B.A. (Hons.

) Political Science

accordingly. The courses help them to raise the standard of living and contribute to the
economic growth of society.
Improvement implies rising above the level you come from. That is the stage of higher
development from the level of lower development. It emphasizes the continuous development
of the people. An economy or society is never constant; they keep on moving a step further.
For example, changes and advancements in science, defense, technology, information
technology, medicine, and other related fields.
Community knowledge implies knowledge and awareness about the community in which
they live. The people living in society must be aware of the problems and ongoing
development around them. Awareness is possible through newspapers, radio, and television.
It informs us about the current issues or any emergency that society is passing through. For
example, the rising dengue cases in Delhi have resulted in the government issuing orders to
hospitals and health authorities to take immediate measures to control and prevent it. As a
result of which, the number of beds at the government hospitals has been increased to control
the swarm of people coming in for treatment.
Inclusion means larger inclusion of people in the welfare programs that are run by the
government. If the policies and programs are made but not implemented, it will not benefit
the real beneficiary. This way the inclusion is considered as nil. Under the Indira Awas
Yojana, poor people were allocated to small homes but instead of acquiring homes by the
beneficiary, it has been occupied by the rich people. Another example is the enactment of
Right to Education Act which provides twenty five percent reservations to the students
belonging to Economically Weaker Section (EWS).

2.8 SWARAJ

Swaraj means self-rule. It has a metaphysical system of Gandhiji. The word Swaraj is a
sacred word, a Vedic word, meaning self-rule and self-restraint, and not freedom from all
restraint which ‘independence’ often means. (YI, 19-3-1931, p.38) To understand Gandhiji’s
swaraj we should understand his dream or aim for India. Gandhiji consistently fought for two
fronts simultaneously, one against the British Rule and the Second against the evils of Indian
society. It was equally important to break the socio-cultural evils like untouchability, women
seclusion etc, were prevalent in the villages. Gandhiji had the realization that unless these
internal barriers are removed it would be impossible to mobilize people for the said objective.
The four cardinal principles of Gandhi namely, the re-establishment of communal harmony
and village republics, and the upliftment of women and Harijans were also parts of
philosophy and existence of peasantry in India; and his methods of struggle for justice,
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namely non-violence and satyagraha and non-cooperation. The re-establishment of communal

