History India

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Social & Cultural Developments

Created: 3/3/2012 7:24 PM
Education
The State of Indigenous Education
What was taught?
1. In higher education, traditional subjects like religious philosophy, literature, languages. Scientific study was
missing.
2. In elementary education, reading, writing and arithmetic was taught.
3. Original thinking and rationalist outlook was discouraged.
Who was taught?
1. Brahmans and high classes.
2. Women and lower castes were generally excluded.
Educational Infrastructure
1. The higher educational centers were mathas and madarssas which were financed by donations from rich and
nobility.
2. The lower educational centers were elementary schools and maktabs.
Dislocation of Indigenous Education
1. In 1844, it was announced that English speaking candidates will be given preference in government jobs. This
was a killer for traditional system.
Introduction of Western Education
Phase 1 (1757-1813)
1. The commercial company took hardly any interest in education. Only exceptions being Calcutta Madarssa by
Warren Hastings in 1781 and Sanskrit College in Benaras in 1791. But the design of these colleges was to
provide Indians for junior administrative posts only.
Phase 2 (1813-1854) - A single shelf of a good European library was worth the whole native literature.
1. The utilitarians needed a class of Indians who would support their liberal legislative agenda of emancipation.
For this education was needed. The Charter Act of 1813 provided for efforts to spread knowledge of modern
sciences in India. A sum of 1 lac rupees p.a. was to be spent for the encouragement of learning in India and
for the promotion of sciences among the Indians. This sum was made available in 1823 only. This was under
the influence of Utilitarians. The company was also facing corruption issued. Grant argued that the officials
rampantly exploited the country as they viewed it as a temporary phenomenon. By providing this grant the
company was demonstrating its commitment to a permanent rule as well as a sense of duty towards the
development of the natives.
2. A General Committee for Public Instruction was setup but it interpreted the clause to mean advancement of
Indian classical literature and sciences. Thus they planned to open more Sanskrit colleges, tols and madrassas.
However this was opposed by the utilitarians and when raja Ram Mohun Roy wrote a letter to the GG
pleading against the proposed Sanskrit college in Calcutta (since he believed that the modernization of India
would come through education and western sciences), utilitarians gained an upper hand. In 1828 Bentinck
was appointed as GG who was a utilitarian himself and in 1834 Macaulay was appointed as the law member in
his council. In 1833, Lord Benetinck setup the Macaulay Committee. The utilitarians wanted to spend this sum
for promotion of western studies exclusively while the orientalists wanted to spend it on western sciences as
well as Indian learning. One wanted medium of instruction to be English, others wanted vernacular
languages. In 1835, a compromise decision was taken. Western sciences were to be taught and in vernacular
languages in primary and in English in higher education. Thus a new education system was introduced in India,
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in which the task of producing knowledge was assigned to the metropole while its reproduction, replication and
dissemination were left for the natives.
3. It must be noted that language was present in India even before 1835. But while earlier it was studied
primarily as a language of literature, now it became the medium of instruction itself. But elementary education
was neglected and mass illiteracy remained. took recourse to trickle down effect theory since it was
considered to be 'more cost effective'. During this period, many English officials became associated with Indian
social reformers and helped opening many educational institutions. In NWFP, a civilian Thomason
experimented with vernacular elementary schools and he was so successful that Dalhousie recommended its
extension to Bihar and Bengal.
Phase 3 (1854- till date)
For Evangelists it was supposed to open the gates for proselytization of Indians, for Utilitarians it was the ultimate
fulfillment of the imperial mission, "imparting education to natives is our moral duty". For the company it sought to
reduce the cost of administration.
1. Woods dispatch in 1854. This asked the government of India to take the responsibility if the education of
masses thereby repudiating the trickle down effect theory. It also took on from the vernacular school
experiment of Thomason and recommended the extension of vernacular education in India. However, in
practice nothing happened. However, even in this shifting focus towards elementary mass education, it is not
difficult to see a concern for political economy of the empire. While a smaller group of highly educated Indians
would be needed to man the subordinate positions in administration, the wider population should also have
'useful and practical' knowledge in order to become good workers and good consumers being able to value the
superiority of goods.
2. Higher education was given a further boost and departments of education were setup in each province and
universities were affiliated to them. Roorkee College of Engineering came up under Dalhousie. Anglovernacular schools were also proposed under him. Canning opened Calcutta, Bombay and Madras universities.
Secondary schools (with as the medium of instruction) proliferated but they were required to charge a fee
since 'free education will not be valued properly'. Curzon started an agriculture institute @ Pusa. Indian Military
Academy was started in Dehradun in 1932.
3. The Indian Education Commission of 1882 reiterated the policy of mass literacy and even advocated setting
aside funds for subsidizing the education of backward communities. But despite the official rhetoric these
backward classes continued to be excluded as the local administration sided with the local elites in excluding
them from the schools in the name of 'practicality'.
So the colonial regime could never abandon the policy of using direct force to uphold its hegemony.
1. But the educated Indians selectively adopted this knowledge and deployed it to interrogate the colonial rule
itself. The Indians who were attracted to education were mainly Hindu upper caste males from middle
classes who were economically hard pressed due to changing times. For most of them education was a
means to get administrative jobs rather than a pathway to intellectual enlightenment and when supply
exceeded the demand, they were soon disgruntled.
education brought the native youth in contact with a body of thought which openly questioned many of the
fundamental assumptions upon which the fabric of traditional values rested.
Enlightenment seemed to be the "panacea" for all the evils and backwardness that Indians were being blamed for.
1. This 'new body of thought' was the post enlightenment rationalism which came to be defined as 'modernity' in
the age. They began to look at their own society through a prism of reason, utility, progress and justice. In this
they found many of the traditional practices wanting. These Indians though identified themselves in the Indian
culture but this culture needed reforms for through their prism, all existing social practices and religious
notions appeared to be signs of a decadent feudal society.
Thus the challenge was to rediscover reason and science in their own civilization, and to reposition the modernization
project within a cultural space defined by Indian tradition.
1. The new social reform agenda, in order to be successful, had to create a reform mentality that did not reject
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Indian tradition but sought to change certain 'unreasonable' aspects of the Hindu society which did not conform
to their new 'rationalist' interpretation of the 'glorious Indian past'. The failure of Derozians was because they
rejected Indian tradition. Arya Samaj, Brahmo Samaj, Prarthna Samaj etc. on the other hand never cut
themselves off from the Indian culture.
2. This 'rooting of reforms in ancient Indian culture' also provided legitimacy to Bentinck's social reform agenda.
Thus sati (which had spread dangerously in this age due to social mobility aspirations of certain ambitious
lower classes) was not abolished for humanitarian reasons but because it was not prescribed in the vedas.
Legislative reforms remained on paper.
1. Furthermore these reforms remained merely on paper and there was no attempt to develop a social
consciousness among the people. Similarly the Widow Remarriage Act 1856 too was conservative in the sense
that on remarriage it disinherited the widow of the property of the deceased husband. In 1803, Wellesley
banned child sacrifice @ Sagar island in Bengal, in 1870 female infanticide was banned but all of it remained
ineffective. In case of even less visible evils, legislative reforms failed to have any effect. Thus in 1843 slavery
was abolished but the agrarian relations in India were so complex that it continued unabated in the form of
indebted labor, bonded labor, caste customs etc.
Nationalist Educational Efforts
1. RN Tagore established Vishwa Bharati University @ Shanti Niketan in 1922. KC Sen found Calcutta College in
1861.
2. During Swadesi, Satish Chandra Mukerjee started the Bhagabat Charuspathi, the Dawn Society was started,
Brahmabandhab Upadhyay started Saraswat Ayatan. Bengal National College was founded in 1906.
Rise of Press, Literature and Public Opinion
Factors Responsible
1.
2.
3.
4.
Social reform movements. They used journals to increase awareness.

Liberal policies followed by William Benetinck.
Western education.
Nature of rule.
Nature & Character

1. Indian press covered national as well as international news. Thus what was happening in the world and other
parts of the country began to affect people in one part.
2. It served as views reporter as well and views reflecting Indian aspirations were given weight.
Impact
1. The people saw that what was happening in other parts of the country as a result of rule was happening with
them as well and affected them. This led to growing integration.
2. Indian aspirations were highlighted in the articles and created awakening.
3. It helped INM and social reforms. In the early days when INM was not a mass movement, press was the main
weapon in the hand of nationalists. To be a journalist meant to be a political worker and involved considerable
self sacrifice.
4. Its impact was not limited to educated gentry because very often a literate person would read out the
newspaper to a group of illiterates. Discussing newspapers became a form of political participation.
Freedom of Press
Censor Act 1799 by Lord Wellesley
1. Every newspaper should print the names of printer, editor and proprietor. Before printing any material it should
be submitted to the secretary of Censorship. This Act was abolished by Hastings.
Licensing regulation Act 1823 by John Adam
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1. Every publisher should get a license from the government, defaulters would be fined Rs 400 and the press
would be ceased by the government. Government has right to cancel the license. Charles Metcalf abolished the
Act.
2. Raja Ram Mohun Roy protested against it in 1824. This was the first political protest in India.
3. In subsequent years, press friendly policies were followed. But in 1870 an act was passed which declared
preaching disaffection towards rule an act of sedition and treason. Indian press used to dodge it while
proclaiming loyalty to the crown @ top of the article, publishing excerpts or anti-imperialistic quotes in foreign
newspapers, by presenting the content as an advice to the government, irony, sarcasm.
Vernacular Press Act IX 1878
1. Magistrates were authorized to ask any publisher of newspaper to give assurance of not publishing anything
threatening peace and security. The magistrates decision was final in any dispute.
2. To dodge it, Amrita Bazar Patrika became an english newspaper overnight. The first great demonstration in
India happened over this issue in Calcutta in 1881 and it had to be repealed in 1882 by Lord Ripon.
3. SN Bannerjea was the first Indian to go to jail over press issue. He was held for contempt of court in a case
where the court had disregarded public sentiments by having an ancient idol brought over to the court
premises. BG Tilak also used press to propagate nationalist messages and to popularize ganpati and shivaji
festivals. He was sentenced to long years in jail for his press articles.
Newspaper Act 1908
1. Magistrate had the power to confiscate the assets of the press.
Press Regulating Act 1942
1. Registration of journalists was made mandatory. Limitations were imposed on the messages regarding civil
disturbances. Prohibition of news was imposed regarding acts of sabotage. Limitations on headlines and space
given to news on disturbances.
Press Trivia
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Abul Kalam Azad --> Lissan-us-Sidq, Al-Hilal (1912) and Al-Balak (1914).
Newspapers which covered 1857 revolt --> Doorbin, Sultan-ul-Akhbar, Payam-i-Azadi.
MG Ranade --> Indu Prakash and Gyan Prakash (Marathi press).
Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar + Harish Chandra Mukerjee --> Hindoo Patriot.
Gandhi --> Indian Opinion, Young India, Nav Jivan.
JLN --> National Herald.
BK Ghose --> Yugantar.
Madam Bhikaji Kama --> Vande Matram & Talwar.
CR Das, BC Pal, SC Malik --> Bande Matram.
Bhartendu Harish Chandra --> Kavichan Sudha (1st Hindi journal).
Sardar Dayal Singh Majithia (+SN Bannerjea) --> Tribune (1881).
Raja Ram Mohun Roy (protest against John Adam) --> Banga Dutta, Samwad Kaumudi.
Fardoonji Nairoji --> Gujarati Samachar.
Dadabhai Nairoji --> Rast Goffar.
Rudyard Kipling --> Pioneer.
Shishir Kumar & BK Ghose --> Amrita Bazar Patrika.
Jyotibha Phule --> Din Bandhu.
Derozio --> East Indian Newspaper.
Madan Mohan Malviya --> Leader, Hindustan.
PS Mehta --> Bombay Chronicle.
Lala Lajpat Rai --> Punjabi, Vande Matram, People.
James Augustus Hichey --> Bengal Gazette (India's first newspaper).
KC Sen --> Indian Mirror.
Rise of Modern Vernacular Literature

Christian Missionaries
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1. Christian missionaries had been coming here and preaching since ancient times. Their activities were mostly
peaceful and sensitive earlier and they could carry on their activities here. Example of Akbar.
2. The Charter Act of 1813 gave full government backing to the missionaries. With this, they abandoned their
previous ways and turned insensitive. The government thought that christianization of India would perpetuate
rule in India and will also create Indians who are brown in color but in thought. But the resentment against
the methods used by missionaries and the social reform movements eventually undermined the rule only.
Progress of Science
1. Raja RM Roy was a champion of modern sciences and western education. He setup a Society for Translating
European Sciences in 1825 and followed it up with a Society for the Acquisition of General Knowledge in 1838.
His movement reached a major milestone when in 1876 Mahendra Lal Sarkar setup the Indian Association for
the Cultivation of Sciences. Syed Ahmed Khan founded the Aligarh Scientific Society in 1864. In 1866 Bihar
Scientific Society was found.
Socio-Cultural Policy in India
Imperialistic Ideology
1. In the post enlightenment intellectual environment, the also started defining themselves as a modern
civilization vis a vis the orientals and this rationalized their imperial vision. The resulting patriotism reveled in
the glory of the imperial empire. They began to look upon their imperialistic campaign as an 'age of reform'.
Thus the imperial ideology in India and the so called 'sub imperialism' was merely a part of such imperialistic
ideology back home and provided every justification for the actions of the local officials in India.
The government of the East India Company functioned like an 'Indian Ruler'
1. This was said by the colonial historians in the sense that it accepted the nominal suzerainty of the Mughals,
struck coins in his name, used Persian as the official language and administered Hindu and Muslim laws in the
courts. It followed a system of government in which it left much of the administrative organization unchanged
at the local level.
2. However, this policy of 'least intervention' had originated not from any ideological concerns but merely from a
pragmatic concern as initially didn't have sufficient knowledge and resources to establish their separate
administration in India. Such a policy was discarded as soon as the situation became favorable. The
anglicization of the administration began but it was not a revolutionary change but a gradual one. The officials
looked at themselves as "inheritors rather than innovators, as the revivers of a decayed system". It was their
duty to free India of the tyranny of its decayed system by introducing modern ideas and form of administration.
Orientalists
Respect and paternalism, therefore, remained the 2 complementing ideologies of the early empire in India.
1. were also baffled by the Hindu religion which was not monotheistic, not founded by a single prophet, had no
religious leader / institution and neither had a single sacred text. In India multiple religions were practiced and
enjoyed royal patronage unlike Europe. Thus they felt a need to fit this phenomenon within their mould of
bounded rationality.
2. They thought of India as a land of past glory which had fallen into degeneration. They had, thus, an urge to
know or 'rediscover' the glorious past culture of India. Moreover they believed that in order to further the Raj in
India, the best way was to rule the conquered people by their own laws. They believed in not disturbing Indian
culture and society and if pressed, introduce changes only gradually. Sweeping or rapid changes might produce
a violent reaction. This required a knowledge about Indian languages, practices, norms etc. So Indian
languages were studied as well as dharmashastras (which were believed to be Indian code of laws). Asiatic
Society of Bengal, William Jones all belonged to this school. Sanskrit was shown to have links with European
languages, Asiatic Society of Bengal was founded in 1784, Calcutta Madrassa in 1781 and Sanskrit College in
Benaras in 1794 for the purpose of promoting Indian studies. It was for the same reason that the Fort William
College @ Calcutta was setup in 1800 to train the civil servants about Indian system.
3. After Hastings the emphasis on the 'ancient glory' of Indian civilization was changed to the 'present
degenerated' state. Indian thought was considered to be more in the sphere of spirituality and mysticism and
thus appealed to these who were apprehensive of excessive materialism brought about by the
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industrialization of their society. They tried to show that Indians were so concerned with the other world and
so less with the tangible aspects of this world. A dichotomy was maintained that values were materialistic
while Indian values were spiritual. They hoped to bring about another renaissance in . Every accumulation of
knowledge is useful to the state: it attracts and conciliates distant affections, it lessens the weight of the chain
by which the natives are held in subjection, and it imprints on the hearts of our own countrymen the sense and
obligation of benevolence.
4. They showed that Sanskrit had linkages with european languages so that it could be proved it was derived
from european languages only. They also emphasized on the kinship of the Aryan race. The similarity in
language and the Aryan race hypothesis (with subsequent degradation of the Indian brothers) also served to
legitimize the authoritarian rule (kinship ties) and it now needed to be 'rescued from the predicament of its
own creation' and elevated to the desired state of progress as achieved by Europe. In this zeal, efforts were
made to link Puranas with Bible but were not successful. A son of Noah was said to have migrated to India and
establish the Indian population! Orientalism was a knowledge thrust from above through the power of the
europeans, it was produced through a process of dialogue in which the colonial officials, Indian commentators
and native informants participated in a collaborative intellectual exercise and one in which the natives hardly
had any control over the final outcome.
5. Thus Orientalism produced a knowledge of the past to meet the requirements of the present i.e. to serve the
needs of the colonial state.
Despotism was something which distinguished the Oriental state from its European counterpart; but ironically, it was
the same logic that provided an implicit justification for the paternalism of the Raj
1. Armed with the legitimacy derived from the ancient kinship ties and the obligation to lift his brethren,
Cornwallis departed from the conservative policy of Hastings and went for greater anglicization of the
administration. Cornwallis even introduced the PS in the hope that the rule of law and private property rights
would liberate individual enterprise from the shackles of custom and tradition, and would bring in
modernization to the economy and society.
2. Wellesley furthered the policy of anglicization the aim of which was supposed to be the end of 'oriental
despotism' and this despotism can be ended by limiting state interference by limiting its role to protection of
individual rights and private property and separation of judiciary and executive. Radical at home, attracted to
the glorious past of India and its simple people, they remained nonetheless the upholders of authoritarian rule
in India.
3. The company tried to curb the local zamindars in order to free the people from their oppressive feudal lords
and to safeguard their freedom (for the natives were not used to enjoying freedom and needed to be
emancipated). And ostensibly for same purpose it took utmost care in surveying and policing the territory.
However, the real aim was to ensure a free flow of trade and steady collection of revenue and bleed the
Indians dry without any resistance.
Conservative Philosophy Behind Ryotwari System
1. Cornwallis was opposed by Malcolm and Metcalfe who thought that PS didn't pay heed to Indian tradition and
experience. They thought that such reforms (rule of law and separation of powers) had to be modified to suit
the Indian context. Some old traditions in the administration must be maintained and the role of the company
should be protective than intrusive. So Munro went on to introduce the Ryotwari settlement with the intention
to 'preserve India's village communities'.
2. Ryotwari system also had elements of 'military fiscalism' since Munro's ultimate aim was strengthening of the
Raj by expanding its revenue base where land taxes would be collected directly by the state to build a strong
army. Munro further believed that part of India should be indirectly governed but he insisted that the traditional
form of government will function better if directed by authoritarian rule (the zamindars and local elites being
governed by ). He thus rejected the idea of direct political participation by Indians.
Utilitarianism
1. They were largely who resided in but wrote about India. People like Mill, Macaulay were associated with
this school. They believed that the conquest of India had been by acts of sin or crime but instead of advocating
abolition of this 'sinful' act, they clamored for its reform so that Indians could get the benefit of good
governance of and keep up with the 'best ideas of the age'. Thus were ruling India for their own
good. They held that Indians were not fit to govern themselves according to modern ideas. They had never
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2.
3.
4.
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known democracy etc. and had always been ruled by despotic kings totally unrepresentative of public opinion
(theory of oriental despotism). India always had self sufficient villages whose surplus was creamed off by the
despotic rulers governing through an autocratic bureaucracy. The peasant was always kept subjugated and the
king would control all means of irrigation and would own all land and claim divine status. Thus they believed
that were doing a favor by ruling India by modern means.
Contrary to Orientalists they were sharply critical of the 'barbaric' Indian culture and believed in changing the
very nature of India. They firmly believed in the superiority of race and culture. They emphasized on the
values of rational thought and individualism which were said to be absent in India and that Indian culture was
stagnant. This stagnant culture can be uplifted by introduction of Christianity in India (thus believed the
Evangelists who also belonged to this school). Grant was instrumental behind the provision of allowing
Christian missionaries into India and their state backing in the 1813 Charter Act. While the Utilitarians talked of
appropriate social engineering and authoritarian reformism the Evangelists argued about the necessity of
government intervention to liberate Indians from their religions that were full of superstitions, idolatry, and
tyranny of priests.
The free traders also belonged to this group and believed that India could function as a good market for
goods and a reliable supplier of raw materials if the company shifted its attention from 'trading' to 'ruling' and
take steps to restructure the economy. They were instrumental in lifting of the company's monopoly in the
1833 Act.
The liberals (like Macaulay) also belonged to this group. They believed that primary task was to civilize and
not just conquer and in this a liberal agenda of emancipation needs to be followed. Trained by us to happiness
and independence, and endowed with our learning and political institutions, India will remain the proudest
monument of benevolence. should improve Indian society by bringing in social reform legislations and
promoting education in India to remove the stagnant features of Indian society.
This ideology legitimized the authoritarian regime in order to follow a liberal emancipation agenda. Thus
Bentham argued that the ideal of human civilization was to bring the greatest good to greatest number. Good
laws, efficient administration were the most effective agents of change and the rule of law is a necessary
precondition. Mill 'exploded' the myth of Indian cultural and economic riches and argued that what India
needed for her improvement was an effective school master i.e. a wise government promulgating good
legislations. They were responsible for passage of 1813 act where it was provided that 1 lac rupees be spent
for the promotion of western sciences. They divided the study of Indian history into Hindu age, Muslim age and
the age so as to divide Indians and perpetuate rule. They began to interpret history in terms of communal
lines. They drew up the IPC (Macaulay) on the Benthamite model of a centrally, logically and coherently
formulated code, evolving from 'disinterested philosophic intelligence'.
Utilitarianism: vs India
in britain:political reforms - 1832 reform act, subsequent reform acts in 1867 etc, strengthening of democracy through
expansion of franchise, political freedom and civil liberties, abolition of slavery etc.
influence on economy - ricardo's theory of comparative advantage, free trade, abolition of monopolies (prominently
that of english east india company), abolition of corn laws, navigation laws, other protectionist measures and taxes.
legal reforms - codification of laws, systemising all the laws, repealing the laws which were redundant, and passing
those which were necessary.
in india:political effects - exclusion of indians from government positions, charter acts of 1813, 1833
economic reforms - abolition of company's monopoly, free trade, financial capitalism, ricardo's theory of rent was
applied in bombay presidency
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legal reforms - codification of laws, ipc, crpc, rule of law, property rights etc
education - anglicist over oriental
social and cultural - abolition of sati, etc etc (there were other social reforms which were the result of utilitarians which
i dont remember)
consequences
in britain - democracy, rule of law, people's participation, huge support to industrialisation, financial capitalism, etc
in india - authoritarian despotism, white racism, mass illiteracy, inaccessible justice, poverty, deindustrialisation, -ve
effect on agriculture due to application of ricardo's rent theory, etc
Estimate of Bentinck
1. He was an ardent follower of Mill and followed a liberal emancipating agenda to abolish Sati and child
infanticide in the same spirit. Still he was different from Mill in the sense he retained his faith in Indian
traditions and nurtured the orientalist desire to give back Indians their true religion grounded in their ancient
texts - Sati abolition was carried out because it was warranted by ancient Hindu texts.
2. Press Reforms: He followed a liberal approach towards press and let it grow including the vernacular press.
3. Educational Reforms: He constituted the Macaulay Committee in 1833 which submitted its report in 1835 which
entailed that vernacular should be the medium in primary and English in higher levels.
4. Judicial Reforms: He abolished the provincial courts and the circuit courts. Till now Persian was used in the
courts, but he made vernaculars in the lower ones and English in the higher ones.
Victorian Liberalism - Post 1857
It was Victorian liberalism in the post - 1857 India that certainly made paternalism the dominant ideology of the Raj.
The traumatic experience of the revolt convinced many in that in India reform was 'dangerous as well as pointless'
and that Indians could never be trained to become like .
India thus passed from the Company rule to the Crown rule, which ironically meant the rejection of a liberal promise
of reforming India in order to prepare her for self government. It meant, in other words, a "symbolic endorsement of
permanence in India".
1. It can't be said that the zeal for reform was totally gone for it could be seen in the the Crown Proclamation of
1858, in the patronage of education, in Indian Councils Act, 1861 and in Local Self Government Act, 1882.
2. But the Orientalist regard for Indian culture, Utilitarian hope for emancipation of Indians was replaced by
racial superiority. were ruling not because 'it was for Indian good or to lift the Indians out of a stagnant
culture and economy via christianity, free trade or liberal legislative agenda' (as proclaimed by the Utilitarians)
but because they had a right to do so given their racial superiority. Indians were not the 'school children' as
thought by utilitarians but were 'primitive savages'. They were beyond redemption and trust was reposed in
their 'natural leaders' vis the zamindars and native princes. This arrangement has also been called the 'limited
raj' where the colonial regime depended on the local power elites like zamindars of the administration of the
interior.
3. Such ideas were reinforced by the rise of racial 'sciences' in which furthered the idea of superior races. They
couldn't contend with the idea of an ancient glorious civilization of 'dark skinned Indian aborigines' and thus the
theory of 'white skinned' Aryan invasion over the dark skinned Indian aborigines was invented. Indians were
never fit to rule themselves (as they were racially inferior and had always been ruled by foreign invaders) and
all talk of right of self determination was dismissed as being sentimental.
4. Such kind of racialism had always been present in the Raj (although came out more openly now) as Cornwallis
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had earlier transformed the company officials into an 'aloof elite' maintaining physical separation from the
subjects. soldiers were forbidden to have any sexual contact with Indian women and were confined to
barracks where they would be confined from 'Indian diseases and vices'. civilian officers were discouraged
from having Indian mistresses and urged to have wives. In the imperial cities, a physical separation was
maintained between the and the Indian settlements and thus every city came to have a 'white town' and a
'black town' intersected by a 'grey town' which was dominated by Eurasians and accessible to natives as well.
With time the position of Eurasians (mixed children) went down in the imperial pecking order and they too
were barred from holding any important posts.
3 philosophical strands after the 1857 revolt
1. After the 1857 revolt rule became very authoritarian. There were 3 reactions to it. First were the liberals
who became critical of the authoritarian nation of the Raj. Second were the utilitarians who believed that
democracy and self governance were desirable goals and authoritarianism was undesirable, but Indians were
not ready or educated enough for it and that is why there was a need for paternalistic authoritarianism. They
however nurtured the hope that once Indians become properly educated they can be handed over the political
control.
2. The third strand outrightly rejected any form of concession and embraced authoritarianism. They advocated
that Indians should never be handed over self rule and there was no obligation on side to gradually prepare
them for this task.
Radicals
1. They applied the doctrines of rationalism, humanism and belief in capacity of man to upgrade himself to
Indians as well and wanted India to progress. They were also aided unwillingly by missionary activities as they
ridiculed Hinduism and Islam. But later they succumbed to imperialistic thought.
Nature and Character of Socio-Cultural Policy
1. It was a colonial policy. needed a modern section in India to act as a bridge between themselves and natives,
to man lower administrative posts, to spread market of products in India. But too much of modernization
might produce a violent reaction or worse spread modern ideas of liberty and nationhood in India.
2. The colonial nature is also reflected in the fact they neglected elementary education and literacy of masses.
Education of girls was also neglected. They only spent the meagre amount allocated for education on higher
education so as to produce clerks.
3. The policy gave full support to missionary activities in India. These missionaries ridiculed Hindu and Muslim
religions.
Paintings
1. created demand for Indian painting but modified it to suit the moods of west. So there was a reaction in
Indian schools. Raja Ravi Varma in Kerala tried to re-establish Indian art using western methods like oil
painting.
2. Bengal Revival: Abanindra Nath Tagore and Havel led the revival of Indian art in Bengal. Their style as well as
themes were Indian and they tried to revive the best in ancient and medieval art and adapt it to modern times.
Nandlal Basu was another leading painter who painted in Ajanta style.
Social Reform Movements
Nature & Character
1. They were liberal and progressive and not regressive. They were inspired by modern ideas and vision of
future.
2. They were religious reforms but they aimed at improving the society and creating consciousness among
people. Religion was so omnipresent in those days in social interactions that any meaningful attempt to awaken
people and reform the society had to involve religious reforms.
3. They were assimilating in character. They assimilated the ideals of west and east, different religions, past and
future. They only took the best in each and didn't ape. Rationalism and scientific attitude were taken from west
but materialism and racism rejected. Simplicity and value system was taken from east but narrowness and
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4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
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bigotry rejected.
It was indian renaissance though not backward looking. Renaissance means rebirth. Even Arya Samaj didn't
mean return to vedic life when it said 'go back to vedas'. It simply meant restoration of the virtues established
in Vedas.
It was egalitarian. Castes, religions, gender.
It had close association with politics and the reformers used political backing to support their cause.
They emphasized on the common aspects of Indian culture, weaken the divisive elements and hence create a
sense of belonging to common nation.
They were humanist, pan Indian and non-violent in their thinking.
Significance
1. They created awakening and the cultural background. They emphasized on the common aspects of Indian
culture and do away with the divisive elements. They instilled a sense of pride in Indians. The concept of nation
emerged. They highlighted how all of us are suffering from same problems.
2. All of them supported education and even founded many institutions. This led to spread of modern education
and ideas.
3. They encouraged vernacular languages and press. Ram Mohan Roy had a journal 'Samvad Kaumudi'. But they
never really tried to preach their message among the masses. Lacking a broad social base, the reformers thus
exhibited an intrinsic faith in the benevolent nature of the colonial rule and tried to impose the reforms from
top.
Equally important is the colonial character of reforms (orientalists).
1. The dominant colonial perception at that time was that religion was the dominant form of social discourse and
that it was codified in the scriptures. The social evils were thought of as the distortions created by self serving
interests who had a monopoly over the textual knowledge. Thus most of the reformers translated the ancient
texts into the local languages and used to derive legitimacy for their agenda by references to the scriptures and
not because of any intrinsic humanistic value. Thus It is simplistic to suggest that the great reformers of the
19th century were not concerned about the welfare of women; but the reforms were not just for women.
2. But it is not justified to say that the reformers just reflected colonial formulations. The earlier writings of Raja
RM Roy are indeed full of humanistic pleas to ameliorate the condition of Indian women. The reference of
scriptures was just to sell his agenda.
They undertook to reform their society and its religious practices in order to adapt them to Western modernity while
preserving the core of Hindu tradition.
1. It can be argued that they took recourse to the colonial state for support and direction from the post
enlightenment concepts of rationality, but they could never leave the Indian tradition. The Indian modernization
project always felt a compulsion to construct a modernity that would be located within Indian cultural space.
Raja Ram Mohun Roy
1. Education: He opened many institutions like the Hindu College and the Sanskrit College. He was a champion of
modern sciences and western education. He setup a Society for Translating European Sciences in 1825 and the
Derozians followed it up with a Society for the Acquisition of General Knowledge in 1838. His movement
reached a major milestone when in 1876 Mahendra Lal Sarkar setup the Indian Association for the Cultivation
of Sciences.
2. Journalism: He had a journal called Samvad Kaumudi and was one of the earliest tall figures in this are who
defined the path of its growth.
3. Vernacular Languages: Wrote in Bengali. Translated many books in Bengali.
4. Women: Fought for abolition of sati. Widow remarriage, child marriage.
5. Religion: Fought against priestly domination, caste system, polytheism (translated the upanishads into Bengali
to prove that ancient scriptures prescribed monotheism), idol worship, rituals.
6. Politics: Organized first political agitation.
7. International: Kept himself aware of international events. Naples revolution failure => fasted.
8. Economy: Raised his voice on economic issues as well.
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Bijoy Goswami
1. He took the movement out from the elite circle in Calcutta into the district towns of east Bengal along with KC
Sen. He bridged the gap between Brahmo movement and Vaishnavism.
Debendra Nath Tagore
1. He reorganized Brahmo Samaj and found Tatvabodhini Sabha. After the 1st Brahmo Samaj split in 1865 over
question of radical reforms, he led the old faction called Adi Brahmo Samaj.
KC Sen
1. He took the movement out of Bengal. He found Sangat Sabha in 1860. He toured India and helped in founding
Veda Samaj by S Naidu and Pratthna Samaj in Maharastra. He found Indian Reform Association which was 1st
all India reform association.
2. He promoted girl education and reforms which led to Child Marriage Restraint Act.
3. After the 1st Brahmo Samaj split in 1865 he led the radical faction Bharatvarshiya Brahmo Samaj which
wanted to dissociate itself from Hinduism altogether. The other faction led by DN Tagore preferred to maintain
their identification with Hinduism. Later on Sen himself became milder and in 1878 there was a 2nd split over
the issue of KC Sen marrying off his minor daughter. His rivals formed Sadharan Brahmo Samaj (included SN
Bannerjea, AM Bose, Sivnath Sastri). After the 2nd split, he went on to found Nav-Vidhaan with focus on mixing
Hindu and Christian ideas. But eventually the movement died as it succumbed to Hindu revivalism.
Arya Samaj
1. It laid stress on infallibility of Vedas (because social evils were absent in those times) and education including
modern sciences. It is difficult to ignore the western orientalist touch in his discourse that tried to project
Hinduism as a "religion of the book". But in his aggressive response to the west, he fully used the western tools
of reason and science. Yet the reforms he argued for were the very reforms too argued for.
2. It was an attempt to revitalize Hindu society in face of the insensitive and fraudulent activities of Christian
missionaries, westernization of India for colonial purposes. He held Hinduism to be superior than Islam or
Christianity because for him 'Vedas alone contained scientific truths'.
3. However, it remained confined to North because the appeal of Vedas was not popular in Dravidian lands and
non-Vedic groups.
Reforms in W India
1. In W India, reforms began in 2 different ways - one was the orientalist method of rediscovering the glory of
ancient Indian civilization through its texts (KT Talang, VN Mandalik and RG Bhandarkar belonged to this
school), and the other was the more radical and direct trend of attacking caste system, widow remarriage etc
(Mehtaji Durgaram, Dadoba Pandurang, Mandav Dharma Sabha, Paramhansa Mandali).
Prarthna Samaj
1. KC Sen visited deccan between 1864 and 1867 and as a direct consequence, Prarthna Samaj was setup by MG
Ranade in 1867 along with Atmaram Pandurang, RG Bhandarkar, KT Talang. All the leading personalities of this
movement were western educated brahmans and its philosophy followed that of Brahmo samaj even though it
maintained its distinction from the latter in avoiding a direct confrontation with the brahmanical society (and
thus was more cautious and gradual in approach than Brahmo samaj). Thus it did not seek to break with the
past and end all connections with the society.
2. Its activities in AP were spread by the famous widow remarriage champion Veersa Lingam Pantulu.
Young Bengal
Young Bengal left little distinctive or permanent impression on the plane of religion and philosophy.
Thus the challenge was to rediscover reason and science in their own civilization, and to reposition the modernization
1. They wanted to transform the scientific rationalist mentality into an effective social agenda. They were guided
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by free thinking and became notorious for their individual social rebellion. Their importance was that they
posed a direct and militant intellectual challenge to the religious and social orthodoxy in Hinduism.
2. They founded the Society for the Acquisition of General Knowledge in 1838 and advocated social reforms like
ending caste taboos, child marriage, kulin polygamy or the ban on widow remarriage. Yet they couldn't usher
in an age of reform because they were too anglicized in their thought and behavior. Any movement which
based itself on the western thought and distant from Indian tradition couldn't have succeeded in India. Thus the
challenge was to rediscover reason and science in their own civilization, and to reposition the modernization
Other Women Movements
It is simplistic to suggest that the great reformers of the 19th century were not concerned about the welfare of
women; but the reforms were not just for women.
1. When civilizations were ranked, one of the major criteria was the position of women and it was here that
Indian civilization was severely criticized. So the educated Indians responded to this criticism by advocating
women reforms. Such reforms however affected only few women.
2. In 1841 an anonymous Maratha brahman reformer advocated child remarriage of infant widows as a measure
to control their sexuality and to make their reproductive capacity socially useful.
3. In 1860s a strong movement under Vishnu Sastri for widow remarriage began but in 1870 it suffered a setback
when the reformists were defeated in a public debate. By 1900, only 38 widow remarriages had taken place
and in all the places the couples had to face immense social pressure.
4. In Telugu speaking areas of Madras, Veersa Lingam Pantulu started the widow remarriage movement and
founded the Society for Social Reform in 1878. He officiated the 1st widow remarriage in 1881 in
Rajahmundry. He was able to rally support for the movement and in 1891 a Widow Remarriage Association
was formed with the patronage of prominent citizens of the town.
5. In Bengal, Vidyasagar continued his reform movement, directing it against polygamy and child marriage and
finally secured the 1856 Act as well as the 1860 Age of Consent Act (fixing the minimum age of consent @ 10).
This was raised to 12 by the 1891 Act.
BR Ambedkar
1. Journalism: Mook Nayak (1920), Bahishkrit Bharat (1924), Prabuddha Bharat (1929).
2. Associations: 1st Depressed Classes Conference @ Mangaon / Kolhapur (1920), Bahishkrit Sabha @ Bombay
(1924), 2nd Depressed Classes Conference @ Mahad (1927) where he publicly burnt Manu Smriti, Simon
Committee (1928), 3rd Depressed Classes Conference @ Nagpur (1930), Independent Labor Party (1936).
3. Agitations: Mahad Satyagrah (1924) for right of untouchable to draw water from public wells,
Ferazai Movement
1. It was led initially by Shariatullah of Farirpur (E Bengal) and later by his son Muhammad Mehsin (Dadu Mian).
2. He was influenced by Wahabism and preached radical ideas, need to oppose exploitation. He campaigned
against payment of rents.
Wahabi Movement
1. It was preached in India by Syed Ahmed Khan of Barelli and it was popular in NWFP.
2. It stressed on purity of Islam and was orthodox.
Politics of Separation
Created: 3/6/2012 7:22 PM
ML
Background
1. By the middle of 19th century, Hindus had forged ahead due to awakening created by socio-reform movements
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which were liberal and progressive. A middle class had emerged which had modern ideas. On the other hands,
the reform movements in the Muslim society were backward looking. They emphasized on purity of Islam and
were orthodox.
2. Since Muslims formed the political elite before , they were quite discontent with the . So participated in large
numbers in 1857 revolt. So after the 1857 revolt, followed a politics of discrimination against Muslims. As a
combined result, Muslims were left behind in government jobs and middle class professions.
3. Some Muslim intellectuals realized the causes and made attempts to befriend the and to embrace western
education. Many schools and colleges were opened.
Phase 1: Secular interests linked to religion (1888-1906)
Nature & Character
1. The dominance of Hindus and religious policies of created a sense that secular interests were linked to
religion and Muslims as a community shared common interests. Terms like "Muslim interests" came up and
issue of safeguarding it as well.
2. Once such a thing came up, fanned it by beginning to favor Muslims and encouraging liberal communalists
who claimed to champion Muslim interests. associated with MAO College @ Aligarh and encouraged Syed
Ahmed Khan.
3. in 1885, INC was founded. attempted to gave it a Hindu color and won over Syed Ahmed Khan to their side.
He became a communalist now. In 1888, he setup United India Patriotic Association to counter INC. In 1893, he
setup MAO Defense Association to 'protect Muslim interests'. In 1893 when Tilak began the ganpati festival, he
found the Mohammedan Defence Association.
4. In 1888, he even emphasized that Hindus and Muslims were 2 separate nations, separate people with separate
needs and aspirations. He introduced the idea that because of numerical majority, Hindus will annihilate
Muslims in any sort of representative government.
5. Essentially secular things were increasingly being given communal color (examples are Wahabi, Faraizi, Arya
Samaj, Urdu agitation) - often by vested interests like the landlords who found it an effective way of retaining
their influence. Thus Hindi became a language of Hindus and Urdu became a language of Muslims, cow
became a reason worth spilling blood for and things like playing loud music within the audible range of a
mosque became communal issues. Involvement of political leaders from both communities gave the issues a
political color as well. An example is the political recruitment of Ganpati by TIlak in 1893.
6. The 1st muslim organization in bengal was the Mohammedan Association or Anjuman-i-Islami in 1855 with the
objective of 'protecting muslim interests' and 'professing loyalty' to . Then came Hunter's thesis in 1871 that
the exclusion of muslims from the education and administrative posts was mainly responsible for the popular
appeal of the anti sentiment in the community (the wahabi and the faraizi movements). Soon a close
collaboration between educated muslims and the maulavis developed and communalist ideas began to spread
in rural areas as well. Then came swadesi and until then not all muslims were separatists or loyalists, but the
movement soon put on the unmistakable stamp of otherness. The anti-partition campaign began to appear as
anti-muslim campaign to them.
Syed Ahmad's Concept of Nationalism
1. His idea of being a muslim was not opposed to being an Indian but he did not visualize India as a nation state
based on individual citizenship. Instead it was to be a lose federation of communities or qaums and in this
federation of qaums the Muslims should get preferential treatment from the virtue of being the past rulers.
Factors Responsible
1. Rise of modern politics: Earlier people's involvement in politics was negligible. But the modern politics was
people based and public opinion mattered. So people had to be mobilized. Naturally they had to be organized
along some lines. Caste, religion, region etc. formed natural organizing lines and became political identities.
Even some of the nationalists used symbols of Hinduism to rally people and thus made it easier for the
communalists to point fingers.
2. Colonial government: It always stroked communalism to divide Indian people and deny existence of India. So
while normally such political identities give way to modern identities based on economic lines, this never
happened in India because supported communal division. They supported communal forces, communal press
and extended concessions to them. They favored the concept of communal electorates. The colonial
government always tried to project Muslims as a homogenous community. The Indian census made religion as
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the fundamental category for ordering and classifying demographic and developmental data. The breakup of
education and occupation statistics gave an objective expression to the vague communal thoughts.
3. Rise of middle class: Communalism is a middle class phenomenon, fanned by them, to protect their interest.
Reservations in legislatures and jobs sound appealing to all though they benefit mainly the middle class.
Colonial rule here played an important role again because as a result of destruction of industries, the middle
class had to rely mainly on government jobs.
4. Social differences: At the same time the structure of Indian society too made things easier for communalists.
In entire areas, certain classes or religious communities dominated the resources and power. So it was easier
for communalists to point finger and rally people behind them. So tenant-landlord struggles were repeatedly
given religious color. It was also easier to rally people in the name of religion as religion had always played an
important role in Indian society.
5. Intensification of rivalry: Once communal tendencies evolved in one group, other groups' radical elements too
gained popularity by pointing fingers. This only worsened the situation. Revivalist movements in both
communities fueled it. The Wahabi and Faraizi movements rejected the earlier syncretism and sought to
Islamize the muslim culture by purging customs of un-Islamic origin. Thus communalism began to percolate
among the masses as well.
Phase 2: Interests are divergent (1906-1937)
Nature & Character
1. ML was founded in 1906 @ Dhaka. Its members were aristocratic elements and ML truly represented their
interests in the name of representing 'Muslim interests'. It began with the demand of communal electorates for
Muslims. While earlier the jagirdari elements had managed to keep the ulamas distant from the center stage of
politics, now the Aligarh school ulammas came to be directly involved in central politics.
2. Though from 1912-1924 ML purged its jagirdari elements and moved towards Congress, its nationalism was
flawed in the sense it was not fully secular. Protecting Muslim interests remained the core and nationalism was
taken too because it was though Muslim interests could be better served via the nationalist cause. Instead of
fighting for political and economic reasons, they fought them on question of Caliph and holy places. They
viewed the Balkan and the Tripoli wars as a conspiracy of the west to weaken the muslim turks. This was a
step back because it introduced the tendency of looking @ purely politico-economic questions from religious
viewpoint.
3. Congress too failed to check communalism at this stage because its policy was flawed. It followed a policy of
negotiating with Muslim communal leaders first in 1916 and then in 1919-20 instead of expanding its base
among Muslims. This had many negative effects - (a) It gave legitimacy to Muslim communal leaders' claims of
'representing Muslims'. (b) It made life tough for Muslim leaders inside Congress as they lost the ground of
their existence to the communal leaders. (c) It accepted the notion that there were things such as 'Muslim
interests' and 'Hindu interests'.
4. Hindu communalism also began to grow and it was used as a means of justification by Muslim communalism.
Chicken and egg problem. Both used each other to justify that the interests of two communities were
divergent. Hindu Mahasabha was founded in 1915 and RSS in 1925.
There was a 'crisis of unity' after the NCM.
1. Communal riots broke out after the end of the khilafat and the NCM. Issues like cow and music before the
mosque became the issues of the riots. The 1926 elections were fought openly on communal issues. There
was not a single muslim congress candidate in Bengal. Elsewhere all congress muslim candidates lost. The
majority of elected congressmen were pro hindu sympathizers. The uncomfortable association of the local
congress leaders with hindu mahasabha also complicated the situation. Naturally in such situation communal
institutions of both communities gained following. Even Dr. Kitchlew for whom Jalliawalah happened became a
hard core communalist. Shaukat Ali in 1929 observed that congress had become a hindu organization.
2. Within ML as well there were issues between the supporters of communal electorates and the opposers.
Additional factors
1. Swadesi & Boycott Movements: These were immensely powerful movements and to counter this, government
had to form ML and encourage separatist elements.
2. Congress' Policy: It was bound to fail as - (a) By negotiating with communal leaders, Congress gave them
political space and legitimacy. (b) It accepted notions of 'communal interests'. (c) It made life difficult for
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secular Muslim leaders. (d) When one set of demands were fulfilled, other more radical communal demands
came up - either from new leaders or from the same ones. This led to progressively increasing communalism
and even the liberal communalists were forced to become radical to save their careers.
Phase 3: Interests are conflicting and incompatible (1937 onwards)
Nature & Character
1. Idea of a separate state was propounded in 1916 by Abdul Sattar while participating in 2nd Comintern @
Moscow. In 1924, Lala Lajpat Rai echoed separate state theory. In 1930, @ Allahabad session of ML, Mohd.
Iqbal proposed a separate state in NW parts of the country. In 1933, Rahmat Ali proposed Pakistan. It was @
Karachi meeting of the Sind branch of ML presided over by Jinnah that a resolution was passed which
mentioned the need for 'political self determination of the 2 nations' and asked ML to think of appropriate
measures to realize it. This was the 1st official declaration of the 2 nation theory by ML. Some commies
however argued that this was not separation yet and it merely signified muslims becoming a 'nation' from a
'minority' and thus any development in India must take consent of the muslim nation as well.
2. But still none of the important leaders of ML supported the 2 nation theory including Jinnah. Only after ML lost
the 1937 elections and faced an existential threat that it began to cry 'Islam in danger' and 'Pakistan'.
3. The 1937 elections were fought by ML largely on a liberal agenda which resembled INC's. On the other hand
the Krishak Praja Party of Fazlul Haq in Bengal fought the election on class issues by rallying lower class
muslims and low caste hindu peasants. In Punjab Sikandar Hayat too formed a coalition of Hindu and Muslim
upper peasant elements and won. ML had no issue left since its demand for communal electorates had been
fulfilled. So it merely wanted more reservations and to protect 'Muslim interests'. In the elections, it fared
badly. It got only 4.4% of the Muslim votes and only 110/485 seats reserved for Muslims. Congress ditched ML.
4. After the defeat and facing existential threat, it took resort to extremism. It came up with a series of fabricated
reports telling tales of oppressions of Muslims in INC ruled states and took resort to communal riots. Of course,
policy of INC to tackle communalism also has to be blamed since it never made a serious effort to reach out to
Muslim masses. It always followed a policy of negotiating with communal Muslim leaders. This not only gave
these leaders legitimacy but also discouraged Muslim leaders inside Congress.
5. Communalism now became increasingly radical, mass based and violent. The reactionary elements in the
society like zamindars increasingly turned to communalism for the defense of their interests.
Additional Factors
1. Existential threat to reactionary elements: The CDM and Congress governments had considerably strengthened
INM and now the zamindars couldn't justify defending their interests plainly. So they took recourse to
communalism to protect their interests.
2. Exhaustion of other sources of division: Other division lines like caste, region, leftist-rightist ideology had been
defeated by the INM. So took gave their full support to communalism.
3. Nature of communalism itself and Congress' mistakes: Appeasement of communalism leads to its radicalization
inevitably. By the Communal Award of 1932 and GoI Act of 1935 almost all major demands of communalists
had been accepted. So they resorted to something more radical to save their careers. Congress was finally
realizing its mistake and pushing out communalists and also launching a mass contact program among Muslims
under JLN but it was already too late.
Logic of communalism - Jinnah a case study
Nationalist --> Communal Nationalist --> Liberal Communalist --> Radical Communalist.
1. Jinnah was one of the most secular Muslim leaders earlier on. His first step towards communalism was taken
perhaps unintentionally when he entered legislature on a Muslim electorate seat. Then in 1913 he joined
Muslim league and became a communal nationalist. He still opposed communal electorates but increasingly
spoke on behalf of 'Muslim interests'.
2. In 1919-20 when Congress took a turn towards mass movements, liberals like Jinnah faced the threat of
political end. So he turned to communal politics and became a liberal communalist. He revived ML in 1924. He
raised demands on 'protecting Muslim interests' and the strategy worked well until CDM.
3. In this phase he tried to develop Muslims into vote banks i.e. they should organize themselves as one unit and
press for their demands @ all forums. Gradually he kept on surrendering to more radical demands. By 1937
elections, all his demands were fulfilled and he fought on a liberal ideology.
4. Facing existential threat after the elections, he unleashed Pakistan. In Hindus, communal leaders like Madan
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Mohan Malviya retired from active politics after 1937 but their place was taken over by fascist communalists
like Gowalikar.
5. Congress leaders couldn't have negotiated with him because he insisted that Congress declared itself a Hindu
organization.
Hindu Mahasabha
1. In 1909, Punjab Hindu Sabha was founded and its leaders focused their anger on Congress for appeasing
Muslims and sacrificing 'Hindu interests'.
2. In 1915, HM was founded under the leadership of Maharaja of Kasimbazar.
3. By 1937, its place was taken over by RSS and they evens supported fascist Germany and Italy.
Independence
Post-War Scenario in India
1. legitimacy was gone. When the leaders came out of the jail they expected to find demoralized people. But
they found jubilated masses. Freedom was in the air and everybody could sense it.
2. Labor party had come to power in . It wanted to resolve the issue at the earliest so ban on Congress was
revoked, elections were held and Congress was invited for the talks. The most significant part of the elections
was that it mobilized people against - the elections were to prove end of legitimacy in India. Nationalist
issues were @ the forefront in the campaigning. Main issues were reopening cases of repressions during QIM
and enquiries, INA trials.
Why there was a dissent in pillars of rule - bureaucracy, police and military
1. QIM had completely undermined the legitimacy. Post war international scenario, government and strength
of nationalist movement had convinced days of rule in India were limited and power would go in the hands of
Congress. So bureaucracy chose to support their new masters.
2. The elections of 1945 were fought on the issues of reopening cases of official excesses during QIM! Nothing
can be worse for the morale of bureaucracy. The government failed to check such speeches of enquiries.
3. INA trials brought out the sympathies of military with INA men in open. Military personnel and bureaucrats
openly took part in the meetings in support of INA men and even donated.
Debate: Why did finally quit? Why did Congress accept partition?
(a) Colonial version
1. It was fulfillment of long term promise of granting India self-government.
2. Partition was unfortunate and happened because the 2 communities failed to arrive at any mutually acceptable
conclusion on how to transfer power.
(b) Communist version
1. left India because of the uprisings and radical action in 1945-46.
2. Bourgeoisie Congress frightened of a mass uprising struck a deal with and agreed to partition to grab power
quickly.
(c) Nationalist version
1. Since the beginning Congress had a 2 fold task - (a) to mobilize various communities against the colonial rule
and to exert pressure on . (b) to unite all communities sufficiently into a nation. While it succeeded in the first
one and united them sufficiently to exert pressure on , they failed in the latter task and couldn't weld them
into a nation.
2. Prove that the reforms of 1909, 1919, 1935 were not a means of delegation of power to Indians with the
objective of self government but was to maintain the essentials of rule in India. Even in 1950s the were
thinking of means to consolidate their hold over other colonies in Africa and Asia.
3. The growing pitch of nationalism and defiant mood in the country had made rule almost impossible by the
end. Even the strongholds of rule - the loyalists, the bureaucracy and the military were flinching. The beliefs
that were mai baaps of India and they were invincible were gone.
4. had been weakened considerably and the cold war international politics couldn't give them a chance to
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continue their rule.

