Champaran Satyagraha – The Champaran Revolt: A Nation’s Fight for Justice Begins (1917)
Introduction to the Champaran Satyagraha
Historical Background:-
In 1917, Champaran Satyagraha is often held as the first major active participation of Mahatma Gandhi in India’s struggle towards independence. The protest was a mass protest that began in the Champaran district of Bihar against the policies of British landlords holding majority shares.
Importance:-
Champaran Satyagraha is important because it is regarded as the first experiment with the method of Satyagraha, a non-violent form of resistance, which was to characterize India’s freedom movement. It also demonstrated Gandhi’s direct action approach to redressing local grievances.
Background of the Satyagraha
Indigo Plantation System:-
The Tinkathia system was the root cause of the Satyagraha. Under this system, peasants were forced by British planters to cultivate indigo on 3/20th-or say around 15%-of their land and sell it to the planters at rates fixed by them, which were often prejudicial to the interest of the peasants.
Decline of Indigo Market:-
The introduction of synthetic dyes in Europe considerably reduced the demand for indigo. Peasants could not, however, stop the arrears incurred by the landlords in the form of revenue for those erstwhile indigo crops no longer cultivated.
Exploitation at the hands of British Planters: British planters would physically and economically harass farmers who refused to agree to these exploitative demands, making peasants impoverished as well as deep in debt.
Role of Local Leaders
Role of Raj Kumar Shukla Raj Kumar Shukla was an indigo cultivator leader of Champaran who brought Gandhi to Champaran. Shukla had been fighting the cause of indigo cultivator in Champaran and, seeking active intervention, met Gandhi in 1916 at Lucknow session of Indian National Congress.
Gandhi’s First Reluctance:-
Although Gandhi was unwilling to be drawn into Champaran’s local affairs, however, Shukla perseverance finally convinced him to visit the place and see the problem with his own eyes.
Gandhi’s Champaran Sojourn:-
First Journey to Champaran (1917):-
Gandhi arrived at Champaran on April 10, 1917, in order to understand the issues of the farmers. He was accompanied by prominent Congress leaders like Dr. Rajendra Prasad, Acharya Kripalani, and Brajkishore Prasad.
Regarding the Law, Gandhi landed and was served with an order to leave Champaran from the British authorities. He refused, choosing to stay back rather than abandon the cause of peasants, standing ready to go and meet arrest.
He was arrested on April 16, 1917, followed by a landslide movement in his favor. The British government feared the reaction of the people and was later compelled to release Gandhi and also permit a probe into the grievances of the farmers.
Investigation and Documentation
Soon after his release, Gandhi was allowed to form a fact-finding committee to look into the conditions of the peasants in Champaran. This committee gathered extensive evidence and testimonies from the farmers, which documented the exploitative practices of the British planters.
Evidence Collection:-
Gandhi and his workers toured the whole district and documented thousands of testimonies by farmers. Testimonies discussed the Tinkathia systems which proved economically disastrous and succeeded in making many farmers destitutes.
Non-Cooperation against the British:-
Gandhi asked the farmers to take a policy of non-cooperation against the British government by not growing indigo or paying exorbitant revenue. Satyagraha employed non-violent resistance instead of assault.
Impact of Satyagraha on Local Communities
Transfer of Satyagraha:-
The struggle of Gandhi at Champaran transferred the non-violent resistance from Bihar to other parts of the nation. The local communities were encouraged to practice mass level action against the oppressive colonies practices.
Leading Other Leaders:-
Rajendra Prasad, who later became the first president of India, and Mahadev Desai, Gandhi’s secretary, helped in rallying people and organizing relief to the peasants who were suffering as a result of this system.
Education Initiatives:-
Education was essential, sanitation was critical, and self-reliance in the villages. He opened schools to educate the children of Champaran and encouraged farmers to be clean and promote health.
Health Programs:-
Apart from working for the cause of justice among farmers, Gandhi initiated medical camps so as to overcome the health problems being faced by the common people in the area, mainly due to poor sanitation and prevalent diseases.