disharmony between the two prominent religious communities, namely, Hindu and Muslim
had begun ugly head in the 20th century. For centuries Muslims in India had been co-existing
with Hindus as an integral part of Society in thousands of villages spread throughout the nook
and corner of the country. Muslims in India were local converts who belonged to the lower
order of the village society. The caste or class economic division within Hindus and Muslims
forced the members of these communities to identify themselves with each other on
economic division rather than on religious beliefs.
The other two prominent problems that engaged the mind of Gandhi were low status
of Harijans and women in the villages of India. By Swaraj Gandhiji mean the government of
India by the consent of the people as ascertained by the largest number of the adult
population, male or female, native-born or domiciled, who have contributed by manual
labour to the service of the State and who have taken the trouble of having their names
registered as voters. Swaraj will come, not by the acquisition of authority by a few, but by the
acquisition of the capacity by all to resist authority when it is abused. In other words, Swaraj
is to be attained by educating the masses to a sense of their capacity to regulate and control
authority. (Young India, 1925, p. 41). Self-government means continuous effort to be
independent of government control, whether it is foreign government or whether it is
national. (Ibid:276)
Swaraj for the Poor
The Swaraj of Gandhi’s dream recognizes no race or religious distinctions. Not is it to be the
monopoly of the lettered persons or yet of moneyed men. Swaraj is to be for all, including the
former, but emphatically including the maimed, the blind, the starving, toiling millions.
(Ibid:149)
The Swaraj of Gandhi’s dream is the poor man’s Swaraj. The necessaries of life
should be enjoyed by you in common with those enjoyed by the princes and the moneyed
men. But that does not mean that they should have palaces like theirs. They are not necessary
for happiness. But people should get all the ordinary amenities of life that a rich man enjoys.
Gandhi said, “I have not the slightest doubt that Swaraj is not Poorna Swaraj until these
amenities are guaranteed to you under it”. (YI, 26-3-1931, p. 46) What we mean and want
through Poorna Swaraj … is an awakening among the masses, some knowledge among them
of their true interest and ability to serve that interest against the whole world, ... harmony,
freedom from aggression from within or without, and a progressive improvement in the
economic condition of the masses. (YI, 18-6-1931, p.147)
Real Swaraj must be felt by all-man, woman and child. To labor for that
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consummation is true revolution, India has become a pattern for all exploited races of the
earth, because India’s has been an open, unarmed effort which demands sacrifice from all
without inflicting injury on the usurper. The millions in India would not have been awakened
but for the open, unarmed struggle. Every deviation from the straight path has meant a
temporary arrest of the evolutionary revolution. (H, 3-3-1946, p. 31)
No Majority Rule
It has been said that Indian Swaraj will be the rule of the majority community, i.e., the
Hindus. There could not be a greater mistake than that. If it were to be true, I for one would
refuse to call it Swaraj and would fight it with all the strength at my command, for to me
Hind Swaraj is the rule of all people, is the rule of justice. Whether, under rule, the ministers
were Hindus or Musselman or Sikhs and whether legislatures were exclusively filled by the
Hindus or Musselman or any other community, they would have to do even-handed justice.
(YI, 16-4-1931, p. 78) Today our minds are clouded by delusion. In our ignorance, we quarrel
with one another and indulge in rowdyism against our own brethren. For such as these there
is neither salvation nor Swaraj. Self-discipline or rule over self is the first condition of self-
rule or Swaraj. (H, 28-4-1946, p. 111)
2.8.1 Achievement of Swaraj
Gandhi’s Swaraj could not be granted even by God. We would have to earn it ourselves.
Swaraj from its very nature is not in the giving of anybody. (YI, 25-5-1921, p. 164)
Swaraj is the abandonment of the fear of death. A nation which allows itself to be
influenced by the fear of death cannot attain Swaraj and cannot retain it if some-how attained.
(YI, 13-10-1921, p. 326)
Swaraj can never be a gift from one nation to another. It is a treasure to be purchased with a
nation’s best blood. It will cease to be a gift when we have paid dearly for it. … Swaraj will
be a fruit of incessant labor, suffering beyond measure. (YI, 5-1-1922, p. 4) Surely Swaraj
will not drop from the clouds. It will be the fruit of patience, perseverance, ceaseless toil,
courage, and intelligent appreciation of the environment. (YI, 27-8-1925, p. 297)
For Gandhiji the only training in Swaraj we need is the ability to defend ourselves
against the whole world and to live our natural life in perfect freedom, even though it may be
full of defects. Good government is no substitute for self-government. (YI, 22-9-1920, p. 1)
The pilgrimage to Swaraj is a painful climb. It requires attention to some detail. It means vast
organizing ability; it means penetration into the villages solely for the service of the villagers.
In other words, it means national education, i.e., education of the masses. It means an
awakening of national consciousness among the masses. It will not spring like the magician’s
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mango. It will grow almost unperceived like the banyan tree. A bloody revolution will never
perform the trick. Haste here is most certainly waste. (YI, 21-5-1925, p. 178)
One sometimes hears it said: ‘Let us get the government of India in our own hands
and everything will be all right. There could be no greater superstition than this. No nation
has thus gained its independence. The splendor of the spring is reflected in every tree, the
whole earth is then filled with the freshness of youth. Similarly, when the Swaraj spirit has
really permeated society, a stranger suddenly comes upon us to observe energy in every walk
of life, he will find national servants engaged, each according to his own abilities, in a variety
of public activities. (Swaraj:146)
2.8.2 Basis of Self-Sacrifice
Swaraj can be maintained only where there is a majority of loyal and patriotic people to
whom the good of the nation is paramount, above all other considerations what-ever
including their personal profit. (YI, 28-7-1921, p.238) Gandhi said “My Swaraj will be… not
a result of murder of others but a voluntary act of continuous self-sacrifice. My Swaraj will
not be a blood violation of rights, but the acquisition of power will be a beautiful land natural
fruit of duty well and truly performed. It will…provide amplest excitement of the Chaitanya
type, not of the Nero type…. It can come often does come when the horizon is the blackest.
But I know that it will be preceded by the rise of a class of young men and women who will
find full excitement in work, work, and nothing but work for the nation”. (YI, 27-8-1925, p.