5. were losing the economic control of India. From 30s, London had little control over the economic policies of
GoI, protective tariffs had been imposed, India became a creditor from a debtor to ( owed India 1.3 bio
now), had to pay for the use of Indian army now, empire in other parts of the world was shaky so strategic
defence argument also didn't work. India was no longer her imperial asset, rather had become a source of
weakness. And this situation arose due to strength of the nationalist movement and not by any designs. Even
though Labor party had Indian independence on its manifesto since 1935, after coming to the power they
turned out to be remarkably unradical in their approach. But India by now was beyond manageable for .
6. strategy was that of force and conciliation i.e. carrot and stick. After Cripps mission and Quit India, there was
no room for further reforms and only thing they could negotiate was on how to transfer the power. A policy of
suppression couldn't have been carried on for perpetuity.
7. Congress accepted partition because it had failed and had to accept what people wanted. The interim
government had failed. Direct Action and communal riots could be countered only by an early transfer of full
power. Also the balkanization of the country had to be prevented. Gandhiji in his prayer meeting said, "you ask
me why I accepted partition. I accepted it because you wanted it."
Whatever pre war tendencies may have existed, the pattern of post war decolonialisation was impacted by the war.
1. The QIM and its brutal repression ruptured the relationship between the and the people and lay hollow their
claim of being mai baaps. The Bengal famine, the war time food security, INA question had eroded the moral
legitimacy of the Raj.
2. Then there were international realities of cold war. Also were losing the economic control of India.
Economy
Created: 3/4/2012 10:02 AM
Economic Policy in India
Phase 1 Mercantilism (1600-1757)
1. Its role was that of a trading corporation which exported Indian goods in exchange for foreign goods or bullion.
So it tried to develop new markets for Indian products abroad and increased Indian exports. By 18th century,
Indian clothes had become so popular in that the governments imposed stiff trade barriers on Indian
products.
2. However, unlike the free trade prevailing in India, tried to mix politico-military power with trade, used bribes,
negotiations and show of force to gain trade concessions and monopolies.
Phase 2 Mercantilism with Political Power (1757-1813)
1. This was the phase where company had control of Bengal resources as well as had nizamat powers in Bengal
(1765 onwards). So the company began to misuse its powers to rapidly expand trade. Thus the expanding
trade brought only poverty to India.
2. It used revenues of BBO to finance its Indian expenses and to pay for Indian exports.
3. It began to coerce Indian artisans to produce on their terms - forced labor, high input prices, lower output
prices. Since it had nizamat powers as well, no one could check this. On top of it, trade barriers continued on
Indian goods in .
Phase 3 Industrial Capitalism (1813- 1880)
1. This was the time Industrial Revolution had taken firm ground in and was manufacturing items in factories.
2. The Charter Act of 1813 ended company's monopoly on Indian trade (except tea) and so the manufactured
goods began to pour in. Indian handicrafts were now ruined. India became a source of raw materials.
Colonialization of Indian economy was firmly practiced.
3. These manufactured goods were imported without any duties while Indian goods had to face trade barriers in
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.
4. Other manifestations of this policy were in increased annexation, anglicization of Indian education and
missionary activities, development of means of communication.
Phase 4 Finance Capitalism (1880 onwards)
1. capital was invested in Indian Railways, banks, insurance, ports.
Agriculture
The agrarian society thus proved to be more resilient than once thought to be.
1. Contrary to received wisdom, modern research has established that the effects of these changes were less
spectacular than once imagined, and had significant regional variations, as the land transfers could not
fundamentally alter the structure of land holding everywhere. Thus in PS , jotedars retained their traditional
influence and not as many outsiders were introduced as was once thought. In RS, it were the local elites or the
mirasidars who gained and even in Deccan, only central Deccan saw large influx of Gujarati money lenders. In
the MS , local officials, primary zamindars etc. gained although in some cases alien elements came to hold
land as well.
Tenancy Reforms
1. In 1859 and 1885 the brought out tenancy legislations which to some extent protected the tenants by
recognizing their occupancy rights.
Early Efforts (1765-93)
1. When the company got the diwani rights, it had no idea about LR mechanism in India and no data + not
enough officers. So the company appointed naib diwans for BBO. These naib diwans used the existing
machinery to collect LR, deduct 10% LR and deposit rest. But this couldn't function properly as - (a) although
the native officers were in charge of collection, they were supervised by europeans and their resulting
corruption led to under collection for the company. (b) the company had informational disadvantage and there
was conflict of interests.
2. So in 1772, Warren Hastings put the naib diwan behind bars (since he wanted to take full control of the
revenue collection process) and introduced the 5 year farming system where the company auctioned the
zamindari rights for 5 years. The amount due from zamindars was fixed for 5 years and thereafter annual
settlements were done. But all of them failed since the burden of revenue demand on the farmers became so
onerous that it could not be collected at all.
3. In 1776, Warren Hastings appointed a commission to know the true value of LR. The commission submitted its
report in 1778 and this became the basis of the yearly contracts.
Permanent Settlement
Why did make Zamindar the landlord?
(a) Colonial Interpretation
1. Misunderstanding. In the landlords were the central figure in agriculture and he cultivated via hired labor.
thought zamindars were his Indian counterpart.
(b) Critique of Colonial Interpretation - Creation of private property in land was a misnomer, as the absolute
ownership was retained by the imperial authority.
1. In , landlord was land owner with respect to tenant as well as state. But the zamindar of India was a land
owner with respect to tenant only and with respect to the state he was a mere tenant. Instead of paying small
amount of income as tax as in , he had to pay 10/11 of his income to government.
2. They created a class of zamindars who was completely dependent upon them as they needed such a buffer.
3. Making zamindar the owner of land also was administratively easier as now had to concern themselves only
with zamindars. Financially it was safer for the as well as in case a zamindar failed to pay LR, he could be
removed and land auctioned to a new zamindar and auction proceeds would pay for the shortfall in LR.
4. A zamindar would only invest in the land for improvement if he has the ownership.
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What do we mean by 'zamindar was made landlord'?

1. Under Akbar, the peasant held all land and the zamindar could be removed by Akbar on a complaint by
peasants. The state recognized the rights of the peasant through patta. So zamindar couldn't also act
arbitrarily and remove a peasant or try to collect more.
2. Under , they said,"give us LR, so long as you give us that, we will not terminate your zamindari rights". So
zamindar was free to act arbitrarily and he could even evict a peasant who would have no recourse.
Circumstances Leading to PS
1. The company realized that the existing system (revenue farming for fixed tenures) was impoverishing the
country, ruining agriculture and was not producing the large and regular surplus that the company had hoped
for. As a result its trade had suffered as well because of the difficulty in procuring Indian goods for export.
2. The next problem was to decide as from who to collect the revenue and how much to collect. The nawabs
used to collect from zamindars and there were some large land magnates who controlled large areas with
their own armed retainers (in 1790 12 zamindars paid ~53% revenue). Others were small zamindars who
would pay directly to the state or through the big zamindars. Peasants would pay the zamindars at customary
rates. But via the previous experiments, the company administration had thoroughly confused the situation as it
retained some zamindars while replacing others with ijardars, customary rates were violated as revenue
demand was increased.
Economic Philosophy Behind PS
1. This reduced discretionary powers and thus will reduce the corruption that existed when the officers could alter
the assessment at will. It was also hoped to save on manpower.
2. The LR since it was going to be fixed in perpetuity was going to be fixed at a high level. This would ensure
higher and stable revenue for the company in initial years while later on the taxes on trade etc. could be
increased. Thus estimates are that the LR demand nearly doubled between 1765 and 1793.
Impact of PS: Change vs Continuity
1. The patta feature of PS was never implemented (either by zamindars or the peasants for they feared losing
their rights in any formal agreement). The peasant had lost his land right in 1793 itself and subsequent Acts of
1799 and 1812 gave right to the zamindars to seize property of the tenants as well without any court order in
case of non payment of rent. Due to overall increased exploitation naturally the overall cultivation went down.
2. It increased the pressure on zamindars as well and there were large scale transfers of zamindaris. Thus within
the first 20 years, more than 50% zamindari changed hands. But contrary to 'old myths' the new guys who
bought it were not exactly 'new'. The old zamindaris were parceled out by their own (zamindari) officials,
kinsmen, neighboring zamindars, sub-feudatories etc which merely elongated the chain of intermediaries living
off the land surplus.
3. Jotedar thesis: Then there were some which were taken up by rich peasants. Also 1859 and 1885 tenancy
regulations (which provided benefits to the tenants) could not provide any relief to the poor cultivators. Rather
these reforms strengthened the position of a group of powerful rich peasants - jotedars - who controlled vast
areas particularly in N Bengal (while zamindars controlled merely revenue collection rights). Ray and Ray
(1973, 1975) argue that the power of this class and their control over the rural society remained unaffected
and herein lay the basic continuity of the rural social structure in colonial Bengal. Bose (1986) however
countered this saying that the jotedars were at best influential in N Bengal only and in rest of the areas the
power of the zamindars continued unchecked as late as 1930s. Further research showed that in other areas
the zamindars probably retained influence and authority but there also existed all along a section of substantial
peasants who too yielded power. However, the interests of the 2 classes were complementary to each other
and they often worked in unison.
Ryotwari Settlement
Economic Ideas Behind RS
1. Ricardian theory of rent showed that rent was the surplus from land which in Indian case the (unproductive)
intermediaries kept with themselves without performing any useful activity and thus didn't deserve to keep it.
So the state had a legitimate claim on this surplus (since it was the excess of output after compensating the
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cultivator for inputs). Another reason was the perennial financial crisis of the Madras presidency.
RS created individual property right in land and it was vested in the peasants rather than in zamindars. But it defined
the state itself as the supreme landlord and individual peasants as the landowners who obtained title by paying annual
cash rents or revenue assessments to the government.
1. It was based on a field assessment system where the rent payable on each field was to be permanently
assessed through a general survey of all lands. Then the government and the peasant would enter into annual
arrangements for cultivation who had the choice of accepting it or rejecting it. If he agreed he would get a
patta if he didn't the state could lease out his land to someone else (violating the private property concept) and
if no one was willing to cultivate the land, it would lie fallow.
2. Thus in order to be successful a detailed survey was needed and assessments to be realistic. But in practice,
assessments were made by guesswork and revenue demanded was excessively high. The revenue was fixed
on the entire farm and not on each field while some of the land may be irrigated and some dry, no
considerations were made. And peasants were coerced into acceptance. The cultivating peasants therefore
were gradually impoverished and increasingly indebted and couldn't invest for the extension of cultivation.
Factors Responsible
1. utilitarian philosophy. They were against monopoly of zamindars.
2. thought this was the original system of India. The poligars had subsequently usurped the land rights and
sovereignty when the power of the state had declined. This needed to be reversed now.
3. Need to eliminate zamindars and corner more revenue. Madras was anyways revenue deficient.
4. Failure of PS. Came up in Madras in 1820 and in Bombay in 1825.
5. Fixing PS revenue in perpetuity.
Features
1. Assessment & collection @ individual level. Based on survey & measurement. Fertility of soil and type of crops
being sown kept into mind.
2. LR in cash or kind. 1/3 to 2/5 level. A peasant free not to cultivate if he didn't agree. In such a case, land would
be auctioned to another peasant. If no one willing to pickup, then left fallow.
3. LR adjusted in 35 years. Patta and kubuliyat present.
Impact - RS was the 'golden age' of Mirasidars
1. Coercion. Peasants forced to cultivate. Actual land revenue was ~80% due to inflated assessment. Farmers
began to abandon land and fly into nearby jungles. According to a survey conducted in 1855 by the Madras
government, ~ 60% of cultivable land was lying fallow.
2. The RS was favorable to the village elites or mirasidars. As their privileged rents and special rights were
recognized and caste privileges of brahmans were respected in the RS, the existing village power structure
hardly altered, and indeed was even more strengthened by the new system. These elements who also often
worked in the positions of local revenue officials appropriated most of the vacant land at lucrative prices (since
there were no other buyers). Moreover after 1816, these local revenue officials were also vested with the
police duties (apart from the already held revenue duties) which spelled doom for the poor peasants. Absentee
landlordism also grew as a result.
Reforms in RS
1. In 1855 (on the recommendations of Madras Torture Commission) a scientific survey of the land and a fresh
assessment of revenue was undertaken which resulted in some decline of the actual tax burden. It was
decided that the revenue rate will be half of the net value of produce and the settlement would be done for 30
years. The system was implemented from 1864 but by then most of the damage had been done and it
strengthened the position of the new landlords (who had already displaced most of the old ones).
RS in Deccan
1. Initially in these areas, were collecting revenue via the traditional deshmukhs. But this didn't yield as much
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revenue as they hoped for and from 1813 they began to collect LR on their own directly from the peasants.
Soon the abuses of the Madras system appeared here as well and peasants lost their land to money lenders or
migrated to the neighboring native states.
2. In 1835 'Bombay Survey System' was devised which was a practical settlement aiming at lowering the LR
demand to a reasonable limit which will ensure its regular payment. The actual assessment of the field was to
be based on what it paid in the immediate past, the expected price rise, the nature of soil etc. It was
implemented from 1836.
3. It is believed it gave rise to the Deccan uprising of 1875 since it reduced the village patils and deshmukhs to an
ordinary level. however argue that this process had started from the time of Sivaji itself and they were
merely continuing it. Moreover this displacement was not uniform in all areas and it was only in central Deccan
that a power vacuum was created at the local level (where the Gujarati money lenders stepped in) and the
1875 revolt was not centered here. As for the peasants the new settlement had made LR less burdensome. If
they became indebted this indebtedness was 'long standing'.
Mahalwari Settlement
Evolution - The refractory and oppressive nature of the taluqdars and the need to maximize revenue as well as
protect the rights of the peasant proprietors to ensure the improvement of agriculture, rather than the influence of
Ricardian theory of rent, prompted the making of Mahalwari Settlement.
1. These areas had a small group of intermediary zamindars - taluqdars - who contracted with the state to collect
LR. Then there were a large group of primary zamindars who held the ownership rights over land and included
small owner cultivators as well as large proprietors of several villages.
2. The initially tried to make short term settlements with the taluqdars but they were again based on faulty
assessments and had fixed the revenue demand too high. Many of the big taluqdars resisted this increased
demand and were disposed of ruthlessly. Many were driven off and their fortresses flattened. The land which
was then sold in auction was most of the times bought by revenue officials, civil servants, merchants, bankers
etc. thus creating a whole new class of landlords alienated from the village community.
3. Mackenzie in 1819 asserted that only the village bodies were the real owners of land in Oudh and thus from
taluqdars the preference now shifted to the primary zamindars and the village communities. The 1822
Regulation (based on Mackenzie's recommendations) provided for a detailed field to field survey for revenue
assessment and settlement to be made with the village community, primary zamindars and taluqdars
depending upon the local structure of land relations. Apart from the overall settlement, the rent to be paid by
individual cultivator was to be recorded as well.
But the new settlement from the very beginning was enmeshed in confusion, and corruption, as in practice it was
virtually impossible to implement.
1. The survey which was at the core of the new arrangement failed because it was too complex to be carried out
with the existing administrative machinery. The obvious result was over assessment, corruption, arrears
started mounting, land remained uncultivated and buyers were difficult to find.
2. In 1833 the system was reformed to make it more manageable. Now the detailed survey would be carried out
at the mahal level and the total revenue so fixed would be shared by the members of the mahal. The state was
to get 2/3 of the net income from the land and the settlement would be made for 30 years.
Impact
1. Even the surveys after the 1833 reforms remained imperfect and rid with over assessment, and remained
hostile towards the taluqdars. The increasing pressure and hostility led to many of them losing their jobs.
Land passed in the hands of money lenders and alien land lords in many cases. One can hardly say nothing
happened, the grievances of the rural society of N India were soon to be expressed rather loudly and violently
in the revolt of 1857.
Commercialization of Agriculture
Factors Responsible
1. utilitarians, their free trade policy, economic colonialization of India as it became a raw material supplier.
2. Cash based economy encouraged by coupled with huge LR demand. But the LR argument is a weak since a
cash economy would mean even the food grains can be sold in the market and higher prices of cash crops
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would indicate a profit motive.

3. Breakdown of self-sufficiency of villages. Indian economy became closely inter-linked and also linked with
international markets. Need to balance trade of China led to cultivation of opium.
4. Development of means of transport like railways, Suez canal.
5. Coercive practices followed by backed by legislations. capital.
Pattern of CoA
1. It was a coercive process and exploitative. The benefits never accrued to the peasants because of this. A
classic case is indigo plantation. The farmers could hardly reap any benefits of higher prices due to monopoly
coercion by the manufacturers (often earlier on and later Indians) while the lower prices were passed on to
them. The coercion element prevented CoA from becoming a tool for the modernization of agriculture.
2. It involved plantations where land was owned by planter and labor was hired. It also involved indigo type
cultivation where a contract was signed with the peasant.
3. It involved regional development only. Only some pockets were suitable for some crops.
4. The crops were cultivated keeping needs in mind. Thus cotton production in deccan was encouraged due to $
civil war. Jute came up in Bengal to serve factories. The cultivation of indigo declined after the synthetic dye
came up, opium grew till 1900 then decline as China stopped importing opium. Wheat export began to increase
to and it was produced in areas in Maharastra despite not being a staple crop in the region. Bengal rice was
exported to China, SE Asia.
Impact
1. Volatility killed. Widespread poverty. Coercion. grip on India increased.
2. Famines (food grain production lagged behind the population growth and the element of coercion meant that
land was forcibly diverted from food grains to cash crops disregarding market signals), agricultural
indebtedness.
3. Revolts, growth of nationalism.
Famines
Major Famines
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Bengal Famine of 1770. Wiped out 1/3 of population.

In 1784, Madras was struck by a massive famine.
In 1792, N India struck by a famine.
In 1803, another famine in Oudh.
In 1833, Guntoor famine which wiped out 40% of population.
In 1837, another famine in N India.
Famine Policy
1. The company was totally unconcerned about it. Some sort of policy started evolving only after the transfer of
power to crown.
2. In 1861, Delhi-Agra region was struck by a famine. A committee was appointed but no significant study was
undertaken and situation remained largely unchanged.
3. In 1866 the Odisha famine struck and 3 mm died. A committee was setup to look into the causes. The
committee suggested that steps should be taken to generate employment and famine relief measures should
be carried out.
4. In 1876-78 another famine struck in many parts of India and 5 mm died. Richard Stretchy commission was
appointed in 1880 which suggested - (a) A famine code be formulated, (b) LR should be remitted for famine
struck areas, (c) Data about peasantry should be collected to understand the true causes of the famine, (d) A
famine relief fund should be established. As a result of its recommendations, (a) A famine relief fund with a
corpus of Rs. 1 cr was setup. (b) A famine code was implemented in 1886 which divided the famine prone
areas into various categories, listed the precautions to be taken in normal times, listed the relief measures to
be taken in a famine and the responsibilities of the officials in relief campaigns.
5. In 1896-97 a major famine struck in whole India. Another commission was appointed but nothing came out.
6. In 1899-00, another famine broke out in India. McDonnell commission was appointed which recommended (a) Famine commission be established to coordinate relief measures. (b) Famine code be revised. (c)
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Transportation facilities be developed. (d) Agricultural banks should be setup. (e) Irrigation facilities should be
developed. In pursuance with recommendations a famine commission was setup, famine code revised and
irrigation facilities developed.
7. In 1942-43 Bengal famine happened. Another commission was appointed which suggested merger of
departments of food and agriculture and steps be taken to increase agriculture production.
Means of Communication
Railways
Factors Responsible
1.
2.
3.
4.
Free traders and their influence.

Good for capital.
Good for iron and steel industries.
Good for administration.
Features of Railway Development

1. Till 1869, railway development was with private capital assuring 5% guaranteed rate of return with full capital
back at the end of 99 years. But this proved inadequate and slow although in this period railways attracted
some 70 mm of foreign capital. So from 1869-1880, railways were built as a state enterprise. From 1880
onwards, both private and public capital was used.
2. All capital was . Indian capital as well as other and $ capital was not allowed. Till 1901, IR was a losing
concern and all losses to private capital were made good by government.
3. Guaranteed return on cost led to inefficiencies. Against and estimated cost of 9,000 per mile, actual cost was
30,000 per mile. When the government began to construct on its own, the cost turned out to be 12,000 per
mile.
4. Railways were just another colonial enterprise keeping in mind only colonial interest in design (connected
internal markets with ports only and not with internal cities, connected frontier areas to facilitate army
movement), implementation and use. Even the coal used to run the railways was imported from . The
transfer of technology remained confined to low technology areas like plate laying, bridge building or tunneling
while the higher technologies were never Indianized. Many nationalists believe that such capital could have
been much more beneficial had it been invested in irrigation.
5. But when left, they left behind 65K km of railway lines - obviously an unintended product of imperialism.
Telegraph
Postal Services
European Business Enterprises
Managing Agency System
Nature & Character
1. These were partnership firms or private limited firms. Within these firms, control was limited to 3-4 people and
was hereditary.
2. They used to provide management expertise to the companies.
3. They also used to act as financiers and promoters. When a company applied for a loan, apart from the
company's signatures, a managing agency signature was also required. Sometimes, the themselves used to
lend. Thus they acted as financiers. Then due to absence of capital markets, while promoting new companies,
these agencies used to buy shares temporarily and offload later. This way they acted as promoters.
Limitations
1. They had too much of power vested in them. This led to lack of interest on Indian capitalists' part to float their
own ventures.
2. Poor corporate governance as they were opaque in functioning, hereditary in control and shareholder had little
power.
3. Sometimes their remuneration was linked to goals contrary to goals of the shareholders. Example sales
maximization instead of profits. So through successive companies acts and amendments, their power was
curtailed and eventually abolished.
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Advantages
1. They provided capital when no one did.
2. They modernized Indian market. Introduced the practice of public capital whereas in those days it used to be
family capital only.
Economic Transformation of India
Decline of Indian Handicrafts
Factors Responsible
1. The character of rule.
2. The misuse of political-administrative power by . They used to force artisans to work for them @ low wages,
pay less for output, pay more for input, reveal trade secrets. So Indian manufacturing became an unprofitable
venture.
3. Policy of one way free trade due to impact of utilitarians who emphasized laissez faire.
4. Policy of annexation resulted in loss of patronage and loss of market as well.
5. Westernization of India - missionaries and middle class.
Consequences
1. Deindustrialisation, pressure on land increased, de-urbanization.
2. Poverty, famines.
3. Class of landless labor increased in number.
Did India under experience any economic development at all?
It was after the pacification of the revolt of 1857 that the 'classical colonial economic relationship' between and India
gradually emerged.
1. At the time of WW1, Indians consumed 85% of Lancashire cotton piecegoods and 17% of steel was absorbed
into Indian railways. Until WW1, there was no import duty which could possibly offer any protection to Indian
industries. Even after the 1919 Fiscal Autonomy Convention where the import duty policies were supposed to
be changed, any rise in cotton duties was offset by a rise in excise duties as well in the wake of Lancashire
lobby which fought for "our rights" in India which was considered to be an "important imperial asset".
2. Similarly Indian exports with other countries helped to overcome their BoP deficit with them and her exports
to satisfied the raw material needs of the companies. Home charges and drain of wealth was another
factor of exploitation.
Debate: How big was the drain?
1. Colonial historians argued that the drainage represented < 2% of the value of Indian exports in that period.
Another argument is that some of the expenditure was to encourage economic development in India
(guarantee on loans, encourage FDI etc.). Much of the foreign loans were used for the development of
infrastructure in India and enabled her to borrow cheaply from the world markets.
and Irrigation
1. There was very limited colonial initiative to develop agriculture in India except for the construction of some
irrigation canals in NW, NE and SW India i.e. the non - PS areas where there was a scope of increasing
revenues (in PS the revenues were fixed). Still the area under irrigation remained a small % of the total
cropped area. Even in areas where canals were constructed the canal charges remained high and only the rich
peasants and landlords could avail of them. Thus the entire exercise remained ineffective as it was guided
solely by profit motive. Famine conditions tell the true story.
and Industries (Revisionist Literature)
1. Some historians argued that the rate of deindustrialization of cotton industry was not significant since as late
as 1930s the handlooms continued to produce coarse cloth for the poorer consumers in India. If they declined
afterwards it was because they were taken over by Indian mills. But this is a weak argument. Research
indicates that in the 19th century, the proportion of industrial population declined to less than half in many
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parts of the country.

2. Some historians also argue that while employment declined, real income per worker in the industry increased
between 1900 and 1947. And this rise in per capita income was not merely due to rise in modern industries but
also due to rise in productivity per worker in the small scale sector. As such it was brought about by
technological and managerial changes (substitution of wage labor for family labor). Production now came to be
done for non local markets as well, a shift occurred from local to long distance trade and development of
infrastructure aided in this.
3. But it has been pointed out that if such a development took place why didn't the share of industry grow in the
GDP. Between 1881 and 1947, the structure of economy remained virtually unchanged with agriculture
contributing 70% and manufacturing 10%. The growth of industrial sector before WW2 was only 3.5% p.a.
which was not fast enough to set India on course of IR.
4. Another major reason for the failure of Indian industry was the monopoly over capital and the european
managing system. Then the state itself was far from just being a 'night watchman' and followed a policy of
discrimination against the Indian industries. A clear example is the tea plantations in Assam which were
developed in 1833 by the government. Later on when they were transferred to the private sector, Indian capital
was completely ignored. The 1859 Inland Emigration Act also secured the supply of labor to these european
plantations.
Gradually India's role in the greater imperial structure was subordinated to its own domestic requirements. The
imperial goals and ideology were muted to accommodate pressures built up in India, both financial and political.
1. Between 1880 and WW1, successive financial crisis and famines showed that India was incapable of bearing
the financial burden of serving the empire.
2. Development of political opinion made any increase in internal taxes a risky affair. This resulted in the
weakening of imperial goal and sharing of power. The WWs saw end of imports into India, gradually import
tariffs were imposed, investments in India declined, trade with India declined and the use of Indian army
to serve the empire too declined - for the cost now had to be borne by London or by the colony which needed
it.
Indian Response to Rule

Created: 3/6/2012 4:33 PM
Revolt of 1857
The Indian Rebellion of 1857 was not one rebellion, it was many.
1. Colonial historians have emphasized that the various players in the revolt had their own grievances and shared
nothing in common except perhaps a suspicion of the for allegedly destroying their religion.
It was primarily a mutiny, the civilian unrest being a secondary phenomenon which happened as the unruly elements
took advantage of the breakdown of law and order.
Perhaps the only common trait that pervaded all the layers of the society was a suspicion of rule, allegedly
threatening their religion.
There is a widespread agreement that it was something more than a sepoy mutiny, but something less than a
national revolt.
1. It was not national because the popular character of the revolt was limited to 'Upper' India alone and the
regions and groups which had benefitted from the raj remained loyal as they had material interests in the
new order, and often a deep, ideological commitment to the new ideas. The Punjabi princes hated the
Hindustani soldiers and shuddered at the thought of the resurrection of the Mughal empire. On the other hand
those who had rebelled had various motives which were not always connected to any specific grievance
against .
2. This so called 'agreement' has been widely questioned in recent years. It can hardly be denied that there was
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no concept of Indian nation in the modern sense among the rebels of 1857. Peasant actions too were local
affairs. Yet unlike the previous revolts there was now a greater interconnection across the territories and
rebels from one area frequently tried to help those in the other. The common distaste for was in no way
limited to merely an alleged attempt to destroying their religion, it manifested in every sphere of their lives. All
of them wanted to go back to the pre-colonial state which was that of a decentralized Mughal empire. Thus if
Laxmi bai was fighting for Jhansi it can't be said that her cause was aloof from that of Nana Saheb. Both of
them had the same aim. Similarly the aim of the taluqdars, the peasants etc. all coincided with restoration.
This loyalty, it may be true, springs nearer from the head than from the heart.
1. This is in reference to the loyalty of the Bengali intelligentsia.
Was it an elitist revolt?
1. Some historians think that during the revolt the feudal elements were the decision makers and much of the
revolt was determined and shaped by them for it was only they who could give the direction to the revolt
(being the natural leaders of the people).
2. But this position obviously is incorrect and trivializes the role of the masses. So far as the feudal elements are
concerned, in many cases, they were reluctant to give leadership (Bahadur Shah, Nana Saheb, Laxmi Bai) and
had to be pressurized. Even when they gave leadership as in the case of Bahadur Shah the actual operations
were planned and carried out by a military council comprising the soldiers as well. In many cases these feudal
lords were the first ones to compromise and the revolt went on even after that.
3. Similarly in case of taluqdars, even though they were the leaders invariably, many of them were turncoats or
never supported. The peasants had to force them in many cases to provide leadership (because this was the
state system back then, there was no concept of ordinary people providing leadership).
4. Above all the main initiatives came from sepoys. Almost everywhere rebel action was preceded by panchayats
or open gatherings of the rebels.
The annexation of Oudh shook the loyalty of these sepoys, as it was for them an ultimate proof of untrustworthiness
of the .
1. Mention the caste policies of followed wrt the army. Mention the economic exploitation.
Bound by ties of kinship and feudal loyalty, the villagers were happy to acknowledge the claims of their lords and
joined hands against their common enemy, the .
1. The in their settlement in Oudh and NW provinces had disregarded all the traditional rights of the taluqdars
as they made settlements with the actual occupiers of the land or the village bodies. It was hoped that the
move would win the loyalty of the peasants and get rid of the unwanted and unproductive intermediaries. This
left the taluqdars no better than ordinary tenants. So they had a natural cause to revolt.
2. The peasants joined the rebellion because they too were hit hard by the high revenue demands of the
company. The ownership rights were of no avail precisely due to this reason and they too had their own cause
to fight the and not just out of sense of loyalty to their erstwhile 'lords'.
Individual Episodes
1. Lucknow Pact: It was issued by rebels in Lucknow underlying the reasons for rebelling - had endangered
their religion, lives and property.
2. Bakth Khan: He fought in Rai Barelli and then took his forces to Delhi where he was appointed commander-inchief of the rebel forces.
3. Tantia Tope: He was betrayed by a zamindar friend Man Singh @ Narwar and hanged in April 1858 in Shivpuri.
4. Maulvi Ahmedullah: He commanded rebel forces in Faizabad.
5. Rajputana: Man Singh of Jodhpur & Swarup Singh of Udaipur participated in it.
Nature & Character
1. Unplanned vs Planned Controversy: Some historians have put forth the view that the revolt was planned in
London in 1856 between the advisors to Nana Sahib and Hazrat Mahal. They also point out that its quick
spread, lotus flowers and chapatti codes prove its planned character. But in reality, the made every effort to
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2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
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prove the conspiracy theory so that Bahadur Shah Zaffer could be charged for sedition and killed so as to
devoid the only rally point of the Indians. But they couldn't even prove these in courts. Bahadur shah himself
was surprised and accepted the leadership after lot of persuasion.
Mutiny vs Popular Revolt Controversy: In reality, it began as a mutiny but turned into a popular revolt. This is
evident from the participating masses as well as those who were persecuted later on.
Reactionary: They wanted to turn the clock back and go back to pre- setup.
Anti-colonial, anti-.
First of its kind: It wasn't the first revolt, but it was first of its kind. The earlier revolts were localized revolts
but this one was big - in spread as well as social composition. In terms of challenge posed, rule ceased to
exist for some time. In terms of repression, it was unprecedented as well.
Though the concept of nation was absent and leaders lacked the clear sense and were fighting for personal
gains, some actions show that a vague sense of belonging was there. It was not merely parochial and personal
but a greater cause was there as well.
Spread
1. Rohillakhand, Doab, Oudh, Allahbad, Bihar, Rajasthan were the maximum affected areas. The mutiny mainly
affected the Bengal army, the Madras and the Bombay regiments remained quiet, while the Punjabi and the
Gurkha regiments actually helped to suppress the revolt. The maximum number of Indian sepoys were in
Bengal regiment and if we look at overall numbers, ~ 50% of the Indian sepoys had revolted.
2. The presence in the Bengal army was also minimal. It also came from the high caste background and most
of them were recruited from the peasant families of Oudh.
Causes of Failure
1. Reactionary attitude: This was the reason it always remained weak. People with personal grudge fought.
Intelligentsia stayed away.
2. Lack of awakening: Thats why people in other parts of the country didn't participate. Even in revolt areas, not
everybody supported it. Until then the state system was people have nothing to do with politics or state except
for paying taxes. People were tied with local loyalties.
3. Violent character: So it could never have been a mass phenomenon.
4. won as they had committed unlimited amount of resources to the cause while rebels had limited resources
only.
5. Rebels showed a remarkable centripetal impulse to congregate at Delhi which prevented the rebellion from
spreading as much as it could. The extremely localized nature of the rebellion helped in quelling it with ease.
Was 1858 a great divide?
What is more important, the earlier reformist zeal of a self-confident Victorian liberalism now evidently took a back
seat, as many believed now that Indians were beyond reform.
Politics
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Company vs crown.
Policy of territorial expansion abandoned.
Before 1858, the trend was centralization. By Charter Act of 1833, the legislative powers of the
provinces were taken away and vested in Bengal. After 1858, the trend was decentralization albeit a slow one.
policy towards the native states changed from subordinated isolation to subordinated union.
Military
1. Number of soldiers increased, key posts reserved, caste and regional divisions in army, martial and nonmartial races.
Economy
1. Policy of direct and open exploitation gave way to indirect and silent economic exploitation. Earlier one way
free trade policy was followed; now finance capitalism was followed and amount of home charges was
increased substantially.
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2. Policy towards landlords changed from being anti to friends.

