Contents Formation of Congress............................................................................................................................2 Colonial perspective: Safety Valve Theory..........................................................................................2 Nationalist perspective: Lightning conductor theory.........................................................................3 Practice Question................................................................................................................................4 Q. To what extent do you believe that the 'safety valve theory' explains the formation of Indian National Congress?.........................................................................................................................4 Phases of the Indian National Movement..............................................................................................5

1. Moderate Phase (1885-1905).........................................................................................................5

 Moderate leaders....................................................................................................................5  Moderate demands ................................................................................................................6 Nature of Moderate Politics ...................................................................................................................6 Evaluation of the Moderate Phase.........................................................................................................7 Practice Question................................................................................................................................9 Q. Critically evaluate the contributions of the moderate leaders within the national movement.

........................................................................................................................................................9 Q. The Moderate methods were bound to fail. Critically discuss...................................................9

1. Extremist Phase (1905-19)............................................................................................................10

Nature of extremist politics..................................................................................................................12 Critical evaluation of Extremist achievements .....................................................................................12 Practice Question..............................................................................................................................13 Q. The beginning of the 20 th century saw the emergence of new energy, new strength, new objectives and new methods within the national movement. On the basis of this statement, critically evaluate the contributions of the extremists.................................................................13 Q. Compare and contrast the extremist phase of Indian nationalism to moderates...................15

Formation of Congress Amidst the socio-economic as well as political crisis caused by the British rule and rising awareness among Indians owing to socio-religious reform movement as well as rising political awareness due to rise in a number of political organizations, it was just a matter of time before a national organization could be formed.

Thus, the Indian National Congress was founded in 1885 by AO Hume at Sir Gokuldas Tejpal Sanskrit Mahavidyalaya in Bombay.

 It was attended by 72 members  First President was WC Bonnerjee  Important leaders who were absent were SN Banerjee and AM Bose.

 Its formation is considered as the true beginning of the Indian National movement because it was the first All India Political platform in which nationalists across the India participated.

• Anti-colonial
• Instrumental in India`s liberation
• Secular organization which represented the interests of all Indians irrespective of

class, language or region. It was a democratic, liberal and progressive platform with

an inclusive agenda

• Post-independence, it provided stewardship to young India in accordance with the

values of the national movement.

However, formation of the INC has invited great historiographical debate surrounding

around the intentions and the objectives for its formation.

Colonial perspective: Safety Valve Theory

Lala Lajpat Rai, for the first time, has written in 'Young India' in 1916 that Congress was a

'safety valve' deliberately created by the British in order to avoid any large scale revolt.

 It was to handle and release the pressure of the public anger and would act as the shield

for British rule.

 As the source of his information, he highlighted the biography of AO Hume written by

William Wedderburn-

• According to him, Hume created the Congress as a safety mechanism and described

Hume as an 'enlightened imperialist'.

• He writes that as a revenue official in Shimla, Hume had received reports of a

widespread discontent which may lead to a major revolt such as the great revolt of

• Therefore, Hume got into contact with the then Governor General Dufferin and both

decided to form an organization which would let Indians to vent their anger through

it.

Nationalist perspective: Lightning conductor theory

While rejecting the colonial perspective of safety valve, nationalists believe that rather

Congress wisely used AO Hume as a lightning conductor to shield the Congress which was

still in its infancy.

 Congress was actually the manifestation of maturity of India nationalism.

• Since 1830 s various regional political organizations had emerged which advocated

the rights of the Indians versus the British.

• These organizations were not only active in India but also overseas which had even

started creating a consciousness regarding British misrule in India.

• By 1880 s, there was greater appetite for common action between these regional

organizations.

• In 1883, Indian Association of Calcutta formed by AM Bose and SN Banerjee had

launched Indian National Conference to mobilize nationalists throughout India.

• They had already created the momentum but the tough choice between Indian

National Conference and Indian National Congress was to be made.

• In such a scenario, it was necessary to take help from British in order to secure the

new born movement from administrative wrath. So, nationalists had used Hume as a

lightning conductor.

 Gradually, with the declassification of official files, it came to be revealed that neither

Dufferin was involved nor interested in the formation of Congress. Rather he was

suspicious of the activities of Hume.

 Thirdly, Lala Lajpat Rai`s opinion cannot be said to be objective because by he wrote the

book, he had left Congress and formed Hindu Mahasabha. Thus, the element of rivalry

and partiality cannot be rejected.

 Fourthly, it is argued that Wedderburn was a good friend of Hume and he had realized

that by that time Congress had ascended and looked at as the enemy of the Raj.

• He was just attempting to shield his friend from guilt of creating Congress and thus

his narrative also lacked objectivity.

 Fifthly, the report of intelligence does not go to a revenue official but to the Home

Secretary. As a Revenue official, he could not have found the intelligence report thus

eroding the very basis of the argument.

In conclusion, it can be said that Hume`s intention may have been to use the INC as a 'safety

valve' but he himself was being used by the Indian nationalists as a lightning conductor. INC

ultimately emerged as the strongest critic and opponent of the British Raj and led a lengthy

and sustained struggle against it till independence. Thus, it hardly behaved as a safety valve.

Practice Question

Q. To what extent do you believe that the 'safety valve theory' explains the

formation of Indian National Congress?

The formation of Congress was too important an episode of Indian national struggle to miss

a critical scrutiny. On one hand is the view that looks at it as the junior partner of the British

whereas on the other is the nationalist perspective which highlights its critical role in Indian

independence.

The first perspective tries to defame the Congress as a 'safety valve' for the British. It was

first propounded by Lala Lajpat Rai in his book where he mentioned about the William

Wedderburn's biography of AO Hume. Wedderburn mentions that AO Hume being a

revenue official in Shimla received intelligence report that told him about a brimming

revolution in India on the lines of the great revolt.

Governor General Dufferin and AO Hume decided to form an organization of Indians to vent

out their anger and shield British rule from its impact.

Later, even Communists tried to undermine the formation as well as organization of the

Congress as a Bourgeoisie (educated middle class) attempt to check any popular revolt.

However, historians like Sumit Sarkar among other nationalists have proposed the theory of

'lightning conductor'. They believe that Congress at its initial stage used British support to

shield itself from the administrative suppression. They even put forth the following views in

their support-

 Gradual evolution- Congress had gone through a gradual process of evolution as various

socio-political organizations had started coming from 1830 s. The conscious attempt of

Indians had risen to such a level that any national organization could not have been

delayed. India Association had already conducted Indian National Conference in 1883.

INC was the logical conclusion of such attempts.

 The declassification of official files of that period also highlights that Dufferin was

neither involved nor interested in the formation of Congress. In fact, he was suspicious

of Hume`s activities.

 Thirdly, Lala Lajpat Rai`s accounts cannot be said to be objective as he had left Congress

by then and formed Hindu Mahasabha.

 Fourthly, Wedderburn`s partiality cannot be denied because he was a good friend of

Hume and was trying to present him as an enlightened imperialist who had no

intentions of forming an INC which would later be problematic for British.

 Fifthly, Hume was a revenue official who could not have laid his hands upon any

intelligence report.

 Even communist theory is not true because Congress was an umbrella which had

incorporated all the shades of the national movement and led the freedom struggle.

Thus, it would be wrong to assume the INC as a safety valve. It acted as a lightning

conductor which made the organization foolproof against any administrative action.

Congress gradually emerged as an umbrella which carried everyone with it to achieve Indian

independence.

Phases of the Indian National Movement

1. Moderate Phase (1885-1905)
2. Extremist Phase (1905-19)
3. Revolutionary Extremism (1907-1918) and (1924-1930)
4. Gandhian Phase (1919- 1947)
5. Socialist Phase (1929-1947)
6. Communal Nationalism (1937- 1947)
7. Moderate Phase (1885-1905)- This was the earliest phase of nationalist

politics where the INC was dominated by moderate liberals and put forward moderate

demands using moderate methods.

 Moderate leaders- were from the upper middle class who believed in Western ideals

such as Parliamentary democracy, limited government, secularism, popular sovereignty

and separation of powers.

• These leaders were pro-British in nature
• They were urban professionals and are also called 'part time politicians'
• They believed India was not ready for complete autonomy or independence and thus

preferred gradual reforms. For this reason, they are also known as gradualists or

incrementalists.

• They wanted to create political awareness among masses and had no faith in mass

politics.

• Prominent leaders were Dadabhai Nauroji, MG Ranade, GK Gokhale, Pherozshah

Mehta, RC Dutt, Dinshaw Wacha etc.

 Moderate demands- They demanded Constitutional and administrative reforms in a

gradual manner such as-

• Expansion of the legislature
• Indianization of the civil services- Simultaneous examination of the civil services and

Indianization of the syllabus

• Reduction in administrative and military expenditure
• Increase in social sector expenditure
• Reduction in land revenue
• Reduction in export duties and increase in import duties
• Protection of peasants against Zamindars
• Introduction of electoral politics in India

These demands reveal the following-

• They had a secular All India outlook- none of their demands was specific to any

region, religion, linguistic community or class.

• The moderates had a liberal and progressive agenda. They were inspired by the

values of the Enlightenment and desired to shape Indian politics and society in line

with these values.

• They had a pro-British outlook. Rather than demanding the end of the British rule,

they demanded its reforms. This shows that they believed that British rule was

inherently beneficial for Indians.

• On the other hand, the moderates had a rational outlook of Indian problems. They

were able to pinpoint the root causes of Indian suffering and their only flow was

their misperception of the nature of British rule.

