Notes-Class-10-CBSE-NCERT-Social Science-History-Chapter-2-Nationalism in India

Introduction :

• Modern nationalism in India and other colonies is closely linked to the anti-colonial movement.
• The struggle against colonialism led to the discovery of unity among different groups, but each felt the effects differently and had different notions of freedom.
• Congress under Mahatma Gandhi attempted to unite these groups, but unity did not emerge without conflict.

The First World War, Khilafat and Non-Cooperation

Various problem faced by India during First World war and after the war :

The First World War (1914) created a new economic and political situation worldwide. India faced various problem during the war period and after the war.

During war period :

• Defence expenditure increased. Custom duties were raised and income tax was introduced.
• Prices of food grains were increased and doubled between 1913 and 1918.
• Villagers were recruited forcefully in army, which caused widespread anger.

After the war,

• In 1918-19 and 1920-21, Indian industries faced heavy loses.
• People suffered from acute shortage of food due to failed crops and influenza epidemic.
• Many people died from hunger and disease after World War I, despite their hopes for peace and prosperity.

In such a critical situation, a new leader Mahatma Gandhi came to India from South Africa in January, 1915.

The Idea of Satyagraha :

After arriving in India, in 1915, Gandhiji successfully organised Satyagraha (which he had applied in South Africa), in various parts of India. Gandhiji's method of movement and protest based on truth and non-violence was known as Satyagraha.

The idea of Satyagraha consists of :

• The idea of Satyagraha emphasised the power of truth and the need to search for truth.
• This idea suggested that if the cause was true, if the struggle was against injustice, then physical force was not necessary to fight the oppressor. Without being aggressive, the Satyagrahi could win the battle.
• One can win the oppressor even by appealing to the conscience. Oppressor should be made to see the truth.
• By this struggle, truth was bound to triumph (victory) ultimately. Gandhiji believed that this dharma of non-violence could unite all Indians.

Satyagraha movements :

Mahatma Gandhi successfully organised satyagraha movements in various places.

• In 1917, Gandhiji travelled to Champaran in Bihar to inspire the peasants to struggle against oppressive plantation system.
• In the same year, Gandhiji also organised a Satyagraha to support the peasants in Kheda district of Gujarat who were suffering from shortage of food due to crop failure and a plague epidemic.
• The farmers in Kheda were unable to pay the tax payment and were requesting a reduction in the revenue collection.
• In 1918, Gandhiji went to Ahmedabad to organise a Satyagraha movement amongst cotton mill workers.

The Rowlatt Act :

Rowlatt Act was an oppressive act passed through the Imperial Legislative Council by the British Government in 1919.

It gave the Government enormous powers to repress, political activities and allowed detention of political person without trial for two years.

The Rowlatt Act affected the National Movement in the following ways

• On 6th April, 1919 Gandhiji launched a nation wide Satyagraha with a hartal against this act.
• Rallies were organised in various cities, workers went on strike in railway workshop and shops were closed down.
• British government decided to take actions against nationalists because they were concerned about the popular uprising and feared that communication channels like telegraph and railways would be interrupted.
• Mahatma Gandhi was not allowed to enter Delhi and local leaders were picked up from Amritsar.
• On 10th April, 1919 the police in Amritsar upon fired on peaceful procession. Martial Law' was imposed in Amritsar and the command of the area was given to General Dyer.

Above circumstances led to Jallianwala Bagh incident. On 13th April, 1919, General Dyer fired at the innocent people who gathered in Jallianwala Bagh killing hundreds.

Khilafat Movement :

The Khilafat Movement was a united struggle launched by Muhammad Ali and Shaukat Ali. It was launched because Gandhiji saw this as an opportunity to bring Muslims under the umbrella of a unified National Movement.

The circumstances which led to the launch of Khilafat and Non-Cooperation Movements were,

• The First World War had ended with the defeat of Ottoman Empire.
• After the First World War rumours were spread that a peace treaty was going to be imposed on Khalifa (spiritual head of the Islamic world) of Ottoman Empire.
• The Khilafat Movement (1919-1924), was a pan-Islamic, political protest campaign launched by Muslims in British India to influence the British Government and to protect the Ottoman Empire during the aftermath of First World War.
• There was a fear that the power of the spiritual head of the Islamic world (Khalifa) would be curtailed.
• To defend his power, a Khilafat Committee was formed in Bombay, under the leadership of Maulana Azad, Hakim Ajmal Khan and Hasrat Mohani in 1919.
• The Khilafat leaders put pressure upon the British Government to give better treatment to Turkey.
• Muslim leaders like the brothers Muhammad Ali and Shaukat Ali, began discussing with Gandhiji about a united mass action on the Khilafat issue.
• 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.

Why Non-cooperation?