Social
1. The social policy was changed from liberal and progressive to regressive.
2. Racial discrimination increased further due to the fight.
Rise of Indian Nationalism
Factors Responsible
+ve Impact of Rule
1.
2.
3.
4.
Political and administrative unity. Uniform laws.

Modern press, railways, post.
Modern education and ideals.
Emergence of educated middle class.
-ve Impact of Rule

1. Isolation of Indian villages was broken. What happened in one country began to affect others.
2. People saw their problems had same root.
3. The unpopular actions like Vernacular Press Act of 1778, Ilbert Bill controversy (the effeminate babu was not fit
to preside over the trial of a manly not could he be expected to honor the dignity of white women as they did
not respect women in their own household), Lex Loci Act (which gave christian converts the right to inherit
their ancestral property), imposition of income tax in 1860 and raising its rate subsequently, Indian Council Act
1861, government proposal to cut back on funding of higher education in Bengal (and instead to route the
funds into elementary education - mai baap politics), reducing the maximum age for civil services exam from
21 to 19 and refusing to conduct a simultaneous exam in india, Arms Act of 1878 (which introduced a licensing
system but excluded the Eurasians and Europeans from the need of any license), Inland Emigration Act (which
condemned the plantation workers to serfdom) worked to bring out the true nature of rule in India and also
helped in rallying Indians.
Socio-Cultural Reform Movements
1. Highlighted the commonalities in Indian culture and worked to eliminate the divisive forces.
2. They were egalitarian, humanist, rationalist, modern.
3. Nationalist historians instilled sense of pride.
Project Revival
The purpose of the social reform movements in 19th century was to 'purify' and 'rediscover' an Indian civilization that
would be conformant with the European ideals of rationalism, empiricism, monotheism and individualism. Thus the
movement was meant to fashion a 'modern' national culture that is nevertheless not Western.
1. The reformers, by a re-interpretion, tried to show that the Indian culture was not inferior in any way to the
culture and in fact on one count vis spiritualism even surpassed it. This sense of spiritual essence of the Indian
society provided the ideological foundation of the modern Indian nationalism.
The modern revivalistic project created an identity that was inclusive as well as exclusive at the same time.
1. However this revivalistic project had its own drawbacks like uncritically accepting all practices of the past,
bypassing the long Muslim rule, presenting the golden and the dark ages etc.
Reform vs Revival
1. The reform movements in which a number of moderates too were involved attempted to change Hindu
institutions and social customs to bring it in conformity with the post enlightenment western ideas. Thus a
National Social Conference was setup in 1887 as an adjunct body to congress. These movements were thus
inspired by the western ideals as well as represented a response to the western critique of hindu civilization
and the westernizing forces.
2. It was this second aspect of the reform movements which led to the revivalist project while the former aspect
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was made secondary to the second.

Nationalism and reformism seemed to be contradictory ideas.
1. To many Indians the relentless western critique of the hindu civilization and the growing pressure (with state
patronage) of the westernizing forces meant a surrender to the colonial rule (as they viewed it as being
sponsored by the colonial rule). Hinduism became an identity, a symbol of sovereignty and since the reform
movements were anchored in the western ideals and criticized hindu practices they were viewed with suspicion
by a section of nationalists.
2. This led to the growth of anti-reformism based on a sense of pride on everything Hindu (and thus also
sanctioned the theory of a glorious hindu past marked by a degeneration under muslims and threatened by ).
And this revivalism thus acquired a strong political overtone (as it became a weapon to resist colonial
ideology).
The educated middle class in the 19th century often found the domain of reason to be oppressive, as it implied the
historical necessity of the 'civilizing' colonial rule.
1. Mention the role of reform movements, how their inspiration was drawn from ideals, and how their activities
sought to change hinduism. But the same social reforms were also being sponsored by and thus the
reformist movements came to be associated as westernizing force. Thus began the revivalist reaction.
2. This reaction sought to legitimize any and every defence of Hindu traditions. They began to invent precedents
in ancient India for every modern scientific discovery of the west. The whole propaganda thus took an active
form. This was accompanied by works in literature and other arts (although more sophisticated sometime as
those of Bankim Chandra Chatterjee who wrote Anand Math, portrayed krishna as the modern politician and a
nation builder, invented the icon of mother goddess for the nation and wrote Bande Mataram). Behramji
Malabari in 1884 in Maharashtra wrote a 'note' on child marriage leading to enforced widowhood which led to
a countrywide debate on the issue. Rukhma Bai a 22 year old widow was taken to Bombay high court by her
husband because she refused to recognize his conjugal rights out of a child marriage. In this he was supported
by the hindu revivalists even though reformers like Malabari tried to defend Rukhma Bai. The hindu revivalists
also opposed the Age of Consent Act, 1891 for it was being imposed by a colonial government while
incidentally they had no hesitation in taking resource to the same colonial government to impose their
viewpoint in the Rukhma Bai case.
3. In these circumstances (growing revivalist tendencies) Ramkrishna Paramhansa and Vivekananda captured the
imagination of the nationalist masses.
While Brahmo Samaj's appeal was to intellect, that of Ramkrishna was to the mind and emotions.
1. Unlike the brahmo samajists, he was a man who was a saint and was completely untouched by any
westernizing influence. He offered simplistic interpretations of Hinduism, often based in the ancient Indian
practice of bhakti which had the same effect of conforming to some of the reformist ideals and doing so
without succumbing to any of the westernizing forces. Thus casteism should not be followed because in
conformance with the ancient Indian practice of bhakti all are children of god and he will not make any such
distinction among his bhaktas and not because such a thing was inhumane as per the post enlightenment
thinking of the west. Thus the humanism ideal of enlightenment was incorporated by Ramkrishna as 'the best
way to serve god is to serve his poor children'.
2. His teachings also contained an open rejection of the values imposed by the western education and the
westernized life and jobs Thus he became immensely popular with the middle class western educated
bengalees as his teachings conformed with their ideals and yet were based on a completely indigenous
interpretation which in no way undermined the prestige of their culture.
To describe Ramkrishna as a revivalist is to ignore the 'universalistic' aspects of his teachings.
1. He was not exactly a revivalist for he did include a form of assimilation of religious ideas. He thus argued that
there are various ways to achieve god but one must stick to his own path. He argued that assimilation was the
essence of Hinduism. He advocated social service and didn't remain confined to the elites and in fact criticized
the other social movements for being too elitist.
Hindu revivalist project selectively retained the teachings of Vivekananda and Ramkrishna.
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1. His evocation of Hindu glory mixed with patriotism and restoration of Hindu masculinity had a tremendous
influence on the popular mind. While this aspect of his teachings was highlighted, his call to change some of
the evil hindu practices was ignored. His philanthropic activities were never emulated and his criticism of
brahmanical and gender oppression was scarcely ever taken seriously.
The term revivalism itself remained problematic as it did not mean resurrecting an old forgotten past, but
reconstituting the past in the service of the present.
1. Many of the practices being 'revived' were actually already being practiced. Many others were simply
conveniently forgotten. An example is Ramkrishna's teachings.
Singh Sabha Movement
1. It was a sikh revivalist movement as it sought to revive the 'glory of the 17th and 18th century' Sikh. It spread
due to the emergence of an elite sikh class and also a sense of exclusion of sikhs from education and
administrative posts. One of its aim was to restore the control of the holy places.
The colonial state, therefore could confidently claim itself to be the real champion of the interests of the masses.
1. Between 1892 and 1909, about 20% of the delegates attending congress sessions were landlords, 40% were
lawyers and 15% were traders. Among the lawyers and traders as well many were related to landlord families
or had landed interests. The congress could therefore never take a coherent logical stand on peasant question.
They demanded extension of PS in the interest of zamindars, opposed a survey on measuring the extent of
land holdings and their values in 1893-94 which could have protected the peasants from the manipulations of
the zamindars, its leaders opposed the Bengal Tenancy Act 1885.
2. The representation of the pro commercial classes also prevented congress from addressing the worker
question. Thus they opposed the Factory Acts of 1881 and 1891, Mining Bill and other labor reforms. It was the
pro landlord and pro bourgeoisie policies of the congress that allowed the colonial government to project itself
as the real protector of the poor.
3. Further they were high caste hindu leaders and couldn't overcome their social conservatism while the
government on the recommendation of the Indian Education Commission,1882 even set aside special funds for
the education of the backward classes. It were the colonial education, christian missionary philanthropy and
their own initiative which inspired their awakening and guided it into an anti-brahman movement and not anti-
(it may be noted that even now the nationalists did nothing to enlist their support and it had to wait until the
arrival of the mahatma). They looked at the emerging nationalist movement as a conspiracy to establish
Brahmanic hegemony over the new institutions and viewed the colonial government as their patron and
liberator. By trying to portray Hinduism as a religion of a book, they also tended to ignore the numerous folk
cultures and other cultures.
4. Moreover they alienated the Muslims in their project revival and in their failure to criticize the cow riots. After
the 1891 Nagpur session of congress, the Gaurakshini samiti held its meeting within the congress pavilion and
was attended by a large number of congress leaders and thus only increasing muslim misgivings. Then they
also opposed the Age of Consent Act, 1891. In their agitation also they never tried to enlist the support of the
masses.
Thus the nationalism, which grew in strength in the late 19th century, was beset with contradictions from the very
beginning.
Politics of Associations
1. Earlier Raja RM Roy had carried out a modest agitation for such demands as separation of powers, trial by
jury, indianization of services and freedom of press. 1st political body to be found was Bengal Bhasa Prakashika
Sabha in 1836. In 1838 Zamindar Association was formed which was the first example of a constitutional
lobbying group. In 1841 Desh-hitashini sabha was founded which promoted the ideas of Young Bengal
movement. Gopal Harideshmukh was first to plead swadesi, Bhaskar Pandurang Tarkhadkar was first to write
militant criticism of colonial rule.
2. A series of associations had been founded. But these were too narrow in their thought and objectives and had
outlived their utility. For example, the Indian Association of Bengal had increasingly associated itself with
zamindars. Unlike its predecessor Landholders' Society which had many non official -Indians in it, the Indian
Association had Indian members only. It was created on the eve of the renewal of the charter of the company
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to send petitions to the parliament to express the demands of the Indian subjects. It initially tried to
coordinate the efforts of the other presidencies as well but failed (mainly ego clashes). They demanded
greater participation in the administration, more efficient administration, protested against legislations
unresponsive to the feelings of the people, high taxation, salt and opium monopolies and neglect of education
and public works. Obviously parliament paid no heed.
3. On the failure of the Indian Association to create a national level representation, the Bombay Association (D
Nairoji, Fardoonji) and Madras Native Association came up but they too had become reactionary. Only the
Poona Sarvjanik Sabha continued as before. But they had created a basic level of awakening in the country. So
need was there for a more radical and national level organization.
4. Thus the Indian Association was founded in 1876 by SN Bannerjea and Anand Mohan Bose which was free
from the landed plutocracy and represented the middle class. IN the same year the Bombay Association was
given a new life when Dadabhai Nairoji and Ferdunji joined it but the Poona Sarvajanik Sabha remained the
main organization. In 1884 Madras Mahajan Sabha was founded by S Iyer, PA Charlu and C Raghavchari. In
1885 Bombay Presidency Association was found by PS Mehta, B Tyabji. These new associations demanded
separation of power, indianization of legislative council (50% elected representation from local bodies,
chambers of commerce, universities etc.) and bureaucracy, 2 Indian members in the GG's executive council,
reduction of military expenditure and home charges, extension of PS to other parts of India (in the support of
zamindar group). Where they differed from the old politics (zamindar associations) was that they were
demanding a share in running their own country.
The older ways survived in various forms.
1. Despite the founding of the new associations which were led by middle class intellectuals, the older lobby of
landlords survived in the form of dals which were dominated by absentee landlords. They presided over an
informal but effective social network of the landed gentry across Bengal and took position in support of or in
opposition to many public issues depending upon their interests. In united provinces too the older forces were
channeled by the caste and communal associations.
2. Moreover the new middle class too had land connections of its own it was only in Bombay that an industrialist
class could come up. This is revealed in their continuous raising of zamindari interests and opposition to the
Bengal Tenancy Bill, 1885.
Congress
Safety Valve Hypothesis
1. The theory was put forward by Lala Lajpat Rai in 1916. Before him WC Bonnerjee had put forward a similar
view that 'Congress was the brainchild of Dufferin'. He also cited Hume's biography by William Wedderburn
written in 1913.
2. According to this, in 1878, Hume came across 30k secret reports while in Shimla. He also had a large number
of mysterious godmen who used to keep him informed.
3. But Lala was an extremist and he was biased against congress. Hume was i revenue department. How can he
access files meant for home department? +
True Character
1. A series of associations had been founded. But these were too narrow in their thought and objectives and had
outlived their utility. For example, the Indian Association of Bengal had increasingly associated itself with
zamindars. Similarly the Bombay Association and Madras Native Association had become reactionary. Only the
Poona Sarvjanik Sabha continued as before. But they had created a basic level of awakening in the country. So
need was there for a more radical and national level organization.
2. The press was growing and spreading nationalist ideas and integrating people all over the nation.
3. A series of campaigning against unpopular acts of government had already given experience and confidence to
Indian leaders. Vernacular press act, arms act, afghan war, land revenue, ilbert bill.
4. The new leaders and press were already pressing for the cause of a national level political association.
Programme and Objectives of Early Congress
The Indian patriots of the late 19th century were not questioning the imperial connection. But Her Majesty's loyal
subjects were also gradually turning into conscious citizens, demanding their rights from an authoritarian colonial
state.
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1. Anti-Colonial Rule: The early demands were mild - like reduction of LR, reduction in war expenses, more
education, health, Indians in civil services etc. But these were demands which ran contrary to the very nature
of a colonial rule and couldn't have been fulfilled.
2. Nation Building: This process had just started in India, so they had to continue it. This had to be done by
emphasizing common nature of problems, promoting unity across regions, religions, mobilizing public opinion
and raising issues of national importance.
3. Create a common political platform: Where workers from different parts of India could gather and conduct
their activities to educate and mobilize people all over India. To give a proper organizational structure and
leaders for them to work around.
4. Guiding the INM on modern path: Changing concepts, bringing modern ideas to Indian public, to draw them
into politics. New politics meant involvement of people, so to mobilize public opinion.
5. Expose the true nature of rule: This would enable people to focus and channelize their opinions. They
believed Indian poverty is not God sent but man made due to actions of . Economic development means
development of modern industries. The economic development in India should happen with Indian capital only
and not foreign capital. They disagreed that rule was good for India because it had established law and
order. They said the law and order only means that could bleed India dry with minimal resistance.
Development of railways etc. served the same purpose. The policy of free trade was ruining Indian industry.
Drain of Wealth
The economic theory by linking Indian poverty to colonialism was trying to corrode the moral authority of colonial rule,
and also perhaps by implication challenging the whole paternalistic imperialism or benevolence.
Factors Responsible
1. Rise of as political power - diwani and nizamat rights.
2. Colonial nature of rule.
3. Return of officials to home.
Instruments
1. Indian Investments: The used Indian revenues to buy Indian products and export to . So India got nothing
for the exports.
2. Home Charges: Expenses of the India office in London including salaries, pensions (expenses of company's
London establishment till 1858 and then by the office of SoS for India in London); dividends / charges paid by
the company; interest on loans taken by GoI (earlier company); pensions. The amount of home charges was
10% of total revenues of GoI in 1858, 24% in 1900, 40% in 1921.
3. Wars fought by outside India: They had no relation to India but India had to pay for it.
4. Excessive employment of : They came expensive and took away all wealth to .
5. Capital: The profits went back as dividends / interest.
6. Coercive Practices: Used to coerce Indians into labor and buy low, sell high.
Critique of DoW Theory (Curzon et al)
1. They said there was an inflow of bullion into India. But bullion as a commodity can be purchased.
2. They said arranged loans for India @ concessional rates. But did India ask for it?
3. Railways brought benefit to India. But it was colonial in character.
Moderates (1885-1905)
Nature & Character
1. They were young and more radical compared to the previous generation who were too narrow minded.
2. They were liberals believing in constitutional means and processes. They protested against the colonial
element in the rule. They had full faith in sense of justice. They were totally non-violent. And they
considered as inviolable and hence the faith in methods.
3. They were democratic in thought and even structured INC on democratic lines. They were assimilatory,
secular, egalitarian and tolerant. Yet they were not always forthright enough to rise above their sectarian
interests despite claiming to do so.
4. Their social outlook was also progressive. They represented the modern enlightened chain of thought in India.
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They supported the Age of Consent Act of 1892.

5. They were the western educated intelligentsia of India. They were journalists. They belonged to upper middle
class and were elitist. They had no faith in efficacy of masses. Their social support base was urban, yet their
issues and activities were pan-Indian in character and were sympathetic towards peasants.
6. They were primarily guided by utilitarian theories, the administration should be efficient, the government
should be guided by expediency and not by any traditionalism or moral laws.
The moderates had wanted the Indian nation to develop along a modernistic course; but modernism being a western
concept, this meant an advocacy of the continuation of the colonial rule.
Thus their immediate demand was not for full self government or democracy, they demanded democratic rights only
for the educated members of the Indian society who would substitute for the masses.
1. They wanted abolition of the India Council which prevented the SoS from initiating liberal policies in India. They
also wanted to broaden the Indian participation in the central and the provincial legislative councils by having
50% members elected not by the general public, but by local bodies, chambers of commerce, universities etc.
They wanted 2 Indian members in the GG's executive council and 1 such member in each of the provincial
council.
2. The budget should be referred to the legislature which should have the right to discuss it, amend it and vote on
it. They also wanted the right to appeal directly to the parliament against the GoI.
Limitations of Moderates
1. Between 1892 and 1909, about 20% of the delegates attending congress sessions were landlords, 40% were
lawyers and 15% were traders. Among the lawyers and traders as well many were related to landlord families
or had landed interests. The congress could therefore never take a coherent logical stand on peasant question.
They demanded extension of PS in the interest of zamindars, opposed a survey on measuring the extent of
land holdings and their values in 1893-94 which could have protected the peasants from the manipulations of
the zamindars, its leaders opposed the Bengal Tenancy Act 1885.
2. The representation of the pro commercial classes also prevented congress from addressing the worker
question. Thus they opposed the Factory Acts of 1881 and 1891, Mining Bill and other labor reforms. It was the
pro landlord and pro bourgeoisie policies of the congress that allowed the colonial government to project itself
as the real protector of the poor.
3. Between 1892 and 1909, ~90% of the delegates attending congress sessions were hindus and only 6.5% were
muslims. Even in Hindus ~40% were brahmans and rest were upper caste hindus. This led to social orthodoxy
and lack of clear communal policies (even though in 1888 congress passed a rule that no decision will be taken
which was opposed by an overwhelming majority of any community and in 1889 in its resolution demanding
reforms in legislature it recommended proportional reservations for minorities). Muslim participation declined
even further after the 1883 communal riots and congress' silence on it. After the 1891 Nagpur session of
congress, the Gaurakshini samiti held its meeting within the congress pavilion and was attended by a large
number of congress leaders and thus only increasing muslim misgivings. And no major initiative was launched
by the congress to bring the muslim in its fold.
Successes of Moderates
1. Political reforms were taking place and Indian Councils Acts of 1892 and 1909 were passed.
2. Their economic critique and nation building activities + founding fathers of modern India in many ways.
3. The Public Service Commission was setup in 1886. They succeeded in getting a resolution introduced in
parliament on holding civil services examination in India as well.
4. A Welby Commission was setup to look into the ways of better management of Indian resources.
Extremists (1905-1919)
Political extremism in the late 19th century was not just a reaction to moderate failures; it drew its inspiration and
ideology from a cultural and intellectual movement that developed simultaneously with and parallel to moderate
politics of the Congress.
Nature & Character
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1. Congress under the moderate leadership was being governed by an undemocratic . Despite repeated
attempts by Tilak no reforms were carried out. The congress was also financially broke as the capitalists didn't
contribute and the patronage of a few landed elements was never sufficient. The social reformism of the
moderates also went against popular orthodoxy. Then came Curzon and he passed a string of unpopular acts
including the Calcutta Municipal (Amendment) Act, 1899 (which sought to reduce the number of the elected
representatives in it), the Indian Universities Act, 1904 (which placed Calcutta university under government
control) and the Indian Official Secrets (Amendment) Act, 1904 (which placed further restrictions on press). His
unpopular Calcutta university convocation address too stoked discontent.
2. They were more radical than moderates in their demands and means. They had no faith in constitutional
processes and resorted to agitations on streets, public speeches, fiery press articles, traditional festivals,
boycotts etc. Basically they sought to broaden the support base of the INM.
3. They were non-violent but had sympathies with violent actors against . They themselves never asked for
violence neither openly supported it.
4. They demanded not constitutional reforms but home rule. They had no faith in sense of justice.
5. Though they were generally progressive and secular in outlook, they often took recourse to religion and
reactionary elements to garner support. Their source of inspiration was past glory of Indian culture. They
opposed the Age of Consent Act, 1891.
6. Their support base was still urban, though it widened to include lower middle class as well. At its height, it also
entered villages to a limited extent.
Partition of Bengal
Partition Plan
1. East Bengal would have 18 mm Muslims & 12 mm Hindus. INC would oppose it thus Muslims will feel that INC
doesn't want to give them a Muslim majority province. W Bengal will have 17 mm Bengalis and 37 mm nonBengalis. Also any measure to reduce the importance of Calcutta would weaken the INM and Congress.
2. Had the partition been purely on administrative grounds then the government would have accepted the
alternative proposals offered by a number of civil servants suggesting more logical partition plans based on
linguistic division rather than religious division of the population. But Curzon rejected all these proposals on
political ground that linguistic unity would further consolidate the position of the Bengalee politicians.
Response (1903-early 1905)
1. Sarkar (1973) has identified 4 major trends in Swadesi politics which ran more or less simultaneously
throughout - the moderate trend, the constructive swadesi, the political extremism and the revolutionary
terrorism. Initially the moderates held sway. They wrote in press, speeches, public meetings assuming that the
would be amenable to arguments. Some of the largest public meetings were held in this period. They were
trying to build public opinion against the partition. They also tried to build opinion in and in parliament
against the plan. But when they failed to do so the movement widened into a call for the boycott of goods led by the moderate SN Banerjee himself. But despite the wider call, the strategy of the moderates remained
the same - they only sought to pressurize the parliament to secure an annulment of the partition and couldn't
conceptualize of boycott as a method for the development of national economy and resistance.
2. As a reaction to the boycott, a new trend developed with the emphasis on self reliance and many constructive
projects to develop swadesi education and businesses were launched. The difference from the political
extremist version of swadesi and this constructive swadesi was that the emphasis was on non political
programmes and religious revivalism. Atmasakti became the creed of Bengal. Arbitration courts were created
and the Swadesh Bandhab Samiti settled over 500 cases.
3. But as it developed the political extremists began to argue that without political freedom no atmasakti or self
reliance was possible. And thus the movement took a new turn and became wider than just Bengali sub
nationalism. Now the goal changed from annulment of the partition to swaraj.
In 1911 the Curzonian aim of weakening the Bengali politicians was achieved in a different way and now with less
resistance.
1. Also refer to the transfer of capital out of Calcutta to Delhi.
Swadesi Movement
Gandhi vs Swadesi - Swadesi was the 2nd failure of congress (1st was to keep muslims within its fold).
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1. Although the tools were similar like boycott of goods and institutions, development of their indigenous
alternatives, violation of unjust laws and agitation against excesses yet there were important differences.
2. Swadesi also allowed for violent agitation in the face of excesses while Gandhi emphasized completely on
non violence.
3. Hindu religious revivalism was the main feature of swadesi while Gandhi had a universal assimilatory
philosophy. He too used religious idioms and songs but his was not a revivalist tendency but referring to
religious morality. His goal was a moral goal and he never defined swaraj.
4. Swadesi failed in developing mass support as its leaders were not particularly keen to include lower peasantry
and lower castes in their fold. They were dominated by high caste hindus and sometimes used coercive
practices and social boycott etc. to enlist their support. Swadesi thus failed to recognize and accommodate the
social aspirations of lower classes. It was primarily because of this failure of mass mobilization that the boycott
movement failed to affect imports into India.
5. Gandhi's swadesi was firmly based on Indian ideology whereas the earlier swadesi was on borrowed ideology.
Tools
1. It began when it became obvious that moderate methods had failed and government will not stop @
them. Spontaneous meetings and processions took place.
2. Mourning day was observed and rakhis tied. Picketing, strikes, boycotts, women, students, Indian enterprises.
It was pan-India and took place in other parts of India as well. Songs, festivals.
3. Corps of volunteers were setup to spread the message in villages as well.
Impact
(a) Social
1. Education: National Council of Education was setup comprising of leading nationalists. Vernacular languages
were promoted. Indian schools and colleges were setup to accommodate expelled students.
2. Social Base: Usual suspects + class of zamindars. Instilled sense of self-sacrifice. Peasantry, changed concept
of modern politics!
3. It led to increased participation of workers in mainstream INM as well. For the first time, INM began to turn
pro-worker. Swadesi led to politicization of workers, their demands were no longer immediate economic ones
but now linked to national cause.
(b) Political
1. Emerging Trends: Transition to Gandhian methods could be seen in fragments. Mass involvement, constructive
work in villages, women, student, peaceful picketing, swadesi, passive resistance.
(c) Cultural
1. Patriotic songs were composed which inspire till date. Folk music was influenced.
2. Vernacular languages got a boost.
3. Abanindranath Tagore and Nandalal Bose sought to revive Indian style of painting and end victorian
domination.
Surat Split
The all India political alignments in 1906-07 could best be described as in a state of confusion.
1. The Bengali moderates cherished their connection with the more conservative Bombay group but the local
political compulsions in Bengal (swadesi was most active there and the pressure of extremists was hardest
there too) imposed upon them a more radical course. The Bombay group, led by Mehta and Gokhle, couldn't
appreciate their radical tendencies at all.
2. Among the non Bengali extremists, Lala and Tilak was clearly in favor of restraint and wanted reconciliation
between extremists and moderates. But other extremists were clearly against any compromise and wanted to
press further on.
3. The even bigger issue was how far to carry the radical programme @ Congress. INC embraced swadesi in
1905 and swaraj in 1906 under the pressure of the extremists who got support from Bengali moderates
despite the machinations of Mehta. Now differences emerged over whether to extend boycott to other things
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apart from goods as well and whether to extend it to other parts of India as well. Mehta was against the
retention of the 4 Calcutta resolutions (on swaraj, swadesi, boycott and national education).
Home Rule Movement
Methods Used
1. Organization, associations, committee. Several committees of dedicated workers were formed - 6 by Tilak and
200 by AB.
2. Press was used. They published journals, used newspapers, distributed pamphlets in which they clearly
articulated their demands.
3. They used vernacular languages in their writings, speeches and promoted political education and discussion.
4. Gradually its extremist tendencies were growing. After the arrest of HRM activists including AB, Tilak began to
talk of a passive resistance or civil disobedience movement. He sent out a proposal in this regard to all
provincial congress committees who wanted more time to launch it.
Significance
1. Swaraj no longer seditious, filled political vacuum etc.
2. Home rule leagues had good membership in areas like Gujarat, Sind, UP, Bihar which had hitherto not
participated to any appreciable extent in the mainstream INM.
3. Created a dedicated cadre for the nationalist cause. To play an important role in Rowlatt Satyagraha and
peasants' movements.
Revolutionary Extremism
Changing Character of REM
1. Growing Organization: In the beginning they were little organized, lacked clear understanding of the rule in
India. They were driven more by emotions and self sacrifice than by real world considerations. In 1920s it
turned more organized and pan-India. In 1940s, INA was formed which was a highly organized effort.
2. Changing Methods: In the beginning, they followed the model of individual bravery and didn't try to get any
mass support. The Gadhar Party made attempt to involve the army into it. By the time of Bhagat Singh, need
was felt to involve the masses into the struggle and individual acts merely became a means and not an end in
themselves. INA was a proper organized army.
3. Growing Socialistic Influence: The impact of socialistic ideals gradually grew. Hindustan Republican Association
and HSRA were openly socialist in their leanings. INA was completely socialistic.
4. Growing Secularism: The early REM took oath in the name of religion and were confined to Hindus. But the
groups in 1920s abandoned Hindu oaths and no longer excluded Muslims.
Impact of REM
1. On Princely States: They helped a lot in spreading the nationalist ideas in princely states as they used to hide in
these states after committing their acts.
2. They were egalitarian and secular in character.
Beginning Phase (1900s till 1920s)
Factors Responsible
1. Economic hardships faced by people during closing years of 19th century. There were massive famines
repeatedly.
2. Hindu revivalism - Vivekananda's emphasis on masculinity, akharas.
3. Failure of mainstream movement: The Swadesi and Boycott movements had aroused the urban youth. The
speeches of extremist leaders and slogan of swaraj had fired their imagination. But the extremists failed to
provide them any guidance from thereon and the youth were forced to adopt a path of violence.
4. International factors like defeat of Italy at the hands of Ethiopia, Japan's victory over Russia and methods of
Irish revolutionaries and Russian nihilists encouraged them.
Nature & Character
1. They tried to follow the model of Irish militants and Russian nihilists instead of trying to organize a mass revolt
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2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
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or an army mutiny. Their model was based upon leading by action.

