian, not foreign capital.
British policies on trade, finance, infrastructure development,
expenditure designed to serve imperialist interests.
Need for complete severance of India's economic subservience to Britain
and development of an independent economy.
CHAPTER 9
Development of Indian Press
James Augustus Hickey in 1780 started The Bengal Gazette or Calcutta
General Advertiser, the first newspaper in India, which was seized in
1872 because of its outspov criticism of the Government. Later more
newspapers/journals came upThe Bengal Journal, Calcutta Chronicle,
Madras Courier, Bombay Herald. The Company's officers were worried that
these newspapers might reach London and expose their misdeeds. Thus they
saw the need for curbs on the press.
EARLY REGULATIONS
Censorship of Press Act, 1799, Lord Wellesley enacted this, anticipating
French invasion of India. It imposed almost wartime press restrictions
including pre-censorship. These restrictions were relaxed under Lord
Hastings, who had

dispensed with.
progressive views, and in 1818, pre-censorship was
Licensing Regulations, 1823, The acting governor-general John Adams, who

had reactionary views, enacted these. According to these regulations,
starting or using a press without licence was a penal offence. These
restrictions were directed chiefly against Indian language newspapers or
those edited by Indians. Rammohan Roy's Mirat-ul-Akbar had to stop
publication.
Press Act of 1835 or Metcalfe Act, Metcalfe (governorgeneral-1835-36)
repealed the obnoxious 1823 ordinance and earned the epithet, "liberator
of the Indian press". The new Press Act (1835) required a
printer/publisher to give a precise account of premises of a publication
and cease functioning, if required by a similar declaration.
The result of a liberal press policy was a rapid growth
of newspapers.
284
Development of Indian Press 285
Licensing Act, 1857, Due to the emergency caused by the 1857 revolt,
this Act imposed licensing restrictions in addition to the already
existing registration procedure laid down by Metcalfe Act and the
Government reserved the right to stop publication and circulation of any
book, newspaper or printed matter.
Registration Act, 1867, This replaced Metcalfe's Act of 1835 and was of
a regulatory, not restrictive, nature. As per the Act,
(i)
every book/newspaper was required to print the name of the
printer and the publisher and the place of the publication;
and
(ii)
a copy was to be submitted to the local government within
one month of the publication of a book.
STRUGGLE BY EARLY NATIONALISTS TO SECURE PRESS FREEDOM
Right from the early nineteenth century, defence of civil liberties,
including the freedom of the press, had been high on nationalist agenda.
As early as 1824, Raja Rammohan Roy had protested against a resolution
restricting the freedom of the press.
The early phase of nationalist movement from around 1870 to 1918
focussed more on political propaganda and education, formation and
propagation of nationalist ideology and arousing, training, mobilisation
and consolidation of public opinion, than on mass agitation or active
mobilisation of masses through open meetings. For this purpose the press
proved a crucial tool in the hands of the nationalists. The Indian
National Congress in its early days relied solely on the press to
propagate its resolutions and proceedings.
Many newspapers emerged during these years under distinguished and
fearless journalists. These included Hindu and Swadesamitran under G.
Subramaniya Aiyar, The Bengalee under Surendranath Banerjee, Voice of
India under Dadabhai Naoroji, Amrita Bazar Patrika under Sisir Kumar
Ghosh and Motilal Ghosh, Indian Mirror under N.N. Sen, Kesari (in
Marathi) and Maharatta (in English) under Balgangadhar Tilak, Sudharak
under Gopal Krishna Gokhale, and Hindustan and
286
Advocate under G.P. Verma. Other main newspapers included, Tribune and
Akbhar-i-ant in Punjab, Gujarati, Indu Prakash, Dhyan Prakash and Kal in
Bombay and Som Prakash, Banganivasi and Sadharani in Bengal.
These newspapers were not established as profit-making business ventures
but were seen as rendering national and public service. In fact, these
newspapers had a wide reach and they stimulated a library movement.
Their impact was not limited to cities and towns; these newspapers
reached the remote villages, where each news item and editorial would
be read and discussed thoroughly in the 'local libraries' which would
gather around a single newspaper. In this way, these libraries served
the purpose of not only political education but also of political
participation. In these newspapers, government acts and policies were
put to critical scrutiny. They acted as an institution of opposition to
the Government.
The Government on its part had enacted many strident laws, such as
Section 124 A of the Indian Penal Code which provided that anyone trying
to cause disaffection against the British Government in India was to be
transported for life or for any term or imprisoned upto three years. But
the nationalist-minded journalists had evolved many clever strategies
to subvert these legal hurdles. For instance, writings hostile to the
Government used to be prefaced with sentiments of loyalty to the
Government or critical writings of socialists or Irish nationalists from
newspapers in England used to be quoted. This was a difficult task which
required an intelligent mix of simplicity with subtlety.
The national movement, from its very beginning, stood for the freedom of
press. The Indian newspapers became highly critical of Lord Lytton's
administration especially regarding its inhuman treatment to victims of
the famine of 1876-77. The Government struck back with the Vernacular
Press Act, 1878.
VERNACULAR PRESS ACT, 1878
A bitter legacy of the 1857 revolt was the racial bitterness
ruler and the ruled. After 1858, the European
between the
287
press always rallied behind the Government in political controversies

while the vernacular press was critical of the Government. There was a
strong public opinion against the imperialistic policies of Lytton,
compounded by terrible famine (1876-77), on the one hand, and lavish
expenditure on the imperial Delhi Durbar, on the other.
The Vernacular Press Act (VPA) was designed to 'better control' the
vernacular press and effectively punish and repress seditious writing.
The provisions of the Act included the following.
1. The district magistrate was empowered to call upon the printer and
publisher of any vernacular newspaper to enter into a bond with the
Government undertaking not to cause disaffection against the Government
or antipathy between persons of different religions, caste, race through
published material; the printer and publisher could also be required to
deposit security which could be forefeited if the regulation were
contravened, and press equipment could be seized if the offence reoccurred.
2. The magistrate's action was final and no appeal could be made in a
court of law.
3. A vernacular newspaper could get exemption from the operation of the
Act by submitting proofs to a government censor.
The Act came to be nicknamed "the gagging Act". The worst features of
this Act were
(i)
discrimination between English and vernacular press,
(ii) no right of appeal.
Under VPA, proceedings were instituted against Som Prakash, Bharat
Mihir, Dacca Prakash and Samachar. (Incidentally, the Amrita Bazar
Patrika turned overnight into an English newspaper to escape the VPA.)
Later, the pre-censorship clause was repealed, and a press commissioner
was appointed to supply authentic and accurate news to the press.
There was strong opposition to the Act and finally Ripon repealed it in
1882.
In 1883, Surendranath Banerjee became the first Indian
288
journalist to be imprisoned. In an angry editorial in The Bengalee

Banerjee had criticised a judge of Calcutta High Court for being
insensitive to the religious sentiments of Bengalis in one of his
judgements.
Balgangadhar Tilak is most frequently associated with the nationalist
fight for the freedom of press. Tilak had been building up antiimperialist sentiments among the public through Ganapati festivals
(started in 1893), Shivaji festivals (started in 1896) and through his
newspapers Kesari and Maharatta. He was among the first to advocate
bringing the lower middle classes, the peasants, artisans and workers
into the Congress fold. In 1896, he organised an all Maharashtra
campaign for boycott of foreign cloth in opposition to imposition of
excise duty on cotton. In 1896-97 he initiated a no-tax campaign in
Maharashtra, urging farmers to withhold the payment of revenue if their
crop had failed. In 1897, plague occurred in Poona. Although Tilak
supported government measures to check plague, there was large-scale
popular resentment against heartless and harsh methods such as
segregation and house searches. The popular unrest resulted in murder of
the chairman of the Plague Committee in Poona by the Chapekar brothers.
The government policies on tariff, currency and famine were also behind
this popular resentment.
The Government had been looking for an opportunity to check this

militant trend and hostility in the press. They decided to make Tilak a
victim to set an example to the public. Tilak was arrested after the
murder of Rand on the basis of the publication of a poem, 'Shivaji's
Utterances', in Kesari, and of a speech which Tilak had delivered at the
Shivaji festival, justifying Afzal Khan's murder by Shivaji. Tilak's
defence of Shivaji's killing of Afzal Khan was portrayed by the
prosecution as an incitement to kill British officials. Tilak was held
guilty and awarded rigorous imprisonment of eighteen months.
Simultaneously several other editors in Bombay presidency were tried and
given similar harsh sentences. There were widespread protests against
these measures. Overnight Tilak became a national hero and was given the
title of Lokmanya'
289
(respected and honoured by the people)a new leader who

his deeds.
preached with
In 1898, the Government amended Section 124A and added another Section
153A which made it a criminal offence for anyone to bring into contempt
the Government of India or to create hatred among different classes,
that is, vis-a-vis the English in India. This also led to nation-wide
protests. During Swadeshi and Boycott Movements and due to rise of
militant nationalist trends, several repressive laws were passed.
Newspaper (Incitement to Offences) Act, 1908 Aimed against Extremist
nationalist activity, the Act empowered the magistrates to confiscate
press property which published objectionable material likely to cause
incitement to murder/ acts of violence.
Indian Press Act, 1910 This Act revived the worst features of the VPA
local government was empowered to demand a security at registration from
the printer/publisher and forfeit/deregister if it was an offending
newspaper, and the printer of a newspaper was required to submit two
copies of each issue to local government free of charge.
Tilak as the leader of militant nationalists was tried on charges of
sedition and transported to Mandalay (Burma) for six years. This led to
countrywide protests. In Bombay, textile workers and railway workshop
workers took on the Army in streets and went on strike for days. Lenin
hailed this as the entrance of the Indian working class on the political
stage.
DURING AND AFTER THE FIRST WORLD WAR, Defence of India Rules were imposed
for repression of political agitation and free public criticism during
the First World War. In 1921, on the recommendations of a Press
Committee chaired by Tej Bahadur Sapru, the Press Acts of 1908 and 1910
were repealed.
Indian Press (Emergency Powers) Act, 1931, This Act gave sweeping powers
to provincial governments to suppress propaganda for Civil Disobedience
Movement. It was further
290
amplified in 1932 to include all Ectivities calculated to undermine

government authority.
DURING THE SECOND WORLD WAR Under the Defence of India Rules, precensorship was imposed and amendments made in Press Emergency Act and
Official Secrets Act. At one time, publication of all news related to
Congress activity was declared illegal.
AFTER INDEPENDENCE
Press Enquiry Committee, 1947, The Committee was set up to examine press
laws in the light of fundamental rights formulated by the Constituent
Assembly. It recommended repeal of Indian Emergency Powers Act, 1931,
amendments in Press and Registration of Books Act, modifications in
Sections 124-A and 156-A of IPC, among others.
Press (Objectionable Matters) Act, 1951, The Act was passed along with
amendment to Article 19 (2) of the Constitution. The Act empowered the
government to demand and forefit security for publication of
"objectionable matter". Aggrieved owners and printers were given right
to demand trial by jury. It remained in force till 1956.
Press Commission under Justice Rajadhyaksha, The commission recommended
in 1954 the establishing of All India Press Council, fixing the presspage schedule system for newspapers, banning crossword puzzle
competitions, evolving a strict code of advertisements by newspapers, and
the desirability of preventing concentration in ownership of Indian
newspapers.
Other Acts passed include Delivering of Books and Newspapers (Public
Libraries) Act, 1954; Working Journalists (Conditions of Services) and
Miscellaneous Provisions Act; 1955; Newspaper (Price and Page) Act,
1956; and Parliamentary Proceedings (Protection of Publications) Act,
1960.
CHAPTER 10
Development of Education
For the first 60 years of its dominion in India, the East India Company,
a trading and profit-making concern, took no interest in the promotion
of education. Some minor exceptions were efforts by individuals
The Calcutta Madrasah was established by Warren Hastings in 1781 for
the study of Muslim law and related subjects.
The Sanskrit College was established by Jonathan Duncan, the resident,
at Benaras in 1791 for study of Hindu law and philosophy.
Fort William College was set up by Wellesley in 1800 for training of
civil servants of the Company in languages and customs of Indians
(closed in 1802).
The Calcutta Madrasah and the Sanskrit College were designed to provide
a regular supply of qualified Indians to help the administration of law
in the Company's court, and the knowledge of classical languages and
vernaculars was useful in correspondence with Indian states. Enlightened
Indians and missionaries started exerting pressure on the Government to
promote modern, secular, western education since,
(a) enlightened Indians thought that western education was the remedy
for social, economic and political ills of the country;
(b) missionaries thought that modern education would destroy the faith
of Indians in their own religions and they would take to Christianity.
Serampore missionaries were, in particular, very enthusiastic about
spread of education.
A HUMBLE BEGINNING BY CHARTER ACT OF 1813, The Act incorporated the
principle of encouraging learned Indians and promoting knowledge of
modern sciences in the
291
country. The Act directed the. Company to sanction one lakh rupees
annually for this purpose. However, even this petty amount was not made
available till 1823, mainly because of the controversy raged on the
question of the direction that this expenditure should take.
Meanwhile, efforts of enlightened Indians such as Raja Rammohan Roy bore
fruit and a grant was sanctioned for Calcutta College set up in 1817 by
educated Bengalis, imparting English education in western humanities and
sciences. The Government also set up three Sanskrit colleges at
Calcutta, Delhi and Agra.
ORIENTALIST-ANGLIC1ST CONTROVERSY Within the General Committee on Public
Instruction, the Anglicists argued that the government spending on
education should be exclusively for modern studies.
The. Orientalists said while western sciences and literature should be
taught to prepare students to take up jobs, emphasis should be placed on
expansion of traditional Indian learning.
Even the Anglicists were divided over the question of medium of
instructionone faction was for English language as the medium, while
the other faction was for Indian languages (vernaculars) for the
purpose.
Unfortunately there was a great deal of confusion over English and
vernacular languages as media of instruction and as objects of study.
Lord Macaulay's Minute (1835), This famous minute settled the row in
favour of Angliciststhe limited government resources were to be devoted
to teaching of western sciences and literature through the medium of
English language alone. Lord Macaulay held the view that "Indian
learning was inferior to European learning"which was true as far as
physical and social sciences in the contemporary stage were concerned.
The Government soon made English as the medium of instruction in its

schools and colleges and opened a few English schools and colleges
instead of a large number of elementary
Development of Education 293
schools, thus neglecting mass education. The British planned to educate
a small section of upper and middle classes, thus creating a class
"Indian in blood and colour but English in tastes, in opinions, in
morals and in intellect" who would act as interpreters between the
Government and masses and would enrich the vernaculars by which
knowledge of western sciences and literature would reach the masses.
This was called the 'downward filtration theory'.
Modern ideas, if not education, did filter down to the masses, though
not in a form desired by the rulers, but through political parties,
press, pamphlets, public platforms, etc. Modern education only helped
this process by making available the basic literature on physical and
social sciences to nationalists, thus stimulating their capacity to make
social analysisotherwise the content, structure and curricula of
modern education served colonial interests.
EFFORTS OF THOMSON, James Thomson, lieutenant-governor of NW Provinces
(1843-53), developed a comprehensive scheme of village education through
the medium of vernacular languages. In these village schools, useful
subjects such as mensuration and agriculture sciences were taught. The
purpose was to train personnel for the newly set up Revenue and Public
Works Department.
WOOD'S DESPATCH (1854), In 1854, Charles Wood prepared a despatch on an
educational system for India. Considered the "Magna Carta of English
Education in. India", this document was the first comprehensive plan for
the spread of education in India.
1. It asked the Government of India to assume responsibility for
education of the masses, thus repudiating the 'downward filtration
theory', at least on paper.
2. It systematised the hierarchy from vernacular primary schools in
villages at bottom, followed by Anglo-Vernacular High Schools and an
affiliated college at the district level, and affiliating universities
in the presidency towns of Calcutta, Bombay and Madras.
294
3. It recommended English as the medium of instruction for higher

studies and vernaculars at school level.
4. It laid stress on female and vocational, education, and on teachers'
training.
5. It laid down that the education imparted in government institutions
should be secular.
6. It recommended a system of grants-in-aid to encourage private
enterprise.
In 1857, universities at Calcutta, Bombay and Madras were set up and

later, departments of education were set up in all provinces. The
Bethune School founded by Bethune at Calcutta (1849) was the first fruit
of a powerful movement for education of women which arose in 1840s and
1850s. Bethune was the president of the Council of Education. Mostly
due to Bethune's efforts, girls' schools were set up on a sound footing
and brought under government's grants-in-aid and inspection system.
An Agriculture Institute at Pusa (Bihar) and an Engineering
Roorkee were started.
Institute at
The ideals and methods of Wood's Despatch dominated the field for five
decades which saw rapid westernisation of education system in India,
with educational institutions run by European headmasters and
principals. Missionary enterprises played their own part. Gradually,
private Indian effort appeared in the field.
HUNTER EDUCATION COMMISSION (1882-83), Earlier schemes had neglected
primary and secondary education. When education was shifted to provinces
in 1870, primary and secondary education further suffered because the
provinces already had limited resources at their disposal. In 1882, the
Government appointed a commission under the chairmanship of W.W. Hunter
to review the progress of education in the country since the Despatch of
1854. The Hunter Commission mostly confined its recommendations to
primary and secondary education. The commission
295
(i) emphasised that state's special care is required for extension and
improvement of primary education, and that primary education should be
imparted through vernacular.
(ii) recommended transfer of control of primary education to newly set
up district and municipal boards.
(iii) recommended that secondary (High School) education should have two
divisions
literaryleading upto university.
vocationalfor commercial careers.
(iii)
drew attention to inadequate facilities for female
education, especially outside presidency towns and made
recommendations for its spread.
The next two decades saw rapid growth and expansion of secondary and
collegiate education with the participation of Indians. Also, more
teaching-cum-examining universities were set up like the Punjab
University (1882) and the Allahabad University (1887).
INDIAN UNIVERSITIES ACT, 1904,
unrest. The official view was
of education had deteriorated
factories producing political
decline in quality but accused
eradicate illiteracy.
The dawn of 20th century saw political

that under private management the quality
and educational institutions acted as
revolutionaries. Nationalists accepted the
the Government of not doing anything to
In 1902, Raleigh Commission was set up to go into conditions of

universities in India: to suggest measures for improvement in their
constitution and working. The commission precluded from reporting on
primary or secondary education. Based on its recommendations, the
Indian Universities Act was passed in 1904. As per the Act
(i) universities were to give moreattention to study and research;
(ii) the number of fellows of a university and their period in office
were reduced and most fellows were to be nominated by the Government;
(iii) Government was to have powers to veto universities' senate
regulations and could amend these regulations or pass regulations on its
own;
(iv) conditions were to be made stricter for affiliation of private
colleges; and
(iv)
five lakh rupees were to be sanctioned per annum for five
years for improvement of higher education and universities.
Curzon justified greater control over universities in the name of
quality and efficiency, but actually sought to restrict education and to
discipline the educated towards loyalty to the Government.
The nationalists saw in it an attempt to strengthen imperialism and to
sabotage nationalist feelings. Gokhale called it a "retrograde measure".
GOVERNMENT RESOLUTION ON EDUCATION POLICY-1913
In 1906, the progressive estate of Baroda introduced compulsory primary
education throughout its territories. National leaders urged the
Government to do so for British India (Gokhale made a powerful advocacy
for it in the Legislative Assembly).
In its 1913 Resolution on Education Policy, the Government refused to
take up the responsibility of compulsory education, but accepted the
policy of removal of illiteracy and urged provincial governments to take
early steps to provide free elementary education to the poorer and more
backward sections. Private efforts were to be encouraged for this and
the quality of secondary schools was to be improved. A university, it
was decided, was to be established in each province and teaching
activities of universities were to be encouraged.
SADDLER UNIVERSITY COMMISSION (1917-19), The commission was set up to
study and report on problems of Calcutta University but its
recommendations were applicable more or less to other universities also.
It reviewed the entire field from school education to university
education. It held the view that, for the improvement of university
education, improvement of secondary education was a necessary
precondition. Its observations were as follows:
1. School course should cover 12 years. Students should enter university
after an intermediate stage (rather than matric) for a three-year degree
course in university. This was done to
(a) prepare students for university stage;
(b) relieve universities of a large number of below university standard

students; and
(c) provide collegiate education to those not planning to go through
university stage.
A separate board of secondary and 'intermediate education should be set
up for administration and control of secondary and intermediate
education.
2. There should be less rigidity in framing university regulations.
3. A university should function as centralised, unitary residentialteaching autonomous body, rather than as scattered, affiliated colleges.
4. Female education, applied scientific and technological education,
teachers' training including those for professional and vocational
colleges should be extended.
In the' period from 1916 to 1921 seven new universities came up at
Mysore, Patna, Benaras, Aligarh, Dacca, Lucknow and Osmania.
In 1920, the Government recommended Saddler report
governments.
to the provincial
EDUCATION UNDER DYARCHY

Under Montagu-Chelmsford reforms education was shifted to provincial
ministries and the Government stopped taking direct interest in
educational matters, while government grants, liberally sanctioned since
1902, were now stopped. Financial difficulties prevented any substantial
expansion but still education grew, especially under philanthropic
efforts.
298
HARTOG COMMITTEE (1929)

