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Nationalism in India

Nation - A nation is a state having common territory and where people share a common
language, religion, race or territory.

Nationalism – When people begin to believe that they are all part of the same nation and
some unity binds them together.
This sense of collective belonging among the people came through the experience of
united struggles.

Causes of Nationalism –
1.) The imperialistic design of the British rulers.
2.) Western thoughts and education enabled Indians to understand the effects of
foreign domination.
3.) The Congress under the leadership of Mahatma Gandhi brought different groups of
people together within one movement.
4.) Indian nationalism grew into the national movement in the early 20 th C with the
Non –Cooperation and Civil Disobedience Movement.

Effects of the First World War in India (1914 -18)


It created a new economic and political situation which later played an important role in
strengthening national movement in India.
1. As a colony of Britain money was taken from India. It led to a huge increase in war
expenditure due to war loans.
2. Taxes were increases, custom duties were raised and income tax was introduced.
Common people led a hard life.
3. The forced recruitment from villages to supply soldiers caused widespread anger in
rural areas. The strength of the Indian army was raised to 1.5 million.
4. Crop failure, acute food shortage and spread of influenza in many parts of India led
to famine and epidemics. No welfare measures were taken as a result in 1921, 12 to
13 million people lost their lives.

The Idea of Satyagraha

Early Life –
1.) Mahatma Gandhi studies law in England and later went to South Africa for his
legal practice. He was deeply affected by racial discrimination by the govt. of
South Africa. He protested against racism with a new method of mass agitation.
2.) He returned to India in January 1915. He was a great supporter of the British Rule.
How ever in 1918 various Acts passed by the British govt. had a deep influence on
him.
3.) He decided to launch a struggle against discrimination and humiliation through
‘Satyagraha’ – it means holding fast to truth.

Q.1 What was meant by the idea of Satyagraha?


Ans.
1. It was a method of agitation and protest based on truth and non –violence.
2. The idea of Satyagraha emphasized on the power of truth against injustice. There
was no need for violence against oppressors if the cause was true.
3. A Satyagraha can win a battle without aggression and by appealing to the
conscience of the oppressor or by using moral force
4. He believed that this method of non- violence could unite all Indians.

Q. 2 What were the three successful Satyagraha Movements in India?


Ans.
1. Champaran 1916 - Gandhiji helped indigo planters of Champaran in Bihar. They
had to grow indigo in their land and sell at a cheaper rate. Gandhiji traveled to
Bihar and inspired these peasants to fight against the oppression.
2. Kheda in Gujrat 1917 – He organized Satyagraha in support of peasants of Kheda
district in Gujarat. As the state was affected by crop failure & plague epidemic,
peasant could not pay taxes. The government refused to relax the land revenue.
Therefore Gandhiji led the No Tax campaign which forced the government to
remit the land revenue.
3. Ahemadabad 1918 – Gandhiji helped the cotton textile workers who were
demanding for the increase in wages, He asked the workers to go on strike and to
use non – violent methods.

Q. 3 What was the Rowlatt Act? Why were the Indians outraged by this Act?
Ans.
The Rowlatt Act (1919) In 1919 Rowlatt Act was passed which was based on the basis
of Rowlatt Commission. It is also called ”Black Act”. This Act was passed through
Imperial Legislative Council despite opposition of the Indian members. Main features:
1. It gave power to the govt. to put the people into jails without trial for two years.
2. It gave power to the government to repress political activities.
3. It deprived the people of their civil rights.

Q. 4 How did Gandhiji/ Indians react to the Rowlatt Act?


Ans.
1. He decided to launch a nationwide Satyagraha through civil disobedience against
this unjust Act.
2. Many Indian members resigned from the Imperial Legislative Council.
3. A Hartal was organized on 6th April.
4. Rallies, agitations and meetings were organized in various cities.
5. Workers went to strike in railways workshops and many shops were closed.
6. People started to use khadi and Hindu – Muslim unity filled the air.