Need of Non-Cooperation Movement Gandhiji in his famous book Hind Swaraj (1909) declared that British rule was established in India with the cooperation of Indians. If Indians refused to cooperate, British rule in India would collapse with in a year and Swaraj would come.

Stages for the implementation of the Non-Cooperation as a Movement :

Mahatma Gandhi proposed the following stages for the implementation of the Non-Cooperation as a Movement

• The movement would begin with a surrender of titles, honours and honorary posts by people.
• The movement would boycott Civil Services, Army, Police, British Courts and Legislative Assemblies, School and Colleges and British goods.
• The British goods would be replaced by domestic goods or Swadeshi to promote the native cottage industries.
• In case of government suppression, Civil Disobedience Movement would be launched.

The Non-Cooperation Movement was adopted by the Congress during the Nagpur Conference in December 1920 and it began under the leadership of Mahatma Gandhi.

This movement united the country in the following ways

• The Non-Cooperation Movement spread from the cities to the countryside. Different sections of our society interpreted this movement differently. The name of Gandhiji invoked to sanction all actions and aspirations.
• In Awadh, peasants under the leadership of Baba Ram Chandra revolted against the talukdars and the landlords who demanded very high rent and different taxes from them.
• The peasant demanded reduction of revenue, abolition of begar and social boycott of oppressive landlords.
• In Gudem hills of Andhra Pradesh, Alluri Sitaram Raju inspired by Gandhiji's ideals came to lead them and the Gudem rebels attacked police stations and carried on guerrilla warfare for achieving Swaraj.

Differing Strands within the Movement :

In January 1921, the Non-Cooperation-Khilafat Movement started. Various social groups participated in the movement with their own specific aspirations.

The Movement in the Towns :

• Non-Cooperation Khilafat Movement started in the cities with middle-class participation.
• Students and teachers left government-controlled school and lawyers left courts.
• Foreign goods were boycotted. The merchants and traders refused to trade in foreign goods or finance foreign trade. As a result, the production of Indian textile mills and handlooms increased.
• Liquor shops were picketed.
• Council elections were boycotted in most provinces except Madras where the Justice Party, representing non-Brahmans, believed that joining the council was a way for them to have some influence, which was typically reserved for Brahmans.

However, this Non-Cooperation Movement in the cities gradually slowed down for various reasons like,

• Khadi cloth was often more expensive than mass produced mill cloth and poor people could not afford to buy it. Thus, boycott of foreign goods could not continue for long.
• Similarly, the boycott of British institutions posed a problem. No alternative institutions were set-up in their place. So, the students, teachers lawyers and other professionals finally had to resume their studies and jobs in government institutions like schools, colleges, courts, etc.

Rebellion in the Countryside :

From cities, the Non-Cooperation Movement spread to the countryside.

Towards Civil Disobedience :

Reasons to withdraw the Non-Cooperation Movement :

• Gandhi's decision to withdraw the Non-Cooperation Movement in 1922 reflected his commitment to non-violent resistance.
• He observed the movement's turned into violence in several places, specifically the Chauri Chaura incident where protestors set a police station on fire. His core principle of Satyagraha, caused him to believe the movement was losing its direction.
• The movement, in its initial stage, had not adequately prepared participants for the challenges of non-violent resistance. Gandhi recognised the need for rigorous training to instill discipline and control, preventing future outbreaks of violence. Gandhi believed in a long-term, non-violent struggle for independence.
• He viewed the withdrawal as a strategic retreat, allowing time for reflection, internal reorganisation and development of a more sustainable and disciplined approach.
• The withdrawal aimed to maintain public trust and support. The withdrawal served as a valuable learning experience for the Indian National Movement.

It allowed leaders to identify weaknesses, refine strategies and prepare for future campaigns, ultimately contributing to the movement's long-term success.

In conclusion, Gandhi's decision to withdraw the Non-Cooperation Movement was not a sign of defeat, but a strategic move to preserve the movement's core principles, protect lives, and ensure its long-term success.

Different Views within Congress :

Some leaders within Congress were tired of mass struggle and wanted to participate in the election to the provincial councils set up by the Government of India Act of 1919. They felt that it was important to oppose British policies within the councils.

CR Das and Motilal Nehru formed the Swaraj Party within the Congress to argue for a return to council politics whereas some younger leaders like Jawaharlal Nehru and Subhash Chandra Bose argued for more strong mass agitation and for full independence.

In this situation of internal debate and discussions, two factors shaped Indian politics towards the late 1920 that were

• The first was the effect of the worldwide economic depression.
• The second was agricultural prices which began to fall from 1926 and collapsed after 1930.

Formation of Simon Commission :

• Simon Commission was constituted under John Simon.
• The main objective of Simon Commission was to review the functioning of the constitutional system in India and suggest changes in the system.
• Indian leaders opposed the commission as there were no Indians in it.
• When the commission arrived in India, in 1928, it was greeted with the slogan Simon Go Back.
• All parties including the Congress and the Muslim League participated in the demonstrations.