Nature of Moderate Politics

 The Congress held annual sessions at the end of every year where leaders from across

the country would take time out of their busy schedules to congregate and discuss the

pressing issues.

• Parliamentary procedure was strictly followed
• In the first sitting, President and Secretary were elected to preside over the entire

session and decide the agenda of the session.

• Deliberation was an essential part of the INC methodology.
• Resolutions were then voted upon and modified if necessary.
• At the end of this session an annual resolution would be prepared and put to vote.
• Based upon this, several requests, petitions, memoranda and protests were drafted

and sent to the concerned authority at the appropriate time.

• The major demands were also published through newspapers.

 Moderate politics had a distinctly elite and urban character.

• INC members belonged to upper middle class.
• Masses had no representation and participation
• They were only limited to the cities and did not desire to engage the rural masses.

 Moderates felt that the masses of India were not yet ready for political action. They

considered them to be

• uneducated and illiterate,
• superstitious and conservative
• feudal and parochial

Thus they believed masses as counterproductive to modern politics. Instead they

believed in educating and modernizing the masses.

However, due to this attitude, social base of their movement remained narrow and

politics remained ineffective.

 The moderates believed in the constitutional method of politics

• These included prayers, petitions, propaganda, memoranda etc.
• This was because they were admirers of constitutionalism and western liberal

institutions.

• This was partly the reason why they stayed away from mass politics.

 Later nationalists criticized the moderates' method as a form of Political mendicancy.

• However, we must remember that moderates were the pioneers of their field. They

would have to undergo a period of trial and error. In this scenario, moderates should

be evaluated more leniently.

• Characterizing the moderates as loyalists and unpatriotic elements would be a gross

mischaracterization since their entire career was dedicated towards the well-being

of all Indians.

• Thirdly, it was also a strategic decision for the early leaders as the British were

unlikely to tolerate more radical approach. British repression would have completely

smothered the nascent national movement.

• Fourthly, moderates had been trained in the western methods and had grown up to

admire Western societies and thus moderate politics came naturally to them.

• Therefore, calling them political mendicants would be historically unfair.

Evaluation of the Moderate Phase

 They failed to fulfill any of their major demands. This was due to the following

limitations-

• Their elite urban movement and narrow social base
• Their unwillingness to involve the masses meant that they were never in a position

to pressurize the British.

• Their constitutional methods were ineffective in convincing the British to introduce

reforms.

• Their failure to perceive the true character of the British rule emerged as their

greater weakness. They continued believing that the British would fulfill their

demands willingly but in reality any progress would have to be fought for.

• Extremist nationalists criticized the moderates as political mendicants.

 Finally, we should not overlook the significant achievements of the moderates.

• They were the torchbearers of Indian nationalism- Through their contributions they

ensured that the Congress emerged as the secular All India progressive and

democratic platform.

• This transformed the Congress into legitimate representative of all Indians and vastly

enhanced its effectiveness in the later stages.

• Additionally, these values became the core values of the Indian national movement

as a whole and were crucial for defining our national identity.

 While the moderates failed in their immediate objectives, their failure was not an

absolute one.

• Frustrated with the ineffectiveness of the moderate methods, younger nationalists

were forced to turn towards the extremist ideology which infused new energy

alongwith new methods, demands and a new strength.

 Economic critique of British rule- Most significant success of the moderate leadership

was their economic critique of the British rule.

• Their scientific appraisal of the colonial economy proved that it was inherently

exploitative.

• They showed that the colonial system was designed to strip India of its wealth. In

fact, the term 'Drain of Wealth' was coined by these leaders to refer to this

phenomenon.

• Among the moderates, DB Nauroji, MG Ranade and RC Dutt were the most

prominent economic critics of British rule.

• They exposed the inherently exploitative character of British rule and thus shattered

the illusion of British Providentialism (British rule is for betterment of India).

• This played an important role in the upsurge of extremist nationalism from the early

twentieth century onwards.

• Further, the writings of the moderate leaders inspired further research from later

Marxist scholars. This resulted not only in the growth of socialist ideology within the

national movement but also in the emergence of the Marxist school of studies.

 While none of the major Marxist demands were fulfilled, some minor reforms were

secured. These include

• Indian Councils Act, 1892
• Establishment of the Welby Commission on Indian expenditure in 1895
• Appointment of a Public Service Commission in 1896.

Practice Question

Q. Critically evaluate the contributions of the moderate leaders within the

national movement.

Q. The Moderate methods were bound to fail. Critically discuss.

Moderate leaders dominated the political phase of Indian national movement from 1885-

1905 and laid the foundation of an anti-British freedom struggle. However their role is not

accepted uncritically and thus demands a comprehensive discussion.

Critiques of Moderates have considered their efforts as unsuccessful and a failure on

following grounds-

 Their elite urban movement and narrow social base who are even called as 'part time

politicians'.

 Their unwillingness to involve the masses meant that they were never in a position to

pressurize the British.

 Their constitutional methods were ineffective in convincing the British to introduce

reforms.

 Their failure to perceive the true character of the British rule emerged as their greater

weakness. They continued believing that the British would fulfill their demands willingly

but in reality any progress would have to be fought for.

 Extremist nationalists criticized the moderates as political mendicants as their methods

of demand were confined to 3 Ps- petition, prayer and protests without any strong anti-

government position.

However, a retrospective analysis of Moderates presents a more balanced opinion on

following grounds-

 They were the torchbearers of Indian nationalism- Through their contributions they

ensured that the Congress emerged as the secular All India progressive and democratic

platform.

 This transformed the Congress into legitimate representative of all Indians and vastly

enhanced its effectiveness in the later stages.

 Additionally, these values became the core values of the Indian national movement as a

whole and were crucial for defining our national identity.

 Economic critique- Through 'Drain of Wealth' theory, moderate leaders like Dadabhai

Nauroji and RC Dutt challenged the myth of 'British Providentialism' which fed the

falsehood of betterment of India because of British rule.

• It was perhaps the most significant achievement of moderates because through this

one step they eroded the basis of British rule and through an organization provided a

platform for discontented Indians to come together.

Therefore, moderates should not only be looked at from the point of view of immediate

success or failure but it should be understood that they were the pioneers of the national

movement and with little resources they possessed, they were able to create a momentum

which was further utilized by coming generations.

1. Extremist Phase (1905-19)

The gradual realization of the true character of the British rule intensified the anti-British

sentiment among younger nationalists. They could see that it was essentially an alien,

unsympathetic and exploitative regime and was unconcerned about the welfare of Indians.

He was only interested in strengthening control to exploit resources. This was accompanied

by the realizations that the British could never willingly address Indian demands. Since

British interests and Indian interests were mutually contradictory. Therefore, constitutional

methods of struggle could never succeed.

 This pushed the younger nationalists towards more radical nationalism including open

cooperation with the colonial regime.

 The failure of the moderates caused frustration among the younger nationalists.

• They began searching for an alternative approach which led them towards direct

action.

 Reaction against British atrocities, misrule and Indian suffering- During the late 19 th

century, India witnessed series of severe famines which exposed the apathetic nature of

colonial administration and true attention towards the general state of British misrule.

• Towards the end of 19 th century, with the growth of education number of graduates

had increased sharply but employment opportunities had not increased accordingly.

• This resulted in sharp increase in the number of highly educated, critically aware

unemployed youth.

• Naturally, resentment against British regime increased and resulted in the growth of

extremism.

• Further, in the recent years, the British regime had adopted series of draconian

measures to contain the rise of nationalism. These included the deportation of the

Chapekar brothers (Natu brothers) without trial and the imprisonment of BG Tilak on

charges of sedition for defending them.

• These further eroded the trust of Indians in the British regime.

 Younger generation of nationalists viewed the British attempts "to modernize India" as a

deliberate attempt to destroy the India culture and way of life.

• Since the beginning of the 19 th century, British had been conducting an unceasing

assault on the indigenous way of life with the objective "civilizing India" but their

real intention had always been to colonize the Indian mind.

• They had distorted Indian history and were attempting to convince Indians that

British rule was a boon for them.

• The younger nationalists saw through this British design and objected to the white

washing of Indian culture. Their defense of the Indian way of life brought them into

direct conflict with the British regime.

 Role of external factors should also not be overlooked. The victory of Abyssinia over

Italy and Japan over Russia shattered the myth of European invincibility. These small

Asian and African nations had not only repelled European aggression but had also given

a crushing blow to European military prestige.

• In a sea of despair they emerged as beacons of hope for all the colonized people of

the Earth.

• Younger Indian nationalists were also inspired to directly challenge the British

colonizers.

 The reactionary policy of Curzon (1899-1905) - Curzon was an imperialist of the highest

order and displayed immense hostility towards Indian nationalism. He took some

reactionary measures to control nationalism including-

• Calcutta Corporation Act (1899) which reduced the number of elected members to

the Calcutta Municipal Corporation bringing it under European control.

• Indian Universities Act, 1904 was passed based upon the recommendations of the

Raleigh Commission in the name of improving the standards of university education.

This act brought the administration of the universities under strict government

control.

• Official Secrets Act, 1904 was enacted in the name of protecting India`s internal

security but in reality it was meant to gag the free press and speech.

• Partition of Bengal was carried out to divide and rule India.
• Instead of weakening Indian nationalism, these actions had the effect of

strengthening of the nationalist resolve.

Nature of extremist politics

 Extremists were radical in their approach. Since they rejected the notion of British

Providentialism, they were not satisfied with constitutional reforms and instead

demanded Swaraj.

