Non-Cooperation Movement Overview

Congress passed a resolution on the Non-Cooperation Movement with a large majority.
The resolution included proposals like:
- Surrendering titles awarded by the British.
- Boycotting civil services, the army, police, courts, legislative councils, and schools.
- Boycotting foreign goods.
- Launching a full civil disobedience campaign if the government persisted with repressive measures.
The Non-Cooperation Movement began in January 1921.
The Movement started with middle-class participation in cities.
Students left their studies, and teachers left their jobs and both joined the movement.
Council elections were boycotted.
Foreign goods were boycotted.
Liquor shops were picketed.

Peasants and tribals took over the struggle which turned violent gradually.
Peasant Movement in Awadh was led by Baba Ramchandra against landlords and Talukdars.
The Oudh Kisan Sabha was set up in 1920, headed by Jawaharlal Nehru, Baba Ramchandra, and a few others.
Movement of Tribals in Andhra Pradesh: Alluri Sitaram Raju led guerrilla warfare in Gudem Hills of Andhra Pradesh.
Rebels attacked police stations.
Raju was captured and executed in 1924.

For plantation workers in Assam, freedom meant the right to move freely.
The Inland Emigration Act of 1859 restricted plantation workers from leaving tea gardens without permission.
After hearing of the Non-Cooperation Movement, thousands of workers left the plantations and headed home.
They were caught by police and beaten.

The movement was withdrawn by Gandhi Ji in February 1922 because of the Chauri Chaura Incident.

The British Government constituted a Statutory Commission under Sir John Simon.
The Commission was meant to investigate the functioning of the constitutional system in India and suggest changes.
All the members of the commission were British, so Indian leaders opposed it.
The Simon Commission arrived in India in 1928.
It was greeted with the slogan "Go back, Simon."
All parties joined the protest.
Lord Irwin announced a vague offer of "Dominion Status" for India in October 1929, but its timing was not specified.
He also offered to hold a Round Table Conference to discuss the future Constitution.

Mahatma Gandhi believed that salt could be a powerful symbol to unite all Indians.
The abolition of the salt tax was among many demands raised by Gandhiji through a letter to Viceroy Irwin.
The Salt March marked the beginning of the Civil Disobedience Movement.

The Salt March or Dandi March was started by Gandhiji on 12th March, 1930.
He was accompanied by 78 volunteers.
They walked for 24 days to cover a distance of 240 miles from Sabarmati to Dandi.
Many more joined them on the way.
On 6th April, 1930, Gandhiji ceremonially violated the law by manufacturing a fistful of salt.

When things began to take a violent turn, Mahatma Gandhi called off the movement.
He signed a pact with Irwin on 5th March 1931, known as the Gandhi-Irwin Pact.
Gandhi agreed to participate in the Round Table Conference in London, and the government agreed to release political prisoners.
Gandhi went to London in December 1931.
The negotiations broke down, and Gandhi had to return with disappointment.
When Gandhi came back to India, he found that most of the leaders were in jail.
Congress had been declared illegal.
Many measures were taken to prevent meetings and boycotts.
Mahatma Gandhi relaunched the Civil Disobedience Movement.

In the Civil Disobedience Movement, people were asked not only to refuse cooperation with the British but also to break colonial laws.

Rich peasants: They expected the revenue tax to be reduced, but the British refused.
Poor peasants: They wanted the rents on lands to be cancelled, but Congress didn't want to support the “no rent” campaigns due to the fear of upsetting the rich peasants and landlords.
Business Classes: After the war, their huge profits were reduced, and they wanted protection against the import of foreign goods.
Women: They participated in protest marches, manufactured salt, and picketed foreign cloth and liquor shops.

The Dalits or Untouchables did not actively participate in the movement, and they demanded reservation of seats and separate electorates.
Dr B.R. Ambedkar, the leader of the Dalits, formed the Depressed Classes Association in 1930.
The Poona Pact between Gandhiji and B.R. Ambedkar (1932) gave reserved seats to the Depressed Classes (also called Scheduled Castes) in Provincial and Central Councils.
The leader of the Muslim League, Muhammad Ali Jinnah, wanted reserved seats for Muslims in the central Assembly.