Nationalism In India

 

Topics in the chapter:

• The First World War, Khilafat, and Non-Cooperation
• The Idea of Satyagraha
• The Rowlatt Act
• Why Non-cooperation?
•  Differing Strands within the Movement
• The Movement in the Towns
• Rebellion in the Countryside
• Swaraj in the Plantations
• Towards Civil Disobedience
• The Salt March and the Civil Disobedience Movement
• How Participants saw the Movement
• The Limits of Civil Disobedience
• The Sense of Collective Belonging

Nationalism In India 

• In India, the growth of modern nationalism is connected to the anti-colonial movement.
• People began discovering their unity in the process of their struggle with colonialism.
• The Congress, under the leadership of Mahatma Gandhi, tried to unite each class and group within one movement.

The First World War, Khilafat, and Non-Cooperation Movement 

• The First World War (1914) created a new economic and political situation worldwide.
• India faced various problems during the war period.
• For example Defense expenditures increased.
• Customs duties were raised, and an income tax was introduced.
• Prices of food grains were increased and doubled between 1913 and 1918.
• Villagers were recruited forcefully into the army.
• Indian industries faced heavy losses, and people suffered from acute shortages of food, an influenza epidemic, etc.
• In such a critical situation, a new leader, Mahatma Gandhi, came to India from South Africa in January 1915

The Idea of Satyagraha

•  Gandhiji's method of movement and protest based on truth and non-violence was known as Satyagraha.

•  Satyagraha emphasized the importance of truth.
•  As per Gandhiji, without being aggressive, a Satyagrahi could win the battle through nonviolence.

•  In 1917, Gandhiji traveled to Champaran in  Bihar to inspire the peasants to struggle against the oppressive plantation system.

•  In the same year, Gandhiji organized a  Satyagraha to aid peasants in Gujarat's Kheda district, who were facing food shortages due to crop failure and a plague epidemic.

•  In 1918, Gandhiji went to Ahmedabad to  organize a Satyagraha movement among cotton  mill workers

The Rowlett Act

 

• The Rowlett Act was passed through the  Imperial Legislative Council in 1919, but Indian members opposed the Act.

•  According to this act, political prisoners could be detained in prison for two years without any trial.

•  Gandhiji decided to oppose this act with  Satyagraha.

• On April 6, 1919, Gandhiji launched a nationwide satyagraha with a hartal.

•  Rallies were organized in various cities, workers went on strike in railway workshops, and shops were closed.

•  Several local leaders were arrested.

•  Gandhiji was barred from entering Delhi.

•  On April 10, 1919, Amritsar police opened fire on a peaceful procession.

•  Martial Law was imposed in Amritsar,  and the command of the area was given  to General Dyer

Jallianwala Bagh Massacre

• On April 13th, 1919, a large crowd gathered in the enclosed grounds of Jallianwala Bagh in Amritsar, Punjab.
  
• Some people gathered there to protest against the government's repressive measures, while some came to attend the annual Baisakhi fair.
  
• Many of them are unaware of the martial law that was imposed.
  
• General Dyer blocked the exit points on the ground and gave the order to open fire on the crowd.
  
• Hundreds of people were killed in this incident.
  
• As the news spread, strikes and clashes with the police and Attacks on government buildings started.
  
• The government responded with force to end the movement by humiliating people.
  
• Mahatma Gandhi called off the Satyagraha Movement.

Khilafat Movement

• The First World War ended with the defeat of the Ottoman Empire.
  
• Following the First World War, rumors circulated that a peace treaty was going to be imposed on Khalifa. (spiritual head of the Islamic world) of the Ottoman Empire.
  
• Gandhiji believed that by bringing up the Khilafat issue, he could bring the Hindus and Muslims and launch a wide movement in India.
  
• A Khilafat Committee was formed in Bombay under the leadership of Maulana Azad, Hakim Ajmal Khan, and Hasrat Mohani.
  
• Muslim leaders, Muhammad Ali, and Shaukat Ali began discussing with Gandhiji a united mass action on the Khilafat issue.
  
• Gandhiji saw this as an opportunity of uniting Hindus and Muslims.
  
• The Congress passed the resolution in its Calcutta Session in September 1920 to start a non-cooperation movement in support of Khilafat as well as for Swaraj.

Need for Non-Cooperation Movement

Gandhiji in his famous book Hind Swaraj (1909) declared that British rule was established in India with the cooperation of Indians. He proposed the following strategy for implementing the Non-Cooperation as a movement:. The movement would begin with a surrender of titles, honors, and honorary posts by people. It would boycott Civil Services, Army, Police, British Courts, Legislative Assemblies, Schools and Colleges, and British goods.

In simple terms, the Non-Cooperation Movement was a plan proposed by Mahatma Gandhi to stop cooperating with the British government in India. This included giving up honors and posts, not participating in government jobs, schools, and courts, and not buying British goods. The goal was to make the British government's rule in India collapse and bring independence. The plan was adopted by Congress in 1920 and led by Mahatma Gandhi.

January 1921, the

Non-Cooperation-Khilafat

Movement started.

The Non-Cooperation Khilafat Movement began in 1920 with middle-class participation. It was headed by Jawaharlal Nehru, Baba Ramchandra, and a few others. In 1921, the Oudh Kisan Sabha was set up which had 300 branches across India. This peasant movement demanded reduction of revenue and social boycott of oppressive landlords.