They lacked proper understanding of the strength and character of rule.
They got active support of press and even had some dedicated newspapers. Important ones were Jugantar
and Abhinav Bharat.
They organized themselves into secret societies. Important ones were Anushilan Samiti and Jugantar.
They were also spread outside India.
They were Hindu biased as they took religious oaths and excluded Muslims.
Early Acts
1. In 1877, Basudeo Balwant Phadke gathered around him a small band of backward classes and engaged them
into dacoities to collect money for his plans of an armed revolt against .
2. In 1902 4 groups were formed. 1st one was Midnapur Society, 2nd was an akhara by Sarala Ghosal in
Calcutta, 3rd was Atmonnoti Samiti in Calcutta & 4th was Anushilan Samiti by Satish Chandra Basu in Calcutta.
3. The 1st swadesi dacoity to collect funds was organized by Anushilan @ Rangpur (Barindra Kumar Ghose,
Prafulla Chaki, Hemchandra Qanungo). A bomb making factory was started in Maniktala @ Calcutta. In 1907,
an unsuccessful attempt was made on the life of Lieutenant Governor of Bengal.
4. In 1908, Prafulla Chaki and Khudiram Bose threw a bomb in a carriage believed to be carrying an unpopular
judge of Muzaffarpur.
5. In 1912, Rash Behari Bose and Sachin Sanyal made an attempt on life of Viceroy Lord Hardinge.
6. Jatin Mukerjee in Bengal tried to smuggle arms from Germany during WW1 but was suppressed ruthlessly in a
battle with police @ Balasore in Odisha.
Second Phase (1920s & 30s)
Factors Responsible
1. Failure of mainstream nationalist movement.
2. Socialistic ideals: Success of Russian revolution. Growing importance of worker class and trade unions in India
which they wanted to harness for the nationalist revolution.
Nature & Character
1. They aimed at creating mass revolutions now. They particularly wanted to target working class. The individual
acts were means to spread their propaganda and not ends in themselves.
2. They had close association with communist leaders, trade unions etc.
3. In some places like Bengal, the REM had close association with Congress. Their cadre continued to work for
INC while working for REM as well. This provided them cover. After the death of CR Das, Bengal Congress
leadership got divided into two - Yugantar teamed up with JM Sengupta while Anushilan teamed up with SC
Bose. They carried out a few attempts but failed and stagnated.
4. Surya Sen led REM in Chittagong. They wanted to organize a rebellion, however small in scale, to demonstrate
that it was possible to challenge might with arms. So they carefully planned to capture armory, seize its
arms, cut off telegraph and railway lines to Chittagong and then fight the invading force.
5. Women participated in large scale. They acted as messenger, provided shelter, took care of arms and even
fought.
6. They no longer took religious oaths and excluded Muslims.
Significance
1. The Chittagong armory raid fired the imagination of youth and REM activities reached their peak from 1930-32.
2. The REM led by Bhagat Singh transformed the meaning of nationalist struggle. It no longer meant end of
imperialism only. It took heavy socialistic color. It now meant end of oppression of man by man. Revolution
was no longer associated with violence only.
Bengal
Nature & Character
1. In some places like Bengal, the REM had close association with Congress. Their cadre continued to work for
INC while working for REM as well. This provided them cover. After the death of CR Das, Bengal Congress
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leadership got divided into two - Yugantar teamed up with JM Sengupta while Anushilan teamed up with SC
Bose. They carried out a few attempts but failed and stagnated.
2. Surya Sen led REM in Chittagong. His was a group attempt instead of individual. They wanted to organize a
rebellion, however small in scale, to demonstrate that it was possible to challenge might with arms. So they
carefully planned to capture armory, seize its arms, cut off telegraph and railway lines to Chittagong and then
fight the invading force.
3. Women participated in large scale. They acted as messenger, provided shelter, took care of arms and even
fought.
4. They no longer took religious oaths and excluded Muslims.
Benoy, Badal, Dinesh
1. They attacked the Writers' Building in Calcutta during the CDM and became heroes.
Punjab, UP, Bihar
Nature & Character
1. They shed their religious bias as they no longer took religious oaths and excluded Muslims.
2. Young women took part in large numbers as messengers, custodians, shelter providers as well as fought with
weapons.
3. They had heavy socialistic leanings. They wanted to use individual heroic acts to spread their propaganda,
specially among the working class and communists. They were working for an organized armed rebellion.
4. They had a solid intellectual background behind them which was full of socialistic, republican and modern
ideas. The revolutionaries were well read and their leaders often took lectures to spread their ideas.
5. By his end, Bhagat Singh had begun to believe in non-violent mass movements. Still he took recourse to violent
methods. (a) The changes happened quickly. They became slaves of their past. Once they indulged in violence,
built their career and name on it, they couldn't abandon their organization. (b) To arouse the masses, they had
to somehow spread their propaganda. They had to differentiate themselves from Congress.
Gadhar Movement
Nature & Character / Significance
1. It was based in W Coast of US and had its base in Punjabi immigrants. The liberty of US made it easier for
them to carry it there.
2. They made good use of press. Various circulations like Free Hindustan, Gadar, Gadar di Gunj were brought out.
In Gadhar, they made good use of the economic critique theory of moderates.
3. They organized themselves into secret societies.
4. They worked to instigate Punjabis and the Indian army to revolt against .
5. They were secular, free of ethnic / regional biases. They had people of all religions, regions. Rash Behari Bose,
Barkatullah Khan. They condemned Punjabis for serving in army and looked upon Muslims as brothers.
6. They were egalitarian and democratic in outlook. Their stated aim was to establish a republic in free India.
7. They used press, speeches, tours, travels to India and contacts in the Army to instigate a revolt.
8. They lacked clear understanding of the true depth of rule in India, so were badly crushed.
9. They were international in outlook and kept themselves updated. The WW 1 and Komagatu Maru ship incident
triggered them to launch their revolt. They used to cooperate with other international revolutionary extremists.
Berlin
1. Raja Mahendra Pratap and Barkatullah Khan were involved in talks with Amir of Afghanistan and even setup a
provisional government of free India there during WW 1.
INA
1. The idea of INA was first conceived in Malay by Mohan Singh, an Indian officer in army when he decided not
to retreat with army and instead went to Japanese for help. From thereon Indian PoWs were handed over to
Mohan Singh who tried to recruit them in INA. The fall of Singapore was crucial as lot of Indians lived there. By
the end of 1942, INA strength was 40,000 men.
2. The outbreak of QIM gave INA a chance to enter India. But by December 1942, differences arose between INA
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and Japanese as Japanese wanted to take only a token INA force of 2,000 men to India while INA wanted
20,000 men. Mohan Singh was arrested.
3. With the coming of SC Bose, phase 2 of INA began. They invaded India but never succeeded due to the
discriminating treatment at the hands of Japanese as well as overall defeat of Japan.
Congress Strategy towards INA trials
1. JLN wrested the initiative when he raised the demand for leniency towards INA convicts - Shah Nawaz Khan,
GS Dhillon, PK Sehgal. were already planning leniency but JLN's act made their announcement seem like a
reaction.
2. Congress leaders never raised the question of law or anything. They asked leniency on the grounds of
maintaining good relations between India and . Thus the entire issue became an issue of friendly relations
between 2 nations and had to yield. It became an issue of India's sovereignty as to how can try Indians.
3. Congress leaders ran their election campaign on this issue, organized meetings in support of INA men, fought
their cases and collected funds for them.
Significance of INA Trials
1. INA trials generated unprecedented level of intensity. The famous upsurges of Calcutta in November 1945 and
February 1946 are examples. In these upsurges, generally a group defied the authority, then other people in
the city joined in their support and soon all country began to express their support and solidarity.
2. INA campaigned wide level of solidarity. This solidarity could be seen at grass root level, between Hindus and
Muslims, all classes of society. Initially these men were labeled as misguided patriots but later on they became
the symbols of most heroic patriotism. Entire country united behind them.
3. INA meetings arose the sympathy of loyalist sections, bureaucracy and military as well. Military men openly
collected funds for INA convicts.
4. Upon convicting and then remitting the sentences, the commander in chief noted, "Any attempt to enforce the
sentence would have led to chaos in the country at large and probably to mutiny".
Royal India Navy Revolt (February 1946)
Discipline in army can't be tempered with, we will need an army even in free India.
1. It began @ HNS Talwar when the naval ratings protested against racial discrimination, bad food and
punishment @ boots. Soon ratings of 2 other ships joined them and sympathetic token strikes took place in
over 75 ships.
2. In next phase, people of Bombay descended on streets and expressed their solidarity with the ratings despite
suppression. Soon situation turned violent and lathi-bhata battles were fought @ the barricades. The
communists also poured in.
3. The 3rd phase began when people all over the country began to express their support. Naval ratings in other
parts of the country began to go on strike to express their solidarity.
4. These uprisings were not a result of any particular group or party calling for one. But they were spontaneous
uprisings and the support of people was spontaneous as well. Like all spontaneous things it was short lived.
Debate: Significance of Naval Revolt and Calcutta Uprisings
(a) Communist version - potentially game changers
1. They argue that the communal unity witnessed in these uprisings, if built upon, could have avoided partition.
2. RIN revolt is seen as the event which marked the end of rule as now the fundamental pillars of had
revolted. These were violent, flagrant (in the face) challenges to raj.
(b) Nationalist version - limited significance
1. Communal harmony seen in these uprisings was shallow and only cause specific. It was merely a sentimental
solidarity and as soon as the cause went, rivalry resurfaced. These very cities witnessed communal riots only a
few weeks later. Communalism had become too big a monster by then.
2. RIN revolt was a manifestation of the mood of defiance prevalent in the country. People were convinced raj
would end anytime. If not the naval revolt, such a mood would have found expression in form of something
else.
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3. In the violent battles fought with the establishment, only the most radical elements fought, not the masses.
Masses expressed support no doubt but they didn't fight. Moreover the upsurges were short lived.
Peasant Movements and Tribal Uprisings
Resistance to colonial rule was therefore as old as the rule itself.
Factors
1. rule in India which manifested itself in local issues. This led to high rents, control of forests, spurt in
moneylending and indebtedness, displacement from land, new court and legal systems which protected the
oppressors. The new legal system led to disruption of traditional ways of life and the poor had no recourse to
justice.
2. Christian missionaries.
3. Breakdown of pre-Mughal compromise, creation of property right in land, restructuring of economy.
Nature & Character
Composition of Peasant Society in days
1. It was a pyramidal agrarian society with ~70% being non owners of land. There were the rural land magnates
who were building upon their power as landlords, there were rich peasants and there were poor peasants.
rule managed to severely affect all the sections of Indian peasantry which drove them into revolting.
Pre-1857 Revolts
1. These were apparently local in spread and support base. The apparent factors were also local in character.
Most of these were a result of anguish against the new zamindars or moneylenders. Yet these were national
and had underlying commonness in a sense. The factors were a manifestation of character of rule in India.
The revolts though targeted against moneylenders, zamindars, had as ultimate target.
2. They were not sudden isolated events but were the result of years of exploitation. Thus the tribal revolts of
Bhils in 1819, Kolis in 1829 in Ahmadnagar were all due to interference of in the local society and economic
restructuring.
3. They were violent, backward looking in character. The leaders sometimes claimed religious powers. They
revolved around medieval social setup.
4. Ethnic and local ties were an important element in these revolts. Still not all outsiders were attacked and the
poor ones facing similar conditions even helped them. Generally only the oppressors were attacked.
5. They have also been labeled as 'restorative rebellions' as they were started by disaffected local rulers who
were supported by the peasant via traditional caste, customs, ties and sought to reinstate the old order. The
polygar revolts were an example. While the treated them as ordinary zamindars they were used to being
sovereign powers in the post Vijaynagar kingdom era. The revolt of Velu Thampi of Travancore state is also an
example.
These rebellions were a problem of law and order.
These were primary resistances i.e. a traditional society's act of violent defiance, from which usually follows the
imposition of colonial rule in response.
These were 'pre-political' uprisings, because of their lack of organization, programme and ideology.
The rebellions were not apolitical acts, they constituted political action that demonstrated the political consciousness
of the peasant society.
1. It is clear from the examples (Rangpur, Santhal, Faraizi, Moplah, Kol etc.) that the rebels had a clear
awareness of the altered power relations in their society and a determination to overturn that structure of
authority. They knew that the economic restructuring done by lay behind their grievances. They knew that
their oppressors were zamindars, moneylenders, merchants and ultimately the and they attacked them only.
They also knew their friends were other poor people.
2. Their rebellions were open rebellions often conceived after long open political meetings and thus can't be
labeled as crimes. The rebels formed their own parallel governing structures, levied taxes to fund the rebellion
and held parallel courts.
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3. They had a proper leadership and in many cases like Rangpur they even elected their leaders. In pre-capitalists
societies where class consciousness is less developed, religion / ethnicity naturally plays an important rallying
role. The leaders are often associated with divine powers and blessings from the gods. But this doesn't mean
they were mere religious or ethnic movements.
Shift in Character post-1857
1. Pre 1857, they were generally under zamindars, princes. But they were crushed in 1857 or turned colonial
allies. Post, they fought themselves. So the new revolts were modern in their outlook not regressive.
2. Pre, they generally were violent. Post, the non-violence element grew in importance as a tool. The new
movements also represented a sense of natural justice and strong notions of legitimacy. They didn't kill money
lenders just destroyed their books which were full of fraud. They didn't resist against paying any LR but only
what was considered unjust. Post 1857 revolts show higher level of unionism and political awareness. They
began to use legal means.
3. Earlier they were directed against but now they were directed against their immediate enemies like
moneylenders, zamindars, planters. Earlier their target was colonialism and very broad wide reaching ones.
Now their targets were immediate, specific and local and they went back to cultivation after these specific
targets were met. These targets were invariably economical issues.
4. While earlier revolts had a religion / ethnicity played an important role, the post revolts showed complete H-M
unity. However this doesn't mean that the earlier movements were religious movements. Religion, religious
symbols, religious places, slogans etc. were just used to rally people behind what were essentially secular
causes. Examples are the Satnami and Fakir movement, the Pagalpanthi sect of Tipu Shah in 1833.
Satnami and Fakir Movement, Bihar 1763 - 1800
1. The dasnami sanyasis were armed wandering monks involved in landholding, moneylending and petty trade
while the madari fakirs enjoyed rent free tenures and retained armed followers in Mughal days. Both these
groups were affected by the as apart from the obvious economic factors couldn't tolerate presence of
armed strong groups in the countryside.
Impact
1. They were a reason why 1857 revolt didn't spread to S India, W and E. But they were source of inspiration and
established a tradition of resistance.
Rangpur Ding (1783)
1. This led to impeachment proceedings against Warren Hastings. The reason for the revolt was heavy tax
assessment. The initiative was taken by the peasants themselves. The revenue farming system of Hastings had
led to severe exploitation of peasants for the usual reasons. The peasants initially sent a petition to the
asking for redress against the illegal activities of the ijardars like Debi Singh and Ganga Gobind Singh. When it
fell on deaf ears, they organized themselves, elected their own leader, raised an army and fought with
whatever primitive weapons they had. Both H-M peasants fought side by side and stopped paying revenue.
2. They even sought to legitimize their move by invoking the pre-colonial symbols. Thus they began to call their
leader 'nawab', started their own government and levied charges to meet the cost of their movement. It was
suppressed by army.
Kol Rebellion, Chota Nagpur (1832)
1. They used to enjoy independent power for centuries but rule threatened to transfer the powers of village
headman from the tribal heads to outsiders. Also the 'raja' of Chota Nagpur began to drive out Kols who had
lived there for centuries to farm out the land to outsiders for higher rent. This led to an uprising.
2. The attackers went for the property of the outsiders and not their lives.
Wahabi Rebellion (1862)
1. It was based on radical ideas and purity of Islam and was popular in NWFP @ Sittana. It was first preached by
Abdul Wahab in Arabia and in India by Syed Ahmed of Barelli.
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Faraizi Movement
1. It developed under Haji Shariatullah and after him Dadu Mian. It sought to purify Islam by purging all unIslamic beliefs and practices. Its social base was among the poor Muslim peasants of east Bengal and they
revolted against planters, zamindars, and rulers.
2. Their anger was against zamindars and both Hindu and Muslim zamindars had to suffer. They had a strong
egalitarian philosophy and declared that land belonged to God and thus collecting rent or levying taxes was
against divine law. They also levied taxes to meet the expenses and held local courts.
Mopla Rebellion in Malabar (1841-1920)
1. Moplahs were descendants of Arab traders who had married local Hindu women. Later their ranks also swelled
with the conversion of the emancipated slave caste of Cherumars in 1843 (Slavery Abolition Act). They were a
community of petty traders, small tenants, landless labor and fishermen. The system deprived them of their
lands and all the land ownership rights were given to the landlords. To this was added the usual exploitation
and they were ready for a revolt in 1840s. But the peasants here were mostly muslims while the LL were
Hindus.
2. They rallied behind religious symbols, used religious places, raised religious slogans but their grievance was
essentially for a secular cause.
3. The 1920 rebellion had close connection with the Khilafat movement. Peasants could now see the true nature
of rule and connect their local grievances with the national ones.
4. However, once the repression began, the anti-government and anti-LL movement turned into communal riots.
It was so badly crushed that they couldn't dare to rise for the rest of their lives.
Santhal Hul (1855)
1. It was directed mainly against dikus and petty government servants. Again they were driven into desperation
by the transfer of their land to outsiders. By 1854, the tribal leaders had begun to discuss the possibility of a
revolt.
2. In 1855, an assembly of all local Santhals was called and it was decided to raise the banner of revolt. Their
principal leaders, Sido and Kanhu, claimed to have blessings of God.
3. People were mobilized, and in bands of 1500-2000, they attacked local dikus, zamindars, police stations
etc. They were also helped by poor non-tribals.
4. A massive military campaign was launched and they were suppressed. But a separate Santhal Parganas district
was created.
Indigo Rebellion (1859-60)
Earlier Indigo Rebellions
1. In 1832, Titu Mir rallied the local peasants in Bengal against the indigo planters. Then the Faraizi movement
under Dudu Mian too had indigo planters as its targets.
Factors
1. The indigo planters (mostly ) compelled the peasants to grow indigo on their best lands, gave loans in
advance, bought output @ low rates, and recovered loans even if crops failed.
2. Planters resorted to local goons to coerce peasants and in courts as well were difficult to be brought to justice.
There was a saying 'jay rakshak, tey bhakshak'.
3. The revolt broke out when their cause seemed to get government support in 1859. The Lt. Governor of Bengal
John Peter Grant was sympathetic to the peasants' cause and the deputy magistrate of Kalaroa exceeding his
capacity issued orders to police that indigo cultivators could not be coerced or evicted from their land. The
news spread and peasants stopped growing indigo.
Nature & Character
1. Initially the movement was peaceful but when it failed, the peasants took to violence. The planters came back
with their goons and police. The peasants initially tried to get redress through official means. When they failed
they resorted to violence and evicted the planters and police. This spread in entire Bengal and indigo cultivation
was paralyzed.
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2. This saw unionization of peasants. They fought jointly. The peasants also collected themselves and filed class
action suits in courts. Finally a committee was setup, planters closed their business and went away. Digambar
and Vishnu Biswas were important leaders and Govindpur, Nadia, Murshidabad and Pabna were important
centers.
3. The panic struck planter lobby managed to get a legislation passed compelling the peasants to fulfill their
current contractual obligations. But Grant refused to extend the legislation beyond its life of 6 months and
issued orders to the magistrates not to compel the peasants. This saw peasants trying to get their objectives
by using legal means. Shows level of awakening.
4. It received the support of intelligentsia and press. Hindoo Patriot wrote articles supporting it, Nil Darpan was a
play on it, Hindoo Patriot, Somprakash and Indian Association came to the side of the indigo
peasants. Missionaries too supported the peasants. After the rebellion much of the indigo cultivation shifted
from Bengal to Bihar where it had to wait the arrival of Gandhi to be stopped.
Agrarian League of Pabna / The Pabna Experiment (1873)
1. The Rent Act of 1859 had some pro-tenant clauses and under the Act if a tenant was cultivating a piece of land
continuously for 12 years he was entitled to protection of his tenancy rights by law. This movement was
spurred by the attempts of landlords to destroy their occupancy rights by preventing the tenants from
cultivating continuously for 12 years. Thus this movement clearly shows a high level of awareness by the
peasants of their rights and the laws.
2. The movement, though spearheaded by the high peasantry, had mass base among the lower peasants as well
and it used non violent means and courts for grievance redressal. It professed complete faith in sense of
justice and in fact demanded to become the ryots of her majesty itself. They formed the Agrarian League to
collect money and fight cases for their cause.
3. Their successful experiment was repeated in other parts of Bengal as well. Due to their efforts, Bengal
Tenancy Act 1885 was passed which provided for greater protection of tenancy rights. However, the middle
class remained ambivalent since their interests naturally coincided with the landowning class (some of them
being landowners themselves). This was the contradiction which remained till the very end. Thus the same
Hindoo Patriot which had taken pro-peasant position in the indigo revolt now took a pro landlord position and
so did the Amrita Bazar Patrika. But on the other hand, Bengalee took a pro peasant position.
Deccan Uprising (1875)
Factors
1. It broke out in Supe village, Pune and Ahmadnagar under the Ryotwari system. But high LR had led to
indebtedness at the hands of outsiders - the Marwaris and Gujjus. Earlier too the moneylenders used to lend
tot he peasants but never took more intimate control over their lands. But the introduction of RS made land a
tradable property and this led to large scale transfer of land to these elements and the original owner was not
made the tenant cultivator on his own land.
2. The US civil war had led to first a rise and then a sharp fall in cotton prices. This volatility had pauperized
many.
3. In 1867, the government raised LR by 50 - 200% (on the grounds of extension of cultivation and rise in prices)
and then there were a series of bad harvests. So peasants fell into the clutches of money lenders.
4. Role played by early nationalists like MG Ranade. He increased their awakening and asked them to resist the
payment of enhanced LR.
Nature & Character - Riots or Revolt?
1. The peasants tried to appeal to the sense of natural justice. They first tried to resort to customary punishments
and norms which were peaceful. For example initially when they failed to persuade a moneylender from
bringing down a peasant's house, they resorted to his social boycott. This boycott soon spread to other areas.
2. But only when the boycott proved ineffective that peasants resorted to violence. Even this violence was not
aimed at taking lives but just to destroy the money lenders' book of accounts which were the symbols of
oppression and that too when they refused to peacefully hand it over. Thus the 'rioters' had clearly identified
their target, their source of grievance, had a clear policy of addressing it and so this can't be called a 'riot'.
3. The government suppression was again not brutal since the fight was never consciously against government. It
even led to Deccan Agriculturists' Relief Act, 1879. However the government failed to address the real causes
of the revolt (high LR assessment and the associated inflexibility) and thus when the crops failed again in 1896file:///C:/Users/user/Documents/history%20modern.html
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97 there was a no tax campaign again.

4. It got support of intelligentsia. MG Ranade and his Poona Sarwajanik Sabha had played an important role in
their awakening.
Munda Ulgulan (1899-00)
"... naughty boys making a disturbance in the schoolroom when they believed the school master's attention was
momentarily diverted".
Indian Forests Act, 1878
1. This act established complete government monopoly over the Indian forests. This was driven by the imperial
need for commercial timber production. The act divided the forests into 3 categories - reserved, protected and
unclassified. In the reserved forests government had a monopoly over all produce and felling of trees was
completely prohibited. In protected forests the traditional right holders could collect timber for personal use but
not for sale. Initially they could do it free of cost, but later government imposed charges for doing so.
Rampa Rebellion (1879)
1. This broke out when the commercial exploitation of forests began, roadways were constructed and the
infiltration of outsiders happened who began to take hold of their tribal lands and force them into bonded labor.
The tribes used to practice shifting cultivation which was banned and their rights over forest produce were also
charged by the . The local muttudars often coerced by the tribals provided the leadership and religion played
an important role.
Munda Revolt
1. The Munda sardars had been struggling against the exploitation for over 30 years. Then came Birsa Munda
who claimed to have vision of God and declared himself His prophet possessing magical powers. Under the
influence of sardars, his religious movement soon turned political and he began to organize people against
dikus. In 1899, he proclaimed a revolt.
2. But what was more important was their greater awareness of the wider political realities of the colonial state.
Birsa's ambitions were no longer localized. The aim of his movement was no longer just to drive out the dikus,
but to put an end to the Raj itself.
Peasant Movements of 1920s
Change in character compared to earlier uprisings
1. Earlier movements were based on immediate local economic issues, later ones combined the local issues with
the national ones. While the earlier movements lacked in their vision and understanding of the true nature of
colonial rule, the later ones could clearly see that rule was the cause of their problems.
2. The leadership was twin level now - local as well as national. Kisan sabha members used to attend INC
sessions in large numbers. It was often impossible to distinguish the NCM meetings from peasant meetings.
But in due course, due to adoption of violent means their distance with INM grew. This divergence has fueled
the leftist argument that INC didn't want power to go into radical hands.
3. These movements were a result of the mass awakening and politicization of the peasants in the wake of NCM
and constructive work of Congress workers. Examples are Bardoli where congress workers worked for the
betterment of outcastes and gained their support. Similarly Kheda.
4. The new movements had a wider social base since now both the high and low caste peasants were a part of
it.
Nature & Character
1. These were closely related to and exchanged liberally (methods, ideology as well as leaders) with the
mainstream nationalist movement.
2. They could clearly see that the ultimate rule was responsible for their miseries. This was the result of large
scale politicization of the peasants in the wake of NCM and constructive work. Grass root level politicization was
achieved through kisan sabhas, prabhat pheris, magic lanterns.
3. It cut across caste lines and both high and low classes of peasants participated in it.
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4. The Oudh Kisan Sabha comprised of NCM peasants. It asked peasants not to pay illegal cesses, forced labor
and eviction from land. It mainly relied on large scale demonstrations and passive resistance comprising lacs of
peasants. However, after some time these movements tended to run violent against zamindars, money lenders
and police. A classic example is the Eka Rebellion in UP. It began as a non-violent movement against illegal
extraction of excess rent and oppression by local goons under the leadership of national leaders. However,
soon grass root leaders emerged who began to use violent methods and the movement grew divergent from
NCM.
5. These movements didn't aim at overturning property relations or had deep rooted socialistic mindset. They
never wanted abolition of rent or zamindari system. They merely fought against illegal cesses and excess rent.
The divergence of local leaders and national leaders on peasant movement reflects not the bourgeoisie bias of
national leadership but their faith in non-violence methods.
Baba Ramchandra
1. He was the grass root leader of Oudh Kisan Sabha.
Impact
1. They showed success of constructive work done by the INC. INC could now rally both the high and low castes
behind it.
2. Success of these movements led to loss of prestige of , loss of fear etc. Example in Bardoli, after the initial tax
hike of 30%, the independent commission settled for a hike of 6% only.
3. It had a domino effect. Success or mobilization @ one place led to mobilization in others. Every such effort
brought swaraj nearer.
4. It gave moral strength as well as mass strength to the mainstream INM. No mass movement can be successful
without the participation of the class which comprises of 80% of the population.
Factors
1. Exploitation. Zamindari powers had been increased following the revolt of 1857. Land settlement systems. No
checks and illegal cesses.
2. HRM. Its members initiated the process of organization of of the peasants in the Kisan Sabhas.
Peasant Movements in 1930s & 40s
Additional factors responsible
1. Depression of 1929. No decrease in rent. Bakasht lands.
2. CDM.
3. Socialism. CSP worked to form kisan unions. All India Kisan Sabha was founded in 1936 and it had close
contact with the mainstream nationalist leaders like JLN and Lohiya.
4. Formation of Congress ministries in provinces.
Congress Ministries and Peasant Movements
1. The peasant movements used tools of and were integrated with mainstream national movement. The main
stress was on peasant mobilization and huge gatherings were organized which were addressed by national
leaders as well. Such meetings would air peasant demands and pass resolutions. Campaigns or marches
would be carried out in neighboring villages prior to such meetings. Sometimes long marches would be
organized to press for peasant demands.
2. Although each committee was local, all movements combined affected large parts of India. The demands were
of a similar nature, methods used were similar and factors responsible were similar as well. When it became
clear that congress ministries were not interested in following any real pro peasant programme (all the pro
tenants legislations were significantly watered down in the face of the pressure from congress right) the
peasants began to agitate to press on for their demands.
3. In Malabar in 1938, meetings were organized for amending the tenancy laws, in AP 2000 peasants organized a
march for 1500 miles and presented their petition to the provincial legislature which called for debt relief. In
Bihar, effect of socialism was more pronounced, and in 1938 - 39 one lac strong rallies were organized
protesting against congress and demands were raised to abolish zamindari. They also demanded the return of
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bakasht lands (lands confiscated in depression years for non-payment of rent and cultivated thereafter on a
sharecropping basis). In Punjab, it was directed against the illegal feudal levies and excess rent and even
spread to princely states. In Patiala, demand was raised to restore illegally confiscated land by officials. In UP
too the congress government significantly watered down a legislation which was expected to reduce rent by
half. In Odisha it was the same story and finally the peasants had to organize a mammoth rally in 1938. In all
these provinces the congress governments used the government power to suppress these movements.
4. When the WW2 broke out and Congress ministries resigned, these movements were subdued because of
severe suppression by the government. Then due to the attitude of CPI, the communist and non-communist
strands of peasant movements split.
5. After the war, a new spirit was evident as freedom was anticipated and peasants began to assert their
demands with new vigor. Zamindari abolition struggle gained primacy. In Bengal, the tebhaga struggle broke
out where the sharecroppers said they would only pay one-third and not half the produce and store grains in
their own godowns instead of landlords' before sharing. Movements spread to princely states as well and
turned violent there.
Kisan Sabha Movement in Bihar - Swami Sahajanand Saraswati
1. In 1929 he founded the Bihar Provincial Kisan Sabha to mobilize the peasants against zamindar attacks on their
occupancy rights. Initially it was meant to promote class harmony but by 1935 it increasingly adopted abolition
of zamindari as its main programme.
Kisan Sabha Movement in AP - NG Ranga
1. He organized a number of peasant marches in 1930s and also demanded abolition of zamindari. In 1935 he
along with Namboodripad tried to take the movement to other linguistic areas of Madras presidency as well
and formed the S Indian Federation of Peasants and Agricultural Labor. Next they made efforts for the
establishment of an all India body.
Kisan Sabha Movement in Odisha
1. This was led by CSP activists and they formed Utkal Kisan Sangha in 1935 and organized some militant peasant
movements along the demand of zamindari abolition.
All India Kisan Sabha (1936)
1. It was founded at the Lucknow session of the congress ion April 1936 with Sahajanand Saraswati as its first
president. It brought out a Kisan manifesto which adopted radical demands like zamindari abolition, graduated
LR on agricultural income, grant of occupancy rights to all tenants and scaling down of interest rates and
debts.
2. As a result of this body, Congress in its Faizpur session in December 1936 adopted the Agrarian Programme.
Impact
1. They had a significant impact on the mainstream national movement. Impacted the policies and aims of
Congress. This manifested itself in the Economic Policy, election manifesto and Planning Committee. IN most
places, peasants enrolled for the kisan sabha and Congress simultaneously.
2. They created the environment which necessitated the post-independence agrarian reforms. Thus zamindari
system was abolished.
3. Their impact on Congress was quite immediate and significant. As a part of the Quit India Movement, Congress
explicitly stated that it believed that the land belonged to the tiller and not zamindar. If a zamindar was on
government's side, rent shouldn't be paid to him at all.
Limitations
1. Demands of agricultural laborers were not taken up.
Gandhian Phase
Rise of Gandhi
Debate #1 Gandhi's Rise an Act of Manipulation?
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1. Gandhi's Critics: He was a great manipulator. He systematically eliminated all other leadership.
2. Real Reasons: (a) The INM was rudderless and directionless at that time. The old methods had failed, people
were looking for alternatives. (b) There was already a leadership vacuum. (c) G was not a noob. He was
known for his SAF affairs. His early successes in India too proved the same.
Socio - Economic Circumstances Around the Rise
1. The phenomenal increase in defence expenditure during the war refused to come down even after the end of
the war and kept on increasing. This meant heavy public debt and more taxes. Since LR was fixed in PS areas,
indirect taxes on commerce were raised which stroked inflation. Thus the general prices from 1914 to 1920
nearly doubled.
2. The growth of industry in the war period meant a growth in labor class as well. And they were the worst hit by
the general rise in price levels.
3. There was an under production of food crops and there were successive famines in 1919-20. Still the export of
food grains continued unabated creating tough conditions in India. The prices of cash crops didn't increase
sufficiently and left the peasants dissatisfied. There was a marked increase in peasant indebtedness and hence
a resulting loss of land rights. This also contributed to the massive growth of peasant consciousness and the
kisan sabha movements around this time.
4. The continued recruitment of Indians in the army was also breeding popular discontent.
Inclusivism became Gandhi's unique style of politics.
1. Highlight Gandhi vs swadesi here.
While Annie Besant failed, Gandhi succeeded in uniting both the moderates and the extremists.
1. He claimed a centrist position and alienated none. He adopted the techniques more favorable to extremists and
yet left the definition of swaraj open so that moderates could interpret it in their own way. His total emphasis
on non violence too was to their liking.
The rise of Gandhi did not symbolize a radical restructuring of political life, rather it signified the rise of western
educated and regional language literate elites of backward areas in place of the western educated leaders of the
presidency towns.
1. This school argues that Gandhi relied on a network of local elite people - the 'sub contractors' to mobilize
popular support. However this is a gross underestimation - give usual explanations.
2. Time and again the masses deviated from the path of non violence laid down by Gandhi while still believing at
the same time that they were following Gandhi and establishing gandhi-raj. Gandhi himself, let alone his sub
contractors, had little control over this Gandhi. In this sense he indeed represented a radical shift.
By offering an ideological critique of the western civilization in its modern phase, Gandhi was effectively contesting the
moral legitimacy of the Raj that rested on a stated assumption of the superiority of the west.
1. To Gandhi, parliamentary democracy didn't reflect the general will of the people but merely that of the political
parties which constricted the moral autonomy of the parliament in the name of party discipline. So for him it
was not enough to achieve independence and then 'perpetuate the rule without the '; it was also essential
to have an Indian alternative to the western political structures. His alternative was a concept of popular
sovereignty where each individual controls his own self and that was his swaraj - something which had to be
experienced by each one for himself.
2. He always emphasized on the moral rightness which sprang from Indian religion. Also mention his views on
class struggles. His strong point was that he based his ideology firmly in Indian culture and yet worked for
inclusiveness - something like Ramkrishna although different methodology.
Gandhi was everything to everyone / Gandhi was the undisputed leader of a movement over which he had little control
/ To the masses, Gandhi was a symbol of freedom and not a source of ideological constraint.
1. Time and again the masses deviated from the path of non violence laid down by Gandhi while still believing at
the same time that they were following Gandhi and working to establish the Gandhi-Raj. Everybody had his or
her own grievances with the colonial authority. By appealing to this sense and leaving vague the alternative,
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2.
3.
4.
5.
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Gandhi got the imagination of the masses going. All of them had their own conceptualization of swaraj and all
of them followed his call and fought for their swarajs.
By the time his message reached the grass roots via the hierarchical structure of congress organization, it got
transformed - interpreted @ each level according to its vision. What passed as a Gandhian mass movement
actually contained in it various levels of consciousness informed by different visions of freedom.
NCM: In Kheda the Patidar peasants started a no revenue campaign even without the formal approval of
congress. In Oudh the peasants interpreted Gandhi Raj in their own way and initiated a struggle against the
taluqdars and the movement continued in the form of Eka movement even after the congress broke off from it
due to ensuing violence. Even Gandhi's visit to Oudh failed to have much restraining impact on the peasants. In
Odisha, peasants stopped paying rents and forest taxes even against the wishes of the local congress leaders
and continued their stir even after the formal withdrawal of the NCM by the congress. There were rumors all
around which shows that to the peasants swaraj meant an utopian state with no rent, no exploitation, no
money lender, no zamindars. In Punjab the government deposed the ruler of Nabha for his support to Akalis.
But when the resulting movement (to demand his restoration) turned violent Gandhi had to withdraw his
support and yet it continued. The tribals of Kumaon and Garwahl fought violently for the end of bania raj of
and the establishment of Gandhi raj. But they were not fighting merely for their own land, they raised slogans
in praise of Gandhi and swatantra bharat. In Andhra the tribal leaders preached the Gandhian message of
prohibition and khadi and yet advocated force for their emancipation. For Bengali tribals, wearing Gandhi cap
or chanting his name meant protection from the police bullets.
CDM: Women's large scale appearance in the open street and participation in the agitational politics didn't
jeopardize their respectability as Gandhi's name legitimized such actions as the sacred duty to the nation.
QIM: "Do or die". People accepted the challenge and interpreted it in their own way.
Here also lay the main paradox of Gandhian politics, for he wanted not just any ass upsurge, but a 'controlled mass
movement' which would strictly adhere to his prescribed path.
1. During the NCM when the prince of Wales arrived in India there was violence in Bombay. Gandhi was incensed
and he postponed the no revenue campaign which was to begin from Bardoli and also the full scale CDM was
postponed.
Rowlatt Satyagraha
Story
1. The government was trying to push 2 unpopular Rowlatt Bills through the legislation. Despite the opposition of
all elected members, such Bills were made into laws. This showed complete disregard of public opinion by the
government.
2. The cadres of HRM were only too eager to join the nationalist calls. They became the mainstay of the Rowlatt
Satyagraha. It was decided to observe a nationwide hartal against the Bills on April 6.
3. However, the hartals turned violent and G was forced to withdraw it on April 18.
Significance
1. As a political campaign it failed for it failed to achieve its only state goal - to repeal the Rowlatt Acts. It lapsed
into violence as well. It was limited to certain cities only and failed to have any impact in vast regions of India.
However, in its failure it highlighted the necessity of a well oiled organizational machinery for the success of a
mass movement. This prompted G to introduce many changes in the Congress organization. G emerged as the
supreme leader.
2. It led to the melting of any goodwill GoI Act 1919 could have created and led to its failure.
NCM
Factors Responsible
1.
2.
3.
4.
Nature of rule in India.

Failure of earlier efforts.
Contribution of previous efforts like HRM and Rowlatt Satyagraha in awakening the masses.
Enaction of Rowlatt Acts and GoI Act, 1919 increased disillusion. Khilafat question (Treaty of Sevres) exposed
intent. Jalliawalah Bagh response of . government refused to prosecute Dyer and public actually
contributed money for his cause.
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Khilafat Movement - It was thus a pan Islamic movement in all its appearance as the cause had nothing to do with
India
1. It had 3 main demands - (a) Caliph must retain control over Muslim holy places, (b) his pre war territories
must be restored to him so that he can maintain his position as the muslim head, (c) Arabia, Syria, Iraq and
Palestine must not be under non muslim sovereignty.
2. But Khilafat was being used more as a symbol while the leaders actually had little concern about altering the
political realities in the middle east. It was a found to be a symbol that could unite the Indian muslims divided
across various regional, class, sectarian lines completely. It was essentially anti in character and thus it had
everything to do with Indian cause. In fact this is what led Gandhi to support it.
3. When its demands were not met, the Khilafat committee decided to launch a 4 stage NCM - boycott of titles;
boycott of civil services and police; boycott of army and finally non payment of taxes.
Gandhi's goal was to forge a grand coalition of various classes and communities and in this sense the Nagpur
congress symbolized the emergence of a centrist leadership within the pluralist structure of political India.
1. Gandhi wanted to launch the NC with the aim to redress the khilafat wrong, the punjab wrong, and to attain
swaraj. The special session of congress @ Calcutta in September 1920 approved Gandhian programme of an
extra passive resistance despite stiff resistance from the old liberal guard.
2. There was politics until the December session @ Nagpur but Gandhian resolutions prevailed. Gandhi needed
the congress because without its organization (as he had realized in the Rowlatt satyagrah) he could not have
organized a mass movement. Congress despite its many voices needed Gandhi because he was the only leader
capable of drawing mass support. He had the muslims behind him, he had the untouchables behind him, he
had the labor behind him, he had the peasants behind him.
3. Also Congress was restructured to transform itself into a truly mass party.
Significance
1. 1st great mass movement. Widened social base of INM.
2. Fear of rule was erased from the minds and hearts. It highlighted the effectiveness of G technique. can do
nothing against peaceful masses. Expressed the power of 'dumb millions' of India.
3. Triggered women liberation movements, peasant movements as women were drawn into it in large numbers.
4. Sudden withdrawal led to disillusionment and growth of REM.
Debate #1 Gandhiji's Intent Behind NCM's Withdrawal?
1. Leftist Interpretation (Palme Dutt): G was afraid of growing militancy and radicalization of movement as it
soared among the farmers and workers. He feared that they would take over and destroy the capitalist
elements for who he cared. They also as a proof point out to the withdrawal statement where G advised
peasants to pay rents.
2. Real Reason: He feared that with increasing violence the movement will lose its moral strength. Government
will use violence in one place as an excuse to crack down on peaceful protests at another. The civil
disobedience movement will fail even before beginning. Also it was clear that NCM was fatiguing. This is the
character of all mass movements. He wanted to exit with honor. Leftist argument is hollow because the
peasants in Chauri Chaura did so because of oppressions of police and not against LL or tried to overturn the
structure of property relations. Congress had at no point sanctioned non-payment of taxes or withhold the rent.
So the statement was merely a restatement of its policy.
The most significant aspects of NCM were, however, its uneven geographical spread and wide regional variations.
1. Middle class participation was not spectacular, as revealed by the school, court boycott records, whereas the
participation of the peasants and the working class was impressive. Except in Madras the council election
boycott was successful everywhere with the voting % being < 5%.
2. Economic boycott was very successful as the imports dropped by half. Partly responsible for this immense
success was the active participation of the traders and businessmen who pledged not to deal in foreign cloth
and generously contributed to the Tilak Swaraj Fund. However the large industrialists remained neutral or pro
government during this period.
3. Gandhian social movements which were associated with NCM also achieved fair amount of success. Anti liquor
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campaign saw a significant drop in the liquor revenue realized from Punjab, Madras, Bihar and Odisha. H-M
unity remained impeccable throughout the period except in Malabar (the mopillahs). Although Gandhi himself
was involved in the anti-untouchability campaign, it remained as secondary for most congressmen.
4. NCM was marked by the participation of regions and classes which had not participated to any appreciable
extent in any of the congress movements until then. Thus there was significant peasant participation in
Rajasthan, Sind, Gujarat, Oudh, Bihar, Assam and Maharastra. In S India only Karnataka lagged behind and
participation was impressive in AP, Kerala and TN.
5. Among the SCs, there was significant participation from Maharastra and AP while among the tribals AP delta
and Bengal led. Labor unrest was high in Madras (cotton mill workers invited the congress leaders to give
leadership), Bengal (massive strike waves in industrial establishments throughout the NCM) and Assam (tea
gardens, Assam - Bengal railways), Ahemdabad (at least 1 strike per month).
6. In Kheda the Patidar peasants started a no revenue campaign even without the formal approval of congress. In
Oudh the peasants interpreted Gandhi Raj in their own way and initiated a struggle against the taluqdars and
the movement continued even after the congress broke off from it due to ensuing violence. Even Gandhi's visit
to Oudh failed to have much restraining impact on the peasants. In Odisha, peasants stopped paying rents and
forest taxes even against the wishes of the local congress leaders and continued their stir even after the formal
withdrawal of the NCM by the congress. There were rumors all around which shows that to the peasants
swaraj meant an utopian state with no rent, no exploitation, no money lender, no zamindars. In Punjab the
government deposed the ruler of Nabha for his support to Akalis. But when the resulting movement (to demand
his restoration) turned violent Gandhi had to withdraw his support and yet it continued. The tribals of Kumaon
and Garwahl fought violently for the end of bania raj of and the establishment of Gandhi raj. But they were
not fighting merely for their own land, they raised slogans in praise of Gandhi and swatantra bharat. In Andhra
the tribal leaders preached the Gandhian message of prohibition and khadi and yet advocated force for their
emancipation. For Bengali tribals, wearing Gandhi cap or chanting his name meant protection from the police
bullets.
NCM - Khilafat Equation
1. It soon became clear that the khilafat leaders had accepted the Gandhian concept of non violence
opportunistically so as to take the advantage of Gandhi's charismatic appeal than out of any genuine belief in
the principle. The leaders couldn't (perhaps deliberately) control the situation when it turned violent specially in
the Malabar.
2. They also brought in ulammas in large scale, resorted to excessive use of religious symbols and rhetoric and
evoked religious sentiments among the Muslims. Thus effectively khilafat began to promote communalism.
Thus differences emerged between Gandhi and the Ali brothers over the use of religious rhetoric. As a result,
by the end of the NCM there was a visible breach in H-M unity and communal riots occurred in 1922-23.
Akali Movement - "... the largest and longest application of the Gandhian programme of satyagraha."
1. In 1920, SGPC was formed and its aims were to reform the Sikh gurudwaras and reclaim the control of Sikh
shrines from the hands of government manipulated loyalists. Akali Dal was its auxiliary and was formed to
coordinate the satyagrahi jatthas to wrest the control of the shrines. While on the face it appears a communal
movement, in reality it received wide support because of the imposition of martial law and Jalliawallah
excesses. It was this discontent which was pouring out.
2. Akalis received active support from Gandhi and congress and were ultimately able to force the government to
surrender the control of the shrines.
Swarajists
There was a 'crisis of unity' after the NCM.
1. Talk of swarajists - no changers; talk of H-M unity; talk of division in ML; talk of rise in political mobilization of
dalits under Ambedkar.
G's Approach to Swarajists
1. G was against the idea. When he was released from jail in 1924, hoped he would throw them out. But he
worked to avoid a split at any cost. He held his fundamental stand and yet accommodated them.
2. He never criticized then in public and only highlighted their love for the country. When the government began to
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arrest Swarajists for their support to revolutionaries, Gandhiji used the opportunity to accommodate them fully
and still hold high ground by showing full solidarity and surrendering to them against repression.
3. In November 1924, he ended the rift by signing a joint statement where INC declared that swarajists will carry
out INC work in legislatures.
Reasons for Failure
1.
2.
3.
4.
Their strategy was doomed to fail. Swaraj could never be won by constitutional means.
Their internal differences weakened them.
They began to deviate from their stated path of non-cooperation and began to cooperate with the government.
Appointment of Simon Commission made their existence irrelevant.
Constructive Work
Methods Used
1. They sought to educate the upper castes about the evils of untouchability.
2. They also worked directly among outcastes and educated them, asked them to mend some evil practices. Night
schools were organized for adults, day schools for children. They condemned the Hali system i.e. hereditary
labor to serve upper class land owners, exploitation by money lenders and exploitation of women by high caste
men.
3. They used tribal dialects, composed tribal literature and music. Bhajan mandalis were organized to recite
prayers among tribals.
4. They also led movements like Bardoli movement.
Significance
1. Tribals, untouchables integrated. It gave moral strength to Congress led movement.
2. It promoted grass root level leadership and extended depth of Congress organization.
CDM
Gandhi had to devise a strategy to break out of this impasse and impute a broader meaning into the word
'independence' as opposed to its narrower political connotation that had such a divisive impact.
1. The 1929 Lahore declaration proclaimed complete independence as the goal of congress and the intention to
launch a CDM to attain it. But the reactions of many groups was not so embracing.
2. Many muslim leaders of congress were unhappy as communal unity (which was a precondition to the success
of the movement) was still not there. ML opposed it since they saw it as a sinister design of the congress to
establish a hindu raj. Sikhs had grown distant from the congress and even hindu mahasabha declared its
opposition to the movement. Business houses too were apprehensive of the unconstitutional movement.
3. In this impasse, Gandhi placed an 11 point demand before Irwin and a failure to accept them would necessitate
the launch of the movement. These 11 demands contained something for everybody. 6 were issues of general
interest - reduction of military and civil services expenditure, total prohibition, discharge of political prisoners
not convicted of murder, reform of CID, its popular control and amendment to the arms act. 3 were pro
business demands - revaluation of INR, protective tariffs and reservation of coastal shipping for Indians. 2 were
peasant demands - 50% reduction in LR, abolition of salt tax and government monopoly on salt. Since salt was
an emotional issue with universal appeal, he chose to launch CDM by violating the salt law.
CDM Programme
1. The violation of salt law would be followed by boycott of foreign cloth and liquor, then non payment of revenue
in ryotwari areas, non payment of chaukidari tax in zamindari areas and violation of forest laws in central
provinces.
Spread
1. NWFP: Khan Abdul Gaffar Khan launched the Red Shirt Movement. Nationalist protests were organized and
even the soldiers of Garhwal regiment refused to fire on the protestors.
2. UP: The peasant movements became indistinguishable with the CDM and No Rent Campaigns became a part of
the movement. Prabhat pheris, magic lanterns and peasant meetings became main methods.
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3. Gujarat: Salt satyagraha, no rent campaigns etc. were organized. The satyagrahis used to march towards salt
depots in waves. When one wave fell to police blows, the next came and so on.
4. MP, Maharastra, Karnataka: Anti-forest laws campaigns, salt satyagraha, workers' movements were
organized. The Sholapur Rebellion of workers is too well known. In Nagpur the participation of the workers
was again immense. There were massive strikes in the Grand Indian Peninsular railways and also in docks.
5. E India: Anti-chowkidari tax campaigns (Bihar), anti-municipality tax (Bengal) were organized. Assam
organized anti-Cunningham Circular campaign which asked for parents to furnish a guarantee of the 'good'
behavior of their wards. In Nagaland, Rani Gaidinliu was jailed until independence.
6. S India: Flag agitations, salt satyagraha were organized.
7. Economic: The imports declined by half. Depression contributed to it but most of it was due to CDM.
8. Women participation: They really broke the gates and CDM witnessed massive women participation. Their
appearance in the open street and participation in the agitational politics didn't jeopardize their respectability
as Gandhi's name legitimized such actions as the sacred duty to the nation.
9. Untouchables: In Nagpur and Berar which were strongholds of Ambedkar, the CDM failed to enlist much
support among the untouchables.
Capitalists' Movements
Factors Responsible - Indian capitalist class had developed a long term contradiction with imperialism while retaining
a relationship of short term dependence on an accommodation with it.
1. Indian capitalists didn't grow up as junior partners to and were an independent class. Their interests often
clashed with interests. In 20th century, they had emerged as a strong class dominating most of the organized
industrial base in India. This made it easier for them to organize. Some early capitalist organizations were
Bengal National Chamber of Commerce in 1887 and Indian Merchants' Chamber in 1907 @ Bombay. This
growth was not a result of colonialism but happened in spite of colonialism. Thus @ the even of the launch of
CDM they had huge unsold stocks with them and yet the government refused to impose any customs duty.
Now they realized earlier on that Congress was essential for their demands to be met. won't listen to them
sans Congress backing. So they supported Congress.
2. Indian business group, however, were far from one voice. Thus the industrialists were generally neutral or pro
government and were eager to broker peace in the CDM. The traders and the marketers on the other hand
remained staunch supporters of Gandhi.
3. But at the same time they were also wary of the methods used by the Congress. They realized that
unconstitutional methods of CDM are necessary to press but they followed these only till the point their
demands could be met and not more or else a fight against imperialism might turn a fight against
capitalism. They formed its right wing and tended to be the first ones to pull it towards constitutional process
as soon as they realized their demands would be met.
Many Voices in the Capitalist Class
1. While the WW1 brought immense profitability to the industrialists, the merchants (who were mainly importers)
suffered due to currency fluctuation and stoppage of imports. The rupee devaluation by 30% threatened to
saddle them with losses.
2. The 1919 reforms, based on its policy of interest representation, also promised to give political representation
to the industrialist class. Furthermore the promised a policy of protection from imports. This drew the
industrialists closer to the and their participation in the NCM was little though Birla and Bajaj became close
associates of Gandhi. But Tata and Purshottamdas Thakurdas formed an anti NCM Society. On the other hand,
merchants were alienated by the and also Gandhi's moral religious values, his trusteeship theory etc. all
appealed to them and they were active participants in NCM.
3. Post NCM the worsening economic conditions brought the industrialists as well closer to congress and they
actively participated with the swarajists. Moreover when due to opposition from the Lancashire lobby the
government matched a customs duty hike with a hike in excise duty they realized that aligning with the
government only was futile. There was a rising threat of communism as well and they needed to come close to
congress in order to prevent its communist takeover!
Nature & Character of Capitalists' Policy
1. Some early efforts were made by leading industrialists and in 1927 FICCI was formed. soon recognized FICCI
as representative of capitalist class in the hope of keeping a check on INM. On the other hand, the Indian
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2.
3.
4.
5.
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capitalists saw FICCI as a guardian of Indian economic interests.

