NCERT Class 10 History Chapter 3: Nationalism in India YouTube Lecture Handouts

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NCERT Class 10 History Chapter 3: Nationalism in India

  • Understanding who they were, their identity, and belongingness
  • New symbols, icons, songs and ideas, redefining boundaries
  • Nationalism is connected to anti-colonialism & shared bonds between different groups
  • Congress under Mahatma Gandhi tried to forge groups within one movement – but conflicts arose
  • 1st WW – economic and political situation, huge defence expenditure, war loans, increased taxes, custom duties and income tax, doubling of prices
  • In villages – failed crops, forced recruitment in army & influenza epidemics. 12 - 13 million people perished due to famines and epidemics
  • Gandhi returned to India in Jan 1915 from South Africa (workers from Newcastle to Transvaal against racist laws) – started satyagraha (power of truth and search for truth) & dharma of non-violence could unite all Indians
  • 1916 – Champaran, Bihar against oppressive plantation
  • 1917 – Kheda, Gujarat – crop failure and plague – relaxation on revenue collection
  • 1918 – Organize Ahmedabad textile mill workers

Rowlatt Act

  • Rowlatt Act (1919) – Nationwide protest against it. Passed by Imperial Legislative Council despite united opposition. It gave the government enormous powers to repress political activities, and allowed detention of political prisoners without trial for two years.
  • Gandhi called for hartal on 6th April, rallies organized, local leaders were picked from Amritsar and Gandhi was barred from entering Delhi. Martial law imposed and General Dyer took the command. Jallianwalla Bagh incident took place – some against oppressive government policy and others to attend Baisakhi fair
  • Dyer wanted to create a moral effect in mind of satyagarhis for feeling of terror
  • Humiliation of people: satyagrahis were forced to rub their noses on the ground, crawl on the streets, and do salaam (salute) to all sahibs; people were flogged and villages (around Gujranwala in Punjab, now in Pakistan) were bombed.
  • Movement was called off. It was mainly based in cities and towns

Khilafat Issue

  • 1st WW witnessed defeat of Ottoman Empire – harsh treaty on Khalifa (Ottoman emperor) . To defend Khalifa, Khilafat Committee formed in March 1919 – Muhammad Ali and Shaukat Ali discussed issue with Gandhi
  • Calcutta Session of Congress in Sept 1920 – start non-cooperation with Khalifat. Gandhi՚s book Hind Swaraj explained British rule survived in India only because of cooperation of Indians
  • Surrender of titles, boycott of civil services, army, police, court, legislative council, schools and foreign goods
  • Congress session at Nagpur in December 1920, a compromise was worked out and the Non-Cooperation program was adopted.
  • Non-Cooperation-Khilafat Movement began in Jan. 1921 – call of Swaraj
  • Council elections were boycotted in most provinces except Madras, where the Justice Party (party of non-Brahmans) , felt that entering the council was one way of gaining some power
  • Foreign goods were boycotted, liquor shops picketed. Import of foreign cloth halved between 1921 and 1922, its value dropping from ₹ 102 crore to ₹ 57 crore.
  • Khadi was more expensive than mill produced cloth and poor could not afford to buy. Establish Indian institutions but these were slow to come so people started joining back work in government courts
  • Countryside developments – Awadh (Baba Ramchandra – sanyasi who earlier had been to Fiji as indentured labourer) – against talukdars and landlords who were demanding high rents, begar (forced laborer without payment) – demand for reduction of revenue, abolition of beggar and social boycott of oppressive landlords
  • Nai – dobhi bandhs were organized by panchayat. Oudh Kisan Sabha was formed with JL Nehru and Baba Ramchandra – 300 branches were set up around region
  • Effort of Congress was to integrate Awadh peasant struggle into wider struggle - houses of talukdars and merchants were attacked, bazaars were looted, and grain hoards were taken over. Local leaders told peasants that no taxes were to paid and land to be redistributed
  • Gudem Hills of Andhra Pradesh – militant guerilla movement started in 1920՚s – against colonial govt. that closed large forest area, prevented people from entering forest and collecting fuelwood – felt that their traditional rights were denied – led by Alluri Sitaram Raju (make astrological predictions, heal people and could survive bullet shot) . He was an incarnation of God – persuaded people to wear khadi and give up drinking. Raju was captured and executed in 1924 but became a folk hero.
  • Under the Inland Emigration Act of 1859, plantation workers were not permitted to leave the tea gardens without permission, and in fact they were rarely given such permission – workers started to leave considering Gandhi Raj has come and everyone would be given the land in their own villages.
  • Gandhi raised slogan “Swatantra Bharat” – emotionally relating to all India agitation
  • After Chauri Chaura incident in Gorakhpur – Gandhi called off Non Cooperation movement
  • Feb 1922 – Non Cooperation movement was withdrawn as it was turning violent & some leaders wanted to participate in elections to provincial councils set up by Government of India Act, 1919 – need to oppose British Council
  • CR Das & Motilal Nehru formed Swaraj Party – to argue for return to council politics
  • JL Nehru & SC Bose – pressed for radical mass agitation and full independence

Factors affecting Indian Politics late 1920՚s

  • Effect of worldwide economic depression, agricultural prices fell from 1926 & collapsed after 1930. Peasants found hard to sell harvest and pay revenue
  • Tory government in Britain constituted Statutory Commission under Sir John Simon – functioning of constitutional system & no single Indian in the commission – in 1928 was greeted with “Go Back Simon”

Irwin in 1929 announced dominion status for India and Round Table conference to discuss constitution.