 Instead of using constitutional methods, they relied on aggressive methods involving the

masses including Passive Resistance, Boycott, Swadeshi and non-cooperation.

 Extremist movement remained largely an urban phenomenon but shed the moderates`

elite character.

• Not only was the leadership from the lower middle class background but the

extremists attracted participants from virtually from all urban classes including

professionals, merchants, ordinary service providers, workers, students and even

women.

 While the extremist movement remained secular, secularism was diluted as compared

to the moderate movement.

• Extremist leaders relied upon religious appeals and cultural symbols to mobilize the

masses.

 While the extremist movement remained politically and socially progressive, they

displayed social conservatism.

• For example, Tilak`s opposition to Age of Consent Bill, 1891 which proposed to raise

the minimum marriageable age for girls from 10 to 12 years. While Tilak opposed

child marriage, he was not ready to accept the principle of British interference in

Indian social issues.

Critical evaluation of Extremist achievements

1. New energy, new methods, new strength and new objectives

• It became distinctly anti-colonial setting the stage for direct confrontation with

British rule.

• Constitutional methods were discarded in favour of boycott, Swadeshi, and passive

resistance.

• The social base of the movement multiplied exponentially as the ordinary masses

entered it for the first time putting direct pressure on the British rule.

• Self-help at all costs became the motto of the movement tactically translating in the

demand of Swaraj.

1. The extremists were the pioneers of mass struggle in India. They experimented with new

strategies and methods such as Swaraj, Swadeshi and Boycott.

• These were used by far greater effect by later leaders such as Mahatma Gandhi.

1. The extremist movement permanently transformed national attitudes and aspirations.

• They permanently altered the national mood towards the British. Following this, the

national movement remained anti-colonial till the very end.

• Under their leadership, national movement graduated from the demand of

incremental reforms towards Swaraj. With time, the definition of Swaraj itself

evolved to become increasingly holistic and complete.

1. The Extremists were also far more effective in pressurizing the British

Owing to the pressure created by the Swadeshi movement, the British were forced to

respond with-

• Indian Councils Act, 1909
• Annulment of Partition of Bengal in Delhi Durbar in 1911.

1. Surat Split (1907) - Their inability to compromise and cooperate with the moderates

resulted in the Surat split which slowed down the national movement as a whole.

1. The extremists also diluted the secular credentials of the national movement by

mobilizing the masses in the name of religion. It appeals to the Hindu identity and use of

Hindu symbols which alienated the Muslim masses.

 The inclusiveness of the mass movement suffered and the gap between the two

communities further increased.

 The element of cultural nationalism became permanently associated with Indian

mass politics and proved disastrous.

Practice Question

Q. The beginning of the 20 th

century saw the emergence of new energy, new

strength, new objectives and new methods within the national movement. On

the basis of this statement, critically evaluate the contributions of the

extremists.

In the beginning of the 20 th century, national freedom struggle entered the extremist phase

led by leaders such as BG Tilak, Lala Lajpat Rai, and BC Pal etc. On the foundation created by

the moderates, these leaders unleashed a new form of struggle.

 New energy- The movement from hereon became distinctly anti-colonial setting the

stage for direct confrontation with the government. The earlier attitude of compromise

with the colonial regime was completely shed.

 New methods- New modes of protest such as boycott, Swadeshi, and passive resistance

became accepted in place of prayers, petitions and propaganda being used earlier. A

more direct action became possible.

 New Strength- As the scope for more constructive action broadened, the social base of

the masses entered it for the first time putting pressure on the British rule.

 New objectives- The motto of the movement shifted from some reforms in the

administration within the British umbrella to Swaraj. However, the concept of Swaraj

was yet vague and ambiguous.

In this manner, extremists were able to strengthen the national movement but there were

certain significant challenges posed by their dominance-

 Surat split- Their inability to compromise and cooperate with the moderates resulted in

Surat split which slowed the struggle.

 Dilution of secular credentials- although the broad outlook of the movement was

secular, the use of religion and religious symbols started being predominant. Hereafter,

the element of cultural nationalism became permanently associated with Indian mass

politics and proved disastrous.

The beginning of the 20 th century observed the transition of Indian national movement

from infancy to a comparatively young phase in which extremists took the lead.

However this was also the time of beginning of cultural nationalism which was to haunt

Indian politics till the very present day.

Q. Compare and contrast the extremist phase of Indian nationalism to

moderates.

Both moderates and extremists were the patriots with similar intentions but different

modes of action. While moderates were pioneers of the national movement itself, the

extremists pioneered its mass movement phase.

Moderates and extremists should not be looked at in silos. They were complementary to

each other and the extremist movement was the logical extension of the British attitude

towards moderates.

Moderate Phase Extremist Phase

 Moderate leaders came from upper

middle class background.

 They were inspired by Western ideals and

knowledge.

 They demanded reforms within the overall

umbrella of British patriarchy.

 Their attitude was pro-British and they just

demanded for true British paternalism.

 They were suspicious of Indians` ability to

lead a struggle against the British rule and

rather maintained an elite character of the

organization.

 Their methods of protest were 3 Ps-

Prayers, petitions, and propaganda.

 The movement under Moderates was

completely secular in nature and no use of

religious symbols could be seen.

 Movement under extremists remained

politically and socially progressive.

 Extremists belonged to lower middle class

background.

 They derived inspiration from traditional

Indian knowledge.

 They demanded Swaraj or self-rule but it

was ambiguous in nature.

 They were distinctly anti-colonial and were

completely opposed to any compromise

with colonial setup.

 They especially believed in mass politics.

Even then their movement remained

confined to urban areas but had shed the

elitist character.

 Their methods included boycott, passive

resistance, Swadeshi and non-cooperation.

 The movement under extremists was

broadly secular but use of religious symbols

began for mobilizing people. However, this

also gave rise to cultural nationalism.

 Under extremists, movement displayed signs

of social conservatism.

Contents

Swadeshi Movement ..............................................................................................................................2

Partition of Bengal..............................................................................................................................2

Reasons...........................................................................................................................................2

Methods used by Extremists...........................................................................................................3

MOVEMENT........................................................................................................................................4

Spread and extent...........................................................................................................................4

Practice Question................................................................................................................................6

Q. Throw light on the level of mass participation during the Swadeshi movement. How did it

attract women and students? Why was it unable to draw out Muslims and peasants? ...............6

Reasons for the failure of the Swadeshi movement...............................................................................7

Factors behind the Surat split.................................................................................................................8

Build up towards the Surat split..........................................................................................................9

 Banaras session (1905), Gopal Krishna Gokhale.....................................................................9

 Calcutta Session (1906), Dadabhai Nauroji.............................................................................9

The government approach ...............................................................................................................11

Practice Questions............................................................................................................................12

Q. Discuss the factors responsible for the Surat split. How did the split manifest since the

beginning of the Swadeshi movement? .......................................................................................12

Q. The carrot and stick policy succeeded where the divide and rule policy had failed. In the

context of this statement, discuss the significance of the Surat split. .........................................13

Significance of Swadeshi Movement....................................................................................................14

Practice Question..............................................................................................................................15

Q. Discuss the features of the Swadeshi movement and highlight the significance to the national

struggle as a whole. ......................................................................................................................15

Significance of Swadeshi Movement to the national struggle .....................................................16

Indian Council Act, 1909/ Morley Minto Reforms................................................................................17

Important Provisions.........................................................................................................................17

Critical Evaluation.............................................................................................................................18

Practice Question..............................................................................................................................19

Q. Discuss the factors responsible for the introduction of the Morley-Minto reforms. Is it true

that they constitutionalized Communalism in India?...................................................................19

Q. We have sown the dragon's teeth and the harvest is bound to be bitter. Discuss. ................20

Swadeshi Movement

Swadeshi movement began against the partition of Bengal and was the first episode of mass

movement experienced by Indian national struggle. The partition of Bengal was in the offing

since at least 1901 and even nationalists had accepted it for its administrative efficiency.

However, the manner in which this was done led to a widespread movement.

Partition of Bengal

Reasons

 Official justification

• Bengal was too large for effective governance. The census of 1901 revealed the huge

population of around 7.8 crores in Bengal.

• The Bengal province consisted of present day Bangladesh, West Bengal, Bihar,

Jharkhand, Odisha as well as North East India which indeed was a huge province to

manage.

• Thirdly, concern for administrative efficiency was shown as the major necessity for

the partition.

 To weaken the national movement- Sumit Sarkar argues that administrative concern

was supreme only until 1903 because-

• Even nationalists were in favour of the partition of Bengal and they had even

proposed its linguistic reorganization which would separate Hindi speaking regions

from Bengali speaking regions.

• But in 1903, Viceroy Curzon had released the minute of Bengal`s partition and

religion was made the basis for partition-

a) Bengal with its capital would consist of- West Bengal, Bihar and Odisha

b) East Bengal with its capital at Dhaka would consist of- Bangladesh and North-East

India.

But Curzon had clearly stated his intentions that Congress was run from Calcutta and to

weaken Calcutta means to weaken the Congress.

• Therefore, Sumit Sarkar argues, the true intentions were-

a) Divide and Rule- Division based on the religion would sow the seeds of

communalism.

b) Lord Minto even said that educated Bhadralok community of Bengal leads the

national freedom struggle from Bengal and if it is weakened from within, the

movement will die. Thus, he argued that in a new province of East Bengal the

Muslims would enjoy a unity and in the West Bengal, Bengali speakers would

become a minority.

c) Home Secretary Herbert Risley also told that Bengal united is a power and

divided will pull up in several different ways.

