Salt Satyagaraha
Salt March, also called Dandi March or Salt Satyagraha was a major nonviolent protest action in India against the British rule. It was led by Mohandas (Mahatma) Gandhi in March–April 1930. The march was the first act in the series of the campaign of civil disobedience (Satyagraha). The civil disobedience movement was extended into early 1931. The movement garnered Gandhi widespread support among the Indian populace and considerable worldwide attention. The Indian populace was prohibited from producing or selling salt independently, and instead Indians were required to buy expensive, heavily taxed salt that often was imported. This affected the great majority of Indians, who were poor and could not afford to buy it. Indian protests against the salt tax began in the 19th century and remained a major contentious issue throughout the period of British rule of the subcontinent.
In early 1930 Gandhi decided to mount a highly visible demonstration against the increasingly repressive salt tax. He set out on foot on March 12, accompanied by several dozen followers from his ashram in Sabarmati (near Ahmadabad, Gujarat) to the town of Dandi (near Surat) on the Arabian Sea coast. After each day’s march the group stopped in a different village along the route, where increasingly larger crowds would gather to hear Gandhi rail against the unfairness of the tax on poor people. Gandhi and his followers reached Dandi after a journey of some 240 miles (385 km) on April 5. On the morning of April 6, Gandhi and his followers picked up handfuls of salt along the shore, thus technically “producing” salt and breaking the law.
No arrests were made that day, and Gandhi continued his satyagraha against the salt tax for the next two months, exhorting other Indians to break the salt laws by committing acts of civil disobedience. Thousands were arrested and imprisoned, including Jawaharlal Nehru in April and Gandhi himself on May 5 after he informed Lord Irwin (the viceroy of India) of his intention to march on the nearby Dharasana saltworks. Arrest of Abdul Ghaffar Khan in April 1930 and Mahatma Gandhi in May 1930 resulted in protests in Peshawar and Sholapur respectively.
Dharasana Satyagraha went ahead as planned on May 21 and led by the poet Sarojini Naidu. News of Gandhi’s detention spurred tens of thousands more to join the satyagraha. About 2,500 people marched peacefully but were attacked and beaten by police. By the end of the year, some 60,000 people were in jail.
Gandhi-Irwin Pact
As Salt Satyagraha gathered momentum, Gandhi and was arrested on the midnight of 4–5 May 1930, just days before the planned action at Dharasana. Gandhi was released from custody in January 1931 and began negotiations with Lord Irwin aimed at ending the Satyagraha campaign. A truce subsequently was declared, which was formalized in the Gandhi-Irwin Pact. The Gandhi–Irwin Pact was a political agreement signed by Mahatma Gandhi and Lord Irwin, Viceroy of India, on 5 March 1931 before the Second Round Table Conference in London. Before. This agreement marked the end of the Civil Disobedience Movement in India. The calming of tensions paved the way for Gandhi, representing the Indian National Congress, to attend the second session (September–December 1931) of the Round Table Conference in London.
The movement of civil disobedience was sparked after Lord Irwin, the Viceroy, had announced in October 1929 a vague offer of ‘dominion status’ for British-occupied India in an unspecified future and a Round Table Conference to discuss a future constitution. The Second Round Table Conference was held from September to December 1931 in London.
Round Table Conference
Round Table Conference, (1930–32) in Indian freedom struggle refers to a series of meetings in three sessions (Round table 1, 2 and 3) called by the British government to consider the future constitution of India. The conference resulted from a review of the Government of India Act of 1919, undertaken in 1927 by the Simon Commission, whose report was published in 1930. The conference was held in London.
