The next session was held at Bombay in December 1889
under the presidentship of Sir William Wedderburn.
under the presidentship of Sir William Wedderburn.
Cambridge History of India - v4 - Indian Empire
The attitude of the Eng-
lish officials was described as “despotic. ” It was contended
that "the European local officers scattered over the country at
great distances from one another, and having large districts to
attend to, far beyond their powers of supervision, and dependent
to a very great degree on their subordinates, are compelled to dis-
pose of the greater part of their business in a very imperfect man-
ner; and their statements to Government—whether emanating
from persons who it is known may be trusted or from those in
whose accuracy Government are aware no confidence can be plac-
ed—are on system accepted as equally trustworthy and the offi-
cial vindication of the acts of government founded thereon. The
necessary result of this system is that Government is one of first
impressions. " It was alleged that as the work of the Govern-
ment was done in secrecy, it tended "to engender and perpetuate
amongst the young servants of Government an illiberal and des-
potic tone; to give full scope to the prejudices, the ignorance, and
the self-sufficiency of all; to discourage progress; to discounten-
ance all schemes of improvement emanating from independent and
disinterested sources, and not within the views of the officers to
whose department they are referred; and to cramp all agriculture
or commercial energy-all individual enterprise. The Associa-
tion protested against the "exorbitant salaries of many highly
paid officers whose duties are so trifling or involve comparatively
so little labour or responsibility that they might with advantage
be amalgamated with other offices or remunerated in a manner
commensurate with the nature of the duties to be performed. "
The foreign character of the administration was criticised and it
was contended that “the time has arrived when the natives of
India are entitled to a much larger share than they have hitherto
had in the administration of the affairs of their country and that
the Councils of the Local Governments should, in matters of gen-
eral policy and legislation, be opened, so as to admit of respect-
## p. 725 (#765) ############################################
THE BOMBAY ASSOCIATION
725
able and intelligent natives taking a part in the discussion of mat-
ters of general interest to the country, as suggested by Lords
Ellenborough, Elphinstone and others. ' It was contended that
there was absolutely no substance in the contention that the In-
dians were not fit to hold positions of trust and responsibility. It
was pointed out that “the decisions of the native judges were in
every respects superior to those of the Europeans. It was also
pointed out that the declaration in the Charter Act of 1833 that
no native of India shall be disqualified from office by reason only
of his religion, place of birth, descent or colour, had remained a
dead letter and nothing had been done to put the same into prac-
tice. It was also urged that the executive Government should
.
always include “some persons trained and experienced in public
offices of England who can bring to the consideration of public
affairs a more extended knowledge and wider view than are to be
expected from those European gentlemen who have passed all
their days from boyhood in the bad systems of this country and
know no other by which to compare and improve them. ”
It is true that the petitions submitted by the Bombay Associa-
tion did not have much effect immediately but they undoubtedly
created a lot of stir in London. The result was that an India Re-
form Society with John Bright as one of its associates, was set up
to put forward the point of view of the Indians.
During his visit to London, Dadabhai Nauroji addressed many
meetings of the newly formed East India Association. He was
able to convince the English people that the educated Indians
were not satisfied at all. He put a lot of emphasis on the exclu-
sion of Indians from the higher services. To quote him, “Either
the educated natives should have proper fields for their talents
and education open to them in the various departments in the
administration of the country, or the rulers must make up their
minds and candidly avow it, to rule the country with a rod of
iron. ” On his return to India in 1869, Dadabhai Nauroji dec-
lared that the goal of all patriotic Indians was the attainment of a
Parliament in India. He also urged the Indians to set up in Eng-
land an organisation to “fight the last and greatest battle of repre-
sentation. "
In 1868, Sisir Kumar Ghosh started the 'Amrita Bazar Patrika'.
Through the instrumentability of this newspaper and even other-
wise, he attacked all forms of governmental restrictions on civil
liberties and the economic exploitation of India by Great Britain.
He called upon the Government to solve the problem. of unem-
ployment among the educated classes. He demanded that "the
Indian Nation” be given a democratic, representative government,
## p. 726 (#766) ############################################
726
THE NATIONALIST MOVEMENT IN INDIA
men
specifically a Parliament on the lines of the British Parliament.
In 1875, he founded the India League as a focal point for the dis-
trict bodies after failing to persuade the British Indian Associa-
tion to lower its annual subscription from Rs. 50. He fixed the
annual subscription of the India League at Rs. 5 which was well
within the means of the educated middle classes of Bengal. The
India League was the first political body in India which set up
links with political groups outside Bengal. Sisir Kumar Ghosh
went to Bombay to create unity between the political organisations
of the two Presidencies. While in Bombay, he found that Ganesh
Vasudeo Joshi had already founded in 1870 the Poona Sarva-
janik Sabha which counted among its members
like
Ranade, Gokhale and Tilak later on. The members of this Sabha
were elected by the caste groups and other interests. It is true
that the Poona Sarvajanik Sabha was a major centre of Western
Indian political activity for a few decades but it never assumed
an all-India role.
In 1876, the Indian Association was set up by Surendranath
Banerjea. It became the centie of an all-India movement based
on the conception of a united India derived from the inspiration
of Mazzini. It was an organisation of the educated middle classes
with a view to creating public opinion by direct appeals to the
people. In 1877, the maximum age limit for the Civil Service
Examination was lowered from 21 to 19. It was rightly consi-
dered to be a deliberate attempt to blast the prospects of Indian
candidates from the Indian Civil Service. The Indian Associa-
tion organised a national protest against this measure.
public meeting was
held at Calcutta. Surendranath Banerjea
also went on a tour of India and with the object of creating a
strong public opinion against the measure addressed meetings at
Agra, Lahore, Amritsar, Meerut, Ambala, Delhi, Kanpur, Luck-
now, Banaras and Aligarh. The object of those meetings has been
described by Banerjea in these words: “The agitation was the
means; the raising of the maximum
of the maximum limit of age for the open
competitive examination and the holding of simultaneous exami-
nations were among the ends; but the underlying conception and
the true aim and purpose of the Civil Service agitation was the
awakening of a spirit of unity and solidarity among the people
of India. ” The tour of Mr. Banerjee was a great success.
To
quote Sir Henry Cotton, “The idea of any Bengalee influence in
the Punjab would have been a conception incredible to
Lord
Lawrence. . . . Yet it is the case that during the past year the tour
of a Bengalee lecturer lecturing in English in Upper India, assumed
the character of a triumphal progress; and at the present moment
A big
## p. 727 (#767) ############################################
FOUNDATION OF INDIAN NATIONAL CONGRESS 727
the name of Surendranath Banerjea excites as much enthusiasm
among the rising generation of Multan as in Dacca. ”
In 1883, an incident occurred in Calcutta which aroused indig-
nation amongst the orthodox Hindus everywhere. It was alleged
that a certain British High Court judge insisted on the produc-
tion in court of a stone idol for identification. That was contrary
to the prevailing practice and it was condemned by Surendranath
Banerjea who asked: “What are we to think of a judge who is
so ignorant of the feelings of the people and so disrespectful of
their most cherished convictions as to drag into court and then to
inspect, an object of worship which only Brahmans are allowed to
approach, after purifying themselves according to the forms of
their religion? ” Surendranath Banerjea was tried for contempt of
court and put in jail. That further added to excitement and re-
sentment. After his release, there was a large scale popular de-
monstration.
The Calcutta National Conferences of 1883 and 1885 and
the National Fund campaign showed a rapid advance towards an
all-India ideal. However, as the Bengalees dominated these orga-
nisations, they failed to appeal to the country as a whole. That
is the reason why by and by the Indian Association ard the Na-
tional Conference were ultimately eclipsed by the Indian National
Congress.
