Tirumalasetti suman biography of mahatma gandhi

It was Gandhi's first major political work in India. It was carried out strictly in accordance with the principles of Satyagraha. Attention was paid to constructive work like sanitation, education and primary health-care. A dispute between the textile mill-owners and the labourers at Ahmedabad arose in , about the grant of bonus and dearness allowance.

Gandhi was approached to find a solution. He persuaded both the parties to agree to arbitration. But after a few days, some misunderstanding led to a strike. The mill-owners seized the opportunity and declared lock-out. Gandhi studied the case. He advised the labourers to demand the same. Regular strike began on the 26th February Thousands of labourers struck work.

They took a pledge not to resume work till their demand was met or arbitration was agreed upon. They also decided to observe non-violence and maintain peace. Gandhi had friends in both the camps. The mill-owners being led by Shri Ambalal Sarabhai. His sister Ansuyaben was leading the labourers. During the struggle, Gandhi's co-workers regularly visited the labourers' quarters to solve their problems and to keep high their morale.

Daily meetings and prayers were held. Bulletins were issued. Gandhi did not like charity. Efforts were made to find alternative employments for the workers. However, after a fortnight, the workers started getting tired. It was difficult to face starvation. It was unbearable for Gandhi that they should break the vow. He then decided to undertake an indefinite fast.

This strengthened the workers. It brought moral pressure on the mill-owners. They consented to arbitration after three days. Gandhi broke his fast. The Satyagraha was successful. The workers' demand was thus fully met. However, Gandhi's fast did involve in an element of coercion. But it was a spontaneous decision. The situation demanded some drastic action.

The Satyagraha was significant in many respects. It was the first Satyagraha by industrial workers. It was wholly peaceful. It showed how workers could fight non-violently. It also gave rise to a strong Gandhian Labour Union. Kheda was a district in Gujarat. In , there was a crop failure due to famine. Peasants were unable to pay the land revenue.

The rules permitted suspension of revenue collection when the crops were less than four annas. According to the peasants' estimate, the crops were less than four annas. Gandhi's inquiries, as well as inquiries by independent observers, showed that the peasants were right. The Government, however, thought otherwise. It even turned down a suggestion of an impartial enquiry.

It started coercing the peasants to collect revenue. Petitions etc. Satyagraha was therefore started on the 22nd March Gandhi advised the peasants to withhold payment to revenue. Satyagrahis took a pledge not to pay the same and resolved to be ready to face the consequences. Volunteers went to villages to keep up the morale of the peasants.

As in Champaran, Gandhi's main concern was to remove the fear from the peasants' minds. The officials started attaching the property of the peasants including cattle and even standing crops. Notices were sent for attachment of the land. An occasion for civil disobedience arose when standing onion crop was attached at one place. Gandhi advised one Mohanlal Pandya and a few volunteers to remove the crop.

This was done. The volunteers were arrested. Pandya earned the nickname 'Onion Thief. The struggle went on for about four months till July It tested the people's patience. The Government discontinued coercive measures. It advised that if the well-to-do peasants paid up, the poor ones would be granted suspension. In one sense, the Satyagraha was thus successful.

The peasants' demand was not, however, fully met. Gandhi was not satisfied. He wanted people to come out stronger after Satyagraha. However, the Satyagraha resulted in awakening the peasants. It educated them politically. It was the first peasant struggle under Gandhi's leadership, the first nonviolent mass civil disobedience campaign organised by Gandhi in India.

The peasants became aware of their rights and learnt to suffer for them. British Government appointed a Committee in under the chairmanship of Justice Rowlatt, 1 to enquire and report to the Government about the nature and extent of anti-government activities, and 2 to suggest legal remedies to enable the Government to suppress those activities.

The Committee submitted its report in April Its work was carried out in secrecy. The Committee's recommendations were embodied in two bills. The first bill sought to make a permanent change in the Criminal Law. The second bill intended to deal with the situation arising out of the expiry of Defence of India Rules. The first bill made punishable the possession of an antigovernment document with mere intention to circulate it.

The second bill also gave sweeping powers to the officers. There were other harsh provisions also. The bills shocked the entire country. All the leaders considered the bills unjust, unwarranted and destructive of elementary human rights and dignity. The second bill was eventually dropped and the first one passed as a Law in March India had helped the British in the World War.

She expected substantial political rights. Instead, she received the Black Rowlatt bills. Gandhi had decided to help the British war efforts during the war. He undertook a recruiting campaign and worked hard which ruined his health. While he was recovering, he heard about Rowlatt bills. He was shocked. He took up the matter and started propaganda against the bill.