FICCI (1st head was Purshottamdas Thakurdas) was closely integrated with INM as well and its leaders clearly
emphasized the need to support Congress. So while they supported CDM, they were opposed to its
continuation for long lest it becomes revolutionary and threaten the existence of capitalist class. Also they felt
that they had reached a point where the demands of their class could be met and thus brokered for truce.
They supported constitutionalism. The traders were active in implementing the boycott of foreign goods and
factory owners pledged to not manufacture coarse cloth which competed directly with the charkha cloth.
However opposed the capitalists may be to CDM in its last days, they never supported the repression unleashed
by the colonial government. They needed Congress. But at no stage did they dominate the Congress. Congress'
policies were becoming increasingly pro-people, they were not mainly dependent on business class for funds,
their organizational strength was far too superior and the leadership was far too decentralized and connected
to people.
After the CDM when the government announced the proposal of an Imperial Economic Conference @ Ottawa in
1932 to foster a close economic relationship between the different industries of the empire, FICCI was initially
enthusiastic but the viceroy turned down its offer and sent only some loyalist industrialists. Thus the Ottawa
Agreement of 1932, despite promising some real benefits to Indian business, got a lukewarm response from
FICCI.
In QIM, the capitalist class supported the underground leaders of the movement. Sumati Morarji helped Achyut
Patwardhan in evading arrest by providing him different cars.
Women Movements
The male reformers of 19th century treated women as subjects of their modernizing project and could not imagine
them to be their conscious equals claiming agency for their own emancipation.
It was in this area that there was a broad degree of consensus between the colonial state and the nationalist male
elites.
1. The education meant for women was never for the emancipation of women. The colonial government wanted
female education as it wanted educated wives so that the english speaking mothers could inculcate loyalty and
english taste in the children from the beginning. The educated middle class males dreamt of the Victorian ideal
of companionate marriage and in Bengal the educated bhadramahila appeared to be an ideal companion to
the bhadrapurush. This new concept of womanhood was a fine blending of the self sacrificing hindu wife and
the Victorian helpmate.
2. It must be noted that while such people encouraged women education, they considered the wrongly educated
or the over educated women as a threat. Similarly muslims educators of women too wanted women who
would be better wives, better mothers and better muslims.
3. Even when the women worked their reproductive role was considered primary and productive role secondary
and their incomes were considered to be supplementary only. Thus they received low wages and were first to
be fired and were not expected to take part in labor agitations. One Pandita Ramabai took the lead and started
Arya Mahila Samaj in Maharastra. She also started Mukti Mission and Sharda Sadan to uplift the condition of
widows. She also defied many of the social practices like hypogamy, seclusion, conversion etc. And she was
equally criticized by reformers and conservatives.
4. As reformism gave way to revival, Hindu woman became an ideal emblem of the moral order uncontaminated by the influence of west - that symbolized their India. The degraded condition of women was
often used as an attack on Indian culture, so hindu revivalists often imagined a golden past where women
were treated with dignity and honor. Icons of mother india were created, laxmi had deserted India due to
and now one had to bring her back. The revivalist nationalists too emphasized on her reproductive potential by
emphasizing on her motherhood. Thus even in the early revolutionary movement there were a few women
who participated but they were assigned secondary roles only and not the main roles. In swadesi, the
participation of women became an extension of their household duties vis to follow their husbands.
Participation of women was highest where the husbands too participated. In cases where they defied the
husband's command and went on the streets, she was immediately disowned. And when they participated their
role was confined to that of staying between women and picketing shops.
It was Gandhi's name which ensured that even after marching on the streets, going to jail, suffering indignity there
women could come back to their families with no stigma attached.
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1. It was Gandhi who changed this concept and shifted the emphasis from their reproductive power to their
selfless sacrificing power. He always held men and women equal and he had already seen their capacity of
sacrifice in SAF and he sought to harness it. Thus women flocked in his movements in masses and yet it wasn't
considered to be demeaning, for answering Gandhi's call had become a religious duty. Thus Basanti Devi,
Urmilla Devi and Suniti Devi (relatives of CR Das) stunned the nation by participating in open demonstration on
the streets of Calcutta and courting arrest. CDM opened the floodgates. As an influence of Gandhi the nature of
participation of women in the revolutionary activities too went a fundamental change as now they actually
started shooting guns.
Muslim Reforms and Women
1. These movements made women a center measurement scale to measure 'progress'. In a high status muslim
home, women would be in purdah - physical as well as psychological.
Women Movements
1. Radhakanta Deb started the School Book Society for women education. In 1882, Tarabai Shinde wrote a book
A comparison between men and women which protested against the exploitation of women. Yet she was no
rebel for she merely wanted a dignified space for women within the household. Pandita Ramabai took the lead
and started Arya Mahila Samaj in Maharastra. She also started Mukti Mission and Sharda Sadan to uplift the
condition of widows. She also defied many of the social practices like hypogamy, seclusion, conversion etc. And
she was equally criticized by reformers and conservatives. Rashtriya Stree Sangha and Des Sevika Sangha
were setup as auxiliary bodies to congress.
2. Hunter commission of 1882 also noted that 98% of women in India were illiterate and recommended special
funds to be set apart for their education.
3. IN 1917, Women's Indian Association appeared @ Madras and it was started by the enlightened european and
Indian ladies like Margaret Cousins and Annie Besant. In 1925 National Council of Women in India was setup as
a branch of the International Council of Women by Tata's wife. The most important organization was the All
India Women's Conference in 1927 - initially as a non political body - to promote education by Margaret
Cousins. Later it lobbied for other female rights as well including political. Sarala Devi Chaudhurani founded
Bharat Stree Mahamandal on 1910 @ Allahbad to promote education. In Bengal, Bengal Women's Education
League was founded for the same purpose. However, instead of preparing a mass base, these organizations
relied on petitioning the and appealing to the nationalists. While the remained unsympathetic, the
nationalists took up their cause somewhat.
4. These women organizations failed to create a distinct feminine consciousness in India for although they
recognized the central role of women in public, they envisioned such a role to be constrained within some
social, physical, psychological norms.
5. This concept was only seriously challenged in 1940s when (as we can see in QIM) women began to claim their
rightful place as equal partners. Sucheta Kriplani coordinated the non violent movement, Aruna Asaf Ali
coordinated the underground activities, rural women participated on their own account in the QIM. SC Bose in
1928 was instrumental in raising under the leadership of Latika Ghose a congress women volunteer corps
which marched on Calcutta streets in full uniform and later in INA he formed a women's regiment.
By the turn of the 19th century, whatever be said, the fact remains that a number of women in the middle class hindu
households were educated. But this did not improve the conditions of their social existence very remarkably.
1. This was because the motivation of such education was never the emancipation of women. The colonial
government wanted female education as it wanted educated wives so that the english speaking mothers could
inculcate loyalty and english taste in the children from the beginning. The educated middle class males dreamt
of the Victorian ideal of companionate marriage and in Bengal the educated bhadramahila appeared to be an
ideal companion to the bhadrapurush. This new concept of womanhood was a fine blending of the self
sacrificing hindu wife and the Victorian helpmate.
2. It must be noted that while such people encouraged women education, they considered the wrongly educated
or the over educated women as a threat. Similarly muslims educators of women too wanted women who
would be better wives, better mothers and better muslims.
Did the INM activism and politicization of women promote a feminist consciousness in India?
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1. For the wider society, the answer is clearly no. The reasons are obvious - the framework in which women
used to participate.
2. But for those women who led these movements, life could perhaps never be same again.
Indian Youth & Student Movements
1. Many of them participated in constructive work.
2. They gave militant flavor to anti-Simon agitations and rose to prominence thereafter. JLN and SC Bose were
prominent youth leaders.
3. The rise of youth elements also led to the radicalization and socialization of the INM.
Lower Class Movements
Phase 1 (Till 1919)
1. The moderate leadership was elitist, middle class. They definitely couldn't take up the cause of untouchables.
The extremist leadership was lower middle class and rested heavily on the support of caste people. So they
too couldn't alienate them by taking up cause of untouchables.
2. The winds of change however couldn't leave them isolated and in 1917, INC passed a resolution condemning
untouchability. But nothing concrete was done in this phase.
Factors Behind Mobilization
1. There was a growing realization of the significance of the new sources of status i.e. education, government
jobs, political participation and an awareness that these new sources of status too had been monopolized by
the brahmans. In this the policies and Christian missionaries helped a lot. In fact for some time it was
believed that one way of protest against the caste disabilities was to convert into christianity but it failed for
obvious reasons. But as a result organized caste movements began to grow in many parts of the country Ezhavas and Pulayas in Kerala, Chamars in Punjab, UP and Chattisgarh, Nadars in TN, Namasudras in Bengal.
2. Another important factor behind their mobilization was the spread of the message of bhakti. Thus Sri Narayan
Dharma Paripalna Yogam worked among the Ezhavas and Matua among the Namasudras and preached the
message of equality. There was the Adi Hindu movement among the chamars in UP.
3. There ensued a process of Sanskritization among the lower classes where those with social mobility ambitions
chose to follow the customs of higher caste hindus like sati, child marriage, women seclusion etc. There were
other social movements as well.
4. At the same time the increasing hindu revivalist tendencies also alarmed them because if for the brahman
hindus the ancient age was a golden age and the present was a dark age, for untouchables it was the
opposite.
Jyotirao Phule and Satyashodak Samaj in Maharastra
1. He argued that it was brahman domination and their monopoly over the sources of power which led to
exploitation of the Shudras and ati-shudras. So he turned the orientalist theory of Aryan invasion upside down.
He argued that the shudras and the ati-shudras being the original inhabitants should have a higher status than
the brahman aryas and thus there was a need for a social revolution. He tried to unite the lower peasantry as
well as lower caste labor.
2. Even when after the 1919 Reforms when there was a schism in the movement with the upper caste (but non
brahman) elements breaking off to fight elections, satyashodak samaj continued to mobilize the dalits. In 1930s
it came close to Gandhian movement and merged into it and in this merger Kesavrao Jedhe played an
important role.
Madras Presidency Movements - Justice Party, MC Rajah and Periyar
1. Here it was associated with creating a distinct dravidian identity as well. By the late 19th century, brahmans
consisted of < 3% of the population but monopolized over 42% of the government jobs. They showed a public
disdain for Tamil and the dravidian culture and ethnicity. This motivated the Velalas to mobilize to uphold the
dravidian entity and in this they were aided by the christian missionaries who emphasized on the antiquity of
Tamil and the dravidian culture. They also argued that the status of shudra was an imposed one which the
northern brahmans had done so and the caste system as well was not indigenous to Tamil land.
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2. In 1916 Justice Party was formed as a formal political party of non brahmans to demand for separate political
representation of the non brahmans and it defied the NCM and participated in the elections of 1920. Naturally it
won a big victory. But soon it became clear that it represented only the richer classes and thus its social base
narrowed as the untouchables moved away under the leadership of MC Rajah. MC Rajah drew closer to
congress and even participated in CDM making it a resounding success in TN.
3. Soon another movement, the Self Respect movement by EV Ramaswamy Naicker Periyar developed which was
very radical and championed the dravidian entity and Tamil language. He had left congress in 1925 accusing it
to be a brahman organization and then worked to mobilize the dalits. He believed that self respect was needed
before self rule. Associating Sanskrit and north India with brahmans he launched scathing attacks on both. He
turned Ramayna upside down and portrayed Ravana as the ideal south indian king. He organized many
programmes of temple entry and public burning of manu smriti. When in 1937 C Rajgopalachari proposed the
introduction of Hindi in TN, he fiercely opposed it. In 1944 he became the DMK.
Phase 2 (1919- 1934)
1. By this phase the character of INM had changed. Masses were the key. G was a champion of lower classes as
well. So he drew them in through constructive work. He also gave them the name Harijan and began to
support the temple entry movements.
2. The lower caste groups in order to assert themselves tried to appropriate collectively some visible symbols like
temple entry, sacred thread, rituals, community pujas etc. hitherto reserved for the higher castes. Such
movements were particularly strong in Kerala the most important being Vaikkam satyagraha in 1924-25 and
the Guruvayur satyagraha in 1931-33. There was Mushiganj Kali temple Satyagraha in Bengal in 1929 and
Kalaram satyagraha in nasik in 1930-35. Local and national Congress leaders actively participated in a few and
organized satyagrahs and eventually won them temple entries. These temple entry movements created the
widest possible unity. People from highest castes to the lowest outcastes broke social customs and fought
together. People and leaders from all over the country flocked in and fought. All the methods of INM were
used. In Chattisgarh the chamars reinterpreted the religious symbols to even assert their supremacy over the
brahmans. Apart from the religious rights the lower castes also demanded social rights and when denied
organized themselves. Thus the was an attempt by Nadar women in Kerala to cover their breasts like the
higher caste women and this was violently resisted in 1859. This issue flared up again in 1905 between the
Ezhavas and the Nairs in Quilon in 1905. In Bengal when the high caste kayasthas refused to attend the funeral
ceremony of namasudras they resorted to a boycott of working in their fields. In 1927 in Mahad, Ambedkar
organized a satyagraha to demand water from the public tank.
3. Then came the political mobilization and this was led by Ambedkar. In 1927 he publicly burnt a manu smriti. In
1934 he wrote to the temple satyagrahis emphasizing the futility of temple movements and instead urging
them to focus on political representation and education. If political gates are opened, temple gates would
automatically open. He believed that dalit grievances could be redressed only by a complete overhaul of hindu
society and not just by a reformist approach. In 1936 he founded Independent Labor Party to mobilize the poor
and the untouchables and in 1942 All India SC Conference @ Nagpur with its claiming dalits to be separate
from hindus.
4. Gandhi distinguished between issue of untouchability and endogamy + dining restrictions. He wanted INM to
focus on untouchability but not on endogamy + dining restrictions because these were not disabilities imposed
on Dalits and were practiced among Dalits and among caste people as well. Ambedkar asserted that
untouchability was an outcome of caste system, so caste system should be abolished. Gandhiji believed
untouchability was a product of thinking of 'high and low' and had nothing to do with caste system so caste
system needn't be abolished. Moreover Gandhi's approach was to dignify the untouchables and to remove
various disabilities imposed on them. But Ambedkar focused more on empowerment.
Communal Award of 1932
1. When the Communal Award, 1932 gave separate electorates to Dalits, Gandhiji opposed the communal
electorates for Dalits and demanded that increased number of seats be reserved for them but they should be
elected by everyone. He undertook 2 major fasts to press for his demand on this issue. Ambedkar on the other
hand supported the Award while MC Rajah opposed it since he favored a joint electorate.
2. After the Poona Pact there was a cooperation between Gandhi and Ambedkar for some time and it led to
founding the Harijan Sevak Sangh but it failed to last for long.
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But unlike Muslim breakaway politics, dalit self assertion did not go very far and their politics was soon appropriated in
the INM in 1940s
1. Ambedkar found in 1942 All India SC Conference @ Nagpur with its claiming dalits to be separate from
hindus. But still it couldn't break away dalits from INM fold. One reason is that not many dalits believed in his
separatist politics and Gandhi had acquired immense popularity even among them. His constructive work
programme naturally played a big role in allaying their concerns. This lack of mass support made his
movement weak and he couldn't play another Jinnah.
2. In 1946 elections his party won only 2 out of 151 reserved seats and on this basis Cabinet Mission could safely
conclude that congress was a genuine representative of the dalits. Even now a furious Ambedkar tried to prove
his base by trying to initiate a mass satyagraha but failed to get much support. Then congress absorbed him
into the assembly.
Princely India
Factors Responsible
1. Exploitative nature and character of and princely rule. It was worse than in provinces.
2. REM.
3. Khilafat and NCM led to growth of praja mandals in states.
Phase 1 (1920 - 1939)
1. The princely states had never been completely insulated from the happenings in India and both the
nationalistic politics and the communal tension spilled over onto them. Thus in 1921 in Sirohi, Motilal led a Bhil
movement in Sirohi to protest against the jagirdari oppression. The rulers of Alwar and Bharatpur became
ardent supporters of hindu revivalist project and actively patronized Arya samaj activities.
2. Congress allowed people of states to join Congress but barred them from carrying out activities in states in the
name of Congress. They could carry out such activities only under local organizations or individual capacity.
Thus the main emphasis was that the people of states should build up their own strength. Informal links
remained close and throughout the decade praja mandals began to come up which eventually formed the All
India States' People's Conference in 1927. In 1928, congress passed a resolution calling upon princes to grant
a responsible government in their states.
3. Reason for such a policy was general lack of civil liberties in states including freedom of association, their
independent legal status, and comparative political backwardness of people of the states.
Phase 2 (1939 - 1947)
1. The policy changed for closer integration for 3 reasons. (a) The GoI Act, 1935 envisaged a federation where
states would be able to send their representatives to upper house. These representatives would constitute
one-third of the strength of upper house and would be nominated by the princes, hence form a solid
reactionary bloc. This led to a great sense of urgency for responsible governments in states. (b) Congress
ministries. This fired the expectations of people in states and princes too had to contend with a Congress in
power. (c) The earlier policy was an acknowledgement of the fact that awakening in princely India was low.
Now the time had come for its integration as people were ready. So in 1938 @ Haripura, Congress made it
clear that complete independence included states as well.
2. 1938-39 were years of great awakening of people in states and witnessed large number of movements
demanding for responsible governments. Praja mandals came up in many states and intensified their activities
to an unprecedented scale. Massive agitations took place in Jaipur, Rajkot, Travancore, Kashmir, Hyderabad
which were often led personally by congress leaders.
3. In 1942 while launching Quit India movement, no distinction was made between India and princely states.
4. Due to heavy and indiscriminate repression, CPI tended to rally peasants behind it and lead the struggle. Often
such movements turned violent.
Reasons for difference from provinces
1. Lack of civil liberties, associations etc. meant that space for political peaceful agitations was small. So there
was much greater tendency for use of violence. Gandhian strategy could work in provinces because empire
was not a totalitarian state. It was semi-authoritarian or dominance based on rule of law. Such a strategy had
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no space in medieval institutions of princely India.

2. Brutal medieval repression meant struggles were led by communists.
Quit India Movement
"Do or die". People accepted the challenge and interpreted it in their own way.
Congress' attitude towards war
1. A section under Gandhi were strongly anti-fascist and sympathized with . So much so that they were ready to
extend support to .
2. Radicals under SC Bose argued that this was an imperialist war fought by imperial states in both sides for
imperial questions. So there is no question of supporting either. Instead the Congress should use this
opportunity to launch a mass movement.
3. JLN like Gandhi made a distinction between fascism and democracy. But like radicals he believed that even
though justice was with , they were basically imperialists. So unless India is freed from imperialism it can't
support . At the same time, it should not compound problem by launching a mass movement. His view
became the official view of Congress. At the same time it should be felt that demands be presented to
government and it be given an opportunity to negotiate. If negotiations fail and nothing happens, only then a
mass movement should be launched. For this eventuality, Congress' organization should be cleansed and
people should be prepared for the struggle.
4. By end of 1940 it was clear government was not in a mood to negotiate. Hence Congress gave charge to
Gandhiji once again to prepare people for a mass movement. He decided to initiate a limited satyagraha by a
few individuals in each locality. The satyagrahis would be hand-picked, would inform the magistrate of the
venue and time of his satyagraha in advance, go to the spot, make an anti-war speech and court arrest. If the
government didn't arrest him, he would move into villages and spread the message. The aim of this
satyagraha was to inspire people, prepare them and to give further chance to to negotiate and if they don't
then to expose their true intentions to people. So this satyagraha was pretty successful.
5. After the failure of Cripps mission, Gandhiji decided to launch Quit India.
response to Congress
1. were happy the Congress ministries resigned. They refused to accept Congress' demand of complete
freedom after the war and effective transfer of power immediately. They merely said were fighting the war
to resist aggression and that after the war GoI Act 1935 reforms would be discussed with various Indian
parties.
2. The followed their old imperialist policy, tried to harp on differences between ML and Congress and refused
to believe that they will have to leave India.
Reasons for Congress not launching a mass movement in 1939-40
1. Congress felt that since cause in the war was justified, their problems shouldn't be compounded.
2. They felt Congress organization was not ready for launching a mass movement. It was full of corrupt selfserving elements as Congress had been in power. Congress had lost touch with people due to its ministries.
3. Lack of Hindu-Muslim unity could easily have triggered communal riots during the mass movement and even
civil war.
4. Gandhian philosophy argued that a mass movement is most effective only when the possibility of negotiation is
exhausted. Only then people feel what is happening is unjust and pour in. So decision was made to present
demands to and try to negotiate with them. At the same time keep on preparing the people and cleansing
organization for the eventual mass movement.
Factors responsible for the launch of Quit India Movement
1. Failure of Cripps Mission: Cripps Mission was never serious about giving independence to India or to give it any
meaningful responsibility for defence during the war. So despite early reservations about launching a
movement, Congress and Gandhiji came to the conclusion that any further silence would amount to accepting
the right of to coerce India into the war. Also its failure had exposed the intentions of to people and made
them ready.
2. war reversals: The way and French were getting swept away led to a popular feeling of imminent fall.
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Japanese were on the doorsteps. Also the way and French had fled from Asia leaving the natives behind had
exposed their true thinking. This way both the legitimacy and the awe of rule was gone. It can be gauged
from the fact that there was a run on the banks and people had started hoarding bullion.
3. War time difficulties; Like shortages, inflation, famines, coercion etc.
Quit India Movement Phase 1 - Mass Protests (August 1942 - October 1942)
1. Mass, mass reaction. Biggest strikes, agitations, the country was paralyzed. Violence happened everywhere.
Symbols of government authority were attacked. Clashes happened with authorities. Railway stations, post
offices, police stations, public buildings were all targets. National flags were hoisted forcibly on many public
buildings. rule ceased to exist in many parts of the country. People actually uprooted railway tracks, blew up
bridges, cut telegraph wires, burnt public property.
2. Many provincial and local leaders who were able to evade arrest returned to their homes and spread into
villages. News and rumors began to reach villages and complete paralysis there as well. Students and youth
participated in immense numbers. They defied the ban on press by circulating hand written journals. Labor
struck work most notably @ Ahemdabad, Bombay, Jamshedpur, Poona. The reaction was most intense in UP
and Bihar where students dispersed into villages, organized peasants and burnt all symbols of government
authority.
3. Suppression was equally brutal which coupled with the fact that leaders had already been arrested led to quick
subsidence of the mass phase.
Quit India Movement Phase 2 - Underground Activities (October 1942 - February 1943)
1. The active phase had died. Leaders went underground and began to organize underground resistance. They
also began to coordinate their efforts and developed an underground network. Achyut Patwardhan, Aruna Asaf
Ali, Lohiya, Sucheta Kriplani and Biju Patnaik were main underground leaders. They saw their main role as
keeping up the public morale by continuing to provide an organization and line of command. These leaders
comprised of all sections of nationalists - CSP, Forward Bloc, Gandhi Ashramites, revolutionary terrorists.
Capitalist class actively supported the underground leaders. Students acted as workers and couriers. Villagers
refused to aid police by providing information. Train drivers etc. delivered bombs.
2. Usha Mehta ran the Azad Radio from 'somewhere in India', bands of peasants used to organize sabotage
activities in night which came to be known as Karnataka Method, JP Narayan organized a guerilla warfare
around Indo - Nepal border, definition of 'underground' meant the entire nation.
3. The underground leaders didn't direct the local level activities. Their role was mainly to provide overall
organization and guidance, arrange for material and funds. The actual activities were decided and carried out
by local level teams like blowing up bridges, disrupting railways, telegraph, postal services etc. Naturally they
failed to have much impact.
Quit India Movement Phase 3 - Gandhi's Fast (February 1943)
1. A twist came when Gandhiji commenced a 21 day fast in Feb 1943 in jail against the violence of the
government. Once again entire country came to life. But the government refused to oblige and even issued
statements wanting Gandhiji's death.
2. The fast achieved what it intended. The prestige of government reached rock bottom. Gandhiji survived,
government was seen as wanting him dead, even the Indian members of Viceroy's executive council resigned.
Masses had been stirred again.
Quit India Movement Phase 4 - Parallel Governments
1. The first one came up in Ballia in UP in August 1942 under Chittu Pande who called himself a Gandhian. It
lasted for a week.
2. In Tamluk in Bengal, another government came up which lasted till 1944. This was an area where Gandhian
constructive work had made considerable headway.
3. Satara witnessed longest lasting parallel government which began from middle of 1943.
The QIM by promising immediate freedom from an oppressive colonial order had thus captured the imagination of a
significant section of Indian population, notwithstanding their differing perceptions of freedom.
(a) Bihar
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1. The movement was the most powerful here and had immense participation from a wide section of the
peasantry.
2. @ Patna, students took initiative to mobilize a mammoth rally and hoist the congress flag over the assembly.
Masses poured in and all the symbols of imperial authority were burnt down.
3. @ Jamshedpur and Dalmianagar, peasants struck work in almost all the industrial units and in both places they
had the consent of the capitalists.
4. In the last week of August 1942, massive peasant revolts took place in almost each and every village of Bihar.
The pattern was similar - the students or the rumors of their arrival would arrive, thousands of ordinary
peasants would mobilize and all symbols of imperialism would be attacked and any personnel found would
be killed in public. Everywhere the local civilian and police authorities vacated their posts without resistance and their compliance cannot be negated. Even zamindars and merchants supported the movement by
extending support to the peasants.
5. @ Barh, parallel government was formed by the lower caste Gops and Dusadhs who started levying their own
tax. Azad Dastas were formed and carried out guerilla warfare with and this included JP as well and they
also indulged in looting exploitative zamindars.
(b) UP
1. In E UP @ Gazipur and Azamgarh, the arrival of BHU students galvanized the local peasantry and they followed
the usual pattern.
2. @ Balia, students from BHU and Allahabad University arrived in a hijacked Azad Train and rule was ended.
Jails were broken open and all political prisoners freed. Chittu Pande, a follower of Gandhi, hereafter formed a
parallel government and was proclaimed ziladhish.
(c) Bengal
1. The movement was strongest @ Tamluk and Kanthi in Midnapore where the government had followed a
policy of denial and thus had caused immense hardship on the peasants. administration collapsed. Even
when a cyclone and a tidal wave killed 15K the refused to provide relief. @ Kanthi, Swaraj Panchayat was
setup and in Tamluk Tamralipti Jaitya Sarkar was setup which continued to function till 1944.
2. @ Dinajpur, the Santhal tribals participated in the movement in a large scale and fought for Gandhi raj.
(d) Odisha
1. The movement found heavy support with the peasantry as they had already been mobilized by the congress
and its CSP activists. The pattern was familiar - strikes would begin with the students in the cities who would
then spread out into the countryside where the entire peasantry would mobilize and destroy all symbols of
imperialism.
2. In the princely states of Nilgiri and Dhankanal the tribals and dalits were mobilized by the praja mandals and
they violated the forest laws. @ Talcher, the praja mandal leaders ended the rule of the local raja and and
established a chasi mulia raj where food, shelter and clothes would be provided to everyone. The
demonstrators here were gunned down by air force planes.
3. @ Malkangiri and Nawrangpur, Laxman Naiko assembled the tribals and the peasants and led attacks on the
liquor and the opium shops and proudly declared that raj had been replaced by Gandhi Raj and that the
tribals were no longer required to pay the forest dues.
(e) Maharastra
1. @ Satara a parallel government of non brahmans emerged which continued until 1946. It had an elaborate
organizational structure and had volunteer crops called Seba Dal and village units called Tufan Dals. Nana Patil
was an important leader of the movement. It even defied Gandhi's call for surrender in 1944.
(f) Gujarat
1. Here it was strongest in Kheda, Surat, Broach and the state of Baroda. Here again one saw the complicity of
the industrialist class in the movement.
(g) S India
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1. In TN, rightists like Rajgopalachari as well as dravidian leaders like Periyar opposed the movement (he saw it
as a north Indian movement) and so participation remained weak.
(h) Communal Organizations
1. ML had given a call for the boycott of this movement so muslims too stayed away from it. Similarly Ambedkar
too opposed the movement and in fact joined the Viceroy's executive council as a labor member (and this is
why lost his face in the next elections) but dalits poured into the movement in large numbers. Hindu
Mahasabha too boycotted the movement but many of its leaders defied the official orders and actively
participated in the movement. RSS too didn't support the movement. Communists were commies after all.
Significance - The leadership had passed on to the ricksha pullers, ekka drivers and other such people whose political
knowledge extended only this far - that were their enemies.
1. It had the widest social base. Princely states participated. Peasants from lowest to highest strata participated.
Even zamindars supported or remained neutral. Raja of Darbanga one of the biggest zamindars asked his men
to help the peasants who had been arrested.
2. Total concentration of attack against and absence of attacks on zamindars even in Bihar and UP where the
movement was strongest and in the areas where parallel governments stayed for long times.
3. Government officials supported the QIM. This broke the back of the and made them realize the futility of the
attempt to rule India.
4. Even though Muslim participation in QIM was low, absence of communal riots helped.
5. It upped the stakes on the table. Now negotiations with could only happen on the mode of their departure
from India.
Debate: Was QIM a spontaneous outburst or planned rebellion?
(a) Spontaneous Outburst
1. The element of spontaneity was definitely larger than the earlier ones. The leadership in QIM had no time to
chalk out any broad programme.
(b) Planned Rebellion (Gandhi had always meant everything to everyone)
1. Even though the element of spontaneity was larger, but this was the very strategy of Gandhian movements.
The leadership merely chalked out a broad programme and local level committees and people decided what to
do exactly given their conditions. Even in CDM (the most organized one) people had the complete freedom to
do what they wanted - break salt law, non payment of rent, non payment of chowkidari tax, forest law
satyagrahs, picketing liquor shops etc.
2. Before the movement Gandhi himself emphasized that everyone must henceforth consider himself as a 'free'
man or woman and chose his own course of action should the leaders be arrested.
3. Even though the leadership had no time to chalk out the broad programme but the factors behind the QIM, its
aims and objectives, the philosophy of QIM were in consonance with the factors, aims and objectives and the
philosophy of what the INM had developed over the decades.
4. Congress had been preparing for this movement during the passive phase from 1934 and actively from 1940s.
Limited satyagrahs were there and propaganda spread. Congress organization was being prepared. Last 2
decades of mass politicization efforts also prepared them and there is every evidence to show that they were
growing more and more radical under the aegis of congress.
Debate: How does the use of violence reconcile with the non-violence of Gandhi?
1. Gandhi's main objection to violence was that it impeded the ability of people to participate in mass movements.
But QIM showed they were ready for it. had lost their legitimacy by then and stakes were too high for Gandhi
to call it off.
2. "I do not ask from you my own non violence. You can decide what you can do in this struggle". "I trust the
whole of India today to launch a non violent struggle. But even if people deviated from this path of non
violence, I shall not swerve, I shall not flinch". "Do or die". People accepted the challenge and interpreted it in
their own way.
Left Movement
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Factors Responsible
1. The rise of youth following the anti-Simon agitations. Youth were a fertile ground for radical ideas.
2. The rise of REM activities.
3. Changing character of INM --> from being an elitist movement to mass movement.
Impact
1. It was accepted that freedom couldn't be restricted to political sense. But it had to mean socio-economic
freedom as well.
2. They helped in drawing in peasants and workers into politics and INM.
3. They even threw up tall leaders and succeeded in commanding influence on central leadership. JLN had leftist
leanings.
4. Their impact can be seen in the Karachi Resolution on Fundamental Rights and Economic Policy in 1931,
election manifesto of Congress in 1936 and Planning Committee in 1938.
5. Movements in many princely states were led by communists since the repression there was brutal and there
was no space for peaceful political agitations.
Reasons for Failure
1. It fought right wing on wrong issues - not on the questions of ideology but methods and tactics. They accused
Congress of being pro-imperialist! What a joke! They advocated violence again which found little takers.
2. They failed to see the Indian reality. They asserted that Congress was a bourgeoisie party, Gandhian tactics of
negotiating with was a 'compromise with imperialism' and any step towards constitutional process as a 'step
towards abandoning struggle'. It saw all efforts to guide the national movement in a disciplined form as an
effort by bourgeoisie to not to let it turn radical and slip 'out of their safe hands'.
3. They failed to work unitedly and pose a common left front.
Left Within Congress
Congress Socialist Party
1. After the suspension of CDM, many INC leaders grew disillusioned and in jail they turned to radical ideas like
socialism. So in 1934, they setup the Congress Socialist Party under the leadership of JP Narayan, Narendra
Dev, Achyut Patwardhan, Ashok Mehta and Minoo Masani.
2. They agreed on 4 basic propositions - (a) The primary struggle in India was freedom struggle and socialism is
not possible without nationalism. (b) CSP should work within the Congress otherwise it would be suicidal. (c)
CSP must give Congress a socialist direction. This transformation has to be a process and not an event. (d)
CSP to achieve this must organize workers and peasants and raise their demands.
3. The goal of transformation of Congress was seen in transformation of leadership as well. Initially it meant
replacing the leadership @ top. But it was soon found unrealistic to displace Gandhiji. So CSP worked to evolve
composite leadership @ all levels. It was to throw up alternate left leaders from the bottom to the top. Matters
came to head in 1939 and 1940 sessions, but CSP shied away from splitting the Congress.
JLN
1. It was accepted that freedom couldn't be restricted to political sense. But it had to mean socio-economic
freedom as well.
2. He influenced a whole generation of leaders and gave them socialist orientation.
3. He criticized Gandhiji for refusing to accept conflict of classes, preaching harmony between exploiter and
exploited and for his trusteeship theory. He also criticized Gandhian theory of STS and believed struggle was
perpetual until victory was achieved.
4. He welcomed the efforts of WPPs to radicalize Congress and in the Meerut conspiracy case, he defended the
communist leaders.
5. After 1934 when CDM was withdrawn, there were 2 factions in Congress. One for entering legislatures and
other for doing constructive work. JLN had a third view where he advocated continuation of struggle. He
wanted to continue mobilizing peasants and workers into their unions and draw them towards Congress.
Constitutionalism to him was going back to pre-Gandhian era of compromise.
6. Congress was apathetic to states' movements. But this policy changed when in 1936 Nehru himself attended
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the session of All India States' Peoples' Conference and called for a mass movement. In 1938 @ Haripura
congress decided to support the states' people.
SC Bose vs rightists, 1939 Tripuri crisis
1. He said presidential elections should be fought on the basis of ideology (leftist vs rightist in this case) whereas
the rightists said Congress president was merely a constitutional head. Real work was done by AICC and
working committee. So no question of ideology based presidential elections.
2. He unleashed a propaganda against Sardar Patel and other rightists and accused them of working on a
compromise with the government on question of sharing power. With such grave accusations, naturally the
senior leaders couldn't have worked with SC Bose and a split was imminent.
3. He had a difference with Gandhian thought. While Gandhiji thought that Congress organization was weak and
people were not ready for another mass movement, SC Bose thought that people were ready and the
weakness of the organization could be overcome during the movement. But he recognized that he needed
Gandhi to launch any mass movement so he wanted him to work on his commands. This was naturally
unacceptable to the Gandhi camp.
4. He believed that if the main leadership doesn't agree, Congress should be split and people will support the
radicals. But CSP and CPI didn't agree with him as they knew splitting Congress was not feasible.
Bose After Congress
1. He toured the country to try to fuel an agitation but failed. He came back to calcutta and tried to forge a pact
with ML and to launch a CDM over the Black Hole tragedy monument. But he failed and was arrested. Next he
fled. Rest is history.
CPI
1. MN Roy and 7 others setup CPI @ Tashkent in 1920. Independently many communist groups developed in India
and in 1925, they setup CPI @ Kanpur.
2. Initially it asked its members to enroll themselves in INC, form a strong left base in all INC arms and to
eventually give INC itself a left leaning. By 1927, communist elements grew stronger and various communist
groups began to organize themselves in Workers' and Peasants' Parties (WPP) and began to function as the
left wing of Congress. Their influence began to grow and by 1928, they had a sizable following. JLN welcomed
WPPs' efforts to radicalize Congress.
3. In 1928, they split with INC - why? Because in 1927 Koumintang had turned against Chinese communists and
Comintern feared it will happen in India as well. So they asked CPI to break relations with Congress and
expose its bourgeoisie and imperialist face behind the Gandhian mask.
4. After the split of 1928, isolated the communists and launched the Meerut conspiracy case in 1929. Here again
the defense of communists was taken up by many nationalist leaders like JLN and Gandhiji himself visited the
communist leaders in jail. CPI went into oblivion and in 1934 it was banned.
5. In 1935, Comintern changed its earlier position on national alliances and advocated alliances with anti-fascist
forces including bourgeoisie led national movements since it now faced the fascist threat. CPI began to
participate again till 1942 when USSR allied with . In this phase, its main aim was again to transform INC into
a leftist party.
Other Left Parties
1. In 1930, MN Roy came to India and found a strong group of Royists.
2. Forward Bloc was founded in 1939 by SC Bose.
3. HSRA, RSP, Trotskyists also functioned in 1930s.
Working Class Movements
Phase 1 (- till 1905)
1. With the growth of industries in India from 1850s, the class of workers also grew. There were some initial
strikes but they were mostly sporadic, local, immediate etc. In 1870s, some philanthropic elements tried to
organize workers but they were not linked to INM. In 1878, Sorabji Shapoorji Bengali tried to introduce a bill in
Bombay Legislative Council to limit work hours. Sasipad Banerji, a Brahmo Samaj worker, setup a
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Workingmen's Club in 1870 and brought out a monthly journal called Bharat Shramjivi. In Bombay, Narayan
Lokhande brought out a journal called Din Bandhu in 1880 and started Bombay Mill Association in 1890.
2. The mainstream INM stayed away from worker grievances because of its middle class and elitist character.
Moreover, working class was not so strong by then. However, when it came to workers employed by , they
took workers' side. On the other hand they opposed the Factory Acts.
Indian working class maintained a cultural dual self of a peasant and an industrial worker and remained divided along
the religious and the caste lines.
1. Despite migrating to the cities for better work, Indian workers retained close connections with their villages. In
many cases the family remained behind, migration was seasonal only, money was sent etc. and thus they
could never ignore the cultural factors which were important to them in the village. Thus religion and caste
remained the source of identity and a working class consciousness was visibly absent.
2. Indian society was dominated by religion and casteism in almost all areas of social discourse. Thus even the
residential mohallas of the workers had spatial segregation along the caste and communal lines. At work also
various departments in an industry were manned exclusively by workers belonging to a particular caste and
religion. Often the higher castes got better jobs while the lower castes got bad ones and at lower pay.
3. These caste and religious divisions kept the workers divided horizontally and often the employers took
advantage of this division. Often one group was used to break the strike of the other group apparently on
communal lines. Thus in Madras the Adi-Dravids became the strike breakers of the caste hindu and muslim
strikes. But it must be noted that compared to the later they were economically much vulnerable and were
totally dependent on wages for survival. Thus such occasions came as opportunities to them and the motivation
was economic and not communal.
4. In many cases many of the 'communal riots' of the workers were only communal from surface. Caste and
religion being natural rally points in the contemporary Indian society, naturally the religious gatherings in
mosques and religious slogans were used to rally support. But the causes were ultimately non communal.
Phase 2 (1905-1919)
1. The extremists belonged to lower middle classes. So the leanings of INM towards workers increased. This was
evident in Swadesi as well where workers participated and struck in large numbers. Swadesi led to growing
politicization of workers and integration with INM. Their demands were increasingly linked to national cause.
2. In 1899, there was a railway signalmen strike which received full support from Tilak's newspapers. However,
the support seen in case of employed workers was still missing to large extent in case of Indian employed
workers.
3. The increasing connection with INM was also evident when workers struck work against the repression of
extremist leaders. But still all-India level organizations were missing.
4. After the arrival of Gandhi and Russian Revolution, there were some efforts to rally workers and many journals
were brought out.
Phase 3 (1919-1928)
1. The distinguishing feature was emergence of all-India workers' associations like AITUC in 1920 and integration
of workers in INM on a significant scale. The nationalist leaders like CR Das, Lala Lajpat Rai began to openly
condemn capitalism and associate themselves with workers' associations. The workers' associations began to
openly call upon them to join INM.
2. Gandhiji himself fought for the cause of Ahemdabad workers and gave the concept of trusteeship claiming the
real owners were workers and management was mere trustee and was required to act in good faith of
workers. It also began to push forward workers' rights and demands in the INM stream. Workers' significance
grew and now it was realized that swaraj would mean swaraj for workers as well.
3. CPI was founded @ Kanpur in 1925. Initially it asked its members to enroll themselves in INC, form a strong
left base in all INC arms and to eventually give INC itself a left leaning. By 1927, communist elements grew
stronger and various communist groups began to organize themselves in Workers' and Peasants' Parties (WPP)
and began to function as the left wing of Congress. Their influence began to grow and by 1928, they had a
sizable following.
4. JLN also played a vital role in spreading socialistic ideas and made it clear that freedom will not be restricted to
political sense. It would mean socio-economic freedom as well.
5. The socialist leanings of the swarajists also came out in open during the debates on Public Safety Bill meant to
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try he communists. They criticized capitalism.

