Freedom Movements in Bihar - 2 | BPSC Preparation: All subjects - BPSC (Bihar) PDF Download

Freedom Movements in Bihar

Bihar played an active role in the uprisings and movements of the anti-British liberation struggles.
Some of the significant movements are listed in the table below:

Wahabi Movement

• Abdul Wahab of Saudi Arabia and Shah Waliullah of Delhi were the leaders of the movement.
• From 1828 to 1868, Patna was the administrative center under the leadership of Haji Shariyatullah.
• The Wahabi movement aimed to restore the former glory of Muslim rulers in the subcontinent by overthrowing the Sikhs in Punjab and ultimately the British throughout India.

Home Rule League in Bihar

The Home Rule League in Bihar was founded in Bankipore (Patna) on December 16, 1916. The key officials were:

• President: Mazhar-ul-Haque
• Vice-Presidents: Sarfaraz Hussain Khan and Purnendu Narain Sinha
• Secretaries: Chandravanshi Sahay and Baijnath Narain Singh

Revolutionary Activities

• In 1913, Sachindranath Sanyal established the Anushilan Samiti in Patna.
• To promote Vivekananda’s teachings, Bankimchandra Mitra of B.N. College founded the Hindu Boys Association under the guidance of the Anushilan Samiti.
• The monthly magazine YUVAK was launched in Patna.
• The Banaras Conspiracy Case of 1915 involved Sachindranath Sanyal and Bankimchandra Mitra.
• Kusum Kumari Devi and Gauri Das were two female revolutionaries from Bihar.
• The Patna Yuvak Sangh was formed in 1927.
• The Bihar Yuvak Sangh was established in Motihari in 1928, with Gyan Shah.
• Rambriksha Benipuri and Ambika Kant Singh founded the Patliputra Yuvak Sangh in Patna in 1929.
• The focus on religion led to limited Muslim participation, minimal involvement from upper-castes, and a lack of widespread engagement, making the movement a target for government repression.

Champaran Satyagraha

• Rajkumar Shukla and Raam Lal Shah invited Mahatma Gandhi to address the Tinkathia system, which required peasants to cultivate indigo on 3/20 of their land.
• This was Mahatma Gandhi’s first Satyagraha Movement, beginning in 1917, and is also known as the first Civil Disobedience Movement.
• Dr. Rajendra Prasad, Brajkishore Prasad, Acharya Kriplani, Dr. Anugrah Narayan Sinha, Mahadeo Desai, C. F. Andrews, H. S. Pollock, Raj Kishore Prasad, Ram Navami Prasad, Shambhu Sharan, and Dharnidhar Prasad joined Gandhi’s Satyagraha.
• The movement led the British government to form the Champaran Committee to investigate the injustices.
• Gandhi served on the committee and successfully convinced the authorities of the abuses under the Tinkathia system, leading to its abolition and a 25% compensation payment to the peasants.

Peasant Movement

• In response to the Zamindari acts, Swami Sahajanand Saraswati founded the Bihar Provincial Kisan Sabha in 1929, replacing the earlier Kisan Sabha established by Mohammad Zubair and Srikrishna Singh in 1922.
• To suppress peasants, zamindars also formed the United Political Party.
• The Bihar Kisan Sabha was established in 1933.
• In 1936, the All India Kisan Sabha was founded in Lucknow, with Swami Sahajanand Saraswati as its President.
• The struggle for independence, aimed at abolishing the feudal zamindari system, led to the rise of the Peasant movement.
• The Hindi weekly HUNKAR, published in 1940 by Pandit Yamuna Karjee and Rahul Sanskrityayan, documented the peasant uprising in Bihar.

Tribal Movement

The primary causes of the tribal uprisings included British land annexation, revenue-generating policies, foreign occupation, and the infringement of forest rights. These uprisings were often violent, disorganized, and localized.

• Ho and Munda: The revolt was organized under Raja Parhat in the 1820s in the Chotanagpur region.
• Kol: The Kol uprising, led by Budhu Bhagat, took place in 1831 in Chotanagpur.
• Bhumij: The Bhumij revolts, led by Ganga Narayan, occurred in 1832 in Singhbhum and Birbhum.
• Santhal: The Santhal rebellion, organized by Sidhu and Kanhu in the Rajmahal Hills, started in 1855. To suppress it, the British established Santhal Pargana. Kanhu was arrested in 1866.
• Munda Birsa: Led by Birsa Munda in 1899, this revolt was against the Forest Regulation Act of 1865, which allowed the British to declare forests as Government Forests and impose regulations. It was an agrarian, political, socio-religious movement (Ulgulan). Birsa Munda was imprisoned on March 3, 1900.
• Tana Bhagat: Led by Jatra Bhagat, this revolt took place in Chota Nagpur in 1914. It was primarily a religious movement centered around Hindu customs.

Non-Cooperation Movement

• The movement was launched by M.K. Gandhi in response to the Rowlatt Act, the Khilafat Movement, and the Jallianwala Bagh Massacre.
• At the Bihar Congress meeting in August 1920, Dharnidhar Prasad and Shah Mohammad Zubair introduced the non-cooperation resolution, with Dr. Rajendra Prasad presiding.
• Shah Mohammad Zubair and Mazhar-ul-Haq were appointed to Dr. Rajendra Prasad’s committee for the movement.
• In February 1922, M.K. Gandhi formally inaugurated the “Bihar National College” and its building, ‘Bihar Vidyapeeth’.
• To foster Hindu-Muslim unity and promote Gandhian ideals, Mazhar-ul-Haq launched the periodical Motherland in September 1921.
• The Congress organized protests against the visit of the British Prince of Wales to Bihar.

