The Partition and Swadeshi Movement in Bengal | History Optional for UPSC (Notes) PDF Download

Partition of Bengal

• Bengal was a large province with diverse languages and cultures, including Hindi, Oriya, Assamese speakers.
• It was a significant administrative region, with Calcutta as the capital of British India.
• The Indian National Congress was pushing for India's independence, the British saw the need to weaken Bengal, considered the center of nationalism.
• Lord Curzon aimed to divide Bengal to create a Muslim-majority eastern region and a Hindu-majority western region.
• This division was meant to ease administration and reduce nationalist fervor.
• The partition was politically motivated.
• Hindus were generally more economically successful and better educated than Muslims at the time.
• The British favored Hindus, partly due to their support during the pre-Sepoy Mutiny period.
• The British exploited the growing Muslim discontent.
• Even Lord Minto, Curzon’s successor, recognized the public disapproval of the partition but saw it as a necessary political strategy.
• The Partition of Bengal occurred on October 16, 1905, dividing the province into Bengal (with Calcutta as capital) and East Bengal and Assam (with Dhaka as capital).
• The division aimed to weaken Bengali influence by creating two administrations and reducing Bengalis to a minority in Bengal.
• The partition also sought to create a religious divide between Muslims and Hindus.
• Nationalists opposed the partition, leading to the anti-partition and Swadeshi movements.
• Due to strong protests, Bengal was reunited in 1911.
• A new partition based on language was later implemented, creating separate provinces for Hindi, Oriya, Assamese speakers.
• The capital of British India was also moved from Calcutta to New Delhi.

Swadeshi Movement

• The Swadeshi movement originated from the anti-partition movement, which began in 1905 with the partition of Bengal by Lord Curzon, the Viceroy of India, continued until 1911.
• It was the most successful of the pre-Gandhian movements, led by figures such as Aurobindo Ghosh, Lokmanya Bal Gangadhar Tilak, Bipin Chandra Pal, Lala Lajpat Rai, V. O. Chidambaram Pillai.
• The strong sense of unity among Bengalis, fostered by their regional independence, 19th-century cultural development, the spread of western education, a Hindu revivalist mood, fueled a vigorous resistance.
• Although the partition proposals affected Bengal in 1905, they had been in the public domain as early as 1903. Thus, the groundwork for the Swadeshi movement was laid back in 1903.
• The agitation against the partition began in 1903 but became more organized and intensified after the scheme was officially announced and implemented in 1905.
• Initially aimed at securing the annulment of the partition, the movement soon expanded into a broader movement known as the Swadeshi movement, addressing wider political and social issues.

Between 1903 to Mid-1905

• First Phase (1903-1905): Moderate methods such as petitions, memoranda, speeches, public meetings, press campaigns were predominant.
• The aim was to sway public opinion in India and England against the partition proposals by building a strong case against them, hoping to generate enough pressure to prevent the injustice.
• Leaders like Surendra Nath Banerjee and Prithwish Chandra Ray spearheaded a vigorous press campaign against the partition through journals and newspapers like the Bengalee, Hitabadi, Sanjibani.
• The four major newspapers in Calcutta - Bengalee, Amrita Bazaar Patrika, Indian Mirror, Hindu Patriot - protested against the division of Bengal.
• The Amrita Bazaar Patrika, on 14th December 1903, urged the people of East Bengal to hold public meetings in every town and village to prepare petitions for submission to the government, which were signed by lakhs of people.
• Vernacular newspapers like Sanjibani and Bangabashi openly opposed the proposal.
• Large protest meetings were held in Calcutta, numerous petitions were sent to the Government of India and the Secretary of State.
• Even major zamindars, previously loyal to the Raj, allied with Congress leaders.
• Despite widespread protests, the Government of India remained unyielding, the decision to partition Bengal was announced on 19 July 1905.
• This led nationalists to realize that moderate methods were ineffective, prompting the need for a different strategy.
• Shortly after the government announcement, spontaneous protest meetings erupted in various places, where the pledge to boycott foreign goods was first adopted.