The partition of Bengal was formally announced on 19 th July, 1905. Since moderates were

already in discussions with administration, British government as well as activists through

their modes of prayers, petitions, meetings and newspaper, the awareness regarding the

issue was already there. With the failure of their methods, the extremists were ready to

launch a mass movement.

Methods used by Extremists

1. Boycott

 Boycott of British goods- It was an economic attack on colonialism. Public burnings of

foreign clothes was organized, priests would not solemnize such marriages where

foreign clothes were burned, washermen refused to wash British clothes. This method

was the most successful one.

 Boycott of British institutions (non-cooperation) such as schools, colleges, law courts

etc. Call for self-reliance or as Rabindranath Tagore called it 'Atma-Shakti' was given.

 Civil Disobedience of certain laws and passive resistance. However, the latter two

methods could not gain much popularity as neither leaders nor masses had enough

experience regarding this.

1. Swadeshi

 Economic- It was related to boycott of goods as an alternate mechanism encouraged

Indian goods such as textiles, chemicals, services etc.

 Social- It refers to social aspect of Swadeshi. Thus focus was on strengthening rural

communities, anti-untouchability programs, developing indigenous dispute settling

bodies such as Swadesh Bandhab Samiti etc. The focus was on preparing the masses for

action.

 Cultural- It stood for the rejection of Western colonial symbols in favour of indigenous

art forms, patriotic literature, songs such as Bande Mataram, Amar Sonar Bangla,

paintings of Bharat Mata became highly popular.

1. National Education

 National curriculum, national schools were set up and even teachers were given training

for teaching 'Swadeshi' education to patriotic students.

 Satishchandra Mukherjee`s Bhagabat Chatuspathi, the Dawn society, and Shantiniketan

of Rabindranath Tagore became popular educational institutes.

1. Volunteer organizations also known as Samitis were formed which actually undertook

the job of reaching the last person in order to spread the movement. They worked to spread

awareness, resolve disputes and mobilize masses during processions and picketing.

Movement

Spread and extent

 The movement was most active in Bengal

• Here it attracted followers from several classes including professionals, workers,

traders and businessmen, students and women.

 In 1906, under Extremist leadership, the movement spread beyond Bengal as well.

• BG Tilak popularized it in Maharashtra with Poona and Bombay emerging as

important centres of the movement.

• Lala Lajpat Rai and Ajit Singh popularized the movement in Punjab with Lahore

emerging as an important centre.

• At Delhi, the Swadeshi movement was led by Syed Haider Raza.
• VO Chidambaram Pillai led the movement at Madras.

 Across India, the Swadeshi movement attracted support from students, workers,

women, professionals and petty traders.

• Mass rallies, public demonstrations and organized burning of foreign cloth met

resounding practical success in cities.

 However, the response of rural India to the call of Swadeshi was lacklustre. This was due

to the following factors-

• The Extremists had not been able to link the political urges of rural India to the cities.

While volunteer organizations had started becoming active in the Indian villages,

their activities were still at the initial stages. In other words, the preparatory work

needed to mobilize the rural masses was yet to be done.

• The movement also suffered due to a certain clash of interests between the

aspirations of the rural peasants and the personal interests of the Congress

leadership. Most of the Congress leaders either owned land in the villages or

depended upon the support of the wealthy Zamindars of Bengal. Therefore,

mobilizing the peasant for a political cause seemed like a dangerous proposition. As

a result, Congress leadership was not very enthusiastic about mobilizing the

peasants.

• Further, in Bengal, the class divide also overlapped with the communal divide. The

bulk of Zamindars were Hindus, while peasants were Muslims. This was further

compounded by the inability of the movement to attract Muslims due to it repeated

appeal to Hindu religion and culture.

 The movement also failed to draw substantial support from Indian Muslims.

• This was largely due to the use of Hindu cultural symbols by the extremists to attract

the masses. Muslim masses were automatically excluded.

• Secondly, a section of the Muslim political elite also opposed the Swadeshi

movement on political grounds. Leaders such as Nawab Salimullah of Dhaka, Agha

Khan, Mohsin ul Mulk and Waqar ul Mulk were satisfied with the creation of new

Muslim majority provinces in Bengal. They felt that this was in the long term

interests of the Bengali Muslim community. In June, 1906 they led a deputation to

Shimla to meet the Governor General Lord Minto, pledge loyalty to the British rule

and demanded further concessions for Indian Muslims. Later, in December, 1906

they laid the foundation of the Muslim League with the agenda to represent the

interests of Indian Muslims. From the very beginning, they had a pro-British anti-

Congress stance and did their best to undermine the Swadeshi movement in the

eyes of ordinary Muslims.

 Swadeshi movement greatly benefitted from the active support of intellectuals and

artists.

• Rabindranath Tagore emerged as the intellectual grandfather of the Swadeshi

movement. He popularized the idea of atma-shakti is the means to assert

independence. It stood for inner strength, self-sufficiency and self-help. This became

the motto behind Swadeshi and Swaraj. The former represented self-sufficiency

while the latter stood for self-rule.

• Further, Rabindranath Tagore actively contributed to the building of strong cultural

identity not only for the movement but for Bengalis and Indians as a whole. He

wrote his famous song 'Amar Sonar Bangla' which emerged as the unofficial anthem

of the people of Bengal and stood for the solidarity between the two halves of

Bengal.

• Other artists such as Abanindranath Tagore led the charge for creating patriotic art.

He visualized India as a holy goddess in the form of Bharat Mata. Such symbols

resonated powerfully with the masses transforming their struggle into a holy crusade

against a foreign oppressor.

 Students also participated in large numbers. This was despite the Carlyle circular which

was designed to have a chilling effect on student participation.

• The main reason behind this was the program of national education launched by the

leaders which provided Swadeshi alternative to government schools and colleges

and promised the inculcation of patriotic values within the framework of

comprehensive education, sought to overcome technical deficits by adopting the

best practices and technology of foreign allies such as Japan and offered legal

protection from government repression.

 One highlight of the movement was the entry of women into nationalist politics- this

was made possible due to the appeals and propaganda of the extremist leaders. They

had successfully transformed the political struggle against British rule into a moral and

religious struggle.

• This normalized the participation of women in nationalistic politics since it was

considered to be the part of the traditional role of women.

• Further, movement was also able to provide practical means for the participation of

women including the Khadi program, peaceful picketing of shops selling foreign

goods, boycott of liquor and public burning of foreign cloth.

Practice Question

Q. Throw light on the level of mass participation during the Swadeshi

movement. How did it attract women and students? Why was it unable to

draw out Muslims and peasants?

Swadeshi movement (1905-08) began as a struggle against the partition of Bengal in 1905

but soon, under the leadership of extremists in spread to various parts of the country thus

becoming the first mass movement of Indian national movement.

The Swadeshi movement was most active in Bengal because-

 Firstly, the Bengal was the centre of nationalist awareness at that time and people were

already mobilized upto a great extent,

 Secondly, the partition of Bengal was directly affecting the people of Bengal.

However, the movement also spread to other regions under the leadership of extremists

leaders. For example-

 BG Tilak was the leader of the movement in Bombay province.

 Lala Lajpat Rai and Ajit Singh led the movement in Punjab.

 It spread to Delhi under Syed Haider Raza

 VO Chidambaram Pillai popularized it in Madras province

The movement was successful in attracting students and women because of the following

reasons-

Students' participation was very high because the youth was already more oriented towards

patriotism and now found a platform to channelize its anger. Despite the Carlyle circular

aimed at an attempt to check the student participation, the influence of national education

models, curriculum and a chain of alternate Swadeshi schools was high and thus student

participation remained to be significant.

Women's entry into the freedom struggle was one of the biggest achievements of the

Swadeshi movement. Extremist leaders were successful in transforming a political issue into

a moral and religious one. Secondly, the movement provided practical means for women to

participate into the movement. Now they could boycott the foreign goods, use khadi or

spinning and weaving, participate in picketing.

But Muslim and peasants' participation was poor on account of the following reasons-

Muslims- One reason was that extremist leaders used religious symbols which kept the

Muslims away. Secondly, Muslim leaders and intelligentsia fell prey to the British policy of

divide and rule. A delegation of Nawab Salimullah of Dhaka, Waqar ul Mulk, Mohsin ul Mulk

and Agha Khan met the Governor General Minto in Shimla and ultimately it led to the

establishment of Muslim League which was pro-British anti-colonial in its approach.

Peasants` participation was not great because

 Rural areas were not yet efficiently mobilized

 Class interests of Zamindar or pro-zamindar leaders clashed with those of the peasants.

 In Bengal, class interest overlapped with communalism as peasants were mostly

Muslims and Zamindars mainly came from Hindus.

The importance of Swadeshi cannot be gauged merely from the fact how great its spread

was but it should be understood that it laid the broad framework under which Gandhian

movement thrived later.

Reasons for the failure of the Swadeshi

movement

 It was unsuccessful in attracting the peasants and Muslims. As a result, it lacked the

necessary strength and cohesion.

 The methods adopted during the Swadeshi movement were new and unfamiliar.

• Neither the leaders nor the masses had any prior experience of organizing a mass

struggle and strategies such as passive resistance, non-cooperation and boycott

were being experimented with for the first time.

• It was difficult to put some of these ideas into practice.

 All mass struggles have certain inherent limitations and Swadeshi movement was also

not immune to them.

