Nationalism in India 🇮🇳 Class 10 Notes History Chapter 3
1. Introduction
2. The First World War, Khilafat and Non-cooperation Movement
3. Differing strands within the movement
4. Towards civil disobedience
5. The sense of collective belonging
1. Introduction
In India the growth of modern nationalism is intimately connected to anti-colonial(anti-british) movement.
The sense of being oppressed under british rule provided a shared bond among different groups in India. Everyone from farmers, artisans to top business class was affected by their rule.
However each had felt its effect differently so their concept of freedom was not same. But the congress under Gandhiji tried to forge these groups together within one movement.
2. The First World War, Khilafat and NCM
#Connection of war with the growth of nationalism
i) The defence expenditure increased which was fulfilled by loans and increasing taxes : custom duties were raised and Income tax introduced .
ii) Prices of goods double between 1913 and 1918 -------------- leading to Extreme hardship for the common people .
iii) Forced recruitment of youth into the British army caused anger in rural areas.
iv) This was accompanied by an influenza epidemic which was very deadly.
At this stage a new leader appeared and suggested a new mode of struggle.
# The idea of Satyagraha
Mahatma Gandhi brought this idea of Satyagraha with him which he successfully experimented in South Africa.
#Definition
➡️ It is a novel method of mass agitation.
➡️ It emphasized the power of truth and need to search for it .
➡️ It implies that if the cause was true, then the physical force was not necessary to fight the oppressor.
➡️ Without being aggressive are seeking revenge a Satyagrahi could win the battle through non violence and it will be done by appealing to the conscience of the oppressor.
Experiments of Satyagraha
A. Champaran
Gandhiji led a satyagraha in Champaran for farmers who were forced to grow indigo under the oppressive plantation system run by the britishers.
B. Kheda
A satygraha was launched here for supporting the peasants in their demands of realxation of revenue.
C.Ahmedabad
Mahatma Gandhi organjsed a movement in Ahmedabad to support cotton mill workers in their demands of wage increment.
The Rowlatt Act (1919)
➡️ To curb the satyagrah this act was passed in hurry through the British despite opposition of Indian members of the assembly.
Provisions:
It gave powers to the government to
a) Repress political activities.
b) Detain political prisoners without trial for 2 years.
Note --- This act was called Black Act.
Response of Gandhiji
➡️ He announced hartal in 6 April and decided to launch a nationwide satyagraha against such unjust act.
➡️ Rallies were organised by people in various cities.
➡️ Workers went on strike in railway workshops and shops closed down.
➡️ The whole protest was entirely peaceful for the first few days.
Reaction of British administration
➡️ They reacted by arresting the nationalist leaders , as they were afraid of disruption in lines of communication such as the railways and telegraph.
➡️ On 10th April, The police in Amritsar fired upon peaceful processions which provoked widespread violence.
➡️ To calm the situation martial law(Army Rule) was imposed in Amritsar, and General Dyer took the command.
➡️ On 13th April, A large crowd gathered in the enclosed ground of Jallianwala Bagh. Some came to protest against government's new repressive measures. Other had come to attend the annual Baisakhi fair.
Note - Being from outside the city many villages where unaware of the Martial law that had been imposed.
Finally, Dyer entered the area, blocked the exit points and opened fire on the crowd, killing hundreds.
His Objective - To create a feeling of terror and awe in the minds of Satyagrahi.
#Reaction to Jallianwala Bagh incident
People's response:- Attacks on government buildings, clashes with the police and strikes.
The government's response:- Responded with brutal repression seeking to humiliate and terrorise people.
Seeing violence spread Mahatma Gandhi called off the movement.
3. Non-cooperation Movement
Defination:- The movement in which Indians were told to not co-operate with the Britishers as it was told by Gandhiji that their rule survived in India only because of this corporation.
And it was predicted that British rule in India would collapse within a year if we start not to corporate them.