297). Without a large, very large, army of self-sacrificing and determined workers, real
progress of the masses I hold to be an impossibility. And without that progress, there is no
such thing as Swaraj. Progress towards Swaraj will be in exact proportion to the increase in
the number of workers who will dare to sacrifice their all for the cause of the poor. (YI, 24-6-
1926, p. 226) Without a large, very large, army of self-sacrificing and determined workers,
real progress of the masses hold to be an impossibility. And without that progress, there is no
such thing as Swaraj.
Progress towards Swaraj will be in exact proportion to the increase in the number of
workers who will dare to sacrifice their all for the cause of the poor. (YI, 24-6-1926, p. 226)
Through Truth and Nonviolence If we wish to achieve Swaraj through truth and non-
violence, gradual but steady building-up from the bottom upwards by constructive effort is
the only way. These rules out the deliberate creation of an anarchical state for the overthrow
of the established order in the hope of throwing up from within a dictator who would rule
with a rod of iron and produce order out disorder. (H,18-1-1942, p. 4)
We have all-rulers and ruled-been living so long in a stifling, unnatural atmosphere
that we might well feel, in the beginning, that we have lost the lungs for breathing the
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invigorating ozone of freedom. If the reality comes in an orderly, that is, a non-violent
manner, because the parties feel that it is right, it will be a revealing lesson for the world. (H,
7-4-1946, p. 70)
2.8.3 Genius of our Civilization
Gandhiji’s Swaraj is to keep intact the genius of our civilization which should be written as
many new things as possible, but they must be all written on the Indian slate. If Swaraj was
not meant to civilize us, and to purify and stabilize our civilization, it would be nothing
worth. The very essence of our civilization is that we give a paramount place to morality in
all our affairs, public or private. (YI, 23-1-1930, p. 26).
Gandhi’s Ram Rajya is regarded as the part of Swaraj. Ram Rajya is regarded as the
kingdom of Dharma. Gandhi said swaraj is all embracing. It does not include complete
independence along with many other things. Sardar Vallabha Bhai Patel, Vinayak Damodar
Savarkar, Maulana Abul Kalam Azad and Ram Manohar Lohia gave a moral boost to
Gandhiji to attain Swaraj for the country. The Swaraj of Gandhiji consists of a state
embracing a society which is dependent on morals, a society which is the embodiment of
equality of social, political, and economic rights of people.
Gandhiji did not want any economic classification of social classes or casteism under
his concept of Swaraj. Gandhi fought for Indian independence from foreign domination. In
order to define swaraj, Gandhi also talked about Village Swaraj. The Village Swaraj,
according to him, is a complete village republic, independent of its neighbors for its vital
needs. The first concern of every village would be to run its affairs on a cooperative basis.
The government of the village would be conducted by the Panchayat of five persons,
annually elected by the adult villagers, male and female. Swaraj can generally mean self-
governance or “home-rule”. The soul of Swaraj to him is Swadeshi. Swadeshi means self-
sufficiency. Muhammad Ali Jinnah was the main critique and dead against swaraj and said
swaraj could be achieved through constitutional struggle. Navjivan Trust was one of the
organizations and stood for peaceful means in the attainment of Swaraj, that is Hind Swaraj.
Khilafat leaders also participated and supported Swaraj for the future results for the Indians.
Gandhiji changed the character of the national movement, gave it a new ideology, a
new method of action, a unique moral code, and a mass-based leadership in the post-first
world war era. Gandhi evolved a program of struggle which mobilized the divergent groups
and classes and various sections of people-industrialist, workers, peasants, traders, students,
lawyers, lower classes, and women-and made it a multi-class and mass based national
movement. He called upon the peasants not to pay taxes to the government, exhorted the
students to boycott the educational institutions, called upon the lawyers to desert the courts
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and asked women to picket the liquor shops. Millions of people marched in demonstrations,
faced lathis, bullets and went to jails. He evolved a new techniques of mass struggle such as
satyagraha, non-cooperation, civil disobedience, hunger strike, khadi and cottage industries
and indigenous system of education. Apart from being a mass leader, he was an outstanding
social reformer who passionately worked for the elimination of inhuman institutions like
untouchability and casteism.
Satyagraha and ahimsa (non-violence) formed the basis of his philosophy. According
to him, search for truth was the goal of life and since no one could be sure of having attained
the ultimate truth, use of violence to enforce one’s own truth was sinful. For him, the real
enemy was not the British political domination alone but the whole modern industrial
civilization of which British Raj was the symbol. Hence for him, attainment of political
swaraj would only mean ‘English rule without Englishmen’. Against the liberal view of the
state, he propounded an alternate view of the state. Ideally preferred an enlightened anarchy
under which socially responsible and morally disciplined men and women would never harm
one another and would not need not any polity. But given circumstances, he opted for an
‘ordered anarchy’ in which citizens enjoy maximum freedom consistent with minimum
necessary order. Such an ‘ordered anarchy’ would consist of three elements: non-violent state
through village republics, Swaraj, and Ram Rajya. To quote Hind Swaraj again, ‘the state
should be composed of self-governing and self-sufficient village communities with
expanding circles upward, i.e., from village to talukas, from talukas to district, from district
to province to the center, each tier enjoying considerable autonomy. Decentralization is
combined with economic decentralization based upon the fact that every person should lead a
simple life and limit himself to necessities. By swaraj, he meant a polity based upon small
village communities developing and actualizing the power of the people. And it is only when
there is political, economic, and moral Swaraj or self-rule that one can talk of Ram Rajya. For
Gandhi Ram Rajya was a state based upon the denial of power and renunciation of the use of
force.
Ramrajya: By Rama Rajya Gandhiji do not mean Hindu Raj. He meant Rama Rajya Divine
Raj, the Kingdom of God. For him Rama and Rahim are one and the same deity. He
acknowledges no other God but the one God of truth and righteousness. Whether Rama of my
imagination ever lived or not on this earth, the ancient ideal of Rama Rajya is undoubtedly
one of true democracy in which the meanest citizen could be sure of swift justice without an
elaborate and costly procedure. Even the dog is described by the poet to have received justice
under Rama Rajya. According to Gandhi Rama Rajya was the ideal state where there would
be equality of rights between Prince and Pauper.