An increase in number of schools and colleges had led to deterioration
of education standards. A Hartog Committee was set up to report on
development of education. Its main recommendations were as follows.
1. Emphasis should be given to primary education but there need be no
hasty expansion or compulsion in education.
2. Only deserving students should go in for high school and intermediate
stage, while average students should be diverted to vocational courses
after. VIII standard.
3. For improvements in standards of university education, admissions
should be restricted.
WARDHA SCHEME OF BASIC EDUCATION (1937)
The Congress had organised a National Conference on Education in October
1937 in Wardha. In the light of the resolutions passed there, Zakir
Hussain committee formulated a detailed national scheme for basic
education. The main principle behind this scheme was 'learning through
activity'. It was based on Gandhi's ideas published in a series of
articles in the weekly Harijan. Gandhi thought that western education
had created a gulf between the educated few and the masses and had also
made the educated elite ineffective. The scheme had the following
provisions.
(i)
Inclusion of a basic handicraft in the syllabus.
(ii) First seven years of schooling to be an integral part

of a free and compulsory nationwide education system (through
mother tongue).
(iii) Teaching to be in Hindi from class II to VII and in English only
after class VIII.
(iv) Ways to be devised to establish contact with the community around
schools through service.
(v) A suitable technique to be devised with aim to implementing the main
idea of basic educationeducating the child through the medium of
productive activity of a suitable handicraft.
The system, rather than being a methodology for
299
education, was an expression of an idea for a new life and a new

society. The basic premise was that only through such a scheme could
India be an independent and non-violent society. This scheme was childcentred and cooperative.
There was not much development of this idea, because of the start of the
Second World War and the resignation of the Congress ministries (October
1939).
SERGEANT PLAN OF EDUCATION
The Sergeant Plan (Sergeant was the educational advisor to the
Government) was worked out by the Central Advisory Board of Education in
1944. It recommended1. pre-primary education for 3-6 years age group; free, universal and
compulsory elementary education for 6-11 years age group; high school
education for 11-17 years age group for selected children, and a
university course of 3 years after higher secondary; high schools to be
of two types: (i) academic and (ii) technical and vocational.
2. adequate technical, commercial and arts education.
3. abolition of intermediate course.
4. liquidation of adult illiteracy in 20 years.
5. stress on teachers' training, physical education, education for the
physically and mentally handicapped.
The objective was to create within 40 years, the same level of
educational attainment as prevailed in England. Although a bold and
comprehensive scheme, it proposed no methodology for implementation.
Also, the ideal of England's achievements may not have suited Indian
conditions.
AFTER INDEPENDENCE
Radhakrishnan Commission (1948-49)
The commission was set up to report on university education in the
country. Its recommendations proved to be of immense significance in
establishing an educational system for free India. The major
recommendations were as follows.
1. There should be 12 years of pre-university educational course.
300
2. Higher education should have three main objectives: * central

education * liberal education * occupational education.
3. A university degree should not be considered essential for
administrative services.
4. Rural universities with Shantiniketan and Jamia Millia as their
models should be established.
5. Colleges should not be overcrowded; there should not be more than
1000 students in each college.
.
6. Examination standards in universities should be raised and university
education should be placed in "Concurrent List".
7. A University Grants Commission should be set up to look after
university education in the country.
8. English as the medium of instruction for higher studies should not be
removed in haste.
9. Where federal language and mother tongue are not the same, federal
language should be the medium of instruction; where federal language and
mother tongue are the same, the child should take up a classical or
modem Indian language.
In pursuance of these recommendations, the University Grants Commission
was constituted in 1953 and given an autonomous statutory status through
an Act of Parliament in 1956, with responsibilities connected with
university education including determination and coordination of
standards and facilities for study and research. The centre annually
places at the UGC's disposal adequate funds from which grants are made
to various universities, and the development schemes are implemented.
KOTHARI EDUCATION COMMISSION (1964-66)
The commission was set up under Dr. D.S. Kothari to advise on the
national pattern of education, and was assisted by experts from the UK,
USA, USSR, UNESCO. It emphasised the need for flexibility in education
policy to suit changing
301
circumstances. Based on these, a national policy was announced in 1968,

which stressed on
free, universal and compulsory education upto the age of 14;
a three language-formulamother tongue, Hindi and Englishand
development of regional languages;
investment of 6 per cent of national income on education; training and
quality of teachers;
development of education for agriculture and industry.
Recent Developments
1976 : Education placed in Concurrent List
announced.
1986: New policy on education
DEVELOPMENT OF VERNACULAR EDUCATION

During the early 19th century vernacular education was in a sorry state
of affairs. It was mostly dependent on contributions from wealthy
Zamindars.
1835, 1836, 1838 : William Adam's reports on vernacular education in

Bengal and Bihar pointed out defects in the system of vernacular
education.
1843-53 : James Jonathan's experiments in North-West Provinces (UP), as
the lieutenant-governor there, included opening one government school as
model school in each tehsildari and a normal school for teachers'
training for vernacular schools.
1853 : In a famous minute, Lord Dalhousie expressed strong opinion in
favour of vernacular education.
1854 : Wood's Despatch made the following provisions for vernacular
education:
1. Improvement of standards
2. Supervision by government agency
3. Normal schools to train teachers These gave impetus to the cause of
vernacular education 1854-71: The Government paid some attention to
secondary and vernacular education. The number of vernacular schools
increased by more than five-fold.
302
1882 : The Hunter Commission held that state should make special efforts
for extension and improvement of vernacular education. Mass education
was to be seen as instructing masses through vernaculars.
1904: Education policy put special emphasis on vernacular education and
increased grants for it.
1929 : Hartog Committee presented a gloomy picture of primary education.
1937: These schools received encouragement from Congress ministries.
DEVELOPMENT OF TECHNICAL EDUCATION
The Engineering College at Roorkee was set up in 1847; the Calcutta
College of Engineering came up in 1856. In 1858, Overseers' School at
Poona was raised to the status of Poona College of Engineering and
affiliated to Bombay University. Guindy College of Engineering was
affiliated to Madras University.
Medical training started with establishment of a medical college in
Calcutta in 1835. Lord Curzon did much to broaden the whole basis of
professional coursesmedicine, agriculture, engineering, veterinary
sciences, etc. He established an agriculture college at Pusa which acted
as a parent institution of similar institutions in other provinces.
EVALUATION OF BRITISH POLICY ON EDUCATION
1. Even the inadequate measures the Government took for the expansion of
modern education were guided by concerns other than philanthropic. The
government measures for promotion of education were influenced by
* agitation in favour of modern education by enlightened Indians,
Christian missionaries and humanitarian orlicials;
* the need to ensure a cheap supply of educated Indians to man an
increasing number of subordinate posts in administration and in British
business concernsthus there was an emphasis on English medium as the
language of administration and of education;
* the hope that educated Indians would help expand market for British
manufactures in India;
* an expectation that western education would reconcile Indians to
British rule, particularly as it glorified British conquerors and their
administration.
The British thus wanted to use modern education to strengthen the
foundations of their political authority in India.
2. Traditional system of Indian learning gradually declined for want of
support, and specially after 1844 when it was declared that applicants
for government employment should possess knowledge of English.
3. Mass education was neglected leading to widespread illiteracy (191184 per cent and in 1921-92 per cent) which created a wide linguistic and
cultural gulf between the educated few and the masses.
4. Since education was to be paid for, it became a monopoly of upper and
richer classes and city dwellers.
5. There was an almost total neglect of women's education because
(i) the Government did not want to arouse wrath of orthodox sections;
and
(ii) it had no immediate utility for the colonial rule.
6. Scientific and technical education was by and large neglected. By
1857 there were only three medical colleges at Calcutta, Bombay
and Madras, and only one good engineering college at. Roorkee
which was open only to Europeans and Eurasians.
304 Brief Notes on Some
Aspects of British Rule
CHAPTER 11
Brief Notes on Some
Aspects of British Rule
BRITISH SOCIAL AND CULTURAL POLICY IN INDIA

Till 1813, the British followed a policy of non-interference in social,
religious and cultural life of the country. After 1813, measures were
taken to transform Indian society and its cultural environs because of
the emergence of new interests and ideas in Britain of the nineteenth
century in the wake of significant changes in Europe during the 18th and
the 19th centuries. Some of these changes were
(i) Industrial Revolution which began in the 18th century and resulted
in the growth of industrial capitalism. The rising industrial interests
wanted to make India a big market for their goods and therefore required
partial modernisation and transformation of Indian society.
(ii) Intellectual Revolution which gave rise to new attitudes of mind,
manners, and morals.
(ii)
French Revolution which with its message of liberty,
equality and fraternity, unleashed the forces of democracy
and nationalism.
The new trend was represented by Bacon, Locke, Voltaire, Rousseau, Kant,
Adam Smith and Bentham in thought and by Wordsworth, Byron, Shelley and
Charles Dickens in literature.
Characteristics of New Thought
Some of the characteristics of the new wave of thought were
(i)
Rationalism which advocated faith in reason and a scientific
attitude.
Brief Notes on Some Aspects of British Rule 305
(ii) Humanism which advocated love of manthe belief that every man is
an end in himself and should be respected and prized as such. No man has
a right to look upon another man as a mere agent of his happiness. These
ideals gave rise to liberalism, socialism and individualism
(iii) Doctrine of Progress according to which nothing is static and all
societies must change with time. Man has the capacity to remodel nature
and society on just and rational lines.
Schools of Thought
These new currents of thought caused conflicts among administrators and
produced different schools of thought:
Conservatives
They advocated introduction of as few changes as possible. Indian
civilisation, they felt, was different from the European one but not
necessarily inferior to it. Many of these thinkers respected Indian
philosophy and culture. If at all, Western ideas and practices were to
be introduced gradually and cautiously. Social stability was a must,
they felt. Early representatives of this school of thought were Warren
Hastings and Edmund Burke and later ones included Munro, Metcalfe, and
Elphinstone. The Conservatives remained influential throughout and most
of the British officials in India were generally of a conservative
persuasion.
Paternalistic Imperialists
They became influential especially after 1800. They were sharply
critical of Indian society and culture and used to justify economic and
political enslavement of India.
Radicals
They went beyond the narrow criticism and imperialistic outlook of the
Conservatives and the Imperialists and applied advanced humanistic and
rational thought to the Indian situation. They thought that India had
the capacity to improve and that they must help the country do that.
They wanted to make India a part of the modern progressive world of
science and humanism and therefore advocated the introduction of modern
western science, philosophy and
literature. Some of the British officials who came to India after 1820
were Radicals. They were strongly supported by Raja Rammohan Roy and
other like-minded reformers.
But predominantly, the ruling elements in the British Indian

administration continued to be imperialistic and exploitative. They
thought that the modernisation of India had to occur within broad limits
imposed by the needs of an easier and more thorough exploitation of its
resources. In this respect, often the Radicals also towed a conservative
line. They desired most of all the safety and perpetuation of the
British rule in India; every other consideration was secondary.
Dilemma Before the Government
The Government feared that too much modernisation might generate forces
hostile to their interests; thus it was thought to be appropriate to opt
for partial modernisation introducing it in some respects and blocking
it in others, in other words, a 'colonial modernization
Role of Christian Missionaries
The missionaries regarded Christianity to be a superior religion and
wanted to spread it in India through 'westernisation which, they
believed, would destroy the faith of the natives in their own religion
and culture. Towards this end, the Christian missionaries
supported the Radicals whose scientific approach, they believed, would
undermine the native culture and beliefs.
supported the Imperialists since law and order and the British
supremacy were essential for their propaganda.
sought business and the capitalist support holding out the hope to
them that the Christian converts would be better customers of their
goods.
After 1858, however, the policy of hesitant moderrtisation was
abandoned, since the Indians proved to be apt pupils and shifted rapidly
towards modernisation of their society and assertion of their culture
and demanded a rule in accordance with the modern principles of liberty,
equality and justice.
Now, the British came to side with the socially orthodox and
conservative elements of society. They also encouraged casteism and
communalism.
[For the humanitarian measures undertaken during the British rule and
after independence, refer to the chapter "Religious and Social Reform
Movements".]
CIVIL SERVICES
Cornwallis (governor-general, 1786-93) was the first to bring into
existence and organise the civil services. He tried to check corruption
through
* raising salary,
* strict enforcement of rules against private trade,
* debarring civil servants from taking presents, bribes etc,
* enforcing promotions through seniority.
In 1800, Wellesley (governor-general, 1798-1805) set up the Fort William
College for training of new recruits. In 1806 Wellesley's college was
disapproved by the Court of Directors and instead the East India College
was set up at Haileybury

recruits.
in England to impart two years' training to the
Charter Act of 1853

This Act ended the Company's patronage, enjoining recruitment to be
through an open competition henceforth.
The Indians, however, were barred from high posts from the 'very
beginning. Cornwallis thought, "Every native of Hindustan is corrupt."
The Charter Act of 1793 had reserved all posts worth 500 pounds per
annum for the covenanted servants of the Company. The reasons for
exclusion of Indians were
the belief that only the English could establish administrative
services serving British interests.
the belief that the Indians were incapable, untrustworthy and
insensitive to the British interests.
the fact there was high competition among the Europeans themselves for
lucrative posts, so why offer them to the Indians.
Although the Charter Act of 1833 theoretically threw open the services
to the Indians, the relevant provisions were never really implemented.
After 1857, when the Indians claimed a share in higher services, the
Proclamation of 1858 declared the British intention of including the
Indians, freely and impartially, in offices under the civil service.
Indian Civil Service Act, 1861
This Act reserved certain offices for convenanted civil servants but the
examination was held in England in English language, based on classical
learning of Greek and Latin. The maximum permissible age was gradually
reduced from 23 (in 1859) to 22 (in 1860) to 21 (in 1866) and to 19
(1878).
In 1863, Satyendra Nath Tagore became the first Indian
the Indian Civil Service.
to qualify for
In 1878-79, Lytton introduced the Statutory Civil Service consisting of

one-sixth of covenanted posts to be filled by Indians of high families
through nominations by local governments subject to approval by the
secretary and the viceroy. But, the system failed and was abolished.
The Indian National Congress Demand
The INC raised the demand, after it was set up in 1885, for
lowering of age limit for recruitment-. And
holding the examination simultaneously in India and Britain.
Aitchison Committee on Public Services (1886) Set up by Dufferin, the
committee recommended
dropping of the terms 'covenanted' and 'uncovenanted';
classification of the civil service into Imperial Indian Civil Service
(examination in England), Provincial Civil Service (examination in
India) and Subordinate Civil Service (examination in India); and,
raising the age limit to 23.
In 1893, the House of Commons in England passed a resolution supporting

holding of simultaneous examination in India and England; but the
resolution was never implemented.
Brief Notes on Some Aspects of British Rule
309
Kimberle, the secretary of state, said, "It is indispensable that an

adequate number of members of civil service shall always be Europeans.
Montford Reforms (1919) These reforms stated a realistic policy"If a
responsible government is to be established in India, the more Indians
we can employ in public service, the better.
recommended holding of simultaneous examination in India and England.
recommended that one-third of recruitments be made in India itselfto
be raised annually by 1.5 per cent.
Lee Commission (1924) The commission recommended that
the secretary of state should continue to recruit the ICS, the
Irrigation branch of the Service of Engineers, the. Indian Forest
Service, etc.;
the recruitments for the transferred fields like education and civil
medical service be made by provincial governments;
direct recruitment to ICS on basis of 50:50 parity between the
Europeans and the Indians be reached in 15 years;
a Public Service Commission be immediately established (as laid down
in the Government of India Act, 1919).
Government of India Act, 1935, The Act recommended the establishment of
a Federal Public Service Commission and Provincial Public Service
Commission under their spheres. But the positions of control and
authority remained in British hands and the process of Indianisation of
the civil service did not put effective political power in Indian hands
since the Indian bureaucrats acted as the agents of colonial rule.
POLICE
1791
Cornwallis organised a regular police force to maintain law and
order by going back to and modernising the old Indian system of thanas
(circles) in a district under a
310
daroga (an Indian) and a superintendent of police (SP) at the

district. He relieved the zamindars of their police duties.
head of a
1808 Mayo appointed an SP for each division helped by a number of spies

(goendas) but these spies committed depredations on local people. 1814
By an order of the Court of Directors, the appointment of darogas and
their subordinates was abolished in all possessions of the Company
except in Bengal.
Bentinck (governor-general, 1828-35) abolished the office of the SP. The
collector/magistrate was now to head the police force in his
jurisdiction and the commissioner in each division was to act as the SP.
This arrangement resulted in a badly organised police force, putting a
heavy burden on the collector/ magistrate. Presidency towns were the

first to have the duties of collector/magistrate separated.
The recommendations of the Police Commission (1860) led to the Indian
Police Act, 1861. The commission recommended
* a system of civil constabularymaintaining the village set-up in the
present form (a village watchman maintained by the village) but in
direct relationship with the rest of the constabulary. inspector-general
as the head in a province, deputy inspector-general as the head in a
range, and SP as the head in a district.
The police gradually succeeded in curbing criminal acts, such as
dacoity, thugee, etc. But, while dealing with the public, the attitude
of the police was unsympathetic. The police was also used to suppress
the national movement.
The British did not create an All-India Police. The Police Act, 1861
presented the guidelines for a police set-up in the provinces. The ranks
were uniformly introduced all over the country.
1902 The Police Commission recommended the
establishment of CID (Criminal Investigation Department) in
provinces and a Central Intelligence Bureau at the centre.
the
JUDICIARY
Earlier, the administration of justice used to be under the zamindars
and the process of dispensing justice was often arbitrary. Reforms
under Warren Hastings (1772-1785)
District Diwani Adalats were established in districts to try civil
disputes. These adalats were placed under the collector and had Hindu
law applicable for Hindus and the Muslim law for Muslims. The appeal
from District Diwani Adalats lay to the Sadar Diwani Adalat which
functioned under a president and two members of the Supreme Council.
District Fauzdari Adalats were set up to try criminal disputes and
were placed under an Indian officer assisted by qazis and muftis. These
adalats also were under the general supervision of the collector. Muslim
law was administered in Fauzdari Adalats. The approval for capital
punishment and for acquisition of property lay to the Sadar Nizamat
Adalat at Murshidabad which was headed by a deputy nizam (an Indian
Muslim) assisted by chief qazi and chief mufti.
Under the Regulating Act of 1773, a Supreme Court was established at
Calcutta which was competent to try all British subjects within Calcutta
and the subordinate factories, including Indians and Europeans. It had
original and appellate jurisdictions. Often, the jurisdiction of the
Supreme Court clashed with that of other courts. Reforms under
Cornwallis (1786-1793)
The District Fauzdari Courts were abolished and, instead, circuit
courts were established at Calcutta, Dacca, Nlurshidabad and Patna.
These circuit courts had European judges and were to act as courts of
appeal for both civil and criminal cases. The Sadar Nizamat Adalat was
shifted to Calcutta and

was put under the governor-general and members, of the Supreme Council
assisted by the chief qazi and the chief mufti.
The District Diwani Adalat was now designated as the District, City or
the Zilla Court and, placed under a district judge. The collector was
now responsible only for the revenue administration with no magisterial
functions.
A gradation of civil courts was established (for both Hindu and Muslim
laws)
(i)
Munsiff's Court under Indian officers,
(ii)
Registrar's Court under a European judge,
(iii)
District Court under the district judge,
(iv) Four Circuit Courts as provincial courts of appeal,
(iv)
Sadar Diwani Adalat at Calcutta, and
(vi) King-in-Council for appeals of 5000 pounds and above.
The Cornwallis Code was laid out- There was a separation of revenue and
justice administration.
European subjects were also brought under jurisdiction.
Government subjects were answerable to the civil courts for actions
done in their official capacity.
The principle of sovereignty of law was established.
Reforms under William Bentinck (1828-1833)
The four Circuit Courts were abolished and their functions transferred
to collectors under the supervision of the commissioner of revenue and
circuit. Sadar Diwani Adalat and a Sadar Nizamat Adalat were set up at
Allahabad for the convenience of the people of Upper Provinces.
Till now, Persian was the official language in courts. Now, the suitor
had the option to use Persian or a vernacular language, while in the
Supreme Court English language laced Persian.
1833: A Law Commission was set up under Macaulay or codification of
Indian laws. As a result, a Civil Procedure
Code (1859), an Indian Penal Code (1860) and a Criminal.
(1861) were prepared.
Procedure Code
1860 It was provided that the Europeans can claim no special privileges
except in criminal cases, and no judge of an Indian origin could try
them.
1865 : The Supreme Court and the Sadar Adalats were
High Courts at Calcutta, Bombay and Madras.
merged into three
1935 The Government of India Act provided for a Federal Court (set up in
1937) which could settle disputes between governments and could hear
limited appeals from the High Courts.
Positive Aspects of Judiciary under the British
The rule of law was established.
The codified laws replaced the religious and personal laws of the
rulers.
Even European subjects were brought under the jurisdiction, although
in criminal cases, they could be tried by European judges only.
Government servants were made answerable, to the civil courts.
The Negative Aspects
The judicial system became more and more complicated and expensive.
The rich could manipulate the system. There was ample scope for false
evidence, deceit and chicanery.
Dragged out litigation meant delayed justice. Courts became
overburdened as litigation increased. Often, the European judges were not
familiar with the Indian usage and traditions.
DEVELOPMENT OF CONSTITUTION FROM 1773 TO 1858
After the Battle of Buxar (1764), the East India Company got
(right to collect revenue) of Bengal, Bihar and
314
the Diwani
Orissa. An annual subsidy was to be paid to the Mughal Emperor, Shah

Alam II, and an annual pension to the Nawab of Awadh, Shuja-ud-Daula.
The Company appointed two Indians as the deputy diwansMohammad Reza
Khan for Bengal and Raja Shitab Rai for Bihar.
1767 The first intervention in Indian affairs by the British Government
came in 1767. It demanded 10 per cent share in the plunder amounting to
4 million pounds annually.
1765-72 The dual system of government where the Company had the
authority but no responsibility and its Indian representative had all
the responsibility but no authority continued for seven years. This
period was characterised by
* rampant corruption among servants of the Company who made full use of
private trading to enrich themselves;
* excessive revenue collection and oppression of peasantry;
* the Company's bankruptcy, while the servants were flourishing.
In the meantime, the British GoVernmerit decided to bring some order
into the Company''s affairs. This included the following: The
Regulating Act of 1773 The directors of the Company were required to
submit all correspondence regarding revenue affairs and civil and
military administration to the Government. (Thus for the first time,
the British cabinet was given the right to exercise control over Indian
affairs.) In Bengal, the administration was to be carried out by
governor-general and a council consisting of 4 members, representing
civil and military government They were required to function according
to the majority rule. Warren Hastings and four others were named in the
Act, later ones were to be appointed by the Company. A Supreme Court of
judicature was to be established in Bengal with original and appellate
jurisdictions where all
subjects could seek redressal. In practice, however, the Supreme Court

had a debatable jurisdiction vis-a-vis the council which created various
problems. The governor-general could exercise some powers over Bombay
and Madrasagain, a vague provision which created many problems. The
whole scheme was based on checks and balances.
Amendments (1781)
The jurisdiction of the Supreme Court was definedwithin Calcutta, it
was to administer the personal law of the defendant.
The servants of the Government were immune if they did anything while
discharging their duties.
Social and religious usages of the subjects were to be honoured.
Pitt's India Act of 1784
The Government's control over the Company's affairs was greatly
extended. A Board of Control consisting of the chancellor of exchequer,
a secretary of state and four members of the Privy Council (to be
appointed by the Crown) were to exercise control over the Company's
civil, military, and revenue affairs. All dispatches were to be approved
by the board. Thus a dual system of control was set up. In India, the
governor-general was to have a council of three (including the
commander-in-chief), and the presidencies of Bombay and Madras were Made
subordinate to the governor-general.
A general prohibition was placed on aggressive wars and treaties
(breached often).
The Act of 1786
Cornwallis was allowed to override, the council's
owned the responsibility for the decision.
decision in if he
Later, this provision was extended to all the governor general.

