Which one of the following statements is/arecorrect with reference to ...
- The Swadeshi Movement had its genesis in the anti-partition movement which was started to oppose the British decision to partition Bengal.
- The attempt, at that time in the words of Lord Curzon, the Viceroy (1899-1905) was to ‘dethrone Calcutta’ from its position as the ‘centre from which the Congress Party is manipulated throughout Bengal, and indeed which the Congress Party centre of successful intrigue’ and ‘divide, the Bengali speaking population.’
- Risley, the Home Secretary to the Government of India, was more blunt. He said on 6 December 1904: ‘Bengal united, is power, Bengal divided, will pull several different ways.
- In December 1903, the partition proposals became publicly known, and immediate and spontaneous protest followed. Surendranath Banerjea, Krishna Kumar Mitra, Prithwishchandra Ray and other leaders launched a powerful press campaign against the partition proposals through journals and newspapers like the Bengalee, Hitabadi and Sanjibani.
- Vast protest meetings were held in the town hail of Calcutta in March 1904 and January 1905, and numerous petitions (sixty-nine memoranda from the Dacca division alone), some of them signed by as many as 70,000 people were sent to the Government of India and the Secretary of State. Even, the big zamindars who had hitherto been loyal to the Raj joined forces with the Congress leaders who were mostly intellectuals and political workers drawn from journalism, law and other liberal professions. Hence statement 1 is not correct.
- The day partition took effect — 16 October 1905 — was declared a day of mourning throughout Bengal. People fasted and no fires were lit at the cooking hearth.
- In Calcutta, a hartal was declared. People took out processions and band after band walked barefoot, bathed in the Ganges in the morning and then paraded the streets singing Bande Mataram which, almost spontaneously, became the theme song of the movement.
- The Indian National Congress took up the Swadeshi call and the Banaras Session, 1905, presided over by G.K. Gokhale, supported the Swadeshi and Boycott Movement for Bengal.
- The militant nationalists led by Tilak, Bipin Chandra Pal, Lajpat Rai and Aurobindo Ghosh were, however, in favour of extending the movement to the rest of India and carrying it beyond the programme of just Swadeshi and boycott to a full-fledged political mass struggle.
- The aim was now Swaraj and the abrogation of partition had become the ‘pettiest and narrowest of all political objects” The Moderates, by and large, were not as yet willing to go that far. Hence statement 2 is not correct.
- The differences between the Moderates and the Extremists, especially regarding the pace of the movement and the techniques of struggle to be adopted, came to a head in the 1907 Surat session of the Congress where the party split with serious consequences for the Swadeshi Movement.
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Which one of the following statements is/arecorrect with reference to ...
Overview of the Swadeshi Movement
The Swadeshi Movement emerged in the early 20th century as a response to British colonial policies, particularly following the partition of Bengal in 1905. It aimed to promote Indian goods and foster self-reliance.
Analysis of Statements
Statement 1: Big Zamindars of Bengal's Loyalty
- The assertion that big zamindars of Bengal remained loyal to the British is **incorrect**.
- Many zamindars were initially supportive of the British due to their interests in land revenue.
- However, during the Swadeshi Movement, some zamindars shifted their stance, either by supporting the movement or remaining neutral, reflecting the diverse reactions to colonial rule.
Statement 2: Indian National Congress and the Swadeshi Movement
- The claim that the Indian National Congress supported the Swadeshi Movement at the Banaras Session is also **incorrect**.
- While there was an intent to extend the movement, the Congress was divided on the issue, with moderate leaders advocating for constitutional methods rather than mass agitation.
- The Banaras Session of 1905 did not see a unified or formal endorsement of the Swadeshi Movement as a mass struggle.
Conclusion
Given the inaccuracies in both statements, the correct answer is:
Option D: Neither 1 nor 2
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