Revision: History (India and the Contemporary World-II) >> Nationalism in India Social Science English Medium Class 10 CBSE

Forced Recruitment is a process by which the colonial state forced people to join the army.

Boycott is the refusal to deal and associate with people, or participate in activities, or buy and use things; usually a form of protest.

• In Europe, nationalism led to the formation of nation-states and new identities.
• In India, nationalism grew through the anti-colonial struggle.
• Colonial oppression created a sense of unity among people.
• Different social groups had different ideas of freedom.
• The Congress under Mahatma Gandhi tried to unite people through mass movements.

• After 1919, the national movement spread to new areas and groups.
• The First World War caused heavy taxes, rising prices, and hardship.
• Forced recruitment from villages created anger among rural people.
• Crop failures and influenza (1918–1921) caused massive loss of life.
• Continued suffering led to new leadership and new methods of struggle.

• Mahatma Gandhi returned to India in January 1915 and introduced the idea of satyagraha.
• Satyagraha was based on truth, non-violence, and moral force, not physical violence.
• Gandhi believed that non-violence could unite all Indians against injustice.
• In 1917, Gandhi organised a satyagraha in Champaran for peasants against plantation oppression.
• In 1917, he led a satyagraha in Kheda to support peasants unable to pay revenue.
• In 1918, Gandhi organised a satyagraha among Ahmedabad mill workers.

• In 1919, the British government passed the Rowlatt Act, allowing detention without trial.
• Mahatma Gandhi started a nationwide satyagraha against the Act with a hartal on 6 April 1919.
• The British government responded with repression, arresting leaders and imposing martial law in Amritsar.
• On 13 April 1919, the Jallianwalla Bagh massacre took place, where General Dyer ordered firing on a peaceful crowd.
• Brutal repression followed across North India, forcing Gandhi to withdraw the movement.
• To unite Hindus and Muslims, Gandhi supported the Khilafat issue, leading to the Non-Cooperation Movement in 1920.

• In Hind Swaraj (1909), Gandhi said British rule survived due to Indian cooperation.
• He believed non-cooperation would end British rule and bring swaraj.
• The movement began with a boycott of titles, institutions, and foreign goods.
• In 1920, Gandhi and Shaukat Ali mobilised mass support.
• The Non-Cooperation Movement was approved in December 1920 at Nagpur.

• The Non-Cooperation–Khilafat Movement began in January 1921.
• Middle-class people in towns led the movement by boycotting schools, courts, and elections.
• Foreign goods and cloth were boycotted, and Indian cloth was promoted.
• The use of Indian textiles increased due to the boycott.
• The movement in cities slowed because khadi was costly, and alternatives were limited.

• In February 1922, Mahatma Gandhi withdrew the Non-Cooperation Movement due to rising violence.
• Some Congress leaders formed the Swaraj Party to participate in council elections under the Government of India Act, 1919.
• The economic depression (1926–1930) caused falling agricultural prices and peasant unrest.
• The Simon Commission (1928) had no Indian members and was opposed with the slogan “Go Back Simon”.
• In December 1929, the Lahore Congress under Jawaharlal Nehru demanded Purna Swaraj.
• 26 January 1930 was declared Independence Day, marking the shift towards the Civil Disobedience Movement.

• In January 1930, Mahatma Gandhi chose salt as a symbol to unite Indians against British rule.
• The Salt March (12 March–6 April 1930) was led by Gandhi from Sabarmati to Dandi, where he broke the salt law.
• This marked the beginning of the Civil Disobedience Movement, where people openly broke colonial laws.
• People boycotted foreign cloth, picketed liquor shops, and peasants refused to pay taxes.
• The British government responded with mass arrests and repression, imprisoning about 100,000 people.
• The movement was temporarily suspended after the Gandhi-Irwin Pact (5 March 1931) and lost momentum by 1934.

• In the early twentieth century, growing anger against British rule united different Indian groups in the freedom struggle.
• Under Mahatma Gandhi, the Congress organised mass movements to build national unity, though different groups had different goals.
• Internal differences often caused phases of disunity and conflict within the national movement.
• In 1942, the Congress passed the Quit India Resolution, demanding immediate British withdrawal from India.
• The Quit India Movement (1942) became a mass struggle with the slogan “Do or Die”, despite severe British repression.

• Nationalism grew when people developed a sense of collective belonging through shared struggles and culture.
• History, folklore, songs, symbols, and popular prints helped spread nationalist ideas.
• The image of Bharat Mata became a powerful symbol of Indian nationalism in the twentieth century.
• ‘Vande Mataram’, written by Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay, inspired national pride during the Swadeshi movement.
• Nationalists revived folk traditions to rediscover India’s cultural identity and past glory.
• National flags, such as the Swaraj flag with the spinning wheel, became symbols of unity and resistance.
• Glorifying a mainly Hindu past sometimes excluded other communities, creating limits to national unity.

• Dalits did not participate widely in the Civil Disobedience Movement.
• Mahatma Gandhi opposed untouchability but did not support separate electorates for Dalits.
• The Poona Pact of 1932 gave reserved seats to Dalits within a joint electorate.
• Many Muslims were hesitant to join the movement because of growing communal tensions.
• Failed talks between the Congress and the Muslim League increased mistrust.
• In 1930, Muhammad Iqbal supported separate electorates to protect Muslim interests.

• Rich peasants supported the Civil Disobedience Movement to protest against high land revenue during the economic depression.
• They withdrew support after 1931 when revenue demands were not reduced.
• Poor peasants wanted rent remission and joined radical movements, but Congress did not fully support them.
• Business classes supported the movement to oppose colonial restrictions and promote Indian trade and industry.
• Industrialists later became cautious due to fear of strikes and socialist influence.
• Industrial workers participated only in limited numbers and focused on issues like low wages and poor conditions.
• Women participated actively in protests and picketing, but were not given leadership roles in the Congress.