The Beginning of Revolutionary Extremism in India | History Optional for UPSC (Notes) PDF Download

Revolutionary Extremism

• Political Swadeshi in Bengal was declining by 1908, giving way to individual terrorism against British officials and Indian collaborators. This shift, as noted by Sarkar (1973), marked a transition from non-violence to violence and from mass action to elite action due to the failure of mass mobilization efforts.
• Even after the 1857 revolt was suppressed, the culture of violence as a means of political protest remained alive in India.

Maharashtra:

• In 1876-77,Vasudeo Balwant Phadke recruited a group of Ramoshis and other backward classes to engage in dacoities, aiming to fund a larger armed revolt against the British. He was captured in 1879, deported to Aden, died there in isolation.
• The revolutionary spirit was sustained in Maharashtra through the physical culture movement and the establishment of youth clubs. The Chapekar brothers, Damodar and Balkrishna, were notable figures in this movement.
• In 1897, the Chapekar brothers escalated their activities by assassinating W.C. Rand, the chairman of the Poona Plague Commission, who was blamed for the harsh measures taken during house searches for plague victims. Both brothers were eventually caught and executed, but their legacy persisted.

In Bengal:

• Militant nationalism emerged in Bengal during the 1860s and 70s, inspired by the physical culture movement. This movement led to the establishment of akhras(gymnasiums) with the aim of developing strong bodies, countering the colonial stereotype of effeminacy associated with the Bengalees, as advocated by Swami Vivekananda.
• The story of terrorism in Bengal began in 1902with the formation of several groups, including:
  • The Midnapur Society founded in 1902.
  • A gymnasium established by Sarala Ghosal in Ballygunge Circular Road, Calcutta.
  • The Atmonnoti Samiti formed by youths in central Calcutta.
  • The Anushilan Samiti established by Satischandra Basu in March 1902.
• Initially, the movement's progress was modest until the swadeshi movement in 1905 sparked a surge in secret society activities.
• The Dacca Anushilan Samiti was founded in October 1906 by Pulin Behari Das, leading to an all-Bengal conference of revolutionaries and the launch of the revolutionary weekly Yugantar.
• A faction within the Calcutta Anushilan Samiti, led by Barindra Kumar Ghosh, Hemchandra Qanungo, Prafullo Chaki, initiated militant actions. They organized the first swadeshi dacoity(robbery) in Rangpur in August 1906 and set up a bomb manufacturing unit in Maniktala, Calcutta.
• Revolutionary activities from 1907-08 focused on attempts to assassinate oppressive officials and spies, as well as robbing wealthy Saha merchants who refused to stop dealing in foreign goods.
• The movement faced a significant setback with the failed assassination attempt on Presidency Magistrate Kingsford in Muzaffarpur on April 30, 1908, by Khudiram Bose and Prafullo Chaki, followed by the arrest of the Maniktala group, including Aurobindo and Barindra Kumar Ghosh.

Achievements:

• In terms of direct gains, the terrorists achieved precious little; most of their attempts were either aborted or failed. They did not believe that assassinations or dacoities alone would bring about India's liberation, as Aurobindo's original idea was to prepare for an open armed revolution.
• However, they did achieve a lot. The hanging of Kudiram and the Maniktala Bomb Conspiracy, publicized by the press and immortalized in folk songs, fired the imagination of the entire Bengali population.
• C.R. Das, then a barrister without a brief, defended Aurobindo, arguing that if preaching the principle of freedom was a crime, then the accused was certainly guilty.
• To everyone's surprise, Aurobindo was acquitted; however, Barindra and Ullaskar Dutta were sentenced to death, while others were deported for life.
• On appeal, the death sentences were commuted to life imprisonment, some other sentences were also reduced. From this point onward, the movement went underground and became decentralized, but it did not die out.
• By now, revolutionary terrorism had gained legitimacy in the popular mindset, as many believed it was a more effective alternative to the earlier policies of the moderates.
• When the Morley-Minto Reforms were announced in 1909, many believed it was a response to the fear generated by revolutionary activities.
• As one historian suggests, the appointment of Lord S.P. Sinha as the law member in the viceroy's executive council was likely a result of the pressures created by terrorist activities.
• The partition of Bengal was annulled in 1911, although it was presented as a "coronation boon" from George V, it may not have been entirely unrelated to such pressures.
• However, there were other administrative considerations as well, the most significant being the transfer of the capital from Calcutta to Delhi—a move that certainly needed to be sugarcoated.
• This marked the end of Bengali dominance in Indian national politics. The Curzonian aim of weakening Bengali politicians was achieved in a different manner, now with less resistance.
• The annulment of partition did not stop militant nationalism. Violence was not caused by partition alone. The focus of activities shifted to Punjab and Uttar Pradesh. Here, Bengali revolutionaries were joined by Punjabis returning from North America, where they had formed the revolutionary Ghadr Party.
• The Ghadrites organized dacoities (robberies) across north India to raise funds. In 1912, they even plotted an unsuccessful attempt to assassinate the Viceroy Lord Hardinge.
• In September 1914, the stranded Punjabi Ghadrites on board the Kamagata Maru clashed with the army at Budge Budge near Calcutta.
• With the outbreak of World War One, there were grandiose plans to organize armed revolts in the Indian army with assistance from Germany or Japan.
• Rash Behari Bose, operating from Lahore, attempted to organize an army revolt across north India but failed to get a response from the sepoys and eventually fled to Japan.
• In Bengal, under the leadership of Jatin Mukherjee, revolutionaries tried to smuggle arms from Germany. However, their amateurish attempt ended in a failed battle with the British police at Balasore in Orissa.
• The government responded with severe repression during this period, using the wartime Defence of India Act (1915), which made terrorist attacks increasingly rare.
• Despite this, the threat of revolutionary violence persisted. This led to the drafting of the harsh Rowlatt Bills by the Sedition Committee in 1918. These bills provoked Mahatma Gandhi into action and marked a new phase in Indian politics, shifting the focus from violence to non-violence and from elite action to mass agitation.