• It lacked cohesive leadership due to the deep ideological difference between

moderates and extremists,

• The masses had limited ability to make sacrifices with no rewards in sight and the

practical realities of life began catching up as the movement dragged on for years.

• Generally it was a significant lack of political unity among the masses as Indian

society was heavily divided and stratified.

 Bitter government repression

• The British were determined to crush the movement. They began by suspending civil

liberties such as free speech, free movement and assembly.

• They criminalized the chanting of patriotic slogans and songs such as Bande

Mataram.

• They used the sedition law to target the leaders
• The masses were threatened with police brutalities such as lathicharge, mass arrests,

and preventive detention.

• Students were especially targeted in order to create a chilling effect on the

movement as a whole and not even women were spared from police brutalities.

• In such a scenario, it was very difficult to sustain the mass struggle in any meaningful

way.

 Surat Split (1907)

The Surat split refers to the expulsion of the extremists from the Congress at its Surat

session in 1907. It gave a death blow to the Swadeshi movement and slowed down

national movement as a whole. Superficially, this development seems surprising but

closer observation reveals that it was largely inevitable.

• The Surat split was simply the physical manifestation of the ideological division of

the Congress. It was bound to happen sooner or later.

• It was the pressure created by the Swadeshi movement that brought about the split

in 1907.

Factors behind the Surat split

 Ideological differences between the moderates and extremists.

• Moderates and Extremists had wide ideological gulf dividing them. Their opinions

differed on almost all issues pertaining to the national struggle.

• Moderates preferred to stick to constitutional methods while Extremists favoured

passive resistance involving the masses.

• The objective of the moderates was simply the annulment of partition alongwith

incremental constitutional reforms whereas the Extremists wanted Swaraj.

• Moderates wanted to keep the movement confined to Bengal but the extremists

wanted to spread it across India.

• Similarly, moderates wanted simply the idea of economic boycott while the

extremists wanted to extend boycott to the level of general non-cooperation with

the British rule.

 The numerical disparity between the moderates and extremists.

• While the moderates had majority of numbers within the Congress, the extremists

enjoyed much higher popularity among the masses.

• Swadeshi movement being an extremist led movement frustrated the moderates

and was bound to cause friction.

• Moderates used their numerical advantage to slow down the movement. This

caused suspicion in the minds of the extremists.

 Increasing an open hostility between the moderates and extremists.

• The extremists used their public platform not only to condemn British misrule but

also to paint moderates as loyalist, patriotic and political mendicants.

• Aurobindo Ghosh published a series of essays titled 'New Lamps for the old' which

criticized in a bitter and sarcastic fashion not only the moderate method but also the

moderate leadership personally.

• Naturally this caused personal rancour between the two factions. The relationship

suffered grievously gradually reaching the breaking point.

• This hostility ended any hopes for a future compromise as both groups became

increasingly adamant.

• These weaknesses were exploited by the British to bring about the Surat split.

Build up towards the Surat split

To appreciate the events in Surat in December 1907 we must go back all the way to the

beginning of the Swadeshi movement since this created domino effect that would

ultimately destroy Congress' unity.

 Banaras session (1905), Gopal Krishna Gokhale- the movement had started in

August, 1905 and was still gaining momentum when the session was in place.

• Moderates used their numerical advantage to try and retard the movement
• Under Gokhale's Presidency, the Congress adopted mild resolutions condemning the

partition of Bengal and calling for limited program i.e. economic boycott within Bengal.

• This frustrated the extremist greatly who wanted to control the Congress agenda and

wield it as weapon in the Swadeshi movement.

 Calcutta Session (1906), Dadabhai Nauroji- During 1906, the Swadeshi

movement had emerged as powerful All India mass movement.

• The national movement as a whole had perceptively slipped out of the moderate grasp

and the extremists had upper hand.

• The moderates had increasing pressure to respond to the extremist agenda in a positive

manner.

• As a compromise, Dadabhai Nauroji was respected by both sides and was elected as

President in place of BG Tilak or Lala Lajpat Rai who the extremists wanted. In return,

the Congress adopted more radical stance towards the British with four resolutions-

a) Swaraj- Congress officially raised the demand of Swaraj for the first time. While it was

generally understood as "self-rule within the British Empire" like the white colonies of

Canada and Australia, it was not clearly defined. This vagueness resulted in emergence

of radically differing interpretations. This caused even greater faction between the

moderates and extremists.

b) Swadeshi- Congress adopted Swadeshi as the means to attain Swaraj. For the

moderates it meant promotion of Swadeshi economic enterprises only. On the other

hand, the extremists supported a more comprehensive version involving political,

economic, social, cultural and psychological self-sufficiency. They wanted complete

decolonization of India and the uprooting of Western influence.

c) Boycott- Congress resolved boycott not only of British goods but also British institutions

and services such as schools, colleges, law courts legislatures and councils. However,

this was a bitter pill for the moderates to swallow.

d) National education- The Congress resolved to promote national education involving

both literary and technical education in the vernacular medium. Its objective was to

liberate India from the ideological domination of the British rule and inspire cultural

pride and nationalism. Once again, moderates felt arm-twisted.

 Surat session (1907), Rash Behari Ghosh- During 1906-07, new developments had taken

place which shifted the political discourse and brought about the split. These included

• Meeting of Gokhale with Montague- Montague travelled to Britain at the invitation of

the Secretary of state for India. He was assured of Constitutional reforms if the

moderates withdrew their support for the Swadeshi movement.

• Shimla deputation and formation of the Muslim League in 1906- Creation of the

Muslim League and the demand for the separate electorates exposed chinks in the

armour of Indian nationalism and strengthened the anti- extremist alliance.

• Arrest and deportation of Ajit Singh and the exile of Lala Lajpat Rai in 1907- The

government crackdown in Punjab was meant to rattle the moderates to quickly

disavowing political extremism to end the demand of the Swaraj.

 Due to these, the moderates were anxious to distance themselves from the extremists

and roll back the movement. On the other hand, the extremists are becoming even

more radical with Aurobindo Ghosh putting the idea of complete independence and

mass civil disobedience. Once again, extremists wanted either Tilak or Lala Lajpat Rai to

be President. The latter was intimidated by exile while the former was eliminated by

organizing the session at Surat which was in Tilak's native province of Bombay instead of

Nagpur (CP) as the extremists had been demanding.

 The two sides met at Surat in a charged atmosphere. The moderates elected Rash Behari

Ghosh and quickly resolved to withdraw the four resolutions of 1906.

 This caused the outbreak of physical violence following which police was called in to

physically expel the extremists. After this, the moderates passed a resolution for

permanently expelling the extremists from Congress. For this amendments were made

to the Congress constitution which made their re-entry virtually impossible if the

moderates did not wish so.

The government approach- Beginning of the Swadeshi movement and its

popularity alarmed the British. Their tried and tested policy of divide and rule had backfired.

 They were desperately searching for an alternative approach. The ideological differences

within the Congress exposed it. The British, wanting to capitalize adopted the ' carrot

and stick policy' that was to be implemented in three stages-

• Mild repression-They mildly repressed the extremist movement in Punjab. This was

done primarily to terrify the moderates.

• Conciliation- Moderates were conciliated to indications of upcoming liberal reforms

if they distance themselves from the extremists.

• Isolation and suppression- Once the moderates withdrew their support from the

Swadeshi movement, the extremists would become isolated and the British could

ruthlessly suppress the movement without any resistance.

 The carrot and stick approach succeeded where the divide and rule policy had failed.

Swadeshi movement was left leaderless following the large scale arrest of extremist

leaders.

 The moderates did not try to defend the extremists, resulting in stiff sentences and mass

deportations.

• Tilak was deported to Mandalay for six years while Aurobindo Ghosh was forced to

retire from active politics.

• The Surat split thus directly caused the demise of Swadeshi movement.

 Further, Indian nationalism was pushed into a lengthy phase of dormancy. While

moderates were the shield of the movement, the extremists were its sword.

• Following the end of the Swadeshi movement, no mass movement was launched

for almost a decade.

• With the extremist out of the picture, the British would simply ignore the

moderates and progress on the nationalist demand remained virtually non-existent.

The Surat split and the demise of Swadeshi filled the younger nationalists with a sense of

disenchantment and despair.

• They drifted apart from both political moderation and extremism towards the use of

revolutionary methods.

Surat split also imparted a tough lesson to future nationalists.

• The Congress realized that the split has caused immense damage and was determined to

prevent it in future. This determination allowed the Congress leadership to preserve

unity during the Swarajist controversy and the post-CDM strategic debate (1934-37).

Practice Questions

Q. Discuss the factors responsible for the Surat split. How did the split

manifest since the beginning of the Swadeshi movement?

Surat split exposed the existing divisions among the Congress leaders which became

highlighted on the issue of partition of Bengal and the method to oppose it. It led not only

to the bifurcation of the Congress but also delayed the freedom movement.

Factors responsible for the Surat split-

 Ideological differences between the moderates and the extremists- While moderates

were talking of constitutional methods to secure annulment of partition of Bengal,

extremists wanted passive resistance to attain Swaraj.

• Secondly, moderates wanted to confine it to Bengal but extremists wanted to spread

it across India.

 The numerical disparity between moderates and extremists- Moderates were

numerically superior to extremists within the Congress but extremist leaders had much

greater popularity among masses.

 Increasing hostilities among moderates and extremists- Leaders such as Aurobindo

Ghosh openly criticized moderate methods as well as leadership bitterly and

sarcastically.

 Government's role- Government used its carrot and stick policy to convince moderates

of constitutional reforms, then taking action against extremists to scare them and finally

to crush extremists by unleashing the legal and administrative powers.

