N C E R T NATIONALISM IN INDIA

Department of Social Science

HISTORY(X)

Chapter 02

NATIONALISM IN INDIA

NCERT TEXTBOOK QUESTIONS

Q.1. Write a newspaper report on the Simon Commission.

                                             OR

Discuss the importance of the Simon Commission.

Ans. In 1927, the British Government appointed a seven-member commission under the

Chairmanship of Sir John Simon. It was to report about the extent to which the Act of 1919

Had worked out successfully. It was to examine the functioning of the constitutional system

in India. This Commission was boycotted by the Indians as it had not a single Indian member.

It was welcomed with black flags and slogans of “Simon go back” when it landed in India. At

Lahore, a procession taken out under the leadership of Lala Lajpat Rai was lathi-charged and

he was fatally wounded in 1928.

The Simon Commission led to Jawaharlal Nehru demanding “Poorna Swaraj” at the Lahore

Session of the Congress. The Nehru Report was also a reaction to this Commission and it gave

Gandhiji an opportunity to start his Civil Disobedience Movement in India.

Q.2. Write a newspaper report on Jallianwala Bagh massacre.

Ans. April 13, 1919 will be a date never forgotten by Indians — those who were present and those Who will come later. Generations will talk about the infamous, brutal massacre at Jallianwala Bagh in Amritsar. Hundreds of villagers had come to Amritsar to celebrate Baisakhi and attend a fair. They were totally unaware of the martial law, which General Dyer had imposed on the city because of the ‘hartal’ observed on April 6 against the Rowlatt Act. On 10 April the police had fired upon a peaceful procession, which had provoked widespread attacks on banks, post offices and railway stations.

General Dyer entered the area where a peaceful meeting was going on in Jallianwalla Bagh.

He blocked all the exit points and ordered his troops to fire upon the unarmed people. His

Object was to create terror and awe in the minds of the satyagrahis and produce a “moral

Effect”. Hundreds of innocent people were killed, some were drowned as they jumped into a

Well to escape bullets.

The mass murder was not enough; the government used brutal repression to crush people who

Rose in anger after this massacre. The satyagrahis were forced to rub their noses in the dirt,

Crawl on the streets and “Salaam” all “Sahibs”. People were mercilessly flogged and in some

Villages bombs were also used (Gujranwala in Punjab).

It was the most shameful act in the history of British rule in India.

Q.3. Why growth of nationalism in the colonies is linked to the anti-colonial movement?

Ans. In India, as in other colonial countries like Vietnam, the growth of nationalism is totally linked with anti-colonial movement. In their fight against colonialism, people began to discover their unity. They found out they had a common oppressor and had common complaints, so it created a bond among different groups. They realised they were fighting for the same causes — against poverty, discrimination, high taxes, beggar, crop failures, forced recruitment to the army during the First World War etc. These shared hardships created a feeling of unity, and aroused

 Nationalism against the common colonial ruler. Though the aims of each group were not similar, now they had a common demand “Swaraj”.

Q.4. How did the First World War help in the growth of National Movement in India?

                                                    OR

 What was the impact of the First World War on the economic conditions in India?

Ans. (i) It created new economic and political problems. The war had led to huge expenditure which was financed by heavy loans and increase in taxes. Customs duties were raised and income

tax was introduced.

(ii) The prices had doubled between 1914 -1918 and the common people underwent great

       Hardships.

(iii) Crops had failed between 1918-19 and 1920-21 leading to famine and disease. There were

       Epidemics killing between 12-13 million people (Census, 1921).

(iv) People’s hope that the end of war would bring an end to their goals were belied, and this

       led to their support to the national movement.

(v) The Muslims were antagonised by the British ill-treatment of the Khalifa, after the First

     World War.

(vi) Indian villagers were also incensed by the British Government’s forced recruitment of men

      in the army.

(vii) The Congress and other parties were angry with the British for not consulting them before

       Making India a party on their side against Germany.

(viii) Taking advantage of the First World War, many revolutionary parties cropped up and they

       Incited the people to join the anti-colonial movement in India (i.e. the National Movement).

Q.5. Why did Mahatma Gandhi perceive ‘Salt’ as a powerful symbol to unite the nation?

                                                    OR

Describe the main events leading to Salt March and Civil Disobedience Movement in 1930.

Ans. Mahatma Gandhi found in salt a powerful symbol that could unite the nation. On 31 January, 1930, he sent a letter to the Viceroy Lord Irwin, making eleven demands. Some of these

Demands were of general interest, some were specific demands of different classes from

Industrialists to peasants. The idea was to make the demands all-embracing and wide-ranging,

so that all classes within Indian society could identify with them and work together in a united

Campaign. He made the “Salt tax” his target and called it the most repressive Act of the British

Government. This tax hit both the poor and the rich as salt was used in every household. The

British had the monopoly in producing salt and they misused their power.