Swarajist Movement

• The All India Congress Session, chaired by Chitaranjan Das in Gaya in December 1922, resulted in a split within the Congress into two ideological factions.
• One faction supported the introduction of the Legislative Council, while the other opposed it and backed Gandhi’s policy.
• Vallabhbhai Patel, C. Rajagopalachari, and M.A. Ansari opposed the entry into the Legislative Council, while C.R. Das, Motilal Nehru, and Ajmal Khan supported it.
• The Swaraj Dal was founded by Motilal Nehru and Chitranjan Das. Narayan Prasad was the first Chairman, and Abdul Bari was the first Secretary.
• In Bihar, Srikrishan Singh established a branch of the Swaraj Dal.

Boycott Movement

• The campaign aimed to support domestic goods and boycott foreign products.
• The Congress committee in Bihar initiated a Khadi promotion campaign, which included a signature drive in villages using magic lanterns.

Simon Commission

• Anurag Narayan Sinha convened an All Party Meeting to advocate for a boycott of the Simon Commission.
• When the commission arrived in Patna on December 12, 1928, it was met with protests and slogans of ‘Simon Go Back’.

Purna Swaraj (Complete Independence Resolution)

• The Bihar Congress Working Committee endorsed the proposal for the Congress to declare complete independence by raising the flag on January 20, 1930.

Civil Disobedience Movement

• The Salt Satyagraha was organized by Dr. Rajendra Prasad, with April 6, 1930, set as the start date.
• To ensure the movement's success, Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru visited Bihar between March 31 and April 3, 1930.
• The movement began in Champaran and Saran districts and later expanded to Patna, Bettiah, Hajipur, and Darbhanga.
• A Swadeshi Committee was established in Patna.
• Women from various sections of society actively participated in the movement.
• The movement not only promoted Khadi but also condemned alcohol consumption and refused to pay the Chaukidari tax.
• Prominent leaders included Sachidanand Sinha, Hasan Imam, and Sir Ali Imam.
• Concurrently, the Bihpur Satyagraha was launched.
• Key areas of the movement’s expansion included Champaran, Bhojpur, Purnia, Saran, and Muzaffarpur.
• Other active leaders included Chandarvati Devi and Ramsunder Singh.
• Rai Bahadur Dwarkanath resigned from the Bihar Legislative Council to protest the lathi charge on Dr. Rajendra Prasad and Prof. Abdul Bari.
• The movement faced severe repression, with Gorkha Police being deployed.

Bihar Socialist Party

• Rambriksh Benipuri, Ramanand Mishra, and Ganga Sharan Sinha founded the Bihar Socialist Party in 1931.
• In 1934, Jai Prakash Narayan convened a conference at Patna’s Anjuman Islamia Hall, where the Bihar Congress Socialist Party was established.
• Acharya Narendra Dev was the first president, and Jai Prakash Narayan was appointed as the general-secretary.

Kisan Sabha and Bihar

• In 1922, Mohammad Zubair and Sri Krishna Singh organized the Kisan Sabha in Munger.
• Swami Shajanand Saraswati established the Bihar Provincial Kisan Sabha in 1929 to address peasants' grievances regarding zamindars' exploitation.
• Zamindars formed the United Political Party to suppress the peasants.
• The Bihar Kisan Sabha was founded in 1933.
• In 1936, the All India Kisan Sabha was formed, with NG Ranga as secretary and Swami Shajanand Saraswati as president.
• The Hindi weekly "Hunkar" was established in 1940 by Pandit Yamuna Karjee and Rahul Sankrityayan, becoming a prominent voice for the peasant and agrarian movement in Bihar.

First Congress Cabinet in Bihar

• The Government of India Act, 1935, introduced constitutional reforms, provincial autonomy, and dual administration, leading to significant progress.
• In the elections, held across 152 zones, Congress candidates won 98 out of 107 seats, showing strong electoral support.
• Despite Congress's majority, Sri Krishna Singh declined to form a government, leading to Mohammad Yunus, the leader of independent candidates, becoming the first Prime Minister of Bihar in a minority government.
• Three months later, on July 20, 1937, Sri Krishna Singh established his cabinet.
• Sri Ramdayalu Singh and Prof. Abdul Bari were appointed as the Speaker and Deputy Speaker of the Legislative Council, respectively.
• The new government achieved notable reforms, including lifting restrictions on newspapers, releasing political prisoners, addressing Kashtkari Bandobast issues, and improving the status of Harijans.
• Sri Krishna Singh resigned following the British decision for India’s participation in World War II and Congress’s subsequent protest.

Quit India Movement

• Mahatma Gandhi launched the Quit India Movement on August 8, 1942, garnering widespread support across India.
• The movement's plan of action was drafted on July 31, 1942, by the Bihar Congress Committee under Dr. Rajendra Prasad's chairmanship.
• The national flag was raised across various locations, but British authorities intervened to suppress the movement.
• District Magistrate W.C. Archer issued shoot-on-sight orders at several locations to control the unrest.