6. Anti-Simon agitations and REM propelled youth leaders to the forefront of INM who were susceptible to radical
socialist ideas.
Phase 4 (1928-47)
1. The were getting alarmed at rise of communists and integration with INM. So they began to work on a twopronged policy. One was suppression of extremists through the Meerut Conspiracy Case of 1928 and other was
to wean away the moderates in the labor movement by appointing a commission for labor reforms.
2. The communists broke away from INC in 1928 and also from INM and didn't support it. This led to a
plummeting popularity and the workers got away from Communists. The membership of their union fell from
54,000 to 800 in 1 year. They were also thrown out of AITUC.
3. The workers continued to participate in the INM despite the communist opposition. This was because their
thinking about the colonial masters was also based on their bad experience as peasants back in the villages.
Thus they had no sympathy with the sympathizers. In CDM, the work of Sholapur workers is well known.
4. After the withdrawal of CDM, young Congress leaders were disillusioned and decided to found CSP in 1934.
They agreed that - (a) nationalism was the primary struggle in India and was a pre-requisite for socialism. (b)
Congress was the sole party capable of carrying out nationalistic cause. (c) CSP should work inside the
Congress to give it a left leaning including in the leadership. (d) CSP should organize peasants and workers to
do so. In 1935, Communists also joined Congress and together they formed a strong left bloc inside Congress.
5. However there was a lull in workers activities from 1932-36 only to reemerge in 1937 due to formation of INC
governments and subsequent civil liberties.
6. When WW2 broke out, they were anti-war. But subsequently they supported as USSR was with and
decided not to participate in Quit India Movement. They again lost popularity as workers joined QIM.
7. After the war, the workers continued to play an important role. They showed support in INA trials, Bombay
mutiny etc. by striking.
For GS Mains
Ans 6 (a)
Singh Sabha
- In the late 19th century.
- Aim: revival of Sikh Gurus teachings, Campaign to increase literacy and promotion
of Gurumukhi script.
- Reaction to the proselytizing activation of Christian Missionaries.
Ans 6 (b)
Daman-i-koh
- Forested area of Rajmahal hills
- Present Sahebganj (Jharkhand)
- Santhal revolt.
Ans (c)
Saliadaran Ayyapan
- Follower of Sri Narayan Guru.
- Social reformer.
- Respected for his selfless social work.
- His slogan - Jati Venda, Matham Venda. Daivam Venda
Constitution Development Process

Created: 3/6/2012 10:19 AM
GoI Act, 1858
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Features
1. Centre-State relations: It laid down a unitary as well as rigidly centralized administration. There were
presidencies ruled by Governors (and councils) who were appointed by crown and provinces ruled by Lt.
Governors (and councils) appointed by GG, the provinces and presidencies were mere agent of centre. They
had to function under their express control and superintendence.
2. London - Calcutta relations: Now the administration would be run by the secretary of state who would be
advised by the council of India consisting of 15 members nominated by the crown (7 of them would be
selected from the now superseded Court of Directors). The GG would now be answerable only to the secretary
of state.
3. There was no separation of powers. All power - civil and military, executive and legislative were with GGinC
who were responsible only to SoS.
4. The entire machinery was bureaucratic, totally unconcerned with public opinion. Continuity was maintained in
civil services and the same recruitment examination (of 1853) was carried on.
Indian Councils Act, 1861
Features
1. Council Composition: Earlier the GGinC included only official members. Now it would include some non-official
members as well. This was not a representative body as all its members were nominated.
2. Council Powers: This was not a deliberative body as well since it could consider only those issues placed
before it by GG and could not criticize. The effective legislative powers remained with GG since (a) his consent
was necessary before placing certain issues before the council, (b) he could veto, (c) he could pass ordinances
which would have same force as council's acts.
3. Provincial Councils: Provincial councils were setup as law making powers were given back to the provinces. No
central / provincial jurisdiction was defined and to introduce any bill in provincial councils, GG's assent was
required.
Indian Councils Act / Lord Cross' Act, 1892
Moderates' Demands / Background
1. They wanted abolition of the India Council which prevented the SoS from initiating liberal policies in India. They
also wanted to broaden the Indian participation in the central and the provincial legislative councils by having
50% members elected not by the general public, but by local bodies, chambers of commerce, universities etc.
They wanted 2 Indian members in the GG's executive council and 1 such member in each of the provincial
council.
2. The budget should be referred to the legislature which should have the right to discuss it, amend it and vote on
it. They also wanted the right to appeal directly to the parliament against the GoI.
Features
1. Central council composition: Non-official members were to be nominated by Bengal Chamber of Commerce
and provincial councils. There would be no election but selection by the governor from amongst the
recommended candidates by such bodies.
2. Central council powers: It could now discuss budget and address questions to the executive. But supplementary
questions were not allowed, could not vote on the budget, nor move any resolutions or demand a vote on any
resolution brought by the government.
3. Provincial council composition: Non-official members were to be nominated by certain local bodies like
municipalities, universities, district boards. There would be no election but selection by the governor from
amongst the recommended candidates by such bodies.
4. Provincial council powers: It could now discuss budget and address questions to the Executive. But
supplementary questions were not allowed.
Indian Councils Act, 1909
The 2nd half of 19th century, particularly the period after the suppression of the 1857 revolt was the high noon of
imperialism in India.
1. In this period their despotism grew and they were not prepared to give any kind self governance to Indians.
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And they could confidently back this by their racist claims. And above all still manage to come out as the
champion of masses.
The intensity of Swadesi and the spread of extremism had forced upon the administration some new thoughts on
reforms, while revolutionary terrorism reinforced this process.
1. The Cambridge school explains this shift in policy (of not giving any concessions for self government) in
terms of its weak imperialism - nationalism model. shared power because the empire was essentially weak
and it could not have survived without the cooperation of the natives. So there was a gradual Indianization of
the civil services and entry of Indians in politics (first through local self government and now councils). The
1909 (and later) devolution of power was merely an act to rope in more collaborators at the bottom.
2. Another hypothesis is that of a fiscal crisis so that roping in Indians would ensure more support for in
extracting higher revenue.
3. However the most important reason was the growth of nationalism which both of the above theories neglect.
Although partition was a settled fact, there was a growing realization in that India can't be ruled with an iron
fist. Some concessions are necessary. Moreover the carrots of these reforms will split the moderates and the
extremists and thus weaken the INM. It was also decided to strengthen the post 1857 alliance with the
conservative elements in the Indian society.
Devolution of power in the 1909 reforms was the only way to preserve the essentials of the empire.
1. Mention the 3 prong strategy to divide the INM here. The emergence of radicals meant that pacification of
moderates was the only workable strategy to keep the radicals in check.
Features
1. Central Council Composition: Elected non-official members were introduced but official majority was retained.
2. Central Council Powers: They could now influence administration policies by moving resolutions on budget and
other issues of public importance except armed forces, foreign affairs and native states.
3. Provincial Council Composition: Elected non-official members were introduced so that the official majority was
gone but many of the non officials were to be nominated by the government.
4. Elections were introduced but under various constraints. Details of seat allocation and electoral qualifications
were left to be decided by the local governments which left enough space for bureaucratic manipulation.
Special provision was made for the additional representation of conservative classes and Muslims. Moreover
the electorate was to be based on high property qualifications. And finally the GoI was given the power to
disallow any candidate from contesting on any grounds.
Reactions - The reforms satisfied none.
1. It was rejected by Congress. It had no element of Swaraj, legislatures were weak and non-official elected
consisted of only a minority. The GG and Governors enjoyed veto power.
2. Elections were indirect and universal adult suffrage was not there. Principal of separate electorates.
Impact
1. Communalism: The principle of separate electorates fueled it. Subsequently these electorates were extended
to Sikhs (1919), Dalits (1932), Laborers (1935).
GoI Act, 1919
Background
1. Lucknow pact, HRM and then the August Declaration. The moderates were being sidelined by the radicals and
thus the demands of the moderates had to be conceded to save them (which was in interests) and to create
divisions in the INM.
Lucknow Pact of 1916
1. It was essentially a Moderates' draft. It demanded constitutional reforms like expansion of popular elements in
central and provincial legislatures, inclusion of Indians into the Viceroy's and Provincial Governors' executive
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council. The executive councils would have at least half the members as Indians who would be elected by the
corresponding legislature. Once elected they can't be removed by the legislature.
2. Congress accepted communal electorates and fixed proportion of Muslims in central and provincial legislatures.
3. Congress agreed to it reluctantly to bring Muslims in the INM fold. But after the 1919 reforms when it realized
that it could have the power without the support of Muslims, it went back on the pact.
Features
1. 3 of the 8 members of GG's executive council will be Indians, but appointed ones.
2. Centre-State Relations: Subjects of administration were divided into central and provincial. Even the sources of
revenue were divided into central and provincial so that the provinces could run their administration based on
the revenue they generated. Thus the budgets for provinces also came into place. But this was not federalism,
rather act of benevolence. The centre could still legislate on any subject.
3. Dyarchy in Provinces: It sought to introduce element of responsible government without impairing Governor's
powers. So subjects were divided into 2 - reserved and transferred. Reserved were kept only for governor
(with his executive council) and transferred for governor on the advice of CoM.
4. Composition of Central Council: Now it was made bicameral. Non-official majority in the lower house was
raised to 70% and in the upper house too they had a majority. The electorates were arranged on communal
basis.
5. Powers of Central Councils: GG still had overriding power by (a) veto, (b) his consent needed for introduction
of certain bills, (c) he could make ordinances which had same power as acts.
6. Composition of Provincial Councils: Nonofficial majority was raised to 70% of total strength. Electorates were
communal.
7. Powers of Provincial Councils: They could now move resolutions on Budget and levy taxes. But a provincial bill
could become an act only when it received the consent of GG as well. His consent needed to introduce some
bills.
Shortcomings
1. Centre-State Relations: Administration still remained rigidly centralized. The GG who decided whether a
subject belonged to centre or state, not courts. GG's consent needed for introduction and passage of some
bills. Less important subjects in state list. Centre could still legislate on any subject.
2. Dyarchy: Governor had all financial powers. He also controlled the bureaucracy. Less important subjects and
conflicts in subjects. The governor was not bound by advice of CoM even on transfered subjects. CoM were not
collectively responsible to the council, but individually to the governor.
3. All the key administrative departments including finance were kept on the reserved side.
4. The actual division of subjects was haphazard and illogical. The ministers had no full control over the factories,
mines, water, power etc.
5. Then again, the ministers had to depend completely on the Finance Department which was supervised by a
member of the Governors Executive Council. No progressive measure could be put through without his
consent.
6. The extensive authority of the Governor to ignore the advice of his ministers and to act in his discretion in case
he considered it necessary, ostensibly in the interest of minorities, the depressed classes, public services or
for maintaining peace and tranquillity in the province, virtually made the ministers powerless even in relation to
transferred subjects.
7. The main instruments of administration, namely, the Indian Civil Service and Indian Police, were under the
control of the Governor and were responsible to him and not to the ministers. Thus, an ICS officer in the rank of
Secretary or the Commissioner, being backed by the Governor, could practically veto a decision of the
minister, which resulted in considerable diminution in the authority of the latter.
8. Narrow franchise. Property qualifications restricted it to 12.5% of the adult population. In addition to muslims,
sikhs were given communal electorate as well while the depressed classes were given nominated seats in
legislatures at all level.
GoI Act, 1935
Factors Responsible
The Act was thus to corrode the support base of the congress.
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1. The government had curbed CDM by using force. But it knew force can work only for so long. So it decided to
divide the INM by drawing the moderates out with the lure of reforms. This would accentuate the differences
between left and right wings as left would be opposed to constitutional process. Once separated, left could be
crushed. The right wing once in power would be cutoff from the masses and lose popularity.
2. Gandhiji had been persuaded by the to participate in the 2nd RTC on the basis of 3 promises - federation,
responsible government, reservations and safeguards.
3. Provincial autonomy would weaken the central leadership and create strong provincial leaders. Thus Congress
organization would be weakened @ all-India level.
4. In rural India the voting rights were given to the rich and the middle peasants who were staunch supporters of
the congress.
Features
The Act consciously chose federal structure because it would act primarily to protect interests rather than hand over
the control in the vital areas / The Act only proposed to protect interests in India by sharing power with the loyalist
elements / If any change happened at all, the apex of the system moved from London to Delhi.
1. Centre-state relations: It prescribed a federation with provinces and such native states who were willing to join
as units. But each province and native state was free to chose whether to join the federation or remain
separate. States representatives were to be nominated by the rulers who would constitute a solid conservative
and loyal 40% in the upper house. The federation would come into existence only if > 50% of the princely
states formally acceded to it by signing the Instruments of Accession which would override their previous
treaties with the . But it established a federation and gave provinces autonomy in their sphere of legislation.
The 3 lists were created. There were also emergency provisions. They were no longer delegates of the centre.
Governor now derived his powers from the crown and not GG.
2. Provincial government: The governor was now required to act on the advice of CoM who were responsible to
the council. But this was balanced by giving wide powers to the governors on summoning legislatures, giving
assent to bills, administering tribal regions, safeguarding minority rights, privileges of civil servants and
business interests. And finally they could take over and run the administration of a province indefinitely.
3. Central government: It introduced dyarchy @ centre. On reserved subjects which included internal security,
foreign affairs, defence etc., GG acted solely in his discretion. On the transfered subjects, he was to act in
accordance with the advice of CoM who were responsible to the legislature. But even here, the GG could act in
contrary to the advice tendered by the CoM if it affected his 'special responsibilities'. In practice, even the CoM
was never appointed.
4. London - Delhi relations: There was to be a transfer of financial control from London to Delhi in response to the
long standing demand of the GoI for fiscal autonomy.
5. Powers of councils: GG (and governor in provinces) could veto, suspend proceedings / discussion on a bill,
needed to give assent for introduction of bill.
6. Electorate: The electorate was enlarged to 30 mm but high property qualifications meant only 10% could vote.
In rural India, thus, the voting rights were given to the rich and the middle peasants who were staunch
supporters of the congress. + communal electorates to everybody.
The GoI Act 1935 could hardly satisfy anybody.
1. The ML opposed it because it was afraid of Hindu domination and feared that the proposed federal structure
would be very unitary. All the representatives of India to the central legislature were to be elected by the
provincial assemblies (without any provision for proportional representation) and this would go against the
muslims who were minorities in all but 4 provinces. So although they didn't oppose the federation in public they
preferred to allow more autonomy to the provincial governments.
2. The congress didn't like the proposed federation because ~33 - 40% seats would be filled in by the princes.
States on Federation
1. Their main objection to federation was that the Act still left the question of paramountcy unsettled. Despite the
lapse of all treaties with the crown, were not willing to give away their paramountcy over the princes. And
thus as the paramount power still retained the right to interfere in their internal matters and to even
overthrow them if necessary. So for the princes there was nothing to be gained in joining the federation.
2. The 1825 Butler Committee too didn't provide any solution to the paramountcy issue. The only concession it
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gave to the states was that paramountcy would not be transferred without their consent to any democratically
elected government in India but there was no dilution of paramountcy.
3. The princes supported the idea of federation in the Nehru report of 1928 hoping to get rid of the
paramountcy problem. Thus in this federation they would be able to secure their autonomy as well as break
free of . Thus the Chamber of Princes endorsed it and federation became a demand of the princes. But in
the GoI Act 1935 made it clear that their paramountcy will not lapse despite the princes joining the
federation. So joining the federation became meaningless.
4. Their second fear was that the democratic government at the center would have little sympathy for their
autocratic causes and thus would encourage democratic forces in their territories as well.
Provincial Administration
1. The Regulating Act of 1773 and Pitt's India Act of 1784 put restrictions on the provinces with respect to making
wars, forming alliances etc. and subordinated them to the Bengal province.
2. Still the provincial governments used to enjoy great deal of autonomy in administrative matters till 1833 when
their power to pass laws was taken away and their expenses put to greater control.
3. But the centralized system failed to be effective in India and expenses began to run high. So a decision was
taken to decentralize.
4. In 1870, Lord Mayo decided to give a fixed sum to the provincial governments for administration of certain
services like police, jail etc. The provincial governments could spend it as they wished.
5. In 1877, Lord Lytton enlarged it by transferring to provinces certain heads of expenditure and to meet the
needs, provinces were given a fixed share of revenue from certain sources like excise, income tax.
6. In 1882, under Lord Ripon sources were divided into 3 - reserved for provinces, reserved for centre and
sharing between provinces and centre.
Local Bodies
1. With changing times, there was a need to improve civic amenities. But finances were tight and taxes already
high. So government realized that if it made locals to pay more for benefit in their own areas, they won't mind.
They also believed associating Indians with administration in some capacity would help diffuse the tension.
2. Between 1864 to 1868 local bodies were formed but they consisted of nominated members only and chaired by
the DM. Thus they were not local self government.
3. In 1882, Lord Ripon issued a circular saying local bodies will consist of a majority of non-officials who would be
elected wherever feasible. A non-official could also become the chairman of the body. But the franchise was
limited to a few only.
Labor Acts
1. The pressure of manufacturers was instrumental since they didn't want Indians to manufacture cheaply!
(Height of blind criticism)
2. First Indian Factory Act was passed in 1881 under Lord Ripon and dealt with child labor. Second Act was
passed in 1891 and dealt with women and child labor. But they didn't apply to the plantations.
3. The condition of plantation workers remained miserable and government acts gave protection to the planter
only. The workers once contracted couldn't go away or refuse to work. He could be arrested.
4. Only in 20th century were better labor laws passed.
Simon Commission
Background
1. The provisions of GoI Act, 1919 mandated creation of a commission 10 years hence to review the working of
the Act. But the conservatives were about to lose the polls, hence wanted to complete this important
assignment before the polls as a part of poll gimmicks.
Reactions
1. It triggered a wave of mass protests and charged up the political climate in India. Gave a new lease of life to
Indian nationalism. The main point of opposition was that there was no Indian in the Commission.
2. New Protest Methods: In Lucknow, Khalik-uj-Jama coined the term "Simon Go Back". He also flew black kites
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near the venue Simon was holding his meeting. Black flags were shown. The Bombay workers had a clash with
the capitalists who went to welcome Simon.
Report
1. It suggested the replacement of dyarchy with full responsible government in the provinces with the provision of
some emergency powers in the hands of the governors.
2. It recommended autonomy for the provinces as far as practicable and visualized a federation at the Centre,
comprising both British India and the Indian States.
3. It didn't suggest any change in the central government.
Nehru Report
Delhi Proposals by ML
1. Reservations of one-third seats in central legislature.
2. In Punjab and Bengal, Muslim majority should be guaranteed via proportional representation and in
communities where Muslims were in minority, existing system of reservations should be continued.
3. Sind be made a separate province.
4. NWFP be treated as a full fledged province.
Provisions
1. It demanded dominion status on the lines of Australia and Canada.
2. It rejected the principle of separate electorates. Seats would be reserved for religious minorities only in centre
and in provinces in proportion to their population.
3. India should be a federation on the basis of linguistic provinces and provincial autonomy. Sind be made a
separate province from Bombay and NWFP be a full fledged province.
4. It provided for universal adult suffrage, secular state, freedom to form unions.
Reactions
1. Congress: It accepted the report and decided to give 1 year to government to implement the report failing
which a mass civil disobedience movement will be launched and goal of INC will be 'complete independence'.
2. Youth Section: They were dissatisfied because it compromised with the goal of complete independence and
merely asked for dominion status. Under their pressure in 1928, it was decided to give government 1 year to
implement this report else congress would adopt complete independence as a goal and launch a mass CDM.
3. ML: It rejected it because there was no provision for reservation in majority provinces and also one-third
reservations for Muslims in Central Legislature. Jinnah went on to propose Calcutta Amendments and then his
14 points which were a reiteration of his unfulfilled Delhi Proposals + 'residuary powers be vested with
provinces'.
4. HM and Sikh League: Rejected the proposals on Sind, Punjab, Bengal and NWFP.
Round Table Conferences
Communal Awards, 1932
1. It awarded to each minority a specific number of seats in legislatures to be elected on the basis of communal
electorates. It also declared Dalits to be a minority community and extended the communal electorates to
them.
2. Gandhiji opposed the communal electorates for Dalits and demanded that increased number of seats be
reserved for them but they should be elected by everyone.
Elections of 1937
Gandhiji's Strategy towards Elections
1. After the withdrawal of CDM 3 rival factions arose in Congress. One favored elections, other constructive work,
third led by left favored continuation of mobilization of peasants and workers into their respective unions and
their affiliation with Congress.
2. Gandhiji conceded to the demand of liberals. Allowed them to participate in the elections and also shielded
them from accusations of being lesser patriots. He said that though constitutionalism can't give India freedom,
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Congressmen who can't offer satyagraha may not sit idle and choose to express their patriotic energies in the
councils provided they don't get sucked into it.
3. At the same time, he also conciliated left by backing Nehru for Congress presidentship and stressing that CDM
withdrawal doesn't mean compromise.
4. But he sensed that he was getting out of sync with changing thought in Congress. He disagreed with
participating in elections, he disagreed with left, people had no faith in his constructive work program. So he
quit Congress in 1934.
Congress Debate on participating in the elections
Left
1. It believed participating in elections would mean going back to pre-1919 era and abandoning the revolutionary
unconstitutional path.
2. Accepting ministries would mean accepting responsibility without power since the colonial nature of the state
remained same.
Pro-Office
1. Constitutional process was only a short term tactics. Idea is to expose the hollowness.
2. It is just a part of STS strategy of Gandhi. Ministries could be used to promote constructive work.
Impact
While fighting the Raj, the Congress itself was becoming the Raj.
1. Formation of ministries changed the entire psychological mood in the country. It was seen as a victory.
2. Civil Liberties & INM: It led to increase in civil liberties and hence increase in youth, worker and peasant
movements.
3. Zamindari System: Congress couldn't have overthrown the zamindari system because - (a) The ministries
didn't have enough powers to do so. The sanctity of administration was guaranteed by GG and governors who
were not under the control of ministry. The ministries also didn't have enough financial resources to do so. (b)
The multi-class nature of the INM also didn't permit it to please one class at the expense of another. Many
small landlords were also Congress supporters. (c) For any bill to be passed, support of both houses was
necessary. But the upper house was elected on a very narrow franchise and represented reactionary elements.
So anti-zamindari bills could never be passed. But it worked to reduce rent, debt burden, illegal practices. It
also restored the lands confiscated during the no rent campaign under CDM.
4. Workers' Relations: The basic approach was to promote workers' interests while protecting industrial peace.
Political arbitration in the workers' matters was increased. Industrial Disputes Act 1938 was passed which
provided for a Court of Industrial Arbitration. No strike or lockout can happen within 4 months of submission of
matter to the court.
5. Dalits: Temple entry laws were passed. No government institution was to recognize any practice of
untouchability. Efforts were made to increase their participation in education and police and administration.
6. Congress Organization: Serious differences emerged. Right wing in power became susceptible. They began to
use state machinery to suppress left wing and nationalist movements. Congress was weakening. There were
cases where Congress leaders outside power were arrested for leading protests.
7. GoI Act: It led to the failure of intentions behind GoI Act. There was no split in Congress and INM remained as
strong as ever. On the other hand, the morale of the bureaucracy was lowered.
8. Princely States: It led to greater sense of urgency for responsible governments in states and integration of
states' movements with INM because people in states had their expectations fired up.
August Offer
Background
1. The Congress ministries resigned when the government made India a party to the war without consulting its
people. government was happy to see them resign as now trouble would be less.
2. But the war began to turn against and they realized the importance of Indian help. To re conciliate, August
offer was announced in August, 1940.
Provisions
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1. GG's executive council to be immediately expanded to include more Indians.

2. A War Advisory Council to be setup to help the government in managing war needs.
3. A constitution making body will be setup after the end of the war. Subject to the fulfillment of certain conditions
like treaties with native states, minority rights' protection, defense of India, position of all India services, the
constitution making process will be entrusted primarily to Indians.
Reactions
1. Congress: It rejected the offer because - (a) Congress wanted complete Independence immediately. only
promised it after the war (that too subject to all the above conditions) and only the expansion of GG's executive
council for the time being. This was nowhere close to complete independence. (b) Emphasis on giving full
weight to minority opinion was criticized by the Congress as it complicated the scenario and any solution would
never emerge. It amounted to giving veto power to ML and HM.
Cripps Mission
Background
1. After Battle of was over in 1940 end, reverted back to the policy of suppressing nationalists and not paying
attention to their demands. But again by 1942, was reeling. US had joined and was putting pressure on to
win support of India.
2. He discussed all the issues with Indian leadership but failing to find a common point, released his pre-planned
document in April 1942.
Provisions
1. During war time, the GG's executive council will be completely Indianized (except war department and that GG
will continue to have a veto though) and will work as an interim government.
2. An elected constituent assembly comprising solely of Indians would be setup after the war to frame Indian
constitution. Such an assembly would be drawn from provincial legislatures and will have proportional
representation. Steps will also be taken for the participation of native states in the constitution making process.
3. will accept any constitution prepared by the constituent assembly subject to the fulfillment of the condition
that each province will have the right to accept or reject the draft constitution. If a province does so, it can
enter into a separate arrangement with in its sovereign right.
Comparison with August Offer
1. Constitution Drafting Process: August Offer was less clear on the details of the constitution making body. It
merely said such a body will be setup and the process will be run primarily by Indians. Cripps mission was
clear that such a body shall be elected by provincial legislatures, will have proportionate representation,
representatives from native states and will comprise solely of Indians.
2. Integrity of the Country: August Offer made no attempt to divide the country. Cripps Mission deliberately left
such a possibility open by insisting that each province shall have the right to reject the constitution.
Reactions
1. Congress: Rejected it because (a) Congress wanted even war department for Indians and GG not to have any
veto power. GG should only work according to the advice tendered by the executive council. (b) It was against
the right given to the provinces to accept / reject the constitution. (c) It demanded that representatives of the
native states should be elected, not nominated.
2. Muslim League: Rejected it because (a) It didn't provide for setting up of 2 constituent assemblies for India and
Pakistan. (b) There were no express provisions for the safeguard of minority interests.
3. Hindu Mahasabha: Rejected it because (a) It opposed the continuation of separate electorates for the
provincial elections. (b) It was also against the independence given to the provinces to reject the constitution.
4. Sikhs: Opposed it because of the provision of independence of provinces.
5. Dalits: Opposed it because no protection for dalits.
Wavell Plan, 1945
Pre-Wavell Diplomacy
CR Formula
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1. In 1944 when it became clear Allied would win, Indian nationalists decided to put pressure on . But at that
time there was a deadlock between Congress and ML. So in order to resolve this deadlock, C Rajgopalachari
proposed this plan which was also endorsed by Gandhiji.
2. Congress and ML should work together to pressurize for independence. The issue of partition could be
decided after the independence.
3. Even in the situation where a separate state was created, cooperation would be retained in matters like
currency, communications, defence and foreign affairs.
4. Talks were held between Gandhi and Jinnah over the plan but failed as Jinnah insisted that the issue of
partition be settled first.
Desai-Liaqat Ali Talks
1. Both (Bhula Bhai Desai and Liaqat Ali) were members of central legislative assembly and personal friends. To
break the deadlock between Congress and ML, both agreed that Congress and ML will share equal number of
positions in the interim government and will work together for independence.
2. When such an understanding became public, Jinnah publicly repudiated these talks and ML refused to follow it.
Wavell Plan & Shimla Conference
1. It came in the middle of 1945 when the war in Europe had ended. He declared that would still abide by the
promises made in the Cripps Plan and came up with his own plan.
2. According to his plan, Viceroy's executive council will be converted into interim government immediately.
Members to such interim government will be 50% caste Hindus and 50% Muslims. Simultaneously a constituent
assembly will be elected on the basis of proportional representation to draft a constitution. The interim
government will function till the constitution is drafted. To build a consensus for his plan, he called a
conference in Shimla.
3. Shimla conference failed. Jinnah demanded that all the Muslim members of the interim government should be
the nominees of Muslims (Note this is not very different from the Desai-Liaqat talks which Jinnah rejected! But
the context here was so different.). Congress naturally couldn't have accepted it because it would have meant
giving up its secular credentials and becoming a Hindu only party. It failed because Jinnah was allowed to
effectively veto all the proceedings.
Impact of Wavell Plan & Shimla Conference
1. ML was allowed to veto the proceedings. Its prestige and claim to be a representative of all Muslims skyrocketed. government virtually accepted that ML was the sole representative of Muslims.
2. It led to strengthening of partition movement because ML used this enhance prestige to press for more radical
demands and on this credibility it won the elections held in 1945.
Cabinet Mission (June, 1946)
Background
1. It came as increasingly realized that it was impossible to hold India any more. There was the cold war effect,
pressure exerted by Indian nationalists, the growing nationalism in bureaucracy and military etc. By now their
strategy had changed.
2. Earlier they were stroking communalism in the hope to divide the nationalists and delay freedom. But now they
realized that freedom was inevitable. Cold war politics dictated that the new entity should remain a friend to .
But how would it be possible if 2 mutually hostile entities are created. One would necessarily gravitate towards
Soviet Union and it will get a foothold in S Asia. So Cabinet Mission rejected the idea of Pakistan. To this extent
Atlee had declared that minority will not be allowed to veto any progress by majority.
Provisions
1. Viceroy's executive council will become the interim government and all members except the viceroy and
commander-in-chief will be Indians.
2. An attempt was made to strike a balance between aspirations of Congress and ML. Provinces should be free to
form groups (sub-federation) with Executives and Legislatures, and each group could determine the provincial
subjects to be taken in common. A 3 tier federal structure was proposed - union, groups, provinces for both
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India and princely states. Congress was appeased by rejecting the demand of Pakistan. ML was appeased by
creating 3 grouping of provinces. Hindu majority provinces of UP, Bihar, Odisha, Central Provinces, Bombay,
Madras were to be in Group A. Muslim majority provinces of Punjab, Sind, NWFP would be in Group B. Bengal
and Assam would be in Group C. After the first general elections a province could come out of a group. After
10 years a province could call for a reconsideration of grouping or the union constitution.
3. High degree of provincial autonomy was adopted. The new central government will have powers over only
communication, defence and foreign affairs with the right to raise revenue for the discharge of these functions.
All the residual powers will lie with the provinces.
4. The constituent assembly was to be elected to draft the for whole of India, on a proportional basis by
provincial legislative assemblies. The guiding principal should be that 1 man in constituent assembly should
represent roughly 1 mm men.
Reactions
1. Congress: It accepted only the provisions regarding constituent assembly while rejecting the ML interpretation
of groupings. ML asserted groupings were mandatory while Congress asked the government to clarify that the
groupings were optional i.e. the provinces should be ale to come out of a grouping before the 1st general
elections itself. (Congress was strong in NWFP and Assam and was hoping these provinces will not join their
respective groupings). Congress claimed that the Mission Plan was against Pakistan, ML's veto was gone and
there would be only one constituent assembly. JLN declared that the congress had agreed to nothing else apart
from the participation in the constituent assembly and that the group system would probably collapse as Assam
and NWFP may not want to join it. When the clarified that ML's interpretation of the groupings was correct,
Congress rejected the plan and refused to join the government.
2. ML: It accepted the plan initially and was ready to join the government. It maintained that the groupings were
a sanction for Pakistan. However, it wanted the right to consider the union constitution now and not after 10
years. But when Congress refused to join the government, ML pressurized the to go ahead with the interim
government formation without the Congress. made it clear that any government was not possible without
Congress. So ML withdrew its support and decided to press for Pakistan. The events which followed made
partition inevitable.
Post-Cabinet Mission Diplomacy
Breakdown Plan (September 1946)
1. To pressurize the Congress to accept the Cabinet Mission, threatened to remove administrative and military
machinery from parts of India gradually. Sovereignty would be decided by the concerned province / native
state on their own. would withdraw to the Pakistani provinces leaving Congress to deal with the rest of India.
2. So Congress had to join the interim government which was formed on 2 September 1946. ML had not,
however, joined it yet.
ML Diplomacy
1. Once the refused to overlook the Congress, ML decided to militantly press ahead for the demand of Pakistan.
On 29 July 1946, it announced, "Lekar rahenge Pakistan." It announced that it will observe 10 August 1946 as
the Direct Action Day and would force Congress and to agree to Pakistan even if force had to be resorted to.
2. Massive communal riots broke out all over the country. It appeared that India was going down the road of a
civil war. Congress and now were compelled to agree to the possibility of partition.
3. ML joined the interim government in October 1946 without giving up on direct action to wreck its functioning
and to prove any governance of India was not possible without the cooperation of ML. It wanted to make sure
state machinery was not used against ML. When announced that it will only accept a constitution which was
drafted by the consent of all major communities, ML promptly resigned from the interim government as well as
constituent assembly in December 1946.
February Declaration & Mountbatten Plan
Background
1. had increasingly realized the inevitability of partition. Their aim was to contain Soviet Union and hence
establish friendly relations with both nations. For this, instead of identifying communal elements and then to
eliminate them, they followed a policy of friendly negotiations with both. They sought to win both parties by
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saying that if the constituent assembly was not representative of both communities, power would be transfered
to 2 states. Congress thought even if ML withdrew constituent assemblies will still have Muslims. So it agreed.
ML withdrew.
2. On 20 February 1947, prime minister Atlee announced that would quit India in any case by 30 June 1948.
He sent Mountbatten to oversee the transfer of process. The declaration came in the hope that it would shock
the parties and pressurize them to move towards a solution out of the deadlock.
3. Immediately upon arrival Mountbatten held large number of discussions with Indian leaders. On 3 June 1947,
Atlee announced Mountbatten Plan. Also by now Pakistan's creation had become a necessity.
He realized on his very arrival that it was virtually impossible to hand over the power to a united India.
1. He proposed Plan Balkan in April which was to partition Punjab and Bengal and to hand over the power to each
province or sub province which would have the freedom to join either constituent assembly based on the right
to self determination. Demission of power to provinces and sub provinces in the absence of a strong center
would have definitely led to balkanization of India.
2. Jinnah rejected it too for he was not willing to accept a plan which gave him a truncated Pakistan.
Provisions
1. 2 dominion status states of India and Pakistan were to be created. Hindu majority provinces that had already
accepted the constituent assembly had no choice but the muslim dominated provinces had the freedom to join
either constituent assembly.
2. Native states would have complete freedom to decide their own destiny.
3. Separate boundary commission would be setup to decide the boundary between India and Pakistan. Punjab
and Bengal would be partitioned as well. ML's position was granted in the sense Pakistan was created and
Congress' in the sense such a Pakistan was kept as small as possible.
The fatal defect in this scheme was that neither Jinnah nor ML had ever defined the rights of non Muslims in Pakistan.
Reactions
1. Congress: It accepted partition and dominion status as it believed power should be grabbed as soon as
possible so that the communal situation in the country could be met with a firm hand. Hence the early transfer
of power on 15 August 1947 instead of 30 June 1948.
Conquest
Created: 3/4/2012 10:02 AM
Dutch Power
1. The real founder of Dutch power in India was Jan Linschoten and the Dutch company is sometimes called Jan
Van Company. Their Indian headquarters were @ Pulicat which they got from Raja of Chandragiri (successor
of Vijaynagar empire).
2. Their 1st factory in India was @ Masaulipatnam (famous for Muslin cloth) and they got a farmaan from ruler of
Golconda.
3. They were defeated by in Battle of Bedara (1756) and Battle of Chinsura which ended their power in India.
Debate #1 Was Conquest Planned or an Accident?
Colonial Interpretation
1. were busy in commercial activities. Circumstances evolved such that found themselves masters of India.
Marshall has argued that until 1784, there was no conscious or consistent policy for the political conquest of
India. The foundation and the growth of the empire was the initiative of the company officials i.e. a case of
subordinate colonialism. The opportunity for such an initiative were provided by the political feud following the
decline of the Mughals in India and thus the reasons for the establishment of empire in India need to be
traced in India and not in .
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2. In the beginning the difficulties of communication with gave the company's officials in India virtually a free
hand here to behave like their own masters. There was misinformation and lack of interest about Indian affairs
in . Thus the empire was a result of sub imperialism only and not any conscious policy from the metropole.
3. Their dominant objective and preoccupation was trade. True, they sought to gain more trade concessions from
the native rulers and didn't hesitate in using bribery, diplomacy and sometimes military to achieve it, but their
concern was not political dominance, only trade. It didn't concern itself with the political battles of the age.
They fought and defeated Portuguese @ Battle of Swally Hole / Surat in 1612 and used the goodwill created to
open a factory @ Surat. Then it got further privileges from Jahangir in exchange for protecting Mughal ships
form Portuguese. They were never in favor of free trade anyways and used these concessions / monopolies to
get an advantage over others. They opened up multiple factories for carrying out their trading operations.
Their activities revolved around their settlements / factories which became the nuclei of flourishing trade
activities.
Nationalist Interpretation
1. This was planned. What did in India was not unique to India. They had done this worldwide. To go as traders
and then to conquer it when the native powers decline.
Phase I (1600-1749)
Nature & Character of Strategy
1. But it is also not possible to decline the role of the metropole in this expansion. The connection between trade
and the use of arms is only too obvious as a policy of the . Also despite the apparent separation between the
company and the state, the two were intimately linked in promoting England's diplomatic goals as the company
owed its privileges (and the very existence) to a charter granted by the king. In the beginning, to secure wealth
and independence for the crown, the Stuart kings followed an aggressive commercial policy in the Indian ocean
and coast with the use of navy. There were also clear instructions on how to divide the booty between the
government and the company in case of any joint campaign.
2. The island of Bombay was gifted by the crown to the company for a toke sum and it may be noted that the
Portuguese gave the island of Bombay to the crown on the condition that it would be used to protect the
Portuguese settlements in India. When the crown handed it over to the company, this obligation was transfered
as well.
3. The company's directors in London time and again gave directives to India to follow an aggressive policy
backed by military power as is evident from their letters. The company tried to do so although it is another
matter that they were defeated by Aurangzeb but this can't hide the fact that it was a part of their policy. By
1750s, the company had gained decisive technological and military edge and converted its defeat into victory. If
later the London authorities became averse to wars (1784 - 1813) then it was only because of the rising costs
of wars and not any other reasons.
4. Then the relationship between the company and the crown was always mutually beneficial. The company used
to pay gifts / tributes / loans to the crown time and again. Then again in 1698 the authorized the foundation
of a rival company when it offered a loan of 2 mm to the crown as against the old company which was
prepared to offer a loan of 700 K only. This proved that the trading rights with India were a marketable
commodity which could be used by the crown. The 2 companies were merged in 1709 again and the crucial
role of the company in furthering financial interests was recognized . In 1770s, the company agreed to pay
the crown 400 K annually in return for confirming its territorial possessions in India. "Now the company was
looked upon as a powerful engine in the hands of the government for the purposes of drawing from a distant
country the largest revenue it is capable of yielding". The charters were now seen as providing "delegated
sovereignty" while the monopoly of trade and territorial possessions were considered to be returns on the
public funds invested. The regulating act of 1773 further subjected the company to crown control. Indian
resources came to be seen as an important source to finance capitalist industrial revolution. It is thus clear
that the crown wanted a share in the Indian exploits as much as the company officials.
5. Thus the search for revenue, quest for trading privileges and the imperatives of military exigencies all took the
driving seat to accelerate the process of territorial conquest and erect in India the most magnificent empire
that ever had.
Evolution
1. First English factory was opened in Masaulipatnam in 1611, then in Surat in 1612. In 1639, they got Madras on
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3.
4.
5.
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lease from the local raja and the right to fortify it. This was called Fort St. George.
In 1633, factories were opened in Odisha (Hariharpur and Balasor) and in 1651, the factory @ Hooghly came
up. In 1634, the company got the right to carry out sea trade in Bengal.
In 1668, the EEIC got Bombay from the government and immediately fortified it. It was easy to defend
against Marathas, hence the centre of operations in the west shifted from Surat to Bombay.
Jahangir gave them right to setup trading posts anywhere in the Mughal empire. In 1651, the governor of
Bengal gave them right to carry on duty free trade in Bengal in return of a lump sum payment of Rs. 3,000.
These concessions were further extended by the governor of Bengal in 1698. In 1717, they got an imperial
farmaan from Farukh Siyar to carry out duty free trade and other concessions. This brought them in increasing
conflict with the Nawabs.
In 1698, the EEIC got the zamindari rights of 3 villages - Kalikata, Sutanati and Govindpur. These became
Calcutta and Fort St. Williams. Fort Williams was built and fortified to counter the rebellion by a zamindar
Shobha Singh.
Phase II (1749-1813)
Nature & Character of Strategy - Colonial Interpretation
1. A number of wars and battles were fought in this period by the . Yet the element of planning and deliberate
strategy was missing earlier on and evolved only slowly. Still the focus was not as much on extending direct
territorial control over India as on preserving their commercial interests and political influence. For this,
followed a strategy of using the struggles of native powers to their advantage and then to reduce them to
subordinate status.
2. The were forced into the Carnatic wars as a result of the actions of the French. Once the French had
emerged victorious in round 1, they had to fight them out even to maintain their foothold.
3. That BoP was largely due to the actions of an individual, Clive, can't be denied but at the same time, the
conflicts before that which led to Siraj sacking Calcutta and subsequent action of recovering it shows that
were determined to defy Indian political powers to protect their legitimate and illegitimate commercial
interests. Still that the official policy was only to restore rule in Calcutta shows that the policy of political
expansion had not been formulated yet.
4. It was after BoP that found themselves in possession of valuable influence in Bengal that they began to
develop a policy to protect that. Though they didn't interfere in day-to-day affairs of Nawab, they retained the
power to remove him or to influence major policy decisions. This led to further conflicts and BoB even though
none of the warring parties wanted it.
Evolution of strategy
1. In the post enlightenment intellectual environment, the also started defining themselves as a modern
civilization vis a vis the orientals and this rationalized their imperial vision. The resulting patriotism reveled in
the glory of the imperial empire. They began to look upon their imperialistic campaign as an 'age of reform'.
Thus the imperial ideology in India and the so called 'sub imperialism' was merely a part of such imperialistic
ideology back home and provided every justification for the actions of the local officials in India.
2. The Carnatic wars brought the crown troops in India at an unprecedented scale which indicates a greater and
direct role of the metropole in Indian affairs. Moreover from this stage on the company too decided to raise its
own standing army in India on a large scale. The size of this army increased steadily - as a result of conscious
decision - which destroyed all balance of power in India and ultimately gave it the edge over other Indian
powers. The policy of maintaining this huge army itself created the need of further annexations.
3. To protect its gains after the Carnatic wars and the BoB, the company followed a policy of ring-fence.
According to this policy, the company's territories were surrounded by the buffer states like Oudh and
Hyderbad and Carnatic to protect against the unfriendly powers like Marathas and Mysore. But this in itself is
an aggressive approach or reads a very narrow interpretation of 'offensive war'. Thus the company in 1766
signed a mutual defence pac with the Nizam in return of Northern Sarkars. It also annexed Carnatic in 1801
throwing off even the nominal suzerainty of the nawab which clearly can't be called a defensive act.
4. Pitts India Act: It is true that for a short period after the passage of the Pitts India Act which forbade the
company from making wars / offensive-defensive alliances and stipulated for it to focus purely on commercial
activities, there was a parliamentary prohibition on imperial expansion. But this was more a result of the heavy
expenses incurred in the war and the need to protect and consolidate the company's possession when the
empire was passing through its lowest ebb. The idea was to maintain a balance of power (use of Oudh,
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Hyderabad and Carnatic) between the Indian states and thus to protect the company's gains at minimum
military expenditure.
5. Lord Wellesley: But taking two steps forward, one backward, the company increasingly got itself indulged into
the political questions. The Maratha and Mysore wars are an example and the way company chose to interfere
in the Maratha affairs to wage the 1st and 2nd Anglo-Maratha wars was by no means "defensive". Wellesley
had decided that the policy of balance of power would no longer work in India even before landing in India and
followed a forward policy. "Wellesley was not formulating a policy of response to local conditions but trying to
create the conditions necessary for the attainment of his objectives... If Indian politics was turbulent, he
described them as threatening, if they were tranquil, he ruffled them. However the authorities in London were
no innocent observers in this imperial drama as well". He thus used the pretext of Napoleonic invasion of Egypt
in 1798 to soften London's resistance to expansion (while neither him nor anybody in London for a moment
seriously believed that Napoleon would leave Europe and attack India). Authorities in London sanctioned all his
aggressive moves in the name of protecting the most important objective of the 1784 act itself i.e. to protect
Indian empire against all threats from its european rivals. He next annexed Mysore in 1799 on the pretext of
the "prospects of French resurgence" and "Tipu's secret negotiations with the French". He also evolved the
policy of subsidiary alliance into a systematic tool which would establish control over the native states without
incurring any military liability and this system was clearly not "defensive". Wellesley was recalled in 1805 only
when his wars led the company into a serious financial crisis. Oudh's annexation was a naked annexation.
Carnatic Wars
Factors Responsible
(a) Political
1. Mother countries were @ war.
2. The political condition in south was favorable for the implementation of their designs. The native powers were
fragmented and weak, they were fighting each other, wars of successions were going on.
3. By this time both companies had established well trained military and their political influence was recognized by
native rulers.
(b) Economic
1. Both were economic rivals in India as well and India was too big a prize to let slip away.
2. It was a strategy of both companies to mix trade with political and military supremacy as well so as to create
monopolies.
(c) Cultural
1. Both believed in imperialistic policies so as to add to the strength and prestige of their empire.
Lessons of the Carnatic Wars
1. A well trained army with modern equipment could easily defeat old Indian armies. To maintain such an army, it
was not required to have only soldiers, Indians could be hired as well since there was no feeling of
nationalism in India.
2. Indian princes will always be fighting each other. companies could take advantage of this and they would be
always welcomed.
3. The strategy of supporting an Indian power and upon victory maintain army and resident there to make it
completely subservient. Seeds of subsidiary alliance.
1st Anglo-Carnatic War (1740 - 48)
1. It broke out over Austrian succession. However the hostilities of the two companies in Bengal were contained
by Alivardi Khan. But in Carnatic, no such strong power existed. A French fleet arrived from Mauritius and
together with the French army in India, they sacked positions in Madras. The appealed to the nawab of
Carnatic for help who sent his forces but was defeated by the French.
2. However difference emerged between Dupleix and the French admiral and he returned to Mauritius after
surrendering Madras. In 1746 Dupleix captured Madras again and followed it up with a siege of Fort St. David
but failed to capture it. The war ended in Europe and so it did in India.
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2nd Anglo-Carnatic War (1749-54)