Q. 5 What repressive measures were taken by the British?


Ans.
1. The British picked up local leaders from Amritsar and Mahatma Gandhi was
barred from entering Delhi.
2. Police fired on peaceful processions in Amritsar provoking attacks on banks, post
offices and railway stations.
3. Martial law was imposed and General Dyer took command.

Q. 6 Write a note on Jallianwala Bagh incident.


Ans.
1. Jallianwala Bagh incident took place on 13th April 1919 in Amristar.
2. A crowd of villagers had come to Amritsar to attend a fair in the enclosed ground
of Jallianwala Bagh.
3. They were unaware of the martial law that had been imposed.
4. General Dyer and his troops attacked the peaceful gathering of villagers in the
Jallianwala Bagh.
5. He blocked all exit points ad ordered firing and about hundreds of innocent people
were killed.
6. General Dyer justified his action by declaring that he wanted to create terror in the
minds of satyagrahis.

Result –
1. It aroused the fury of the Indians.
2. British govt. replied with further brutalities by terrorizing.
3. This massacre marked a turning point in the history of the struggle for freedom and
failed to crush the moral effect on the people.
4. Since Rowlatt Satyagraha was limited mostly to cities and towns, Gandhiji decided
to launch a more broad based movement in India i.e. Khilafat and Non –
Cooperation Movement.

Q. 7 What was Khilafat Movement? Why was the Khilafat Movement launched?
Ans. The movement launched by the Indian Muslims against the injustice done in Turkey
was called the Khilafat Movement.

Reason for launching


1. The growing dissatisfaction against the British rule led to the launching of Khilafat
movement.
2. After the defeat in the 1st world war, a harsh treaty was imposed on the Emperor of
the Ottoman Turkey.
3. The Sultan was considered as the spiritual head (or Khalifa) of the Muslims.
Breaking up of the Turkish Empire angered the Muslims in India.
4. The All India Khilafat Committee was formed by the Ali Brothers, Muhammad Ali
and Shaukat Ali and others in Bombay in 1919.
5. A movement was launched all over the country and Congress joined it to achieve
the Hindu – Muslim unity.
6. In 1920, at the Calcutta session the Khilafat movement was merged with the Non –
cooperation movement against the govt. and to attain swaraj.
Significance – It marked the height of the Hindu Muslim unity. It was also the first
organized anti British protest of the Muslims. It provided a mass base to freedom
struggle. It reduced the mistrust between the Muslims and the Congress.

Non – Cooperation Movement

Q. 1 Why was the movement started?


Ans. In his book Hind Swaraj Gandhiji declared that British rule was established in India
with the cooperation of Indians. If Indians refused to cooperate, British rule will collapse.

Q. 2 How could non – cooperation become a movement?


Ans. Gandhiji proposed that the movement should unfold in stages.
1st stage - surrender of titles awarded by the govt.

2nd stage - Boycott of civil services, army, police, courts and legislative councils, schools
and foreign goods.

3rd stage – In case of repression by the govt. a full civil disobedience campaign would be
launched.

Q. 3 Why were Congress members against the Movement?


Ans. Many members were reluctant to boycott the council elections.
They feared that the movement might lead to violence.
Finally at the Nagpur Session of in 1920, it was decided to launch the Non –cooperation
Movement.

Q. 4 How did the movement unfold?


Ans. The non – cooperation - Khilafat movt began in Jan 1921, under the leadership o
Mahatma Gandhi.

Q. 5 Who participated in it?


Ans. Various social groups participated in this movt, each with its own specific
aspiration.
Q. 6 Why did Mahatma Gandhi withdraw the Non –Cooperation Movement?
Ans.
1. When the Non –Cooperation movt. Reached its peak, violent incident took place at
Chauri Chaura in Uttar Pradesh on 5th February, 1922.
2. The angry peasants of the area had burnt to death 22 policemen in a police station.
3. This incident led Mahatma Gandhi to withdraw the non –cooperation movement on
12th February, 1922.