The Charter Act of 1793
The Home Government members were to be paid out
316
of Indian revenues.

In England, the business interests were pressing for an end to the
Company's monopoly over trade in India because of a spirit of laissezfaire and the continental system by Napoleon by which the European ports
were closed to Britain. The 1813 Act sought to redress these grievances
The Company's monopoly over trade in India ended, but the Company
retained the trade with China and the trade in tea.
The Company's shareholders were given a 10.5 per cent dividend on the
revenue of India.
The Company was to retain the possession of territories and the
revenue for 20 years more, without prejudice to the sovereignty of the
Crown. (Thus, the constitutional position of the British territories in
India was defined explicitly for the first time.)
Powers of the Board of Control were further enlarged.
A sum of one lakh rupees was to be set aside for the revival,
promotion and encouragement of literature, learning and science among
the natives of India, every year. (This was an important statement from
the point of state's responsibility for education.)
The Company's monopoly over trade with China and In tea also ended.
The lease of 20 years to the Company was further extended. Territories
of India were to be, governed in the name of the Crown.
All restrictions on European immigration and the acquisition of
property in India were lifted. Thus, the way was paved for the wholesale
European colonisation of India.
In India, a financial, legislative and administrative centralisation
of the Government was envisaged:
The governor-general was given the power to superintend, control and
direct all civil and military affairs of the Company.
Brief Notes on Some Aspects, of British Rule 317
Bengal, Madras, Bombay and all other territories were placed under
complete control of the governor-general.
All revenues were to be raised under the authority of the governorgeneral who would have complete control over the expenditure too.
The Governments of Madras and Bombay were drastically deprived of
their legislative powers and left with a right of proposing to the
governor-general the projects of law which they thought to be expedient.
A law member was added to the governor-general's council for
professional advice on law-making.
Indian laws were to be codified and consolidated. No Indian citizen was
to be denied employment under the Company on the basis of religion,
colour, birth, descent, etc. (Although the reality was different, this
declaration formed the sheet-anchor of political agitation in India.)
The administration was urged to take steps to ameliorate the
conditions of slaves and to ultimately abolish slavery. (Slavery was
abolished in 1843.)
The Company was to continue possession of territories unless the
Parliament provided otherwise.
The strength of the Court of Directors was reduced to 18.
The Company's patronage over the services was dissolvedthe services
were now thrown open to a competitive examination.
The law member became the full member of the governor-general's
executive council.
Six members were to be added to the executive council while
legislating but the executive council retained the veto over the
Legislative Council.
The Act for Better Government of India, 1858
The 1857 revolt had exposed the Company's limitations
under a complex situation. Till then, there had
in administering

not been much accountability. The 1858 Act sought to rectify
anomaly
this
* India was to be governed by and in the name of the Crown through a

secretary of state and a council of 15. The initiative and the final
decision was to be with the secretary of state and the council was to
be, just advisory in nature. (Thus, the dual system introduced by the
Pitt's India Act came to an end.)
Governor-general became the viceroy (his prestige, if not authority,
increased).
The assumption of power by the Crown was one of formality rather than
substance. It gave a decent burial to an already-dead horsethe
Company's administration.
[For constitutional development from 1861 onwards refer to relevant
chapters on, freedom struggle.]
CHAPTER 12
The Indian States
The princely states, which covered, a total area of 7,12,508 square
miles and numbered no fewer than 562, included tiny states such as.
Bilbari with a population of 27 persons only and some big ones like
Hyderabad (as large as Italy) with a population of 14 million. The East
India Company acquired, in the process of conquest, important coastal
tracts, the valleys of the great navigable rivers and such tracts which
were rich in agricultural products and densely populated by prosperous
people, while, generally, the. Indian states were "the inaccessible and
less fertile tracts of the Indian peninsula".
The making of Indian states was >largely governed by the same
circumstances which led to the growth of. East India Company's power in
India. The evolution of relations between the British authority and
states can be traced under the following broad stages
I.
EAST INDIA COMPANY'S STRUGGLE FOR EQUALITY WITH INDIAN STATES
FROM A POSITION OF SUBORDINATION (1740-1765)
Starting with Anglo-French rivalry with the coming of Dupleix
in 1751, the East India Company asserted political identity
with capture of Arcot (1751). With the Battle of Plassey in
1757, the East India Company acquired political power next only
to the Bengal Nawabs. In 1765 with the acquisition of the
Diwani of Bengal, Bihar and Orissa, the East India Company
became a significant political power.
II. POLICY OF RING FENCE (1765-1813)
This policy was reflected in Warren Hastings' wars against the Marathas
and Mysore, and aimed at creating buffer zones to defend the Company's
frontiers. The main threat was
319
from the Marathas and Afghan invaders (the Company undertook to organise
Awadh's defence to safeguard Bengal's security). Wellesley's policy of
subsidiary alliance was an extension of ring fencewhich sought to
reduce states to a position of dependence on British Government in
India. Major powers such as Hyderabad, Awadh and the Marathas accepted
subsidiary alliance. Thus, British supremacy was established.
III. POLICY OF SUBORDINATE ISOLATION (1813-1857)
Now, the imperial idea grew and the theory of paramountcy began to
developIndian states were supposed to act in subordinate cooperation
with the British Government and acknowledge its supremacy. States
surrendered all forms of external sovereignty and retained full
sovereignty in internal administration. British Residents were
transformed from diplomatic agents of a foreign power to executive and
controlling officers of a superior government.
In 1833, the Charter Act ended the. Company's commercial functions while
it retained political functions. It adopted the practice of insisting on
prior approval/sanction for all matters of succession. In 1834, the
Board of Directors issued guidelines to annex states wherever and
whenever possible. This policy of annexation culminated in usurpation of
six states by Dalhousie including some big states such as Satara and
Nagpur.
IV. POLICY OF SUBORDINATE UNION (1857-1935)
The year 1858 saw the assumption of direct responsibility by the Crown.
Because of the states' loyalty during the 1857 revolt and their
potential use as breakwaters in political storms of the future, the
policy of annexation was abandoned. The new policy was to punish or
depose but not to annex. After 1858, the fiction of authority of the
Mughal emperor ended; sanction for all matters of succession was
required from the Crown since the Crown stood forth as the unquestioned
ruler and the paramount power. Now the ruler inherited the gaddi not as
a matter of right but as a gift from the paramount power, because the
fiction of Indian states standing in a status
The Indian States 321
of equality with the Crown as independent, sovereign states ended with
the Queen adopting the title of "Kaiser-i-Hind" (Queen Empress of
India). The paramount supremacy of the Crown presupposed and implied the
subordination of states. The British Government exercised the right to
interfere in the internal spheres of statespartly in the interest of
the princes, partly in the interest of people's welfare, partly, to
secure proper conditions for. British subjects and foreigners and
partly in the interest of the whole of India.
The British Government was further helped in this encroachment by modern
developments in communication railways, roads, telegraph, canals, post
offices, press and public opinion, The Government of India exercised
complete and undisputed control in international affairsit could
declare war, peace or neutrality for states. According to the Butler
Commission in. 1927, "For the purpose of international relations, state'
territory is in the same position as British territory and

subjects in the same position as British subjects."
state
Curzon's Approach
Curzon stretched the interpretation of old treaties to mean that the
princes, in their capacity as servants of people, were supposed to work
side-by-side with the governor-general in the scheme of Indian
Government. He adopted a policy of patronage and "intrusive
surveiliance". He thought the relation between the states and Government
was neither feudal nor federal, a type not based on a treaty but
consisting of a series of relationships having grown under different
historical conditions that, in the course of time, gradually conforrned
to a single line.
The new trend seemed to reduce all states to a single typeuniformly
dependent on the British Government and considered as an integral part
of Indian political system.
Post-1905, A policy of cordial cooperation began to counter progressive
and revolutionary developments in face of large-scale political unrests.
According to the recommendations of Montford Reforms (1921), a Chamber
of Princes (Narendra Mandal) was set up as a consultative and advisory
body having no say in the
internal affairs of individual states and having no powers to discuss
matters concerning existing rights and freedoms. For the purpose of the
chamber the Indian states were divided into three categories
1. Directly represented-109
2. Represented through representatives-127
3. Recognised as feudal holdings or jagirs.
The question of extent of sovereignty and paramountcy was still
undefined. The Butler Committee (1927) was set up to examine the nature
of relationship between the states and Government. It gave the following
recommendations
1. Paramountcy must remain supreme and must fulfil its obligations,
adopting and defining itself according to the shifting necessities of
time and progressive development of states.
2. States should not be handed over to an Indian Government in British
India, responsible to an. Indian legislature, without the consent of
states.
Thus, "paramountcy" was left undefined and this hydraheaded creature was
left to feed on usage, Crown's prerogative and the princes' implied
consent.
V. POLICY OF EQUAL FEDERATION (1935-1947)
The Government of India Act, 1935 proposed a Federal Assembly with 125
out of 375 seats for the princes and the Council of States with 104 out
of 160 seats for, the princes, under its scheme of an all-India
federation, which was subject to ratification by states representing
more than half of the population and entitled to more than half of the
seats in the Council of States.
This scheme never came into existence and after the
War II (September 1939) it was dropped altogether.
outbreak of World
VI. INTEGRATION AND MERGER

After World War II began and a position of noncooperation was adopted by
the Congress, the British Government tried to break the deadlock through
the Cripps
The Indian States 323
Mission (1942), Wavell Plan (1945), Cabinet Mission (1946) and
statement (February 1947).
Attlee's
Cripps held that the British Government did not contemplate transferring
paramountcy of Crown to any other party in India. The states tried
various schemes to forge a union of their own, envisaging themselves as
sovereign in status or as a third force in the Indian political scene.
The June 3rd Plan and Attlee's statement made it clear that the states
were free to join either of the two dominions, and Mountbatten refused
to give a sovereign status to the states.
Sardar Patel, who was in charge of states' ministry in the interim
cabinet, helped by V.P. Menon, the secretary in the ministry, appealed
to the patriotic feeling of rulers to join the Indian dominion in
matters of defence, communication and external affairsthe three areas
which had been part of the paramountcy of the Crown and over which the
states had anyway no control. By August 15, 1947, 136 states had joined
the Indian Union but others remained precariously outside
1. Junagarh, The Muslim Nawab wanted to join Pakistan but a Hindu
population wanted to join Indian Union. In the face of repressive
attitude of the Nawab, there was a plemiscite, which decided in
favour of India.
2. Hyderabad, Hyderabad wanted a sovereign status. It signed a
Standstill Agreement with India in November 1947. Indian troops
withdrew and the Nizam's police and stormtroopers (RazakIcars)
took over. The Nizam wanted an outlet to the sea (Goa). The
violence and supply of foreign arms promoted Indian troops to move
in again in 1948 described as "a police action to restore law and
order". Hyderabad acceded in November 1949.
3. Kashmir The state of Jammu and Kashmir had a Hindu prince and a
Muslim majority population. The prince envisaged a sovereign
status for the state and was reluctant to accede to either of the
dominions. As he procrastinated, the newly established state of
Pakistan sent its forces behind a front of tribal militia and moved
menacingly. towards Srinagar. It was now that the prince was
forced to sign an Instrument of Accession (October 1947) with the
Indian Union,
CHAPTER 13
JEtuursea me popular leader Sheikh Abdullah.
troops were despatched to defend the state against the raiders
mum s complaints to the UN Security Council regarding raids from
Pakistan and the fr. the status of the state through a plebiscite led to
a ceasefir0 IAA square Km or area under Pakistani occupation.
The special status of Jammu and Kashmir
under Article 370 of the Indian Constitution which implied a or me Indian
Union over the state as
tparect
to otner states.
The problem now was two-folds,
(i) of transforming the states into viable administrative
(ii) of absorbing them into the constitutional units. This was sought to
be solved by1. incorporating smaller states (216 such states) into
contiguous provinces and listed in Part A. For instance, 39 states of
Orissa and Chhattisgarh were incorporated into Central Provines, Orissa.
Gujarat states were incorporated into Bombay;
2. making some states as centrally administered for strategic or special
reasons, listed in Part-C (61 states) Himachal Pradesh, Vindhya
Pradesh, Manipur, Tripura, Bhopal, etc.;
3. creating five unionsUnited States of. Kathiawar, United States of
Matsya, Patiala and East Punjab. States Union, Rajasthan and United.
States of Travancore-Cochin (later Kerala).
Initially these states acceded with respect to defence, communication,
external affairs; later they felt that a closer association was
necessary. The five unions and Mysore accepted Indian jurisdiction in
Union, concurrent subjects except taxation and subject to differences as
under Article 238 and the supervisory power of Union for ten years.
The Seventh Amendment (1956) abolished Part-B states as a class , and
formed one class out of Parts A and B; thus special provisions relating
to Part B states were deleted.
'The Indian states thus lost their identity and became part
uniform political set-up.
of one
Civil Rebellions and Tribal Uprisings-1757-1900

BENGAL AND EASTERN INDIA
The Sanyasi Revolt, The coming of the British brought with it economic
hardships symbolised by the massive famine of 1770, and a general
callousness on the part of the Company's stooges. The restrictions
imposed on visits to holy places estranged the sanyasis. The sanyasis

retaliated by organising raids on the Company's factories and state
treasuries. Only of er prolonged military action could Warren Hastings
contain the raids by the sanyasis.
Chuar Uprising Famine, enhanced land revenue demands and economic
distress goaded the Chuar aboriginal tribesmen of Midnapore district to
take up arms. The uprising lasted from 1766 to 1772 and then, again
surfaced between 1795 and 1816.
Ho Rising The Ho and Munda tribesmen of Chhotanagpur challenged the
Company's forces in 1820-22, 'then again in 1831, and the area remained
disturbed till 1837.
Kol Mutiny (1831) This coveredand of The trouble started with largescale transfers of land from Kol headmen (Mundas) to outsiders like Sikh
and Muslim farmers. The Kols of Chhotanagpur resented this and in 1831,
the Kol rebels killed or burnt about a thousand outsiders. Only after
large-scale military operations could order be restored.
Kandh Uprising
and Patna. The
efforts to put
(mariah) first
325
326
(1837-56) This covered Ghumsar, Chinaki-Medi, Kalahandi

Kandhs retaliated under Chakra Bisoi against the British
an end to the Kandh's practice of human sacrifice
through
persuasion and later through force. The Kandhs fought with

of battle axebows and arrows and even swords.
tangisa sort
Santhal Rising The Santhals of Rajmahal Hills resented the oppression by

revenue officials, police, money-lenders, landlordsin general, by the
"outsiders' (whom they called diku). The Santhals under Sido and Kanhu
rose up against their oppressors, declared the end of the Company's rule
and asserted themselves independent in 1854. It was only in 1856
after' extensive military operations that the situation was brought
under control. Sido died in 1855, while Kanhu was arrested in 1866. A
separate district of Santhal Pargana!, was created by the Government to
pacify the Santhals.
Ahom Revolt The British had pledged to withdraw after the First Burma
War (1824-26) from Assam. But, after the war, instead of withdrawing,
the British attempted to incorporate the Ahoms' territories in the
Company's dominion. This sparked off a rebellion in 1828 under the
leadership of Gomdhar Konwar. Finally, the Company decided to follow a
conciliatory policy and handed over Upper Assam to Maharaja Purandar
Singh Narendra and part of the kingdom was restored to the Assamese
king.
Khasi Uprising After having occupied the hilly region between Garo and
Jaintia Hills, the East India Company wanted to build a road linking the
Brahmaputra Valley with Sylhet. For this, a large number of outsiders
including Englishmen, Bengalis and the labourers from the plains were
brought to these regions. The Khasis, Garos, Khamptis and the Singhpos
organised themselves under to drive away the strangers from the plains.
The uprising developed into a popular revolt against British rule in the
area. By 1833, the superior English military force had suppressed the
revolt.
Pagal Panthis4aram Shah was the founder of the Pagal Pantha semireligious sect having influence in the northern districts of Bengal. An
activist fervour to the sect was imparted by Tipu, the son and successor
of Karam Shah. Tipu was
Civil Rebellions and Tribal Uprisings 1757-1900
327
motivated by both religious and political motives and took up the cause
of the tenants against the oppression of the zamindars. Tipu captured
Sherpur in 1825 and assumed royal power. The insurgents extended their
activities to Garo Hills. The area remained disturbed in the 1830s and
1840s.
Faraizi Revolt The Faraizis were the followers of a Muslim sect founded
by Haji Shariat-Allah of Faridpur in Eastern Bengal. They advocated
radical religious, social and political changes. Shariat-Allah son Dadu
Mian (1819-60) organised his followers with an aim to expel the English
intruders from Bengal. The sect also supported the cause of the tenants
against the zamindars. The Faraizi disturbances continued from 1838 to
1857. Most of the Faraizis joined the Wahabi ranks.
Munda Revolt For over three decades, the Munda sardars of Chhotanagpur
had been struggling against the destruction of their system of common
land-holdings by the intrusion of jagirdars, thikadars (revenue farmers)
and tradersmoneylenders. During the last decade of the nineteenth
century, the Mundas rose under Birsa Munda in a religious movement or
rebellion ("ulgulan") with an agrarian and political content. They aimed
to establish a Munda rule in the land by killing thikadars, jagirdars,
rajas and halcims. To bring about the liberation, Birsa gathered a force
of 6,000 Mundas armed with swords, spears, battle-axes, and bows and
arrows. Birsa was, however, captured in 1900 and he died in jail the
same year.
WESTERN INDIA
Bhil Uprisings, The Bhils, an aboriginal tribe concentrated around
Khandesh, revolted against their new masters, the East India Company,
fearing agrarian hardships and the worst under the new regime. One of
their leaders was Sewaram. The. Bhils revolted in 1817-19, and again in
1825, 1836 and 1846.
Cutch Rebellion The British interfered in the internal
Cutch and, in 1819, defeated and deposed the
328
feuds of the
Cutch ruler Rao Bharamal in favour of his infant. A British resident

governed the areas as the de facto ruler with the help of a regency
council. The administrative innovations made by the regency council

coupled with excessive land assessment caused deep resentment. The news
of the British reverses in the Burma War emboldened the chiefs to rise
>in revolt and demand the restoration of Bharamal. After extensive
military operations failed to control the situation, the Company's
authorities were compelled to follow a conciliatory policy.
Waghera Rising, A resentment against the alien rule coupled with the
exactions of the Gaekwar of Baroda supported by the British Government
compelled the Waghera chiefs of Okha Mandal to take up arms. The
Wagheras carried out inroads into British territory during 1818-19. A
peace treaty was signed in November 1820.
Koli Risings, The Kolis living in the neighbourhood of Bhils rose up in
rebellion against the Company's rule in 1829, 1839 and again during
1844-48. They resented the imposition of Company's rule which brought
with it large-scale unemployment for them and the dismantling of their
forts.
Ramosi Risings, The Ramosis, the hill tribes of the Western Ghats, had
not reconciled to British rule and the British pattern of
administration. They rose under Chittur Singh in 1822 and plundered the
country around Satara. Again, there were eruptions in 1825-26 and the
disturbances continued till 1829.
The disturbance occurred again in 1839 over deposition klniShment of Raja
Pratap Singh of Satara, and disturbances n l I In 1840-41 also. Finally,
a superior British force rimmed order in the area.
Surat Salt Agitations A strong anti-British sentiment in attacks by local
Surat population on the Europeans 1844 over the issue of the Government's
step to raise the 'hill duty from 50 paise to one rupee. Faced with a
popular movement, the Government withdrew the additional salt levy.
And, again in 1848, the Government was forced to withdraw
Civil Rebellions and Tribal Uprisings-1757-1900
329
its measure to introduce Bengal Standard Weights and Measures in face of

people's determined bid to resort to boycott and passive resistance.
Kolhapur and Savantvadi Revolts The Gadkaris were a hereditary military
class which was garrisoned in the Maratha forts. These garrisons were
disbanded during administrative reorganisation in Kolhapur state after
1844. Facing the spectre of unemployment, the Gadkaris rose in revolt
and occupied the Samangarh and Bhudargarh forts. Similarly, the
simmering discontent caused a revolt in Savantvadi areas.
SOUTH INDIA
Revolt of Raja of Vizianagaram, The East India Company invited the wrath
of the people of Northern Sarkar when, after the acquisition of these
territories in 1765, it demanded a tribute of three lakh rupees from the
Raja and also asked the Raja to disband his troops. The Raja supported
by his subjects rose up in revolt. The Raja died in a battle in 1794.
Finally, the Company offered the estate to the deceased Raja's son
reduced the demand for presents.
and
Poligars' Revolt, The Poligars of Dindigal and Malabar rose up against

the oppressive land revenue system under the British rule using 1801-06.
Sporadic rising of the Poligars in Madras Presidency continued till
1856.
Diwan Velu Tampi's Revolt The East India Company's harsh conditions
imposed on the state of Travancore, after both of them agreed to a
subsidiary alliance arrangement under Wellesley in 1805, caused deep
resentment. The ruler failed to pay the subsidy and fell in arrears. The
high-handed attitude of the. Company compelled the Diwan, Velu Tampi,
to rise against the Company, assisted by the Nair battalion. A large
military operation had to be undertaken to restore peace.
Rampa Revolt, The hill tribesmen of Rampa in coastal
March 1879 against the depredations of
330
Andhra revolted in
the government-supported mansabdar and the new restrictive forest

regulations. Only after a large military operation could the rebels be
defeated in 1880.
NORTH INDIA
Wahabi Movement, The Wahabi Movement was essentially an Islamic
revivalist movement founded by Syed Ahmed of Rai Bareilly who was
inspired by the teachings of Abdul Wahab (1703-87) of Saudi Arabia and
Shah Waliullah of Delhi. Syed Ahmed condemned the western influence on
Islam and advocated a return to pure Islam and, society as it was in the
Arabia of the Prophet's time
Syed Ahmed was acclaimed as the desired leader (Imam). A countrywide
organisation with an elaborate secret code for its working under
spiritual vice-regents (Khalifas) was set up, and Sithana in northwestern tribal belt was chosen as a base for operations. In India, its
important centre was at Patna though it had its missions in Hyderabad,
Madras, Bengal, UP and Bombay. Since Dar-ul-Harb (the land of kafirs)
was to be converted into Dar-ul-Islam (the land of Islam), a jihad was
declared against the Sikh kingdom of the Punjab. After the defeat of the
Sikh ruler and incorporation of the Punjab into the East India Company's
dominion in 1849, the English dominion in India became the sole target
of the Wahabis' attacks.
The Wahabis played an important role in spreading antiBritish sentiments.
A series of military operations by the British in the 1860s on the
Wahabi base in Sithana and various court cases of sedition on the
Wahabis weakened the Wahabi resistance, although sporadic encounters
with the authorities continued into the 1880s and 1890s.
Kuka Revolt, The Kuka Movement was founded in 1840 by Bhagat Jawahar Mal
(also called Sian Saheb) in western Punjab. After the British took the
Punjab, the movement transformed from a religious purification campaign

to a political one. Its basic tenets were abolition of caste and similar
discriminations among Sikhs, discouraging the eating of meat
Civil Rebellions and Tribal Uprisings 1757-1900 331
and taking of alcohol and drugs, and encouraging women to
seclusion.
In 1872, one of their leaders, Ram Singh, was deported
step out of
to Rangoon.
WEAKNESSES OF THESE UPRISINGS