The initiative for the foundation of the Indian National Con-
gress came from Mr. A. O. Hume who was a retired British civi-
lian. During his official career in India, Mr. Hume had formed
strong views in favour of an early attainment of self-government
by India. When he retired in 1882, he began to evolve a definite
scheme for creating a united public opinion in the country. On
March 1, 1883, he issued a circular letter to the graduates of the
Calcutta University in which the following passage occurs: “Con-
stituting as you do a large body of the most highly educated
Indians, you should, in the natural order of things, constitute also
the most important source of all mental, moral, social and poli-
tical progress in India. Whether in the individual or the nation,
all vital progress must spring from within and it is to you, her most
cultured, enlightened minds, her most favoured sons that your
country must look for initiative. In vain, many aliens like my-
self love India and her children, as well as the most loving of
these; in vain may they, for her and their good, give time and
trouble, money and thought; in vain may they struggle and sac-
rifice; they may assist with advice and suggestions; they may place
their experience, abilities and knowledge at the disposal of the
workers, but they lack the essential of nationality, and the real
## p. 728 (#768) ############################################
728
THE NATIONALIST MOVEMENT IN INDIA
work must ever be done by the people of the country themselves. ”
He proposed that a beginning should be made with a body of 50
founders who were to act as a mustard seed of future growth. “If
only 50 men, good and true, can be found to join as founders, the
thing can be established and the future development would be
comparatively easy. "
He further added: “As I said before, you are the salt of the
land. And if amongst even you, the elite, fifty men cannot be
found with sufficient power of self-sacrifice, sufficient love for and
pride in their country, sufficient genuine and unselfish heartfelt
patriotism to take the initiative, and if needs be, devote the rest
of their lives to the Cause—then there is no hope for India. Her
sons must and will remain mere humble and helpless instruments
in the hands of foreign rulers, for 'they would be free, themselves
must strike the blow'. And if even the leaders of thought are
all either such poor creatures, or so selfishly wedded to personal
concerns, that they dare not or will not strike a blow for their
country's sake, then justly and rightly are they kept down and
trampled on, for they deserve nothing better. Every nation se-
cures precisely as good a government as it merits. If you, the
picked men, the most highly educated of the nation, cannot, scorn-
ing personal ease and selfish objects, make a resolute struggle to
secure greater freedom for yourselves and your country, a more
impartial administration, a larger share in the management of
your own affairs, then we your friends are wrong, and our adver-
saries right; then are Lord Ripon's noble aspirations for your good
fruitless and visionary; then, at present, at any rate, all hopes of
progress are at an end, and India truly neither lacks nor deserves
any better government than she now enjoys. Only, if this be so,
let us hear no more fractious, peevish complaints that you
kept in leading strings, and treated like children, for you will have
proved yourselves such. Men know how to act. Let there
no
more complaints of Englishmen being preferred to you in all im-
portant offices, for if you lack that public spirit, that highest form
of altruistic devotion that leads men to subordinate private ease
to the public weal, that true patriotism that has made Englishmen
what they are—then rightly are these preferred to you, and rightly
and inevitably have they become your rulers. And rulers and task-
masters they must continue, let the yoke gall your shoulders never
so sorely, until you realise and stand prepared to act upon the
eternal truth that, whether in the case of individuals or nations,
self-sacrifice and unselfishness are the only unfailing guides to
freedom and happiness. ”
The appeal did not fall on deaf ears. The required number
are
9
## p. 729 (#769) ############################################
MOTIVES OF HUME
729
as
of persons did come forward from all parts of India and the first
meeting of the Indian National Union which was subsequently
renamed Indian National Congress was arranged to be held at
Poona in December 1885. However, its venue had to be shifted
to Bombay. The original proposal was to request Lord Reay,
Governor of Bombay, to be the President of the first session of the
Indian National Congress. However, the idea was dropped
Lord Dufferin advised the Governor against the acceptance
of
the offer as the very idea of the head of the Executive Govern-
ment of a province associating himself with such a movement
was "absurd. " Mr. W. C. Bonnerjea, a leading barrister of
Calcutta and a very safe and loyal person, was elected the first Pre-
sident. A large number of delegates came from different parts
of the country and the most important among them were Phe-
rozeshah Mehta, Dadabhai Naoroji, K. T. Telang, Dinshaw
Wacha, etc. The meeting was truly a national gathering consist-
ing of leading men from all parts of India. In his presidential
address, Mr. Bonnerjea laid down the following as the objects
of the Congress :
1. “The promotion of
of personal intimacy and friendship
amongst all the more earnest workers in our country's cause in the
various parts of the Empire.
2. “The eradication by direct friendly personal intercourse of
all possible race, creed or provincial prejudices amongst all lov-
ers of the country, and the fuller development and consolida-
tion of those sentiments of national unity that took their origin
in our beloved Lord Ripon's ever memorable reign.
3. “The authoritative record of the matured opinions of the
educated classes in India on some of the more important and
pressing of the social questions of the day.
4. “The determination of the methods by which during the
next twelve months it is desirable for native politicians to labour
in public interest. ”
There has been a lot of controversy regarding the real motives
of Mr. Hume in founding the Indian National Congress. Mr.
W. C. Bonnerjea was the first to propound the thesis that the
Indian National Congress as an all India political organization
owed its origin to the scheming brain of Lord Dufferin. The
latter called for Mr. A. 0. Hume and convinced him that his
proposal to set up an all-India organisation to reform social evils
of Indian society was not going to achieve much and it was de-
sirable to set up an all-India political organisation which could
point out to the Government the defects of the administration
and also suggest how the same could be removed. The view of
## p. 730 (#770) ############################################
730
THE NATIONALIST MOVEMENT IN INDIA
Dufferin was that the proposed organisation should do the same
work in India as was being done by His Majesty's Opposition
in England. Mr. Hume discussed this proposal with the Indian
politicians and they decided to work it out. The view of Mr.
Bonnerjea is supported by Mr. Wedderburn, the biographer of
Mr. Hume. This view was also supported by Lala Lajpatrai
in “Young India. ” The view of Lala Lajpatrai was that Dufferin
and Hume worked out the plan of an “innocuous and loyal"
political organisation to serve as a "safety valve” for the escape
of the mounting dangers that beset the British Empire. The
view of Dr. Pattabhi Sitaramayya in “History of the Indian Na-
tional Congress" is that Lord Dufferin and Mr. Hume worked in
unison and evolved a plan of a political organisation.
It is undoubtedly true that Mr. Hume had inherited liberal
tendencies and his sentimental heart leapt for the general good
of humanity. However, his liberalism was limited in so far as
India was concerned, to the provision of a clean and sympathetic
administration coupled with some sort of independent representa-
tion for the Indians in the Legislative Councils. He attacked the
oppressive, heartless and race-conscious bureaucracy in India.
He brought to the notice of Lord Dufferin cases of official exces-
ses against the people. Hume had great faith in the good sense
of Lord Dufferin and urged him from time to time to play the
hero and become the benefactor of India. In a letter dated 28
June, 1886, he urged Lord Dufferin “to act directly and ener-
getically on our behalf, leaving Lord Kimberley (Secretary of
State for India) and any one else to like it or lump it. You are
big enough to do-that is what cuts me to the heart. --that God
should, as it were, have brought the one man who could do it-
into the one position in which it can be done and yet you won't
act. ” Mr. Hume wanted Lord Dufferin to appoint a Commission
atonce to consider and report on a definite scheme for the introduc-
tion of a representative element into the legislative councils. He
exhorted Lord Dufferin in these words: “Your first duty is to the
people of India whom God has committed to your charge; ranks,
talents, reputation have been conferred on you by the Almighty to
enable you to perform that duty effectively, unfettered by official
traditions and party policy. ” However, Lord Dufferin was not
prepared to become a hero like Lord Ripon. As a matter of fact,
he was a critic of Ripon's policy, which, according to him, consist-
ed in “extensive speechyfying" and "Midlothianizing” of India.
Mr. Hume was a true well-wisher of British imperialism and
wanted it to continue in India. He was fully aware of the mount-
ing discontentment in the country. That was the reason why he
## p. 731 (#771) ############################################
SESSIONS OF THE CONGRESS
731
asked Lord Dufferin to grant political concessions before it was
too late. On 13 August, 1886, Mr. Hume wrote to Lord Dufferin:
“I only want you, Dear Lord Dufferin, to understand—to think
for yourself—you who have read and realised history-what all
this means—what it must come to, unless you and some one bestir
themselves to disinfect the insalubrious streams of the administration
by turning into them the purer element of independent indigenous
representation. . . . Perhaps you feel the whole thing as fully as my-
self, but you seem to me not to realise the danger--the absolute
necessity of opening early, before the great pressure comes on new
and greatly improved safety valves. ” Mr. Hume did not join the
Indian National Conference organised by Surendranath Banerjee as
the latter had very advanced political views. The organisation set up
by Mr. Hume consisted of moderate and loyal Indians alone. That is
the reason why the first offer was made to the Governor of Bombay
to become the President. Mr. W. C. Bonnerjea, who was actually
selected the first President, was the model of a loyal Indian and
he ridiculed all sorts of political agitation. It goes without saying
that Mr. Hume was loyal to the British Crown. As a matter of
fact, his association with the Indian National Congress was res-
ponsible for the loyalty of the Congress to the British Crown for a
long time. It is well known that at the Calcutta session of the
Congress, Dadabhai Naoroji praised the blessings of the British rule
in India and he was cheered by the members of the audience. Mr.
Hume moved a resolution for three cheers for Her Most Gracious
Majesty, the Queen Empress and a further resolution for the long
life of the Queen. Mr. Hume advised his colleagues in the Indian
National Congress to look upon Lord Dufferin not as an enemy
but as a friend and well-wisher. To quote him, “If in action a
neutral, Dufferin was at least a passive friend desirous of the wel-
fare of the people and enlargement of their liberties. ” This view
was not shared by his colleagues and that is why there were some-
times differences between them. The contention of his colleagues
was that Dufferin was not a true man and Mr. Hume behaved
towards him like a child. In spite of this, his colleagues advised
Mr. Hume to continue his friendly relations with Lord Dufferin
lest he should maliciously thwart their organisation. Lord Duffe-
rin also maintained an attitude of indifference towards the Indian
National Congress.
