Latest news with #Non-CooperationMovement
Hindustan Times
15 hours ago
- Politics
- Hindustan Times
100 years on, Kakori Train Action stands out as Lucknow's pride, symbol of unity and inspiration
An unforgettable and heroic chapter in the history of India's struggle for independence, the Kakori Train Action stands out as a symbol of unity, which gave Lucknow a distinct place on the map of the freedom movement and continues to inspire the youth 100 years down the line even in the age of hashtags. Freedom fighters Ram Prasad Bismil, Ashfaqullah Khan, Rajendra Lahiri and Thakur Roshan Singh challengeed the might of the British Empire. (HT Photo) Carried out on August 9, 1925, by a group of young revolutionaries from the Hindustan Republican Association (HRA), it was not just a protest against British colonial rule, but also a symbol of courage, sacrifice, and unwavering commitment to the motherland wherein brave young men like Ram Prasad Bismil, Ashfaqullah Khan, Rajendra Lahiri and Thakur Roshan Singh risked their lives to challenge the might of the British Empire. 'The Kakori incident also gave the city of Lucknow a distinct and honourable place in the annals of the Indian freedom struggle. Kakori placed Lucknow firmly on the map of revolutionary India. From the First War of Independence in 1857 to the final push for freedom in 1947, Kakori remains a major turning point in the freedom movement. It played a consistent role in nurturing revolutionaries and the nationalist sentiment,' said Professor Ramesh Dixit, former head of the department of political science at Lucknow University. 'Youths who were once silent were now taking to the streets. Kakori made it clear: the fight was real, and it was now,' he said. The Congress, which had been cautious post-1922, recognised the shift. By 1930, the Civil Disobedience Movement had begun. The Salt Satyagraha followed. But the flame was lit in Kakori—by four young men who chose the gallows over submission. WHEN YOUTH BECAME REVOLUTIONARIES Post Jalianwala Bagh in 1919, India was simmering with discontent. After the Non-Cooperation Movement in 1922, many were restless, eager to act but disillusioned by the slow pace of constitutional politics and non-violent protests. Ram Prasad Bismil, Ashfaqullah Khan, Chandrashekhar Azad, and a group of fiery patriots mostly in their twenties entered the scene with the mission to strike at the heart of the British economy by seizing money collected through oppressive taxation. That loot was for purchasing printing presses, creating awareness, awakening the populace, telling the benefits of Independence, distributing literature, and funding revolution. A DIRECT CHALLENGE TO BRITISH AUTHORITY Professor Roop Rekha Varma said, 'The Kakori train action was a powerful response by the youth to the atrocities committed by British rulers. In terms of identity, it stood as a direct challenge to British authority at a time when most people were not willing to think beyond the path of non-violence. There was a clash of ideologies—on one side, non-violence, and on the other, revolutionary action. Many young people were drawn to the revolutionary path and began resisting British rule in their own ways, creating obstacles for the colonial administration. Even as a supporter of non-violence, we cannot overlook or deny the significant contribution of the revolutionary movement to India's struggle for independence.' BISMIL COMPLETED AUTOBIOGRAPHY 3 DAYS BEFORE HE WAS HANGED: BHAGAT SINGH'S KIN Professor Jagmohan Singh, a nephew of Sardar Bhagat Singh, said, 'Ram Prasad Bismil completed his autobiography just three days before he was to be hanged. In it, he wrote that whenever people remember them, they should think of the Kakori Action as a symbol of Hindu-Muslim unity. At that time, there was a growing understanding that the root of most problems faced by Indians was British oppression. The British never wanted Indians to live with dignity. Their policies had created deep social inequality and widespread poverty. People were so deprived that even publishing revolutionary literature was a challenge. Bismil wrote that when he translated a book from Bengali to Hindi, he had to borrow ₹200 from his mother to get it published. After the Kakori train robbery, once they had access to money, he made sure to return the amount he had borrowed. The main purpose of the train action was to fund a printing press and raise awareness among the masses.' His autobiography was later translated into Punjabi by Bhagat Singh. UNBREAKABLE BOND Perhaps, the most profound legacy of Kakori lies in the unbreakable bond between Ram Prasad Bismil and Ashfaqullah Khan—a Hindu and a Muslim, bound not by religion but by shared patriotism. Their friendship shattered British propaganda that aimed to divide Indians along communal lines. The British tried to manipulate both—offering Bismil exile and telling Ashfaqullah he had no place in a 'Hindu' organization. Both refused. Their loyalty was to India—not to colonial constructs of identity. Historian Aroop Chakraborty said, 'The Kakori Action sent ripples of unity across the nation. It proved that the freedom struggle was above religion—it was about the soul of India.' 'Sarfaroshi ki tamanna ab hamare dil mein hai…' (The desire for sacrifice now lives in our hearts…') – these lyrics penned by Bismil—were a promise that still echoes through the soul of India.