#Objectives
a) To achieve Swaraj
b) To redress the wrongs done in Jallianwala Bagh
c) To defend the post of Khalifa
Khalifa Issue
➡️ In the first world war, Turkey was among one of the Nations of Axis power and they were defeated in the war.
➡️ There were rumours that harsh treaty was going to be imposed on the Ottoman Empire, also called Khalifa.
➡️ He was considered the Spiritual head of Muslims all around the world. When they heard of this they protested the decision of Britishers.
➡️ To defend the post of Khalifa, a Khilafat committee was formed in Bombay in March 1919.
➡️ It was founded by a young generation of Muslim leaders like the brothers Shaukat Ali and Jauhar Ali.
➡️ They began discussing the possibility of a united mass action on this issue with Gandhiji.
➡️ Gandhiji saw this as an opportunity to bring Muslims under the umbrella of united national movement.
Note - At the Calcutta session of the Congress in September 1920, he convinced other leaders of the need to start a non corporation movement in support of Khilafat as well as for Swaraj.
*Stages of the NCM
a) It should begin with the surrender of titles that the government awarded.
b) And boycott of civil services, Army Police, Courts and legislative council, Schools and foreign goods.
c) In case of repression by government, a full civil disobedience campaign would be launched.
#Tussle Over Legislative Election Boycott
➡️ Many leaders of Congress did not agree to boycott the council election and they were afraid of violence.
➡️ In between September and December there was an intense tussle within the Congress over the issue.
➡️ Finally at congress session at Nagpur in December 1920, a compromise was worked out.
3. Differing strands of Non -cooperation
3.1 The movement in the towns
Participants --- Middle class
Participation
➡️ Thousands of students left British schools and colleges .
➡️Headmasters and teachers resigned and lawyers gave up their legal practices.
➡️Foreign goods were boycotted.
➡️ Foreign cloths were burnt in huge bonfire and liquor shop picketed.
➡️The council election were boycotted in most provinces except Madras.
Why election was not boycotted in Madras?
➡️ In Madras, Justice party , the party of non brahmins felt that entering the Council was one way of gaining some power .
Economic effect
➡️ Merchant refused to trade in foreign goods.
➡️Amount of import of foreign product fell down by half .
Reason of Slow Down
➡️Khadi was too expensive, so poor people could not afford to buy it. They begin buying foreign machine-made cloths which was available at much lower cost .
➡️Alternative educational institutions were not set up in sufficient numbers.
So, teachers and students begin going back to government schools.
3.2 Rebellion in the countryside
countryside = village
i. Awadh
Participants -- Peasants
Leader --- Baba Ramchandra (A sanyasi, worked as indentured labourer in Fiji)
Problems -- High revenue,Begari and eviction from houses so quickly
Demands --- Reduction in revenue,Abolition of Begari and security of tenure
organisation -- Oudh Kisan Sabha
(setup by Jawaharlal Nehru Baba Ramchandra and a few others )
Mode of Protest
➡️ In many places Nai-Dhobi bandhs were organised by panchayats to deprive the landlords of the services of even barbers and washermen.
Reaction to the non cooperation movement
➡️When then NCM began, the effort of Congress was to integrate the Awadh peasant struggle into the wider struggle.
➡️ The farmers of Awadh reacted in a way Congress did not like because they were involved in violence by attacking the houses of landlords and looting the Bazaar etc.
ii) Gudem Hill (Andhra Pradesh )
Participant --- Tribal Peasants
Leader --- Alluri Sitaram Raju
Problems --- a) Denied entry into forest
b) Told to do Begari
Alluri Sitaram Raju
➡️ He was an interesting figure as he claimed to have some special powers.
➡️ Special Powers like making correct prediction about future , healing people and even surviving Bullet shots.
➡️ People proclaimed him to be an incarnation of God.
➡️He was inspired by Gandhiji and persuaded people to wear Khadi and give up drinking, but at the same time he was not a believer of nonviolence .