The second meeting of the Indian National Congress was held
in 1886 at Calcutta. Lord Dufferin invited the members of the
Congress as “distinguished visitors” to a garden party at the Gov-
ernment House. A similar welcome was given by the Governor
of Madras in 1887. However, a change took place in the attitude
## p. 732 (#772) ############################################
732
THE NATIONALIST MOVEMENT IN INDIA
of the Government. After the Madras Session in 1887, an aggres-
sive propaganda was started among the masses. Hume published
a pamphlet entitled "An Old Man's Hope” in which he appealed
to the people of England in these words: “Ah Men! well fed and
happy! Do you at all realize the dull misery of these countless
myriads? From their births to their deaths, how many rays of sun-
shine think you chequer their ‘gloom-shrouded paths’? Toil, Toil,
Toil; hunger, hunger, hunger; sickness, suffering, sorrow; these
alas, alas, alas are the key-notes of their short and sad existence. '
Hume made arrangements in England for propaganda in the
press in favour of India. He was also able to enlist the support of
a few members of the British Parliament. In April 1888, he made
a vigorous speech at Allahabad in which he advocated propaganda
among the masses of India in the same way as the Anti-Corn Law
League had done in England. That was not liked by the British
bureaucracy in India and it was suggested that the Indian National
Congress be suppressed and Hume be deported to England. In
October 1888, Sir A. Colvin, Lieutenant-Governor of the North-
Western Provinces, addressed a letter to Hume covering 20 printed
pages and warned him of the consequences of his action. Hume's
reply covered 60 pages. On account of the attitude of bureau-
cracy, it became difficult to hold the session at Allahabad in Decem-
ber 1888, but Sir Luchmesher Singh, Maharajadhiraj of Dar-
bhanga, came to its rescue by purchasing the property known as
Lowther Castle where the session was held.
was held. Andrew Yule, a
European magnate of Calcutta, presided over the Allahabad Ses-
sion.
The next session was held at Bombay in December 1889
under the presidentship of Sir William Wedderburn. It was at-
tended by Charles Bradlaugh, a member of the British Parliament.
Bradlaugh spoke in such a loud and clear voice that he was heard
not only in every corner of the pandal but also by the people out-
side. He declared: “For whom should I work if not for the people?
Born of the people, trusted by the people, I will die for the people. ”
Dadabhai Naoroji, a member of the British House of Commons,
was elected the President of the Lahore Session of the Congress held
in December, 1893. His travel from Bombay to Lahore presented
the spectacle of a procession. Citizens of the various places on the
way presented him addresses. At the Sikh Golden Temple of
Amritsar, he was given a robe of honour. Dadabhai brought the
following message from the Irish members of the British Parlia-
ment: “Don't forget to tell your colleagues at the Congress that
every one of the Ireland's Home Rule members in Parliament is at
your back in the cause of the Indian people. ” The next session
was held at Madras in 1894 under the presidentship of Alfred
## p. 733 (#773) ############################################
CALCUTTA SESSION OF THE CONGRESS
733
Webb, an Irish member of the British Parliament. The next ses-
sion at Poona was presided over by Surendra Nath Banerjee in 1895.
The President had such a memory that without looking at the
printed address, he was able to repeat orally, word for word, the
whole of his address for two hours. Gokhale presided over the
Banaras session in 1905.
The next session was held at Calcutta in 1906 under the Presi-
dentship of Dadabhai Naoroji. On that occasion, Dadabhai un-
furled the flag of Swaraj for India and the following four resolu-
tions on self-government, boycott movement, Swadeshi and national
education were passed by the Congress:
(1) Resolved that this Congress is of opinion that the system of
Government obtaining in the Self-Governing British Colonies should
be extended to India and that, as steps leading to it, it urges that
the following reforms should be immediately carried out:
(a) All examinations held in England only should be simul-
taneously held in India and in England, and that all
higher appointments which are made in India should be
by competitive examination only.
(b) The adequate representation of Indians in the Councils
of the Governors of Madras and Bombay.
(c) The expansion of the Supreme and Provincial Legislative
Councils, allowing a larger and truly effective representa-
tion of the people and a large control over the financial
and executive adminisiration of the country.
(d) The powers of local and municipal bodies should be ex-
tended and official control over them should not be more
than what is exercised by the Local Government Board in
England over similar bodies.
(2) Resolved that having regard to the fact that the people of
this country have little or no voice in its administration, and their
representations to the Government do not receive due consideration,
this Congress is of opinion that the boycott movement inaugurated
in Bengal by way of protest against the partition of that Province
was and is, legitimate.
(3) Resolved that this Congress accords its most cordial sup-
port to the Swadeshi movement and calls upon the people of the
country to labour for its success, by making earnest and sustained
efforts to promote the growth of indigenous industries, and to sti-
mulate the production of indigenous articles by giving them prefer-
ence over imported commodities, even at some sacrifice.
(4) Resolved that in the opinion of this Congress the time has
arrived for the people all over the country earnestly to take up the
question of national education for both boys and girls and organize
## p. 734 (#774) ############################################
734
THE NATIONALIST MOVEMENT IN INDIA
a system of education, literary, scientific and technical, suited to
the requirements of the country on National lines and under
National control.
The next session was to be held at Nagpur but the venue was
shifted to Surat on account of the unfavourable atmosphere at
Nagpur. Tilak was opposed to the policy of the Congress at that
time. He did not want the Congress to go back on its resolution
of 1906 at the instance of the Moderates. On December 23, 1907,
he declared at Surat: “We have not come to cause a split in the
Congress; we did not want to hold a separate Congress; we want
to see that the Congress does not go back. We solemnly say that
we want to see the Congress moving with the times. But the people
who brought the Congress to Surat, although Nagpur was willing
to have it, are going to drag the Congress back. They have no
moral courage. They are against the word boycott though they
are for Swadeshi. When you profess to accept Swadeshi, you must
boycott Videshi (foreign) goods: without boycott Swadeshi can-
not flourish. The fight is between two principles: (1) earnest-
ly doing what is right, and (2) doing it but not displeasing the
Government. I belong to the party which is prepared to do
what it thinks right whether the Government is pleased or dis-
pleased. We are against the policy of mendicancy. Many young
gentlemen in Bengal have gladly suffered for this attitude. No
one has any authority to make the Congress recede from its ideal.
We do not come here to embarrass the Moderates; but we are
determined not to allow the Congress to retrograde. If they
are not prepared to brave the dangers, let them be quiet, but they
should not ask us to retrograde. We have come here to fight out
constitutionally; we will behave as gentlemen even if our oppo-
nents do not do so. Our opponents create rowdyism when they
fear defeat. We are fighting against foreign autocracy. Why
should we allow this home autocracy? The Congress is an organ-
isation of all people and the voice of the people should predomi-
The policy of the Moderates is destructive. I don't want
you to follow it; we want to progress. '
All attempts on the part of Tilak and his colleagues failed to
bring about a compromise between the Moderates and the Extrem-
ists before the open session of the Congress. Although the agenda
of the Congress session was not distributed among the delegates,
Tilak happened to get a copy of the draft of the proposed constitu-
tion as prepared by Gokhale. A perusal of the draft showed that
there was clearly a change in the objective of the Congress different
from the one declared at Calcutta in 1906. This was too much
for Tilak. He pointed out that the proposed constitution was a
nate.
## p. 735 (#775) ############################################
SURAT CONGRESS
735
>
direct attempt to tamper with the ideal of self-government on the
lines of self-governing colonies and to exclude the Extremists from
the Congress by making the acceptance of the new creed a condi-
tion precedent for Congress membership. He declared that if he
and his colleagues were assured that no sliding back of the Con-
gress would be attempted, opposition to the election of the Presi-
dent would be withdrawn. He agreed to a Joint Committee repre-
senting the points of view of the two sides to settle the question in
dispute. However, the Moderates were not willing to compromise.
They were determined to have things in their own way. The
reaction of the Extremists was: “The retrogression of the Congress
was a serious step not to be decided upon only by a bare accidental
majority of any party, either in the Subjects Committees or in the
whole Congress (as at present constituted) simply because its ses-
sion happens to be held in a particular place or province, in a
particular year; and the usual unanimous acceptance of the Presi-
dent would have, under such exceptional circumstances, greatly
weakened the point and force of the opposition.
When the Congress met on December 27, 1907, the atmosphere
was surcharged and there were all kinds of rumours.
The name
of Dr. Rash Behari Ghosh was proposed for the Presidentship. When
Surendra Nath Banerjee got up to second the proposition, attempts
were made to shout him down and pandemonium prevailed in the
Pandal. The meeting had to be adjourned. The next day, Dr.
Ghosh was elected the President, but when he got up to deliver his
presidential address, Tilak ascended the platform, stood in front of
the President and demanded that he be allowed to address the
audience. He refused to submit to the ruling of the chair that he
could not be allowed to address at that stage. While this tussle was
going on, the rank and file of the Extremists created trouble and
there were clashes. All efforts to persuade Tilak failed. He stood
with folded arms and refused to go to his seat unless he was bodily
removed. Some persons from Nagpur and Poona rushed to the
platform with Lathies in their hands. A shoe was hurled from the
audience and it struck Pherozeshah Mehta. Pandemonium pre-
vailed. Chairs were thrown at the dais and sticks were freely used.
The session had to be suspended.
On December 28, 1907, a convention of the Moderates was held
in the Congress Pandal from which the Extremists were excluded,
although some of them were ready and willing to sign the necessary
declaration. Those who did not wish to go back from 'he position
taken at the Calcutta Congress met at a separate place to consider
what steps were to be taken to continue the work of the Congress.
It was in this way that the Surat session of the Congress ended.