Gandhi started his famous “Salt March” on March 12, 1930 from Sabarmati Ashram to Dandi,

a small coastal village in Gujarat. He started with 78 followers and thousands joined him on

his 240-miles route.

It took him 24 days of 10 miles walking per day. On April 16, 1930 he broke the Salt Law

by boiling sea water and extracting salt. Newspapers carried day-to-day reports of his march

and the speeches he made on the way. It is reported that about 300 Gujarat village officials

Resigned their posts and joined Gandhiji.

His Salt March led to violation of Salt Law all over the country. It also led to boycott of foreign

Goods and picketing of liquor shops. Students and women played a significant role in this

Movement. Peasants refused to pay taxes, forest people broke forest laws and grazed their

Cattle, collected wood in prohibited forest areas. There was an uprising against the government

Everywhere in India and the British had to use brutal force to suppress it.

Q.6. Why did political leaders differ sharply over the question of separate electorates?

Ans. By separate electorates we mean a system in which people of one religion vote for a candidate of their own religion. The British used this system to divide the people of India and thus to  weaken the National Movement. This would make their position strong in India and make them  rule for a long time. They succeeded in driving a wedge between the Hindus and Muslims

Which finally led to the partition of the country in 1947.

The different political leaders did not agree with this policy and held different opinions.

(i) Congress: It opposed tooth and nail the British policy of separate electorates. It understood

The mischief created by the divide and rule policy. It was in favour of joint electorates.

(ii) Muslim leaders like Muhammad Iqbal and M.A. Jinnah wanted separate electorates to

Safeguard the political interests of the Muslims. They were afraid, as a minority religious

Group, that they would never be able to win elections in a joint electorate and the Hindus

Would always dominate them.

(iii) The leaders of the Depressed Classes under Dr B.R. Ambedkar also wanted a separate

Electorate, because they were also afraid of Hindu dominance in a joint electorate. After

Gandhi’s fast unto death, the Poona Pact was signed between him and Dr. Ambedkar.

Gandhiji saw it as a blow to national unity and feared that the Dalits would never become

One with the Hindu society, under separate electorate. Dr Ambedkar agreed to a joint

Electorate provided the Depressed Classes had reserved seats in the Provincial and Central

Legislative Councils.

Q.7. Imagine you are a woman participating in the Civil Disobedience Movement. Explain

What the experience meant in your life.

Ans. Women entered the National Movement in large numbers for the first time by participating in the Civil Disobedience Movement. During Gandhiji’s ‘Salt March’, thousands of women came

Out of their homes to listen to him. They participated in protest marches, manufactured salt,

Picketed foreign goods and liquor shops. They came in the urban areas from high caste

Families. In the rural area they were from the rich peasant households. They took part in the

Movement as their sacred duty. They stood by their men and suffered physical blows also. They

Included old women, women with babies in their arms, and young girls. It did not win them

Any new status. Even Gandhiji thought women’s place was at home, as good mothers and good

Wives. The Congress did not give them any position in the organisation — but the women

Made their presence felt. Women who had never stepped out of their homes, women in purdah

Could be seen marching side by side with their men.

Q.8. Analyse the circumstances which led Gandhiji to choose abolition of the salt tax as the

Most important demand of the Civil Disobedience Movement.

Ans. Mahatma Gandhi found in salt a powerful symbol that could unite the nation.

(i) Salt was consumed by all classes of people, by the rich and poor alike. It was one of the

     Most essential items of food.

(ii) The tax on salt and the government monopoly over its production, revealed the most

      Oppressive face of British rule.

(iii) Abolition of salt tax could affect the British economically as salt tax and monopoly over

      Its production provided a large revenue to the government.

Q.9. “Some icons and symbols were used for unifying the people and inspiring within them

the feeling of nationalism.” Give two evidences in support of the statement.

Ans: The identity of the nation is most often symbolised in a figure or image. With the growth

of nationalism, the identity of India came to be usually associated with the image of Bharat

Mata. The image was first created by Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay in the 1870s, when

He wrote ‘Vande Mataram’ as a hymn to the motherland, which was widely sung during

The Swadeshi movement (1905–07) in Bengal. Abanindranath Tagore painted his famous

Image of Bharat Mata. In a lot of popular prints, nationalist leaders were shown offering

Their heads to Bharat Mata. The idea of sacrifice for the mother was powerful within

Popular imagination.