Split's manifestation could clearly be seen atleast from 1905 even if its elements were

present since the beginning-

 Banaras session (1905), GK Gokhale- under Gokhale's Presidency, the Congress adopted

mild resolutions condemning the partition and called for limited program in

contradiction to extremists' demands.

 Calcutta session (1906) the conflict began on the issue of the election of President in

which extremists wanted either BG Tilak or Lala Lajpat Rai.

• The Swadeshi movement had gone in the favour of extremist and under increasing

pressure, moderates pushed for Dadabhai Nauroji's name for Presidency.

• As he was widely respected, moderates did not oppose him but Congress had to

accept radical resolution of- Swaraj, Swadeshi, Boycott and national education.

 Surat session (1907): By this time, British government had talked to moderate leaders

assuring them of some Constitutional reforms.

• Secondly, government's attempted crackdown on Extremist leaders such as Lala

Lajpat Rai had strengthened moderates.

• The moderates elected Rash Behari Ghosh and withdrawal of four resolutions led to

physical altercation between moderated and extremists. This led to the infamous

Surat split.

Surat split worked as a break on the freedom struggle for almost a decade but it also

imparted an important lesson of organizational unity which helped Congress later.

Q. The carrot and stick policy succeeded where the divide and rule policy had

failed. In the context of this statement, discuss the significance of the Surat

split.

The divide and policy was the most formidable tool in the hands of British owing to

religious-linguistic-regional diversities in India. However during Swadeshi movement,

despite all attempts from the above its popular appeal could not be reduced thus forcing

British to devise a new policy.

Failure of divide and rule policy

Muslims leaders and intelligentsia fell prey to the British. A delegation of Nawab Salimullah,

Waqar ul Mulk, Mohsin ul Mulk and Agha Khan met the Governor General Minto in Shimla

and ultimately it led to the establishment of Muslim League which was pro-British anti-

Congress organization.

Despite low participation from Muslims, overall movement had gathered a strong

momentum and thus 'divide and rule policy' could not succeed.

Carrot and stick policy

The failure of divide and rule policy led to the emergence of carrot and stick policy which

was implemented in the following manner-

 Mild repression- They mildly repressed the extremist movement in Punjab in order to

terrify the moderates.

 Conciliation- Moderates were conciliated to indications of upcoming liberal reforms if

they distance themselves from the extremists.

 Isolation and suppression- Once the moderates withdrew their support, the extremists

would become isolated and the British could ruthlessly suppress the movement without

any resistance.

This approach succeeded as the Swadeshi movement was left leaderless following the large

scale arrest of extremist leaders. The moderates did not try to defend the extremists

resulting in stiff sentences and mass deportations.

Thus, carrot and stick policy was a new weapon which helped moderates greatly but on the

other hand, it seems to be the extension of the divide and rule policy in which ultimately

mutual discontent was utilized to divide moderates and extremists.

Significance of Swadeshi Movement

In many ways, the Swadeshi movement represented a new beginning in the nationalist

struggle.

1. It announced the beginning of All India mass politics. In the future, the masses would

continue to play a massive role in the national movement.

1. The Swadeshi movement also marked the beginning of the extremist phase of Indian

politics. Leadership permanently slipped out of the grip of the moderates.

1. The Swadeshi movement gave to Indian national movement new demands, new energy,

new methods and a new power. This was due to the complete transformation of the model

of politics brought out by this movement characterized by Swaraj, Swadeshi, boycott,

passive resistance, mass participation and anti-colonialism.

1. This movement prepared the template for the future of Indian nationalism. It acted as the

laboratory for testing out new methods and strategies such as boycott and Swadeshi with

mass support. These strategies would be perfected by later nationalists such as Mahatma

Gandhi and was used more effectively.

1. The Swadeshi movement also gave nationalists a new tool for mass mobilization, namely

cultural and religious symbols. This would become a permanent picture of Indian

nationalism. However, it was a double edged sword.

• Its raw appeal could draw millions to the streets but it also contributed to the

communalization of Indian politics.

1. Swadeshi also exposed the internal fissures within he national movement exposing it to

the British policy of divide and rule these included the deep divide between-

• Moderates and extremists
• Hindus and Muslims
• The Westernized upper middle class the deeply patriotic lower middle class
• Linguistic and caste divides.

As a result, future nationalists, particularly Mahatma Gandhi had to adopt measured and

cautious strategy to simultaneously challenge British rule and overcome internal division

among Indians. In other words, the national struggle and nation building would have to be

carried out hand in hand. This was why Mahatma Gandhi adopted a strategy that sought to

prioritize the primary contradiction between Indian nationalism and British imperialism over

secondary contradictions within Indian nationalists. This strategy resulted in ideas such as

class cooperation, trusteeship, anti-untouchability and emphasis on cultural unity.

Practice Question

Q. Discuss the features of the Swadeshi movement and highlight the

significance to the national struggle as a whole.

Swadeshi movement started in around 1905 against the partition of Bengal which became a

transitionary moment in Indian struggle where the national freedom movement came out of

a limited political programme to a popular mass struggle.

Features of the Swadeshi movement-

 Extremist movement- it began the period of dominance of extremists which lasted for a

short period but created the ground for radical demands.

 Mass movement- In Swadeshi, the method of protest shifted to mass struggle. Masses

participated in huge numbers in rallies and meetings.

 Extra-Constitutional methods such as boycott, picketing etc. were adopted as the mode

of protest.

 Radical demands such as Swaraj and Swadeshi were made which broke the earlier

hesitation of moderate leaders.

 All India Movement- unlike previous protests, Swadeshi was the first pan-India

movement thus strengthening the feelings of nationalism.

 Trendsetter- Swadeshi set the trend for future movements which were later

experimented and refined by Mahatma Gandhi.

 Muslims and Peasants were absent from the movement to a great extent. Partially

because of lack of class consciousness and partially because of British policy, the

movement revolved around lower middle class urban Indians.

 Destroyed the unity of Indian nationalism- Moderate-Extremist schism led to the split

in Congress at its Surat session in 1907.

 Effective than Moderate movement as after this British had to bring Indian Councils Act,

1909 conceding significant powers to the India.

Significance of Swadeshi Movement to the national struggle

 It announced the beginning of All India mass politics. In the future, the masses would

continue to play a massive role in the national movement.

 The Swadeshi movement also marked the beginning of the extremist phase of Indian

politics. Leadership permanently slipped out of the grip of the moderates.

 The Swadeshi movement gave to Indian national movement new demands, new energy,

new methods and a new power. This was due to the complete transformation of the

model of politics brought out by this movement characterized by Swaraj, Swadeshi,

boycott, passive resistance, mass participation and anti-colonialism.

 This movement prepared the template for the future of Indian nationalism. It acted as

the laboratory for testing out new methods and strategies such as boycott and Swadeshi

with mass support. These strategies would be perfected by later nationalists such as

Mahatma Gandhi and was used more effectively.

 The Swadeshi movement also gave nationalists a new tool for mass mobilization, namely

cultural and religious symbols. This would become a permanent picture of Indian

nationalism. However, it was a double edged sword.

• Its raw appeal could draw millions to the streets but it also contributed to the

communalization of Indian politics.

 Swadeshi also exposed the internal fissures within he national movement exposing it to

the British policy of divide and rule these included the deep divide between-

• Moderates and extremists
• Hindus and Muslims
• The Westernized upper middle class the deeply patriotic lower middle class
• Linguistic and caste divides

Indian Council Act, 1909/ Morley Minto Reforms

Indian Councils Act or Morley Minto reforms were Constitutional reforms drafted on the

basis of the recommendations of a committee set up by Morley and Minto, Secretary of

state for India and Governor General of India respectively.

Background to the reforms-

 Swadeshi Movement which had resulted in the intensification of nationalism. It had

exerted higher pressure on the British to satisfy nationalist aspirations.

 Promises of liberal reforms to the moderates had to be fulfilled. They had withdrawn

from the Swadeshi movement on the promise of Constitutional reforms.

 New opportunities had emerged for the British to divide and rule Indians. All India

Muslim League with its demands of separate electorates had provided the chance to

British.

 A longstanding demand of the Indian Nationalists had been responsible self-rule.

Although British were not serious about it but they had to create such an impression.

 The British desired to create the appearance of introducing responsible government

while expanding the apparatus of constitutional autonomy.

Important Provisions

 Size of the Imperial Legislative Councils and Provincial Legislative Councils was increased.

• The Imperial Legislative Council was to retain an official majority.
• Provincial Legislative Councils were to have non-official non-elected majority.

 Power to discuss budget but could not vote upon it.

• Legislators could only suggest amendments
• They could demand additional grants for local self-governing bodies

Reforms may not save the Raj, but if they don't, nothing else will- Lord Morley

The reforms of 1909 afforded no answer, and could afford no answer to Indian problems-

Montford Report.

Political barrier was created round them, isolating them from the rest of India and

reversing the unifying and amalgamating process which had been going on for

centuries….The barrier was a small one at first, for the electorates were very limited, but

with every extension of franchise it grew and affected the whole structure of political and

social life like some canker which corrupted the entire system- Jawaharlal Nehru.

 Legislators had the power to ask supplementary questions on matters of public

importance.

 Elected members were to be elected indirectly by the local self-governing bodies in case

of Provincial Legislative councils and provincial legislatures in case of the Imperial

Legislative Council.

 One Indian was to be elected to Governor General of India's Executive Council. (First

such member was Satyendra Prasad Sinha.

