Rajendra Prasad

“ People have for once realised their strength and feel that strong as the Government may appear with its armaments, it cannot but fall at the feet of a nation determined to be free and determined to suffer for attaining that freedom. They know that all their troubles and humiliations are of their own making, and the moment they are united and organised enough they can bring the Government to its knees. To this end , unity between Hindus, Mussalmans, Sikhs, Parsis, Christians, Jew and other races and communities of the country is regarded as the first and most important step. ”

“ The only method, of protest, except that of violence and disorder, which is open to them, who have neither votes nor representation, is that of passive resistance. Can we find fault with them for that? Let him who blames them say what he would do in similar circumstances. Is there one of us who, out of respect for the law, would submit meekly and without protest to deprivation of rights and social degradation? ”

“ In other parts of the country, the Hartal on the 6th April passed off quietly without any untoward incident. It was a first demonstration in which all, rich and poor, high and low, educated or uneducated, village folks and town people took part. The people of India seemed to have broken their slumber of centuries and to have awakened to a sense of their hidden power. In one word, they re-discovered their soul.
Mahatma Gandhi was proceeding to Delhi on the 8th of April to relieve the sufferings of the people and to apply a healing balm to their lacerated hearts. ”

“ The movement is essentially a movement intended and expected to strengthen and purify the Indian people. It relies more and more upon the moral strength and superiority of the peoples of India—a strength and superiority born of the purity of their aims and purity of their methods—than upon naked brute force which is inherently weak. ”

“ Non-violence.—Mahatma Gandhi had insisted on Non violence as an essential feature of the movement and it was this insistence which had kept the people in spite of the great upheaval and the great indignation from committing acts of violence. ”

“ It further proceeded to state it as their opinion that it was contrary to national dignity for an Indian to serve as a civilian and more specially as a soldier under a system of government which had brought about India’s economic, moral and political degradation and which had used the soldiery and the police for repressing national aspiration at home and for crushing the liberty of other nations, who had done no harm to India, abroad. ”

“ Thus closed the first phases of the Non - co - operation movement amidst scenes of great joy at the discovery of a means which the despairing people clasped with all their fervour as the only means of their delivery from the wrongs, oppression and humiliation to which they had been subjected for a series of years and which had culminated in the indescribable scene of the Punjab and the unspeakable betrayal of the Khilafat cause. ”

“ The Congress recognized the growing friendliness between the police and soldiers and the people, and appealed to all people in Government employment, pending the call of the Nation for the resignation of their services, to help the national cause by importing greater kindliness and stricter honesty in their dealings with the people and fearlessly and openly to attend all popular gatherings, while refraining from taking any active part therein and more especially by openly rendering financial assistance to the National movement. ”

“ With the removal of Mahatma Gandhi from the scene of his labours where he had led the millions of India’s masses, India has been deprived of the guidance of a world leader. The Congress Committees have been trying to carry on the constructive programme laid down at Bardoli. When the All-India Congress Committee met at Lucknow on the 7th of June, great dissatisfaction with the present programme and an earnest desire to resort to Civil Disobedience was expressed by many members. ”

“ Under the Congress resolution, Mahatma Gandhi had advised a boycott of the Duke’s visit, not by away of offering an insult to His Royal Highness, but as an expression of protest against the persistent refusal of the Government to listen to people’s demands. Wherever the Duke went, the masses as a body and amongst the middle classes also most of those who were not directly concerned or connected with the Government observed hartals. His Royal Highness, after opening some of the Provincial Legislative Councils and the new Legislature at Delhi, left the country. ”

“ In regard to the educational programme, it may be safely asserted that thousands of college and school students withdrew themselves or were withdrawn from Government-controlled institutions by their guardians. Many a school became absolutely deserted. Mahatma Gandhi’s appeal to the finer instincts of the youth of the country to devote themselves to its service and to shun the institutions which had been created and maintained to kill all manliness in them was responded to with enthusiasm. ”

“ It passed another resolution authorising every province on its own resaponsibility to undertake Civil Disobedience including non-payment of taxes subject to the conditions that, in case of individual Civil Disobedience, the individual must know hand-spinning, must have fulfilled the part of the programme applicable to him, must be a believer in the unity of communities and in Non-violence as absolutely essential and if a Hindu must show by personal conduct that he regards untouchability as a blot upon nationalism. ”

“ The Congress laid special emphasis on Non-violence being an integral part of the Non-co-operation resolution and called upon public association to advance Hindu-Muslim unity and to settle all disputes between Brahmins and non-Brahmins, wherever they might be existing . It further called upon Hindus to rid Hinduism of the reproach of untouchability and respectfully urged the religious heads to help the growing desire to reform Hinduism in the matter of its treatment of the suppressed classes. ”

“ The Satyagraha pledge [3] which began to be signed in large numbers required the signatory to affirm that they would refuse civilly to obey those laws and such other laws as the Committee to be appointed later on might think fit and further that “in this struggle we will faithfully follow the truth and refrain from violence to life, person, or property.” On the 23rd of March, Mahatma Gandhi issued his manifesto fixing the 6th of April for the observance of an All-India Hartal and as a day of fasting, prayer and penance. Under some mistake, the Hartal was observed at Delhi on the 30th March. ”