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Definition of Independence
By political independence he does not mean an imitation to the British House of commons, or
the soviet rule of Russia or the Fascist rule of Italy or the Nazi rule of Germany. They have
systems suited to their genius. Gandhi said, we must have ours suited to ours. What that can
be is more than I can tell. Gandhi has described it as Rama Rajya i.e., sovereignty of the
people based on pure moral authority. (H, 2-1-1937, p. 374). Friends have repeatedly
challenged him to define independence. Gandhi said that independence of my dream means
Rama Rajya i.e., the Kingdom of God one earth. He does not know it will be like in Heaven
and has no desire to know the distant scene. If the present is attractive enough, the future
cannot be very unlike. (H, 5-5-1946, p. 116)
No Coercion: Gandhiji’s conception of Rama Rajya excludes their placement of the British
army by a national army of occupation. A country that is governed by even its national army
can never be morally free and, therefore, its so-called weakest member can never rise to his
fullest moral height. (ibid)There can be no Rama Rajya in the present state of iniquitous
inequalities in which a few rolls in riches and the masses do not get even enough to eat … my
opposition to the Socialists and other consists in attacking violence as a means of effecting
any lasting reform. (H, 1-6-1947, p.172). Gandhiji compared nirvana to Rama Rajya or the
Kingdom of Heaven on earth…. The withdrawal of British power does not mean Rama
Rajya. How can it happen when we have all along been nursing violence in our hearts under
the garb of nonviolence?
Respect for Others: Hinduism according to Gandhiji teaches to respect all religions. In this
lies the secret of Rama Rajya. If you want to see God in the form of Rama Rajya, the first
requisite is self-introspection. You must magnify your own faults a thousand-fold and shut
your eyes to the faults of your Neighbors. That is the only way to real progress.
Gandhi was primarily a man of action and not a philosopher or political theorist. At a
practical level, he initiated a movement which was national in the real sense and the
philosophy which could assimilate the fundamental tenets of various political groups inside
the country, thereby making it a considerable section of people. For the success of such a
movement, it was necessary that it should be designed so as to satisfy diverse groups with
conflicting ideas and even clashing interests. Gandhi achieved success to a remarkable extent
in performing this task. He had in his movement the characteristics of liberalism and
economic content of the philosophy of moderates, the political radicalism and religious
interpretation of Khilafat, and the influence of Home Rule League. He tried to combine these
various elements through his own technique of non-cooperation and mass civil disobedience
against an alien government on a national scale.
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Movements Led by Gandhiji to Free India from the Britishers Include