➡️He used guerrilla warfare technique to attack police stations.
➡️Very soon he came into the hit list of the Britishers.
➡️Finally he was captured and executed in 1924 and overtime Raju became a folk Hero.
iii) Swaraj in the plantation
Place-- Assam
Participant --- plantation workers
problem. ------ Under inland emigration act of 1859,they were not allowed to leave the enclosed area unless the permission was granted by the employers and it was rarely granted.
Meaning of swaraj for plantation workers
➡️Freedom to move in and out freely from the confined area.
➡️To reconnect with their native villages.
Reaction towards NCM
When they heard of Non-cooperation movement, they thought that Gandhi Raj is coming and they would easily get land in their native village after escaping from there.
They escaped and reached to Railway Stations and sea ports but due to strike they were trapped and finally caught by the police.
Withdrawl of NCM
In Feb 1922,Gandhiji decided to withdraw NCM due to the following reasons :
a) Violence erupted in Chauri Chaura
b) He believed that satyagrahi need to be properly trained for not indulging in violence.
c) Some members within congress got tired of mass struggled and wanted to return to council politics.
3.Towards Civil Disobedience
After Withdrawal of NCM reaction within the congress
a) Moderates /Liberals
They believed in returning to electoral politics ,so they formed Swaraj Party under the leadership of Moti Lal Nehru and C. R. Das.
b) Radicals
They continued to believe in the effectiveness of the idea of Satyagraha.
They were led by Jawahar Lal Nehru and Subhash Chandra Bose.
Reaction outside the congress
The nationalists who were not a member of Congress were very hopeful from NCM.
After its sudden withdrawal the revolutionaries lost hope from Gandhi style politics.
They themselves formed some organizations :
a) HRA-- Hindustan Republican Association(Formed in 1924)
After Kakori case most of them were either sentenced some punishment or went underground .
After disbanding of this group a new association was formed :
b) HSRA(Hindustan Socialist Republican Association)
➡️ It was formed in 1928 at Feroz Shah Kotla Ground in Delhi.
Leaders -- Jatin Das, Ajay Ghosh, Chandrashekhar Azad etc
➡️ They did not believe in non-violence.
Two factors that shaped the congress politics after NCM
a) The effects of economic depression in India
b) Arrival of Simon Commission
Due to these two reasons Nehru and Bose became more assertive and gained more influence within congress.
b) Simon Commission
Head -- Sir John Simon
Members -- 7
Objective --- To suggest some changes in the constitution.
Why Indians boycotted them?
Indians boycotted them due to absence of any Indian members within the commission.
How did they boycott?
➡️They were greeted with the slogan 'Go Back Simon '.
➡️All parties including the Congress and the Muslim League participated in it.
Efforts of Viceroy Irwin
In order to win them over Irwin offered :
a) 'Dominion Status' for India
b) A round table conference to discuss a future constitution.
These efforts of Irwin didn't satisfy the Congress.
#Radicals take over Congress
When due to the economic depression and arrival of Simon Commission, the influence of Radicals grow in Congress. They held a session of Congress under Nehru in Lahore.
Lahore Session (1929)
President -- Nehruji
Resolution --- a) Purna Swaraj
b) Declaration of Independence Day on 1930.
#Salt March & CDM
*Demand Of Congress
On 31st January 1930 --- Gandhiji sent a letter to viceroy Irwin stating eleven demands.
➡️ The most stirring of all was the demand to abolish the salt tax, and the government monopoly over its production.
*Ultimatum
The letter of Gandhiji was, in a way, an ultimatum. If the demands were not fulfilled by 11th March, the congress would launch a civil disobedience program.
But Irwin did not agree to the deal.
*Salt March Begins
Mahatma Gandhi started his famous salt march along with 78 of his trusted volunteers.
The march was over 240 miles from Sabarmati to Dandi. They walked for 24 days, about 10 miles a day.