These uprisings were massive in totality but were, in fact, localised
and isolated.
They were the result mostly of local grievances.
The leadership was semi-feudal in character, backwardlooking,
traditional in outlook and their resistance represented no societal
alternative.
These rebellions were centuries old in form and ideological-cultural
content.
The less recalcitrant of these were pacified through concessions by
the authorities.
On the whole, however, these rebellions were able to
traditions of local resistance to authoritarianism.
establish valuable
CHAPTER 14
Peasant Movements1857-1947
PEASANTRY UNDER COLONIALISM
The impoverishment of the Indian peasantry was a direct result of the
transformation of the agrarian structure due to
colonial economic policies,
ruin of the handicrafts leading to overcrowding of land,
the new land revenue system,
colonial administrative and judicial system.
The peasants suffered from high rents, illegal levies, arbitrary
evictions and unpaid labour in zamindari areas. In Ryotwari areas, the
Government itself levied heavy land revenue. The overburdened farmer,
fearing loss of his only source of livelihood, often approached the
local moneylender who made full use of the former's difficulties by
extracting high rates of interests on the money lent. Often, the farmer
had to mortgage his land and cattle. Sometimes, the moneylender seized
the mortgaged belongings. Gradually, over large areas, the actual
cultivators were reduced to the status of tenants-at-will, share
croppers and landless labourers.
The peasants often resisted the exploitation, and soon they realised
that their real enemy was the colonial state. Sometimes, the desperate
peasants took to crime to come out of intolerable conditions. These
crimes included robbery,

banditry.
dacoity and what has been called social
A SURVEY OF EARLY PEASANT MOVEMENTS

Indigo Revolt (1859-60), In Bengal, the indigo planters, rly all
Europeans, exploited the local peasants by forcing them to grow indigo
on their lands instead of the more paying crops like rice. The planters
forced the peasants to take advance sums and enter into fraudulent
contracts which were
332
Peasant Movements 1857-1947 333
then used against the peasants. The planters intimidated the peasants
through kidnappings, illegal confinements, flogging, attacks on women
and children, seizure of cattle, burning and demolition of houses and
destruction of crops.
The anger of the peasants exploded in 1859 when, led by Digambar Biswas
and Bishnu Biswas of Nadia district, they decided not to grow indigo
under duress and resisted the physical pressure of the planters and
their lathiyals (retainers) backed by police and the courts. They also
organised a counter force against the planters' attacks. The planters
also tried methods like evictions and enhanced rents. The ryots replied
by going on a rent strike by refusing to pay the enhanced rents and by
physically resisting the attempts to evict them. Gradually, they learned
to use the legal machinery and initiated legal action supported by fund
collection.
The Bengali intelligentsia played a significant role by supporting the
peasants' cause through newspaper campaigns, organisation of mass
meetings, preparing memoranda on peasants' Brieaces and supporting them
in legal battles.
The Government appointed an indigo commission to inquire into the
problem of indigo cultivation. Based on its recommendations, the
Government issued a notification in November 1860 that the ryots could
not be compelled to grow indigo and that it would ensure that all
disputes were settled by legal means. But, the planters were already
closing down factories and indigo cultivation was virtually wiped out
from Bengal by the end of 1860.
tabna Agrarian Leagues, During the 1870s and 1880s, large parts of
Eastern Bengal witnessed agrarian unrest caused by oppressive practices
of the zamindars. The zamindars resorted to enhanced rents beyond legal
limits and prevented the tenants from acquiring occupancy rights under
Act of 1859. To achieve their ends, the zamindars resorted to forcible
evictions, seizure of cattle and crops and prolonged, costly litigation
in courts where the poor peasant found himself at a disadvantage.
334
Having had enough of the oppressive regime, the peasants of Yusufshahi

Pargana in Patna district formed an agrarian league or combination to
resist the demands of the zamindars. The league organised a rent stro
the ryots refused to pay the enhanced rents. challenging the zamindars
in the courts. Funds were raised by ryots to fight the court cases. The
struggles spread throughout Patna and to other districts of East Bengal.
The main form of struggle was that of legal resistance; there was very
little violence.
Though the peasant discontent continued to linger on till 1885, most of
the cases had been solved, partially through official persuasion and
partially because of zamindars' fears. Many peasants were able to
acquire occupancy rights and resist enhanced rents. The Government also
promised to undertake legislation to protect the tenants from the worst
aspects of zamindari oppression. In 1885, the Bengal Tenancy Act was
passed.
Again, a number of young Indian intellectuals supported the peasants'
cause. These included Bankim Chandra Chatterjee, R.C. Dutt and the
Indian Association under Surendranath Banerjee.
Deccan Riots, The ryots of Deccan region of western India suffered heavy
taxation under the Ryotwari system. Here again the peasants found
themselves trapped in a vicious network with the moneylender as the
exploiter and the main beneficiary. These moneylenders were mostly
outsiders Marwaris or Gujaratis. The conditions had worsened due to a
crash in cotton prices after the end of the American civil war in 1864,
the Government's decision to raise the land revenue by 50% in 1867, and
a succession of bad harvests.
In 1874, the growing tension between the moneylenders, and the peasants
resulted in a social boycott movement organised by the ryots against the
"outsider" moneylenders. The ryots refused to buy from their shops. No
peasant would cultivate their fields. The barbers, washermen, shoemakers
would not serve them. This social boycott spread rapidly to the villages
of Poona, Ahmednagar, Sholapur and Satara. Soon
the social boycott was transformed into agrarian riots with systematic
attacks on the moneylenders' houses and shops. The debt bonds and deeds
were seized and publicly burnt.
The Government succeeded in repressing the movement. As a conciliatory
measure, the Deccan Agriculturists Relief Act was passed in 1879.
This time also, the modern nationalist intelligentsia of
supported the peasants' cause.
Maharashtra
CHANGED NATURE OF PEASANT MOVEMENTS AFTER 1857

Peasants emerged as the main force in agrarian movements, fighting
directly for their own demands.
The demands were centred almost wholly on economic issues.
The movements were directed against the immediate enemies of the

peasantforeign planters and indigenous zamindars and moneylenders.
The struggles were directed towards specific and limited objectives
and redressal of particular grievances.
Colonialism was not the target of these movements. It was not the
objective of these movements to end the system of subordination or
exploitation of the peasants. Territorial reach was limited.
There was no continuity of struggle or long-term organisation.
The peasants developed a strong awareness of their legal rights and
asserted them in and outside the courts.
WEAKNESSES
There was a lack of an adequate understanding of colonialism.
The 19th century peasants did not possess a new ideology and a new
social, economic and political programme.
These struggles, however militant, occurred within the framework of
the old societal order lacking a positive conception of an alternative
society.
LATER MOVEMENTS
The peasant movements of the 20th century were deeply influenced by and
had a marked impact on the national freedom struggle. (Refer to the
chapters on Freedom Movement for 'Champaran' and 'Kheda Satyagraha'.)
The Kisan Sabha Movement
After the 1857 revolt, the Awadh taluqdars had got back their lands.
This strengthened the hold of the taluqdars or big landlords over the
agrarian society of the province. The majority of the cultivators were
subjected to high rents, summary evictions (bedakhali), illegal levies,
renewal fees or nazrana. The First World War had hiked the prices of
food and other necessities. This worsened the conditions of the UP
peasants.
Mainly due to the efforts of the Home Rule activists, kisan sabhas were
organised in UP. The UP Kisan Sabha was Gauri Shankar Mishra and Indra
Dwivedi. Madan Mohan Malaviya supported their efforts. By June 1919, the
UP Kisan Sabha had 450 branches. Other prominent leaders included
Jhinguri Singh, Durgapal Singh and Baba Ramchandra. In June 1920, Baba
Ramchandra urged Nehru to visit these villages. During these visits,
Nehru with the villagers.
In October 1920, the Awadh Kisan Sabha came into existence because of
differences in nationalist ranks. The Awadh Kisan Sabha asked the kisans
to refuse to till bedakhali land, not to offer hari and begar (forms of
unpaid labour), to boycott those who did not accept these conditions and
to solve their disputes through panchayats.
From the earlier forms of mass meetings and mobilisation,
of activity changed rapidly in January 1921 to the looting
houses, granaries and clashes with the police. The centres
were primarily the districts of Rai Bareilly, Faizabad and
.
the patterns
of bazaars,
of activity
Sultanpur
The movement declined soon., partly due to government repression and

partly because of the. passing of the Awadh Rent (Amendment) Act.
Eka Movement, Towards the end of 1921,
some northern districts of the United
Sitapur. The issues involved were:
(i) high rents-50 per cent higher than
(ii) oppression of thikadars in charge
(ii)
practice of share-rents.
peasant discontent resurfaced in

ProvincesHardoi, Bahraich,
the recorded rates;
of revenue collection; and
The meetings of the Eka or the Unity Movement involved a

symbolic religious ritual in which the assembled peasants
vowed that they would
pay only the recorded rent but would pay it on time;
not leave when evicted;
refuse to do forced labour;
give no help to criminals;
abide by panchayat decisions.
The grassroot leadership of the Eka Movement came from Madari Pasi and
other low-caste leaders, and many small zamindars.
By March 1922, severe repression by authorities brought
an end.
the movement to
Mappila Revolt, The Mappilas were the Muslim tenants inhabiting the
suregign where most of the landlords were Hindus. The Mappilas had
expressed their resentment against the oppression of the landlords
during the nineteenth century also. Their grievances centred around lack
of security of tenure, high rents, renewal fees and other oppressive
exactions.
The Mappila tenants were particularly encouraged by the demand or the
local Congress body for a government legislation regulating tenantlandlord relations. Soon, the Mappila movement merged with the ongoing
Khilafat agitation. The leaders of the Khilafat-Non-Cooperation
Movement like Gandhi, Shaukat Ali and Maulana Azad addressed Mappila
meetings. After the arrest of national leaders, the leadership passed
into the hands of local Mappila leaders.
Things took a turn for the worse in August 1921 when the arrest of a
respected priest leader, Ali Musaliar, sparked off large-scale riots.
Initially, the symbols of british authority courts, police stations,
treasuries and officesand unpopular landlords (jenmies who were mostly
Hindus) were the targets. But once the British declared martial law and
repression began in earnest, the character of the rebellion underwent a
definite change. Many Hindus were seen by the Mappilas to be helping
the authorities. What began as an anti-government and antilandlord affair
acquired communal overtones. The communalisation of the rebellion
completed the isolation of the Mappilas from the Khilafat-Non-
Cooperation Movement.
stop.
By December 1921, all resistance had come to a
Bardoli Satyagraha, The Bardoli taluqa in Surat district had witnessed

intense politicisation after the coming of Gandhi on the national
political scene. The movement sparked off in January 1926 when the
authorities decided to increase the land revenue by 30 per cent. The
Congress leaders were quick to protest and a Bardoli Inquiry Committee
was set up to go into the issue. The committee found the revenue hike to
be unjustified. In February 1926, Vallabhbhai Patel was called to lead
the movement, The women of Bardoli gave him the title of "Sardar". Under
Patel, the Bardoli peasants resolved to refuse payments of the revised
assessment until the Government appointed an independent tribunal or
accepted the current amount as full payment. To organise the movement,
Patel set up 13 chluzvanis or workers' camps in the taluqa. Bardoli
Satyagraha Patrika was brought out to mobilise public opinion. An
intelligence wing was set up to make sure all the tenants followed the
movement's resolutions. Those who opposed the movement faced a social
boycott. Special emphasis was placed on the mobilisation of women. K.M.
Munshi and Lalji Naranji resigned from the Bombay Legislative Council in
support of the movement.
By August 1928, massive tension had built up in the 'area. There were
prospects of a railway strike in Bombay. Gandhi reached Bardoli to stand
by in case of any emergency. The
Government was looking for a graceful withdrawal now. It set the
condition that first the enhanced rent be, paid by all the occupants
(not actually done). Then, a committee went into the whole affair and
found the revenue hike to be unjustified and recommended a rise of 6.03
per cent only.
During the 1930s, the peasant awakening was influenced by the Great
Depression in the industrialised countries and the Civil Disobedience
Movement which took the form of no-rent, no-revenue movement in many
areas. Also, after the decline of the active phase movement (1932) many
new entrants to active politics started looking for suitable outlets for
release of their energies and took to organisation of peasants.
India Kisan Congress Sabha, This sabha was founded in Lucknow in April
1936 with Swami Sahjanand Saraswati as the president and N.G. Ranga as
the general secretary. A kisan manifesto was issued and a periodical
under Indulal Yagnik started. The AIKS and the Congress held their
sessions in Faizpur in 1936. The Congress manifesto (especially the
agrarian policy) for the 1937 provincial elections was strongly
influenced by the AIKS agenda.
Under Congress Ministries, The period 1937-39 was the high watermark of
the peasant movements and activity under the Congress provincial rule.
The chief form of mobilisation was through holding kisan conferences and
meetings where demands were aired and resolutions were passed.
Mobilisation campaigns were carried out in the villages.
PEASANT ACTIVITY IN PROVINCES

Kerala
In the Malabar region, the peasants were mobilised mainly by the
Congress Socialist Party activists. Many "Karshak Sanghams" (peasants'
organisations) came into existence. The most popular method was the
marching of jaths or peasants groups to the landlords to get their
demands accepted. One significant campaign by the peasants was in 1938
for the amendment of the Malabar Tenancy Act, 1929.
Andhra
This region had already witnessed a decline in the prestige of zamindars
after their defeat by CongressmenPeasant Movements 1857-1947 341
340
in election& Anti-zamindar movements were going on in some places. Many

provincial ryot associations were active. N.G. Ranga had set up, in
1933, the India Peasants' Institute. After 1936, the Congress socialists
started organising the peasants. At many places, the summer schools of
economics and politics were held and addressed by leaders like P.C.
Joshi, Ajoy Ghosh and R.D. Bhardwaj.
Bihar
Here, Sahjanand Saraswati was joined by Karyanand Sharma, Yadunandan
Sharma, Rahul Sankritayan, Panchartan Sharma, Jamun Karjiti, etc. In
1935, the Provincial Kisan Conference adopted the anti-zamindari slogan.
The Provincial Kisan Sabha developed a rift with the Congress over the
'bakasht land' issue because of an unfavourable government resolution
which was not acceptable to the sabha. The movement died out by August
1939.
Punjab
The earlier peasant mobilisation here had been organised by the Punjab
Naujawan Bharat Sabha, the Kirti Kisan Party, the Congress and the
Akalis. A new direction to the movement was given by the Punjab Kisan
Committee in 1937. The main targets of the movement were the landlords
of western Punjab who dominated the unionist ministry. The immediate
issues taken up were resettlement of land revenue in Amritsar and Lahore
and increase in water rates in canal colonies of Multan and Montgomery
where feudal levies were being demanded by the private contractors. Here
the peasants went on a strike and were finally able to win concessions.
The peasant activity in Punjab was mainly concentrated in Jullundur,
Amritsar, Hoshiarpur, Lyallpur and Shekhupura. The Muslim tenants at
will of west Punjab and the Hindu peasants of south-eastern Punjab
(today's Haryana) remained largely unaffected.
Peasant activity was also organised in Bengal (Burdwan and 24 Parganas),
Assam (Surma Valley), Orissa, Central Provinces and NWFP.
DURING THE WAR
Because of a pro-War line adopted by the communists, the AIKS was split
on communist and non-communist lines and many veteran leaders like
Sahianand, Indulal Yagnik and N.G. Ranga left the sabha. But the Kisan
Sabha continued to work among the people. It did notable work during the
famine of 1943'.
POST-WAR PHASE
Tebhaga Movement, In September 1946, the Bengal Provincial Kisan Sabha
gave a call to implement, through mass struggle, the Flood Commission
recommendations of tebhaga two-thirds' shareto the bargardars, the
share croppers also known as bagehasi or adhyar, instead of the one-half
share. The bargardars worked on lands rented from the jotedars. The
communist cadres, including many urban student militias went to the
countryside to organise the bargardars. The central slogan was "nij
khamare dhan tolo"i.e., sharecroppers taking the paddy to their own
threshing floor and not to the jotedar's house, as before, so as to
enforce tebhaga.
The storm centre of the movement was north Bengal, principally among
Rajbanshisa low caste of tribal origin. Muslims also participated in
large numbers. The movement dissipated soon, because of the League,
ministry's sop of the Bargardari Bill, an intensified repression, the
popularisation of the Hindu Mahasabha's agitation for a separate Bengal
and renewed riots in Calcutta which ended the prospects of sympathetic
support from the urban sections.
Telangana Movement, This was the biggest peasant guerrilla war of modern
Indian history affecting 3000 villages and 3 million population. The
princely state of Hyderabad under Asajahi Nizams was marked by a
combination of religious-linguistic domination (by a mall Urdu-speaking
Muslim elite ruling over predominantly Hindu-Telugu, Marathi, Kannadaspeaking groups), total lack of political and civil liberties, grossest
forms of forced exploitation by deshmukhs, jagirdars, doras (landlords)
in forms of forced labour (vethi) and illegal exactions.
During the war the communist-led guerrillas had built
Telangana villages through Andhra Mahasabha
a strong base in

and had been leading local struggles on issues such as wartime
exactions, abuse of rationing, excessive rent and vethi.
The uprising began in July 1946 when a deshmukh's thug murdered a
village militant in Jangaon taluq of Nalgonda. Soon, the uprising spread
to Warrangal and Kharnmam.
The peasants organised themselves into village sanghams, and attacked
using lathis, stone slings and chilli powder. They had to face brutal
repression. The movement was at its greatest intensity between August
1947 and September. 1948. The peasants brought about a rout of the
Razaqarsthe Nizam's storrntroopers. Once the Indian security forces
took over Hyderabad, the movement fizzled out.
The Telangana movement had many positive
achievement to its credit.
In the villages controlled by guerrillas, vethi and forced labour

disappeared.
Agricultural wages were raised.
Illegally seized lands were restored.
Steps were taken to fix ceilings and redistribute lands. Measures were
taken to improve irrigation and fight cholera.
An improvement in the condition of women was witnessed.
The autocratic-feudal regime of India's biggest princely state was
shaken up, clearing the way for the formation of Andhra Pradesh on
linguistic lines and realising another aim of the national movement in
this region.
BALANCE-SHEET OF PEASANT MOVEMENTS
These movements created an atmosphere for postindependence agrarian
reforms, for instance, abolition of zamindari. They eroded the power of
the landed class, thus adding to the transformation of the agrarian
structure. These movements were based on the ideology of nationalism.
The nature of these movements was similar in diverse areas.
CHAPTER 15
The Movement of the Working Class
The beginning of the second half of the nineteenth century heralded the
entry of modern industry into India. The thousands of hands employed in
construction of railways were harbingers of the modern Indian working
class. Further industrialisation came with the development of ancillary
industries along with the railways. The coal industry developed fast and
employed a large working force. Then came the cotton and the jute
industries.
The Indian working class suffered from the same kind of exploitation
witnessed during the industrialisation of Europe and the rest of the
West, such as low wages, long working hours, unhygienic and hazardous
working conditions, employment of child labour and the absence of basic
amenities. The presence of colonialism in India gave a distinctive touch
to the Indian working class movement. The Indian working class had to
face two basic antagonistic forcesan imperialist political rule and
economic exploitation at the hands of both foreign and native capitalist
classes. Under the circumstances, inevitably, the Indian working class
movement became intertwined with the political struggle for national
emancipation.
EARLIER EFFORTS
The early nationalists, especially the Moderates,
were indifferent to the labour's cause; differentiated between the
labour in the Indian-owned factories and those in the British-owned
factories; believed that labour legislations would affect the
competitive edge enjoyed by the Indian-owned industries;
The Movement of the Working Class 345

did not want a division in the movement on the basis of classes;
did not support the Factory Acts of 1881 and 1891 for these reasons.
Thus, earlier attempts to improve the economic conditions of the workers
were in the nature of the philanthropic efforts which were isolated,
sporadic and aimed at specific local grievances.
1870 Sasipada Banerjee started a workingmen's club and newspaper Bharat
Shramjeevi. 1878 Sorabjee Shapoorji engalee tried to get a bill,
providing better working conditions to labour, passed in the Bombay
Legislative Council.
1880 Narain Meghajee Lokhanday started the newspaper Deenbandhu and set
up the Bombay Mill and Millhands Association. 1899 The first strike by
the Great Indian Peninsular Railways took place, and it got widespread
support. Tilak's Kesari and Maharatta had been campaigning for the
strike for months.
There were many prominent nationalist leaders like Bipin Chandra Pal and
G. Subramanya Aiyar who demanded better conditions for workers. another
pro-labour reformsDURING SWADESHI UPSURGE
Workers participated in wider political issues. Strikes were organised
by Ashwini Coomar Banerjee, Prabhat Kumar Roy Chaudhuri, Premtosh Bose
and Apurba Kumar Ghosh. These strikes were organised in government
press, railways and the jute industry. There were attempts to form trade
unions but these were not very successful. Subramaniya Siva and
Chidambaram Pillai led strikes in Tuticorin and Tirunelvelli and were
arrested. The biggest strike of the period was organised after Tilak's
arrest and trial.
DURING THE FIRST WORLD WAR AND AFTER
The War and its aftermath brought a rise in exports, soaring prices,
massive profiteering opportunities for the industrialists but very low
wages for the workers. This led to discontent among workers.
The emergence of Gandhi led to a broad-based national movement and the
emphasis was placed on the mobilisation of the workers and peasants for
the national cause. A need was felt for the organisation of the workers
in trade unions. International events like the establishment of a
socialist republic in the Soviet Union, formation of the Comintern and
setting up of International~ Labour Organisation (ILO) lent a new
dimension to the movement of the working class in India.
The AITUC
The All India Trade Union Congress was founded on October 31, 1920. The
Indian National Congress president for the year, Lala Lajpat Rai, was
elected as the first president of. AITUC and Dewan Chaman Lal as the
first general secretary. Lajpat Rai was the first to link capitalism
with imperialism"imperialism and militarism are the twin children of
capitalism".
The prominent Congress and swarajist leader