 Two Indians were to be elected to Secretary of State for India's India Council (KC Gupta

and SH Bilgrami).

 Franchise was limited in nature based on property and educational qualifications.

 Separate electorates were granted to-

• Zamindars
• Chambers of Commerce, Bombay
• Chambers of Commerce, Calcutta
• Indian Musalmans.

Critical Evaluation

The Morley-Minto reforms filed to satisfy Indian nationalism due to its following limitations-

 The Indian demand of responsible self-rule had been completely overlooked.

 The Principle of Collective Responsibility which is the bedrock of a popular democracy

was completely absent-

• The legislatures had majority of official or appointed members
• They lacked financial or legislative control over the government.

 The existence of voting qualifications also weakened the notion of popular sovereignty.

 The Governors and Governor General of India continued to exercise a wide array of

discretionary powers such as

• Power to issue ordinances
• Veto power
• Power to certify bills etc.

 The Act also failed to satisfy the demands of Indianizing the Civil Service reducing

military and administrative expenditure.

 It also failed to reduce the burden of taxation on peasants and to provide protection to

Indian industries.

 It also failed to address the issue of home charges. In fact, even the demand of

separating the expenditure of the Secretary of State for India and his council from the

Indian budget was ignored.

 The introduction of Separate Electorates which was the basis for minority

representation 'institutionalised Communalism' in the words of Pt. Jawahar Lal Nehru.

• Separate electorates emerged as the sticking point between the Muslim League and

Congress.

• Other groups also began demanding separate electorates, causing further divisions

in the Indian body politic.

• Separate electorates had the effect of disenfranchising vast majority of the

electorate, thus causing conflict, anger and ill will. Gradually, this feeling fuelled the

ideas of criticism, two-nation theory, the Pakistan demand ultimately resulting in a

series of communal riots and partition.

• In fact, even post-independence, the generational trauma of these separate

electorates continues to affect the present day society which has still not been able

to completely able to overcome communalism.

• It was due to this that Morley later commented with regard to the separate

electorates that "we have sown dragon's teeth and the harvest is bound to be

bitter."

 The Act had a few redeeming features such as-

• Larger legislature
• Right to discuss the budget and suggest amendments
• Right to ask supplementary questions
• Introduction of elections, atleast indirect, for the first time.

 However, these reforms were insignificant when viewed in the context of failures of the

Act. Further, they reflect the lack of sincerity on the part of the British to introduce

meaningful change.

• In fact, they reveal a sinister motive namely the disguising of autocratic changes as

liberal reforms. Perhaps this is why the Morley Minto reforms remained the shortest

lived Constitutional mechanism introduced by the British in India.

Practice Question

Q. Discuss the factors responsible for the introduction of the Morley-Minto

reforms. Is it true that they constitutionalized Communalism in India?

Morley-Minto reforms were necessitated by the nationalist upsurge in the first decade of

the twentieth century. British manipulated the whole scenario by creating an impression of

Constitutional reforms but in the end it proved worthy of none.

Factors responsible for the introduction of the Morley-Minto reforms-

 Swadeshi Movement which had resulted in the intensification of nationalism. It had

exerted higher pressure on the British to satisfy nationalist aspirations.

 Promises of liberal reforms to the moderates had to be fulfilled. They had withdrawn

from the Swadeshi movement on the promise of Constitutional reforms.

 New opportunities had emerged for the British to divide and rule Indians. All India

Muslim League with its demands of separate electorates had provided the chance to

British.

 A longstanding demand of the Indian Nationalists had been responsible self-rule.

Although British were not serious about it but they had to create such an impression.

 The British desired to create the appearance of introducing responsible government

while expanding the apparatus of constitutional autonomy.

It constitutionalized the Communalism in India through the provision of Separate

Electorates for Muslims.

 It emerged as the sticking point between the Muslim League and Congress.

 Gradually, other groups also began demanding separate electorates.

 It disenfranchised a vast majority of the electorate ultimately causing conflict, anger and

ill will. This gradually paved the way for communalism.

 The issue has not been completely solved even till now and the issue of communalism

keeps engulfing the whole India subcontinent.

Neither could the Act prove worthy of any party but it also created communalism as the

perpetual problem for the whole subcontinent. This was precisely why the Morley-Minto

reforms remained to be the shortest living Act in India.

Q. We have sown the dragon's teeth and the harvest is bound to be bitter.

Discuss.

With regard to the provision of Separate Electorate in the Indian Councils Act of 1909, Lord Morley

commented the above statement owing to its detrimental effect on Indian society, politics and

British reputation.

It was a dragon's teeth because-

 The Act constitutionalized the provision of separate electorate through which only Muslims

franchise could elect the Muslim candidate from a legislative council.

 Other groups also began demanding separate electorates, causing further divisions in

the Indian body politic.

Its harvest proved to be bitter because-

 Gradually it led to frustration, anger and tensions leading to communalism.

 Increasing communal riots ultimately led to partition of India.

 Moreover, the problem of partition has become perpetual in whole Indian subcontinent

with riots taking place often till the very present day.

 This has led intellectuals and scholars to make British policies stand scrutiny of the day

and has brought them disrepute.

However, the role of Indian society in general and extremist leaders in particular should also

be analyzed vis-à-vis use of religious symbols and accepting religious diversity as religious

differences.

Thus, this dragon's teeth are a challenge for the present times which now needs to be

rooted out to reverse an ugly episode of Indian history.

Contents

Factors for the emergence of Revolutionary extremism........................................................................2

Practice Question................................................................................................................................3

Q. Discuss the factors responsible for the emergence of revolutionary extremism in India after

the failure of the Swadeshi movement...........................................................................................3

Important Revolutionary activities and groups......................................................................................4

Bengal .................................................................................................................................................4

 Dacca Anushilan Samiti led by Pulin Das ................................................................................4

 Yugantar group- Barindra Kumar Ghosh, Aurobindo Ghosh, Jatindranath Mukherjee .........4

Punjab.................................................................................................................................................5

Maharashtra........................................................................................................................................5

Abroad.....................................................................................................................................................5

London................................................................................................................................................5

Geneva and Paris ................................................................................................................................6

Berlin...................................................................................................................................................6

USA (San Francisco).............................................................................................................................6

Reasons for the decline of Revolutionary extremism.............................................................................6

 End of World War 1.....................................................................................................................6

 British also took certain steps to restore relations with Indians................................................6

 Home Rule League Movement ...................................................................................................7

 Entry of Mahatma Gandhi into Indian Politics............................................................................7

Significance of Revolutionary Extremism ...............................................................................................7

Critical Evaluation of their achievements and failures...........................................................................8

In the context of Indian history, revolutionaries were those nationalists who were ready to

use violence to liberate India from British rule through assassinations, dacoities, military

conspiracies and creating an international network of revolutionaries against British rule.

While the use of political violence against the British rule was not new, it emerged as the

major trend following the failure of the Swadeshi movement.

Factors for the emergence of Revolutionary

extremism

 Failure of mainstream politics filled the younger patriots with a sense of disillusionment.

Both the moderates and extremists had failed to make any meaningful progress. This

pushed the highly patriotic younger nationalists towards the path of revolution.

 While the extremists had succeeded in inspiring the patriotism of the younger

nationalists, they failed to clearly distinguish between revolution based on the activity of

the masses and acts of individual heroism.

• As a result, following the failure of the Swadeshi movement, the younger nationalists

felt it was their duty to continue the struggle individually.

 The biggest cause for the emergence of revolutionary extremism was definitely British

misrule, their atrocities and their autocracy.

• The British had been exploiting India for over a century resulting in the upwelling of

anger and discontent.

• Their ruthless suppression of previous uprisings had fuelled unfulfilled nationalist

aspirations.

• The nationalists had organized peaceful Swadeshi movement but the British

suppressed it like all previous revolts.

• This convinced the younger nationalists that the British are not interested in

compromise thus preparing the way for direct confrontation.

• In other words, by making peaceful change impossible, the British had made the use

of violence inevitable.

 The early revolutionaries also lacked a clear understanding of the true nature of British

rule.

Justice and righteousness are the atmosphere of political morality and the sword of the

warrior is necessary to its fulfillment- Sri Aurobindo Ghosh.

• They felt that assassination of a few unpopular British officials would terrify the

British enough to grant Swaraj or to leave India.

• They also felt that this could provide relief to ordinary Indians suffering under British

misrule.

• They failed to perceive the systemic nature of the colonial regime in which individual

officials were no more than replaceable parts in complex machinery.

 The younger revolutionaries were also inspired by the activities and achievements of

foreign revolutionaries such as the IRA that had been battling the British in Ireland and

the Nihilists which had been opposing the Czarist regime in Russia.

• Instead they wanted to use the Western hammer (Political violence) to shatter

Western rule in India.

• In the recent decades, there had been a major cultural shift in Indian nationalism.

The younger nationalists had been ideologically trained to view India as their divine

motherland.

• The spirit of sacrifice was infused in their psychological makeup. They considered it

their sacred duty to defend their motherland against a foreign invader.

• For this, the use of all means including violence was acceptable.
• Therefore, the use of revolutionary methods came as a natural choice for this group

of young nationalists.

Practice Question

Q. Discuss the factors responsible for the emergence of revolutionary

extremism in India after the failure of the Swadeshi movement.

The Swadeshi movement had raised both the hope and awareness of the people but its

insignificant end led the agitated youth to move towards revolutionary tactics as the

divergence with British rule had been finalized by then.