Rowlatt Act: The Sedition committee appointed under the Chairmanship of Justice Rowlatt to
study the revolutionary activities suggested certain measures of arbitrary arrests without trial
and restrictions on the movement of persons suspected of anti-government activities. The
Government moved two bills in the central legislature in February 1919 to give effect to the
recommendations of the Rowlatt Committee (The bills came to be known as Rowlatt Bills or
Black Bills). The Bills were introduced against the unanimous opposition of all non-official
Indian members. Under these Acts, the Government armed itself with unrestricted powers to
control the press, to try the political offenders without the help of juries and to arrest and
detain a person suspected of subversive activities for any length of time without trial, subject
to maximum period of two years. The bills were a crude attempt to curtail civil liberties of
Indian in the name of curbing terrorist violence at a time when, after the war, Indians were
expecting constitutional concessions in return for their whole-hearted support to the British
government during the war. Despite opposition unanimous Indian opposition, the Bills were
passed as Anarchial and Revolutionary Act, 1919. The Bills provoked a wave of resentment
throughout the country among the Moderates, Extremists, the younger generation, and
members of the Home Rule Leagues. Though opposition was unanimous, it was left to
Gandhi to lead an all-India protest it. Gandhi started a countrywide campaign against the Act
and decided to oppose it through Satyagraha (Vermani: 230).
Khilafat Movement: As the agitation against Rowlatt Act came to an end, Gandhi was being
drawn into the Khilafat question which soon gave him an opportunity to forge Hindu-Muslim
unity and launch a non-cooperation movement against the British rule. The Lucknow Pact did
not form a adequate basis for unity and Khilafat agitation was ‘an opportunity of uniting
Hindus and Muslims as would not rise in a hundred years. The Khilafat agitation aimed to
conserve the Ottoman Empire, it was an extraordinary movement. Till the middle of 19th
century, the Indian Muslims had shown no concern in the affairs of Turkey. In fact, they did
not recognize the Ottoman Sultan as their Caliph. The Khilafat question was because the
Sultan of Turkey was recognized Caliph i.e., religious head of the Muslims and had to
perform certain duties towards the holy places of Islam situated in Jazirat-ul-Arab. It was
necessary that the holy places should be under his supervision and control. Therefore, they
demanded (i) maintenance of the religious prestige and temporal power of the Caliph’s duties
in the preservation of holy places such as Palestine, Mesopotamia, and Arabia. This could be
done by giving complete self-government under Caliph’s control over the holy places; (ii)
Guaranteeing sovereignty of the Muslim states, forbidding the imposition of the members of
Britain and France over the State of Arab states. The Arabs were incited by the British,
revolted against their Sovereign Caliph. The Greeks were incited to grab even the homeland
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of the Turks, the Arab Provinces of Turkey. Mustafa Kamal Pasha by his force by his heroic
efforts saved by Turkey but lost control of the Arab lands including the Holy places of Islam.
The conduct of Britain was treacherous. In September 1919, an All-India Khilafat Committee
was formed which had Gandhi M.M. Malviya as members (ibid:231). Three central demands
presented by Mohammad Ali to the diplomats in Paris in March 1920 were: i) Turkish Sultan
must retain control over the Muslim sacred places; ii) He must be left with sufficient territory
to enable him to defend the Islamic faith and iii) the Jazirat-ul-Arab (i.e., Arabia, Syria, Iraq,
Palestine) must remain under Muslim sovereignty.
The Khilafat movement had two strands-Moderates and Radicals. Moderates focused
on the All-India Khilafat Committee wanted to limit the agitations to meetings, deputations
and memorials to London and Paris. The radical strand consisted of lower-class journalists
and Ulama with considerable influence over small towns and villages and was led by Ali
Brothers. Gandhi played a mediating role for both the groups. In February 1920, he suggested
to Kilafat Committee to adopt a program of non-violent non-cooperation to protest the
Government behavior. On June 9, the Khilafat Committee met Allahabad had enunciated a
four-stage non-cooperation program. It included: i) Surrender of titles and honorary posts, ii)
resignation from the services in the police and army, iii) Resignation of posts of civil services
of government, iv) refusal to pay taxes. Gandhi called upon the Hindus to help the Muslims
and to desist from helping the government.
Non- Cooperation Movement: The Indian nation leadership had contributed a great deal
towards the British effort to win the first world war with the hope that India would be
rewarded with some major reforms, if not complete self-government, after the war. However,
their hopes were shattered, and they were forced to fight back. During the war, since imports
from Britain and other foreign countries had stopped, the needs were met through increased
production in India. As a result, India trade and industry prospered to a certain extent and
showed its potentiality that, given an opportunity, it can match the foreign competitors.
Indian industrialists and businessmen reaped enormous profits. But the exports suffered
during the war.
Though the Khilafat Committee had passed a resolution had passed a resolution non-
cooperation, for its success support of the Congress was essential. The non-cooperation
movement was launched formally on 1 August 1920 on the twin issues of Khilafat question
and Punjab wrongs, after the expiry of notice that Gandhi had given to the viceroy in which
he asserted the right recognized from time immemorial of the subjects to refuse to assist a
ruler who misrules. The Congress had not so far given its formal approval to the movement.
A special session of the congress was convened between 4-9 September 1920 at Calcutta