1905 Onwards

• The Bengalis resorted to the boycott movement as a last measure after exhausting constitutional methods like protests, appeals, petitions, conferences to persuade the British to meet the unanimous national demand.
• The formal declaration of the Swadeshi Movement occurred on August 7, 1905, during a meeting at the Calcutta Town Hall.
• The movement, previously sporadic, gained focus and leadership at the August 7 meeting where the Boycott Resolution was passed.
• Even moderate leaders like Surendranath Banerjee supported the boycott of Manchester cloth and Liverpool salt.
• On September 1, the government announced the partition would take effect on October 16, 1905.
• The sale of British cloth in some mofussil districts dropped significantly between September 1904 and September 1905.
• The day of partition,October 16, 1905, was observed as a day of mourning across Bengal.
• People fasted, no fires were lit for cooking. In Calcutta, a hartal was declared, with processions and bands walking barefoot, bathing in the Ganges, singing Bande Mataram, which became the movement's theme song.
• People tied rakhis on each other's hands to symbolize the unity of the two halves of Bengal.
• Later that day,Anandamohan Bose and Surendranath Banerjea addressed large mass meetings, with crowds of about 50,000 people, among the largest nationalist gatherings at the time.
• Within hours, a sum of Rs. 50,000 was raised for the movement.
• The movement's goals and social base began to expand rapidly.
• The message of Swadeshi and the boycott of foreign goods spread across India:
• Lokamanya Tilak promoted the movement in Poona and Bombay.
• Ajit Singh and Lala Lajpat Rai spread the Swadeshi message in Punjab and northern India.
• Syed Haidar Raza led the movement in Delhi.
• Active participation was seen in Rawalpindi, Kangra, Jammu, Multan, Haridwar.
• Chidambaram Pillai spread the movement in the Madras presidency, supported by Bipin Chandra Pal's lecture tour.

Attitude of Congress

• In the Banaras Session of 1905, the Indian National Congress, led by G.K. Gokhale, supported the Swadeshi and Boycott Movement for Bengal. However, militant nationalists like Tilak, Bipin Chandra Pal, Lajpat Rai, Aurobindo Ghosh wanted to expand the movement nationwide and push for a broader political struggle aimed at Swaraj. They saw the abrogation of the partition as a minor goal.
• In 1906, at the Calcutta Session of the Indian National Congress, President Dadabhai Naoroji declared the goal of the Congress as Swaraj similar to that of the United Kingdom or its colonies. The Congress recognized Boycott as legitimate and supported the Swadeshi Movement. A resolution also emphasized the importance of national education for both boys and girls.
• The differences between the Moderates and Extremists escalated at the 1907 Surat session, leading to a split in the Congress, which had significant consequences for the Swadeshi Movement. After the split, the Congress under the Moderates did not revisit or discuss the 1906 resolution, viewing Bengal's issues as local and avoiding direct confrontation with the government.
• In Bengal, post-1905, the Extremists gained dominance over the Swadeshi Movement. New forms of mobilization and struggle techniques emerged at the popular level.
• The trend of ‘mendicancy’, petitioning, memorials declined. Militant nationalists introduced fresh ideas focusing on political independence through mass mobilization, extending boycotts into a comprehensive movement of non-cooperation and passive resistance.
• The extended boycott included boycotting foreign goods, government schools, colleges, courts, titles, government services, organizing strikes. The goal was to make the administration under present conditions impossible by an organized refusal to assist British Commerce and British officialdom.

Form of Struggle

• Boycott-cum-Swadeshi Movement: This movement aimed to promote indigenous goods while boycotting foreign products.
• Economic Swadeshi:
  • Negative Element: Involved the boycott and burning of foreign goods.
  • Positive Element: Focused on the regeneration of indigenous goods.
• Boycott:
  • The boycott of foreign goods gained significant popularity and practical success.
  • Manchester cloth was the main target, but the boycott also extended to other British products like salt, sugar, luxury goods.
  • Public actions included burning foreign cloth, picketing shops selling foreign goods, various forms of refusal and fines related to foreign items.
  • Tilak's View: Tilak viewed Swadeshi as a form of self-punishment, emphasizing its religious and cultural significance.

Self-reliance or Atmasakti:

• Self-reliance was a strong focus in the struggle against the government.
• It meant reasserting national dignity, honor, confidence.
• Tagore called for Rakhi Bandhan as a symbol of Hindu-Muslim unity.
• He wrote articles titled Atma Shakti.
• Self-help and constructive work at the village level aimed at social and economic regeneration.
• This involved social reform against caste oppression, early marriage, dowry system, alcohol consumption.
• Self-reliance included efforts to establish Swadeshi or indigenous enterprises.
• The boycott of foreign goods led to increased demand for indigenous goods, especially clothes.
• Mill owners of Bombay and Ahmedabad came to the rescue during this time.
• The boycott movement in Bengal provided momentum for Indian cotton mills.
• Bombay mill owners were accused of making huge profits at the expense of Bengali Sentimentalism.
• Bengal supplemented supply from Bombay mills with coarse production from handlooms.
• A popular song urged people to honor coarse cloth as a gift from the Mother.
• This period saw a surge of Swadeshi textile mills, soap and match factories, tanneries, banks, insurance companies.
• While many enterprises did not survive long, some, like Acharya P.C. Ray's Bengal Chemicals Factory, became successful.
• Swadeshi as an economic measure was not a new idea in India.
• It was advocated by figures like Gopal Hari Deshmukh, Swami Dayananda, Bholanath Chandra.
• The seeds sown by these figures took root due to the resolve of a united people.
• They were determined to forge the twin weapons of Boycott and Swadeshi to rectify wrongs by an arrogant government.

National Education

• One of the key aspects of the self-reliance programme was Swadeshi or national education.

Background:

• Students involved in promoting the boycott and Swadeshi movement faced harsh reprisals from the British Raj.
• Circulars were issued prohibiting students from participating in the Boycott movement under threat of severe penalties.
• Colleges whose students disobeyed were threatened with withdrawal of Government grants and disaffiliation.
• Authorities were instructed to monitor pupils closely and report any disobedience.
• This led to widespread indignation, with the Indian press strongly condemning the circulars.
• An anti-circular society was formed to rally students against the orders.
• In Rangpur, students defied government orders, leading to the establishment of a national school for expelled boys.
• Teachers faced resignation demands for not enforcing discipline.
• Students boycotted Calcutta University, labeling it a “House of manufacturing slaves.”
• The term national education was first used by Prasanna Kumar Tagore in 1839.
• Efforts in 1840 and 1846 aimed at establishing national education, but Satish Chandra Mukherjee and his Dawn Society popularized and organized it.
• In 1902, Mukherjee organized the Dawn Society to protest against inadequate university education.
• The Bengal National College was founded, with Aurobindo as principal, inspired by Tagore’s Shantiniketan.
• The National Council of Education was established in 1906 to organize education on national lines.
• Under the Council, numerous national schools were founded, like Jadavpur Engineering College.
• The medium of instruction was primarily vernacular, technical education efforts included sending students to Japan.
• The Swadeshi Movement had a significant impact on culture, with songs by Tagore and others becoming nationalistic anthems.
• In art, figures like Abanindranath Tagore and Nandalal Bose shifted focus from Victorian naturalism to indigenous traditions.
• In science, pioneers like Jagdish Chandra Bose and Prafulla Chandra Ray gained international recognition for their research.
• Economic boycott evolved into a broader non-cooperation movement aiming for political regeneration and eventual absolute freedom.

Methods of Mass Mobilization:

• Public Meetings and Processions: These became significant methods of mass mobilization while also serving as forms of popular expression.
• Corps of Volunteers (Samitis): Widely used in the Swadeshi Movement, these volunteer groups played a crucial role in mobilization.
• Swadesh Bandhab Samiti: Founded by Ashwini Kumar Dutt in Barisal, this was the most prominent volunteer organization.
• Impact of the Samiti: Dutt's Samiti, with 159 branches, reached remote areas and garnered mass support, especially among the Muslim peasantry.
• Activities of Samitis:
  (i) Spread the Swadeshi message through magic lantern lectures and songs.
  (ii) Provided physical and moral training to members.
  (iii) Engaged in social work during famines and epidemics.
  (iv) Organized schools and training in Swadeshi crafts.
  (v) Established arbitration courts.
• Expansion: While rooted in Barisal, samitis expanded their influence throughout Bengal.
• Use of Traditional Festivals: Festivals like Ganapati and Shivaji, popularized by Tilak, were used for Swadeshi propaganda.
• Folk Theatre: Traditional forms like jatras were effective in spreading the Swadeshi message.
• Ramsay Macdonald's Observation: Noted that Bengal was shaping India through song and worship during this period.

Social Boycott:

• Originated from the economic Swadeshi movement, it was a response against the Government's repressive actions.
• A social boycott was a potent tool used during this period.
• Individuals who sold or bought foreign goods or opposed the Swadeshi Movement in any way, thereby assisting the Government, faced various levels of humiliation.