Gandhi carried out propaganda against the bill. A separate body called Satyagraha Sabha was formed. A Satyagraha pledge was drafted and signed by selected leaders. The Government was, however, adamant. It then suddenly it occurred to Gandhi that a call for nation-wide hartal should be given. Everybody in the country should suspend his business and spend the day in fasting and prayers.

Public meetings should be held everywhere and resolutions passed for withdrawal of the Act. The programme was taken up. The notice was very short. Still the masses rose to the occasion. The country rose like one man. Hartal was observed throughout India. Communal prejudices were forgotten. All fear disappeared. It was also decided that civil disobedience should be offered to selected laws which could easily be disobeyed by the people.

Gandhi suggested breaking of the Salt law and the sale of the banned literature. The civil disobedience was a great success. Throughout India, meetings were held and processions taken out. The public awakening was unprecedented. It startled the British. Repression was let loose. Processions were broken up by mounted police and firing was done at several places.

Many persons were killed. At some places, people lost balance in the face of repression. In such a situation, Gandhi thought it fit to suspend the Civil Disobedience Campaign. It was done on the 18th April. Satyagraha against the Rowlatt Act was historic. It was the first nation-wide struggle, in which crores of people participated and showed exemplary courage.

The Indian freedom movement was transformed into a truly people's movement. The period also witnessed Hindu-Muslim friendship to an extent that was never surpassed thereafter. Satyagraha in Punjab was also quite successful. Its leaders Dr. Satyapal and Dr. Kitchlew were arrested. People observed hartal and took out a procession in Amritsar to demand their release.

It was fired upon, and many persons were killed. The crowd therefore became violent and killed Englishmen. Some public buildings were burnt. Army troops were rushed in to stop the violence. This was on April 10th On April 11, a peaceful funeral procession was taken out. General Dyer then took command of the troops. Meetings and gatherings were prohibited.

Still a large meeting was held on April 12th at Jallianwala Bagh. General Dyer took no steps to prevent the meeting. But when the meeting was taking place, he surrounded the place and without any warning, gave orders of firing. The crowd of nearly 10, men and women was peaceful and unarmed. They had no idea that they would be fired upon.

When the firing started the people became panicky. There was only one exit. Bullets were showered on the trapped people. About persons were killed and injured. General Dyer did this deliberately to teach the Indians a lesson. Jallianwala Bagh massacre shocked the country. It showed how brutal the British power could get. It was followed by many more atrocities.

They turned Gandhi fully against the British Empire. Most of the leaders in jails were released before or during the session. The session was attended by delegates including peasants. It was the last Congress session attended by Lokmanya Tilak. The Moderates, however, did not attend it. Pandit Motilal Nehru was in the Chair. The Congress was now acquiring a mass character.

The proceedings were conducted mainly in Hindustani. Recall of the Punjab Governor and the Viceroy was also demanded. It was decided to erect a memorial for the Jallianwala Bagh martyrs. Gandhi moved a resolution condemning violence on the part of the people and got it passed. It was a very significant event. The resolution also urged the people to remain peaceful.

The Congress also reiterated the demand for responsible Government. The Montague Reforms were considered inadequate, disappointing and unsatisfactory. But it was decided to work the reforms. Revival of hand-spinning and hand-weaving was recommended. The Congress appointed a subcommittee for reconsideration of the Congress Constitution with Gandhi as the Chairman.

It was the first Congress session in which Gandhi took an active part. His leadership was strengthened in Amritsar Congress. The Sultan of Turkey was the Khalifa, the religious head of the Muslim world. The future of Khalifa, therefore, became a matter of concern for Indian Muslims. The British Government promised them that the Khilafat would not be violated and favourable peace terms would be offered to Turkey.

But when Turkey was defeated in the war, the promises were forgotten. Turkish Empire was broken. Indian Muslims felt agitated over this. Gandhi sympathised with the Khilafat cause. He felt that Hindus should help the Muslim in their need. For him, it was an excellent opportunity to forge communal unity, bring Muslims in the freedom movement and form a common front against the British.

The Khilafat Committee was formed. It demanded that terms of treaty with Turkey should be changed to satisfy the Indian Muslims. Gandhi suggested the programme of Non-Cooperation with the British Government. This programme was adopted by the Committee in May The redressal of injustice of Punjab and Khilafat and the attainment of Swaraj became the key issue.