## p. 736 (#776) ############################################
736
THE NATIONALIST MOVEMENT IN INDIA
After the Surat fiasco, it was clear that the Moderates were not
prepared to yield to the Extremists. They knew that once the
plant of extremism was planted, it was bound to grow. They were
not prepared for any compromise. Tilak was ridiculed, abused
and called a traitor. The Moderate press wrote such things as the
following: "Tilak has been feeding the flames which have burnt the
Congress to ashes. He is not a patriot, but a traitor to the country,
and has blackened himself. May God save us from such patriots.
In spite of the attacks from the Moderates, Tilak was prepared to
accommodate them. He wrote thus in the Kesari: “It is a mistake
to suppose that a difference of opinion as to ultimate ideals should
prevent Indians from cooperating with one another, for gaining a
common end. We see that Radicals, Socialists, Democrats and
others, though labouring for widely different ideals, are able to
cooperate with one another in Parliament for advancing the interests
of their country as a whole. With this example before our eyes,
does it not betake a lack of liberality to insist that the representa-
tives of a certain school of Indian politicians should alone be admit-
ted to the National Congress. The duty that lies before our
politicians is not to seek to eradicate all differences of opinion but
to secure the cooperation of men holding divergent views for the
accomplishment of common ends. Whatever our difference may
be about the ideals, we Moderates and Extremists should unite in
carrying on the work of the National Congress. The rise of a new
Party necessarily produces friction with the old but it is the duty
of the wise men not to make much of this friction but to carry on
national work in cooperation with the new Party. ”
In 1908, a change was made in the constitution of the Indian
National Congress. Under the new constitution, delegates to the
Congress were to be elected only by the Congress Committees and
Associations affiliated to the Congress and not by other bodies or
public meetings. The result was that the Extremists were exclud-
ed from the Congress and Tilak and his followers remained outside
till 1915 when a compromise was brought about.
RISE OF EXTREMISM
Many factors were responsible for the rise of extremism in the
Congress. The Indian Councils Act, 1892 did not satisfy the as-
pirations of even the Moderates. It was contended that the policy
of appeals and prayers had brought forth no result. The Govern,
ment of India considered that policy as a sign of weakness. To
quote Tilak, “Political rights will have to be fought for. The
Moderates think that these can be won by persuasion. We think
## p. 737 (#777) ############################################
RISE OF EXTREMISM
737
that they can only be obtained by strong pressure. ” The constant
economic drain on the resources of the country due to foreign
domination added to the discontentment in the country. The writ-
ings of men like Dinshaw Wacha, R. C. Dutt and Dadabhai
Naoroji proved that the impoverishment of the people of India was
largely due to the deliberate policy of the British Government. The
policy of the Government of India sacrificed the industries of India
in the interests of British manufacturers. There seemed to be no
prospects for Indian industries.
Another cause was the discontent created by the outbreak of
famine in 1897. If affected about 20 million people and 70,000
square miles of Indian territory. The attitude of the Government
of India was rather unhappy. While the people were in the grip
of famine, the Government was busy in celebrating the Jubilee
Celebrations of Queen Victoria. The money which was required
for the relief of the people was being wasted on needless celebra-
tions. This was interpreted as an attitude of callousness on the
part of the Government.
The outbreak of the Bubonic Plague in Bombay Presidency also
added to the discontentment among the people. It is true that the
Government of India adopted certain measures to check the spread
of the disease but the methods adopted by it were unfortunate. No
consideration was shown for the sentiments of the people. Mr.
Rand, the Plague Commissioner of Poona, was most ruthless in
his operations. To quote Ram Gopal, “Rand moved with a regu-
lar army of coolies and Policemen at his heels, pulled down infest-
ed dwellings, had the inmates forcibly removed to segregation
camps. At many places beddings and clothes were burnt with the
object of destroying plague germs. This would have been tolerat-
ed had the denuded people been provided germ-free clothes but
this was not done. Similarly, essential articles of life were des-
troyed, leaving the owners thereof weeping and destitute. Rand
entered any part of the house, even the kitchen or the room where
the family idols were kept. Locks were freely picked to see if any
plague cases were concealed in the closed houses. Armed Indian
Police and European soldiers, with revolvers in their hands, rushed
into the women's apartments. From the unlocked houses, house-
hold effects were sometimes removed, never to be returned. Huts
were burnt down. Some soldiers employed in such parties broke
open the cash boxes and safes of shopkeepers. Others believed that
sewing machines could not in any way be disinfected and must be
burnt. Another party thought it necessary to burn glass chande-
liers, which they found in a house where a case had occurred. The
whole proceedings resembled the sacking of a conquered town by
## p. 738 (#778) ############################################
738
THE NATIONALIST MOVEMENT IN INDIA
the enemy. ” (Lokmanya Tilak, p. 137). Such a state of affairs
could not be tolerated by the people and no wonder the plague
policy of the Government was attacked vigorously by the critics of
the Government, particularly Tilak. The resentment was so great
that Mr. Rand and one of his associates were shot dead when they
were returning from the Government House from Bombay after
taking part in the Jubilee Celebrations of Queen Victoria.
Another cause was the revival of Hinduism. Swami Viveka-
nanda attended in 1893 the Parliament of Religions at Chicago
and explained to his audience the greatness of Hindu religion. The
Swami had faith in the spiritual mission of India and it was felt
that the same was not possible without the independence of the
country. Aurobindo Ghosh declared: “Independence is the goal
of life and Hinduism alone will fulfil this aspiration of ours. ” Tilak
was also the product of Hindu revival and, no wonder, he put great
emphasis on the Hindu festivals and the consolidation of the Hindus
for the emancipation of India. The Theosophical Society also
made its contribution in this direction. Sir Valentine Chirol says:
“The advent of the Theosophists headed by Madame Blavatski,
Col. Olkott and Mrs. Besant gave a fresh impetus to the revival
and certainly no Hindu has so much organised and consolidated
the movement as Mrs. Besant, who in her Central Hindu College
at Banaras and her Theosophical Institution at Adyar near Madras
has openly proclaimed the superiority of the whole Hindu system
to the vaunted civilisation of the West. Is it surprising that the
Hindus should turn their heads back upon our civilisation when
a European of highly intellectual power and with an extraordinary
gift of eloquence, comes and tells them that it is they who possess
and have from all times possessed the key to supreme wisdom, that
their gods, their philosophy, their morality, are on a higher plane
of thought than the West has ever reached? "
The exclusion of the intelligentsia of India from all the big jobs
in the country created bitterness. The anti-Indian policy of Lord
Curzon added to the discontentment. The view of Lord Curzon
was that “the highest ranks of civil employment must, as a general
rule, be held by Englishmen. ” He emphasised that it was only the
Englishmen who by their birth and training were fit to rule India,
and not the Indians. According to him, Providence had selected
the Englishmen to rule over India and to give freedom to India
was against the will of God. Such a theory of divine right to rule
could not be palatable to the Indians who were learning to demand
the right to govern themselves. Lord Curzon was a bureaucrat par
excellence and he put the greatest emphasis on efficiency. He had
no sympathy with the aspirations of the people of India. As a
## p. 739 (#779) ############################################
PARTITION OF BENGAL
739
matter of fact, he ignored them altogether. He acted unmindful
of the reactions of the people. He regarded the administration as
a machine and acted only in the interests of the efficiency of the
machine, although the people were adversely affected by the
machine. His reign was full of “missions, omissions and commis-
sions. ” In 1899, he passed the famous Calcutta Corporation Act
which completely officialised the Calcutta Corporation. The total
number of the members of the Calcutta Corporation was reduced
from 75 to 50. The 25 members who were eliminated were those
persons who were the representatives of the people of Calcutta.
The result of this measure was that there was a European majority
in the Corporation. No wonder, the measure was vehemently con-
demned. In 1904 was passed the Indian Universities Act. This
law reduced the size of the Syridicates, Senates and Faculties with
a view to giving prominence to the Europeans. The result of this
law was that the Indian Universities became the most officialised
universities in the world. They were practically left with no auto-
nomy. In 1904 was also passed the famous Official Secrets Act.
The definition of the term "sedition" was widened. The Official
Secrets Acts of 1889 and 1898 related to the disclosure of only mili-
tary secrets. The Act of 1904 covered also the official secrets relat-
ing to the civil affairs and newspaper criticism which were likely
to bring the government into suspicion or contempt.
On 16 October 1905, Lord Curzon partitioned Bengal into two
parts. His real object was to create a Muslim majority province
although he put forward the plea of administrative convenience.
While the Muslims and the Englishmen in India welcomed the
partition, all the nationalist elements in the country opposed it.
Lord Curzon personally went on a tour of Bengal and even address-
ed public meetings with a view to convert the people to accept the
formula of partition. Although he was not convinced of the logic
of opposition, he was satisfied as to the intensity of hatred against
partition. It is rightly pointed out that he came back from his
tour a sadder if not a wiser man.
The partition of Bengal aroused a very strong spirit of resistance.
Under the guidance of leaders like S. N. Banerjee, B. C. Pal, A. K.