C.R. Das presided over the third and the fourth
sessions of the AITUC. The Gaya session of the.
Congress (1922) welcomed the formation of the
AITUC and a committee was formed to assist it.
C.R. Das advocated that the Congress should take
up the workers' and peasants' cause and
incorporate them in the struggle for swaraj or
else they would get isolated from the movement.
Other leaders who kept close contacts with the
AITUCincluded Nehru, Sabhas Bose, C.F. Andrews,
J.M. Sengupta, Satyamurthy, V.V. Giri and
Sarojini Naidu. In the beginning, the AITUC was
influenced by social democratic ideas of the
British Labour Party. The Gandhian philosophy of
non-violence, trusteeship and class-collaboration
had great influence on the movement. Gandhi
helped organise the Ahmedabad Textile Labour
Association (1918) and through
a protest secured a 27.5 per cent wage hike. (Later, the
award ensured a 35 per cent raise.)
arbitrator's
The Trade Union Act, 1926

The Act recognised trade unions as legal associations;
laid down conditions for registration and regulation of trade union
activities;
secured immunity, both civil and criminal, for trade unions from
prosecution for legitimate activities, but put some restrictions on
their political activities.
Late 1920s
A strong communist influence on the movement lent a militant and
revolutionary content to it. In 1928 there was a six-month-long strike
in Bombay Textile Mills led by the Girni Kamgar Union. The whole of 1928
witnessed unprecedented industrial unrest. This period also saw the
crystallisation of various communist groups, with leaders like S.A.
Dange, Muzaffar Ahmed, P.C. Joshi, Sohan Singh Joshi etc.
Alarmed at the increasing strength of the trade union movement under
extremist influence, the Government resorted to legislative
restrictions. It passed the Public Safety Ordinance (1929) and the Trade
Disputes Act (TDA), 1929.
The TDA, 1929 made compulsory the appointment of Courts of Inquiry
and Consultation Boards for settling industrial disputes;
made illegal the strikes in public utility services like posts,
railways, water and electricity, unless each individual worker planning
to go on strike gave an advance notice of one month to the
administration;
forbade trade union activity of coercive or purely political nature
and even sympathetic strikes.
Meerut Conspiracy Case (1929)

In March 1929, the Government arrested 31 labour leaders, and the threeand-a. half-year trial resulted in the conviction of Muzaffar Ahmed, S.A.
Dange, Joglekar, Philip Spratt, Ben Bradley, Shaukat Usmani and others.
The trial got worldwide publicity but weakened the working class
movement.
The Movement of the Working Class 347
The workers participated during 1930 in the Civil Disobedience Movement
but after 1931 there was a dip in the working class movement because of
a split in 1931 in which the corporatist trend led by N.M. Joshi broke
away from the AITUC to set up the All India Trade Union Federation. In
1935, the communists rejoined the AITUC. Now, the left front consisted
of the communists, Congress socialists and the leftist nationalists like
Nehru and Subhas.
Under Congress Ministries During the 1937 elections, the AITUC had
supported the Congress candidates. The Congress governments in provinces
gave a fillip to the trade union activity. The Congress ministries were
generally sympathetic to the workers' demands. Many legislations
favourable to the workers were passed.
DURING AND AFTER THE SECOND WORLD WAR
Initially, the workers opposed the War but after 1941 when Russia joined
the war on behalf of the Allies, the communists described the war as a
"peoples' war" and supported it The communists dissociated themselves
from the Quit India Movement. A policy of industrial peace was advocated
by the communists.
In the period 1945 to 1947, workers participated actively in the postWar national upsurges. In 1945, the dock workers of Bombay and Calcutta
refused to load ships taking supplies to the warring troops in
Indonesia. During 1946, the workers went on a strike in support of the
Naval Ratings. During the last year of foreign rule, there were strikes
by workers of posts, railways and many other establishments.
AFTER INDEPENDENCE The working class movement got polarised on the basis
of political ideologies.
CHAPTER 16
The Evolution of Nationalist Foreign Policy 349
The Evolution of Nationalist
Foreign Policy
One of the factors that facilitated India's ready interaction with the
world outside, immediately on independence, was the already wellestablished diplomatic engagement even under colonial rule. At
independence, India was a member of 51 international organisations and a
signatory to 600 odd treaties. India had signed the Versailles Treaty
after the First World War, largely as a result of having contributed

more than a million soldiers to that war. In the 1920s, it was a
founding member of the League of Nations, the International Labour
Organisation, and the International Court of Justice. It participated in
the Washington Conference on Naval Armaments in 1921-22. From 1920 there
was an Indian high commissioner in London. Even before the First World
War, Indian nationals were staffing a few diplomatic posts. It was no
accident that Indians formed the largest and most influential nonWestern contingent in the United Nations and allied agencies very soon
after independence.
The basic framework of India's foreign policy was structured much before
1947. A significant and inevitable fallout of the Western influence on
the nationalist intelligentsia was a growing interest in and contact
with the dominant international currents and events. Gradually, the
nationalist thinkers came to realise that colonialism and imperialism
had an international character and much wider implications. With the
development and crystallisation of an anti-imperialist nationalist
ideology, there emerged a nationalist foreign policy perspective. The
evolution of this policy perspective can be traced under these broad
phases.
1880 TO FIRST WORLD WAR ANTI-IMPERIALISM AND PAN-ASIAN FEELING
After 1878, the British undertook a number of expansionist expeditions
which were opposed by the nationalists. These expeditions included
the Second Afghan War (1878-80);
the dispatch of troops by England in 1882, to suppress the nationalist
uprising by Col Arabi in Egypt;
annexation of Burma in 1885;
invasion of Tibet under Curzon in 1903; and
a number of annexations during the 1890s in the northwest to stop the
Russian advance. The nationalists supported the tribal resistance to
these adventures by the British.
In place of an aggressive imperialism, the nationalists advocated a
policy of peace. C. Sankaran Nair, the Congress president in 1897, said,
"Our true policy is a peaceful policy." So, the emerging themes during
1880-1914 were1. solidarity with other colonies fighting for freedom, such as Russia,
Ireland, Egypt, Turkey, Ethiopia, Sudan, Burma and Afghanistan;
2. pan-Asian feeling reflected in
condemnation of annexation of Burma in 1885,
inspiration from Japan as an example of industrial development,
condemnation of the participation of Japan in the international
suppression of the I-Ho-Tuan uprising (1895),
condemnation of the imperialist efforts to divide China,
defeat of the Czarist Russia by Japan which exploded the myth of
European superiority,
Congress support for Burma's freedom.
WORLD WAR I
The nationalists supported the British Indian Government in the belief
that Britain would apply the same principles of democracy for which they
were supposed to be fighting. After

the conclusion of the War
the Congress insisted on being represented at the Peace Conference. In
1920, the Congress urged the people not to join the Army to fight in the
West. In 1925, the Congress condemned the dispatch of Indian Army to
suppress the Chinese nationalist army under Sun-Yat-Sen.
1920s AND 1930sIDENTIFYING WITH SOCIALISTS
In 1926 and 1927, Nehru was in Europe where he came in contact with the
socialists and other leftist leaders. Earlier, Dadabhai Naoroji attended
the Hague session of the International Socialist Congress. He was a
close friend of H.M. Hyndmart, the famous socialist. Lajpat Rai also
made contacts with the American socialists during his visit to the USA
from 1914 to 1918. Gandhi had close relations with Tolstoy and Rolland
Romain. In 1927, Nehru attended the Congress of Oppressed Nationalists
at Brussels on behalf of the Indian National Congress. The conference
was organised by political exiles and revolutionaries from Asia, Africa
and Latin America, suffering from political and economic imperialism.
Nehru was one of the honorary presidents along with Einstein, Madam
Sun-Yet-Sen, Rolland Romain and George Lansbury. Nehru came to
understand the international character of US imperialism during his
European experience. Nehru was also nominated to the executive council
of the League Against Imperialism. The Congress also decided to open a
foreign department to be in touch with the other peoples' movements. In
1927, Nehru also visited the Soviet Union and was very impressed by the
achievements of the infant socialist state. He saw Russia as a bulwark
against imperialism.
AFTER 1936ANTI-FASCISM
The 1930s saw the rise of Fascism in Europe and the struggle against it.
The nationalists saw imperialism and fascism as organs of capitalism.
They lend support to the struggle against fascism in other parts of the
world in Ethiopia, Spain, China, Czechoslovakia. In 1939, at the Tripuri
session, the Congress
dissociated itself from the British policy which supported
Europe.
fascism in
In 1939, the Japanese attack on China was condemned by the nationalists.

The Congress also sent a medical mission under Dr Atal to China.
On the Palestine issue, the Congress lent support to the Palestinians.
It expressed sympathy with the Jews, but urged that the Palestinians not
be displaced and that the issue be settled by direct dealing between the
Jews and the Arabs without Western intervention. It also opposed the
partition of Palestine.
AFTER INDEPENDENCE
Nehru is often called the architect of India's foreign policy. He
realised the importance of the need to have direct contact with other
nations and to cooperate with them in enhancing world peace and freedom;
he also understood the importance of maintaining an identity as a free
nation and not become a satellite of any other nation, however mighty.
In his address to the Constituent Assembly on December 4, 1947, Nehru
laid the foundations of India's foreign policy: "the art of conducting
the foreign affairs of a country lies in finding out what is most
advantageous to the country. We may talk about peace and freedom and
earnestly mean what we say. But in the ultimate analysis, a government
functions for the good of the country it governs, and no government dare
do anything which in the short or long run is manifestly to the
disadvantage of the country."
The main challenge to Nehru was to evolve a policy that could help India
compete on the world arena with the modern states, and for that, he
realised, a drastic socio-economic and technological transformation of
the country was required. His objective was to transform India without
becoming dependent on, any particular country or group of countries to
the extent of losing independence of thought or policy. What India
needed was peaceful relations with all nations so that it could
concentrate on its developmental efforts, and relations good enough for
it to get the necessary help in that direction without compromising its
freedom. In the circumstances, nonalignment seemed to be the right
policy.
Non-Alignment
The global environment that India faced after independence was very
different from what existed before the Second World War. The major
players on the world stage before the War, namely, the United Kingdom,
France, Germany and Japan, lay subdued, their vast empires shrunken or
shrinking fast. The United States, which had followed an isolationist
policy, keeping aloof from active international involvement, became
dramatically active. The Soviet Union had acquired unprecedented
influence in Eastern Europe besides gaining recognition as a powerful
state for crushing the German might on the Eastern Front where most of
the German military casualties had occurred. If the US demonstrated its
nuclear weapon capability in 1945, the USSR followed suit with its own
nuclear test in 1949. The Cold War that began in the wake of the Second
World War had no precedent in history. Almost the entire developed world
was divided into two opposing nuclear-armed blocs, with the US and the
USSR leading as 'super powers'. The balance of power diplomacy of the
pre-war years thus disappeared from the industrialised countries. The
Third World became a surrogate field for super power competition.
Meanwhile, decolonisation was proceeding apace, and more and more
independent countries were emerging, mostly in Asia and Africa. China
was aligned with the Soviet Union till the mid-fifties. India found
itself the largest country with the ability to manoeuvre between the two
blocs.
At this point of time, the Soviet Union did not possess the economic or
military support capability to influence the countries emerging from the
colonial yoke. It was the West, which tried to incorporate the newly
independent countries into its strategic grouping. Alignment with the
West was economically attractive, but it would have created a dependent
relationship, which was seen by most of the newly independent countries
as obstructive to a self-reliant development. The idea of aligning with
the communist bloc was not possible for India, in spite of its socialist
leanings; it could not visualise a Chinese type restructuring of the
society and economy, being basically attuned to a liberal democratic
political vision. Political nonalignment was, therefore, prudent as well
as pragmatic.
The principles of non-interference in the domestic affairs of other
countries and maintenance of one's own sovereignty (which are the basic
postulates of India's foreign policy) evolved into the crystallisation
of the concept of non-alignment. The term 'non-alignment' got currency
in the post-Bandung Conference (1955). Non-alignment implies the active
refusal of a state to align itself with either party in a dispute
between two power blocs. In the conference of non-aligned powers (the
first non-aligned movement or NAM summit), held in Belgrade.
Five Criterias of Non-alignment
The Preparatory Committee of the first non-aligned conference laid down
the following five criteria of non-alignment:
(i)
A country should follow an independent policy based on
peaceful co-existence and non-alignment.
(ii)
It should have consistently supported national freedom
movements in other countries.
(iii)
It should not be a member of multi-lateral military alliances
concluded in the context of super-power conflicts.
(iv) If it has conceded military bases, these concessions
should not have been made in the context of super-power
conflicts.
(iv)
If it is a member of a bi-lateral or regional defence
arrangements, this should not be in the context of superpower
politics.
Five Pioneering Leaders of the NAM
(i)
President Tito (original name Josip Broz) of Yugoslavia.
(ii)
President Gamal Abdel Nasser of Egypt.
(iii)
President Kwame Nkrumah of Ghana.
(iv) President Sukarno of Indonesia.
(v) Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru of India.
in 1961 and attended by 36 Mediterranean and Afro-Asian powers,
Jawaharlal Nehru explained the essence of non alignment "We call
ourselves the confeience of non-aligned countries. Now the word nonaligned may be differently interpreted but basically it was used and
coined almost with the meaning: non aligned with greater power blocs of
the world. Non-aligned has a negative meaning but if you give it a
positive connotation it means nations which object to this lining up for
war purpose, military blocs, military alliances and the like. Therefore,
we keep away from this and we want to throw our weight, such as it is,
in favour of peace".
Non-alignment is the characteristic feature of our foreign policy. India
was one of the founder members of NAM. In the Cold War era, India
refused to favour any super power and remained non-aligned. Nonalignment, however, is not to be confused with neutrality. A neutral
state remains inactive or passive during hostilities between two blocs.
Neutrality is maintained basically in times of war, whereas nonalignment has relevance both in times of war and peace. Neutrality is
equivalent to passivity, a neutral country has no opinions, (positive or
negative) on issues at all. However, adherence to non-alignment is to
have positive and constructive opinions on international issues. India
has firmly and convincingly asserted its 'non-aligned' and not 'neutral'
stand on various issues. Non-alignment as one of the principles of
India's foreign policy attempts to promote international peace,
disarmament and territorial independence. It aims at democratisation of
international relations by putting an end to imperialism and hegemony
and establishing a just and equal world order.
Ready Reference Data

PERSONALITIES ASSOCIATED
WITH SPECIFIC MOVEMENTS
SWADESHI MOVEMENT
Lokmanya Tilak spread the message of swadeshi to Poona and Bombay and
organised Ganapati and Shivaji festivals to arouse patriotic feelings.
He stressed that the aim of swadeshi, boycott and national education was
attainment of swaraj. He opened cooperative stores and headed the
Swadeshi Wastu Pracharini Sabha.
Lala Lajpat Rai took the movement to Punjab and parts of northern India.
He was assisted in his venture by Ajit Singh. His articles, which were
published in Kayastha Samachar, endorsed technical education and
industrial self-sufficiency.
Syed Haider Raza popularised the Swadeshi Movement
in Delhi.
Chidambaram Pillai spread the movement to Madras and organised the

strike of the Tuticorin Coral Mill. He founded the Swadeshi Steam
Navigation Company in Tuticorin on the east coast of the Madras
Province.
Bipin Chandra Pal of the Extremist clan played a major role in
popularising the movement, especially in the urban areas. He was the
editor of New India.
Laikat Hossain of Patna suggested boycott and organised the East Indian
Railway strike in 1906. He also wrote fiery articles in Urdu to rouse
nationalist sentiments in Muslims. He was supported by other Muslim
swadeshi agitators like Ghaznavi, Rasul, Din Mohammed, Dedar Bux,

Moniruzzaman, Ismail Hussain, Siraji, Abdul Hussain and Abdul Gaffar.
Ready Reference Data 357
Shyamsunder Chacrabarti, a swadeshi political leader,
organising strikes.
helped in
Ramendra Sunder Trivedi called for observance of arandhan (keeping the

hearth unlit) as a mark of mourning and protest on the day the partition
was put into effect.
Rabindranath Tagore composed several songs to inspire freedom struggle
and revived Bengali folk music to rouse national pride. He also set up
some swadeshi stores and called for the observance of raksha bandhan
(tying of threads on each other's wrists as a sign of brotherhood).
Aurobindo Ghosh was in favour of extending the movement to the rest of
India. He was appointed as the principal of Bengal National College
founded in 1906 to encourage patriotic thinking and an education system
related to Indian conditions and culture. He was also the editor of
Bande Mataram and through his editorials encouraged strikes, national
education etc in the spirit of the Swadeshi Movement. He was assisted by
Jatindranath Bannerji and Barindrakurriar Ghosh (who managed the
Anushilan Samiti).
Surendranath Banerjee, who held moderate nationalist opinion launched
powerful press campaigns through newspapers like The Bengalee and
addressed mass meetings. He was assisted by Krishnakumar Mitra and
Narendra Kumar Sen.
Ashwini Kumar Dutt, a school teacher, set up Swadesh Bandhab Samiti to
propagate the Swadeshi Movement and led the Muslim peasants of Barisal
in their protests.
Promotha Mitter, arindrakumar Ghosh, Jatindranath Banerji founded the
Anushilan Samiti in Calcutta. Gokhale, president of the Benaras session
of the Indian National Congress, 1905, supported the Swadeshi Movement.
Abdul Halim Guznavi, a zamindar and a lawyer, set up swadeshi industries
and helped Aurobindo Ghosh to extend revolutionary activities outside
Bengal. He was assisted by Abul Kalam Azad.
Dadabhai Naoroji at the 1906 Congress session declared
the Congress was to attain swaraj.
that the goal of
Acharya P.C. Roy, in order to promote swadeshi, set up the Bengal

Chemicals Factory. Das, Rajanikanta Sett, Dwijendralal Roy,
Girindramohirti Dosi, Sayed Abu Mohammed composed patriotic songs on
swadeshi themes. Girishchandra Ghosh, shirodeprasad Vidyavinode and
Asmitlal Bose were playwrighters who contributed to the swadeshi spirit
through their creative efforts.
Ashwini Coomar Bannerji, a swadeshi activist, led the jute mill workers
to form an Indian Millhancis' Union at BudgeBudge in August 1906.
Satish Chandra Mukherji through his Dawn Society promoted an education
system under indigenous control. Ghosh of the Amrit Bazar Patrika group
contributed several fiery articles in the paper to arouse patriotic
sentiments and was in favour of Extremism.
Bralunabandhab Upadhyay through his Sandhya and Yugantar (brought out by
a group associated with Barindrakumar Ghosh) popularised swaraj and the
Swadeshi Movement
jogendrachandra set up an association in March 1904 to raise funds to
facilitate students to go abroad for technical and industrial training.
Manindra Nandi, a zamindar from Kasimbazar,
indigenous industries.
patronised several
Kalisankar Sukul brought out several pamphlets on Swadeshi Movement and

argued that a new kind of business class should be built to promote
national interests.
Sunder Lal, a student from UP, was drawn towards
Kunwarji Mehta and Kalyanji Mehta began
Patidar Yuvak Mandal.
terrorism.
organisational work through the
Lala Harkishan Lal promoted Swadeshi Movement in Punjab through the

Brahmo-leaning group which began the Tribune newspaper. He also founded
the Punjab National Bank.
Mohammed Shah -and Fazal-i-Husain were leaders of a Muslim group in
Punjab involved in constructive swadeshi, rather than boycott.
V. Krishnaswami Iyer headed the 'Mylapore' group in
Presidency.
the Madras
G. Subramaniya Iyer, T. Prakasam and M. Krishna Rao were other leaders

in the south but were opposed to V.K. Iyer. Prakasain and Krishna Rao
started Kistnapatrika in Masulipatnam in 1904.
Subramaniya Bharati, a member of Tamilian revolutionary group and an
eminent poet, played a significant role in arousing nationalism in the
Tamil areas.
Prabhatkusum Roy Chauchurl, Athanasuis Apurba kumar Ghosh were lawyers
who helped in organising labour; Premtosh Bose was another pioneer
labour leader.
Hemachandra Kanungo was one of the first revolutionary leaders, Wand
after his return from Paris (he had gone there to get military
training), a combined bomb factory and

Calcutta.
religious school was set up in
Khudiram Bose and Prafulla Chaki, two revolutionaries,

on April 30, 1908.
Pulin Das organised the Deccan Anushilan, with the
first major venture.
murdered Kennedy
Barrah dacoity as its
Madan Mohan Malaviya and Motilal Nehru were in favour of cooperation

with provincial governments and nonpolitical Swadeshi Movement,
Sachindranath Sanyal emerged as a revolutionary leader in Benaras
through contacts with Mokhodacharan Samadhyay (the editor of. Sandhya
after the death of Brahmabandhab).
The Savarkar brothers founded the Mitra Mela in 1899 and were directly
involved in extremism in Maharashtra.
Dinshaw Wacha persuaded mill-owners in Maharashtra to sell dhotis at
moderate prices.
NON-COOPERATION MOVEMENT
M.K. Gandhi issued a manifesto in March 1920, announcing his doctrine of
non-violent Non-Cooperation Movement. He was the main force behind the
movement and
359
urged the people to adopt swadeshi principles and habits including hand
spinning, weaving and work for removal of untouchability. He addressed
lakhs of people during his nation-wide tour in 1921. He suspended the
movement after an outburst of violence at Chauri Chaura in UP in
February 1922.
C.R. Das moved the main resolution on non-cooperation in the annual
session of the Congress in Nagpur in 1920 and played a major role in
promoting the movement. A successful lawyer, he boycotted the law courts
and gave up a lucrative practice. His three subordinates and supporters,
Birendranath Samsal in Midnapore, J.M. Sertgupta in Chittagong and
Subhash Bose in Calcutta played a major role in uniting the Hindus and
Muslims.
Jawaharlal Nehru carried on the non-cooperation propaganda and
encouraged the formation of kisan sabhas to take up the cause of the
peasants exploited by government policies. He was against Gandhi's
decision to withdraw the movement.
J.M. Sengupta, a Bengali nationalist leader, supported the labourers on
tea plantations in Assam in their protests and strike.
Basanti Debi, wife of C.R. Das, was one of the first
court arrest in 1921.
women volunteers to
Birendranath Samsal organised the anti-union board agitation in the