The masses were getting awakened. A special session of Congress in September accepted the programme. The Nagpur Congress in December endorsed it enthusiastically. The programme was not just negative. It included the building of new institutions. National Education was encouraged. Stress was laid on Khadi. Charkha became the symbol of freedom. The Congress was completely reorganised and a new constitution drafted by Gandhi was adopted to make it a mass organisation and a useful tool for the struggle.

The movement started with hartal, fasting and prayers. It soon spread like wildfire. The freedom movement had become a mass movement. Gandhi declared the Swaraj could be won within one year if the programme was fully implemented. People showed great unity, determination and courage. Hundreds of National schools were established. Tilak Swaraj Fund was over-subscribed.

About 20 lakh charkhas began to be plied in the country. The boycott shook the Government. Masses looked to him as a saint, as an incarnation of God who had come to free them from slavery and poverty. The Government started repression. Arrests were made. Firing took place at some places. Disturbances broke out at Bombay and Gandhi had to fast to control the situation.

By the end of , the number of prisoners had risen to 30, Processions and meetings were being broken up. The masses were getting impatient. Call was given for Civil Disobedience. Gandhi wanted to start the campaign step-by-step. He chose Bardoli in Gujarat for starting the campaign. Notice was given to Government on the 1st February However, the movement had to be called off within a few days.

Gandhi was shocked. He realised that people had not fully accepted non-violence. He persuaded the Congress to suspend the agitation. Gandhi was arrested in March and was sentenced to 6 years' imprisonment. He was kept in the Yeravda jail near Pune. Gandhi was freed from jail in on the ground of health. The country was witnessing a wave of communal riots.

Gandhi fasted for 21 days in October He toured the entire country. He laid stress on the charkha and the removal of untouchability. Political atmosphere in the country began to change slowly. There was a wave of labour strikes in Armed revolutionaries stepped up their activities. There was widespread discontent among the peasants. The historic Satyagraha at Bardoli in Gujarat showed its intensity.

Bardoli was a tehsil in Gujarat. The peasants thought it unjust. Vallabhbhai Patel studied the case. He was convinced that the peasants were right. The peasants decided to withhold the payment until the enhancement was cancelled or an impartial tribunal appointed for setting the case. Gandhi blessed the Satyagraha. It started in February Vallabhbhai Patel led the struggle.

He organised sixteen camps under the charge of volunteers. His organisation was superb. It earned him the title 'Sardar'. The government tried its best to terrorise the people and extract the payment. It tried flattery, bribery, fines, imprisonment and lathi-charge. Pathans were brought in to threaten the people. The cattle was taken away and lands auctioned at several places.

Patel kept up the people's morale. His volunteers were arrested. People imposed a social boycott on the Government officials and against those who bought auctioned property. Seven members of the Legislative Council resigned in protest against the Government repression. Several village officials, too, resigned their posts. He was remarkably successful at getting the entire country to support Kheda during the agitations.

As part of the concessions, Britain agreed to release all the prisoners that were arrested during the protests. Also, the lands that were seized from the farmers were returned to them. He devoted his life to the pursuit of a united front in India in order to fight against British imperialism. In exchange, Britain would grant India self-rule and government swaraj after the war was over.

Britain failed to relinquish its hold on British India. Instead, Britain offered only a minuscule set of reforms to Indians. It was this betrayal that prompted Gandhi to begin his civil disobedience and protest satyagraha. Britain responded with the Rowlatt Act, which barred Indians from engaging in any form of civil disobedience. Culprits were arrested and sentenced to prison often with no trial.

In view of those developments, he reached out to the Muslims and tried to corporate with them in the fight against Britain. He worked extensively with the Sunni Muslims and the Khilafat movement, an organization that was in bed with the Ottomans. This move of Gandhi drew sharp criticism from influential Hindus in the society. They were against all sorts of cooperation with the Sunni Muslims.

Regardless, his cooperation with the Muslims catapulted him into the most prominent Indian civil rights activist at the time. His efforts also helped reduce tensions between Hindus and Muslims. He reasoned that should that cooperatin come to an end, British rule in India would end. So he sought to halt all forms of cooperation with Britain. This stance of his came after Britain failed to heed his protest against the passage of the Rowlatt Act, a very discriminatory law that economically and politically disenfranchised Indians.

Upon the passage, he galvanized his nation and rallied scores of people to engage in what is termed as satyagraha, peaceful protest. Additionally, he entreated his fellow Indians to boycott English goods and services. In April , he was arrested for defying an order to enter Delhi. Shortly after his arrest, there were massive protests and riots all across the country.