Q. 7 Describe the non – cooperation Khilafat movement in the towns.


Ans.
1. The movement started with the middle class participation in the cities.
2. Students left schools and colleges, headmasters and teachers resigned; lawyers
gave up their legal practice, council elections were boycotted in most provinces
except Madras.
3. Foreign goods were boycotted, liquid shops picketed and foreign cloth burnt in
huge bon fires. Production of Indian textile mills and handlooms went up.
4. The movement gradually slowed down because:
i) Khadi cloth was more expensive than mill cloth.
ii) Boycott of British institutions posed. Problems as there were no alternative
Indian institutions.
iii) So students and teachers began joining schools land colleges and lawyers joined
back in govt. courts.

Q. 8 Describe the peasant movement in Awadh.


Ans.
1. In Awadh peasants had to face lot of problems:
a.) Landlords demanded high rents and a variety of other taxes.
b.) They had to do begar and work at land lord’s farms without any payment.
c.) As tenants they had no security of tenure.
2. The peasant movement, led by Baba Rama Chandra, demanded reduction of
revenue, abolition of begar and social boycott of oppressive landlords.
3. The oudh kisan sabha was set up headed by Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru, Baba
Ramchandra and a few.
4. The congress wanted to integrate the Awadh Peasant struggle into the wider
struggle.
5. However, as the movement spread in 1921, the houses of talukdars and merchants
were attacked, bazaars were looted and grain hoards were taken over. Nai - dhobi
bandhs were organised by Panchayat.

Q. 9 Describe the militant guerrilla movement in the Gudem hills of Andhra Pradesh.
Ans.
1. The colonial Govt. had closed large forest areas, preventing people from entering
forests to graze their cattle, or to collect fuel wood or fruits.
2. They lost their livelihoods and their traditional rights were being denied.
3. The Govt. forced the tribal peasants to contribute begar for road building.
4. As a result the hill people revolted. The movement was led by Allusi Sita Ram
Raju. He was believed to be an incarnation of God.
5. The Gudemrebels attacked police stations, attempted to kill British officials and
carried on guerrilla war fare for achieving Swaraj.
6. Raju was captured and executed in 1924, and overtime a folk hero.

Q. 10. Describe the movement led by plantation workers in Assam.


Ans.
1. In Assam, Plantation workers were not allowed to leave the tea gardens without
permission. (Under the Island Emigration Act, 1859).
2. When they heard of the non- cooperation movement, the workers defied the
authorities, left the plantations and moved to home/ villages.
3. However, they were caught by the police and brutally beaten up.
4. For these workers Swaraj meant the right to move freely in and out of the
plantations.

Q. 11 Why and by whom was Swaraj Party formed?


Ans.
1.) Within the congress, some leaders wanted to participate in elections to the
provincial councils set up by Govt. of India Act 1919.
2.) They wanted to oppose British Policies with in the councils and argue for reform.
3.) As a result, C.R. Dass and Motilal Nehru formed the Swaraj Party for a return to
council politics.

Q. 12 Mention the two events that shaped the Indian politics/ INM in the late 1920s?
Ans.
1.) The effect of worldwide economic depression – Agricultural prices began to fall.
Demand for agricultural products fell and export declined. Farmers suffered badly
as they could not sell their crops or pay revenue.
2.) The new Tory government in Britain constituted a Statutory Commission under Sir
John Simon to look into the functioning of the Constitutional system in India. It
had no Indians. They were all British. Therefore there were strong protests all over
the country.

Q. 13 Write a note on Simon commission.


Ans. British government constituted a Statutory Commission under Sir John Simon. Its
main objectives were –
1. To look into the functioning of the Constitutional system in India. To suggest
measures to improve the Indian Administration.
2. All members of this commission were British. It had no Indians. Therefore there
were strong protests all over the country.
3. When the Simon Commission arrived in India in 1928, it was greeted with the
Slogan ‘Go Back Simon’.
4. It did not give any hope to Indians regarding swaraj. Therefore all parties including
the Congress and Muslim League, decided to boycott this commission.