Demand of Purna Swaraj :

In October 1929, the Viceroy, Lord Irwin announced an uncertain offer of dominion status for India and a Round Table Conference to discuss a future Constitution.

The Lahore session of the Congress in 1929 is considered historical because of the following reasons

• In the Lahore Session-December 1929, under the presidency of Jawaharlal Nehru, the Lahore Congress formalised the demand of 'Purna Swaraj' or full independence for India.
• This session declared that 26th January, 1930, would be celebrated as Independence Day, with people pledging to struggle for complete independence.
• It was after this session that Gandhiji sought to devise ways to relate the idea of independence with the daily issues of the people to make the struggle more relatable.

The Salt March and the Civil Disobedience Movement :

The main reasons behind launching the Civil Disobedience Movement are,

• Mahatma Gandhi sent a letter (31st January, 1930) to Viceroy Irwin stating eleven demands. Some of these were of general interest, others were specific demands of different classes. However, Viceroy Irwin refused the demands.
• Gandhiji believed that the tax on salt and the Government monopoly over salt production was the most oppressive measure taken by the British Government. This law had to be removed.

This marked the beginning of the Civil Disobedience Movement. As the movement spread,

• Foreign clothes were boycotted and liquor shops were picketed.
• Peasants refused to pay revenue and chaukidari taxes.
• Village officials resigned.
• In many places, forest people violated forest laws.

However, British government arrested all the leaders including Gandhiji.

Calling Off the Civil Disobedience Movement :

• During Civil Disobedience Movement, peaceful Satyagrahis were attacked, women and children were beaten and about 1,00,000 people were arrested.
• When Abdul Gaffar Khan was arrested on April 1930, several violent incidents took place in Peshawar.
• In this situation, Mahatma Gandhi call off the movement and signed a pact with Lord Irwin on 5th March, 1931. This was called Gandhi-Irwin Pact.

Relaunching of Civil Disobedience Movement :

In December 1931, Gandhiji went to London for the Second Round Table Conference but he returned disappointed as the British government refused to release the prisoners.

When Gandhiji came back in India, he found that Congress had been declared illegal and Abdul Ghaffar Khan and Jawaharlal Nehru were imprisoned.

Mahatma Gandhi relaunched the Civil Disobedience Movement. This movement continued for a year but lost its strength by the year 1934.

Formation of Hindustan Sacialists Republican Army (HSRA) :

Many nationalists did not believe in non-violent method for achieving freedom.

In 1928, some nationalists like Bhagat Singh, Jatin Das and Ajoy Ghosh founded the Hindustan Socialists Republican Army (HSRA) in 1928 at a meeting in Ferozshah Kotla ground in Delhi.

How Participants saw the Movement :

• In the countryside, rich peasant communities like the Patidars of Gujarat and the Jats of Uttar Pradesh were supporters of the Civil Disobedience Movement.
• As producers of cash crops, they suffered from a decline in trade, low prices and couldn't pay the government's taxes. They organised their communities to participate in boycott programmes. For them, the fight for Swaraj was a struggle against high revenues.
• The poor peasantry found it difficult to pay their rent to the landlords as the depression continued. They joined a variety of radical movements often led by Socialists and Communists in the hope that they would not have to pay the rent any further.
• Association like Indian Industrial and Commercial Congress and Federation of the Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industries under the leadership of GD Birla, Purushottam Thakur Das, etc. supported the Civil Disobedience Movement in the hope that business restriction would be lifted.
• The Indian merchants and industrialists formed the Indian Industrial and Commerce Congress in 1920 and the Federation of the Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industries (FICCI) in 1927.
• The industrial working classes did not participate in the Civil Disobedience Movement in large numbers, except in the Nagpur region.
• Some workers joined the Civil Disobedience Movement, adopting aspects like boycotting foreign goods for their protests against low wages and bad working conditions.
• The railway workers organised strikes in 1930 and dockworkers in 1932. In 1930, tin mine workers in Chota Nagpur wore Gandhi caps for protests. However, Congress hesitated to include workers' demands, fearing it might split nationalist forces.
• An important feature of this movement was the large scale participation of women. In urban areas, women came from high-caste families. In rural areas, women came from rich peasant households. Women were inspired by Gandhiji's call and they began to see service to the nation as their sacred duty.

The Limits of Civil Disobedience :

• Dalits or untouchables and Muslims did not actively participated in this movement.
• For long time, the Congress had ignored the Dalits because of the fear of Sanatanis, the conservative high caste Hindus Gandhiji called Dalits Harijan or the Children of God.
• He believed that Swaraj would not come for hundred years if untouchability was not eliminated.
• He organised Satyagraha for them, to secure their entry into temples and access to public wells, tanks, roads and schools.
• Gandhiji himself cleaned the toilets to dignify the work of bhangi (the sweepers).
• Gandhiji urged the upper class to change their mindset regarding the untouchables.
• Many Dalit leaders demanded reserved seats in education and a separate electorate for choosing Dalit members in legislative councils. They believed that political empowerment would address social issues.
• Dalit involvement in the Civil Disobedience Movement was limited, especially in Maharashtra and Nagpur where their organisation was quite strong.