Datta and Aurovindo Ghosh, the agitation against partition spread
like wild fire all over Bengal and even outside. Even a moderate
like Gokhale observed thus in 1905: “The tremendous upheaval
of popular feeling which has taken place in Bengal in consequence
of the partition will constitute a landmark in the history of our
national progress. . . . . . A wave of true national consciousness has
swept over the province. . . . .
lish officials was described as “despotic. ” It was contended
that "the European local officers scattered over the country at
great distances from one another, and having large districts to
attend to, far beyond their powers of supervision, and dependent
to a very great degree on their subordinates, are compelled to dis-
pose of the greater part of their business in a very imperfect man-
ner; and their statements to Government—whether emanating
from persons who it is known may be trusted or from those in
whose accuracy Government are aware no confidence can be plac-
ed—are on system accepted as equally trustworthy and the offi-
cial vindication of the acts of government founded thereon. The
necessary result of this system is that Government is one of first
impressions. " It was alleged that as the work of the Govern-
ment was done in secrecy, it tended "to engender and perpetuate
amongst the young servants of Government an illiberal and des-
potic tone; to give full scope to the prejudices, the ignorance, and
the self-sufficiency of all; to discourage progress; to discounten-
ance all schemes of improvement emanating from independent and
disinterested sources, and not within the views of the officers to
whose department they are referred; and to cramp all agriculture
or commercial energy-all individual enterprise. The Associa-
tion protested against the "exorbitant salaries of many highly
paid officers whose duties are so trifling or involve comparatively
so little labour or responsibility that they might with advantage
be amalgamated with other offices or remunerated in a manner
commensurate with the nature of the duties to be performed. "
The foreign character of the administration was criticised and it
was contended that “the time has arrived when the natives of
India are entitled to a much larger share than they have hitherto
had in the administration of the affairs of their country and that
the Councils of the Local Governments should, in matters of gen-
eral policy and legislation, be opened, so as to admit of respect-
## p. 725 (#765) ############################################
THE BOMBAY ASSOCIATION
725
able and intelligent natives taking a part in the discussion of mat-
ters of general interest to the country, as suggested by Lords
Ellenborough, Elphinstone and others. ' It was contended that
there was absolutely no substance in the contention that the In-
dians were not fit to hold positions of trust and responsibility. It
was pointed out that “the decisions of the native judges were in
every respects superior to those of the Europeans. It was also
pointed out that the declaration in the Charter Act of 1833 that
no native of India shall be disqualified from office by reason only
of his religion, place of birth, descent or colour, had remained a
dead letter and nothing had been done to put the same into prac-
tice. It was also urged that the executive Government should
.
always include “some persons trained and experienced in public
offices of England who can bring to the consideration of public
affairs a more extended knowledge and wider view than are to be
expected from those European gentlemen who have passed all
their days from boyhood in the bad systems of this country and
know no other by which to compare and improve them. ”
It is true that the petitions submitted by the Bombay Associa-
tion did not have much effect immediately but they undoubtedly
created a lot of stir in London. The result was that an India Re-
form Society with John Bright as one of its associates, was set up
to put forward the point of view of the Indians.
During his visit to London, Dadabhai Nauroji addressed many
meetings of the newly formed East India Association. He was
able to convince the English people that the educated Indians
were not satisfied at all. He put a lot of emphasis on the exclu-
sion of Indians from the higher services. To quote him, “Either
the educated natives should have proper fields for their talents
and education open to them in the various departments in the
administration of the country, or the rulers must make up their
minds and candidly avow it, to rule the country with a rod of
iron. ” On his return to India in 1869, Dadabhai Nauroji dec-
lared that the goal of all patriotic Indians was the attainment of a
Parliament in India. He also urged the Indians to set up in Eng-
land an organisation to “fight the last and greatest battle of repre-
sentation. "
In 1868, Sisir Kumar Ghosh started the 'Amrita Bazar Patrika'.
Through the instrumentability of this newspaper and even other-
wise, he attacked all forms of governmental restrictions on civil
liberties and the economic exploitation of India by Great Britain.
He called upon the Government to solve the problem. of unem-
ployment among the educated classes. He demanded that "the
Indian Nation” be given a democratic, representative government,
## p. 726 (#766) ############################################
726
THE NATIONALIST MOVEMENT IN INDIA
men
specifically a Parliament on the lines of the British Parliament.
In 1875, he founded the India League as a focal point for the dis-
trict bodies after failing to persuade the British Indian Associa-
tion to lower its annual subscription from Rs. 50. He fixed the
annual subscription of the India League at Rs. 5 which was well
within the means of the educated middle classes of Bengal. The
India League was the first political body in India which set up
links with political groups outside Bengal. Sisir Kumar Ghosh
went to Bombay to create unity between the political organisations
of the two Presidencies. While in Bombay, he found that Ganesh
Vasudeo Joshi had already founded in 1870 the Poona Sarva-
janik Sabha which counted among its members
like
Ranade, Gokhale and Tilak later on. The members of this Sabha
were elected by the caste groups and other interests. It is true
that the Poona Sarvajanik Sabha was a major centre of Western
Indian political activity for a few decades but it never assumed
an all-India role.
In 1876, the Indian Association was set up by Surendranath
Banerjea. It became the centie of an all-India movement based
on the conception of a united India derived from the inspiration
of Mazzini. It was an organisation of the educated middle classes
with a view to creating public opinion by direct appeals to the
people. In 1877, the maximum age limit for the Civil Service
Examination was lowered from 21 to 19. It was rightly consi-
dered to be a deliberate attempt to blast the prospects of Indian
candidates from the Indian Civil Service. The Indian Associa-
tion organised a national protest against this measure.
public meeting was
held at Calcutta. Surendranath Banerjea
also went on a tour of India and with the object of creating a
strong public opinion against the measure addressed meetings at
Agra, Lahore, Amritsar, Meerut, Ambala, Delhi, Kanpur, Luck-
now, Banaras and Aligarh. The object of those meetings has been
described by Banerjea in these words: “The agitation was the
means; the raising of the maximum
of the maximum limit of age for the open
competitive examination and the holding of simultaneous exami-
nations were among the ends; but the underlying conception and
the true aim and purpose of the Civil Service agitation was the
awakening of a spirit of unity and solidarity among the people
of India. ” The tour of Mr. Banerjee was a great success.
To
quote Sir Henry Cotton, “The idea of any Bengalee influence in
the Punjab would have been a conception incredible to
Lord
Lawrence. . . . Yet it is the case that during the past year the tour
of a Bengalee lecturer lecturing in English in Upper India, assumed
the character of a triumphal progress; and at the present moment
A big
## p. 727 (#767) ############################################
FOUNDATION OF INDIAN NATIONAL CONGRESS 727
the name of Surendranath Banerjea excites as much enthusiasm
among the rising generation of Multan as in Dacca. ”
In 1883, an incident occurred in Calcutta which aroused indig-
nation amongst the orthodox Hindus everywhere. It was alleged
that a certain British High Court judge insisted on the produc-
tion in court of a stone idol for identification. That was contrary
to the prevailing practice and it was condemned by Surendranath
Banerjea who asked: “What are we to think of a judge who is
so ignorant of the feelings of the people and so disrespectful of
their most cherished convictions as to drag into court and then to
inspect, an object of worship which only Brahmans are allowed to
approach, after purifying themselves according to the forms of
their religion? ” Surendranath Banerjea was tried for contempt of
court and put in jail. That further added to excitement and re-
sentment. After his release, there was a large scale popular de-
monstration.
The Calcutta National Conferences of 1883 and 1885 and
the National Fund campaign showed a rapid advance towards an
all-India ideal. However, as the Bengalees dominated these orga-
nisations, they failed to appeal to the country as a whole. That
is the reason why by and by the Indian Association ard the Na-
tional Conference were ultimately eclipsed by the Indian National
Congress.