India.com
02-08-2025
- Politics
- India.com
Who was Kamala Nehru, wife of Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru? Passed away at the age of 36, but left a lasting impact on society due to...
Who was Kamala Nehru, wife of Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru? Passed away at the age of 36, but left a lasting impact on society due to... Kamala Nehru was born on 1st August 1899 in Delhi. Her father, Jawaharmal Kaul was a wealthy businessman and her mother, Rajpati was an orthodox Brahmin woman. Every year on this day, people remember her for the role she played in India's freedom struggle. She was deeply involved in the fight for independence and inspired many other women to join the movement. Even today, she is remembered as a symbol of simplicity, courage, and service. Kamala Nehru received her early education at home, as girls' education was not given much importance in those days. In 1916, at the age of just 16, she married Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru and moved to live with him at Anand Bhavan in Allahabad. She actively took part in major movements like the Non-Cooperation Movement and the Salt March. When Nehru was sent to jail, Kamala stepped forward, led groups of women, and kept the freedom movement alive and strong. She organised a number of gatherings and urged other women to actively participate in the movement that was led by Mahatma Gandhi. Kamala Nehru along with other women leaders launched a massive protest against the shops selling foreign cloth and liquor in Allahabad. At a time when most women were afraid to even step outside their homes, Kamala Nehru gave them the courage to believe they too had a role to play in the fight for freedom. She taught them that raising their voice for the country was their right. Even while her husband was jailed for months, Kamala Nehru continued her fight for freedom and established a hospital at the Nehru mansion, the Swaraj Bhawan where injured freedom fighters would receive treatment. She also passed on values of service, sacrifice, and patriotism to her daughter Indira Gandhi from a young age. These early lessons shaped Indira, who later became the first woman Prime Minister of India and left a strong mark on the country's history. Kamala Nehru lived a simple life. She stayed away from luxury with no interest in jewelry or expensive clothes. She wore khadi and followed Gandhiji's ideals of simplicity and truth. But her beliefs were firm and powerful. In Allahabad, she started a small hospital in Swaraj Bhavan to care for injured freedom fighters and their families. This later became the well-known Kamala Nehru Memorial Hospital. Years of struggle, jail time, and tireless work affected her health badly. She developed tuberculosis (TB) and had to be sent abroad for treatment, as proper medical care wasn't available in India at the time. According to media reports, Kamala Nehru passed away on 28th February 1936 in Switzerland during her treatment. Sadly, Nehru was in Almora jail at that time and couldn't be with her in her final moments. It was one of the most heartbreaking times of his life.
Indian Express
01-08-2025
- Politics
- Indian Express
Knowledge Nugget: Why Bal Gangadhar Tilak and Non-Cooperation Movement matter for UPSC prep
Take a look at the essential concepts, terms, quotes, or phenomena every day and brush up on your knowledge. Here's your knowledge nugget on Bal Gangadhar Tilak and the Non-Cooperation Movement. (Relevance: UPSC has asked questions on important historical personalities, especially related to India's freedom struggle. You can check UPSC Mains special on questions asked on India's freedom struggle. In 2025, UPSC Prelims had two questions directly on Non-Cooperative Movement, making both the topic crucial for your exam.) Bal Gangadhar Tilak, popularly known as Lokmanya Tilak, died on August 1, 1920. This year marked the 105th death anniversary. He was born on July 23, 1856, at Ratnagiri, Maharashtra. Mahatma Gandhi has called him 'the Maker of Modern India', and Jawaharlal Nehru described him as 'the Father of the Indian Revolution'. 1. A lawyer, scholar, and journalist, Tilak joined the Indian National Congress in 1890. Initially, his stance was not very different from that of the Congress, of demanding reforms and more rights for Indians, but not necessarily a total revolution. 2. Gayatri Pagdi, in her book 'Lokmanya Tilak- The First National Leader', has called him the first national leader who transcended provinces, communities, and languages to establish himself in the hearts of millions. 3. Tilak has authored several influential works. In 1881, Tilak, along with G G Agarkar, founded the newspapers 'Kesari' (in Marathi) and 'Mahratta' in English, and used them to spread nationalist resistance against British rule. He has also written Geeta Rahasya,Orion, The Arctic Home of the Vedas and many more. 4. Tilak was in firm conviction that the autonomy of the Hindu society should not be disturbed by the Colonial government's regulation. He officially opposed the Age of Consent Bill which sought to increase the age of consent from ten to twelve for young girls. 5. In 1893, he started the new tradition of worshipping Ganpati as a community festival where patriotic songs would be sung and nationalist ideas would be propagated. Through his writings, fiery speeches, and organisational nous, Tilak encouraged and advocated bringing the Ganesh festival into the public sphere. 