On the path thousands came to hear Mahatma Gandhi wherever he stopped, and he told them what he meant by Swaraj and motivated them to peacefully break the British rules.
Finally on 6 April he reached Dandi and violated the law by manufacturing the salt.
Q. Why salt was chosen for passive resistance in CDM?
Ans:- Salt was chosen for passive resistance due to the following reason
i) Salt was consumed by the rich and the poor alike.
ii) It was one of the most essential items of food.
iii) The tax on salt have shown the most opprrssive face of British rule.
# People's participation in CDM
i) Thousands in different parts of the country manufactured salt.
ii) As the movement spread, foreign clouth was boycotted and liquor shop were picked. iii) Peasants refused to pay revenue.
iv) Forests people violated forest laws -- by going into the Reserved Forest.
#Reaction Of Government
They began arresting the major leaders of CDM.
1. Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan
He was arrested in April 1930 ,In response of this his followers in Peshawar protested but they were fired upon by the police. Many of his followers were killed in this unfortunate incident which is known as Qissa Khani Bazar Massacre.
2. Gandhiji
Gandhiji was also arrested a month later which led to the violent protest of factory workers of Sholapur.
3. Many satyagrahis including women and children were beaten and put into jail.
Gandhi-Irwin Pact
In such a situation Gandhiji entered into a pact to end the CDM with the Britishers, which is referred to as Gandhi -Irwin Pact.
Provision of the pact
a) Gandhiji demanded release of all political prisoners.
b) Irwin wanted Congress to participate in the Second Round table conference.
Relaunching Civil Disobedience Movement
Gandhiji was disappointed with the talks at second round table conference .
When he returned to India, he found many of the congress leaders in jail and Congress declared illegal.
This situation made him restart civil Disobedience.
Participants of CDM
1. Rich farmers
Major participants -- Jats (UP) And Patidars(Gujarat)
Problem --- They were unable to pay revenue due to the loss suffered from economic depression.
Demand --- They demanded reduction in revenue which was denied.
Participation --
➡️ The rich farmers organised their communities to participate in the boycott programs.
➡️ They didn't participate the second time because the movement was called off the first time without considering their demand.
2.Poor Farmers
They were mainly against the rich farmers in their demand of relaxation in rent.
Congress didn't support their no rent compaign as it would upset the rich peasants. As a result they joined a variety of radical movements often led by socialists and communists.
3.Business Class
Demand -- 1. Protection against import
2. A rupee-sterling exchange ratio that would discourage imports.
ORGANIZATION --
To organise the people they formed organisation like :-
1.Indian Industrial and commercial congress in 1920
2.Federation of Indian Chamber of commerce and industries (FICCI) in 1927.
Leaders -- Purushottam Das Thakur Das and G. D. Birla
Mode of participation --
1.They refused to buy or sell imported goods.
2.They also provided financial support to the movement.
Second Phase :-
They did not show interest second time when the movement was relaunched due to the following reasons :
1. They were afraid of violence which would disrupt their business.
2. They were also worried about the influence of socialism among the younger members of the congress.
4.Factory workers
The demand of industrial working class would be against the business class. Due to the closeness of business class in the movement they did not participate in it except in few regions.
5.Women
Large scale participation of women is a unique feature of the civil disobedience movement.
Participant --
Rural -- Rich peasants
Urban -- High caste families
How they participated?
They participated in protest marches and came out to listen to Gandhiji.
They manufactured salts, picketed foreign cloths and liquor shops.
Many of them even went to jail.
Q. Why the women were not given any position of authority within the organization despite their active participation in the movement?
Women were not given any position of authority within the organization as :
a) Gandhiji considered the duty of women to look after home, be good mothers and good wives.
b) They were keen only on their symbolic presence.
The limits of the CDM
There were some groups who were not moved by the concept of swaraj:
a) Dalit
Initial congress ignored the dalits for fear of losing support of the conservative high -caste Hindus . Later on they realised the need to improve their conditions.