The initiative for the foundation of the Indian National Con-
gress came from Mr. A. O. Hume who was a retired British civi-
lian. During his official career in India, Mr. Hume had formed
strong views in favour of an early attainment of self-government
by India. When he retired in 1882, he began to evolve a definite
scheme for creating a united public opinion in the country. On
March 1, 1883, he issued a circular letter to the graduates of the
Calcutta University in which the following passage occurs: “Con-
stituting as you do a large body of the most highly educated
Indians, you should, in the natural order of things, constitute also
the most important source of all mental, moral, social and poli-
tical progress in India. Whether in the individual or the nation,
all vital progress must spring from within and it is to you, her most
cultured, enlightened minds, her most favoured sons that your
country must look for initiative. In vain, many aliens like my-
self love India and her children, as well as the most loving of
these; in vain may they, for her and their good, give time and
trouble, money and thought; in vain may they struggle and sac-
rifice; they may assist with advice and suggestions; they may place
their experience, abilities and knowledge at the disposal of the
workers, but they lack the essential of nationality, and the real
## p. 728 (#768) ############################################
728
THE NATIONALIST MOVEMENT IN INDIA
work must ever be done by the people of the country themselves. ”
He proposed that a beginning should be made with a body of 50
founders who were to act as a mustard seed of future growth. “If
only 50 men, good and true, can be found to join as founders, the
thing can be established and the future development would be
comparatively easy. "
He further added: “As I said before, you are the salt of the
land. And if amongst even you, the elite, fifty men cannot be
found with sufficient power of self-sacrifice, sufficient love for and
pride in their country, sufficient genuine and unselfish heartfelt
patriotism to take the initiative, and if needs be, devote the rest
of their lives to the Cause—then there is no hope for India. Her
sons must and will remain mere humble and helpless instruments
in the hands of foreign rulers, for 'they would be free, themselves
must strike the blow'. And if even the leaders of thought are
all either such poor creatures, or so selfishly wedded to personal
concerns, that they dare not or will not strike a blow for their
country's sake, then justly and rightly are they kept down and
trampled on, for they deserve nothing better. Every nation se-
cures precisely as good a government as it merits. If you, the
picked men, the most highly educated of the nation, cannot, scorn-
ing personal ease and selfish objects, make a resolute struggle to
secure greater freedom for yourselves and your country, a more
impartial administration, a larger share in the management of
your own affairs, then we your friends are wrong, and our adver-
saries right; then are Lord Ripon's noble aspirations for your good
fruitless and visionary; then, at present, at any rate, all hopes of
progress are at an end, and India truly neither lacks nor deserves
any better government than she now enjoys. Only, if this be so,
let us hear no more fractious, peevish complaints that you
kept in leading strings, and treated like children, for you will have
proved yourselves such. Men know how to act. Let there
no
more complaints of Englishmen being preferred to you in all im-
portant offices, for if you lack that public spirit, that highest form
of altruistic devotion that leads men to subordinate private ease
to the public weal, that true patriotism that has made Englishmen
what they are—then rightly are these preferred to you, and rightly
and inevitably have they become your rulers. And rulers and task-
masters they must continue, let the yoke gall your shoulders never
so sorely, until you realise and stand prepared to act upon the
eternal truth that, whether in the case of individuals or nations,
self-sacrifice and unselfishness are the only unfailing guides to
freedom and happiness. ”
The appeal did not fall on deaf ears. The required number
are
9
## p. 729 (#769) ############################################
MOTIVES OF HUME
729
as
of persons did come forward from all parts of India and the first
meeting of the Indian National Union which was subsequently
renamed Indian National Congress was arranged to be held at
Poona in December 1885. However, its venue had to be shifted
to Bombay. The original proposal was to request Lord Reay,
Governor of Bombay, to be the President of the first session of the
Indian National Congress. However, the idea was dropped
Lord Dufferin advised the Governor against the acceptance
of
the offer as the very idea of the head of the Executive Govern-
ment of a province associating himself with such a movement
was "absurd. " Mr. W. C. Bonnerjea, a leading barrister of
Calcutta and a very safe and loyal person, was elected the first Pre-
sident. A large number of delegates came from different parts
of the country and the most important among them were Phe-
rozeshah Mehta, Dadabhai Naoroji, K. T. Telang, Dinshaw
Wacha, etc. The meeting was truly a national gathering consist-
ing of leading men from all parts of India. In his presidential
address, Mr. Bonnerjea laid down the following as the objects
of the Congress :
1. “The promotion of
of personal intimacy and friendship
amongst all the more earnest workers in our country's cause in the
various parts of the Empire.
2. “The eradication by direct friendly personal intercourse of
all possible race, creed or provincial prejudices amongst all lov-
ers of the country, and the fuller development and consolida-
tion of those sentiments of national unity that took their origin
in our beloved Lord Ripon's ever memorable reign.
3. “The authoritative record of the matured opinions of the
educated classes in India on some of the more important and
pressing of the social questions of the day.
4. “The determination of the methods by which during the
next twelve months it is desirable for native politicians to labour
in public interest. ”
There has been a lot of controversy regarding the real motives
of Mr. Hume in founding the Indian National Congress. Mr.
W. C. Bonnerjea was the first to propound the thesis that the
Indian National Congress as an all India political organization
owed its origin to the scheming brain of Lord Dufferin. The
latter called for Mr. A. 0. Hume and convinced him that his
proposal to set up an all-India organisation to reform social evils
of Indian society was not going to achieve much and it was de-
sirable to set up an all-India political organisation which could
point out to the Government the defects of the administration
and also suggest how the same could be removed. The view of
## p. 730 (#770) ############################################
730
THE NATIONALIST MOVEMENT IN INDIA
Dufferin was that the proposed organisation should do the same
work in India as was being done by His Majesty's Opposition
in England. Mr. Hume discussed this proposal with the Indian
politicians and they decided to work it out. The view of Mr.
Bonnerjea is supported by Mr. Wedderburn, the biographer of
Mr. Hume. This view was also supported by Lala Lajpatrai
in “Young India. ” The view of Lala Lajpatrai was that Dufferin
and Hume worked out the plan of an “innocuous and loyal"
political organisation to serve as a "safety valve” for the escape
of the mounting dangers that beset the British Empire. The
view of Dr. Pattabhi Sitaramayya in “History of the Indian Na-
tional Congress" is that Lord Dufferin and Mr. Hume worked in
unison and evolved a plan of a political organisation.
It is undoubtedly true that Mr. Hume had inherited liberal
tendencies and his sentimental heart leapt for the general good
of humanity. However, his liberalism was limited in so far as
India was concerned, to the provision of a clean and sympathetic
administration coupled with some sort of independent representa-
tion for the Indians in the Legislative Councils. He attacked the
oppressive, heartless and race-conscious bureaucracy in India.
He brought to the notice of Lord Dufferin cases of official exces-
ses against the people. Hume had great faith in the good sense
of Lord Dufferin and urged him from time to time to play the
hero and become the benefactor of India. In a letter dated 28
June, 1886, he urged Lord Dufferin “to act directly and ener-
getically on our behalf, leaving Lord Kimberley (Secretary of
State for India) and any one else to like it or lump it. You are
big enough to do-that is what cuts me to the heart. --that God
should, as it were, have brought the one man who could do it-
into the one position in which it can be done and yet you won't
act. ” Mr. Hume wanted Lord Dufferin to appoint a Commission
atonce to consider and report on a definite scheme for the introduc-
tion of a representative element into the legislative councils. He
exhorted Lord Dufferin in these words: “Your first duty is to the
people of India whom God has committed to your charge; ranks,
talents, reputation have been conferred on you by the Almighty to
enable you to perform that duty effectively, unfettered by official
traditions and party policy. ” However, Lord Dufferin was not
prepared to become a hero like Lord Ripon. As a matter of fact,
he was a critic of Ripon's policy, which, according to him, consist-
ed in “extensive speechyfying" and "Midlothianizing” of India.
Mr. Hume was a true well-wisher of British imperialism and
wanted it to continue in India. He was fully aware of the mount-
ing discontentment in the country. That was the reason why he
## p. 731 (#771) ############################################
SESSIONS OF THE CONGRESS
731
asked Lord Dufferin to grant political concessions before it was
too late. On 13 August, 1886, Mr. Hume wrote to Lord Dufferin:
“I only want you, Dear Lord Dufferin, to understand—to think
for yourself—you who have read and realised history-what all
this means—what it must come to, unless you and some one bestir
themselves to disinfect the insalubrious streams of the administration
by turning into them the purer element of independent indigenous
representation. . . . Perhaps you feel the whole thing as fully as my-
self, but you seem to me not to realise the danger--the absolute
necessity of opening early, before the great pressure comes on new
and greatly improved safety valves. ” Mr. Hume did not join the
Indian National Conference organised by Surendranath Banerjee as
the latter had very advanced political views. The organisation set up
by Mr. Hume consisted of moderate and loyal Indians alone. That is
the reason why the first offer was made to the Governor of Bombay
to become the President. Mr. W. C. Bonnerjea, who was actually
selected the first President, was the model of a loyal Indian and
he ridiculed all sorts of political agitation. It goes without saying
that Mr. Hume was loyal to the British Crown. As a matter of
fact, his association with the Indian National Congress was res-
ponsible for the loyalty of the Congress to the British Crown for a
long time. It is well known that at the Calcutta session of the
Congress, Dadabhai Naoroji praised the blessings of the British rule
in India and he was cheered by the members of the audience. Mr.
Hume moved a resolution for three cheers for Her Most Gracious
Majesty, the Queen Empress and a further resolution for the long
life of the Queen. Mr. Hume advised his colleagues in the Indian
National Congress to look upon Lord Dufferin not as an enemy
but as a friend and well-wisher. To quote him, “If in action a
neutral, Dufferin was at least a passive friend desirous of the wel-
fare of the people and enlargement of their liberties. ” This view
was not shared by his colleagues and that is why there were some-
times differences between them. The contention of his colleagues
was that Dufferin was not a true man and Mr. Hume behaved
towards him like a child. In spite of this, his colleagues advised
Mr. Hume to continue his friendly relations with Lord Dufferin
lest he should maliciously thwart their organisation. Lord Duffe-
rin also maintained an attitude of indifference towards the Indian
National Congress.