Repressive Measures by the Government

• The government responded with harsh repression, including controls and bans on public meetings, processions, the press.
• During the 1906 Barisal Conference, police forcibly dispersed the gathering and brutally beat participants.
• In addition to boycotts and burning of foreign goods, people began using ‘peaceful picketing’, which became common in future political agitations.
• The police took the opportunity to interfere during these actions.
• Volunteers were treated roughly, those who resisted faced beatings with lathis.
• The police used ‘Regulation Lathis’ to disperse crowds, whether rioters or peaceful picketers.
• Shouting Bande Mataram in public became illegal, as it was seen as a sign of sympathy for the movement.
• The term “mild lathi charge” to describe police assaults was misleading, as the injuries were severe.
• The government instructed educational institutions to prevent students from joining the swadeshi movement.
• Student participants faced expulsion from government schools and colleges, being barred from government jobs, fines, sometimes beatings by police.
• Rural markets were controlled, processions and meetings were banned, leaders were confined without trial, loyal Muslims were turned against recalcitrant Hindus.
• Between 1907 and 1908:
  (i)Major leaders in Bengal, such as Ashwini Kumar Dutt and Krishna Kumar Mitra, were deported.
  (ii) Tilak received a six-year prison sentence.
  (iii) Ajit Singh and Lajpat Rai from Punjab were deported.
  (iv) Chidambaram Pillai and Harisarvottam Rao from Madras and Andhra were arrested.
  (v) Bipin Chandra Pal and Aurobindo Ghosh withdrew from active politics.
  (vi) The movement was left leaderless due to these actions.

Drawbacks, Effects, Estimate of the Swadeshi Movement

• The Swadeshi Movement faced several drawbacks and challenges that impacted its effectiveness and outcomes.
• A major issue was the lack of support from mass Muslims, influenced by British propaganda.
• Traditional customs and festivals used to mobilize people were misinterpreted by communal forces, leading to communal riots in Bengal.
• Lord Curzon's response included promises to Dacca, making it the capital of a new Muslim-majority province and establishing a university.
• This decision was criticized by some Hindu leaders in West Bengal.
• The division caused by the movement contributed to the split between Hindus and Muslims, leading to the formation of the Muslim League in 1906.
• The movement lacked effective organization and political structure.
• The struggle-pause-struggle technique of Mahatma Gandhi was not employed effectively.
• The split in the Congress in 1907 further weakened the movement.
• British repression intensified during this period.
• While the movement spread beyond Bengal, the rest of India was not yet prepared for this new style of politics.
• Initially, there was a significant decline in the import of British goods, particularly cloth.
• Passive resistance could not sustain for long, leading to the emergence of secret revolutionary organizations.
• Frustrated youth, once part of the mass movement, resorted to individual heroism as the movement declined.
• What began as a simple call to boycott foreign goods evolved into a symbol of nationalism.
• The movement drew in previously aloof classes like the landed aristocracy in Bengal.
• Outside Bengal, the movement disillusioned many and stimulated political thoughts across India.
• It emphasized 'atmasakti' or soul force, fostering self-reliance, confidence, and national pride.
• The movement had a lasting impact on various industries, such as textiles, soaps, matches.
• Banks and insurance companies emerged during this period.
• Bombay and Ahmedabad benefited greatly as industrialists filled the void left by reduced British imports.
• The movement also influenced cultural development and education in Bengal.
• It introduced new methods of mass mobilization, widening the social base of the movement.
• M.K. Gandhi valued the Swadeshi Movement for teaching people to challenge government authority without fear.
• The act of going to prison became a badge of honor.
• Ultimately, the Swadeshi Movement was the first round in the national struggle against colonialism.
• It played a significant role in the long and complex journey toward Indian independence.

Attitude of the Congress to Swadeshi Movement:

• In 1905, the Congress, led by Gokhale, strongly protested against the partition of Bengal, which had already taken place.
• The Moderates were hesitant to openly support the boycott. Under pressure from Bengal delegates, a vague compromise resolution was passed, leaving the approval of the boycott unclear.
• In 1906, the Extremists managed to secure better terms from the Moderates. The Congress, with Dadabhai Naoroji as President, recognized the boycott as legitimate and fully supported the Swadeshi Movement. Another resolution urged people to focus on national education for both boys and girls.
• The Extremists aimed to expand the movement beyond just Swadeshi and Boycott to a full-fledged mass struggle for Swaraj, but the Moderates were not ready for this.
• After the split in Surat in 1907, the Congress, under Moderate control, did not reiterate or discuss the 1906 resolution. They viewed Bengal's issues as local and avoided direct confrontation with the government.