Q. 14. What is the significance of the Lahore Session of Congress in 1929?


Ans. In December 1929, the 44th session of Congress was held at Lahore under the
leadership of Nehru.
1.) Congress declared Poorna swaraj or complete independence as its aim.
2.) It was decided to launch the Civil Disobedience movement under the leadership of
Gandhiji.
3.) It was declared that 26th January was to be celebrated as the Independence Day all
over the country.
4.) The Congress tricolour Flag was hoisted and people took pledge to struggle for
complete independence.

Q. 15 Describe the women’s participation in CDM.


Ans.
1. There was a large scale participation of women in the movement.
2. They participated in the protest marches, manufactured salt and picked foreign
shop and liquor shops.
3. Many went to jails. They began to see service to the nation as a sacred duty of
women.
4. These women were mostly from high caste and rich peasant families.
5. Their increased public role did not bring any change in their position in the society.
6. The Congress leader wanted their symbolic presence in their movement.

Q. 16 Describe the main features of the Civil Disobedience Movement.


Ans.
1. In Jan 1930, Gandhiji sent a letter to Viceroy Irwin stating 11 demands of different
classes.
2. The most important demand was the abolition of the salt tax and the monopoly of
the govt. on salt manufacturing.
3. Mahatma Gandhi’s letter was an ultimatum to the govt. and the Viceroy was not
willing to fulfill it. So Gandhiji declared CDM.
4. Congress declared Poorna Swaraj as its aim in 1929 and decided to launch a CDM
under the leadership of Gandhiji in 1930.
5. CDM began with the Dandi March on 12th March 1930. About 78 ashram members
left Sabarmati for Dandi, a village in Gujarat on the seacoast to break the salt law.
6. Gandhiji urged the people to peacefully defy the British. Thereafter the salt law
was broken in all parts of the country.
7. The people not only refused to cooperate with the govt. but also broke the law.
8. They demonstrated in front of the govt. salt factories and started manufacturing
salt.
9. Foreign clothes were boycotted and liquor shops were picketed.
10.Peasants refused to pay revenue or chowkidari taxes and village officials resigned.
11.Many leaders were arrested and newspapers were banned.
12.In the North western Frontier Province the movt was led by Khan Abdul Gaffar
Khan. When he was arrested people started demonstrating on streets of Peshawar.
There was lot of violence and many people were killed.
13.In Sholapur, industrial workers attacked police posts, municipal buildings and
railway stations.
14.The frightened Govt. adopted harsh measures like firing and lathi charge.
15.Peaceful Satyagrahis were attacked, women and children beaten and about one
lakh people were arrested.

Withdrawal of CDM
1. Gandhiji decided to call off the movt. And entered into an agreement with Irwin on
5th March 1931. This Pact was known as Gandhi – Irwin Pact.
2. Gandhiji resumed the CDM after returning empty handed from the 2 nd Round
Table Conference. On returning to India Gandhiji discovered that the govt. had
taken severe measures to crush the movt.
3. Congress was declared illegal and Gaffar Khan and Nehru were in jail. More than
1 lakh people were put in the jails.
4. However the political enthusiasm declined and nothing came out of it. Finally in
1934 the CDM was called off.

Q. 17. Discuss the Salt March to make it clear why it was an effective symbol of
resistance against colonialism?
Ans.
1. Mahatma Gandhi found in salt a powerful symbol that could unite the nation.
2. Salt was something consumed by rich and poor alike, and it was one of the
essential items of food.
3. The tax on the salt and the govt. monopoly over its production revealed the most
oppressive face of British rule.
4. In Jan 1930, Gandhiji sent a letter to Viceroy Irwin demanding the abolition of the
salt tax.
5. Mahatma Gandhi’s letter was an ultimatum to the govt. and the Viceroy was not
willing to fulfill it. So Gandhiji started the famous salt march on 12th March 1930.
6. Began with the Dandi March on 12th March 1930. About 78 ashram members left
Sabarmati for Dandi, a village in Gujarat on the seacoast to break the salt law.
7. They walked for 24 days and about 10 miles a day.
8. On 6th April he reached Dandhi and violated the law by manufacturing Salt by
boiling sea water.