Factors responsible for the emergence of revolutionary extremism in India were-

 Failure of Swadeshi movement without any concrete result proved the young

nationalists that British rule is completely apathetic to Indian demands.

 Failure of mainstream leaders- Moderates had already failed earlier but even extremists

could not build a momentum. Surat split had further weakened the organisational

strength.

 British misrule- just like violent uprisings, British had also suppressed the peaceful

Swadeshi movement. Extremist leaders like BG Tilak and Aurobindo Ghosh were

detained and harsh legal power was unleashed disproportionately.

 Cultural change in India started by late 19 th century when revolutionary thoughts were

manifested in openings of Akharas (Gymnasiums), groups such as Mitra mela by

Savarkar brothers etc. started emphasizing 'masculinity'.

 International influence- newly educated middle class was inspired by IRA of Ireland and

Nihilists of Russia and were eager to undergo individual heroism or dacoit, murder

involving small secret groups.

 International support- As World War 1 began in 1914 in which Germany's anti-British

alliance found resonance with Indian revolutionaries known as Zimmerman Plan.

These were the factors which motivated the youth to sacrifice their life for their motherland

and they were not comfortable in compromising with the peaceful protests considered as a

'weakness' by these revolutionaries.

Important Revolutionary activities and groups

Indian revolutionaries, in its first phase, were active in both India as well as abroad. In India,

there were three major centres of revolutionary groups- Bengal, Punjab and Maharashtra.

Bengal- in Bengal political awareness was very high since a long time. During Swadeshi

movement, various volunteer organisations and Samitis had already come up in Bengal.

Some important organisations were-

 Dacca Anushilan Samiti led by Pulin Das- Its chief activities were-

• Barrah dacoity (1908) - The cash at Kutchery of Barrah was looted for further

revolutionary activities.

• Barisal conspiracy (1912) - it was aimed at looting British armoury but remained

unsuccessful and Pulin Das was deported for life.

 Yugantar group- Barindra Kumar Ghosh, Aurobindo Ghosh,

Jatindranath Mukherjee- Its important acts were-

• Muzaffarpur blast (1908) carried out by Khudi Ram Bose and Prafulla Chaki with the

objective of killing an unpopular and sadistic judge Kingsford who was the district

judge of Muzaffarpur. Unfortunately, the bomb accidentally killed two British

women going in a carriage. Chaki was arrested and hanged while Bose committed

suicide.

• Further investigations led to the arrest of Ghosh brothers. While Barindra Kumar was

deported for life whereas Aurobindo retired from active politics in what came to be

own as Alipore conspiracy case.

• However, Yugantar group continued to survive and even allied with other groups

throughout the nation.

• The group played important role in the attack on Viceroy Hardinge in 1912 in Delhi.

Sachin Sanyal and Rashbehari Bose were the two revolutionaries involved.

• Although Hardinge survived the attack but both revolutionaries were able to escape

considering it as partially successful.

• Zimmerman Plan (1915) was a German plot to ally with Indian revolutionaries by

supplying them weapons to raise armed struggle against the British. The weapons'

consignment was about to reach Balasore (Odisha) but the plan got leaked and

Jatindranath was killed by British.

Punjab- Revolutionaries activities were organized by Ajit Singh and Lala Lajpat Rai even

during Swadeshi movement.

• However, both these leaders were arrested and forced to exile.
• After that, Punjab observed a trend of exile of revolutionaries to abroad mainly to

Canada and USA.

• This led to the formation of Ghadar party under the leadership of Lala Hardayal,

Madan Lal Dhingra, and Bhai Parmanand etc.

Maharashtra- revolutionary fervour was already present in Maharashtra even

before the beginning of Swadeshi movement. Chapekar brothers had assassinated Justice

Rand and Tilak was also sentenced for defending them in his newspaper.

 VD Savarkar and GD Savarkar founded Mitra Mela and then Abhinav Bharat and

emerged as prominent organisers of the revolutionaries.

• AL Kanhere assassinated the District Collector Jackson of Nasik.
• Chapekar brothers were also linked with their platform.

Abroad- London, Geneva, Paris, Berlin and USA (San Francisco) emerged as the

major centre for Indian revolutionaries.

London- Shyamji Krishna Verma established India House (1905) as support house for

revolutionaries.

• Madan Lal Dhingra had assassinated a British official in London.
• After that, members of Indian House League had to shift to Berlin following British

repression.

Geneva and Paris- Madam Bhikaji Cama formed common alliance with French

socialists.

Berlin- during First World War, Virendranath Chattopadhyay established Berlin

Committee for Indian independence and began conspiring with the German authorities to

overthrow British rule in India.

• It played an important role in forming Zimmerman Plan.

USA (San Francisco) - it emerged as an important hub for the activities of

Punjabi revolutionaries who created Ghadar Party in 1913.

• The objective was to incite revolution, overthrow British rule in India, hatching

conspiracy against British by befriending common enemies and other like-minded

organisations.

• Their chief act was the Ghadar conspiracy in which they got in contact with the

Yugantar group to incite a popular rebellion by inciting a mass mutiny of British-

Indian soldiers in Punjab. However, the plan got leaked and the conspiracy failed.

Reasons for the decline of Revolutionary extremism

 End of World War 1- With the end of World War 1, British also ended

several wartime restrictions such as the restrictions placed by Defence of India rules,

restrictions on Press etc.

• The economic misery brought by the war such as inflation, war time shortages etc.

also started easing by this time.

• As the anger of the people started declining, the support for the revolutionary

activities also declined.

 British also took certain steps to restore relations with

Indians

• British freed all the political prisoners arrested under the Defence of India rules

which allowed British to detain anyone for two years without any charge sheet.

• August declaration (1917) - British promised Constitutional reforms through the

declaration. Revolutionaries as well as mainstream leaders did not want to derail this

potentially progressive step.

• Montford Report (1918) - It gave further hopes for Constitutional reforms. By

accepting the flaws of Morley-Minto reforms, this report gave hope of significant

reforms.

 Home Rule League Movement

• Re-entry of BG Tilak in politics after completing his sentence and efforts of Annie

Besant led to formation of two Home Rule Leagues which again provided a platform

for masses to participate in open politics.

 Entry of Mahatma Gandhi into Indian Politics

• The revolutionaries wanted to give an opportunity to the new strategy of non-violent

Satyagraha to succeed.

Owing to these happenings, the revolutionary activities started declining sharply by 1918-

19.

Significance of Revolutionary Extremism

Although revolutionaries were unable to liberate India but their significant contribution is

far reaching-

 They kept nationalism alive at a time when the mainstream movement had been

flattened.

• Because of this reason, they even became heroes and role models of ordinary

Indians.

 They prepared the way for resurgence of mainstream nationalism by linking the spirit of

patriotism with displays of individual bravery.

 They were able to redefine the parameters of Indian nationalism because the use of

violent means became a viable means of releasing anti-colonial anger for the first time.

 They succeeded in creating a national and international network of allies against British

imperialism thus also increasing Indian national movement's awareness of and

interaction with global anti-colonial trends.

 Revolutionaries directly contributed to the further radicalization of the mainstream

movement. Leaders such as VD Savarkar and Lala Lajpat Rai had come into contact with

the revolutionaries and been influenced by their passion and energy.

 It was partly due to the pressure exerted by the revolutionaries that the British had to

respond positively in the form of general amnesty, Montford report, Act of 1919.

Critical Evaluation of their achievements and failures

 Failed to liberate India due to a flawed understanding of the true nature of British rule.

However, they were not solely responsible for this as even moderates and extremists

had failed to guide the younger nationalists.

 Colonial historians have alleged that revolutionaries derailed and delayed the process of

liberal political reform. However, it has been pointed out that the British were never

actually interested in introducing meaningful reforms-

• Indian nationalists have been demanding such reforms since atleast the mid-90 s. in

fact, sine he foundation of the Congress, two major political changes had emerged

and vanished mainly moderate politics and extremism.

• The British had responded to the moderates with apathy and to the extremists with

hostility.

• In light of this, the colonial allegation regarding the disruptive role of the

revolutionaries rings hollow.

• On the other hand, the argument may be made that the revolutionaries in fact

ended the British complacency resulting in a visible urgency for reform within the

government from 1917-18.

 While the extremists failed to end British rule by instigating a mass revolt against them,

this detail can be contextualized in the backdrop of certain facts

• Revolutionary approach towards the masses never actually envisaged a mass revolt.

All they wanted was to lead the masses by example and keep the spirit of patriotism

alive among them especially at a time the mainstream movement had faltered.

• Judging by this parameter the revolutionaries achieved resounding success.

 While revolutionary activities experienced sharp decline in 1918-19 but this does not

mean that their role ended in the Indian national movement.

• They inspired future revolutionaries with their courage and sacrifice.
• Early revolutionaries remained active and directly participated in the later phases of

the revolutionary activities. For example Sachin Sanyal who played a leading role in

both the HRA and HSRA. Similarly, Rashbehari Bose who escaped to Japan following

the failure of the Ghadar policy and played a leading role in raising the Indian

National Army in Singapore in the second World war.

 The Indian revolutionary movement evolved especially under the influence of socialism.

This resulted in the emergence of new opportunities and alliances not only between the

revolutionaries and working classes but also with other international collaborators.

Many historians tend to write-off revolutionary phase as a minor footnote in the national

movement, in recent decades, new understanding has emerged. The role of the

revolutionaries in shaping the class composition, energy and leanings of the national

movement has been recognized along with their contributions in development of India's

foreign relations.