6. To further the cause of nationalist resistance, Tilak started the Shivaji festival in 1896. The aim was to inspire nationalist ideas among young Maharashtrians. That same year, he organised a campaign in Maharashtra to boycott foreign cloth to protest the imposition of an excise duty on cotton. 7. For this, he has been criticised for giving the freedom struggle a communal shade and for his conservative stand on women's emancipation and caste reforms. But in the words of Gandhi, 'No man preached the gospel of Swaraj with the consistency and the insistence of Lokmanya'. 8. Along with Lala Lajpat Rai and Bipin Chandra Pal, Tilak became part of the Lal Bal Pal troika, which advocated complete freedom from the British as the goal, and the pursuit of unconstitutional means, including violence, to attain that goal. 9. The chasm between the moderates and the extremists widened, and the Congress eventually split in 1907. 'When the moderates believed that politics need not enter the issue of swadeshi, Tilak told them that swadeshi and nationalism could not be separated from each other', wrote Pagdi. The Lokmanya was tried for sedition three times and was imprisoned twice. 1. In 1897, he was charged with sedition for 'exciting and attempting to excite feelings of disaffection to Government by the publication of certain articles…in (his newspaper) the Kesari in its issue of the 15th June 1897'. He was sentenced to 12 months' imprisonment. He was represented by DD Davar. 2. In April 1908, the teenage revolutionaries Khudiram Bose and Prafulla Chaki accidentally killed two European women in Muzaffarpur in a bomb attack targeting the British magistrate Douglas Kingsford. Chaki shot himself before he could be arrested; Bose was arrested and hanged. 3. Tilak published a strong defence of the revolutionaries in Kesari and was promptly arrested on charges of sedition. He was represented by MA Jinnah. But his application for bail was rejected and he was sentenced to six years. Interestingly, Justice DD Davar, who was the judge in this case, had represented him in his first trial in 1897. 4. In July of the same year (1908), Tilak was accused of 'bringing into hatred and contempt, and exciting disloyalty and feelings of enmity toward His Majesty and the Government ' through his writings in Kesari. Tilak refused a lawyer and chose to plead his own case. During his defence, he vociferously attacked the charge of sedition. 5. Tilak was released from a six-year prison term in Mandalay in 1914, and plunged back into political life. By 1916, he had rejoined the Congress, signed the Lucknow Pact with Muhammad Ali Jinnah to find a way for Hindus and Muslims to work together. 6. He founded the All India Home Rule League with GS Khaparde and Annie Besant. It was in 1916, in Belgaum in Karnataka, that Tilak is believed to have uttered his famous words of Swaraj being a birthright. 1. On August 1, 1920, Mahatma Gandhi launched the Non-Cooperation (Asahayog) Movement against the government. Its aims were to force further concessions from the British government by organizing the boycotting of the legislative councils, courts and schools, and other symbolic acts. It was the first mass movement organized nationwide during India's struggle for freedom. 2. The non-violent movement, inspired by Gandhi's satyagraha campaign, degenerated into violence and was called off by Gandhi himself in February 1922 after the murder of a number of policemen by a mob at Chauri Chaura in the United Provinces. 3. In his An Autobiography, first published in 1936, Jawaharlal Nehru wrote how he and other leaders of the national movement, then in prison, had heard 'to our amazement and consternation, that Gandhiji had stopped the aggressive aspects of our struggle, that he had suspended civil resistance…when we seemed to be consolidating our position'. 4. This made them 'angry', Nehru wrote, 'but our disappointment and anger in prison could do little good to any one'. Other leaders like Motilal Nehru, C R Das, and Subhas Bose too, recorded their bewilderment at Gandhi's decision. 5. The Mahatma on his part, justified himself on grounds of his unshakeable faith in non-violence: 'I would suffer every humiliation, every torture, absolute ostracism and death itself to prevent the movement from becoming violent.' (1) Bal Gangadhar Tilak was associated with: (UPSC CAPF 2015) 1. Poona Sarvajinik Sabha 2. The Age of Consent Bill 3. Gaurakshini Sabha 4. Atmiya Sabha Select the correct answer using the code given below: (a) 1 and 2 only (b) 1, 2 and 4 (c) 3 and 4 (d) 2 and 4 only (2) Consider the following statements concerning the Non-Cooperation Movement: (UPSC CSE 2025) I. The Congress declared the attainment of 'Swaraj' by all legitimate and peaceful means to be its objective. II. It was to be implemented in stages, with civil disobedience and non-payment of taxes for the next stage only if 'Swaraj' did not come within a year and the Government resorted to repression. Which of the above statements is/are correct? (a) I only (b) II only (c) Both I and II (d) Neither I nor II (Sources: This Quote Means: On Tilak's birth anniversary, a look at 'Swaraj is my birthright and I shall have it', Explained: What Tilak, Gandhi and Nehru said about IPC Section 124A, the law on sedition, How Bal Gangadhar Tilak made the worship of Lord Ganesh a grand community festival, Explained: Chauri Chaura, freedom struggle signpost from 100 years ago) Subscribe to our UPSC newsletter. Stay updated with the latest UPSC articles by joining our Telegram channel – IndianExpress UPSC Hub, and follow us on Instagram and X. 🚨 Click Here to read the UPSC Essentials magazine for July 2025. Share your views and suggestions in the comment box or at