The second meeting of the Indian National Congress was held
in 1886 at Calcutta. Lord Dufferin invited the members of the
Congress as “distinguished visitors” to a garden party at the Gov-
ernment House. A similar welcome was given by the Governor
of Madras in 1887. However, a change took place in the attitude
## p. 732 (#772) ############################################
732
THE NATIONALIST MOVEMENT IN INDIA
of the Government. After the Madras Session in 1887, an aggres-
sive propaganda was started among the masses. Hume published
a pamphlet entitled "An Old Man's Hope” in which he appealed
to the people of England in these words: “Ah Men! well fed and
happy! Do you at all realize the dull misery of these countless
myriads? From their births to their deaths, how many rays of sun-
shine think you chequer their ‘gloom-shrouded paths’? Toil, Toil,
Toil; hunger, hunger, hunger; sickness, suffering, sorrow; these
alas, alas, alas are the key-notes of their short and sad existence. '
Hume made arrangements in England for propaganda in the
press in favour of India. He was also able to enlist the support of
a few members of the British Parliament. In April 1888, he made
a vigorous speech at Allahabad in which he advocated propaganda
among the masses of India in the same way as the Anti-Corn Law
League had done in England. That was not liked by the British
bureaucracy in India and it was suggested that the Indian National
Congress be suppressed and Hume be deported to England. In
October 1888, Sir A. Colvin, Lieutenant-Governor of the North-
Western Provinces, addressed a letter to Hume covering 20 printed
pages and warned him of the consequences of his action. Hume's
reply covered 60 pages. On account of the attitude of bureau-
cracy, it became difficult to hold the session at Allahabad in Decem-
ber 1888, but Sir Luchmesher Singh, Maharajadhiraj of Dar-
bhanga, came to its rescue by purchasing the property known as
Lowther Castle where the session was held.
was held. Andrew Yule, a
European magnate of Calcutta, presided over the Allahabad Ses-
sion.
The next session was held at Bombay in December 1889
under the presidentship of Sir William Wedderburn. It was at-
tended by Charles Bradlaugh, a member of the British Parliament.
Bradlaugh spoke in such a loud and clear voice that he was heard
not only in every corner of the pandal but also by the people out-
side. He declared: “For whom should I work if not for the people?
Born of the people, trusted by the people, I will die for the people. ”
Dadabhai Naoroji, a member of the British House of Commons,
was elected the President of the Lahore Session of the Congress held
in December, 1893. His travel from Bombay to Lahore presented
the spectacle of a procession. Citizens of the various places on the
way presented him addresses. At the Sikh Golden Temple of
Amritsar, he was given a robe of honour. Dadabhai brought the
following message from the Irish members of the British Parlia-
ment: “Don't forget to tell your colleagues at the Congress that
every one of the Ireland's Home Rule members in Parliament is at
your back in the cause of the Indian people. ” The next session
was held at Madras in 1894 under the presidentship of Alfred
## p. 733 (#773) ############################################
CALCUTTA SESSION OF THE CONGRESS
733
Webb, an Irish member of the British Parliament. The next ses-
sion at Poona was presided over by Surendra Nath Banerjee in 1895.
The President had such a memory that without looking at the
printed address, he was able to repeat orally, word for word, the
whole of his address for two hours. Gokhale presided over the
Banaras session in 1905.
The next session was held at Calcutta in 1906 under the Presi-
dentship of Dadabhai Naoroji. On that occasion, Dadabhai un-
furled the flag of Swaraj for India and the following four resolu-
tions on self-government, boycott movement, Swadeshi and national
education were passed by the Congress:
(1) Resolved that this Congress is of opinion that the system of
Government obtaining in the Self-Governing British Colonies should
be extended to India and that, as steps leading to it, it urges that
the following reforms should be immediately carried out:
(a) All examinations held in England only should be simul-
taneously held in India and in England, and that all
higher appointments which are made in India should be
by competitive examination only.
(b) The adequate representation of Indians in the Councils
of the Governors of Madras and Bombay.
(c) The expansion of the Supreme and Provincial Legislative
Councils, allowing a larger and truly effective representa-
tion of the people and a large control over the financial
and executive adminisiration of the country.
(d) The powers of local and municipal bodies should be ex-
tended and official control over them should not be more
than what is exercised by the Local Government Board in
England over similar bodies.
(2) Resolved that having regard to the fact that the people of
this country have little or no voice in its administration, and their
representations to the Government do not receive due consideration,
this Congress is of opinion that the boycott movement inaugurated
in Bengal by way of protest against the partition of that Province
was and is, legitimate.
(3) Resolved that this Congress accords its most cordial sup-
port to the Swadeshi movement and calls upon the people of the
country to labour for its success, by making earnest and sustained
efforts to promote the growth of indigenous industries, and to sti-
mulate the production of indigenous articles by giving them prefer-
ence over imported commodities, even at some sacrifice.
(4) Resolved that in the opinion of this Congress the time has
arrived for the people all over the country earnestly to take up the
question of national education for both boys and girls and organize
## p. 734 (#774) ############################################
734
THE NATIONALIST MOVEMENT IN INDIA
a system of education, literary, scientific and technical, suited to
the requirements of the country on National lines and under
National control.
The next session was to be held at Nagpur but the venue was
shifted to Surat on account of the unfavourable atmosphere at
Nagpur. Tilak was opposed to the policy of the Congress at that
time. He did not want the Congress to go back on its resolution
of 1906 at the instance of the Moderates. On December 23, 1907,
he declared at Surat: “We have not come to cause a split in the
Congress; we did not want to hold a separate Congress; we want
to see that the Congress does not go back. We solemnly say that
we want to see the Congress moving with the times. But the people
who brought the Congress to Surat, although Nagpur was willing
to have it, are going to drag the Congress back. They have no
moral courage. They are against the word boycott though they
are for Swadeshi. When you profess to accept Swadeshi, you must
boycott Videshi (foreign) goods: without boycott Swadeshi can-
not flourish. The fight is between two principles: (1) earnest-
ly doing what is right, and (2) doing it but not displeasing the
Government. I belong to the party which is prepared to do
what it thinks right whether the Government is pleased or dis-
pleased. We are against the policy of mendicancy. Many young
gentlemen in Bengal have gladly suffered for this attitude. No
one has any authority to make the Congress recede from its ideal.
We do not come here to embarrass the Moderates; but we are
determined not to allow the Congress to retrograde. If they
are not prepared to brave the dangers, let them be quiet, but they
should not ask us to retrograde. We have come here to fight out
constitutionally; we will behave as gentlemen even if our oppo-
nents do not do so. Our opponents create rowdyism when they
fear defeat. We are fighting against foreign autocracy. Why
should we allow this home autocracy? The Congress is an organ-
isation of all people and the voice of the people should predomi-
The policy of the Moderates is destructive. I don't want
you to follow it; we want to progress. '
All attempts on the part of Tilak and his colleagues failed to
bring about a compromise between the Moderates and the Extrem-
ists before the open session of the Congress. Although the agenda
of the Congress session was not distributed among the delegates,
Tilak happened to get a copy of the draft of the proposed constitu-
tion as prepared by Gokhale. A perusal of the draft showed that
there was clearly a change in the objective of the Congress different
from the one declared at Calcutta in 1906. This was too much
for Tilak. He pointed out that the proposed constitution was a
nate.
## p. 735 (#775) ############################################
SURAT CONGRESS
735
>
direct attempt to tamper with the ideal of self-government on the
lines of self-governing colonies and to exclude the Extremists from
the Congress by making the acceptance of the new creed a condi-
tion precedent for Congress membership. He declared that if he
and his colleagues were assured that no sliding back of the Con-
gress would be attempted, opposition to the election of the Presi-
dent would be withdrawn. He agreed to a Joint Committee repre-
senting the points of view of the two sides to settle the question in
dispute. However, the Moderates were not willing to compromise.
They were determined to have things in their own way. The
reaction of the Extremists was: “The retrogression of the Congress
was a serious step not to be decided upon only by a bare accidental
majority of any party, either in the Subjects Committees or in the
whole Congress (as at present constituted) simply because its ses-
sion happens to be held in a particular place or province, in a
particular year; and the usual unanimous acceptance of the Presi-
dent would have, under such exceptional circumstances, greatly
weakened the point and force of the opposition.
When the Congress met on December 27, 1907, the atmosphere
was surcharged and there were all kinds of rumours.
The name
of Dr. Rash Behari Ghosh was proposed for the Presidentship. When
Surendra Nath Banerjee got up to second the proposition, attempts
were made to shout him down and pandemonium prevailed in the
Pandal. The meeting had to be adjourned. The next day, Dr.
Ghosh was elected the President, but when he got up to deliver his
presidential address, Tilak ascended the platform, stood in front of
the President and demanded that he be allowed to address the
audience. He refused to submit to the ruling of the chair that he
could not be allowed to address at that stage. While this tussle was
going on, the rank and file of the Extremists created trouble and
there were clashes. All efforts to persuade Tilak failed. He stood
with folded arms and refused to go to his seat unless he was bodily
removed. Some persons from Nagpur and Poona rushed to the
platform with Lathies in their hands. A shoe was hurled from the
audience and it struck Pherozeshah Mehta. Pandemonium pre-
vailed. Chairs were thrown at the dais and sticks were freely used.
The session had to be suspended.
On December 28, 1907, a convention of the Moderates was held
in the Congress Pandal from which the Extremists were excluded,
although some of them were ready and willing to sign the necessary
declaration. Those who did not wish to go back from 'he position
taken at the Calcutta Congress met at a separate place to consider
what steps were to be taken to continue the work of the Congress.
It was in this way that the Surat session of the Congress ended.
