MAHATMA GANDHI AND THE

Chapter 3


ANSWER IN 100-150 WORDS 

1. How did Mahatma Gandhi seek to identify with the common people? 

Answer:- 

Mahatma Gandhi wanted to identify himself with the common people of India. For this action plan

(a) He began to live a very simple life. He wore plain clothes that a poor Indian would wear.

(b) He spoke the language of the local people.

(c) Mahatma Gandhi opposed the caste system and personally attacked untouchability living with Harijans.

(d) Mahatma Gandhi attached dignity to labor and physical work. He worked in a charkha and cleaned toilets.

(e) He attacked the feeling of classifying people into lower and higher.


2. How was Mahatma Gandhi perceived by the peasants? 

Answer:-

Mahatma Gandhi was very popular among the peasants and his image was as follows:
The peasants considered him as if he had been sent by the king to settle the grievances of the peasants, and had the power to override all local officials.
It was also claimed that Gandhiji’s power was excellent than that of the British monarchy, and that with his arrival the colonial rulers would withdraw from the district.
There were also rumors that villagers who criticized him had seen their houses mysteriously collapse or their crops fail.
He was called "Gandhi Baba – Gandhi Maharaj" or "Mahatma"
The peasants regarded him as a saviour, who would rescue them from high taxes and tyrannical officials. It was hoped that Gandhi would restore dignity and autonomy in their lives.
Gandhiji’s appeal among the peasants was enhanced by his ascetic lifestyle, and by his use of dhotis and sarkhas.

3. Why did the salt laws become an important issue of struggle? 

Answer:- 

Poorest of poor Indian consume food that has salt as one of its prime ingredient. British government brought tax on salt and making salt indigenously was forbidden. It was to become a big burden on the poor people of India. Some important points regarding salt law are as follows.

        1. Salt law was to lead to monopoly of salt production and distribution. It was to fuel prices, and added to this was the tax levied by the government.

        2. People were denied access to natural salt and tons of the same were destroyed.

        3. Salt law was an attack on the local industry in the villages too. Hence salt law was extremely unpopular and it became an important issue of the struggle.


4. Why are newspapers an important source for the study of the national movement? 

Answer:- 

Contemporary newspapers are an important source for the study of national movements. The following issues carry their importance as sources of history regarding the Indian independence movement.

(a) People involved in the freedom struggle published many contemporary newspapers. For example, the National Herald was issued by Matilal Nehru, as well as the Dawn by Mr. Jinnah. These nespapers were mouthpieces and represented important voices in the movement. Therefore, they created important sources of information about the freedom movement.

(b) Newspapers report daily, therefore, their reporting is more detailed than any other source. Because they report on the most recent events, there is little chance of misreporting. Reading different Nespapers makes our reading balanced and free from bias.

(c) Many newspapers were in vernacular Indian languages, i.e. in local languages and they had limited circulation. therefore, they published newspapers from local perspectives that may not exist in other sources of history.

(d) They also reflect human attitudes. These newspapers shaped what was published and the way events were reported. Accounts published in a London newspaper would differ from reports in Indian nationalist newspapers.


5. Why was the charkha chosen as a symbol of nationalism?

Answer: 

The charkha was chosen as a symbol of nationalism for the following reasons:

        • Gandhiji regarded the charkha as a symbol of a human society that does not glorify machines and technology.

        • Spinning wheels or charkhas provided supplementary income to the poor and It will make them self-reliant.

        • This leads to a concentration of wealth, not in the hands of a few, but in the hands of all.

        • Charkhas were regarded as a machinery and used to serve the poorest in their own cottages.

Under the above circumstances, Gandhiji spent a part of each day working on charkha and encouraged other nationalists to do likewise. In this way, he broke the boundaries that prevailed within the traditional caste system, between mental labour and manual labour.


Write a short essay (250-300 words) on the following: 

6. How was non-cooperation a form of protest? 

Answer:- 

Gandhiji believed that the British Empire could survive in India as long as the local people were cooperating with the foreign rule. To not cooperate with the British government was to weaken it and to protest against it. The following topics describe how this was a protest:
1. With the Khilafat movement came the non-expeditionary movement, the British have never seen this level of Hindu Muslim unity in history. Public protests were communityand massively mobilized.

2. People boycotted the pillars and symbols of British rule, courts, colleges and government offices. Lawyers stopped going to court and students stayed away from colleges. In many places, alternative arrangements were made to resolve litigation out of court. There are also many educational institutions established by the leaders of the freedom struggle where students can study.

3. People boycotted tax collection also and they refused to pay taxes. Thus, non-cooperation was a kind of protest too.


7. Why were the dialogues at the Round Table Conference inconclusive? 

Answer:- 

The British Government has a policy of reviewing the progress of self-government in India and of bringing about reforms after a gap of ten years. This began with the Morley Minto Reform in the 1910s and was followed up in the 1920s with the Montagu Samsford Report. Ten years later, the British government convened a Round Table Conference in London for a way forward. The first Round Table Conference was held in November The conference failed as the most important stakeholder in the Indian independence movement, the Indian National Congress was absent from the conference. Congress leaders were behind bars for their lawless movements.