Contai and Tamluk sub-divisions of Midnapore. In November-December 1921,
Samsal initiated a no-tax movement among the Mahishya substantial
tenantry of Midnapore.
Jitendralal Banerji organised the peasants in 1921-22 to
settlement operations in Bogra, Pabna and Birbhum.
resist
Subhash Chandra Bose supported the movement and resigned from the civil
service. He was appointed. the principal of the National College in
Calcutta.
Ali brothers (Shaukat Ali and Muhammed Ali) who were the foremost
Khilafat leaders vehemently supported Gandhi in his nation-wide tour to
spread the movement. At
the All India Khilafat Conference, Muhammed Ali declared that 'it was
religiously unlawful for the Muslims to continue in the British Army'.
The Ali brothers were arrested later.
Motilal Nehru renounced his legal practice in response to the noncooperation call by. Gandhi. He was arrested in 1921. Other notable
lawyers who gave up their practice included. M.R. Jayakar, Saifuddin
Kitchlew, Vallabhbhai Patel, C. Rajagopalachari, T. Prakasam and Asaf
Ali. Their sacrifice inspired many others, who boycotted government jobs
and entered the mainstream of freedom struggle.
Lala Lajpat Rai was initially not in favour of the policy of noncooperation (he was against the boycott of schools) but later he
supported the movement. In fact he protested against its withdrawal in
1922.
Rajendra Prasad actively supported the Gandhian
movement in Bihar.
Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel spread the movement in Gujarat and regarded

non-cooperation as a feasible alternative to revolutionary terrorism to
fight against a colonial government.
Motilal lejawat organised the Bhils and the Bhil
the non-cooperation activities.
Alluri Sitaram Raju led the tribals in Andhra and
with those of the Non-Cooperation Movement.
movement strengthened
combined their demands
Hasrat Mohani, a Khilafat leader, condemned the arrest

brothers and demanded complete independence.
of the Ali
Purushottamdas Thakurdas, Jamnadas Dwarkadas, Cowasji Jehangir, Phroze

Sethna and Setalvad, all of whom belonged to the industrialist section,
launched an Anti-Non( cooperation Association in 1920.
Kunhammad Haji, Kalathingal Mammad, Ali Musaliar, Sithi Koya Thangal and
Imbechi Koya Thangal acted as presidents of the Khilafat Republics set
up at a number of places.
K. Madhavan Nair, U. Gopala Menpn, Yakub Hasan
the Khilafat leaders and supporters
and P. Moideen Koya were

of the Non-Cooperation Movement. They were arrested in February 1921.
Muhammad Osman, another Khilafat agitator, organised
and trade unions in Calcutta.
volunteer groups
Swami Vishwanand (supported by Ramjas Agarwala, a Marwari mine owner)

and Swami Darsan, organised the, coal miners of the Raniganj-Jharia belt
for the NonCooperation Movement.
Kishan Singh and Mota Singh called for no-revenue movements and headed
the "Babbar Akali' group, which emerged as :a dissident of Shiromani
Gurudwara Prabhandhak Committee, in 1921 in Jullundur and Hoshiarpur.
Jairamadas Daulatram was a close associate of Gandhi
Non-Cooperation Movement.
and promoted the
Swami Govindanand, a supporter of Gandhi, was jailed for five years on

charges of sedition in May 1921. He later became a critic of the
Congress.
S.A. Dange, RS. Nimbkar, V.D. Sathaye, RV. Nadkarni, S.V. Deshpande and
K.N. Joglekar were members of a radical student group and promoted the
movement although they were not in line with Gandhi's views. They were
influenced by R.B. Lotwalla, a millionaire with a socialist leaning.
Dange, in April 1921, wrote Gandhi versus Lenin and was in favour of
swaraj which would nationalise factories and distribute zamindari land
among farmers.
Thiru Vika supported the labour uprising and strike at
and Carnatic textile mills from July to October 1921.
the Buckingham
Singaravelu Chettiar was a lawyer and labour organiser in Madras and

played a significant role in merging the labour and freedom movements.
He was the first communist in south India and was in favour of using
non-violent non-cooperation against 'capitalistic autocracy'.
Konda Venkatappaya, A. Kaleswara Rao, T. Prakasam and Pattabhi
Sitaramaya led the Non-Cooperation Movement in the Andhra delta region.
Duggirala Gopalakrishrtayya inspired the inhabitants of
of Chirala-Parala in Guntur district to resist
the small town
the Government's plan to make the town a municipality and

local taxes.
the hike in
N.C. Bardaloi, an Assam Congress leader, favoured non-cooperation but

was against strikes in plantations, as he himself was a planter.
'Assam Kesari' Arnbikagiri Roy Chaudhuri's poetry had a profound impact
on the Assamese and helped in arousing nationalist spirit in them.
Muzaffar Ahmad formed the pioneer communist group
influenced by M.N. Roy and Nalini Gupta.
in Calcutta. He was
Someshwarprasad Chaudhuri, a student in Calcutta, organised the peasants

protesting against indigo cultivation on the Rajshaski-Nadia and PabrtaMurshidabad border.
Purushottamdas Tandort, Ganesh Shankar Vidyarthi, Govind Ballabh Pant
and Lal Bahadur Shastri began their political careers in 1920-21, with
the onset of the NonCooperation Movement
Premchand, a well-known novelist, resigned his post in a Gorakhpur
government school in February 1921 and started contributing to the
journal Aaj. His novels Prernasharam, Rangbhumi etc reflect Gandhian
principles and values and endorse non-cooperation as an effective weapon
to gain freedom.
Baba Ramchandra organised peasants' revolt in south and south-east
Avvadh and helped merge the peasants' revolt with the Non-Cooperation
Movement He was arrested in February 1921.
A. Shah Naim Ata announced himself 'King of Salon' and initiated notaxes movement
B.
M.N. Roy, a communist leader, was the editor of the communist journal
Vanguard. He condemned the sessions court's sentence to death to 172 of
the 225 accused in the Chauri Chaura incident (later, 19 were hanged and
the rest transported) as against 22 policemen killed.
Bhagwan Ahir, an army pensioner in Gorakhpur village, was beaten up by
the British police. The incident flared up nationalist sentiments in the
village, which then, led to the killing of 22 policemen in ChauriChaura, by the peasants.
CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE MOVEMENT
M.K. Gandhi formally launched the Civil Disobedience Movement on April
6, 1930 by picking a handful of salt after the completion of historic
'Dandi March' from Sabarmati Ashram to Dandi, thus breaking the salt law
imposed by the Government. He was the major force behind the movement
and inspired grass-root participation in the freedom struggle.
C Rajagopalachari led a salt march from Trichinopoly to Vedaranniyam on

the Tanjore coast in Tamil Nadu, in support of the Civil Disobedience
Movement. He was arrested on April 30, 1930.
K. Kelappan, a Nair Congress leader, launched the Vaikom Satyagraha and
marched from Calicut to Payanneer in defiance of salt laws.
Jawaharlal Nehru was actively involved in the movement and was arrested
on April 17, 1930 for defiance of the salt law. He formulated a radical
agrarian programme and suggested formation of the Constituent Assembly
as the prime political slogan.
P. Krishna Pillai defended the national flag and resisted lathicharge on
the Calicut beach on November 11, 1930. He later founded the Kerala
Communist Movement.
Khan Abdul Gaffar Khan formed a clan of non-violent revolutionaries, the
Khudai Khidmatgars (known as Red Shirts), who played an active role in
the movement.
Sarojini Naidu, the first Indian woman to become the president of the
Congress, was involved in a march towards the Dharsana Salt Works, a
government salt depot. Other leaders who participated in this total nonviolent affair were Imam Saheb, Gandhi's comrade of the South African
struggle, and Manilal, Gandhi's son.
Surya Sen's Chittagong Revolt Group carried out a raid on two armouries
and declared the establishment of a provisional government. He issued a
manifesto in the name of Indian. Republican Army and called on the
Indians to revolt against the British rule.
Abbas Tayabji, a leader of the nationalist Muslims in Bombay, took the
place of Gandhi in the movement after the latter's arrest. However, he
too was arrested by the Government.
Ambalal Sarabhai and Kasturbhai Lakhai gave their cooperation to Motilal
Nehru in removing the barriers between the Congress and the Bombay millowners and industrialists.
Industrialists such as G.D. Birla (who donated from one to five lakh
rupees), Janinalal Bajaj (who served as the AICC treasurer for several
years and represented Gandhian leadership in Bombay), Homi Modi,
VValchand Hirachand, Lalji Naranji, Purushottamdas Thakurdas, Lala Sri
Ram etc supported the movement in its first phase. Homi Modi, in his
presidential speech to Bombay Mill-owners' Association in March 1931
said that though the Swadeshi Movement had helped the Indian industry,
frequent strikes had dislocated trade and industry. Naranji and
Thakurdas, who had remained indifferent to the nationalist struggle in
1921, demanded Indian control over finance, currency, fiscal policy and
railways, from September 1930, there was a sharp decline in upport from
the industrialists and traders; with the prominent :businessmen having
differences of opinion with the Congress.
Chandraprabha Saikiani instigated the aboriginal Kachari

Assam to break forest laws.
:villagers in
Subhash Bose and J.M. Sengupta led the faction group -in Bengal Congress
and set up rival organisations to conduct disobedience. Bose criticised
Gandhi, when the latter suspended the movement in May 1933. He was
supported by Vithalbhai Patel.
Bonga Majhi and Somralajhi led the movement in
sanslcritising lines with the Congress.
Hazaribagh along the
Kalka Prasad, a local leader in Rai Bareilly, promoted no-rent campaign.

Santi and Suniti Chaudhari assassinated the district magistrate of
Tippera, Stevens. Their action marked the entry of women in the
revolutionary movement.
Seth Achal Singh, a nationalist landlord, financed the Gram Seva Sangh
in Agra and remained indifferent to riots in the area, while strictly
following the policy of non-violence.
Sheikh Abdullah, a Muslim graduate, started an agitation and attacked
the Srinagar jail on July 31, 1931 where 21 persons were killed in
police firing. He also developed close contacts with a group of antiautocratic Jammu Hindus led by. P.N. Bazaz.
Mohammed Yasin Khan, a Muslim leader in Punjab, organised the Meos
(semi-tribal peasant community with leanings towards Islam) to protest
against Maharaja Jaisingh Sawai's hike in revenue, begar, and
reservation of forests for the purpose of hunting.
K.M. Ashraf, who became India's first:Marxist historian,
with the movement.
was associated
Pandit Madan Mohan Malaviya, who was an upholder of Gandhian policies

since 1920's, began to drift away with the launch of Harijan campaign by
Gandhi. He started a breakaway Congress Nationalist Party.
Satyamurthi, Bhulabhai Desai, M.A. Ansari and B.C. Roy demanded a return
to electoral politics by way of a revived Swarajya Party.
Jayaprakash Narayan, Achhut Patwardhan, Yusuf Mehrali, Ashok Mehta and
Minoo Masani wanted the Congress to have affinity with left-wing.
Sampurnanand formulated 'A Tentative Socialist Programme' for India and
a Congress Socialist Party was started in 1934, which was supported by
Narendra Dev.
K.F. Nariman and Yusuf Meher Ali led the Congress
emerged as socialist leaders.
youth wing and later
Swami Govindanand led the movement in Karachi and
Sindh.
N.V. Gadgil with his socialist leanings lent support to a temple entrymovement in 1929 and established friendly ties with the non-brahmin
Satyashodhak Samaj. (represented by Keshavrao Jedhe of Poona).
B.R. Ambedkar, who was the leader of the untouchable
Mahars, attended the Round Table Conference in 1930. However, the
Congress failed to win over the political agitation of the Mahars.
Gopabandhu Chaudhuri popularised the movement in. Orissa and led the
salt satyagraha in the coastal areas of Balasore, Cuttack and Puri
districts.
Tarunaram Phookan and N.C. Bardoloi, two prominent Congress leaders,
were against the movement in Assam. They refused to take up forest
satyagraha officially.
Jadunandan Sharma activated the Kisan Sabha Movement
Bihar.
in Gaya district of
Duggirala Balaramakrishnaya of the Krishna district initiated a norevenue campaign in 1931 in coastal Andhra. He also wrote a Telugu
ballad Gandhi Gita which aroused patriotic sentiments.
N.V. Rama Naidu and N.C. Ranga organised a forest
Venkatagiri estate in Nellore in 1931.
satyagraha in
A.K. Gopalan, a school teacher, was a popular activist at Guruvayoor in

Kerala and later became Kerala's most popular communist peasant leader.
Mannu Gond and Chaitu Koiku offered forest satyagraha
Central Provinces.
in Betul in
Maulana Bhasani, organised a large praja sammelan at Sirajgunj and

demanded abolition of zamindari and reduction in debts.
B.T. Ranadeve and S.V. Deshpande in Bombay and Abdul Halim, Somnath
Lahiri and Ranen Sen in Calcutta were the young communist militants who
organised several labour strikes. V.B. Karnik, Maniben Kara, Rajani
Mukherji and Niharendu Dutta were other leaders who started trade union
activities.
M.N. Roy and his followers popularised socialist ideas
and a no-tax campaign was started in Awadh.
QUIT INDIA MOVEMENT
M.K. Gandhi planned an all-out campaign to compel
from India, after the failure of the Cripps
in the villages
British withdrawal
Mission to reach a compromise. At the historic August meeting at Gowalia

Tank in Bombay, Gandhi proclaimed his mantra 'do or die'. He was
arrested on August 9, 1942. He undertook a 21-day fast in February 1943
to protest against the Government actions against Indians involved in
the movement
jayaprakash Narayan was a member of the Congress
played a prominent role in the movement.
Socialist group and
Ram Manohar Lohia, Aruna Asaf Ali, Sucheta Kripalani, Chhotubhai

Puranik, Biju Patnaik, R.P. Goenka and Achyut Patwardhan were leaders
associated with the underground movement and revolutionary activities in
support of Quit India Movement.
Chittu Pande, who called himself a Gandhian, formed
government and captured all the ten police stations
UP in August 1942.
Usha Mehta actively supported the movement and was
of a small group which ran the Congress Radio.
a parallel
in Ballia, in east
an important member
Jawaharlal Nehru initially supported the arch Moderates, who were

opposed to Gandhi's plan, but later, he moved the Quit India Resolution
on August 8, 1942.
Sumati Morarjee helped Achyut Patwardhan in his underground activities.
She later became India's leading woman industrialist.
Rashbehari Bose, a revolutionary activist, was elected the president of
the Indian Independence League (formed in March 1942) in June 1942. He
was living in Japan since 1915 as a fugitive. He mobilised Indian
soldiers taken as prisoners of war by the Japanese forces (after the
British was defeated in South East Asia) for an armed rebellion against
the British colonial rule.
Captain Mohan Singh, an Indian soldier fighting on behalf of the British
was taken as prisoner of war by the Japanese. He was persuaded by a
Japanese army officer to work with the Japanese for India's freedom. He
was appointed the commander of the Indian National Army.
368
Subhash Chandra Bose joined the Indian National Army in 1943. One of his
most famous declarations was "Tum mujhe khun do, mai tumhe azadi doonga"
(You give me blood, I will give you freedom). The INA played a
significant role in the independence struggle under the leadership of
Subhash Bose.
C. Rajagopalachari and Bhulabhai Desai were the arch.
Moderates, who
were in favour of recognising the rights of Muslim majority provinces to
secede through plebiscites after
independence had been gained. They
resigned from the AICC in July 1942.
K.G. Mashruwalla brought out two militant issues of Harijan (after the
arrest of Mahadev Desai) to arouse the sentiments of people.
K.T. Bhashyam, a Congress leader in Bangalore, played an active role in
the trade union field and organised strikes by about 30,000 workers.
Satish Samanta, a local Congress leader and the first sarbadhinayak of
the Tamluk Jatiya Sarkar, helped in establishing a rebel 'national
government' in Tamluk sub-division of Midnapore.
Matangini Hazra, a 73-year-old peasant widow in Tamluk, was killed in
violence on September 29, 1942, when the Sutahata police-station was
captured. Matangini kept the national flag aloft even after being shot.
Lakshman Naik, an illiterate villager, led a large tribal population from
Koraput to protest against the Jeypore mindari and attack policestations. Lakshman Naik was hanged on November 16, 1942 for allegedly
murdering a forest guard.
Nana Patil headed a rebellion in Satara.
369
GOVERNORS-GENERAL AND VICEROYS OF INDIA

SIGNIFICANT EVENTS IN THEIR RULE
Governor-General
1. Warren Hastings 1773-1785
(i) Regulating Act of 1773.
(ii) Act of 1781, under which the powers of jurisdiction between the
governor-general in council and the Supreme Court at Calcutta, were
clearly divided.
(iv)
Pitt's India Act of 1784.
(iv) The Rohilla War of 1774.
(v)
The First Maratha War in 1775-82 and the Treaty of Salbai in
1782.
(vi)
Second Mysore War in 1780-84.
(vii)
Strained relationships with Chait Singh, the Maharaja of
Benaras, which led to Hastings' subsequent impeachment in
England.
(viii)
Foundation of the Asiatic Society of Bengal (1784).
2. Lord Cornwallis 1786-1793
(i) Third Mysore War (1790-92) and Treaty of Seringa-patam (1792).
(ii) Cornwallis Code (1793) incorporating several judicial reforms, and
separation of revenue administration and civil jurisdiction.
(iii)
Permanent Settlement of Bengal, 1793.
(iv)
Europeanisation of administrative machinery and introduction
of civil services.
3. Sir John Shore 1793-1798
(i) Charter Act of 1793.
(ii) Battle of Kharda between the Nizam and the Marathas (1795).
4. Lord Wellesley 1798-1805

(i) Introduction of the Subsidiary Alliance System (1798), first alliance
with Nizam of Hyderabad.
(ii) Fourth Mysore War (1799).
(iii)
Second Maratha War (1803-05).
(iv)
370
(iv) Took over the administration of Tanjore (1799), Surat (1800) and
Carnatic (1801).
(v)
Treaty of Bassein. (1802).
5. Sir George Barlow 1805-1807
Vellore Mutiny (1806).
6. Lord Minto 1807-1813
Treaty of Amritsar with Ranjit Singh (1809).
7. Lord Hastings 1813-1823
(i) Anglo-Nepal War (1814-16) and the Treaty of Sagauli, 1816.
(ii) Third Maratha War (1817-19) and dissolution of Maratha Confederacy;
creation of Bombay Presidency (1818).
(ii)
Strife with Pindaris (1817-1818).
(iv) Treaty with Sindhia (1817).
(vi)
Establishment of Ryotwari System by Thomas Munro, governor
of Madras (1820).
8. Lord Amherst 1823-1828
(i) First Burmese War (1824-1826).
(ii) Capture of Bharatpur (1826).
9. Lord William Bentinck 1828-1835
(i) Abolition of sati and other cruel rites (1829).
(ii) Suppression of thugi (1830).
(iii)
Charter Act of 1833.
(iv) Resolution of 1835, and educational reforms and
introduction of English as the official language.
(iv)
Annexation of Mysore (1831), Coorg (1834) and Central Cachar
(1834).
(v)
Treaty of 'perpetual friendship with Ranjeet Singh.
(vi)
Abolition of the provincial courts of appeal and circuit set
up by Cornwallis, appointment of commissioners of revenue
and circuit.
10. Lord Metcalfe 1835-1836
New press law, removing restrictions on the press in
371
11. Lord Auckland 1836-1842

(i) First Afghan War (1838-42).
(ii) Death of Ranjit Singh (1839).
India.
12. Lord Ellenborough 1842-1844

(i) Annexation of Sindh (1843).
(ii) War with Gwalior (1843).
13. Lord Hardinge 1844-1848
(i) First Anglo-Sikh War (1845-46) and the Treaty of Lahore (1846).
(ii)
Social reforms including abolition of female infanticide and human
sacrifice.
14. Lord Dalhousie 1848-1856
(i) Second Anglo-Sikh War (1848-49) and annexation of Punjab (1849).
(ii) Annexation of Lower Burma or Pegu (1852).
(iii)
Introduction of the Doctrine of Lapse and annexation of
Satara (1848), Jaitpur and Sambhalpur (1849), lidaipur
(1852), Jhansi (1853), Nagpur (1854) and Awadh (1856).
(iv)
"Wood's (Charles Wood, President of the Board of Control)
Educational Despatch" of 1854 and opening of Anglovernacular schools and government colleges.
(v)
Railway Minute of 1853; and laying down of first railway
line connecting Bombay and Thane in 1853.
(vi)
Telegraph (4000 miles of telegraph 'fines to connect Calcutta
with Bombay, Madras and Peshawar) and postal (Post Office
Act, 1854) reforms.
(vii)
Ganges Canal declared open (1854); establishment of separate
public works department in every province.
(viii) Widow Remarriage Act (1856).
15. Lord Canning 1856-1857
(i) Establishment of three universities at Calcutta, Madras and Bombay in
1857.
(ii) Revolt of 1857.
372
Viceroys
1. Lord Canning 1858-1862
(i) Transfer of control from East India Company to the Crown, the
Government of India Act, 1858.
(ii) 'White Mutiny' by European troops in 1859.
(iii)
Indian Councils Act of 1861.
2. Lord Elgin 1862-1863
Wahabi Movement.
3. Lord John Lawrence 1864-1869
(i) Bhutan War (1865)
(ii) Setting up of the High Courts at Calcutta, Bombay
(1865).
and Madras
4. Lord Mayo 1869-1872

(i)
Opening of the Rajkot College in Kathiawar and the Mayo
College at Ajmer for political training of Indian princes.
(ii)
Establishment of Statistical Survey of India.
(iii)
(iv)
Establishment of Department of Agriculture and

Introduction of state railways.
Commerce.
5. Northbrook 1872-1876
(i)
Visit of Prince of Wales in 1875.
(ii)
Trial of Gaekwar of Baroda.
(iii)
Kuka Movement in Punjab.
6. Lytton 1876-1880
(i)
Famine of 1876-78 affecting Madras, Bombay, Mysore,
Hyderabad, parts of central India and Punjab. appointment of
Famine Commission under the presidency of Richard Strachey
(1878).
(ii)
Royal Titles Act (1876), Queen Victoria assuming the title
of 'Kaiser-i-Hind' or Queen Empress of India.
(iii)
The Vernacular Press Act (1878).
(iv)
The Arms Act (1878).
(v)
The Second Afghan War (1878-80).
373
7. Lord Ripon 1880-1884

(i)
Repeal of the Vernacular Press Act (1882).
(ii)
The first Factory Act (1881) to improve labour conditions.
(iii)
Continuation of financial decentralisation.
(iv)
Government resolution on local self-government (1882).
(v)
Appointment of Education Commission under chairmanship of
Sir William Hunter (INV.).
(vi)
The Ilbert Bill controversy (1883-84).
(vii)
Rendition of Mysore.
8. Lord Dufferin 1884-1888
(i) The Third Burmese War (1885-86).
(ii) Establishment of the Indian National Congress (1885).
9. Lord Lansdowne 1888-1894
(i) Factory Act (1891).
(ii)
Categorisation of civil services into imperial, provisional and
subordinate.
(iv)
Indian Councils Act (1892).
(v)
Setting up of Durand Commission (1893) to define the
Durand Line between India and Afghanistan (now between
Pakistan and Afghanistan).
10. Lord Elgin II 1894-1899
(i) Two British officials assassinated by Chapekar brothers (1897).
11. Lord Curzon 1899-1905
(i)
(ii)
(iii)
Appointment of Police Commission (1902) under Sir Andrew

Frazer to review police administration.
Appointment of Universities Commission (1902) and passing of
Indian Universities Act (1904).
Establishment of Department of Commerce and Industry.
(iv)
(v)
(vi)
(vii)
(viii)
Calcutta Corporation Act (1899).

