Gandhian Era — TNPSC Group 4 History Notes

Overview

Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (1869–1948) transformed Indian nationalism from an elite movement into a mass one. His technique of Satyagraha (truth-force / non-violent resistance) drew millions of Indians into the freedom movement. This period (1915–1947) is the central focus of modern Indian history, and TNPSC Group 4 tests the dates, causes, locations, and outcomes of each major movement extensively.

Gandhi Returns to India (1915)

Gandhi returned to India from South Africa in January 1915. He had spent 21 years in South Africa fighting racial discrimination using non-violent resistance (Satyagraha).

His political mentor Gopal Krishna Gokhale advised him to spend a year travelling India and understanding its realities before entering politics. Gandhi established the Sabarmati Ashram near Ahmedabad in 1916.

Early Satyagrahas in India (1917–1919)

Champaran Satyagraha (1917) — Bihar

• Issue: Indigo farmers forced to grow indigo on 3/20ths of their land (tinkathia system) and sell at prices fixed by British planters
• Gandhi's role: Investigated conditions on-site; mobilised farmers; filed reports

• Rajendra Prasad (later first President of India) and J.B. Kripalani assisted Gandhi here

Kheda Satyagraha (1918) — Gujarat

• Issue: Crop failure in Kheda (Kaira) district; farmers demanded remission of land revenue
• Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel participated for the first time — this was the beginning of his political career

Ahmedabad Mill Strike (1918)

• Gandhi mediated between mill owners and workers in Ahmedabad
• Went on his first hunger strike (partial fast) to support workers' demand for 35% wage increase
• Workers eventually got 35% increase

Rowlatt Act and Jallianwala Bagh (1919)

The Rowlatt Act (1919) gave British authorities the power to imprison people without trial for up to two years.

Gandhi called for a nationwide hartal (strike) on 6 April 1919. The response was massive.

On 13 April 1919 (Baisakhi), at Jallianwala Bagh, Amritsar, General Reginald Dyer ordered troops to open fire on a peaceful crowd (including women and children) that had gathered for a meeting. Official death toll: 379 (Indian estimates far higher). Thousands were injured.

The Jallianwala Bagh massacre shocked India and the world. Gandhi returned the medals he had received from the British government. Rabindranath Tagore renounced his knighthood in protest.

Non-Cooperation Movement (1920–1922)

At the Calcutta Special Session (September 1920) and the Nagpur Session (December 1920), Gandhi's programme of Non-Cooperation was adopted by the Congress.

The Programme

• Return of titles and honorary offices to the government
• Boycott of government courts (lawyers to withdraw), schools, and legislatures
• Boycott of British goods; use of swadeshi khadi (hand-spun cloth)
• Promotion of Hindu-Muslim unity (Gandhi linked the movement to the Khilafat cause)

The Khilafat Movement (1919–1922)

The Khilafat Movement was led by Mohammad Ali and Shaukat Ali (Ali Brothers) to protest British treatment of the Ottoman Caliph (Khalifa). Gandhi linked the Non-Cooperation Movement to the Khilafat cause to build Hindu-Muslim unity — the most successful example of such unity in the freedom movement.

Chauri Chaura and Suspension (1922)

On 4 February 1922, at Chauri Chaura in Gorakhpur (UP), a crowd of protesters clashed with police. The protesters burned the police station, killing 22 policemen.

Gandhi was shattered by this violence. Despite protests from Congress leaders (who felt the movement was at its peak), Gandhi suspended the Non-Cooperation Movement on 12 February 1922.

Gandhi was arrested in March 1922 and sentenced to 6 years imprisonment. He was released in 1924 after an appendix operation.

Civil Disobedience Movement (1930–1931)

The Dandi March (12 March – 6 April 1930)

The salt tax was 8.2% of the total tax revenue and affected the poorest Indians — everyone needed salt. By making salt the symbol of civil disobedience, Gandhi brilliantly chose an issue that united all Indians.

Civil Disobedience spread: Peasants refused to pay revenue; women joined mass picketing of liquor shops and foreign cloth shops; C. Rajagopalachari led a salt march in Tamil Nadu; Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan led the Khudai Khidmatgar (Servants of God) — the non-violent "Red Shirts" — in the Frontier Province.

Gandhi-Irwin Pact (5 March 1931)

Gandhi agreed to suspend Civil Disobedience and attend the Second Round Table Conference in London. The British agreed to release political prisoners and allow coastal salt manufacture. The pact was criticised by more radical nationalists (Bhagat Singh was executed just days before — 23 March 1931 — and many felt Gandhi should have pushed for commutation).

Quit India Movement (August 1942)

The backdrop was World War II — Japan had swept through Southeast Asia and was at India's doorstep. Britain needed India's cooperation. The Cripps Mission (March 1942) offered dominion status after the war, but Congress rejected it.

8 August 1942 — At the Bombay session of the AICC (Gowalia Tank Maidan), Gandhi gave his "Do or Die" (Karo ya Maro) speech. The Congress passed the Quit India Resolution demanding immediate independence.

9 August 1942 — The British arrested all Congress leaders before dawn. Gandhi, Nehru, Patel, Azad — all imprisoned.

Outcome

• Leaderless, the movement spread spontaneously across the country
• Parallel governments were established in Ballia (UP), Satara (Maharashtra), and Midnapore (Bengal)
• The British crushed the movement with extreme force — 100,000 arrested, 1,000+ killed
• The movement failed militarily but demonstrated that Indians would no longer accept British rule

Road to Independence

Important for Exam - Champaran 1917 = first satyagraha in India; tinkathia system - Jallianwala Bagh = 13 April 1919; General Dyer; 379 killed (official) - Non-Cooperation Movement 1920 — suspended after Chauri Chaura (4 Feb 1922) - Dandi March = 12 March to 6 April 1930; Salt Satyagraha - Quit India = 8 August 1942; "Do or Die" slogan - Gandhi-Irwin Pact = 5 March 1931