In February 1931, the Second List Conference gained momentum. Mahatma Gandhi was released from prison a month ago. So, he attended the conference. The Gandhi Irwin Agreement was signed and the British government partially agreed to withdraw the Salt Act. However, the treaty was criticized for not providing for India's full independence.

The third and most important Round Table Conference was held in the latter part of New constitutional developments were not agreed upon. The main reason was that other participants in the conference described the Congress as representative of a small group of Indians, not the entire population. The major voices of dissent were, the Muslim League who claimed to be the sole representative of the Muslims of India, Dr. B. R. Ambedkar who claimed to be the sole representative of the lower castes of India and the local rulers can't.

To end the divisive politics of the Muslim League, the attitude of Dr. Ambedkar and the princely states was the main reason for the failure of the Round Table Conference.


8. In what way did Mahatma Gandhi transform the nature of the national movement? 

Answer:-

Gandhiji returned to India from South Africa in In 1917, he went to Champaran in Bihar to fight for the farmers who were forced by the British government to cultivate indigo. The peasant movement proved successful as the British government accepted the demands of the peasants. From that time until 1943, when he was assassinated, he occupied a central position in Indian politics. The truth is that Mahatma Gandhi was the main hero of the Indian freedom struggle.
Mahatma Gandhi changed the nature of the freedom movement and this can be described by:

1. When Gandhiji entered Indian politics, the freedom movement was limited to the middle class. All who participated in the political movement were educated and products of English education. Gandhiji made it universal, now villagers, poor people, workers, workers and students were all part of the freedom struggle. However, there are those who find fault with Gandhiji's actions. They pointed out that Mahatma Gandhi used religious symbols to popularize the freedom movement which in the long run encouraged communal politics. It is noteworthy that the Gan-li era was the era of the rise of the Muslim League in Indian politics. Eminent writer Nirad C Chowdhury has also criticized Mahatma Gandhi for making the freedom movement a mass movement by short cutting it.

2. Mahatma Gandhi must be credited with the emancipation of women and their participation in public life on a scale not known in Indian history. Women were very important in the picketing activities against the shops selling foreign goods. There were some prominent women leaders by freedom movement like Sarojini Naidu, Princess Amrit Kaur and many women Kaur.

3. For Mahatma Gandhi, the freedom movement was also a platform for social reform. He spoke in favor of a place of dignity and respect for the depressed classes. He ended untouchability a fundamental objective of his political philosophy.

Thus, Mahatma Gandhi made the freedom movement a mass movement and a movement outside politics.


9. What do private letters and autobiographies tell us about an individual? How are these sources different from official accounts

Answer:- 

Personal letters and autobiographies are important sources of individuals’ lives and perspectives. Many of our freedom struggle leaders wrote autobiographies and letters and today they are our great records about history.
Autobiographies and letters tell us the following about a person.
1. autobiographies and letters highlight a person’s interests. Let us take an example, Nehru wrote a letter to his daughter Indira describing the events of world history, today it is known as the book "Overview of World History" These letters show that Nehru had a keen interest in history. These letters also show the opinion of the author. For example, Nehru speaks highly of the most successful government of the USSR in his autobiography.

2. These autobiographies and letters are a good source of information on the social life of those days in India. Dr. Rajendra Prasad gives a vivid description of the village life he saw as a child in his village.

3. Above all, these autobiographies and letters are great sources of history. In his autobiography, Nehru described in detail the hegemonic approach of the Muslim League towards solving the minority problem in India.

These sources were remote from official accounts. This is expressed in the following points:
1. Government accounts are made by individuals but they work under the guidelines of the government. Therefore, the views against the government remain. Additionally, authors won’t have the freedom of concentrated areas. He must write only on matters already determined. Of course, you can choose anything of personal interest in autobiographies and letters. Dr. Rajendra Prasad in his autobiography gives a vivid description of his school and college days. This is not possible on any government account.

2. The autographic letters throw light on the personal life of individual leaders and show these events shaped the thought process of these leaders in future life. Mahatma Gandhi described how he was thrown out of the first class compartment of the train in South Africa because he was not a white man. He describes the struggle inside on how to protest and later how he took to non -violent means of protest.


Map work 

10. Find out about the route of the Dandi March. On a map of Gujarat plot the line of the march and mark the major towns and villages that it passed along the route.

Answer:- 

Dandi March was started from Sabarmati Ashram. This Ashram is in Ahmedabad (Gujarat). The route followed from Ahmedabad to Vadodara and from there to Surat. We have used triangle A, B, and C to mark the Dandi expedition route.


Project (choose one) 

11. Read any two autobiographies of nationalist leaders. Look at the different ways in which the authors represent their own life and times, and interpret the national movement. See how their views differ. Write an account based on your studies. 

Answer:-


12. Choose any event that took place during the national movement. Try and read the letters and speeches of the leaders of the time. Some of these are now published. He could be a local leader from the region where you live. Try and see how the local leaders viewed the activities of the national leadership at the top. Write about the movement based on your reading.

Answer:-



Type By- Bikash Bora

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