The first session (Nov. 12, 1930–Jan. 19, 1931) had 73 representatives, from all Indian states and all parties except. The Indian National Congress, along with Indian business leaders, kept away from the conference. Gandhi also refused to attend the first session. However Aga Khan III (leader of British-Indian delegation), Muhammad Ali Jinnah, Maulana Mohammad Ali Jauhar and some other Muslim leaders participated in it. British Indian liberals Taj Bahadur Sapru, C.Y Chintamani and V.S Srinivas Sastri etc., Arcot Ramaswami Mudaliar of Justice Party, representative of depressed classes B.R Ambedkar and heads of many erstwhile Indian states also participated. It was difficult for progress to be made in the absence of the Indian National Congress but some advances were made. The Prime Minister wrote his diary “India has not considered. It was communalism, and proportions of reserved seats” that exposed the worst side of Indian politics. However, the principal achievement of the first Roundtable Conference was an insistence on parliamentarianism—an acceptance by all, including the princes, of the federal principle—and on dominion status as the goal of constitutional development. The idea of an All-India Federation was moved to the centre of discussion by Tej Bahadur Sapru. All the groups attending the conference supported this concept. The princely states agreed to the proposed federation provided that their internal sovereignty was guaranteed. The Muslim League also supported the federation as it had always been opposed to a strong Centre. The British agreed that representative government should be introduced on provincial level.
The Congress, which had killed and boycotted the first conference, was requested to come to a settlement by Sapru, M. R. Jayakar and V. S. Srinivasa Sastri. A settlement between Mahatma Gandhi and Viceroy Lord Irwin brought the Congress to the second session of Round Table Conference, which opened on 7 September. The second session (September–December 1931) was attended by Mahatma Gandhi as the Congress representative; it failed to reach agreement, either constitutionally or on communal representation.
The third and last session assembled on November 17, 1932. Only forty-six delegates attended since most of the main political figures of India were not present. The Labour Party from Britain and the Indian National Congress refused to attend. From September 1931 until March 1933, under the supervision of the Secretary of State for India, Sir Samuel proposed some constitutional reforms. The result of these deliberations was the Government of India Act, 1935, establishing provincial autonomy and also a federal system that was never implemented.
Communal Award (1932)
The Communal Award was created by the British Prime Minister Ramsay MacDonald on 16 August 1932. Also known as the MacDonald Award, it was announced after the Round Table Conference (1930–32) and extended the separate electorate to depressed Classes (now known as the Scheduled Caste) and other minorities. The separate electorate was introduced in Indian Councils Act 1909 for Muslims and extended to Sikhs, Indian Christians, Anglo-Indians and Europeans by Government of India Act 1919.
The separate electorate was now available to the Forward Caste, Muslims, Buddhists, Sikhs, Indian Christians, Anglo-Indians, Europeans and Depressed Classes (now known as the Scheduled Caste) etc. The principle of weightage was also applied. Sir Samuel Hoare asked for clarification of the ninth and last paragraph that applied directly to the Depressed Classes. The Award favoured the minorities over the Hindus causing consternation and eliciting anger from Gandhi. From the fastness of Yervada Jail he made contact with the Cabinet in London declaring in September 1932 an open fast until death.
The reason behind introduction of Communal Award was that Ramsay MacDonald considered himself as ‘a friend of the Indians’ and thus wanted to resolve the issues in India. The Communal Award was announced after the failure of the Second of the Round Table Conferences (India). The Award attracted severe criticism from Mahatma Gandhi.
The Award was controversial as it was believed by some to have been brought in by the British to create social divide among the Hindus. Gandhi feared that it would disintegrate Hindu society. However, the Communal Award was supported by many among the minority communities, most notably the Father of Indian Constitution, Dr. B. R. Ambedkar. According to Ambedkar, Gandhi was ready to award separate electorates to Muslims and Sikhs. But Gandhi was reluctant to give separate electorates to scheduled castes. He was afraid of division inside Congress and Hindu society due to separate scheduled caste representations. But Ambedkar insisted for separate electorate for scheduled caste. The Award was controversial as it was believed by some to have been brought in by the British to create social divide among the Hindus. Gandhi feared that it would disintegrate Hindu society. However, the Communal Award was supported by many among the minority communities, most notably the Father of Indian Constitution, Dr. B. R. Ambedkar.
