17 November 2022

MAINS QUESTIONS

Q1. Due to their shared experience with colonial tyranny, the tribal people’s long-simmering dissatisfaction erupted into significant uprisings in various parts of India at various times. Elaborate. (250 Marks)

Paper & Topic: GS I – National Movement

Introduction:

• Because they were conservative, the tribal community was keen to protect the fundamental components of their contemporary society. Tribal movements were driven by a desire for revolution. They made an effort to use the circumstances to combat and eradicate the defects and bad habits that were a part of the current tribal culture. Tribes relied on the forest for food, firewood, and fodder before the British arrived. When their former fields began to exhibit indications of fatigue, they relocated to new forest grounds for shifting cultivation (jhum, podu, etc.). The colonial authority changed everything.

Body:

The following factors contributed to the tribal uprisings:

• Getting a Settlement on Land Taxes. For instance, the Chuar tribal tribesmen of the Jungle Mahal in the Midnapore district and the Bankura district (both in Bengal) were driven to take up arms by malnutrition, rising land revenue demands, and economic hardship.
• The creation of the Forest Department in 1864, the Government Forest Act in 1865, and the Indian Forest Act in 1878, all of which imposed limitations on their activities in forested areas, served as the catalyst for the enmity of tribal people toward the British. g.: The Koya rebelled against the British because they wouldn’t provide them control over their tribal lands.
• development of agriculture in urban settings. As an illustration, the martial Pahariyas of the Raj Mahal Hills rose up in rebellion against British incursion into their area in 1778.
• A fundamental aspect of tribal culture, the production of their own alcohol, was made illegal by new excise restrictions.
• transfer of forestland on a massive scale. For instance, foreigners who are oppressive Hindu, Sikh, and Muslim farmers and moneylenders sometimes receive land transfers from Kol headmen.
• restrictions on shifting agriculture in the forest. For instance, the uprisings of the Khasi and Garo people against the occupancy of highland areas and the prohibition of shifting farming
• The concept of private property is introduced.
• Low-country traffickers and moneylenders exploit their victims. As an illustration, consider the Santhal rebellion against traders and bankers. The Ulgulan rebellion against financial institutions was motivated by Christian missionaries’ activities and opposition to the entrance of other religions like Islam, Christianity, and Hinduism. Consider the Tana Bhagat Movement.

Significance:

• The uprisings contributed to the formation of a cohesive front against British rule’s oppressiveness.
• It exposed the East India Company’s imperial hegemony.
• It made a major contribution to the tribal people’s sense of nationalism and cohesion.
• Indian tribal uprisings were motivated by social, cultural, and political issues such as opposition to the annexation of their land and the assertion of their rights to forest resources.

Failure has several reasons, including:

• These early movements had a number of drawbacks even if they helped to foster a favourable atmosphere that encouraged the expression of local opposition against power.
• These uprisings were generally strong and widespread within their respective regions, but from a national standpoint they were localised and isolated occurrences that failed to pique the interest of the populace of the country as a whole. As a result, the effects of these uprisings could not be as great.
• The bulk of these uprisings were also motivated by regional problems, which made it challenging for the rest of the country to comprehend or identify with those who were protesting.
• The uprisings were primarily public outbursts of anger against personal concerns; they lacked revolutionary ideas, philosophy, or ideology.
• The populace was not provided a different solution nor inspired to take action.
• The majority of these uprisings were led by semi-feudal rulers who held conventional, conservative values.
• If the British made even slight alterations or gave in to their specific demands, they could be easily placated.
• Therefore, none of these protesters anticipated or even called for a significant societal shift.

Conclusion:

• Even during the era of the East India Company, it is clear that there were several uprisings and commotions when colonial power was in effect. These various complaints culminated in the insurrection of 1857, which targeted specific Indian populations but nevertheless stands as the biggest significant uprising against the British prior to the start of the Indian Freedom movement.

Q2. “What the reforms of 1909 offered to the citizens of the country were only a shadow rather than substance,” one of them proclaimed. Elucidate. (250 words)

 Paper & Topic: GS I – National Movement

Introduction:

• The Indian Councils Act of 1909 was often referred to as the Morley-Minto reforms in recognition of the Secretary of State for Indian Affairs, Lord John Morley, and the Viceroy, Lord Minto. In an effort to boost Indian participation in administration, meet the demands of the moderate wing of the Indian National Congress, and expand the authority of legislative councils, it first implemented the election system. The 1861 and 1892 Indian Councils Acts were modified by the Act.