Effective symbol of resistance


1. The people not only refused to cooperate with the govt. but also broke the law.
2. They demonstrated in front of the govt. salt factories and started manufacturing
salt.
3. Foreign clothes were boycotted and liquor shops were picketed.
4. Peasants refused to pay revenue or chowkidari taxes and village officials resigned.
5. Many leaders were arrested and newspapers were banned.
6. In the North western Frontier Province the movt was led by Khan Abdul Gaffar
Khan.
When he was arrested people started demonstrating on streets of Peshawar. There was
lot of violence and many people were killed.
7. In Sholapur, industrial workers attacked police posts, municipal buildings, and
railway stations.
8. The frightened Govt. adopted harsh measures like firing and lathi charge.
9. Peaceful Satyagrahis were attacked, women and children beaten and about one
lakh people were arrested.

Q. 18. What were the terms of the Gandhi Irwin Pact?


Ans.
1. In 1929 Lord Irwin, the Viceroy of India, made serious efforts to ensure congress
participation in the Round Table Conference.
2. The failure of the First Round Table conference forced the govt. to come to an
agreement with the Congress.
3. As a result pact was signed between Lord Irwin and Gandhiji in 1931. This pact
was known as Gandhi – Irwin Pact.

Term of the Pact –


1. Government to release all political prisoners and emend the salt laws.
2. Gandhiji to attend Second Round Table Conference.
3. Congress to suspend the civil disobedience movement.
4. It outlined aims for the Constitution of India and a Dominion Status for India. ( A
constitutional system under the control of British).

Q. 19. What were the reasons for the failure of Gandhi – Irwin Pact?
Ans.
1. Many congress leaders were not satisfied by the terms of this pact.
2. The spirit inn which the pact was signed did not last long.
3. Lord Irwin was survived by lord Willington. The new Viceroy had no intentions to
abide by the pact.
4. The radicals within the Congress led by Jawaharlal Nehru and Subhash Chandra
Bose demanded complete independence and not just Dominion Status.
5. The moderates also lost their influence.

Q. 20 Describe the various social groups that participated in the civil disobedience
movement.
Ans.
Rich peasants -
1. They were very hard hit trade depression and falling prices.
2. Their cash income disappeared and they found it impossible to pay the
governments Revenue demand.
3. The refusal of the government to reduce the revenue demean led to wide spread
resentment.
4. They became the supporters of CDM. For them the fight for swaraj was a struggle
against high.
(Many were disappointed when the movement was called off without revising of
revenue and later many did not participate).
Poor Peasants –
1. Many of them were small tenants cultivating land they had rented from their
landlords.
2. They found it difficult to pay the rent during the depression.
3. They joined a variety of radical movements.
4. They didn’t get much support from Congress as many of the leaders were giving
support to rich peasants and landlords.
5. Congress was unwilling to support no –rent campaigns. So relation between the
poor peasants and the congress remained uncertain.
Business Class –
1. Indian merchants and industrialist were keen on expanding their business. So they
wanted protection against import of foreign goods and a rupee – sterling foreign
ration that would discourage imports.
2. They formed Indian Industrial and Commercial Congress in 1920 and the
Federation of Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industries (FICCI).
3. They attacked colonial control over the Indian economy and supported the CDM.
4. After the failure of Round table Conference they were apprehensive of the spread
of violence and influence of socialism. They were no longer enthusiastic.
Industrial Workers –
1. The Congress did not include the workers demands in its programme of struggle as
they didn’t want to alienate industrialist.
2. The industrial workers didn’t participate in the CDM except in the Nagpur region.
3. Some workers did participate in the movement and adopted some of the ideas.
Gandhian programme –boycott of foreign goods, as a part of their own movement
against the low wages and poor working conditions.

Q. 21 What was Gandhiji’s attitude towards untouchables?


Ans.
1. Mahatma Gandhi called the untouchables harijans, organized Satyagraha to secure
them entry into the temples, access to public wells, tanks, roads and schools.
2. He himself did the work of untouchable and persuaded upper caste to change their
heart and give up the sin of untouchability.
3. Mahatma Gandhi was of the view that swaraj would not come if untouchability
was not eliminated.