India Gazette
16-06-2025
- Politics
- India Gazette
Mallikarjun Kharge remembers
New Delhi [India], June 16 (ANI): Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge on Monday remembered former Congress President Deshbandhu Chittaranjan Das on his 100th death anniversary. In a post on social media X, Kharge wrote that Das, an accomplished poet, was instrumental in the Non-Cooperation movement against colonial rule. 'We remember the enduring legacy of Former Congress President, Deshbandhu Chittaranjan Das, a distinguished lawyer and an accomplished poet. He was instrumental in the Non-Cooperation Movement against colonial rule,' the post read. He further stated that Das was a mentor to Netaji Subash Chandra Bose and firmly believed in non-violent and constitutional methods to achieve the country's independence. 'A mentor to Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose, he firmly believed in non-violent and constitutional methods to achieve India's independence. He was also a strong advocate for Hindu-Muslim unity, communal harmony, and stridently championed national education and the promotion of Khadi,' the post said. Hailing from an upper-middle-class family of the Dacca district, Das graduated from the Presidency College in Calcutta. He took an active role in the field of social reform and women's education. Against caste discrimination and untouchability, Das was a strong believer in women's emancipation and widow remarriage. Before the beginning of his political career, Das played a significant role in providing legal assistance to those charged with sedition. His political career was influenced by Bankim Chandra Das, who partly influenced his political ideas. In 1917, he came to the forefront of nationalist politics and was invited to preside over the Bengal Provincial Conference. In eight years of his political career, Das rose to fame due to his love for patriotism and sincerity. To Das, Swaraj was the government by the people and for the people. His primary concern was the proper education of the masses to enable them to participate in the nationalist movement. The turning point in Das's career was when he was called upon to appear on behalf of Aurobindo Ghose in the Alipore Bomb case. The brilliant handling of the case helped Bose get acquitted, which in turn led Das to come to the forefront professionally and politically. The founder of the Swaraj Party, Das was elected as the Mayor of Calcutta in 1924. He is remembered to have brought in greater efficiency to the administration and implementation of welfare projects. (ANI)
India Gazette
09-06-2025
- Politics
- India Gazette
Gujarat: CM Bhupendra Patel inaugurates Swaminarayan Gurukul in Vadodara
Vadodara (Gujarat) [India], June 9 (ANI): Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel attended the inauguration ceremony of the newly built Swaminarayan Gurukul in Dabhoi, located in Vadodara district, where he received a warm welcome. The chief minister described the event as a meaningful step towards reviving India's ancient education system and praised the Gurukul for combining modern facilities with traditional values. In a post on X, he said, 'I was fortunate enough to be present at the inauguration of the Shri Swaminarayan Gurukul Complex built at Dabhoi in Vadodara district and receive the holy presence and blessings of the venerable saints.' He said the new Gurukul would help students achieve both academic success and moral strength. 'In this complex, which is full of modern facilities that ignite the flame of culture along with education, children will not only receive quality education, but will also learn lessons in the moral values of life,' he wrote. Calling Gurukuls the best heritage of our eternal tradition, the chief minister added, 'Gurukuls are centres for acquiring the values of religion, culture, discipline, and spiritual lifestyle along with education.' He also appreciated Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision, saying, 'Our Honorable Prime Minister Shri Narendrabhai Modi, fulfilling the mantra of 'Vikas Bhi, Virasat Bhi', has implemented a new education policy with education in the mother tongue, knowledge of technical subjects and value-based education.' While expressing his optimism about the impact of the Gurukul, he said, 'On this occasion, he expressed his confidence that by studying in this Gurukul, the students will make the best contribution to the upliftment of society and the building of a developed India - a developed Gujarat.' Earlier on Sunday, Chief Minister also unveiled the book Sonani Hatdi, highlighting the esteemed heritage of the Patidar community, at Vishv Umiya Dham in Ahmedabad. The book documents a 750-year-old genealogy of the Patidar royal courts and the Desai Bhayats, according to the release. Speaking on the occasion, the Chief Minister stated that unity is strength and collective efforts are more impactful than individual ones, making even the toughest tasks achievable. He said that while the freedom struggle began with the Non-Cooperation Movement, the present era is one of achieving prosperity through cooperation. Communities built on collaboration, empathy, and mutual trust consistently witness sustained growth and development. (ANI)