Body:

History of the Act:

• During a meeting with Lord Minto in October 1906, Muslim nobles from the Shimla Deputation, led by the Agha Khan, demanded separate electorates for Muslims and representation above their numerical strength due to “the magnitude of the contribution” Muslims were providing “to the defence of the empire.”
• The Muslim League, which was founded in December 1906 by Nawab Salimullah of Dacca, Nawabs Mohsin-ul-Mulk, and Waqar-ul-Mulk, was immediately taken over by the same group.
• The Muslim League sought to maintain imperial devotion and keep Muslim intellectuals away from Congress.
• After Bengal was divided by Lord Curzon, the Liberal Secretary of State for India, John Morley, and the Conservative Viceroy of India, Minto, thought that putting an end to the Bengali insurrection was necessary but insufficient to restore stability to the British Raj.
• They determined that a major move was necessary to win over loyal members of the Indian upper classes and the expanding section of the public that was becoming more Westernized.

How the Act functioned:

• Both the Central and Provincial Legislative Councils have experienced substantial size increases. The Central Legislative Council currently has 60 members instead of its previous 16 members. The composition of the provincial legislative councils varied.
• Although they permitted an unofficial majority in the provincial legislative councils, the British kept their official majority in the Central Legislative Council.
• The elected representatives were chosen through proxy elections. The central legislature’s members would be chosen by local bodies after an electoral college chose the members of the provincial legislatures.
• The duties for legislative council discussions have grown at all levels. Members should offer more justifications, budget resolutions, and other items.
• For the first time, this provision permitted Indian participation in the viceroy’s and governors’ executive councils. The first Indian to join the Viceroy’s Executive Council was Satyendra Prasad Sinha. He was picked to work in the justice system. For the Secretary of State for Indian Affairs Council position, two Indians were proposed.
• By accepting the idea of a “separate electorate,” a system of Muslim communal representation may be established. This required that only Muslims may select the Muslim members. The Act, which “legalised communalism,” made Lord Minto the father of the communal electorate.
• Furthermore, it enabled zamindars, academic institutions, business chambers, and presidency businesses to be amply represented.

Assessment of the Reforms:

• The political issue in India was not and could not be resolved by the reforms of 1909. Lord Morley made it known that he opposed the establishment of parliamentary or accountable government in India and believed that the colonial self-rule favoured by the Congress was inappropriate for the country.
• The unyielding constitutional authoritarianism of the Act and the Governor-position General’s veto power were successfully preserved.
• The “constitutional” modifications actually succeeded in dividing the nationalist ranks by confusing the moderates and suppressing the expansion of Indian nationalism through the irritating tactic of different electorates.
• The government tried to unite Muslims and Moderates in order to stem the nationalist trend that was gathering strong.
• When discussing the various electorates, politicians and Muslim leaders frequently alluded to the entire community, but in practise, they primarily worked to appease a small portion of the Muslim elite.
• Separate electorates, in the opinion of Congress, were undemocratic and prevented the development of a shared Hindu-Muslim sense of Indian national identity.
• In addition, the election process was incredibly dishonest and gave the appearance that legislators had been the targets of multiple sieves of spying.
• Additionally, despite the use of legislative procedures, no responsibility was taken, which occasionally resulted in careless and dangerous criticism of the government.
• The opportunity to discuss was taken advantage of by a small group of council members, including Gokhale, who argued for universal primary education, criticised stringent rules, and called attention to problems with indentured labour and Indian labourers in South Africa.
• The 1909 reforms gave the people of the country more shadow than substance.

The following are some reasons why the Act of 1909 was significant:

• Even while some Indians had already been allocated to them, this effectively enabled for the first election of Indians to the several legislative councils across the country.
• The invention of the electoral notion set the foundation for a parliamentary system, even if Morley may not have intended it in this way.
• Additionally, it was the first to acknowledge that the composition of the legislative council is determined by election.
• It provided Indians with more channels through which to air their complaints. Additionally, they got the opportunity to criticise the leadership and offer suggestions for improved management.
• Pakistan shifted toward Islamic orthodoxy and Dalits came under increasing strain after Jinnah’s death in September 1948.

Conclusion:

• By granting them their own electorate, the Indian Council Act of 1909 sought to appease both the moderates and the National Movement’s dissident Muslims. Although the populace desired self-government, they instead received “benevolent dictatorship.”