1. French supported Chanda Sahib in Carnatic and Muzaffar Jung in Hyderabad. Naturally the got alarmed and
they supported the rival candidates Muhammad Ali in Carnatic & Nasar Jung in Hyderabad.
2. In 1749, Chanda Sahib + French + Muzaffar Jung defeated and killed Nawab Anwaruddin. His son fled to .
Next in Hyderabad, Muzaffar Jung + French + Chanda Sahib defeated and killed Nasar Jung. French got many
territories (Northern Sarkars, Masaulipatnam, Pondicherry), cash, right to station army in Hyderabad along with
a resident. Muzaffar Jung was accidently killed and a new Nizam was placed by French. Thus French power
was now @ its peak.
3. In 1750, decided to throw their entire weight behind Muhammad Ali. The French + Chanda Sahib had seized
Trichinopoly where Muhammad Ali was hiding. The decided to attack Arcot and the seize was lifted. The tide
turned. French began to lose, expenses began to mount. Government intervened and concluded peace with
in 1754. The treaty restored old possessions and the French power in India still remained far from over.
Conquest of Bengal
The Farmaan of 1717
1. It granted to the company the right to carry on duty free trade, zamindari rights of 38 villages around Kolkata
and to use the royal mint. But Murshid Quli Khan (and later nawabs) refused to extend this duty free provision
to cover also the private trade of the company officials, denied the 38 villages and refused to offer minting
privileges.
Factors Responsible for Clash of Nawabs with
(a) Economic
1. The EEIC had got an imperial farmaan from Farukh Siyar allowing it to carry duty-free trade and to issue
dastaks (passes) for the movement of such goods. The company began to misuse it and carried the goods of
Indian merchants on payment of money and its officers as well. This naturally led to unfair competition as well
as loss of revenue for Nawabs.
2. Bengal was too rich a prize to be left alone. In 1750s private trade had suffered a lot as a result of French
competition in collusion with Asian merchants. They were also wary of the nawab's ability to protect them
against French.
(b) Political
1. The EEIC was increasing its political clout. Earlier it had fortified its factory in Calcutta. The nawab obviously
didn't like it. Then it defied his orders to undo the fortifications and also granted asylum to a political opponent
of the Nawab who was sought after by him.
2. In 1756, a war had broken out between and French. So their companies in Bengal too sought to protect
themselves.
3. Siraj had succession problems and there were many intrigues against him. The conditions were thus favorable
for . So they pressed for a complete victory over him.
4. These factors were responsible for the conflict up to the restoration of Calcutta to . From Calcutta to Plassey
was an act of Clive in which his personal zeal and treachery played a vital role.
Significance of BoP / Plassey Plunder / BoP marked the beginning of the supremacy of in India
(a) Economic
1. The got undisputed right to free trade in BBO. They got zamindari rights of 24 Parganas and huge sum in
cash for the company as well as officials. Mir Zafar also gave them Rs. 22.5 mm between 1757 - 1760 while
his own treasury was Rs. 15 mm only. Later when they replace Mir Zafar by Mir Qasim, they got zamindari of
more districts and more cash.
2. It opened the gates for drain of wealth and corruption, exploitation of Bengal. Bengal was made to pay for
company's expenses in Madras and Bombay as well and to finance imports. Thus the import of bullion not
only stopped but it was reversed and this was called 'India investments'.
3. Plassey also opened the floodgates for the officials to make personal fortunes. Clive got huge jagirs and was
called a nebob in . Rampant misuse of dastaks began for private trade as now there was no check.
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(b) Political
1. It enhanced prestige. Now they could help a nawab in his accession. It made them a major political power in
India.
2. It enhanced military power as well as with the Bengal revenues, they would be able to maintain larger and
better army.
3. But this victory was not complete since it was based more in treachery than on display of military force. The
new nawabs didn't feel initially they were under company's control. They simply felt the company had aided
them in becoming Nawab for which they repaid through concessions and bribes. No way were they under
company's control. But the company thought they were its puppets. So tensions resurfaced. There cannot be 2
masters of same land.
Circumstances Leading to BoP
1. There was a chronic conflict between and Nawabs over the imperial farmaan. The Nawabs alleged misuse
while the company believed it was well within its right to issue dastaks. Since the nawabs were powerful, they
used to force the to pay a lump sum tax and not to use dastaks for its officers' and Indian trade.
2. In 1756, Siraj demanded that should trade on the same basis as others. He also demanded they abandon
their fortifications. But the refused to comply and even began to charge customs duty on the goods entering
Calcutta. This was an open challenge.
3. Nawab sacked factories @ Kasimbazar. The chief believed he could still avenge his defeat by force and
ignored Nawab's diplomatic overtures. As a result Siraj also took Calcutta in June 1756. He then retired,
celebrating his victory. The escaped and came back with a large navy and infantry from South under Clive
and Watson. In January 1757, under Major Kill Patrick and Major Eyre Coot, recaptured Calcutta. Treaty of Ali
Nagar was signed in February 1757 and got their factories and privileges (including that of fortifications)
back. Chandernagore was captured as well by Admiral Watson. In the meantime, they also engaged in stroking
the intrigues against the nawab.
4. Clive re-conquered Calcutta in early 1757. But due to the intrigues, he felt confident that he could defeat the
nawab as well and fought him @ Plassey.
Reasons for Intrigues in Siraj's Court
1. There was a natural convergence of interests between Indian and merchants since many of the Indian
merchants worked as the brokers / agents of the or traded with them, acted as their dadni merchants etc.
They also used ships for carrying their cargo.
Mir Qasim
1. Although he became a nawab with help, he looked upon them merely as someone who had helped him and
didn't control him. So he rewarded them initially by giving them Chittagong, Burdwan and Midanpore and then
tried to rule independently. But soon he found situation was not like this.
2. He shifted his capital away from Calcutta to Munger, tried to remove revenue corruption and raise an efficient
army and build an ordinance factory @ Munger. Over the issue of dastaks he tried to negotiate with the
company but nothing came out. So when he abolished all custom duties, hostilities came out in open.
Battle of Buxar
Factors Responsible
(a) Political
1. The BoP didn't answer the question clearly - who is the boss of Bengal? So Mir Qasim thought that he had
repaid for their help in his accession, but thought that he should be a puppet.
2. Colonial outlook of . This made a conflict inevitable with anyone who stood in their way.
3. Sujha fought to increase his influence. Shah Alam fought God knows why.
(b) Economic
1. Issue of dastaks. Continuous exploitation and demand of .
Shuja-ud-daula's Participation
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1. He fought because he was promised Bihar and a payment of Rs. 30 mm on the successful campaign. This
would also have propelled him high in the political arena of the age.
2. In the end he had to pay Rs. 5 mm to the company, host a resident, agreed to a mutual defence pact with
the company, and had to give duty free trade rights to the company throughout Oudh (the tensions created by
which led to the ultimate annexation of Oudh itself) and to cede Allahbad and Kara to the company.
Circumstances Leading to BoB
1. Mir Qasim wanted to be an independent nawab. He knew that for this, he had to get away from the influence
of the and rebuild his strength. So he shifted his capital to Munger, built an arms depot there, recruited,
maintained and trained a large force there and rooted out corruption in his department. He began to act
independently. Then there was the issue of dastaks.
2. But both sides didn't want a conflict @ that stage. The nawab didn't feel strong enough and didn't want to
lose the gains from Plassey. So they tried to negotiate and reach an agreement.
3. But the high handed behavior of some officials and issue of dastaks finally broke the waters.
Significance
(a) Political
1. Firmly established company's authority beyond any doubt. No question was left as to who is the boss. De jure
as well as de facto power. Exposed the weakness of Indian powers.
2. Dual Rule in Bengal: The company got the diwani rights of BBO. This led to a situation where all revenues went
to the company and all administrative responsibilities were left with the nawab. In 1765, the company could
imposed a treaty on the nawab where he was made to abandon his army, govern through a deputy subehdar
who was to be appointed by the company and couldn't be removed without its consent. This gave the company
nizamat or police and judicial powers as well. Soon entire administration began to be run by the company's
Indian agents called gomasthas. Open plunder was the outcome and massive Bengal famine of 1770 struck.
The plight of Bengal was highlighted by Navin Chandradas in his play navanna.
3. Even Oudh was made dependent on . He was to pay for troops while promised to aid him. Thus they
created a buffer state.
(b) Economic
1. The company got the diwani rights. Due to resources, the company became powerful.
2. Drain of wealth, used these revenues to pay for their imports. Famine of 1770.
Anglo Maratha War I (1775-82)
Circumstances
1. The growth in company's cotton trade with China through Bombay from Gujarat made them conscious of the
need to establish political supremacy in Deccan also. Coupled with the territorial ambitions of the Bombay
government, the company was looking for an opportunity to interfere. Peshwa Madhav Rao died in 1772 and
was succeeded by Narain Rao. But Raghunath Rao had him murdered in 1774 but Nana Phadnavis and other
sardars raised minor Peshwa Madhav Rao Narain to gaddi. Raghunath Rao went to Bombay government and
signed a treaty with them in 1775 called Treaty of Surat.
2. War began but Warren Hastings came down heavily on the Bombay government and withdrew and signed
Treaty of Purandar in 1776. According to it control of Salsette and revenue from Bharuch were maintained.
3. But in 1778, the influx of French officers in Maratha land changed the situation as French had entered US war
of Independence against . So Warren Hastings opened hostilities again (French illusion). Initially suffered a
rout an a humiliating treaty of Wadgaon was imposed upon them. But Warren Hastings rejected it, sent more
troops gained battle victories and signed Treaty of Salbai.
Significance
1. The company was passing through its lowest ebb. US war had been lost, Mysore and Nizam were fighting
against it too, financial problems were there. So the company wanted to withdraw to fight another day.
2. This war proved Maratha power was not yet finished.
3. But it also proved Indians could never be united. Though suffered loss in the war, they split the anti-
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alliance. Mysore was left alone to fight and in the next war, Marathas joined against Mysore.
Anglo Maratha War II (1802-05)
Circumstances
1. Same. Fight over Peshwaship. The Peshwa Baji Rao II was unpopular and corrupt. He had the brother of
Holkar killed who was the most powerful sardar. So Holkar defeated the combined army of Peshwa and
Scindia. Peshwa got worried, ran to and signed subsidiary alliance. This was the Treaty of Bassein.
2. But Treaty of Bassein had theoretical significance only. Because the Peshwa had little credibility and control
over Maratha sardars. None of the sardars agreed to it and had to fight in battlefield. The Peshwa himself
turned hostile. But this time defeated Marathas and imposed subsidiary alliances on the Peshwa as well as
Maratha sardars. GG was Lord Wellesley and commander Lake inflicted many sharp defeats upon Marathas
in N India. In Deccan Arthur Wellesley (who later defeated Napoleon) defeated Marathas. Battle of Assaye in
1803 was the battle where Wellesley defeated combined confederacy forces.
3. In the end, imposed subsidiary alliances on each of the Maratha sardar (except Gaekwad), secured delhi,
Agra, extensive areas in Gujarat and many other territories.
Anglo Maratha War III (1717-19)
1. Pindaris formed irregulars in Maratha army. They had their own arms, were not paid regularly and made their
living out of plunder after victories. But after the Anglo-Maratha war II, maratha sardars had to sign subsidiary
alliance, abandon their armies and hence pindaries became unemployed. So they took to highway robbery.
2. Maratha sardars were sympathetic to them and didn't assist Lord Hastings whole-heartedly. So Hastings turned
on them.
Oudh / "When Dalhousie finally annexed the remainder of Oudh in 1856 on grounds of misgovernance, it was only a
logical culmination of a long drawn out process"
1. had secured the positioning of a resident in Oudh and stationing a permanent garrison there in 1773. But
the issue of its payment became a contentious issue as the amount demanded by increased gradually
through time. To meet this heavy demand the Nawab had to impose more tax on his taluqdars which made
them rebellious. This resulted in political instability in the state (which eventually became a pretext for direct
annexation). Warren Hastings had suggested annexation of territories in Oudh to pay for the maintenance of
the troops. Still the annexation was somehow avoided until the arrival of Wellesley with his forward policy.
2. In 1801 the Nawab gave hints that he might not be able to pay the maintenance charges. Then the Nawab was
also complaining against the misuse of the dastaks. Oudh was also a big producer of indigo which was
becoming an important export item to . Oudh was also a big producer of cotton which was exported by to
China. And then the Nawab imposed a stiff export tax on indigo which clashed with interests.
3. In 1797 helped a contender to Oudh's throne who had promised them an annual subsidy of Rs. 7.6 mm.
When in 1801 he expressed his inability to pay it, Wellesley annexed half of Oudh's territories in 1801 which
were actually worth Rs. 14 mm. Moreover Wellesley justified his actions on moral grounds - annexation for
better governance. From now on the office of the resident in Oudh became the real center of power as he
frequently interfered in the administration, appointed his favorites to important positions etc.
Phase III (1813-58)
1. This period witnessed a systematic and highly developed policy of extending influence in India.
2. Annexation was an important element and different ways were pursued to extend the territory of India.
3. Subordination of native rulers continued to be an important aspect of policy. For this a policy if 'subordinated
isolation' was followed. The native states were kept away from each others as well as company authorities.
4. Colonialization of economy too was an important feature and for this means of communication were improved.
Lord Hastings (1813-23)
1. He was a staunch imperialist. He initiated the new policy of 'paramountcy' which proclaimed company's
interests to be supreme in India and that any native state could be legitimately annexed or threatened with
annexation to protect such interests.
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2. After the defeat of Marathas in 3rd Anglo-Maratha war, he annexed whole of the kingdom except a small
territory @ Satara for Sivaji's descendants.
3. He wanted a recognition of the de-jure power of the in India. Thats why he refused to meet Mughal emperor
Akbar II except on equal terms. His successor met Akbar II on equal terms in 1827. In 1835, the effigy of
Mughal rulers on coins was replaced by that of crown.
Annexation of Punjab
1. Ranjit Singh had maintained a delicate balance of power in his court between the hereditary Sikh chieftains
and the non Sikh nobles from Jammu and other areas. After his death, this balance broke down. As a result of
the subsequent feuds, the revenue demand on the peasants and zamindars increased which began to resist
the revenue collection. The commercial classes too were affected.
2. The resulting political instability in Punjab made anxious as so far a stable and strong Punjab had served as a
buffer state against the Russo-Afghan threat. But the continuous political instability made this scheme
unworkable. Thus Punjab became a "victim of Victorian imperialism". Lord Hardinge declared war on 1845
which resulted an imposition of subsidiary alliance on Punjab, annexing Jalandhar doab, Kashmir was given
to Raja Gulab Singh Dogra for his loyalty. Dalhousie completed the work in 1849 with the 2nd Anglo-Sikh war
using a pretext of a rebellion by 2 Sikh governors.
Lord Dalhousie (1848-56)
1. He was a staunch imperialist and carried imperialism to its climax. When he became the GG, the map of India was in fragments. When he left, it was contiguous. He doubled the size of the empire in his tenure.
2. Until now the policy of annexation was followed only against unfriendly native states or for strategic concerns.
But he extended the policy of annexation even for friendly states. He left only those states out which he couldn't
annex on one pretext or other.
3. Oudh was annexed on pretext of misgovernance, Satara, Bagha, Jhansi, Udaipur, Nagpur on pretext of Doctrine
of Lapse, Punjab through a war.
4. Thus policy could be summarized as "trade with informal control of possible, trade with rule when necessary"
although the distinction between both was rather dubious as it was the need to secure the benefits from trade
through informal control which often led to direct rule.
Phase IV (1858-1947)
1. The policy of annexation was abandoned. Instead crown paramountcy was proclaimed.
2. Policy of subordinated union was followed with respect to native states.
Administration
Created: 3/4/2012 10:03 AM
Role of Crown in the Foundation of the Indian Empire
Colonial Interpretation
1. In the beginning the difficulties of communication with gave the company's officials in India virtually a free
hand here to behave like their own masters. There was misinformation and lack of interest about Indian affairs
in . Thus the empire was a result of sub imperialism only and not any conscious policy from the metropole.
Critical Evaluation (before 1770s)
1. But it is also not possible to decline the role of the metropole in this expansion. The connection between trade
and the use of arms is only too obvious as a policy of the . Also despite the apparent separation between the
company and the state, the two were intimately linked in promoting England's diplomatic goals as the company
owed its privileges (and the very existence) to a charter granted by the king. In the beginning, to secure wealth
and independence for the crown, the Stuart kings followed an aggressive commercial policy in the Indian ocean
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and coast with the use of navy. There were also clear instructions on how to divide the booty between the
government and the company in case of any joint campaign.
2. The island of Bombay was gifted by the crown to the company for a toke sum and it may be noted that the
Portuguese gave the island of Bombay to the crown on the condition that it would be used to protect the
Portuguese settlements in India. When the crown handed it over to the company, this obligation was transfered
as well.
Now the company was looked upon as a powerful engine in the hands of the government for the purposes of drawing
from a distant country the largest revenue it is capable of yielding.
The charters were now seen as providing "delegated sovereignty" while the monopoly of trade and territorial
possessions were considered to be returns on the public funds invested.
1. Then the relationship between the company and the crown was always mutually beneficial. The company used
to pay gifts / tributes / loans to the crown time and again. Then again in 1698 the authorized the foundation
of a rival company when it offered a loan of 2 mm to the crown as against the old company which was
prepared to offer a loan of 700 K only. This proved that the trading rights with India were a marketable
commodity which could be used by the crown. The 2 companies were merged in 1709 again and the crucial
role of the company in furthering financial interests was recognized .
2. From the beginning only with Clive and hastings, the GGs tried to formulate some kind of a relationship with the
crown which could legitimize their authority. In 1770s, the company agreed to pay the crown 400 K annually
in return for confirming its territorial possessions in India. Indian resources came to be seen as an important
source to finance capitalist industrial revolution. It is thus clear that the crown wanted a share in the Indian
exploits as much as the company officials.
Early Administrative Structure
Nature & Character of Rule in India
1. The aim of was economic exploitation of India and the perpetuation of rule. It had nothing to do with
welfare of people. For such a state, maintaining law and order is essential so that people can be bled dry
without noise. So for this the administration was based on three pillars - civil service, police and army. For the
same purpose, railways, telegraphs and postal services were introduced. Indian industry and agriculture was
ruined and India made an economic colony as well.
2. It was a foreign, alien rule. made no efforts to integrate with India, understand its aspirations. Sole aim was
to serve mother country.
3. Racist and discriminative. Indians couldn't aspire to gold posts > Rs. 500 p.a. by the 1793 Act. Thus in army,
subehdar was the limit and in civil service, sadr-amin was the ceiling. Indians were racially discriminated
against in every interaction.
4. It believed in superiority of culture and society. So efforts were made for anglicization and missionary
activities were encouraged.
5. It was imperialistic and maintained on strength of sword.
Civil Services
1. The civilian authorities were very powerful in India given their (financial) control over army, distance from
London, command over local information and the colonial nature of the state. Initially the company officials
were paid low wages but were allowed to carry on private trade. Corruption increased when company got
administrative powers in Bengal and the company suffered as a result. Cornwallis came and he improved the
administration. So he increased their salaries and curbed private trade and corruption. He also laid down that
promotion would be by seniority.
2. Initially the recruitment was through patronage by the Court of Directors who had to give a written undertaking
that they had not taken any money in return. Still corruption crept in and the officials were found seriously
lacking in the needed skills. So in 1800 Lord Wellesley established a college @ Calcutta for civil service officers
training and in 1805 similar college was opened in (first in Hertford and later Haileybury). All the candidates
nominated by the directors were to undergo a 2 year training here and would be appointed only if they passed
the required exams. But this training was essentially based on a generalist curriculum and except for the
language component had nothing particularly to do with India.
3. By 1830s, the power of the collectors had increased immensely (they were in charge of police, revenue,
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judicial powers) and also the sphere of state activity had increased tremendously both into new areas of life
and into new geographical areas. In the light of the added responsibilities it was felt that the existing patronage
system couldn't bring in adequate number of able personnel and a competition was needed to bring in the best
minds. The Charter Act of 1833 introduced an element of limited competition i.e. competition among the
candidates nominated by the directors but the 1853 Act introduced a full scale open competitive exam.
4. There was a growing nationalist demand to hold a simultaneous civil services exam in India. But Indians could
not be allowed in the covenanted civil services and they remained closed to Indians. Instead the colonial
government introduced, as a compromise, 'statutory civil service' which comprised of some lower rank jobs
hitherto reserved for the covenanted civil services. Here too only the princes and big zamindars would be
nominated. Subsequent efforts of introducing a simultaneous civil services exam in India, introducing local self
government, Ilbert Bill (all by Lord Ripon) met with severe racist arguments which made it clear that the only
reason for not allowing Indians in the covenanted services was racism.
5. In 1892 the structure of the civil service was reformed (on the recommendations of the public service
commission). The exclusive status of covenanted civil services (rechristened to Indian civil service) was
retained while the uncovenanted civil service was rechristened as provincial civil service. Finally in 1922
simultaneous examination began to be held and by 1941 Indians outnumbered in the Indian civil service.
Army - The Raj was a garrison state
Pre 1857
1. In the 18th century, crown forces (specially the navy) were often used in India but this created a problem of
command. So the company began to raise its own permanent army in India (though it were the French who
first began this tradition of recruiting an Indian army). The new army of the company had Indian sepoys who
were trained, equipped and paid regularly and were commanded by officials. The number of Indian sepoys
nearly trebled between 1800 and 1856. This army was central to the maintenance of company's paramountcy
in India and thus also claimed the largest share of expenditure in India. For its maintenance only it was crucial
to have an effective revenue collection system and administration akin to military fiscalism. The 'Anglo - Indian
militarism' i.e. assertions by a number of military intellectuals that India was a violent society and in a
perpetual state of war called for even more expenditure on the army.
2. In the initial formative phase, Hastings (conservative orientalist) took care not to disturb the caste rules. Also to
create a high caste identity and thus to command respect from the natives he recruited from the upper castes
Hindus of Bengal, Bihar and Oudh only. Also there was a constant competition to join this army and remain
loyal as many of the socially ambitious castes could fulfill their aspirations for social mobility via the company's
army.
3. As the empire expanded, many other groups (like Marathas, Mysore, Gurkhas etc.) now began to be
recruited in the army, it became heterogenous and a careful balance within the army had to be maintained.
There was a need to curtail expenditures and this necessitated standardization which meant many of the caste
observations which were maintained earlier could not be observed any more. This began to create dissent in
the army which was particularly shown by the Bengal army.
Post 1857
1. The Peel Commission recommended that the native army should be composed of different ethnicities and
castes which as a general rule should be mixed thoroughly through each regiment. Thus in the next few years
regiments which had mutinied were disbanded, castes were more evenly mixed across the regiments,
recruitment remained focused on Punjab which remained loyal during the mutiny.
2. In 1880s, in the era of Victorian racism, racial theories were developed and some groups (like Jats, Sikhs,
Pathans, Gurkhas) were identified as martial races and thus attempt was made to separate them from the
mainstream society and to develop a sense of loyalty in them. This loyalty was encouraged by encouraging
their religious traditions and sense of honor. At the same time these groups were thought to be warlike,
trustworthy and at the same time intellectually deficient so that they could fight but not lead. A large army was
maintained - 250 K men in peace time - and which devoured ~40% of the imperial revenues.
Army and Nationalism
1. When nationalism became a problem, found that the police was not always adequate to handle the situations
- since the policemen were civilians and lived in the society and were as much influenced by the nationalist
currents. In such cases army came in handy because they were kept in barracks, illiterate and away and
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untouched by any political current and their sense of loyalty always exalted. This also created a sense of fear
of the army. The army was not used frequently to police the country as the frequent use would reduce this
very purpose. This was also the reason why there was so much of bureaucratic opposition to the Indianization
of the officers corp of the army and effective Indianization only took place in the 40s.
Police
Pre Police System
1. It was under the control of the faujdars who were in control of the sarkars, the kotwals were in charge of the
towns while the zamindars maintained law and order in the villages. But the undermining of the authority of the
nawab meant the crime rates shot up. This necessitated a intervention.
System
1. In 1781 the faujdars were replaced by district magistrates. let zamindars exercise police powers who were
made subservient to the magistrates. But this system didn't prove to be effective as the establishment of
magistrates proved to be too inadequate for the purpose and this gave too much autonomy to the zamindars.
2. So in 1793, Cornwallis decided to divest the zamindars of their police duties and instead divided the district into
multiple thanas and each thana was placed under a daroga. The darogas were to be appointed and supervised
by the district magistrates. But a new and alien element in the countryside, the daroga could hardly ignore the
ground realities and began to collude with the powerful local zamindars. This powerful daroga - zamindar
nexus soon emerged as the new instrument of exploitation in rural areas.
3. The darogas were Indians and whenever the law and order problems arose, the colonial authorities made
them the scapegoats (attributing it to their lack of morality). In 1812 it was abolished and the supervision of the
village police was vested in the collector. But this meant that the collector was now in charge of the police,
revenue and judicial powers at the same time. This extreme concentration of powers meant that they and their
subordinates in the revenue department now became the agents of exploitation.
4. In 1843, Charles Napier in Sind started a new model where instead of trying to adapt the old police system to
suit the colonial needs, he created a new system altogether with a separate police department with its own
officers. The whole province was to be under an IG (a military authority) while the district would be under an
SP who would be answerable to both the collector and the IG. While the rank and file of the police was to be
Indian, the officers would invariably be . This kind of system was ideally suited for colonial conditions and thus
was adopted with some modifications throughout India.
5. The 1861 Police Act separated the police from the military authority entirely and provided for a civilian police
with the SP under the control of the collector only and the IG (a civilian person now) to report to the provincial
governor. The rural police came under the charge of the SP and the daroga was made the sub inspector.
6. CID was setup by Curzon on the recommendations of Fraser commission in 1903.
Judicial Organization
Pre Judicial System
1. The prevailing Mughal system was never centrally organized and had local variations depending upon the
interpretations and discretion of the local qazis and faujdars. Punishment depended often on the status and
caste of the accused. To many company officials this system looked like one marked by unusual laxity and a
cause of the degeneration. By 1769 it was argued that there was a need for a centralized judicial system in
India which would also assert the company's sovereignty.
Initial Changes - Warren Hastings
1. The dominant themes of the changes in this phase were - centralization, europeanization, institutionalization of
the civil justice system.
2. Centralization and europeanization: In 1772, Warren Hastings wanted to take full control of the judicial system.
So he introduced a new system in which each district was to have 2 courts, a civil court (diwani adalat) and a
criminal court (faujdari adalat). Thus the Mughal nomenclature was retained and the laws to be applicable
were Muslim laws in criminal justice and the Muslim laws or the Hindu laws in civil justice. This was in
consonance with system as well since issues like marriages, inheritance etc. were decided by the church law.
The civil courts were to be administered by european district collectors (who were to be assisted by maulavis
and pundits). There would be an appellate court in Calcutta (there was a conflict between the jurisdiction of SC
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and the Supreme Council over this jurisdiction). The criminal courts were to remain under qazis and muftis but
to remain under the supervision of the european district collectors. The appellate court - sadar nizamat adalat
- was shifted from Murshidabad to Calcutta. Hastings personally supervised the judicial system until 1774.
3. Intermediate reforms: This system combined the judicial and executive powers in the hands of the executive
which ran contrary to the modern principle of separation of powers. So changes were introduced until 1781
where the district collectors were divested of their judicial duties. Instead of diwani adalats at district level, 18
mofussil courts were created to be presided over by the european covenanted officers. Sadar Diwani Adalat
was created in place of the SC as the final appellate court. But in 1787 the collector were again vested with
judicial powers.
4. Institutionalization: In 1781 a Code was developed which prescribed the specific rules and regulations to be
followed in all the civil courts to down to the lowest level and also prescribed that all the judicial orders were to
be in writing. But the problem in having certainty and uniformity in law still remained that it was based on
Hindu and Muslim laws which could be interpreted differently by different pundits and maulvis and in fact
differently by the same person on different occasions. To reduce this uncertainty, separate committees of
pundits and maulavis were setup by Hastings and their interpretations codified. These changes also meant that
practice of law now needed special expertise and the profession of 'lawyers' came up.
Cornwallis - The entire judicial reform of Cornwallis spoke of one thing - a total exclusion of Indians from the whole
system, which became less ambiguous in its authoritarian and racially superior tone.
1. The credit for real foundation of the judicial system goes to Cornwallis. Civil and criminal courts were
separated. Executive and judiciary were separated too as a safeguard of property rights against the abuse by
collectors. The also brought the concept of rule of law and equality before law.
2. For civil matters, @ ground level were subordinate courts headed by Indians, then Registrar's court headed by
. Each district had a civil court (diwani adalat) headed by district judge who was a civil servant. Thus the post
of collector and district judge was separated. Appeals from diwani adalat lay first with one of the 4 provincial
courts and then with the Sadar Diwani Adalat.
3. For criminal cases, @ the top was Sadar Nizamat Adalat, followed by 4 Circuit courts (which replaced the
faujdari courts since such an important branch of administration could not be left to Indians) headed by civil
servants and numerous petty courts @ ground levels. The jurisdiction of these criminal courts didn't extend to
europeans for who there was the SC in Calcutta.
Subsequent Reforms
1. Lenient form of Muslim criminal law was used in criminal courts, customary laws were used in civil courts. In
1833, a Law Commission headed by Macaulay was formed which eventually resulted in IPC.
2. In 1831, the circuit courts and provincial courts were abolished by William Benetinck. He also raised he
positions of Indians to deputy magistrates.
3. Indian High Court Act of 1861 led to amalgamation of supreme courts and sadar courts in each province into a
high court and high courts came up in Calcutta, Bombay and Madras. In 1865, their jurisdiction was increased
and by 1869, all Indian subjects were brought under their jurisdiction.
Impact
1. Although initially in personal matters the traditional Hindu and Muslim laws were applied, the judicial
interpretations often made the laws look alien to the natives.
2. Justice now became distant, not just physically (courts were in cities now) but also psychologically as the
natives couldn't understand the complex judicial procedures which necessitated the presence of lawyers which
in turn made justice expensive as well and hence a tool in the hands of the elite to exploit ordinary people.
Cases began to pile up and justice got delayed - sometimes by up to 50 years.
3. There were contradictions in system as well. The concept of equality before law didn't apply to europeans.
Moreover since the laws used were still Hindu and Muslim the upper castes in both communities benefitted
from the interpretations. Moreover, the police and the army always remained above the law.
Relations with Native States
Pre 1857
1. In the 1st phase (1764 - 97) the company began with initial placements of the residents in Bengal, Oudh,
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Hyderabad but the company's forward policy in India was not clear and so was the resident's role. In this
period the residents were rather controlled and cautious.
2. In the 2nd phase (1798 - 1840), Wellesley followed a clear forward policy and so did the role of residents
expand. It changed from merely maintaining diplomatic relations to that of indirect control as the newly
conquered territories were left to be indirectly controlled by the residents and they themselves thus facilitated
expansion.
3. The 3rd phase saw a halt of military expansion (which had reached a physical limits in India and had been
defeated in Afghanistan) and instead saw a consolidation. This period saw a shift towards direct annexation
instead of indirect control.
Post 1857
1. The Victorian promise of 1858 was sought to be modified when Lord Mayo came up with the doctrine of 'good
governance'. He discovered that a breakdown of durbari authority led to a collapse of law and order and so the
princes could be given political support only in exchange of ensuring good governance. This led to increased
intervention in the internal matters of the princes in the name of 'reforms'. Princes who tried to resist this
increased interference were threatened and the Gaekwad of Baroda was even removed in 1875 on the charges
of 'gross misrule'.
2. But when nationalism began to grow found that as in 1857, princes would be their foremost allies. So Lord
Lytton considered them to be 'true representatives and natural leaders' of Indian people. Yet the states had to
relinquish control over the railway tracks and communication systems in their territories (even though they had
to pay for their construction!), accept currency as legal tender and refrain from exporting salt. This
interventionism reached its height under Curzon who even banned their foreign travels, deposed a number of
princes, brought 63 states under 'temporary' administration, and forced the rest to pay more for the service
of imperial troops.
Post Curzon Policy
1. The growth of the INM necessitated the isolation of princely states from the currents in India. So began to
follow a policy of laissez faire. The swadesi movement and the WW1 once again demonstrated the usefulness
of the native princes to the . So at the end of the war, the princes wanted a recognition in the shape of
greater restrictions on the domineering tendencies of the political department. In response, the Act of
1919 created a Chamber of Princes with 120 members nominated directly by them to advise the on all
maters relating to the states.
2. The 1825 Butler Committee too didn't provide any solution to the paramountcy issue. The only concession it
gave to the states was that paramountcy would not be transferred without their consent to any democratically
elected government in India but there was no dilution of paramountcy.
3. The princes supported the idea of federation in the Nehru report of 1928 hoping to get rid of the
paramountcy problem. Thus in this federation they would be able to secure their autonomy as well as break
free of . Thus the Chamber of Princes endorsed it and federation became a demand of the princes. But in
the GoI Act 1935 made it clear that their paramountcy will not lapse despite the princes joining the
federation. So joining the federation became meaningless.
From Dual Government to Direct Control
Treaties of 1765
1. The Treaty of Allahbad with Shah Alam II gave the company diwani rights of BBO. The treaty with the Nawab
of Bengal gave then the nizamat rights (police and judicial) as well.
2. This led to a situation where the revenues and judicial powers were with the and they had no administrative
responsibilities. The liabilities were all with Nawab who was to rule with a Naib Subahdar who could be hired
and fired by the only.
Annexation of Bengal (1772)
Significance
It raised important questions. The officials had no administrative experience and the higher authority was situated
1000s of km away in .
1. What should be the relations between government and a commercial company which now had administrative
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responsibilities?
2. How should the company authorities located in keep control over the Indian administration?
3. What should be the relation between Bengal, Madras and Bombay?
The Regulating Act (1773)
Background
1. The Company had conquered Bengal and also assumed its administrative responsibilities. Now it had proper
territorial control over a large territory. The 3 presidencies of the company had no coordination between
them and thus had to be regulated. How should the company authorities located in control the Indian
administration? What should be the relations between the company and the government after the conquest of
Bengal.
2. Instead of showing profits, the company was showing losses - mainly because of private trade of its officials
and because of loss of tea trade with US. Still the company had raised its dividends to 10% in 1767 and 12.5%
in 1771.
3. But the abuses of the company officials (when the nebobs began to return home with immense wealth in hand)
became a target of increasing jealousy, anger and fear in parliament and there were regular debates on
them. Thus when the opportunity came (the story of fabled Bengal wealth and the display of it by nebobs didn't
go down well with an impending bankruptcy of the company), the Regulating Act of 1773 further subjected the
company to crown control.
4. Free traders, liberals and utilitarians were becoming powerful in parliament. Adam Smith argued influentially
against monopolies and this resonated with the interests of the Manchester manufacturers. A clamor began to
end the monopoly rights of the company but the company was not without powerful friends also. So a
compromise was reached.
5. Situation arose when the company asked parliament for a loan of 1 mm. The government sanctioned a
loan of 1.4 mm but with some strings attached.
Provisions
1. The company retained its monopoly, but the activities of the Court of Directors was now subjected to the
supervision of parliament. All correspondences in all matters including revenue receipt were to be submitted
to the parliament. The dividend was restricted to 6% and term of a director to 4 years. This way it could be
ensured that company's policy would benefit whole upper class.
2. The governor of Bengal was to be now GG of Fort William in Bengal and Madras and Bombay were put under
him in matter of waging wars or making peace with the native states, except in matters of emergency.
3. A GGinC was formed with 4 other members and decisions were to be taken with majority vote. GG had no veto.
4. A Supreme Court was to be opened in Calcutta. Thus executive was separated from judiciary though the
legislative powers were vested in the GGinC.
5. Acceptance of gifts from natives or carrying out private trade was banned for company officials.
Significance
1. This was the first act defining the structure of the government in India which remained to some extent the
same until 1858.
2. It began the process of subordination of the company to parliament so that by 1858 only the mask was left.
Limitations
1. Position of GG was too weak as he didn't have a veto which defeated the purpose of providing an efficient
administration.
2. SC was created but its jurisdiction was not defined clearly which defeated the purpose of the separation of
judiciary from executive.
3. Control of Calcutta over Bengal and Madras was not defined clearly which defeated the purpose of a more
efficient control from Calcutta.
4. Communication between Calcutta and London still remained poor which defeated the purpose of a more
efficient control from London.
Amendment Act, 1781
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1. It defined clearly the jurisdiction of Indian SC to be over matters involving Europeans in Calcutta only.
Pitts India Act (1784)
Provisions
1. A Board of Control was created in London with 4 members from Privy Council and 2 cabinet ministers. Its head
was to be in-charge of Indian affairs. The Board would "superintend, direct, and control all acts, operations
and concerns" related to all civil and military matters including revenue. The orders of this Board were to be
binding on the Court of Directors of the company.
2. The GGinC was reduced from 5 (1 + 4) to 4 (1 + 3) so that now the GG needed the support of only 1 other
member.
3. Bombay and Madras were placed firmly and clearly under Calcutta's control. The GGinC in turn was
subordinated to the Court of Directors and the Board. Thus a clear hierarchy of command and a more direct
parliamentary control over the Indian administration was established.
4. The Court of Directors retained its monopoly over the trade and the right to nominate its officials. But the
appointment of the key officials like GG, governors and commander in chief it had to obtain the crown approval.
Significance
1. The structure remained largely the same.
Limitations
1. The provision of 2 masters of the GG (the Court and the Board) gave a lot of autonomy to the GG as he could
and did on may occasions played the 2 masters against each other.
2. Similarly a factious council could render the GG ineffective. An amending act in 1786 gave the GG veto powers
in extraordinary situations.
3. There were separate civilian and army commands which created situations of conflict. The act of 1776
combined the offices of GG and commander in chief resulting in Warren Hasting becoming the two positions
simultaneously.
Charter Act, 1793
1. It provided in India the concept of a civil law enacted by a secular agency and applied universally. It established
a regular code of all regulations for internal government which applied to all Indians in all matters and it bound
the courts to administer justice according to the regular code. All laws were to be printed and translations in
local languages done so that people could know of the law governing them.
Charter Act, 1813
1. The act asserted 'undoubted sovereignty' of the crown over the Indian territories and thus this was another act
of parliament removing the mask. It ended company's monopoly over all Indian trade except tea. It also
allowed for the operations of the christian missionaries in India and provided Rs. 1 lac p.a. for education.
The Charter Act (1833)
Background
1. By this time there was a strong agitation for the abolition of the company. The liberal reforms of 1832 had also
strengthened the lobby against the company in the parliament. A parliamentary inquiry was held and the
resulting act became a landmark in the history of India.
Provisions
1. It ended company's monopoly over tea trade and China trade and henceforth it was meant only to have
political function (which means that its utility was now over since crown was the best agency for political
control). here too the Indian possessions of the company were to be held in trust for the crown (the act of
1813 had already asserted crown's 'undoubted sovereignty' over the Indian territories). All debts of the
company were assumed by Government.
2. The president of the Board of Control now became the Secretary of State for India. GG of Bengal now became
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the GG of India who would control all the civil, military and revenue matters in whole of India.
3. With the influx of settlers in India and the extension of territories, there was a need for uniform laws. So the
GG was now empowered to legislate for whole of India (on any matter) and all legislative powers from the
Madras and the Bombay presidencies were taken away. The laws made by GG were to be applicable to all
subjects - or Indian.
4. It introduced a law member in GGinC just for legislative purposes. A law commission was introduced for the
codification of laws. Thus this Act marked the beginning of separation of executive powers from legislative
powers.
5. The company's services were thrown open to the natives but there was no provision for their being nominated
to the covenanted services (which were still under the control of the directors).
Charter Act, 1853
1. The charter of the company was renewed but this time not for another 20 years but merely for so long as the
parliament would deem fit. So the parliament could now easily take over the entire control.
2. It also added new members to the GGinC for legislative purposes only. It also took away the company's control
over the appointments to the covenanted services and introduced a competitive examination for recruitment to
the (rechristened) Indian Civil Service.
Free Traders & Changing Character of Rule
Factors Responsible
1. Up until the end of 18th century, company was exporting Indian goods to and paying for them out of Indian
revenues. This benefitted the company shareholders only.
2. By this time, industrial revolution had made significant headway in and it had become a manufacturing hub. A
new class of manufacturer capitalists had emerged which gained nothing out of the policy of company. They
stood to gain not by import of Indian products but by export of their own manufactured goods. They also
wanted imports of raw materials from India to serve as inputs for their enhanced production.
Evolution
1. In 1769, an act was passed compelling company to export 380k of manufactured goods p.a. even if it
suffered a loss on it.
2. In 1793, they forced the company to grant them use of 3000 tonnes of shipping p.a.
3. In 1812, a parliamentary committee was appointed to discover how manufacturers could replace Indian
manufacturers and finally in 1813, company's monopoly was ended. Thus Indian economy became a
colonized economy.
Impact
(a) Economic
1. To increase the market for goods and source of raw materials, followed a policy of free trade for exports
into India and imposed stiff tariffs on Indian manufactured products. This led to complete ruin of Indian
artisans.
2. India became an economic colony. Export of handicraft products plummeted while that of raw materials
zoomed. Textiles which were chief item of exports for centuries were now imported.
3. This led to the development of improved means of communications like railways, roads, telegraph.
(b) Political
1. To increase further, they followed a policy of new territorial expansion. Thus Lord Hastings and Dalhousie
greatly expanded the territory of India empire and the areas which produced raw materials or were lucrative
markets were special targets.
(c) Social
1. It was decided to westernize Indian education so as to create western taste in Indians so that they would be
market for goods and its supports.
2. Christian missionary activities were to be supported for the Anglicization of Indian society.
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The Utilitarians
This philosophy was preached by Jonathan Benthem and his followers were called Benthemites.
Philosophy
1. Any action is beneficial so long as it increases the total utility in the society. They believed in maximizing total
utility. Indians gained utility by being governed by and suffered distress. Thus were ruling India for their
own good.
2. They were sharply critical of Indian culture and believed in Anglicisation of India. They argued for introduction
of modern education in India in English and abolition of sati etc.
3. They were resonsible for passage of 1813 act where it was provided that 1 lac rupees be spent for the
promotion of western sciences and socio-cultural policy og the government.
Governor Generals
Warren Hastings (1772-85)
Administrative Reforms
1. He transferred the capital from Murshidabad to Calcutta.
2. He divided Bengal into many districts and appointed district collectors who had administrative as well as judicial
powers.
3. He introduced the 5 year settlement from 1772-1777 and when it failed instituted yearly auctioning. Penal
action was taken against zamindars who failed to pay their dues.
Judicial Reforms
1. He established a judicial system in India. Lower courts which could be appealed against in higher courts.
2. All legislations and laws were codified and courts had to base their judgements on this code. For the first time
rule of law came into being instead of whims of a ruler. These rules were written by humans and had no divine
sanctity. Also there was no caste based or religion based discrimination.
Cultural Reforms
1. He himself knew Sanskrit and Persian and encouraged translation of many Persian and Sanskrit works into
English. These works included Bhagwad Gita, Hindu Laws, Manu Smriti.
2. He established the Calcutta Madarssa.
Imperialistic Actions
1. He stopped paying tribute to Mughal emperor.
2. He signed Treaty of Benaras with Oudh by which the nawab agreed to house more troops and pay more. He
fought a war with Rohillas in 1779 on behalf of Oudh.
3. He fought the 1st Anglo Maratha and 2nd Anglo Mysore wars.
Cornwallis (1785-93)
1. Asiatic Society of Bengal was setup in 1789 by Sir William Jones. Wilkins translated Gita into .
2. He defeated Tipu in the 3rd Anglo-Mysore war and signed the Treaty of Seringipatnam. Tipu wrote a military
manual called Fateh-ul-Mujahideen which talked of rocket brigades.
John Shore (1793-98)
1. The Charter Act of 1793 specified that all the members of home government should be paid out of Indian
revenues.
Wellesley (1798-1805)
1. The civil services college in Calcutta was started in 1800 by Wellesley. But there was a lot of opposition to it
and it was closed down and another college opened in Hallebury in in 1806.
2. He defeated Tipu in the 4th Anglo-Mysore war in 1799. Madras presidency was formed as a result combining
territories of Carnatic, Tanjore, AP and Mysore.
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3. He introduced the subsidiary alliance system. 1st to go was Hyderabad (1798), then Mysore (1799), then Oudh
(1801).
4. India's 1st zoo and Botanical Garden were opened in Calcutta by John Buchanan.
5. He introduced press restrictions including pre-censorship.
Lord Barlow (1805-07)
1. 2nd Anglo-Maratha war ended in his time. Since then he followed policy of non-intervention.
Lord Minto 1 (1807-13)
1. He signed Treaty of Amritsar with Ranjit Singh of Punjab by which both powers agreed to respect each other's
sovereignty. Thus he continued the policy of non-intervention.
Lord Hastings (1813-23)
1. He abandoned the policy of non-intervention. He fought 3rd Anglo-Maratha war. He fought Anglo-Nepalese war
(1814-16) which led to Treaty of Sagauli. He insisted on seeing Mughal emperor on equal terms.
2. He removed press restrictions introduced by Wellesley including pre-censorship.
Lord Amherst (1823-28)
1. He followed Hastings' footsteps. He saw Mughal emperor on equal terms.
2. He fought 1st Anglo-Burmese war (1824-26) and faced Ahom rebellion. Uprisings in NE took place as
intruded in the lifestyle of tribals to construct railways etc. for movement of troops.
William Benetinck (1828-35)
1. He abolished sati in 1829. He increased press freedom.
2. He is called father of modern scientific education in India as he started the 1st medical college in India @
Calcutta and the famous Macaulay committee in 1835 which introduced modern education in India.
Charles Metcalfe (1835-36)
1. He is known as liberator of India press since he removed all restrictions imposed upon it in 1823 by John
Adams (officiating GG).
Lord Auckland (1836-42)
1. He fought 1st Anglo-Afghan war in 1839-42.
Lord Ellenborough (1842-44)
1. He annexed Sind in 1843. The resident in Sind was Charles Napier.
2. Slavery was abolished as well in India in 1843 which was proposed in the Charter Act of 1833.
Lord Hardinge (1844-48)
1. He fought the 1st Anglo-Sikh war (1845-46) and signed Treaty of Lahore.
2. He prohibited female infanticide and human sacrifice prevalent in Gond tribe in central India.
Lord Dalhousie (1848-56)
1. He fought the 2nd Anglo-Sikh war (1848-49) and annexed Punjab. Similarly in 1852 he fought 2nd AngloBurmese war and annexed lower Burma.
2. Satara (1848), Sambhalpur (1849), Udaipur (1849), Jhansi (1853) and Nagpur (1854) were annexed via
doctrine of lapse. Oudh was annexed in 1854 as well.
3. Woods Dispatch (1854) came which negated the trickle down theory and asked the government to directly take
up the responsibility of education of masses. Education departments were setup in each province. Private
grants-in-aid were allowed to educational institutions and anglo-vernacular schools were proposed in each
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district. Ishwarchandra Vidyasagar helped establish many schools for girls. Bethune school for girls was started
in 1849 in Calcutta. He founded the Roorkee College of Engineering.
4. Widow Remarriage Act was passed in 1856.
5. Railway was introduced in India in 1853. Telegraph was introduced on an experimental basis from Calcutta to
Diamond Harbor in 1850 and a line was setup from Calcutta to Peshawar in 1851. PWDs were setup in every
province. Postal system was first introduced in Karachi. Works were done on Ganga canal project. Bombay and
Karachi ports were opened for the world trade. Shimla was made summer capital and army headquarters.
Lord Canning (1856-62)
1. Calcutta, Bombay and Madras universities were setup. He also setup ASI under Sir Alexander Cunningham.
2. Portfolio system was introduced where business of one or more departments was assigned to one member of
the council.
3. Income tax was introduced with a fixed rate of 10%.
4. Indian High Court Act of 1861 led to amalgamation of supreme courts and sadar courts in each province into a
high court and high courts came up in Calcutta, Bombay and Madras. In 1865, their jurisdiction was increased
and by 1869, all Indian subjects were brought under their jurisdiction.
Lord Elgin (1862-63)
1. He crushed the Wahabi movement.
Sir John Lawrence (1864-69)
1. He is also called 'saviour of Punjab' because he passed the Punjab Tenancy Act and introduced modern
currency and postal system in Punjab.
2. He followed a policy of non-intervention in Afghanistan. With Bhutan he fought a war in 1865.
3. He started the telegraph communications with .
Lord Mayo (1869-72)
1. He started giving fixed sums to provinces for expenditure on jails, education, health etc.
2. He opened 2 colleges for education of princes - Mayo college @ Ajmer and Rajkot college @ Kathiawar.
3. 1st census of India (1871) took place under him as he constituted the statistical survey of India under WW
Hunter.
Lord Northbrook (1872-76)
1. He removed the ruler of Baroda (Gaekwad) who was under the subsidiary alliance.
Lord Lytton (1876-80)
1. He began the practice of sharing central revenues under some heads with the provinces.
2. India was passing through great famines but he was busy in presenting the title of Empress of India to Victoria.
3. He curbed freedom of drama & arts through Dramatic Performances Act, 1876. He passed Vernacular Press
Act, 1878. He passed India Arms Act, 1879. He reduced the maximum age of civil services from 21 to 19 years.
He removed import duties on cotton. He also setup 1st Famine Commission under Strachey.
4. He fought 2nd Anglo-Afghan war (1878-80) which ended with Treaty of Gandamak.
Lord Rippon (1880-84)
1. He divided taxes in 3 category - provincial, shared and central in 1882. He appointed Royal Commission of
Decentralization (Hobhouse and Sir Charles) which recommended need-based attitude and non-intervention by
centre in provincial affairs. He started local self government system in India in 1882.
2. He passed the 1st Factory Act in 1881. A famine Code was adopted in 1883. He constituted Hunter committee
on primary and secondary education. Ilbert Bill controversy came up in his time (Bill was passed in an amended
form where Europeans could appeal for a trial by a jury of 12 judges containing not less than 7 Europeans).
Lord Dufferin (1884-88)
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1. United Patriotic Association of India was setup in 1888 by Syed Ahmed Khan.
Lansdowne (1888-94)
1. 2nd Factory Act was passed in 1891 which dealt with women and child labor. Age of Consent Act was passed
in 1892 which raised marriageable age from 10 to 12 years.
2. Durand Commission was setup to demarcate Indo-Afghan border.
Lord Elgin II (1894-99)
1. There was a plague outbreak in Pune and chairman of the plague committee Mr. Rand was killed by Chapekar
brothers (Bakrishna Chapekar & Damodar Chapekar).
Lord Curzon (1899-1905)
1. He appointed the McDonnell Commission for famines in 1900, Moncriff Commission for Irrigation in 1902 and
setup an agriculture institute @ Pusa.
2. He revived ASI under Sir John Marshall by passing the Ancient Monuments (Preservation) Act, 1904. ASI was
originally setup in 1861 under Sir Cunningham.
3. Fraser Commission was setup which led to establishment of CID in 1903. Robertson Commission was setup
which led to following of 'root and branch' policy for Indian railways.
Lord Minto (1905-10)
1. Surat split session of congress was presided over by Rash Bihari Ghosh.
Lord Hardinge (1910-16)
1. Delhi bombing.
Lord Chelmsford (1916-21)
1. Lucknow Pact session was presided over by Ambica Charan Mazumdar and Sarojini Naidu hailed Jinnah as an
ambassador of HM unity.
2. Annie Besant was the 1st woman president of Congress in 1917.
3. SN Bannerjea setup Indian Liberal Federation in 1918.
Lord Reading (1921-26)
1. Civil services exams were held in India and simultaneously from 1923. 1st centre was Allahbad.
2. Vishwa Bharati University was setup by RN Tagore @ Shanti Niketan in 1922.
Lord Irwin (1926-31)
1. Butler Committee was setup to promote relations between and princely states. In 1927 Indian States
Commission was founded comprising of and princes. All India States Peoples' Conference was setup in 1927
which represented the people.
Lord Wellington (1931-36)
1. Indianization of army officers was taking place since the time of Reading so Indian Military Academy was
established in Dehradun in 1932.
2. Chaudhuri Rahmat Ali coined Pakistan in 1931.
3. CSP was founded by leaders like Acharya Narendra Dev and JP. But SCB and JLN stayed away from CSP. All
India Kisan Sabha was founded in 1936.
4. Burma was separated from India by GoI Act, 1935.
Lord Linlithgow (1936-43)
1. ML in 1940 Lahore session propounded the Pakistan theory. In 1939, SCB's opponent was Pattabi Sitarammiya.
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Lord Wavell (1943-47)