Ancient Monuments Preservation Act (1904).
Partition of Bengal (1905).
Curzon-Kitchener controversy.
Younghusband's Mission to Tibet (1904).

12. Lord Minto 1905-1910
(i)
(ii)
(iii)
Popularisation of anti-partition and Swadeshi Movements.

Split in Congress in the annual session of 1907 in Surat.
Establishment of Muslim League by Aga Khan (1906).
13. Lord Hardinge II 1910-1916

(i) Creation of Bengal Presidency (like Bombay and Madras) in 1911.
(ii) Transfer of capital from Calcutta to Delhi (1911).
(iii) Establishment of the Hindu Mahasabha (1915) by Madan Mohan
Malaviya.
(iv)
Coronation durbar of King George V held in Delhi (1911).
14. Lord Chelmsford 1916-1921
(i) Formation of Home Rule Leagues by Annie Besant and Tilak (1916).
(ii) Lucknow session of the Congress (1916).
(iii)
Lucknow pact between the Congress and Muslim League (1916).
(iv)Foundation of Sabarmati Ashram (1916) after Gandhi's return;
launch of Champaran Satyagraha (1916), Kheda Satyagraha (1918), and
Satyagraha at Ahmedabad (1918).
(v)
Montagu's August Declaration (1917).
(vi)
Government of India Act (1919).
(vii)
The Rowlatt Act (1919).
(viii)
Jallianwalla Bagh massacre (1919).
(ix)
Launch of Non-Cooperation and Khilafat Movements.
(x)
Foundation of Women's University at Poona (1916) and
appointment of Saddler's Commission (1917) for reforms in
educational policy.
(xi)
Death of Tilak (August 1, 1920).
(xii)
Appointment of S.P. Sinha as governor of Bihar (the first
Indian to become a governor).
375
15. Lord Reading 1921-1926

(i) Chauri Chaura incident (February 5, 1922) and the subsequent
withdrawal
of
Non-Cooperation Movement.
(ii) Moplah rebellion in Kerala (1921).
(iv)
Repeal of the Press Act of 1910 and the Rowlatt Act of 1919.
(iv) Criminal Law Amendment Act and abolition of cotton
excise.
(v)
Communal riots in Multan, Amritsar, Delhi, Aligarh, Arvi and
Calcutta.
(vi)
Kakori train robbery (1925).
(vii)
Murder of Swami Shraddhanand (1926).
(viii)
(ix)
Establishment of Swaraj Party by C.R. Das and Motilal Nehru

(1922).
Decision to hold simultaneous examinations for the ICS both
in Delhi and London, with effect from 1923.
16. Lord Irwin 1926-1931

(i) Visit of Simon Commission to India (1928) and the boycott of the
commission by the Indians.
(ii) An All-Parties Conference held at Lucknow (1928) for suggestions
for the (future) Constitution of India, the report of which was called
the Nehru Report or the Nehru Constitution.
(iv)
Appointment of the Harcourt Butler Indian States Commission
(1927).
(iv) Murder of Saunders, the assistant superintendent of
police of Lahore; bomb blast in the Assembly Hall of Delhi
(1929); the Lahore Conspiracy Case and death of jatin Das
after prolonged hunger strike (1929), and bomb accident in
train in Delhi (1929).
(v)
Lahore session of the Congress (1929); Purna Swaraj
Resolution.
(vi)
Dandi March (March 12, 1930) by Gandhi to launch the Civil
Disobedience Movement.
(vii)
'Deepavali Declaration' by Lord Irwin (1929).
(viii)
Boycott of the First Round Table Conference (1930), GandhiIrwin Pact (1931) and suspension of Civil Disobedience
Movement.
17. Lord Willingdon 1931-1936

(i) Second Round Table Conference (1931) and failure of the conference,
resumption of Civil Disobedience Movement.
(ii) Announcement of Communal Award (1932) under which separate communal
electorates were set up.
(iii)
'Fast unto death' by Gandhi in Yeravada prison, broken after
the Poona Pact (1932).
(iv) Third Round Table Conference (1932).
(iv)
Launch of Individual Civil Disobedience (1933).
(v)
The Government of India Act of 1935.
(vi)
Establishment of All India Kisan Sabha (1936) and Congress
Socialist Party by Acharya Narendra Dev and Jayaprakash
Narayan (1934).
(viii) Burma separated from India (1935).
18. Lord Linlithgow 1936-1944
(i) First general elections (1936-37); Congress attained absolute
majority.
(ii) Resignation of the Congress ministries after the outbreak of the
Second World War (1939).
(iii) Subhash Chandra Bose elected as the president of
Congress at the fifty-first session of the Congress (1938).
(iv) Resignation of Bose in 1939 and formation of the
Forward Bloc (1939).
(vi)
(vii)
(viii)
Lahore Resolution (March 1940) by the Muslim League,

demand for separate state for Muslims.
'August Offer" (1940) by the viceroy; its criticism by the
Congress and endorsement by the Muslim League.
Winston Churchill elected prime minister of England
(1940).
(viii) Escape of Subhash Chandra Bose from India (1941)
and organisation of the Indian National Army.
377
(ix) Cripps Mission's, Cripps Plan to offer dominion status to India and
setting up of a Constituent Assembly; its rejection by the Congress.
(ix)
Passing of the 'Quit India Resolution' by the Congress
(1942); outbreak of 'August Revolution'; or Revolt of
1942 after the arrest of national leaders.
(x)
'Divide and Quit' slogan at the Karachi session (1944) of
the Muslim League.
19. Lord Wavell 1944-1947
(i) C. Rajagopalachari's CR Formula (1944), failure of Gandhi-Jinnah
talks (1944).
(ii) Wavell Plan and the Shimla Conference (1942).
(iv)
End of Second World War (1945).
(iv) Proposals of the Cabinet Mission (1946) and its
acceptance by the Congress.
(v)
Observance of 'Direct Action Day' (August 16, 1946) by the
Muslim League.
(vi)
Elections to the Constituent Assembly, formation of Interim
Government by the Congress (September 1946).
(vii) Announcement of end of British rule in India by
Clement Attlee (prime minister of England) on February 20,
1947.
20. Lord Mountbatten 1947-1948
(i) June Third Plan (June 3, 1947) announced.
(ii) Introduction of Indian Independence Bill in the House of Commons.
(ii)
Appointment of two boundary commissions under Sir Cyril
Radcliff for the partition of Bengal and Punjab.
378
NORTH-EAST FRONTIER TRIBAL MOVEMENTS YEAR, REGION, MAJOR CAUSES

1. Ahoms' Revolt (1828-33; Assam); against the non-fulfilment of the
pledges of the Company after the Burmese War; the uprising was
suppressed by the Company by dividing the kingdom.
2. Khasis' Revolt (1830s; hilly region between Jaintia and Garo Hills);
led by the Nunklow ruler, Tirath Singh; against the occupation of the
hilly region.
3. Singphos' Rebellion (1830s; Assam); led to murder of British
political agent of Assam by Singphos in 1839; was ultimately suppressed.
4. Kukis' Revolt (1917-19; Manipur); against British policies of
recruiting labour during the first World War.
5. Revolts in Tripura; against hike in house tax rates and against

settlement of outsiders in the region
(a) led by Parikshit Jamatia (1863)
(b) the Reangs' revolt led by Ratnamani (1942-43)
(c) led by Bharti Singh (1920s).
6. Zeliangsong Movement (1920s; Manipur); led by the Zemi, Liangmei and
Rongmei tribes; against the failure of British to protect them during
the Kuki violence in 1917-19.
7. Naga movement (1905-31; Manipur); led by Jadonang; against British
rule and for setting up of a Naga raj.
8. Heraka Cult (1930s; Manipur); led by Gaidinliu; the movement was
suppressed but Kabui Naga Association was formed in 1946.
379
OTHER TRIBAL MOVEMENTS: PERIOD, REGION, CAUSES AND CONSEQUENCES

1. Pahariyas' Rebellion by the martial Pahariyas (1778; Raj Mahal Hills);
against the British expansion on their lands.
2. Chuar Uprisings by the Chuar aboriginal tribesmen (1776); against
rise in demands and economic privation by the British.
3. Kol Uprisings by the Kols of Chottanagpur led by Buddho Bhagat
(1831); against expansion of British rule on their lands and transfer of
their lands to outsiders; the revolt was suppressed.
4. Ho and Munda Uprisings
(a) by Ho tribals by led of Raja Parahat (1827; Singhbhum and
Chottanagpur); against occupation of Singhbhum by British.
(b) by Ho tribals and the Mundas (1831); against the newly introduced
farming revenue policy.
(c) by the Mundas led by Birsa Munda (1899-1900; south of Ranchi); Birsa
was captured and imprisoned.
(d) the Ulgulan uprising, supported by Birsa Munda (1860-1920); against
introduction of feudal, zamindari tenures and exploitation by
moneylenders and forest contractors.
5. Santhal Rebellion by the Santhals led by Sido and Kanhu (1855-56;
Bihar); against the practices of zamindars and moneylenders; the
rebellion later turned anti-British and was suppressed.
6. Kandh uprisings led by Chakra Bisoi (1837-56 and later in 1914; hilly
region extending from Tamil Nadu to Bengal; in Orissa in 1914); against
interference in tribal customs and imposition of new taxes.
7. Naikada Movement (1860s; Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat); against British
and caste Hindus.
8. Kharwar Rebellion by the Kharwars (1879s; Bihar); against revenue
settlement activities.
380
9. Khonda Dora Campaign by Khonda tins loll Mallaya (1900; Dabur region
in.
10. Bhil Revolts (1817-19 and 1913; region of against Company Rule (in
1817-19) and to Mill Hal.
11. Bhuyan and Juang Rebellions by the Mill Kals; first uprising was led
by Novak: uprising was led by Dharni Dhar lira 93; Kheortjhar, Orissa);
against the installation of a protege on the throne after the death of
their king.
12. Koya Revolts by the Koyas and the led by Tomma Sora in 1879-80
led by Raja Anantayyar in region Andhra Pradesh); against moneylenders;
new regulations AM sir theft rights over forest areas.
13. Bastar Revolt (1910; Jagdalpur); against new forest levies.
14. Tana Bhagat Movements among tribes led by Jatra Bhagat, Bali am who
pleat that God's benevolent delegate mink' to tribals (1914-1915;
Chottanagpore), against of outsiders; began as Sanskritmitiosi
15. Rampa Revolts led by Alum sit thr 11 (1
1 Nampa legion in
against British interference; and in 1924.
16. Jharkhand Uprising by tribalm (1920 onwards; parts of Bihar, t )t
Adivasi Mahasabha was In replaced by Regional Jharklianil In.
17. Forest Satyagrahas
(a) by Chen(Irrr district in Andhra),
(b) by Kat s ( JUI(h, Bihar); against increasing rnIr rl.
18. Gond Uprising (1940s) to bring the of Gond-dharma.
CONSTITUTIONAL DEVELOPMENT IN INDIA AT A GLANCE
Act of 1773
(i) the beginning of parliamentary government of the Company;
(Ii) of presidencies of Bombay and Madras the governor of Bengal made the
governor-general; it of the governor-general established; a Supreme Court
at Fort William.
This Act laid the foundation of a unitary type of Government in British
India.
According to Lord North, "Every article in it is framed willi a view to
the placing of the affairs of the Company on a solid, clear and decisive
establishment."
According to Burke, the Regulating Act was "an infringement of national
right, national faith and national justice".
Pitt's India Act, 1784
(i) reiterated the supremacy of British Parliament over the
administration of the Company.
(ii) reduced the strength of the council from four to three.
(iii)
the Company's territories in India were called "the British
possessions in India".
(iv) Governor's council(s) established in Madras and Bombay.
Sir C. Ilbert : "The Act enunciated a system which with its cumberous
and dilatory procedure and its elaborate system of checks and counterchecks, though modified in details, remained substantially in force
uptill 1858."
Charter Act, 1813
(i) Company's monopoly over Indian trade terminated; Indian trade thrown
open to all the British subjects.
(ii) missionaries allowed to preach in India.
382
Charter Act, 1833
(i)
Governor-general of Bengal designated as governor-general of

India.
(ii) the first faint beginnings of a Central Legislature for
India.
(iii) fair and impartial treatment to Indians in matter of selection for
state service.
According to Lord Morley, the Act of 1833 was the most important Act
passed by the Parliament till 1909.
Charter Act, 1853
(i) the last of the Charter Acts.
(ii) Indian Civil Service opened for all.
(iii) for the first time, the legislature given the right to
own rules of procedure.
frame its
Act of 1858
(i) Indian administration taken over by the British Crown; viceroy to be
the Crown's representative.
(ii) office of secretary of state and Council of India created.
Indian Councils Act, 1861
(i) Legislative Councils established at the centre and in the
presidencies and provinces.
(ii) Councils to include non-official members.
Indian Councils Act, 1892
(i) enlarged the size and functions of central and provincial councils.
(ii) the council to have the right to discuss budget under certain
conditions.
(iii) members of the council granted the right to ask questions.
Indian Councils Act, 1909 (Morley-Minto Reforms)
(i) first attempt at introducing a representative and popular element.
(ii) Councils, for the first time, referred to as 'Legislative
Councils'.
(ii)
separate electorates for Muslims introduced.
(iii)
the beginning of non-official resolutions in the council.
Government of India Act, 1919 (Montagu-Chelmsford Reforms)
(i) Dyarchy in the provinces; relaxation of central control over the
provinces.
(iii)
Indian legislature made more representative and bicameral;

Legislative Assembly and Council of State to consist of 140
and 60 members.
Government of India Act, 1935

(i) introduced federation and provincial autonomy; the envisaged
federation never came into being.
(ii) the bicameral central legislatures to consist of Federal Assembly
and Council of State.
(iv)
three-fold division of legislative power (federal,
provincial and concurrent lists).
Indian Independence Act, 1947

(i) Sovereignty and responsibility of British Parliament abolished.
(ii) Dominion legislature became sovereign.
(iii) Governor-general and provincial governors became constitutional
heads.
(v)
the Crown ceased to be the source of authority.
INDIAN NATIONAL CONGRESS ANNUAL SESSIONS
Year/Place
President
Details
1. 1885 (Dec. 28) Bombay
W.C. Bonnerji
2. 1886 (Dec. 28) Calcutta
Dadabhai Naoroji
3. 1887 (Dec. 27-28) Madras Syed Badruddin Tyabji
4. 1888 (Dec. 28-29) Allahabad
George Yule
5.
1889 (Dec. 27-28) Bombay
William Wedderburn
6. 1890 (Dec. 28-29) Calcutta Pheroz Shah Mehta
7.
1891 (Dec. 26-27) Nagpur P. Ananda Charlu
8. 1892 (Dec. 28-29) Allahabad W.C. Bonnerji
9. 1893 (Dec. 27-28) Lahore
Dadabhai Naoroji
10. 1894 (Dec. 27-28) Madras
Alfred Webb
11. 1895 (Dec. 28-29) Poona
Surendranath Banerjee
12. 1896 (Dec. 27-28) Calcutta Rahimtulla Sayani
13. 1897 (Dec. 22-29) Amravati
C. Sankaran Nair
first session, attended by 72 delegates; objectives of the Congress
outlined. attended by 436 delegates; witnessed the merger of National
Congress and National Conference. attended by 607 delegates; appeal
made to the Muslims to join hands with other national leaders. attended
by 1248 delegates.
14. 1898 (Dec. 27-28) Madras A.M. Bose
15. 1899 (Dec. 27-28) Lucknow
Romesh Chandra Mutt
16. 1900 (Dec.
17. 1901 (Dec.
18. 1902 (Dec.
19. 1903 (Dec.
20. 1904 (Dec.
21. 1905 (Dec. 27-29) Lahore
N.G. Chandavarkar 27-28) Calcutta
Dinshaw E. Wacha 23-26) Ahmedabad Surendranath BonnerjeeBanerjee
28-30) Madras
26-28) Bombay 27-30) Benaras
22. 1906 (Dec. 26-29) Calcutta 23. 1907 (Dec. 26-27) Surat 24.
1908 (Dec. 29-30) Madras 25. 1909 (Dec. 27-29) Lahore
26. 1910 (Dec. 28-29) Allahabad 27. 1911 (Dec. 26-28) Calcutta 28.
1912 (Dec. 27-28) Bankipur 29. 1913 (Dec. 26-28) Karachi
Lal Mohan Chose
Henry Cotton Gopal Krishna Gokhale
Dadabhai Naoroji Rash Behari Ghosh Rash Behari Ghosh Madan Mohan
Malaviya
William Wedderburn Bishan Narayan Dhar R.N. Mudholkar Sved Mohammed
demand for permanent fixation of land revenue.
expressed resentment against the partition of Bengal. the word 'swaraj'
mentioned for the first time. split in the Congress into the Moderates
and the Extremists. constitution of the Congress drawn. expressed

disapproval over formation of separate electorates on the basis of
religion (of the Indian Councils Act, 1909).
Year/Place
President
Details
30. 1914 (Dec. 28-30) Madras
31. 1915 (Dec. 27-30) Bombay
32. 1916 (Dec. 26-30) Lucknow
33. 1917 (Dec. 28-29) Calcutta
34. 1918 (Dec. 26-31) Delhi
35. 1919 (Dec. 27-28) Arfiritsar
Bhupendranath Basu S.P. Sinha A.C. Majumdar
Annie Besant Madan Mohan Malaviya Motilal Nehru
36. 1920 (Dec. 26-31) Nagpur C. Vijayaraghavachariar
37. 1921 (Dec. 27-28) Ahmedabad
38. 1922 (Dec. 26-31) Gaya
39. 1923 (Dec. 28-31) Kakinada
40. 1924 (Dec. 26-27) Belgaum
41. 1925 (Dec. 26-28) Kanpur
42. 1926 (Dec. 26-28) Gauhati
43. 1927 (Dec. 26-27) Madras
C.R. Das (in prison) Hakim Ajmal Khan (acting president) C.R. Das
Maulana Mohammad Ali M.K. Gandhi Sarojini Naidu S. Srinivasa Iyengar
M.A. Ansari
44. 1928 (Dec. 28-31) Calcutta Motilal Nehru
reunion of Congress factins; the Lucknow Pact signed. strongly
condemned
the Jallianwalla massacre; and boosted the Khilafat
Movement. a new Constitution for the Congress framed. the Swarajya Party
formed.
the Independence Resolution adopted; resolved to boycott the Simon
Commission. the first All India Youth Congress came into being.
45. 1929 (Dec. 29-31) Lahore
46. 1931 (March 29) Karachi
47. 1932 (April 24) Delhi
48. 1933 (April 1) Calcutta
49. 1934 (Oct. 26-28) Bombay
50. 1936 (April 12-14) Lucknow
51. 1936 (Dec. 27-28) Faizpur
52. 1938 (Feb. 19-21) Haripura
53. 1939 (March 10) Tripuri
54. 1940 (March 17-19) Ramgarh
55. 1946 (Nov. 23) Meerut
56. 1948 (Dec. 18-19) Jaipur
Jawaharlal Nehru
Vallabhbhai Patel
Amrit Ranchhorddas Seth Nellie Sengupta Rajendra Prasad Jawaharlal
Nehru
Jawaharlal Nehru Subhash Chandra Bose
Subhash Chandra Bose
Maulana Abul Kalam Azad Acharya J.B. Kripalani Pattabhi Sitaramayya
passed the Puma Swaraj Resolution; authorised the Working Committee to

launch civil disobedience programme. endorsement of Gandhi-Irwin pact,
resolution on Fundamental Rights and National Economic Programme
passed.
the President urged the Congress to adopt socialism as its goal. the
session held in a village for the first time. National Planning
Committee set up under the chairmanship of Jawaharlal Nehru. Rajendra
Prasad took over as president after Subhas Chandra resigned. (The
sessions for the years 1930, 1935 and 1941-1945 could not be held.)
FAMOUS TRIALS OF THE NATIONALIST PERIOD
Trial
Charges
Verdict
Bahadur Shah Zafar; January 27, 1858 to March 9, 1858 in Red Fort
(Delhi) Surendranath Banerjee; May 4-5, 1883 in Calcutta High Court
Bal Gangadhar Tilak; 1897, 1908, 1916
Aurobindo Ghosh and 37 others in Alipore Bombay Case Trial; 1908-1909
V.D. Savarkar; 1910 and January 1911
treason, conspiracy, rebellion and murder in 1857 revolt
contempt of court, on his remarks in The Bengalee
provocative articles in Kesari
attempt to murder district judge of Muzaffarpur
delivering infuriating speeches against British and procuring and
distributing arms
convicted
and exiled
to Rangoon.
sent to civil jail for two years.
18 months' imprisonment (1897); six years' exile to Mandalay and fine
of Rs 1000 for seditious writings (1908); no jail sentence was imposed
(1916). spent a year in jail as an undertrial prisoner.
two consecutive life transportations (50 years); the International Court
of Arbitration at the Hague also held him guilty; spent 10 years in
Andaman jail (1911-1921).
6. Gandhi and. Shankarlal Banker (publisher of Young India); 1922 7. 31
communists in the Meerut Conspiracy Case; March 1929 8.
Bhagat Singh;
June 1929
July 1929
9. M.N. Roy; 1931-1932
10. Shah Nawaz Khan, Prem
Kumar
Sehgal
and Gurbaksh Singh Dhillon in
at Red Fort, Delhi
the INA trials; 1945
four inflammatory articles against the British in Young India

conspiracy against the British
throwing a bomb in Central Assembly killing police head constable,
Saunders conspiracy and sedition
waging war by murdering or
abetment of murder
sentenced to jail for 6 years; but set free in 1924. received sentences
varying from 3 years to life sentence.
received transportation for life. sentenced to death. sentenced to 12
years' imprisonment (later reduced to 6 years). sentences of
transportation for life were remitted; but those of cashiering and
forfeiture of arrears of pay and allowances were confirmed.
SOCIO-RELIGIOUS REFORM MOVEMENTS (LATE 18TH TO MID-20TH CENTURY)