Stand of Dalit Leaders :

• Dalit leaders wanted a different political solution to the problems of their community.
• Ambedker played major role in uplifting the dalit or the depressed classes.
• Dr BR Ambedkar demanded reserved seats in educational institutions and a separate electorate that would choose Dalit members for Legislative Councils.
• Ambedkar organised the Dalits into the Depressed Classes Association in 1930. His views differed with Mahatma Gandhi at the Second Round Table Conference as he demanded separate electorate for Dalits.
• When the British Government admitted Ambedkar's demand, Gandhiji strongly opposed it and began a fast unto death. Gandhiji believed that separate electorate for Dalits would slow down the process of their integration into the main society.
• Ambedkar ultimately accepted Gandhiji's position and as a result, Poona Pact of September 1932 was signed. This pact gave the depressed classes reserved seats in Provincial and Central Legislative Council but the voting was to be done by the general electorate.

Hindu-Muslim Clash :

• Some of the Muslim political organisations in India rarely participated in the Civil Disobedience Movement.
• After the decline of the Non-Cooperation and Khilafat Movement, a large section of Muslims felt separated from the Congress.
• From the mid 1920, the Congress came to be more associated with openly Hindu religious nationalist groups like the Hindu Mahasabha.
• As a result, Hindu-Muslim communal clashes and riots occurred in various cities.

The Sense of Collective Belonging :

The spreading of nationalism took place due tofollowing factors

• United Struggle : Different religious groups and communities unitedly struggled against the British rule.
• Cultural Processes : Unity spread through various cultural processes like history, folklore, songs and symbols that helped in spread of nationalism.
• Common Identity : The painting of 'Bharat Mata' was commonly identified as motherland and inspired the people equally.
• Revival of Indian : Folklore Reviving the folklore through folk songs, legends helped in promoting traditional culture and restore a sense of pride in the past history and culture.
• Role of the Leaders : Leaders like Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru aroused the feelings of nationalism through their motivational speeches and political activities.

Thus, it can be concluded that nationalism spread, when people began to believe that they were all part of the same nation.

History, fiction, folklore, songs, popular prints and symbols, all played a part in the making of nationalism in the following ways

• The identity of a nation is most often symbolized in a figure or image. This image of Bharat Mata was first created by Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay in 1870, when he wrote Vande Mataram for our motherland. Later, this song was included in his novel Anandamath and widely sung by the freedom fighters.
• The image of Bharat Mata was first painted by Abanindranath Tagore. In the painting, Bharat Mata is shown as a calm, divine and spiritual figure, resembling an ascetic.
• Being devoted to this mother figure became a symbol of one's nationalism.
• Indian folk songs and folk tales sung by bard (wandering poets) played an important role for making the idea of nationalism.
• In Bengal, Rabindranath Tagore collected ballads nursery rhymes and songs, which led the movement for folk revival.
• In Madras, Natesa Sastri published a huge four-volume set of Tamil folk tales titled The Folklore of Southern India.

Swaraj flag :

At the time of Swadeshi or Swaraj Movement, a tricolor flag was designed in Bengal by Mahatma Gandhi by 1921. Its features are

• It had eight lotuses representing eight provinces of British India and a crescent moon representing Hindu-Muslim community.
• It had also tricolour, i.e. red, green and white.
• It had a spining wheel in the centre.

Symbol of Defiance : It represented Gandhian ideal of self-help. Carrying the flag and holding it aloft during procession or marches, became a symbol of defiance..

Nationalism through Indian Ancient History :

• Another means of creating feeling of nationalism was explaining the meaning of history again.
• The nationalist writers urged the readers to take pride in India's great achievements in the past and struggle to change the miserable conditions of life under British rule.
• However, unification of people involved some problems. When the past that was being glorified was Hindu and the images celebrated were taken from Hindu iconography, the people of other communities felt left out.

Conclusion :

• In the first half of the 20th century, anger against the colonial government led to a common struggle for freedom among various Indian groups and classes.
• The Congress, led by Mahatma Gandhi, aimed to channel grievances into organized movements for independence, fostering national unity.
• However, diverse groups and classes participated with varying aspirations and expectations.
• The Congress tried to resolve differences and ensure that one group's demands did not alienate another, leading to the unity within the movement often breaking down.
• The high points of Congress activity and nationalist unity were followed by phases of disunity and inner conflict, resulting in a nation with many voices seeking freedom from colonial rule.