1. INA trials were against Shah Nawaz Khan, Prem Sehgal, GS Dhillon. Bhula Bhai Desai, JLN, Katju
them.
2. In the interim government formed in 1946, JLN was vice-president (viceroy was the president),
Prasad had food and agriculture department, Patel had home and IB department, Babu Jagjivan
Labor, C Rajgopalachari had education. Dr. Sachinanand Sinha was the president of constituent
before Rajendra Prasad.
defended
Rajendra
Ram had
assembly
Lord Mountbatten (1947-48)

1. Mountbatten setup a boundary commission under Radcliffe to determine boundaries of Punjab and Bengal.
India After Independence

Created: 3/6/2012 7:23 PM
Integration of States
Sardar Patel's strategy to consolidate native states
1. Atlee had declared that didn't intend to hand over her paramountcy over Indian states to any government in
India. Consequently the states began to harbor dreams of independence. Their desires were supported by
Jinnah in a speech in June 1947 in an obvious attempt to keep India weak. However began to realize the
complications of cold war and by now they changed their stance somewhat and Atlee said that he hoped that
the states would join one dominion or the other.
2. The people of the states had suffered side by side with the people in India in the INM. Both movements
marched hand in hand and thus it was not possible for nationalist leaders to leave the people of the state on
the mercy of the princes.
3. By April 1947, some states had showed wisdom and joined the constituent assembly. But a majority of them
stayed away and some even openly declared their intent for claiming an independent status. In June 1947,
Patel set to the task of integrating the states. INM had become deep rooted in princely states as well - too
strong that it was impossible for them to ignore it. Had they ignored it, they faced possibility of internal revolts.
Patel made the rulers realize this by saying that he won't be able to stop their people from revolting. He
appealed to all the princes whose territory fell in India to accede to the union on 3 subjects - foreign relations,
defence and communications.
4. He followed a policy of stick and carrot. The carrot was that he guaranteed the continuation of personal
privileges of the princes in India. A privy purse would be established and they would draw pensions from it. No
enquiries would be initiated against the princes as well. Although there was some criticism of the privileges
accorded to the rulers, it was a small price to pay for the integrity of the union. Consolidation of the states
indeed healed the wounds of partition to some extent.
Hyderabad
Before Independence
1. Hyderabad had a feudal setup. ~10% of land was reserved for the Nizam and 30% given out as jagirs. Muslims
received preferential treatment and non-Muslims were even persecuted.
2. Political agitations first reached state on the Khilafat issue. Khilafat merged with the issue of a responsible
government in the state and enhanced civil liberties.
3. A cultural movement started in Telangana under the leadership of Andhra Mahasabha which advocated Telugu
language and literature and promoted press. In 1938, all the major associations in the state merged together
to call Hyderabad State Congress (not a branch of INC).
4. Hyderabad State Congress had close connections with INC and used the methods of satyagraha, INC leaders
too personal interest including Gandhiji. Gandhiji actively guided the 1938 satyagraha and also wrote to
Hyderabad government to agree to their demands. However, due to a launch of a parallel satyagraha by Arya
Samaj, Gandhiji urged Hyderabad State Congress to withdraw their satyagraha so that it doesn't get
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associated with a communal agitation.

After Independence
1. Patel was in no hurry to force an accession on Hyderabad since the Nizam had made a secret commitment not
to join Pakistan and also had refused to give the dominion status to Hyderabad. Moreover Mountbatten
himself was involved in negotiations with the Nizam. So Patel felt that time was on his side. But at the same
time he made it clear that India will not tolerate an 'island' in the middle of its territory.
2. In November 1947, the Nizam signed a standstill agreement with GoI which called for immediate restoration of
peace. Behind signing this standstill agreement while GoI hoped that Nizam would be made to see the reality
and could be forced to accept a representative government in his state, Nizam hoped to build up his military
strength and force the GoI to accept his sovereignty. So he hoped to prolong the negotiations.
3. While negotiations were on, violence kept on increasing. Nizam had organized a muslim communal
organization which had an armed wing called Razakars. On 7 August 1947, the state congress unit launched a
powerful satyagraha to force the nizam to accept a representative government. Nizam unleashed a reign of
terror on the people through his band of Razakars leading to merciless communal prosecution. As a result CPI
was able to expand its cadre in Hyderabad and powerful peasant struggles began to come up and the CPI led
struggle turned violent. Peasant groups began to be formed to resist with arms the attack of Razakars. The GoI
restrained for several months but as the negotiations and killings showed no signs of ending, it had to send in
the Indian army. in September 1948.
Kashmir
1. 80% of the population was Muslim while 20% was Hindu. The king was a Hindu. He wanted to stay
independent. The stand of Indian leaders was clear that only people can decide on their fate and they
supported a plebiscite. But Pakistan not only refused to accept the principle of plebiscite but also tried to short
circuit the decision by sending in armed tribals and forces in Kashmir in October 1947. In panic, he appealed to
India.
2. Nehru (on the advise of Mountbatten) said he will only send army if Kashmir is integrated with India. So on 26
October the maharaja signed the instrument of accession. Even though both the maharaja and National
Conference (led by Sheikh Abdullah) wanted a firm accession, Nehru said he will get the instrument of
accession ratified by holding a referendum once peace and law had been restored in Kashmir. Indian troops
went in and pushed back the invaders to some extent. Then on advise of Mountbatten again, Nehru decided to
submit the matter to the arbitration of UN on 30 December 1947.
3. In 1951, UN passed a resolution providing for a referendum under UN supervision after Pakistan had withdrawn
its troops from PoK. It has remained unimplemented since as Pakistan has refused to withdraw its forces from
PoK.
Junagarh
1. Majority population was Hindu in this case but the ruler was a Muslim. He wanted to remain independent but
when popular pressure began to grow, he declared accession to Pakistan which Pakistan accepted.
2. A mass revolt broke out and he fled to Pakistan. Indian leaders anyways stood for the sovereignty of the people
and not of the ruler. The Diwan of Junagarh asked the Indian government to intervene and signed instrument
of accession with India. A plebiscite was organized in which an overwhelming majority voted for merger with
India.
Full Integration of Former Princely States
1. This was even more difficult than the initial accession. Once again Patel showed great vigor in completing the
full scale integration within an year. Smaller states were either merged in the neighboring provinces or were
merged together to form 'centrally administered areas'. 5 new unions were formed vis Patiala and East Punjab
States Union (PEPSU), Madhya Bharat, Rajasthan, Saurashtra and Travancore - Cochin. States of Hyderabad,
J&K and Mysore were allowed to remain in the original form.
Step 1: Fast-track integration

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1. The first step in this process, carried out between 1947 and 1949, was to merge the smaller states that were
not seen to be viable administrative units either into neighboring provinces, or with other princely states to
create a princely union. This policy was contentious, since it involved the dissolution of the very states whose
existence India had only recently guaranteed in the Instruments of Accession. Patel and Menon emphasised
that without integration, the economies of states would collapse, and anarchy would arise if the princes were
unable to provide democracy and govern properly. They pointed out that many of the smaller states were very
small and lacked resources to sustain their economies and support their growing populations. Many also
imposed tax rules and other restrictions that impeded free trade, and which had to be dismantled in a united
India. Such mergers took place in many provinces and HP.
2. The Merger Agreements required rulers to cede full power to the India. In return it gave privy purses,
protection of private property, personal privileges, dignities and titles. Succession was also guaranteed
according to custom.
3. Although the Merger Agreements were principally intended for smaller, non-viable states, they were also
applied to a few larger states. Kutch, Tripura and Manipur, all of which lay along international borders, were
also asked to sign Merger Agreements, despite being larger states. Similarly Bhopal and Bilaspur also had to
go.
Step 2: Princely Union and Rajpramukhs
1. The bulk of the larger states, and some groups of small states, were integrated through a different, four-step
process. The first step in this process was to convince groups of large states to combine to form a princely
union through the execution by their rulers of Covenants of Merger. Under the Covenants of Merger, all rulers
lost their ruling powers, save one who became the Rajpramukh of the new union. The other rulers were
associated with two bodiesthe council of rulers, whose members were the rulers of salute states, and
a presidium whose members were elected by the rulers of non-salute states. In return for agreeing to the
extinction of their states as discrete entities, the rulers were given a privy purse and guarantees similar to
those provided under the Merger Agreements.
2. Through this process, Saurashtra, Madhya Bharat, PEPSU, Travancore - Cochin and Rajasthan emerged. Only
Kashmir, Mysore and Hyderabad were left now.
Step 3: Democratization
1. These mergers did not meet the expectations of the Government of India so it suggested requiring the rulers of
states to take practical steps towards the establishment of popular government. The States Department
accepted this suggestion, and implemented it through a special covenant signed by the rajpramukhs of the
merged princely unions, binding them to act as constitutional monarchs. This meant that their powers were de
facto no different from those of the Governors of the former British provinces, thus giving the people of their
territories the same measure of responsible government as the people of the rest of India.
2. The result of this process was an assertion of paramountcy by the Government of India over the states. While
this contradicted the British statement that paramountcy would lapse on the transfer of power, the Congress
position had always been that independent India would inherit the position of being the paramount power.
Step 4: Centralization and Constitutionalization
1. Democratization still left open one important distinction between the former princely states and the former
British provinces, namely, that since the princely states had signed limited Instruments of Accession covering
only three subjects, they were insulated from government policies in other areas. So in May 1948, a meeting
was held in Delhi between the Rajpramukhs of the princely unions and the States Department, at the end of
which the Rajpramukhs signed new Instruments of Accession which gave the Government of India the power to
pass laws in respect of all matters that fell within the seventh schedule of the Government of India Act
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1935. Subsequently, each of the princely unions, as well as Mysore and Hyderabad, agreed to adopt
the Constitution of India drafted by the constituent assembly as the constitution of that state, thus ensuring that
they were placed in exactly the same legal position vis--vis the central government as the former British
provinces. The only exception was Kashmir, whose relationship with India continued to be governed by the
original Instrument of Accession, and the constitution produced by the state's Constituent Assembly.
2. The classified the constituent units of India into three classes, which it termed Part A, B, and C states. The
former British provinces, together with the princely states that had been merged into them, were the Part A
states. The princely unions, plus Mysore and Hyderabad, were the Part B states. The centrally administered
areas, except the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, were the Part C states. The only practical difference between
the Part A states and the Part B states was that the constitutional heads of the Part B states were the
Rajpramukhs appointed under the terms of the Covenants of Merger, rather than Governors appointed by the
central government.
Step 5: State Reorganization
1. The distinction between Part A and Part B states was only intended to last for a brief, transitional period. In
1956, the States Reorganization Act reorganized the former British provinces and princely states on the basis
of language. Simultaneously, the Seventh Amendment to the Constitution removed the distinction between Part
A and Part B states, both of which were now treated only as "states", with Part C states being renamed "union
territories".
2. The Rajpramukhs lost their authority, and were replaced as the constitutional heads of state by Governors,
who were appointed by the central government.
Step 6: Other Colonial Territories
1. French: At independence, the regions of Pondicherry, Karikal, Yanam, Mahe and Chandernagore were still
colonies of France. An agreement between France and India in 1948 provided for an election in France's
remaining Indian possessions to choose their political future. A plebiscite held in Chandernagore in 1949
resulted in merger with India. In the other enclaves, however, the pro-French camp used the administrative
machinery to suppress the pro-merger groups. Popular discontent rose, and in 1954 demonstrations in
Yanam and Mahe resulted in pro-merger groups assuming power. A referendum in Pondicherry and Karikal in
1954 resulted in a vote in favor of merger. A treaty of cession was signed in 1956, and following ratification by
the French National Assembly in 1962, de jure control of the enclaves was also transferred.
2. Portugal: On 15 August 1955, five thousand non-violent demonstrators marched against the Portuguese at the
border, and were met with gunfire. In 1960, the United Nations General Assembly rejected Portugal's
contention that its overseas possessions were provinces. Although Nehru continued to favor a negotiated
solution, the Portuguese suppression of a revolt in Angola in 1961 radicalized Indian public opinion, and
increased the pressure on the Government of India to take military action. On 18 December 1961, following the
collapse of an American attempt to find a negotiated solution, the Indian Army entered Portuguese India and
defeated the Portuguese garrisons there. Goa was incorporated into India as a centrally administered union
territory and, in 1987, became a state. In 1954, an uprising in Dadra and Nagar Haveli threw off Portuguese
rule. The Portuguese attempted to send forces from Daman to reoccupy the enclaves, but were prevented
from doing so by Indian troops.
3. Sikkhim: Historically, Sikkhim was a British dependency with a status similar to that of the other princely states,
and was therefore considered to be within the frontiers of India in the colonial period. On independence,
however, the Chogyal of Sikkhim resisted full integration into India. Given the region's strategic importance to
India, the Government of India signed first a Standstill Agreement and then in 1950 a full treaty with
the Chogyal of Sikkim which in effect made it a protectorate which was no longer part of India. India had
responsibility for defence, external affairs and communications, and ultimate responsibility for law and order,
but Sikkim was otherwise given full internal autonomy. In the late 1960s and early 1970s, the Chogyal,
supported by the minority Bhutia attempted to negotiate greater powers, particularly over external affairs.
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These policies were opposed internally and in April 1973, an anti-Chogyal agitation broke out; the agitators
demanded the conduct of popular elections. Chogyal was reduced to the role of a constitutional monarch, his
opponents won an overwhelming victory, and a new Constitution was drafted providing for Sikkim to be
associated with the Republic of India. This resolution was endorsed by 97% of the vote in a referendum held in
1975, following which the Indian Government amended the constitution to admit Sikkim into India as its 22nd
state.
Integration: Critical Analysis
1. Ian Copland argues that the Congress leaders did not intend the settlement contained in the Instruments of
Accession to be permanent even when they were signed, and at all times privately contemplated a complete
integration of the sort that ensued between 1948 and 1950. He points out that the mergers and cession of
powers to the Government of India between 1948 and 1950 contravened the terms of the Instruments of
Accession, and were incompatible with the express assurances of internal autonomy and preservation of the
princely states which Mountbatten had given the princes.
2. Menon in his memoirs stated that the changes to the initial terms of accession were in every instance freely
consented to by the princes with no element of coercion. Copland disagrees, on the basis that foreign
diplomats at the time believed that the princes had been given no choice but to sign, and that a few princes
expressed their unhappiness with the arrangements. He also criticizes Mountbatten's role, saying that while he
stayed within the letter of the law, he was at least under a moral obligation to do something for the princes
when it became apparent that the Government of India was going to alter the terms on which accession took
place, and that he should never have lent his support to the bargain given that it could not be guaranteed after
independence. One of the reasons why the princes consented to the demise of their states was that they felt
abandoned by the British, and saw themselves as having little other option.
3. Lumby takes the view that the princely states could not have survived as independent entities after the transfer
of power, and that their demise was inevitable. They therefore view successful integration of all princely states
into India as a triumph for the Government of India and Lord Mountbatten, and as a tribute to the sagacity of
the majority of princes, who jointly achieved in a few months what the Empire had attempted, unsuccessfully,
to do for over a centuryunite all of India under one rule.
4. In the context of the history of political integration in Northeast India, it is found that the integration with the
Indian union politically remained a serious issue. The mode of integration of the Northeastern states has been
sought through negotiations, promises, baits and force. Some areas like Manipur and Naga Hills refused to
merge with India and expressed desire for withdrawal from the Union which resulted in secessionist demands.
The late realization that such integrationist policy was erroneous has led the government to concede autonomy
demands of ethnic groups, which led to creation of separate states. However the formation of new states had
a cascading affect leading to new demands from other smaller ethnic groups vying different levels of
autonomy.
Other Internal Challenges
Communalism
1. There was great danger that the wounds of partition may refuse to seal and the communal riots may linger on
promoting hatred in the society and leading to further violence and disintegration of the nation. Communalism
was the Indian version of fascism. Even many Congress leaders came under its sway but thanks to the strength
of the nationalist sentiments, the top leadership remained committed to secularism and integration of the
nation. It was on the grounds of checking communalism that Nehru got the amended and inserted
'reasonable restrictions' on the fundamental right to freedom of speech.
2. After the killing of Gandhi, realizing that RSS was a spreading communalism and fascism in India and was
behind the assassination of Gandhi, Nehru got RSS banned. But Patel, in 1949, got the ban revoked on the
guarantee that RSS would refrain from any involvement in politics.
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The Punjab Problem

1. The Punjabi Suba agitation had different colours and complexions. Initially the agitation had ethnic and
language connotations, founded by a feeling of distrust over the Punjabi language, between the Hindu and Sikh
communities, but the same was given the shape of religious nationalism subsequently which ultimately led to
ripping the ground to a secessionist movement with insurgent activities.
2. The acceptance of the Hindi language as the mother tongue, vis-a-vis the local Punjabi, in the sixties by the
Hindus may have marked the beginning of the problem and was one of the major reasons, which led to the
division of Punjab in 1966.
3. The distrust was further forged by the religious communalism of the seventies and by the insurgent activities in
the eighties, with the connivance of cross-border hostile forces supporting the demand for separatism, leading
to violent reprisal and counter-reprisals.
Left Wing Extremism
1. CPI in 1948 proclaimed a beginning of a general revolution in India as it branded Nehru as an agent of
imperialist and feudal forces! And to this extent it launched violent movements in many parts of the country.
Nehru was appalled but he resisted banning CPI until it was impossible for him to not to do so. Still he banned
it only in Bengal and Madras where it was most active.
2. He believed that the best way to combat the communists was to bring the fruits of development to the people.
As soon as the CPI gave up its programme of waging an armed struggle and accept parliamentary process,
Nehru saw to it that the ban was revoked everywhere.
Rehabilitation of Refugees
1. This was a great destabilizing problem but was handled efficiently, specially in west, and by 1951 the refugees
from west were amicably settled. But the task was more challenging in the East. This was because while in the
west most of the hindus and muslims had migrated in one go, in the east, the inflow of hindus continued for
years. Many Hindus in the east Pakistan had stayed on but as the communal riots spread there, they were
forced to migrate to W Bengal and Assam.
2. In the west most of the immigrants cold occupy the land and property left by the muslim emigrants in Punjab,
UP and Rajasthan. But in the east, this was not the case.
3. Also due to linguistic affinity it was easier to resettle the immigrants in the west in Punjab, HP, western UP,
Delhi, Haryana and Rajasthan. But in the east, it was only possible to resettle them in W Bengal and to some
extent in Assam and Tripura.
Linguistic Reorganization of States
1.
The biggest desire was to preserve the ethnic and political identity and not to be swamped
by linguistic or ethnic majorities.
1. In 1953 Andhra Pradesh was created after the riots broke out following the death by fasting for this cause of
Potti Sriramulu, a noted Andhra linguistic enthusiast. Subsequently, the Government appointed the
States Reorganization Commission to examine and suggest a rational solution for the reorganization of States,
based on language.
2. The Commission, after consultations and interactions with various groups of people, reported to have found the
public will in favour of linguistic reorganization. The rationale was that language being the most
faithful reflection of the culture of an ethnic group, ethno-lingual boundaries would be considered the most
stable and suitable arrangement for the effective working of democratic entities and institutions. It was also
perceived that the same would also have the advantage of ease for peoples interaction with the government.
3. Linguistic division of States and reshaping of the political boundaries took place in the year 1956. The bi-lingual
Bombay and Punjab were subsequently bifurcated to form unilingual Maharastra and Gujarat, in the West, and
Punjab and Haryana in the North, in 1960 and 1966 respectively.
4. It allowed for accommodation of diversity within the larger framework of federal unity and without weakening
the Nations integrity. In social terms, it removed a major source of discord, and created homogenous political
units which could be administered through a medium, the local language, that the vast majority of the
population understood.
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Anti-Hindi Movement
1. The dispute was not one of national language since the view that one language should be the symbol of
national identity was rejected and out adopted almost all the major different languages as the national
languages. The issue was of the official language since the official work couldn't be carried out in so many
languages. Only 2 candidates were available - and Hindi.
2. Even before the independence, the leadership of the INM had felt that can't continue as the official language.
As early as 1937, JLN while accepting that was the world language had clearly stated that at best it can be
pursued as a second optional language. Hindi had been accepted by the nationalist leaders of non-Hindi belt as
well since the overriding need at that hour was to display unity and independence (in every field including
culture and language). Thus leaders like Tilak, SCB, Rajgopalachari, Gandhiji etc. were all votaries of Hindi. In
its sessions and political work too, INC used hindi and other regional languages. Thus in the 1928 Nehru report,
it was laid down that 'Hindustani' as written in Devanagari or Urdu script would be the common language of
India and that may continue only for some time. The accepted this stand only replacing Hindustani by
Hindi.
3. The choice between Devanagari and Urdu script was the first dilemma of the constituent assembly. Both
Gandhi and Nehru were strong advocates of Hindustani (in both Devanagari and Urdu) but the question was
settled by the partition (and as Pakistan claimed Urdu to be the language of Muslims and Pakistan). In a vote
held the votaries for Hindi in devanagari won although by a razor thin majority.
4. The next question was what should be the time frame for replacing English with Hindi. This is the issue which
led to most serious divides between the Hindi and the non-Hindi areas. While the proponents of Hindi wanted
an immediate switchover, the non-Hindi speaking people wanted a long (if not an indefinite) switchover time.
Nehru wanted Hindi as the official language eventually but wanted to continue in the transition time and that
the transition should only be gradual.
5. The provided that Hindi in Devanagari script (with international numerals) will be the official language of
India. will continue as the official language till 1965 when it would be replaced by Hindi. Until then Hindi will
be introduced in a phased manner and it would be the duty of the government to promote the spread of Hindi.
The parliament will have the power to provide for the use of for specified purposes even after 1965. The
state legislatures could decide on the state language though for all union-state communications, Hindi will be
used. The hope was that by 1965, Hindi proponents would be able to overcome its weaknesses, develop the
language and win over the confidence of non Hindi people. It was also hoped that because Hindi will be the
medium of instruction in education and universal education would anyways be provided by 1960, Hindi will
come to be accepted by all as the official language.
6. But this never happened. Education never grew in India and Hindi proponents, instead of trying to calm the
anxieties of non Hindi people and win their confidence, began to look for government imposition of Hindi. Also
instead of simplifying and developing the language, they made it too complex in the name of 'purification'.
Comprehensive literature in Hindi was never developed and by no means it was ready to be accepted as the
official language of the union.
7. It was launched pre-independence by DMK under Periyar E.V.Ramaswamy Nayakar to
agitate against the introduction of Hindi as a compulsory subject in the schools of the then
Madras Presidency. It succeeded in preventing compulsory teaching of Hindi in the schools
of the Presidency.
8. The agitation of the post- independence period was conducted to ensure the continuation of
English as an official language and to prevent Hindi from becoming the sole official language
of the Republic. The Government responded with the constitution of the first Official Language
Commission in 1955. The commission recommended a number of steps to eventually
replace English with Hindi. But the report was not unanimous and had dissenting notes from
non-Hindi speaking Members of the Commission from Tamil Nadu and West Bengal.
9. The report was further reviewed by a parliamentary committee which recommended that
Hindi should be made the primary official language with English as a subsidiary one. Both
these reports were opposed by many non-Hindi groups. As the opposition grew stronger the
government English would continue as the associate language for an indefinite period.
10. However, as the deadline of 15 years stipulated in the constitution for switching over to Hindi as
primary official language approached, the government efforts to spread Hindis official usage stepped up. But
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the Official Language Bill, 1959 was brought up for continuation of English.
Factors Responsible for Promoting National Unity
1. Unified army, all india services etc. Unified economy, large scale planning, communication and transport
system etc. Steel plants, fertilizer plants, hydro electric dams, higher educational institutions, Nehru's foreign
policy etc. all became a symbol of national unity and development.
2. Commitment of the national leadership. Centralized tendencies in our . The commitment to reduce social
injustice also promoted unity.
3. The language policy followed was not that of suppression and imposition from top. But this multiplicity was
accepted and the system evolved to live with it without giving rise to persistent conflicts.
Foreign Policy
Phase 1 (1880-1919)
1. The early nationalists used to oppose the aggressive use of Indian resources in military operations outside
India by the government. Thus they opposed the Afghan war in 1878-80, Egypt expedition in 1882 to
protect interests there. They opposed 1885 annexation of Burma, 1903 attack of Tibet and the forward policy
followed by in NW of India supposedly to 'defend India from Russian designs'.
2. They expressed solidarity with people fighting for independence and liberation elsewhere in the world like
Ireland, Turkey, Russia etc.
3. They expressed pan-Asian consciousness. Thus Japan's rise was hailed earlier until it attacked China, attack on
Burma and China by was condemned.
4. They clearly saw the role of foreign capital in expanding imperialism. Foreign capital went first and soldiers
later in order to 'protect the capital'.
5. In the war, though officially the nationalists supported effort there was little sympathy for .
Phase 2 (1919 onwards)
1. INM grew more conscious of foreign developments and began to express opinion on almost every major event
happening worldwide. Indians continued to express solidarity with people fighting for independence and against
fascism.
2. Indians opposed the Treaty of Sevres, the mandate system was rightly labeled as a cover for imperialism,
Congress favored Burma's independence from India and opposed an attack on Afghanistan. Congress
supported the revolution in China by Sun Yat-Sen.
3. JLN traveled to Brussels in 1926-27 to attend Congress of Oppressed Peoples. He met many leaders there but
didn't meet Mussolini. Thus while criticizing colonialism, he made clear that INM was no friend of fascism. He
also condemned US imperialism over Latam which was previously ignored by Indian nationalists. They
extended support to Chezchoslovakia and Spanish people. It was basically ideology based.
Relations with Pakistan
1. Even after the Kashmir complications, in January 1948, GoI decided to pay Pakistan Rs. 55 cr as a part of the
partition plan even though that money could be used against it in Kashmir.
2. Pakistan also ridiculously laid claims on the property of the migrants who had fled to Pakistan leaving their land
and property in India. Such issues had to be resolved by negotiations.
3. Another source of discord between the two nations was the treatment of Hindus in east Pakistan specially
where they were subject to communal hatred and extermination. This led to a steady inflow of refugees in
India and worsening of situation. While this strengthened the calls for a military intervention in east Pakistan,
Nehru always resisted and tried to resolve the issue by negotiations. He also took a clear stand against a
similar prosecution of Muslims in some areas of W Bengal. At the same time he always urged Pakistan to end
the communal frenzy and provide security to the religious minorities in east Pakistan. In April 1950, he was
able to sign a pact with Pakistan on the issue of protection of minorities (which was resented to by the
communal forces in India) but the problem continued despite the pact.
4. Another source of tension was the river waters of Indus and both countries signed a treaty to share its water
under the auspices of WB after India showed generosity.
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Social & Cultural Developments

Social reform movements. They used journals to increase awareness.

Nature & Character

Rise of Modern Vernacular Literature

continue their rule.

What do we mean by 'zamindar was made landlord'?

would indicate a profit motive.

Bengal Famine of 1770. Wiped out 1/3 of population.

Free traders and their influence.

Features of Railway Development

parts of the country.

Indian Response to Rule

2. Policy towards landlords changed from being anti to friends.

Political and administrative unity. Uniform laws.

-ve Impact of Rule

was made secondary to the second.

They supported the Age of Consent Act of 1892.

or an army mutiny. Their model was based upon leading by action.

97 there was a no tax campaign again.

Nature of rule in India.

capitalists saw FICCI as a guardian of Indian economic interests.

no space in medieval institutions of princely India.

try he communists. They criticized capitalism.

Constitution Development Process

1. GG's executive council to be immediately expanded to include more Indians.

2nd Anglo-Carnatic War (1749-54)

Lord Wavell (1943-47)

Lord Mountbatten (1947-48)

India After Independence

associated with a communal agitation.

Step 1: Fast-track integration

The Punjab Problem

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