(Caste, tribal and peasant movements are covered separately)
Name of the Movement/
Organisation and Place
People Associated with it

Nature and Objectives,
and Media Efforts
CrJ
I
z.
Swaminarayan Sampradyaga;
Gujarat (early 19th century)
Brahmo Samaj (earlier Atmiya

early 19th century)
Sabha); Founded in Calcutta
(late 18th-
Swami Sahajanand (original name Gyanashyama)-1781- 1830

Raja Rammohan Roy (17721833)the founder; Debendranath Tagorelater
formed Adi Brahmo
Samaj;
Keshub Chandra Senlater associated
with Brahmo Samaj of India (secessionists from this group formed
Sadharan Brahmo Samaj)
Belief in a theistic god, protest against epicurean practices of
Vaishnavism; prescribed a mora) code. Propagated monotheism, opposed
incarnation, meditation, sacrifices, existence of priests, idolatry,
superstition, sati; sought for reforms in Hindu society. Journals
brought out by Rammohan Roy:
Sambad Kaumudi (1821), Mirat-ul-Akbar;
by Debendranath Tagore: Tattva Bodhini Patrika; Keshub Chandra Sen
brought out Indian Mirror; Sadharan Brahmo Samaj brought out Tattva
Kaumudi, The Indian Messenger, The Sanjibari, the Navyabharat, and
Prabasi.
Young Bengal Movement
Dharma Sabha; Calcutta
(1826-1831)
(1830)
Henry Louis Vivian Derozio (founder),

Rasikkrishna
Tarachand Chuckervati, Krishanmohan Banerjee
Radhakant Deb (1794-1876)
Mullick,
(founder)
Wahabi Movement (beginning

Syed Ahmed of Rai Bareilly in Rohilkhand
spread in Kabul,
(founder); Vilayat Ali, Shah NTWFP Rpiwal. the
Central ProvMuhammad Hussain, Farhat
inces; Sittana in NWFPheadquarters from 1850 onwards

by the British by 1870)
(19th centuryfounded in 1820;
Hussain (all from Patna); Inayat
suppression
Ali
Opposed the vices in society; believed in truth, freedom and reason;

brought out the Thanavesan (journal) and established the Society for the
Acquisition of General Knowledge (Derozio edited Hesperus, Tke Calcutta
Library Gazette and he was associated with India Gazette). Emerged to
counter Brahmo Samaj, aimed at protection of orthodoxy, condemned
radical and liberal reforms, helped in the spread of western education.
Popularised the teachings of Waliullah; opposed the British and fought
against the Sikhs; stressed role of individual conscience in religion.
R.
o
o
d
f,
I
and Media Efforts
Namdhari or Kuka Movement (among Sikhs); NWF Province and Bhaini

(Ludhiana district, Punjab) (1841-1871) Taayuuni Movement; founded in
Dacca (1839)
Students Literary and Scientific Society (1848) Paramhans Mandali
(1849)
Rahanumai Mazdayasanan Sabha (religious reform association for Parsis
1851)
Radhaswarni Movement; founded in Agra (1861)
Bhai Balak Singh and

Karamat Ali Jaunpuri
Ram Singh (founders)
Baba
S.S. Bengali, Naoroji Furdonji,
Tulsi Ram or Shiv Dayal Saheb
Dadabhai Naoroji and others

(Swamiji Maharajfounder)
For political and social reforms
among the Sikhs.
Religious teachings of Shah Waliullah formed the basis; opposed Faraizi

movement. Debated popular science and social questions. Emphasised
unity of godhead; against caste rules. To improve the social condition
of the Parsis and restore the purity of Zoroastrianism. Their journal
was Rast Goftar (Truth Teller). Preached belief in one supreme being,
the guru's supreme position, simple social life for believers (the
satsang); stress on achieving spiritual fulfilment without giving up
material life. The Deoband School of Islamic Theology
(at
Deoband Saharanpur, UP-1866)
Prarthana Samaj;
Bombay (1867)
founded in
Indian Reform Association;
Calcutta (1870)
Muhammad Qasim Nanaytavi (1832-80) and Rashid Ahmad Gangohi (founders),

Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, Mahmudul-Hasan, Shibli Numani
Atmaram Pandurang
Bhandarkar
(founder), Govind Ranade (chief
mentor), R.G.
Keshub Chandra Sere

Arya Samaj; founded in Bombay
Mula Shankarfounder)
Dayanand Saraswati (original(1875) ly
Revivalist movement whose religious teachings encompassed a liberal

interpretation of Islam; for moral religious upliftment; did not take
to western influences in education; opposed Syed Ahmed Khan's views to
some extent; welcomed the formation of the Indian National Congress.
Worship and reform of society through emphasis on monotheism, uplift of
women, abolition of caste discrimination and religious orthodoxy. To
create public opinion against child marriages; for uplift of social
status of women; to legalise Brahmo type of marriage. Asserted Hindu
faith over other religions; within a revivalist framework, denounced
rites.
Name of the Movement/ Organisation and Place
Nature and Objectives, and Media Efforts
W
Aligarh Movement (the Aligarh School grew into the Muhammadan AngloOriental College in 1877 and later the Aligarh Muslim University (1875
year of founding the Aligarh School). Syed Ahmed Khan (1817-1898
founder of the Aligarh School.
The Theosophical Society founded in New York but headquarters shifted to
Adyar, near Madras (1875). Madam H.P. Blavatsky (1831- 91), a Russian,
and Col. H.S. Olcott (1832-1907), an American (founders); Annie Besant
(one of its presidents).
Deccan Education Society; Pune (1884).
G.G. Agarkar- (founders).
M.G. Ranade, V.G. Chibdonkar,
Brahmins' supremacy, idolatry, superstitions; Dayanand AngloVedic (DAV)

schools were established. Religious reform through emphasis on principle
of enquiry in religion, favoured scientific and rational outlook,
recognised Western education, aimed at social reform; Sir Syed Ahmed
founded a scientific society (1864), Tahzib-al-akhlaq (1870) Urdu
journal. Drew inspiration
from Upanishads, philosophy of the
Vedanta, etc to aim at religious revival and social reform.
For contributing to education and culture in western India; established
Ferguson College, Pune (in 1885).
Seva Sadan; Bombay (1885)
Indian National Social Conference; Bombay (1887)
(1887)
Ahmadiya Movement; Qadiani
in Punjab (1889)
Behramji M. Malabari
M.G. Ranade, Raghunath Rao
Shiva Narain Agnihotri
Mirza Ghulam Ahrnad (1839-
1908)founder
Deva Samaj; Lahore
Madras Hindu
Madras (1892)
Association; Viresialingam Pantulu

Against child marriages, forced widowhood; to help socially exploited
women Social reform
Religious ideas closer to those. of Brahmo Samaj; favoured a social
code of conduct that was against bribe-taking, gambling, alcohol
consumption, and having non-vegetarian food. Defended Islam from attacks
by Christian missionaries, Hindu revivalists; belief in a universal
religion; Ghulam Ahmad proclaimed himself as a Messiah and as an
incarnation of Lord Krishna. Social purity movement; against devadasi
system and oppression of widows.
o a
n a
tJ 1)
'
N
Ramakrishna Mission founded
became focal points1897)
Bharat Dharma Mahan-mandala;
in Bengal (centres at Belur and
Mayavati
Benaras (1902)
The Servants of India Society; Bombay (1905) Poona Seva Sadan (1909)
Nislikam Karma Math (Monastery of Disinterested Work); Pune (1910)
and Media Efforts
Vivekananda
(originally Narendranath Dutta), 18631902
founder); Ramakrishna Paramhansa (1834-86)Vivekananda's guru
Madan Mohan Malaviya, Deen Dayal Sharma, Gopal Krishna
(founders)
Copal Krishna Gokhale
G.K. Devadhar and Ramabai Ranade Dhondo Keshav Karve
(its
Gokhale
Sought to revive Hinduism based on ancient India's religious texts and

concepts (of Vedanta, etc); against caste restrictions, oppression,
superstition in Hinduism, aimed to uplift women and overhaul the
education system. Orthodox Hindus' (Sanatandharinis') organisation that
opposed the Arya Samaj's teachings. Famine relief and improving
tribals' condition in particular. Economic uplift; employment for
women. Educational progress of wornen; improving widows' condition.
Founded a women's university in Punenow in Bombay.
0
Q
a'
Bharat Stri Mandal; Calcutta
Saralabala Devi Choudharani
(1910) Social Service League (1911)
Narayan Malhar Joshi
Seva Samiti; Allahabad (1914)
Hridyanatl, Kunzru
The Indian Women's AssociaAnnie Besant tion; Madras (1917)
Women's education and emancipation. Improving the condition of the common
masses;
opened
schools, libraries. Improving the status of the suffering classes
through social service, education. Upliftment of Indian women;

conferences (All India Women's Conferences) were held.
annual
CASTE MOVEMENTS
Movement/Year/Region
Causes and Consequences
1.
2.
Satyashodhak Movement, Satyashodhak Samaj, founded by Jyotiba Phule
(1873; Maharashtra) Aravippuram Movement, led by Shri Narayana Guru
(1888; Kerala)
3. Justice Party Movement led by Dr T.M. Nair,
P. Tyagaraja Chetti and C.N. Mudalair on behalf of intermediate castes
(1916; Madras)
4. Nair Movement led by C.V. Raman Pillai, K.
Rama Krishna Pillai, and M. Padmanabha Pillai (1891; Kerala)
5.
Self-Respect Movement led by E. V.
Ramaswami Naicker or Periyar (1925; Tamil Nadu)
Against brahminic domination and for the emancipation of low castes,
untouchables and widows. For the rights of the depressed classes
(especially the Ezhavas or Iravas of Kerala); the Sri Narayana Dharma
Paripalana Yogum was set up in 1902-1903. Against domination of
brahmins in government service, education and political field; the South
Indian Liberation Federation (SILF) was formed in 1916; the efforts
yielded in the passing of 1930 Government Order providing reservations
to groups. Against domination of brahmins; the Malayali Memorial was
formed by Raman Pillai in 1891 and Nair Service Society by Padmanabha
Pillai was set up in 1914. Against caste bias by brahmins; Kudi Arasu
journal was started by Periyar in 1910.
021
,s4..,..
7'
6. Nadar Movement by the untouchable Shanans

who imitated the kshatriya customs to emerge
7.
The Depressed Classes (Mahars) Movement
led by B.R. Ambedkar (1924; Maharashtra)
as the Nadars (Tamil Nadu)
8. Congress' Harijan Movement (1917 onwards)

9. Kaivartas' Movement by Kaivartas who later
became the Mahishyas (1897 onwards; Midnapore, Bengal)
Against social bias and to promote educational and social welfare among
the Nadars; the Nadar Mahajan Sangam was formed in 1910. For the
upliftment of the untouchables; founded the Depressed Classes
Institution in 1924, a Marathi fortnightly Bahiskrit Bharat in 1927,
the Samaj Samta Sangh in 1927, the Scheduled Caste Federation in 1942 to
propagate their views. For elevating the social status of the lower and
backward classes; All-India Anti-Untouchability League was established in
1932; the weekly Harijan was founded by Gandhi in 1933. Founded the
Jati Nirdharani Sabha (1897) and the Mahishya Samiti (1901).
W
49
i
f
,
4.
5.
PEASANT MOVEMENTS
Movement / Year / Region
1. Titu Mir's Movement, under leadership of Mir
Nathar Ali or Titu Mir (1782-1831; West Bengal) 2. Pagal Panthis
Movement of the Hajong and
Garo tribes under the leadership of Karam Shah and Tipu Shah (1825-1835;
Mymensingh district, earlier in Bengal) 3. Moplah Uprisings (1836-1854;
Malabar)
Indigo Revolt by Bengal indigo cultivators led by Degambar and Bishnu
Biswas (1859-1860; Nadia district) Deccan Peasants' Uprising by the
Maratha peasants (1875; Kardeh village and Poona in Maharashtra)
Phadke's Ramosi Uprising by Ramosi peasants led by Wasudeo Balwant
Phadke (1877-1887; Maharashtra)
Against Hindu landlords who imposed beardtax on the Farazis.
Against hike in rents; the movement was violently suppressed.
Against rise in revenue demand and reduction of field size. Against
terms imposed by European indigo planters; Indigo Commission was set up
in 1860 to view the situation. Against corrupt practices of Gujarati

and Marwari moneylenders; Agriculturists' Relief Act of 1879 was
passed. Against the British failure to take up antifamine measures.
O
a'
8.
Pabna Agrarian Uprising led by Shah Chandra Roy, Shambhu Pal, Khoodi
Mollah and supported by B.C. Chatterjee and R.C. Dutt (1873; Pabna
district, East Bengal, now in Bangladesh) Punjab Peasants' Revolt
(during the last decade of the 19th century, Punjab)
9. Champaran Satyagraha by peasants of Champaran (1917; Bihar)
10. Kheda Satyagraha by peasants of Kheda, led by Gandhi (1918;
Gujarat)
11. Bardoli Satyagraha by the Kunbi-Patidar landowning peasants and untouchables, supported by Mehta brothers,
Vallabhbhai Patel (1928; Surat, Gujarat)
Against policies of zamindars to prevent
occupants from acquiring occupancy
Tights; the Bengal Tenancy Act of 1885 was passsed.
Against prospects of losing their land; the Punjab Land Alienation Act,
1900 was passed, which imposed regulations on sale and mortgage of land
and revenue demands. Against the tinkathia system imposed by the.
European indigo planters; the Charnparan Agrarian Act abolished the
tinkathia system. Against ignored appeals for remission of land revenue
in case of crop failures; the demands were finally fulfilled. Against
oppression by upper castes and hike in revenue by 22 per cent by the
Bombay Government; the revenue was brought down to 6.03 per cent.
a
z
ep
UI
Movement Year Region
12. Eka Movement by members of Pasi and Ahir

castes (1921-22; Hardoi, Barabanki and Sitapur
Movement (1936; Bihar)
districts)
13.
Bakasht
14. Tebhaga Movement by poor peasants and

tenants and bargardars or share-croppers (Bengal)
insurrection (1946-51; Hyderabad)
15. Telangana
Against hike in rents.

Against the zamindars' policies regarding occupancy rights. Against
zamindars and moneylenders; Bargardari Bill was passed.
Against practices of money lenders and officials of the Nizam of
Hyderabad.
Q
a'
NEWSPAPERS AND JOURNALS
Name of the
Paper/Journal
Year and Place
from which Published
Name of the Founder/
Editor
Bengal Gazette (also Calcutta General Advertiser), weekly India

Gazette
Madras Courier (First paper from Madras) Bombay Herald (First paper
from Bombay) Indian Herald (in English)
Digdarshana (First Bengali monthly)
(First Bengali newspaper)
1780, Calcutta
1787, Calcutta 1784,
1818, Calcutta
1818 1818, Calcutta
Madras
Calcutta Journal
1789, Bombay
1795,
Bengal Gazette
Madras
Started by James Augustus Hicky (Irishman)

Henry Louis Vivian Derozio associated with it.
Started by R. Williams (Englishman) and put,-lished by
Started by J.S. Buckingham
o
Humphreys
Harishchandra Ray
11 1i i
Name of the
the Founder/
Paper/Journal
Editor
Year and Place

Name of
Sambad Kaurnudi
Raja Rammohan Roy
(Weekly in Bengali)
Mirat-ul-Akbar
Raja Rammohan Roy
(First journal in Persian)
JP.In-i-Jaltan Nurnah
An English firm
(First paper in Urdu)
Banga-Duta (a weekly
Ramrnohan Roy, Dwarkanath
in four languagesEnglish,
others
Bengali, Persian, Hindi)
Bombay Samachar
(First paper in Gujarati)

East Indian (daily)
Henry Vivian Derozio
Bombay Times (from 1861
Foundation laid by Robert
onwards, The Times of India)
started by Thomas
Bennett.
Rast Goftar
Dadabhai Naoroji
(A Gujarati fortnightly)
Hindu Patriot
Girishchandra Ghosh (later,
Harishchandra Mukerji became
owner-cum-editor)
1821
1822, Calcutta
1822, Calcutta
1822, Calcutta
Tagore and
1822, Bombay
19th century
1838, Bombay
Knight,
1851
1853, Calcutta
0
a
Somapralcasha (First Bengali political paper) Indian Mirror
(fortnightly first Indian daily paper in English) Bengalee (this, and
Amrita Bazar Patrikathe first vernacular papers) National Paper
Madras Mail (First evening paper in India) Amrita Bazar Patiika
(Bengali in the beginning, later English, a daily) Bangadarshana (in
Bengali) Indian Statesman (later, The Statesman) The Hindu (in
English) started as weekly
Tribune (daily)
1858, Calcutta
Early 1862, Calcutta
1862, Calcutta
1865, Calcutta 1868, Madras
1868, Jessore District
1873, Calcutta
1878, Madras
1875,
Calcutta
1881, Lahore
Dwarkanath Vidyabhushan
Deyendranath Tagore
Girishchandra Ghosh (taken over

Devendranath Tagore
by S.N. BonnerjeeBanerjeein 1879)
Sisirkumar Ghosh and Motilal Ghosh

Bankimchandra Chatterji Started by Robert Knight
G.S. Aiyar, Viraraghavachari and Subba Rao Pandit (among the
Dayal Singh Majeetia
PZI
founders)
ra
a
Name of the
Paper/Journal
Year and Place
Name of the Founder/
Editor
Kesari (Marathi daily) and
Maharatta (English weekly)
Swadeshanzitram (a Tamil paper)

Sandhya Kal Indian Sociologist
Ghadr Reshwa
Paridasak (a weekly) Yugantar

Bande Mataram Talvar Free Hindustan
1881, Bombay
Madras
1886 1906, Bengal
1906, Bengal 1906, Maharashtra
Francisco Before 1908
London
Paris
Berlin
Vancouver
San
Tilak, Chiplunkar, Agarkar (before Tilak, Agarkar and Prof Kelkar were
the editors respectively) G.S. Aiyar
Bipin Chandra Pal (publisher) Barindra Kumar Ghosh and Bhupendranath
Dutta Brahmabandhab Upadhyay
Shyamji Krishnavarma Madam Bhikaji Cama Virendranath Chattopadhyay
Taraknath Das Ghadr Party Ajit Singh
0
-t
a'
Bombay Chronicle (a daily)

The Hindustan Times
The Milap (Urdu daily) Leader (in English) Kirti Bahishkrit Bharat
(Mara thi fortnightly) Kudi Arasu (Tamil)
Kranti Langal and Ganabani Bandi Jivan National Herald (daily)
1913, Bombay
1920, Delhi 1923, Lahore 1926, Punjab 1927
1910 1927, Maharashtra 1927, Bengal Bengal 1938
Started by Pherozeshah Mehta, EditorB.G. Horniman (Englishman) Founded
by Panikkar as part of the Akali Dal Movement Founded by MK. Chand
Madan Mohan Malaviya Santosh Singh B.R. Ambedkar
E.V. Ramaswamy
Naicker (Periyar) S.S. Mirajkar, K.N. Joglekar, S.V.
Gha te Gopu Chakravarti and Dharani Goswami Sachindranath Sanyal
Started by Jawaharlal Nehru
a
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MODERN INDIA

The ruination of Indian industry increased the pressure on agriculture

A Brief History of Modern India

activities of chaplains (often maintained on the Company's expenses)

A Brief History of Modern India

At Delhi the nominal and symbolic leadership belonged to the Mughal

A Brief History of Modern India

The Revolt of 1857. An army of 40,000 soldiers and offered stiff

one of the revolt's acknowledged leaders once it broke out in Awadh in

Limited territorial spread was one factor; there was no all-India

A Brief History of Modern India

of land restitution were spelt out. Moneylenders and merchants suffered

The Revolt of 1857

slaughter was ordered once the revolt was successful in a particular

NATURE OF THE REVOLT

century that the 1857 revolt

12 A Brief History of Modern India

The direct responsibility for the administration of the

The Indian states were henceforth to recognise the

The Army, which was at the forefront of the outbreak, was

(v) Racial hatred and suspicion between the Indians and

the English was

R.C. Majumdar, The Mutiny became a Revolt and assumed a political

(a tribute to the Rani of Jhansi from the man who defeated

14 A Brief History of Modern India

Revolta product of character and policies of colonial rule.

THE BRITISH RESISTANCE

Lack of resources as compared to those of the British.

A Brief History of Modern India

their position, and their monopoly of scriptural knowledge imparted a

The impact of modern Western culture and consciousness of defeat by a

emergence of new economic forces, spread of education, impact of modern

A Brief History of Modern India

controlled by British managing agency firms and their Marwari

to be used only as an aid and an instrument. Neither a revival of the

their religious perspective was universalistic. Raja Rammohan Jeligiar2

the way of life

20 A Brief History of Modern India

Deoband movement. Both the reformist and revivalist movements depended,

In the beginning, organisations such as the Social Conference, Servants

A Brief History of Modern India

children for some years after birth, particularly in areas where

A Brief History of Modern India

Health facilities began to be provided to women with

Participation in the swadeshi and anti-partition and the Home Rule

According to concept of Hindu chaturvarnashrama, the caste of a person

worked to spread education among the untouchables and remove

equality. The national leaders and organisations opposed caste

A Brief History of Modern India

up any radical measures. Also,

no social uplift was possible without

Religious and Social Reform Movements

upliftment. All this could be realised only under the government of a

A Brief History of Modern India

cultures, over which, again, he faced orthodox reaction. He founded the

declared the practice of sati a crime. As a campaigner for women's

Roy condemned oppressive practices of Bengali zamindars and

Roy did not want to establish a new religion. He only

32 A Brief History of Modern India