The Non-Cooperation-Khilafat Movement started in January 1921. Many different groups joined the movement with their own reasons for doing so. In the cities, middle-class people like students and teachers left government-controlled schools and lawyers left the courts. They also boycotted foreign goods and some merchants and traders refused to trade or finance in foreign goods. This caused production of Indian goods like textile mills and handlooms to increase. But, the movement slowed down because of expensive Khadi clothes and lack of alternative institutions. In the countryside, the movement spread to places like Awadh where a peasant movement developed under the leadership of Baba Ramchandra. The peasant movement wanted things like less taxes, the end of slavery, and social boycott of bad landlords. Villagers organized strikes to deny services to landlords. A group called the Oudh Kisan Sabha was set up to lead this movement and it had 300 branches all over the country within a month.

The Non-Cooperation Movement, led by Mahatma Gandhi, was a plan to stop cooperating with the British government in India. This included boycotting British goods, leaving government jobs and schools, and not participating in government elections. However, in February 1922, Gandhi decided to stop the movement because it was becoming violent in some areas. This was mainly due to an incident called the Chauri Chaura incident.

Within the Congress party, some leaders wanted to participate in government elections and work within the system, while others wanted to continue with mass protests for independence. The economic depression and falling agricultural prices also affected Indian politics in the late 1920s.

The Simon Commission

The Simon Commission was a group of people appointed by the British government to look at the way India was being governed and make suggestions for changes. The group was led by a man named John Simon. Indian leaders were upset because there were no Indians on the commission. When the commission came to India in 1928, people protested and shouted slogans like "Simon Go Back" because they did not agree with the commission's composition. All political parties in India, including the Congress and the Muslim League, joined in the protests.

Demand of Purna Swaraj

In 1929, the British government offered India a chance to have some control over their own government, but Indian leaders wanted full independence. In December of that year, the Indian National Congress, led by Jawaharlal Nehru, made a formal demand for complete freedom for India. They decided to celebrate January 26th, 1930 as Independence Day.

Salt March

In 1930, Mahatma Gandhi started a march called the Salt March. He and 78 followers walked to a coastal town in Gujarat called Dandi. Once they arrived, Gandhi broke a law by making salt from seawater. This action marked the beginning of the Civil Disobedience Movement. People began boycotting foreign goods, refusing to pay taxes, and quitting their jobs as village officials. However, the British government arrested many leaders, including Gandhi. The movement became violent and many peaceful protesters were hurt. Eventually, Gandhi called off the movement and made a deal with the British government in 1931 called the Gandhi-Irwin Pact.

Relaunching of the Civil Disobedience Movement

The Civil Disobedience Movement was started by Mahatma Gandhi in 1930 to protest against British rule in India. However, the movement lost its momentum by 1934 and many people joined other groups with different goals. In December 1931, Gandhiji went to London for a conference but was disappointed with the results. When he returned to India, he found that Congress had been banned and leaders were in jail. So, he started the movement again, but it didn't gain as much support as before. Many poor farmers and merchants supported the movement in the hope that it would help them financially. Women also participated in large numbers, but the industrial working class did not participate as much. Some nationalists who did not believe in non-violent methods formed the Hindustan Socialists Republican Army in 1928.

The Limits of Civil Disobedience

The Civil Disobedience Movement was led by Mahatma Gandhi, but not everyone supported or participated in it. Some groups, like Dalits (also known as untouchables) and Muslims, did not get involved. The Congress, the group leading the movement, had ignored Dalits for a long time because they were afraid of losing support from other high caste Hindus. Gandhiji believed that true independence, or Swaraj, could not be achieved until the practice of untouchability was ended. He organized peaceful protests, called Satyagraha, to help Dalits gain access to public places like temples, wells, tanks, roads and schools. He also did things like cleaning toilets to show that all work was important and should be respected. He urged upper-class people to change their attitudes towards Dalits.

Stand of Dalit Leaders

Dalit leaders had different ideas about how to solve the problems facing their community. Dr. B.R. Ambedkar wanted special seats in schools and separate groups to choose Dalit representatives for government councils. He formed the Depressed Classes Association in 1930. He and Mahatma Gandhi had different opinions at a conference and Gandhiji opposed Ambedkar's ideas. Gandhiji went on a hunger strike to protest this. He thought that separate groups for Dalits would slow down their integration into society. In the end, Ambedkar agreed with Gandhiji and they signed the Poona Pact in 1932. This agreement gave special seats to Dalits in government councils, but they were still chosen by the general public in the elections.

Some Muslim political organizations in India did not participate in the Civil Disobedience Movement. Many Muslims felt separated from the Congress because it was associated with Hindu religious nationalist groups. This led to clashes between Hindus and Muslims in different cities. Muslim leaders wanted separate electorates for Muslims to protect their minority political interests, but Mahatma Gandhi opposed this. Despite these differences, the Congress and Muslim League tried to come together, but their opinions on representation in future assemblies caused a divide. Nationalism in India during the freedom movement was symbolized through figures and images like Bharat Mata, songs and folk tales, and flags like the tricolour and the Swaraj Flag

Nationalism through Indian Ancient History

Nationalism in India was created by reminding people of the great achievements of India in the past and encouraging them to be proud of their heritage. But, it was difficult to make all people feel included because the history being celebrated was mostly from the Hindu culture and not from other communities. In the first half of the 20th century, many groups and classes of Indians came together to fight for freedom from British rule. However, there were different expectations and goals among these groups which sometimes caused problems for unity. The Congress, led by Mahatma Gandhi, tried to bring everyone together to work towards independence.