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under the Chairmanship of Lala Lajpat Rai. Some of the members of Indian National
Congress (INC) suggested measures which includes: - resignation from councils,
renunciation of legal practice, nationalization of education, economic boycott, organization of
workers for national service, raising of a national fund and Hindu-Muslim unity. Thus, the
Congress and the Khilafat Committee agreed upon the triple purpose of non-cooperation; i)
Redressal of Punjab grievances, ii) rectification of Khilafat wrongs and iii) establishment of
Swaraj.
Non-cooperation movement had two objectives: Negative and Positive. The negative
objectives included boycott of law courts by lawyers, boycott of schools and colleges owned
or aided or recognized by government, boycott of elections to legislative assemblies and
provincial councils, surrender of honors and titles, boycott of official functions, boycott of
British goods and prohibition of drinking liquor. The positive objectives included
establishment of national educational institutions, setting up of popular tribunals for
administration of justice, encouragement of Swadeshi specially khaddar or home-spun,
home-woven cloth, raising a fund of one crore rupees in the name of Tilak to finance non-
cooperation activities, to enroll a volunteer corps of one crore members to help in the
promotion of various boycotts-social, educational, legal and economic, and to distribute
twenty lakh spinning wheels to provide work to the unemployed and under-employed.
Complete Boycott of the foreign cloth was achieved by September. A meeting was called
upon by Gandhi at Bombay beach to bonfire of foreign clothes. But the mob turned violent
and assaulted the Europeans and Parsees who showed their loyalty to the prince. The police
firing led to 53 killings.
Similarly, the hartal in Calcutta was followed by clashes between police and Khilafat
volunteers. Gandhi looked upon violence with distaste and criticized the defaulters. Picketing
of shops selling foreign cloth was also a major form of boycott. In August 1921, the Moplahs,
a fanatical Muslim community in Kerala had rebelled and established Khilafat kingdom and
in the process massacred Hindus and such Europeans as they could lay hand upon. By
November 1921, the government was forced to take repressive measures. After the arrests of
Ali brothers, Khilafat leaders were demanding complete independence.
Civil Disobedience Movement: The government declared Khilafat organizations as well as
the Congress as unlawful. Public assemblies and processions were banned. C.R. Das decided
to accept the challenge and disobeyed the orders. Thousands of volunteers swelled jails. This
was followed by mass arrests. During the next three months, more than 30 thousand
nationalists were in prisons. The Ahmedabad session of Congress in 1921 authorized Gandhi
consequently informed the viceroy on 1 February 1922 that he had decided to start Civil

