How Did the Hindu-Muslim Divide Affect the Nationalist Movement in India in the Late Nineteenth and Early Twentieth Centuries?
Essay Preview: How Did the Hindu-Muslim Divide Affect the Nationalist Movement in India in the Late Nineteenth and Early Twentieth Centuries?
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CHRONOLOGY 1880 Ð- 1947
Founding of Indian National Congress (INC); moderate phase
of Nationalism
1890s
Dissension Movement
Cow Protection Movement
Partition of Bengal on 10th October; Ðswadeshi (own country) movement boycotts foreign products; radical nationalism; British suppression of leaders
Foundation of All India Muslim League (AML)
Split in Congress at Surat session
Morely-Minto Reforms Ð- modest political reforms giving Indians slightly more representation on legislative councils; Indian Councils Act
Reunification of Bengal
Start of World War One (WW1) Ð- Indian soldiers fight for British
Mohandas Gandhi
returns from South Africa
Jinnah becomes President of AIML Ð- INC and AIML united against British
Chelmsford-Montague Reforms Ð- promised limited representative democracy Split between AIML and INC
India Act, Rowlatt Satyagraha Ð- beginning of mass politics
1920-22
Non-cooperation-Khilafat Movement under Gandhi; introduction of Satyagrapha policy and non-violence; Hindu-Muslim unity; ended because of rising violence
1920
Jinnah leaves Congress
1928
Landless labourers resisted dominant peasants in Bardoli
1929
Congress formally accepts goal of purna swarah (complete self-rule)
1930-31
Second Civil Disobedience Movement; Salt March (1930)
1931
Civil Disobedience halted; Gandhi takes part in meetings with the Viceroy and attends Second Round Table Conference
1932-34
Civil Disobedience resumed but called off as a result of violence
Government of India Act signed
Cripps Mission; August: Quit India Resolution; Gandhi arrested
End of World War II; Labour party elected to power in Britain Ð- promise of independence for India
Muslim Communal Violence
14th August: Pakistani Independence; 15th August: Indian Independence
Indian nationalism developed from the 1880s towards independence in 1947. During Indias journey towards independence there were two specific challenges that needed to be overcome. The first major obstacle was the internal divisions. These internal divisions could be roughly classified into three areas: religious, regional and class differences. The second major obstacle was the British in India. The latter challenge, however, contributed greatly to the earlier. British manipulation of Indian internal differences was a key element in the maintenance of British control over India.
Nationalism
To get a clear understanding, one must first define nationalism. In an Indian context there were two broad strands of nationalism developing simultaneously. Firstly, there was a communal nationalism promoting a sense of identity between people of the same religion, caste or linguistic group. For example, during the Cow protection movement of 1893 people identifying themselves as Hindu moved against those who identified as Muslim. On the other hand, Secular nationalism promotes identity across a broader range, therefore, people identified as Indians not as Tamil or Bengali (regional) or as Muslim or Hindu (religious). The idea was to carry a concept of self-determination irrespective of colour, creed or class.
Religious Divisions
The main divide in Indian society was between the Hindu majority and the large Muslim minority. When the British first conquered India, the British viewed the community they had supplanted (the Muslim community) as their natural enemy. The Hindu majority took advantage of the foreigners pro-Hindu tendencies and by the 1880s the middle class was predominantly Hindu. When the Indian National Congress (INC) was founded in 1885, it consisted mainly of Hindu professionals and moderate elites. Although the INC was not specifically Hindu, many Muslims felt excluded. The lack of response by the INC to the Cow protection riots of 1893 may have contributed to Muslim feelings of exclusion. However, this did motivate Muslim to create the All India Muslin League (AIML) in 1906.
As mentioned before and probably very central to the divisions between Muslim and Hindu were the Cow Protection riots of 1893. These riots occurred when devout Hindus sought to rescue cows, venerated by Hindus, from Muslim slaughter houses. However, religious violence was often incited to protect economic interest as well. In the Gangetic plains an influx of workers was putting Hindu artisans out of work. Violence was incited by the Hindu community against Muslims and Untouchables to protect their jobs.
Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi wrote, “Hindu-Muslim unity means swarajÐ without unity, no certain progress can be made by the nation.” Under Gandhis leadership Hindus and Muslims did work successfully together. For example, during the 1920-1922 non-cooperation movement, Gandhi was able to get the INC involved with the Khilafat movement. The Khilaf was the ruler of the Ottoman Empire in Turkey and viewed by Muslims as the spiritual successor to Muhammad. The British defeated Turkey and deposed the Khilaf amid Muslim protest. Hindus joined in the Muslim protest. However, this unity was short-lived as it disintegrated into violence and the movement was called off. Gandhi was