“ The history of Young India has a piquant interest. It was started originally by Mr. Jamnadas Dwarkadas, a young Bombay politician, who, wavering between the lead of Mr· Gandhi and that of Mrs. Besant, ultimately accepted that of the latter and became one of the most uncompromising opponents of the Non-co-operation Movement. It then came into the hands of a syndicate of whom Mr. Shankerlal Banker was a member. When Mr. Horniman was deported and the Bombay Chronicle was put under censorship, public life in Bombay needed the services of Mahatmaji. Young India was, therefore, put under his charge. ”

“ Those very people, the educated classes, who had been regarded as opponents of the Government on account of their inauguration of and participation in all political movements of the country were the first to realise the significance of the German menace and to throw in the whole weight of their influence on the side of the Government. ”

“ Mahatma Gandhi joined the War Conference at Delhi and supported the resolution about loyalty. As a result, contributions in men and money increased on a large scale and recruitment went up. Some idea of the contribution of India to the success of the allies may be gathered from the following facts culled from official acknowledgments. India made a total combatant contribution of 9,85,000 men of whom 5,52,000 were sent overseas and of whom no less than 7,91,000 were enlisted during the War. ”

“ And last, though not least, to this end, too, is directed the effort to purge society of social evils, such as drinking and litigiousness, and of the sin of untouchability which condemns a vast proportion of the population to a position worse than that of lower animals. ”

“ It declared that Civil Disobedience is the only civilised and effective substitute for armed rebellion [6] and advised Congress workers and others to organise individual and mass Civil Disobedience when the mass of the people have been sufficiently trained in the methods of non-violence. It called upon all students and the staff of national institutions to join the national volunteer corps. ”

“ On 19th November, the Government of Bengal declared the Khilafat and Congress Volunteer Corps and other similar bodies unlawful under sec. 16 of the Indian Criminal Law Amendment Act, 1908, which had been passed to suppress anarchical bodies and secret societies. The Non-co-operation leaders, on the other hand, issued a manifesto declaring that volunteer organisations had not interfered with the maintenance of law and order and as a challenge to the Government notification enrolled themselves as members of the volunteer corps. ”

“ The Congress further asked persons who had got themselves elected to the new Councils in spite of the deliberate abstention from the polls of an over-whelming majority of their constituents, to resign their seats and in the event of their failure to do so, it advised the people to studiously refrain from asking for any political service from such Councillors. ”

“ Early in May 1921, there was labour trouble in the tea province of Assam on account of low wages and a great exodus of about 12,000, coolies from tea gardens amidst scenes of great destitution and suffering. There was an attack on these coolies at Chandpur where they had congregated in large numbers by Gurkhas who had been drafted there by the Government. The news of this outrage caused great indignation in the country and led to a sympathetic strike among the Railway and steamer employees in Eastern Bengal which created a complete deadlock for nearly two months. ”

“ It has invaded even the parlour of the rich, while it has given a source of livelihood to lakhs of poor women in the country. Resignation of titles were few, but after all the title holders form a class from whom from the nature of their position much was not to be expected. But there can be no doubt that nothing had lowered these titles in the estimation of the people so much as this movement. One thing which was not mentioned in the Congress resolution was spontaneously taken up by the people. ”

“ Feeling was running very high when a large body of men proceeding towards the house of the Deputy Commissioner to make a representation for the release of the leaders was fired at and on its way back broke out in a serious riot burning and looting banks, the Post Office and some other Government offices, murdering some Europeans and assaulting two ladies. ”

“ It also invited Indian mill agents to support the national effort by regulating the price of their manufactures so as to bring them within the reach of the poorest and the importers of foreign cloth and yarn to co-operate with the nation by stopping foreign orders and by disposing of their stock as far as possible outside India. ”

“ It can be truly asserted that the country had given an account of itself which is one to be proud of and even though the fruits of the sacrifice of 25,000 men and women are not yet visible, the sacrifice cannot have gone in vain. ”

“ On the other hand, the by far more numerous lay readers who pay serious and systematic attention to the writings for the first time—and their number is bound to grow—prefer, as experience proves, a logical arrangement. ”

“ Civil Disobedience and Chauri Chaura.—In the month of February, serious riots took place at a place called Chauri Chaura in the district of Gorakhpur and Mahatma Gandhi who had proceeded to Bardoli to lead a campaign of mass Civil Disobedience and had gone so far as to issue his message to the Viceroy [7] and Government intimating the initiation of mass Civil Disobedience had to suspend the campaign as a consequence. ”

“ P. C. and on their refusal to furnish security for good behaviour were sent to jail. Sec. 144 Cr. P. C. has been used with great effect, but with very doubtful legality in prohibiting public meetings and gagging individuals. The province of Behar was the first to witness repression on an extensive scale which was inaugurated with a circular, issued by the Government giving local officers a carte blanche in regard to any steps they might think necessary to counteract the movement which was described as revolutionary and anarchical. ”

“ The 4th resolution deplored the excesses at Malegaon and in Aligarh even though under great provocation and advised Congress organisations to inculcate. Non violence as an essential part of Non-co-operation and congratulated the people upon their exercising complete self-restraint not withstanding, grave provocation by local authorities in Dharwar, Matiari, Guntur and other places. ”

“ General Dyer prohibited any gathering of men on pain of death and hearing that a meeting was going to be held at Jallianwalla proceeded to the spot with his troops and machine guns. The place was full of men, women and children as it was an important Hindu festival day. ”

“ The fire continued till ammunition was exhausted. Some 5 to 6 hundred people were killed outright and three times the number wounded. The place being surrounded on all sides by high walls no one could escape. ”