After lengthy negotiations, Gandhi reached an agreement with Ambedkar to have a single Hindu electorate, with scheduled castes having seats reserved within it. The Poona Pact rejected any further advancement for the Depressed, yet satisfied electorates for other religions like Muslims, Buddhists, Sikhs, Indian Christians, Anglo-Indians, Europeans that remained separate.
Poona Pact
The Poona Pact was an agreement between Mahatma Gandhi and B. R. Ambedkar on behalf of depressed classes and upper caste Hindu leaders on the reservation of electoral seats for the depressed classes in the legislature of British India in 1932. It was made on 24 September 1932 at Yerwada Central Jail in Poona, India. It was signed by Ambedkar on behalf of the depressed classes and by Madan Mohan Malviya on behalf of Hindus and Gandhi as a means to end the fast that Gandhi was undertaking in jail as a protest against the decision made by British prime minister Ramsay MacDonald to give separate electorates to depressed classes for the election of members of provincial legislative assemblies in British India. They finally agreed upon 148 electoral seats. Nearly twice as many seats were reserved for Depressed Classes under the Poona Pact than what had been offered by MacDonald’s Separate Electorate.
The Government of India Act 1935
The Government of India Act, 1935 was an Act adapted from the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It originally received royal assent in August 1935. It was the longest Act of (British) Parliament ever enacted until Greater London Authority Act 1999 surpassed it. Because of its length, the Act was retroactively split by the Government of India Act, 1935 into two separate Acts: (i) The Government of India Act, 1935, having 321 sections and 10 schedules and (ii)) The Government of Burma Act, 1935 having 159 sections and 6 schedules. The Act led to: (a) Establishment of RBI, (b) Federal Public Service Commission (FPSC), Provincial Public Service Commission( PPSC) and Joint Public Service Commission (JPSC), (iii) Federal Court in 1937 and (iv) Bicameralism in 6 provinces (Bombay, Madras, Bengal, Bihar, Assam and United Provinces) out of 11 provinces.
Legislative Elections in India in 1937
Provincial elections were held in British India in the winter of 1936-37 as mandated by the Government of India Act 1935. Elections were held in eleven provinces – Madras, Central Provinces, Bihar, Orissa, United Provinces, Bombay Presidency, Assam, NWFP, Bengal, Punjab and Sindh. The final results of the elections were declared in February 1937. The Indian National Congress emerged in power in eight of the provinces – the exceptions being Punjab and Sindh. The All-India Muslim League failed to form the government in any province. The Congress ministries resigned in October and November 1939, in protest against Viceroy Lord Linlithgow’s action of declaring India to be a belligerent in the Second World War without consulting the Indian people.
Tripuri Session of Indian National Congress (1939)
For the 1939 elections of the President of Congress, Subhash announced his candidature knowing that he would be opposed. By this time, Nehru was on a long holiday in Europe. When he returned in 1938, Gandhi suggested him to announce his name as a candidate. But he declined and suggested the name of Maulana Azad. But Maulana Azad withdrew his name and then new name came up was of Dr. Pattabhi Sitaramayya, an Andhra leader. But Subhash was not sure of his win. The result was declared on January 29, 1939 and Subhash secured 1580 Votes. Sitaramaya got 1377 votes, thus Subhash winning by a narrow but clear margin. But the defeat of Sitaramayya was taken by Gandhi as a personal blow. He said “ … I am glad of his (Subhash’s) victory….and since I was instrumental in inducing Dr. Pattabhi not to withdraw his name after Maulana Azad Sahib done so, the defeat is more mine than his….”. Gandhi said that Bose was president in his own right. He should form his own working committee and run the congress. Gandhi said that “…after all Subhash Babu is not the enemy of our country…he has suffered for it”. In His opinion, his is the most forward and boldest policy and programme….the minority can only wish him all the best”.