## p. 736 (#776) ############################################
736
THE NATIONALIST MOVEMENT IN INDIA
After the Surat fiasco, it was clear that the Moderates were not
prepared to yield to the Extremists. They knew that once the
plant of extremism was planted, it was bound to grow. They were
not prepared for any compromise. Tilak was ridiculed, abused
and called a traitor. The Moderate press wrote such things as the
following: "Tilak has been feeding the flames which have burnt the
Congress to ashes. He is not a patriot, but a traitor to the country,
and has blackened himself. May God save us from such patriots.
In spite of the attacks from the Moderates, Tilak was prepared to
accommodate them. He wrote thus in the Kesari: “It is a mistake
to suppose that a difference of opinion as to ultimate ideals should
prevent Indians from cooperating with one another, for gaining a
common end. We see that Radicals, Socialists, Democrats and
others, though labouring for widely different ideals, are able to
cooperate with one another in Parliament for advancing the interests
of their country as a whole. With this example before our eyes,
does it not betake a lack of liberality to insist that the representa-
tives of a certain school of Indian politicians should alone be admit-
ted to the National Congress. The duty that lies before our
politicians is not to seek to eradicate all differences of opinion but
to secure the cooperation of men holding divergent views for the
accomplishment of common ends. Whatever our difference may
be about the ideals, we Moderates and Extremists should unite in
carrying on the work of the National Congress. The rise of a new
Party necessarily produces friction with the old but it is the duty
of the wise men not to make much of this friction but to carry on
national work in cooperation with the new Party. ”
In 1908, a change was made in the constitution of the Indian
National Congress. Under the new constitution, delegates to the
Congress were to be elected only by the Congress Committees and
Associations affiliated to the Congress and not by other bodies or
public meetings. The result was that the Extremists were exclud-
ed from the Congress and Tilak and his followers remained outside
till 1915 when a compromise was brought about.
RISE OF EXTREMISM
Many factors were responsible for the rise of extremism in the
Congress. The Indian Councils Act, 1892 did not satisfy the as-
pirations of even the Moderates. It was contended that the policy
of appeals and prayers had brought forth no result. The Govern,
ment of India considered that policy as a sign of weakness. To
quote Tilak, “Political rights will have to be fought for. The
Moderates think that these can be won by persuasion. We think
## p. 737 (#777) ############################################
RISE OF EXTREMISM
737
that they can only be obtained by strong pressure. ” The constant
economic drain on the resources of the country due to foreign
domination added to the discontentment in the country. The writ-
ings of men like Dinshaw Wacha, R. C. Dutt and Dadabhai
Naoroji proved that the impoverishment of the people of India was
largely due to the deliberate policy of the British Government. The
policy of the Government of India sacrificed the industries of India
in the interests of British manufacturers. There seemed to be no
prospects for Indian industries.
Another cause was the discontent created by the outbreak of
famine in 1897. If affected about 20 million people and 70,000
square miles of Indian territory. The attitude of the Government
of India was rather unhappy. While the people were in the grip
of famine, the Government was busy in celebrating the Jubilee
Celebrations of Queen Victoria. The money which was required
for the relief of the people was being wasted on needless celebra-
tions. This was interpreted as an attitude of callousness on the
part of the Government.
The outbreak of the Bubonic Plague in Bombay Presidency also
added to the discontentment among the people. It is true that the
Government of India adopted certain measures to check the spread
of the disease but the methods adopted by it were unfortunate. No
consideration was shown for the sentiments of the people. Mr.
Rand, the Plague Commissioner of Poona, was most ruthless in
his operations. To quote Ram Gopal, “Rand moved with a regu-
lar army of coolies and Policemen at his heels, pulled down infest-
ed dwellings, had the inmates forcibly removed to segregation
camps. At many places beddings and clothes were burnt with the
object of destroying plague germs. This would have been tolerat-
ed had the denuded people been provided germ-free clothes but
this was not done. Similarly, essential articles of life were des-
troyed, leaving the owners thereof weeping and destitute. Rand
entered any part of the house, even the kitchen or the room where
the family idols were kept. Locks were freely picked to see if any
plague cases were concealed in the closed houses. Armed Indian
Police and European soldiers, with revolvers in their hands, rushed
into the women's apartments. From the unlocked houses, house-
hold effects were sometimes removed, never to be returned. Huts
were burnt down. Some soldiers employed in such parties broke
open the cash boxes and safes of shopkeepers. Others believed that
sewing machines could not in any way be disinfected and must be
burnt. Another party thought it necessary to burn glass chande-
liers, which they found in a house where a case had occurred. The
whole proceedings resembled the sacking of a conquered town by
## p. 738 (#778) ############################################
738
THE NATIONALIST MOVEMENT IN INDIA
the enemy. ” (Lokmanya Tilak, p. 137). Such a state of affairs
could not be tolerated by the people and no wonder the plague
policy of the Government was attacked vigorously by the critics of
the Government, particularly Tilak. The resentment was so great
that Mr. Rand and one of his associates were shot dead when they
were returning from the Government House from Bombay after
taking part in the Jubilee Celebrations of Queen Victoria.
Another cause was the revival of Hinduism. Swami Viveka-
nanda attended in 1893 the Parliament of Religions at Chicago
and explained to his audience the greatness of Hindu religion. The
Swami had faith in the spiritual mission of India and it was felt
that the same was not possible without the independence of the
country. Aurobindo Ghosh declared: “Independence is the goal
of life and Hinduism alone will fulfil this aspiration of ours. ” Tilak
was also the product of Hindu revival and, no wonder, he put great
emphasis on the Hindu festivals and the consolidation of the Hindus
for the emancipation of India. The Theosophical Society also
made its contribution in this direction. Sir Valentine Chirol says:
“The advent of the Theosophists headed by Madame Blavatski,
Col. Olkott and Mrs. Besant gave a fresh impetus to the revival
and certainly no Hindu has so much organised and consolidated
the movement as Mrs. Besant, who in her Central Hindu College
at Banaras and her Theosophical Institution at Adyar near Madras
has openly proclaimed the superiority of the whole Hindu system
to the vaunted civilisation of the West. Is it surprising that the
Hindus should turn their heads back upon our civilisation when
a European of highly intellectual power and with an extraordinary
gift of eloquence, comes and tells them that it is they who possess
and have from all times possessed the key to supreme wisdom, that
their gods, their philosophy, their morality, are on a higher plane
of thought than the West has ever reached? "
The exclusion of the intelligentsia of India from all the big jobs
in the country created bitterness. The anti-Indian policy of Lord
Curzon added to the discontentment. The view of Lord Curzon
was that “the highest ranks of civil employment must, as a general
rule, be held by Englishmen. ” He emphasised that it was only the
Englishmen who by their birth and training were fit to rule India,
and not the Indians. According to him, Providence had selected
the Englishmen to rule over India and to give freedom to India
was against the will of God. Such a theory of divine right to rule
could not be palatable to the Indians who were learning to demand
the right to govern themselves. Lord Curzon was a bureaucrat par
excellence and he put the greatest emphasis on efficiency. He had
no sympathy with the aspirations of the people of India. As a
## p. 739 (#779) ############################################
PARTITION OF BENGAL
739
matter of fact, he ignored them altogether. He acted unmindful
of the reactions of the people. He regarded the administration as
a machine and acted only in the interests of the efficiency of the
machine, although the people were adversely affected by the
machine. His reign was full of “missions, omissions and commis-
sions. ” In 1899, he passed the famous Calcutta Corporation Act
which completely officialised the Calcutta Corporation. The total
number of the members of the Calcutta Corporation was reduced
from 75 to 50. The 25 members who were eliminated were those
persons who were the representatives of the people of Calcutta.
The result of this measure was that there was a European majority
in the Corporation. No wonder, the measure was vehemently con-
demned. In 1904 was passed the Indian Universities Act. This
law reduced the size of the Syridicates, Senates and Faculties with
a view to giving prominence to the Europeans. The result of this
law was that the Indian Universities became the most officialised
universities in the world. They were practically left with no auto-
nomy. In 1904 was also passed the famous Official Secrets Act.
The definition of the term "sedition" was widened. The Official
Secrets Acts of 1889 and 1898 related to the disclosure of only mili-
tary secrets. The Act of 1904 covered also the official secrets relat-
ing to the civil affairs and newspaper criticism which were likely
to bring the government into suspicion or contempt.
On 16 October 1905, Lord Curzon partitioned Bengal into two
parts. His real object was to create a Muslim majority province
although he put forward the plea of administrative convenience.
While the Muslims and the Englishmen in India welcomed the
partition, all the nationalist elements in the country opposed it.
Lord Curzon personally went on a tour of Bengal and even address-
ed public meetings with a view to convert the people to accept the
formula of partition. Although he was not convinced of the logic
of opposition, he was satisfied as to the intensity of hatred against
partition. It is rightly pointed out that he came back from his
tour a sadder if not a wiser man.
The partition of Bengal aroused a very strong spirit of resistance.
Under the guidance of leaders like S. N. Banerjee, B. C. Pal, A. K.
Datta and Aurovindo Ghosh, the agitation against partition spread
like wild fire all over Bengal and even outside. Even a moderate
like Gokhale observed thus in 1905: “The tremendous upheaval
of popular feeling which has taken place in Bengal in consequence
of the partition will constitute a landmark in the history of our
national progress. . . . . . A wave of true national consciousness has
swept over the province. . . . .