Q. 22 Discuss the participation of Dalits in CDM.


Ans.
1. Dalit leaders were keen on different political solution to their problems.
2. They began organizing themselves, demanding reserved seats in educational
institutions and a separate electorate that would choose Dalit members for
legislative Councils.
3. Dalit participation in the CDM was therefore limited, particularly Maharashtra and
Nagpur.

Q. 23 What was the Poona Pact?


Ans.
1. The Poona Pact was signed in 1932.
2. It gave the depressed classes reserved seats in Provincial and Legislative Councils,
but they were to be voted in by the general electorate.

Q. 24 Why was the Poona Pact passed?


Ans.
1. Dr. B.R. Ambedkar wanted separate electorates for Dalits.
2. Mahatma Gandhi believed that separate electorates for Dalits would slow down the
process of their integration into society. He began a fast unto death.
3. Dr. Ambedkar ultimately accepted Gandhiji’s position and the result was the
Poona Pact of September 1932.
4. It gave the depressed classes reserved seats in Provincial and Legislative Councils,
but they were to be voted in by the general electorate.

Q. 25 Why did political leaders differ sharply over the question of separate electorates?
Ans.
1. The different political parties wanted to promote the interest of their community.
They wanted separate electorates for their respective communities. But the gain of
one political party would mean the loss of the other.
2. Dr. B.R. Ambedkar demanded separate electorates for Dalits but Gandhiji’s
opposed it. He was of the view that separate electorates would slow down the
process of their integration into the society.
3. M.A. Jinnah demanded separate electorates for Muslims. But the Congress and
Muslim League made an effort to negotiate.
Thus the political leaders differed sharply over the question of separate electorate. While
the congress insisted on joint electorates others demanded separate electorates.

Q. 26. What was the role of Muslims in the National Movement?


Ans.
1. Some of the Muslim political organizations in India were lukewarm in their
response to the CDM.
2. After the decline of the Non – cooperation – Khilafat movement a large section of
Muslims felt alienated from the congress.
3. In 1920s Congress associated themselves with Hindu religious nationalist groups
like the Hindu Mahasabha, as a result Hindu – Muslim relations worsened.
4. Now different communities organized religious processions and there were clashes
and riots in various cities.
5. The Congress and Muslim League made efforts for negotiations and alliance but
differed on the question of separate electorate (as demanded by Jinnah, the leader
of Muslim League).
6. The Muslim League was ready to drop the demand for separate electorate if they
got reserved seats in the Central Assembly.
7. They also demanded representation in proportion to population in the Muslim
dominated province like Bengal and Punjab.
8. All hopes disappeared when M.R. Jayker of Hindu mahasabha strongly opposed
the demands of Muslim League.
9. There was suspicion and distrust between communities. Many Muslim leaders
were concerned about the status of Muslims as minorities within India.
10.They feared that their culture and identity will be lost forever under the domination
of Hindu majority. Therefore large sections of Muslims could not join in the CDM
or united struggle.

Q. 27 Discuss the various cultural processes which promoted the spirit of nationalism
among Indians.
Ans. There were many cultural processes which promoted the spirit of nationalism and
developed the sense of belonging.
1. Figure and image - The identity of India came to be associated with the image of
Bharat Mata. This image was created by Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyaya.
2. Song – Bankim Chandra wrote ‘Vande Mataram’ as a hymn to the motherland. It
was included in his novel Anandmath and widely sung during the Swadeshi
Movement in Bengal.
3. Folklore – Indian folklore was revived. These tales gave a true picture of
traditional culture it helped to restore a sense of pride in our past.
4. Flag – During the Swadeshi movement in Bengal, a tricolour flag was designed.
Later in 1921 Mahatma Gandhi designed the swaraj flag. Carrying the flag,
holding it aloft, during marches became a symbol of defiance.
5. Reinterpretation of history – Indians began looking into the past to discover
India’s great achievements. They wrote about art and architecture, math, religion,
culture, law, philosophy and science etc. Indians were asked to take pride in
India’s great achievements in the past and struggle to change the miserable
conditions of life under British rule.

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