In March 1939, Congress met at annual session at Tripuri near Jabalpur. Prior to this session, Bose fell ill (which may be a psychological reaction to the stress) just before February 20-21, when a meeting of Congress Working Committee was held in Wardha. Subhash was unable to reach and so sent a telegram to Patel to postpone the meeting of working committee till the annual session. Patel and other 11 members resigned from the Working Committee describing Subhash Chandra’s stance as dictatorial. There was a irriconciliable division between Subhash and Gandhi & his followers in the Tripuri session of Congress and it appeared that the Congress leaders were not comfortable with Subhash on President’s post in Congress. Next Month, Subhash resigned from Congress and the place was filled by Dr. Rajendra Prasad. The reason for difference was due to difference between Congress leaders and Subhash was regarding method of carrying forward the national movement.
. Day of Deliverance
The “Day of Deliverance” (Youm-e-Nijat) was a celebration day marked by the All-India Muslim League and others on 22 December 1939 during the Indian independence movement. It was led by Muslim League president Muhammad Ali Jinnah, and intended to rejoice the resignation of all members of the rival Congress party from provincial and central offices in protest over their not having been consulted over the decision to enter World War II alongside Britain. Viceroy Linlithgow declared India at war with Nazi Germany on 3 September 1939. The Indian National Congress, the dominant political party of Subcontinent, objected strongly to the declaration of war without prior consultation with Indians. The Congress Working Committee suggested that it would cooperate if there were a central Indian national government formed, and a commitment made to India’s independence after the war. The Muslim League promised its support to the British, with Jinnah calling on Muslims to help the Raj by “honourable co-operation at the critical and difficult juncture,” while asking the Viceroy for increased protection for Muslims.
Congress considered Linlithgow’s subsequent response “wholly unsatisfactory and calculated to rouse resentment among all those who are anxious to gain. India’s independence,” and on 22 October 1939, “called upon all Congress ministries to tender their resignations.” The unilateral protest resignation was supported by Jawaharlal Nehru, but less so by Mahatma Gandhi, who felt that it would strengthen both unwanted British wartime militarization and the Muslim League. Both Viceroy Linlithgow and Muhammad Ali Jinnah were pleased with the resignations.
Ramgarh Session of Congress 1940
Jawaharlal Nehru, industrialist Jamnalal Bajaj, Sarojini Naidu, Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan, and Maulana Azad at the 1940 Ramgarh Session of the Indian National Congress in which Azad was elected president for the second time. The year 1939 was a period of international tension. The future of Europe as well as India was extremely perilous. Moreover, on 11th August, 1939 Congress Working Committee passed a resolution and declared that it opposed any kind of imperialist war. Furthermore, the working committee was also determined to oppose any attempt of forcing a war on India. Other issues which were condemned by the Working Committee included the sending of troops to Egypt and Singapore and it also protested against the extended life of the central Legislative Assembly. The main aim of the Congress was to condemn the British Administration during Second World War. Thus, a resolution was passed in which all Congress members of the Central Assembly refrained from attending its next session. In spite of the resolution passed, certain prominent Congressmen supported the British Policy and were prepared to co-operate in the war effort. On the other hand, the Muslim League supported the British Administration during Second World War.
The Congress laid down a condition in the year 1940 that Indian support for the war would come with a National Government. The Viceroy however refused, and a movement, known as, Civil Disobedience was launched by the Congress. About 1700 Congress members were arrested in 1940. Thus, the position of Congress was weakened as many Congress members were imprisoned between 1940 and 1945. The Congress also held an open session in Ramgarh.
Pakistan Resolution
In 1940 the Muslim League held its annual session in Lahore towards the end of March. Jinnah declared in this session that democracy was unsuited to India and the Muslims must have own their homeland, their territory and their State. The resolution which was passed came to be known as the `Pakistan Resolution`. The session held by the Muslim League at Lahore aroused widespread concern. Its proceedings shocked many sections of public opinion and even angered the Hindus and other minorities were displeased as well.