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 B.A. (Hons.) Political Science

Disobedience movement in those areas which he considered sufficiently prepared to

undertake the responsibility placed on them such as Bardoli in Gujarat and Guntur in madras
with no tax campaign that would gradually bring the wheels of government in these districts
to a halt. However, before the movement could start in Bardoli, an outburst of violence took
place on 5February 1922 at Chauri Chaura in the United Province. A crowd composed of
peasants attacked and set fire to a police station leading to the death of twenty-two
policeman. On hearing about the incident Gandhi decided to withdraw the agitation. The
Congress Working Committee was hastily summoned and at Gandhi’s insistence, it ratified
the decision of Gandhi, dropped civil disobedience (ibid 232-242).
Home Rule Movement by Annie Beasant
Home Rule Movement by Annie Beasant in1916 to speeding the process of freedom struggle
in India. There were two home rule leagues launched. Tilak launched the Indian Home Rule
League in April 1916 at Belgaum. Annie Besant launched the Home Rule League in
September 1916 in Madras. They had the common objective of achieving self-government in
India. There was an informal understanding between both the leagues wherein Tilak’s league
worked in Maharashtra (except Bombay), Karnataka, Berar, and the Central Provinces.
Besant’s league worked in the rest of the country.
Objectives
• To achieve self-government in India.
• To promote political education and discussion to set up agitation for self-government.
• To build confidence among Indians to speak against the government’s suppression.
• To demand a larger political representation for Indians from the British government.
• To revive political activity in India while maintaining the principles of the Congress
Party.
Activities
• The leagues organized demonstrations and agitations.
• There were public meetings in which the leaders gave fiery speeches.
• They were able to create a stir within the country and alarm the British to such an
extent that Annie Besant was arrested in June 1917.
• This move by the British created a nation-wide protest and now even moderate leader
joined the league. Besant was released in September 1917.

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 Political Theory: Concepts and Debates

Significance
• The Home Rule League functioned throughout the year as opposed to the Congress
Party whose activities were confined to once a year.
• The movement was able to garner huge support from a lot of educated Indians. In
1917, the two leagues combined had around 40,000 members. Many members of the
Congress and the Muslim League joined the league. Many prominent leaders like
Muhammad Ali Jinnah, Joseph Baptista, G S Kharpade and Sir S Subramanya Iyer
were among its members.
• The moderates, extremists and the Muslim League were briefly united through this
movement.
• The movement was able to spread political consciousness to more regions in the
country. This movement led to the Montague Declaration of 1917 in which it was
declared that there would be more Indians in the government leading to the
development of self-governing institutions ultimately realizing responsible
governments in India. This Declaration (also known as August Declaration) implied
that the demand for home rule would no longer be considered seditious. This was the
biggest significance of the movement.
Failure and Decline
• The movement was not a mass movement. It was restricted to educated people and
college students.
• The leagues did not find a lot of support among Muslims, Anglo-Indians, and non-
Brahmins from Southern India as they thought home rule would mean a rule of the
upper caste Hindu majority.
• Many of the moderates were satisfied with the government’s assurance of reforms (as
preluded in the Montague Declaration). They did not take the movement further.
• Annie Besant kept oscillating between being satisfied with the government talk of
reform and pushing the home rule movement forward. She was not able to provide
firm direction and leadership to her followers. (Although ultimately, she did call the
reforms ‘unworthy of Indian acceptance’).
• In September 1918, Tilak went to England to pursue a libel case against Sir Ignatius
Valentine Chirol, British journalist and author of the book ‘Indian Unrest’. The book
contained deprecatory comments and had called Tilak the ‘Father of Indian Unrest.’
(Tilak lost the case).
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 B.A. (Hons.) Political Science