Those protests culminated in the Jallianwala Bagh massacre of April 13, On that day, scores of Indians were shot down by British officers under the command of Reginald Dyer. Gandhi was disheartened by the horrific events that took place Jallianwala. He criticized his fellow Indians for resorting to violent protests against Britain. He vehemently rejected such moves and called for only peaceful forms of protests.

To put an end to the violence, he engaged in a series of fasting rituals, which almost killed him. Shortly after that, the riots in the country abated and a modicum of law and order was restored. Buoyed on by this, he was elected leader of the Indian National Congress. Campaigning on themes such as Swaraj i. He sought to make India unattractive for Britain by going after the revenue streams.

He also became associated with khadi homespun cloth , refusing to wear any British-made clothes. He even took to spinning khadi himself. Additionally, he asked his fellow Indians not to stay away from British institutions, businesses and courts. All his nonviolent protests aimed to hurt Britain politically and economically. For this, he was arrested in March He was charged with sedition and slapped with a six-year prison sentence.

His release came after about two years on health grounds. University of Illinois Press. Towheed, Shafquat; Owens, W. London: Palgrave Macmillan UK. Retrieved 29 June Proceedings of the Indian History Congress. Los Angeles Times. ProQuest Gandhi Ashram. Rediscovering Gandhi. Gandhian studies and peace research series in Maltese. Archived from the original on 6 August Asian Spiritualities and Social Transformation.

Springer Nature. Archived from the original on 10 August Retrieved 10 August The sheer vagueness and contradictions recurrent throughout his writing made it easier to accept him as a saint than to fathom the challenge posed by his demanding beliefs. Gandhi saw no harm in self-contradictions: life was a series of experiments, and any principle might change if Truth so dictated.

Stuart Brown; et al. Biographical Dictionary of Twentieth-Century Philosophers. Bruce Journal of Indian History. Religious Studies. Gandhi's Philosophy and the Quest for Harmony. Retrieved 13 January Gier State University of New York Press. Retrieved 1 June Archived from the original on 21 November Archived from the original on 30 July The Gandhi-King Community.

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In Jinnah opposed satyagraha and resigned from the Congress, boosting the fortunes of the Muslim League. The Man who Divided India. Popular Prakashan. Contemporary South Asia. Editions, First Edition, pp. Political Theory. Gandhi staked his reputation as an original political thinker on this specific issue. Hitherto, violence had been used in the name of political rights, such as in street riots, regicide, or armed revolutions.

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Tribune India. BBC News. Archived from the original on 14 March Retrieved 21 December The Oxford Hindi-English Dictionary. Addresses in Durban and Verulam referred to Gandhi as a 'Mahatma', 'great soul'. He was seen as a great soul because he had taken up the poor's cause. The whites too said good things about Gandhi, who predicted a future for the Empire if it respected justice.

India-China Relations. Sunderlal Institute of Asian Studies. Ministry of Information and Broadcasting India. Dutta, Krishna ed. Rabindranath Tagore: an anthology. Robinson, Andrew. From year to year I have known him intimately for over twenty years I have found him getting more and more selfless. He is now leading almost an ascetic sort of life — not the life of an ordinary ascetic that we usually see but that of a great Mahatma and the one idea that engrosses his mind is his motherland.

Tirumalasetti suman biography of mahatma gandhi

Gokhale, dated Rangoon, 8 November , File No. Rabindranath followed suit and then the whole of India called him Mahatma Gandhi. But in when Gandhi was asked whether he was really a Mahatma Gandhi replied that he did not feel like one, and that, in any event, he could not define a Mahatma for he had never met any. Smithsonian National Postal Museum.

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Bombay: International Book House. OCLC Conquest of Violence: the Gandhian philosophy of conflict. Gandhi and Non-Violence. Brown, Judith Margaret Gandhi: Prisoner of Hope. Brown, Judith M. The Cambridge Companion to Gandhi ; 14 essays by scholars. Gandhi: a life. John Wiley. Gandhi and Philosophy: On Theological Anti-politics.

Bloomsbury Academic, UK. Dalton, Dennis Mahatma Gandhi: Nonviolent Power in Action. Columbia University Press. Dalton, Dennis a. Dhiman, S. Easwaran, Eknath Nilgiri Press. Hook, Sue Vander Amid the massive riots that followed Partition, Gandhi urged Hindus and Muslims to live peacefully together, and undertook a hunger strike until riots in Calcutta ceased.

In January , Gandhi carried out yet another fast, this time to bring about peace in the city of Delhi. You can opt out at any time. You must be 16 years or older and a resident of the United States. Your Profile. Email Updates. Mohandas Gandhi. Read more. History Rewind: Gandhi's Funeral