Bargaining with the British
British Compromise:-
The British government was also convinced to talk to Gandhi due to the rising public opinion and swelling peasantry unrest. Government agreed to form a commission that would hear the grievances of the farmers.
Constitution of the Champaran Agrarian Committee:-
British government granted Gandhi a position in the Champaran Agrarian Committee to deliberate upon the grievances put forth by the farmers. This was an important victory as the colonial administration realized Gandhi’s strength and thus decided to yield.
Recommendations of the Committee:-
After investigation, the committee recommended abolition of the Tinkathia system, thereby giving much-needed relief to the farmers. It also recommended payment of the loss incurred by the farmers because of cultivation of indigo.
Victory to the Peasants:-
The Satyagraha ultimately triumphed when there came laws that decreased the pressure of forced indigo cultivation. By 1918, British planters were compelled to refund part of the money that they had extorted from the farmers, and the peasants were allowed to cultivate crops of their choice.
Principles and Methodology of Gandhi
Satyagraha, or Nonviolent Resistance:-
Champaran Satyagraha was the first realized practicable example of Gandhi’s principle of Satyagraha. It revealed that non-violent resistance- if supplemented by morality and popular mobilization-could achieve results of real transformation.
Emphasis on Self-Sufficiency:-
Gandhi’s philosophy went beyond short-term political victory. He spoke much about self-sufficiency, especially in the villages of India. He believed that political freedom was not successful without its twin sons-economic and social self-sufficiency.
Moral Leadership:-
Gandhi’s campaign in Champaran established him as a moral leader. His insistence on truth, nonviolence and the welfare of the poorest sections of society would form the core of his later campaigns.
Impact beyond the Champaran Satyagraha
Consolidation of Indian National Congress:-
With success in the Champaran movement, it was a significant reinforcement for the Indian National Congress. It proved that direct action could actually be an effective technique to oppose the colonial regime.
Gandhi Rise to Prominence:-
After Champaran, Gandhi emerged as the supreme leader in India’s freedom movement. His performance in leadership roles of Satyagraha had the effect of the loyalty and support of both common people and Indian political elite.
The Champaran Satyagraha thus inspired movements across India – there was, for instance, the Kheda Satyagraha in Gujarat in 1918, and the Non-Cooperation Movement of 1920-1922. It also fueled the future mass protests against British colonialism.
Transformation of Indian Politics:-
Champaran was, in a sense, the culmination of elite-led discussions. It was the first major campaign which united peasants and workers and intellectuals against a common cause.
Legacy of the Champaran Satyagraha
The most abiding aftermath of Champaran was the political awakening of the rural population. It symbolized the strength of collective action and gave voice to the oppressed peasants of India.
Education and Social Reforms:-
Educating, hygiene, and upliftment of rural was the activity continued by Gandhi during his Champaran campaign and the basis of further campaigns. He advocated that complete independence did not only take place in political freedom but also in social reformation.
Moral Leadership:-
Champaran Gandhi end As this event further confirmed him as the leader, who could combine local struggles and link them with the pan-Indian movement. He developed into a special leader fit to mobilize people of different classes and castes in the quest for India’s independence.
Conclusion:-
A turning point in the Indian freedom struggle:-
The Champaran Satyagraha was a landmark moment in the Indian freedom movement. It wasn’t even a victory for the farmers of Champaran; it was a model for non-violent resistance which would characterize the Indian struggle for independence.
Gandhi’s Involvement:-
Through Champaran, Gandhi entered the arena with a leadership personality, demonstrating that national grievances may be resolved without violence. His approaches and beliefs would drive the Indian freedom struggle in the coming times.
Champaran as a Symbol: –
Champaran is now a symbol of resistance to injustice, reminding future generations about the power of collective action, moral courage, and nonviolent pursuit of justice.
The Champaran Satyagraha, therefore was not only to set right the immediate grievances of the indigo farmers but also to lay the nucleus for a battle far more significant than that – a battle against colonial British rule in India.
Also Read :- The Ghadar Party’s Fight for Liberation (1913)