Radicals became assertive and liberals lost influence

In Dec 1929 – Lahore Congress formalized demand for “Purna Swaraj” or full independence & declared 26 Jan 1930 as Independence Day

Salt March & Civil Disobedience Movement

  • 1928 – Hindustan Socialist Republican Army was founded with Bhagat Singh, Jatin Das and Ajay Ghosh as the leaders.
  • 1929 - Bhagat Singh and Batukeswar Dutta threw a bomb in the Legislative Assembly & also attempt to blow the train in which Irwin was travelling – idea was “Inquilab Zindabad”
  • 31 Jan 1930 – Letter to Irwin with 11 demands – bringing all classes under united campaign – demand to abolish salt tax (monopoly over salt production by Britisher was most oppressive face of British rule)
  • If demands are not fulfilled, Congress would launch

Civil Disobedience Movement

  • Salt March – with 78 volunteers for 240 miles from Sabarmati to Dandi – 24 days and walked 10 miles a day
  • Not only refuse cooperation but also break laws – started manufacturing salt, peasants refused to pay revenue and chaukidari taxes, officials resigned & forest people violated forest laws (going to reserved forest to collect wood and graze cattle)
  • Abdul Ghaffar Khan, a devout disciple of Mahatma Gandhi, was arrested in April 1930 in Peshwar – huge demonstrations
  • Gandhi was arrested and industrial workers in Sholapur were attacked – around 1 lakh people were arrested
  • Movement called off and Gandhi entered Irwin pact on March 1931 & Gandhi consented to participate in 2nd Round Table Conference in London (returned disappointed) & government agreed to release political prisoners
  • Back in India, Ghaffar Khan and JL Nehru were in jail, congress declared illegal and measures were imposed to prevent demonstrations. Civil disobedience movement was re-launched but lost its momentum by 1934
  • Patidars in Gujarat & Jats in UP – were active; rich peasants; producers of commercial crops; cash income disappeared & found it impossible to pay government revenue demand. Refusal of government to reduce revenue demand led to resentment. Fight was struggle against high revenue. Movement called off in 1931 with revision of revenue rates and was restarted in 1932 but many refused to participate
  • Peasants joined radical movements led by Socialist and Communists
  • In 1st WW – Indian merchants & industrialists made great profits and got powerful – demanded protection against import of foreign goods & rupee- sterling foreign exchange ratio would discourage imports - they formed the Indian Industrial and Commercial Congress in 1920 and the Federation of the Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industries (FICCI) in 1927 led by Purshottamdas Thakurdas and G. D. Birla – gave financial assistance and refused to buy and sell imported goods – they were apprehensive of militant activities and worried about prolonged disruption of business
  • Strikes of railway workers in 1930 and dockworkers in 1932. In 1930 – Chottanagpur tin workers wore Gandhi caps and protested.
  • Large scale women participation was seen – protest march, manufactured salt, picketed foreign cloth and liquor shops. Women were from high caste families in urban area & in rural from rich peasant households
  • Gandhi – duty to women to look after home, be good mother and good wives
  • Congress was reluctant to allow women to hold any position of authority

Limits of Civil Disobedience

Untouchables or Dalits or oppressed were not moved by abstract ideas of swaraj

Congress had ignored the dalits, for fear of offending sanatanis, the conservative high-caste Hindus

Gandhi believed that swaraj would not come for 100 years if untouchability was not eliminated – called them harijans (son of god) . He himself cleaned toilets to dignify role of bhangi & persuaded upper caste to change their heart and give up “sin of untouchability”

Demand rose for separate electorate & reserved seats in educational institutions for untouchables

Dalit participation in Civil Disobedience movement was limited in Maharashtra and Nagpur (as organization was very strong)

BR Ambedkar – organized dalits into Depressed Classes Association in 1930 – clashed with Gandhi at 2nd Round Table Conference for a separate electorate for dalits.

Gandhi believed separate electorate would slowdown the growth. Ambedkar accepted Gandhi՚s position and led to Poona Pact of Sept. 1932 - It gave Depressed Classes reserved seats in provincial and central legislative council but they were to be voted in general elections

Muslims felt alienated and from mid-1920՚s Congress came to be openly associated with Hindus like Hindu Mahasabha – led to worsened relations between Hindus and Muslims – provoked communal riots

Muslim League and Congress tried to renegotiate an alliance and in 1927 it appeared that such unity could be forged – differences were over representation in future assemblies that were to be elected

Jinnah (leader of Muslim League) - willing to give up the demand for separate electorates, if Muslims were assured reserved seats in the Central Assembly and representation in proportion to population in the Muslim-dominated provinces (Bengal and Punjab) .

Hope to resolve issue disappeared when MR Jayakar of Hindu Mahasabha opposed to compromise

Many expressed concern about minority status of Muslims in India

Spread of Nationalism

  • By history, fiction, folklore. Songs, popular prints and symbols
  • Nation symbolized as figure or image – identity of India as Bharat Mata (image 1st by Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay – he later wrote Vande Mataram & novel Anandmath)
  • Abindranath Tagore painted Bharatmata as calm, composed, divine and spiritual
  • Folk tales talked about traditional culture that had been corrupted and damaged by outside forces
  • In Madras, Natesa Sastri published a massive four-volume collection of Tamil folk tales, The Folklore of Southern India.
  • During Swadeshi movement in Bengal, a tricolour flag (red, green and yellow) was designed. It had eight lotuses representing eight provinces of British India, and a crescent moon, representing Hindus and Muslims.
  • By 1921, Gandhi had designed the Swaraj flag. It was again a tricolor (red, green and white) and had a spinning wheel in the centre, representing the Gandhian ideal of self-help.
  • Reinterpretation of history – British believed Indians as backward and primitive and incapable of doing something. Indian talked about the glorious past – developments in science, math, religion, culture, craft and trade
  • Bring together Indians for a common ground for struggle to channelize people՚s grievances into organized movement
  • Idea was to resolve difference and ensure demand of one group did not alienate another

Manishika