Steps taken by Gandhiji to improve their conditions
a. He gave them a new name 'Harijans ' meaning children of God.
b. He organised satyagraha to secure them entry into temples, public wells, tanks,roads and schools.
c. He himself cleaned the toilet to dignify the work of Bhangi.
d. He convinced the upper castes to
give up the sin of untouchability.
Reaction of Dalit leaders
Dalit leaders were looking for the political solutions to the problems of the community. Their demands were :-
a. Reserved seats in the educational institutions and assembly.
b. A separate electorate
Conclusion :-- Dalit participation in the CDM was therefore limited.
B. R. Ambedkar
He organised dalits into the depressed class association in 1930.
He clashed with Gandhiji at the second round table conference by demanding separate electorates for the dalits.
His demand for separate electorate was accepted by the British government.
Gandhiji opposed it by going into fast into death.
Ambedkar finally accepted his position which resulted in Poona Pact.
Separate electorate - A system in which people from the same community would vote among the leaders of his own community.
Poona Pact (1932)
➡️Reserved seats in the state and central councils were alloted.
➡️The general electorate was accepted.
Muslims
Some of the Muslim political organisations in India did not show enthusiasm towards CDM.
The Reasons were:-
a. From the Mid-1920s the congress came to be visibly associated with openly Hindu religious groups like the Hindu Mahasabha.
b. Many muslim leaders were afraid that the culture and identity of Muslim minority would be submerged under the domination of a Hindu majority.
c. Their demands for separate electorate and reservation was also not accepted by the congress.
4. The sense of collective belonging
Nationalism spreads when peope begin to discover some unity that binds
them together. This sense of belonging came partly through the experience of united struggles and partly through other cultural processes.
They were :-
1. Image
a.The identity of nation is often symbolised in an image .
b. This helps people to identify the nation .
c. In the 19th century the identity of India came to be visually associated with the image of Bharat Mata.
d. The image was first created by Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay, who also wrote
'Vande Matram ' which was widely sung during Swadeshi Movement in Bengal.
Different forms of Bharat Mata :-
(i) Ascetic Figure
a. Moved by the Swadeshi Movement , Abanindranath Tagore painted his famous
image of Bharat Mata .
b. In this painting Bharat Mata is portrayed as calm , divine and spiritual figure.
c. She is shown as dispensing learning,
food and clothing . The mala in one hand
emphasises her ascetic quality.
(ii) Image represening power and authority :
In subsequent years the image of Bharat Mata acquired many different forms and was painted by different artists.
2. Folklore
a. The folklore means traditional beliefs and stories.
b. Many Indian leaders toured villages to collect them because they believed that the legends and folk songs gave a true picture of traditional culture .
c. And they considered it essential to preserve it to restore a sense of pride in the past.
d. E.g :- Rabindranath Tagore (in Bengali) , Natesa Sastri (in Tamil)
3. Flags
a. During freedom movements people were carrying the flags and holding it aloft .
b. Differnt types of flags :
Swadeshi Flag
Tricolor ( Red , Green and Yellow)
Symbol - 8 Lotuses & A Crescent Moon
Meaning : Lotus = Provinces of British India
Crescent Moon = Hindus and Muslim culture
Swaraj Flag ( By Gandhiji)
Tricolor ( Red , Green and White)
Symbol - Spinning Wheel in the centre
Meaning :- Spinning Wheel = Self Help
4. Reinterpretation of History
a. British portrayed Indian to be backward , primitive and incapable of governing themselves.
b. In response Indians began looking into the past to discover India's great achievement in architecture , science , mathematics , religion , law and philosophy.
c. The nationalist historians urged the readers to take pride in the India's great past and struggle to change the miserable conditions of life under British rule.
# Problem with this approach
a. The past which was glorified was Hindu and the images celebrated came from Hindu Iconography.
b. As a result the people of other communities felt left out.
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