• Tilak’s absence and Besant’s inability to lead the people led to the movement’s
fizzing out. After the war, Mahatma Gandhi gained prominence as a leader of the
masses and the Home Rule Leagues merged with the Congress Party in 1920.
2.8.4 Swarajists
The Swarajists entered the councils through the elections held in November 1923. Within a
short span of time, they are managed to get 42 out of 101 elected seats in the central
legislative assembly, clear majority in the Central Province, largest party in Bengal, fared
well in Bombay, UP and were less successful in Madras, Punjab.
Aims and Objectives of Swarajists: They adopted the programs and policies of the Congress.
They kept in view the essential principles of non-violence and non-cooperation. They aimed
at securing Swaraj or Dominion Status within the British empire. Whereas no-changers
wanted to attain Swaraj through constructive programs and building mass movement, the
Swarajists wanted to achieve this aim by making use of the legislative councils for displaying
their popularity and strength of the organization. Their purpose was to secure the changes
through parliamentary methods, and if that was not possible, make the councils completely
unworkable. They demanded the release of all political prisoners, repeal of repressive laws,
provincial autonomy, calling a round table conference to draw up a scheme for full control
government by the legislative councils and development of industries. On the economic front,
the Party believed in liberal capitalism prevailing at that time i.e., private, and individual right
to property, civil liberties. Harmony between capitalist enterprises and demands of the
laborer. They had two-fold objectives: destructive and constructive. The destructive part
consisted of the rejection of proposals emanating from bureaucracy and rejection of budget
and ‘smashing the councils and wrecking reforms. The constructive side included presenting
resolutions necessary for the healthy growth of national life, displacement of bureaucracy and
give support to the constructive program of Gandhi.
Swaraj According to Balgangadhar Tilak
Tilak was a strong believer in Vedic philosophy and social ideas. Born as Keshav Gangadhar
Tilak on 23 July 1856, in the small coastal town of Ratnagiri in Maharashtra, he soon moved
to Poona (now Pune). Tilak’s father was a renowned Sanskrit scholar and belonged to the
Marathi Chitpavan Brahmin section. Bal Gangadhar Tilak, the great educationist, social
reformer, author, and freedom fighter, is widely acknowledged as ‘the father of the Indian
Unrest’. His contribution to the freedom struggle was monumental, and his role in awakening
the political consciousness in the lay people and uniting them against the British for the
common cause of independence is widely acknowledged. His untiring struggle and single-

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 Political Theory: Concepts and Debates

minded love for the country earned him the respectful title of ‘Lokmanya’ meaning ‘revered
by the masses’ from his followers and supporters. A learned scholar of Sanskrit, Philosophy
and Political Economy, Tilak’s entire life was a ‘karma yajna’, dedicated to the ideal of
independence for India. Tilak was the first leader to propound the ideal of ‘sampoorna
swarajya’, and his statement, “Swaraj is my birth right and I shall have it”, inspired
thousands of Indians, and laid the foundation for an organized and united freedom movement.
Tilak, through his newspapers, ‘Kesari’ and ‘Mahratta’, played a vital part in arousing the
indignation of Indians against the callousness and excesses of the British rule, and exposed
the sufferings and indignities which the Britishers were subjecting the Indians to. His bitter
denouncements of the Government’s handling of the famines and epidemics that rocked parts
of India during the end of the 19th century aroused anti-British feelings amongst the
countrymen and were a major factor in uniting the nation against foreign rule. His writings
inspired several revolutionary leaders and is said to have led to the assassination of Mr. Rand,
the notorious plague commissioner of Pune in 1897.Tilak established the Deccan Education
Society in 1884 with some of his colleagues from university, with the view of improving
education for the Indian youth. Two of the institutions set up by the society that still exist
today are the New English School for secondary education and the Fergusson College.
From teacher and lawyer to journalist and independence activist, Tilak’s life went
through some distinct phases. Bal Gangadhar Tilak joined the Indian National Congress
(INC) in 1890; He wanted to stop being loyal to the British and not use constitutional
agitation as a means to gain their goals. Instead, he wanted to get Swarajya or self-rule which
he believed to be the essence of freedom and important for the growth of a nation. Because of
his radical approach, Tilak came into direct opposition with his contemporary, Gopal Krishna
Gokhale, who was one of the stalwarts of the Congress at that time. However, he did gain the
support of other radicals, like Aurobindo Ghose and V.O Chidambaram Pillai. Tilak also
formed the famous Lal-Bal-Pal trio alongside Lala Lajpat Rai and Bipin Chandra Pal. They
took over the leadership of the radical section of the Congress after the split at the Surat
session in 1907. Tilak was a radical nationalist, but was socially conservative, believing that
society should be based on Hindu revivalist structures.

2.9 SWADESHI AND HOME RULE LEAGUE

Two of the most prominent movements organized by Bal Gangadhar Tilak were the
Swadeshi and Boycott (of foreign goods) movement and the Home Rule League. The
Swadeshi and Boycott movement was a revivalism of traditional Indian cottage industries. It
was intensified after the Partition of Bengal in 1905, and the impact of the movement was felt

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