Gandhian Era — First Phase

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First Phase — Quick Timeline

1915–1922

9 Jan 1915

Gandhi returned to India (South Africa from). Pravasi Bharatiya Divas is observed on this date.

1917

Champaran Satyagraha (1917), Bihar; tinkathia abolition followed under the Agrarian Act 1918.

1918

Ahmedabad Mill Workers — Hunger Strike. 35% wage increase was obtained.Kheda Satyagraha — Revenue non-payment. Sardar Patel involved.

18 Mar 1919

Rowlatt Act passed — "Black Act." No argument, no lawyer, no appeal.

13 Apr 1919

Jallianwala Bagh Massacre — General Dyer. 1919 Baisakhi day. Amritsar.

Nov 1919

All India Khilafat Conference — Delhi. Gandhi president.

1 Aug 1920

Non-Cooperation Movement starts. Tilak died on the same day.

4 Feb 1922

Chauri-Chaura Incident — 22 police killed. Gorakhpur, UP.

12 Feb 1922

Bardoli Resolution — Gandhi withdrew the Non-Cooperation Movement. because of the Chauri Chaura incident.

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Mahatma Gandhi — Personal Profile

Category	Details
Birth	2nd October 1869, Porbandar, Gujarat
Father	Karamchand Gandhi
Wife	Kasturba Gandhi
Profession	lawyer (Barrister from England)
South Africa	1893 in went — Dada Abdullah's request on
Insult (South Africa)	was forced off the train at Pietermaritzburg Station
India return	9 January 1915 — Pravasi Bharatiya Divas is observed on this date
Political Guru	Gopal Krishna Gokhale — Advice: "Tour the country for one year and understand it"
Title (1915)	Kaiser-i-Hind medal — public service in South Africa; returned August 1920
United Nations Observance	2nd Oct = International Non-Violence Day (Ahimsa Divas)

Institutions & Ashrams (Chronology)

1894

Natal Indian Congress — South Africa.

1904

Phoenix Ashram — South Africa.

1910

Tolstoy Farm — South Africa.

1915

Satyagraha Ashram before Kochrab, Ahmedabad in.

1917

The ashram was shifted → Sabarmati River on the bank of (Famous as Sabarmati Ashram).

Magazines

Indian Opinion (South Africa) Young India (India) Harijan Navjivan

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Three Early Satyagrahas — 1917–1918

Champaran Satyagraha

1917 | Bihar

Nature: first major satyagraha in India; disobeyed the order to leave Champaran.

Who invited him? Rajkumar Shukla (Lucknow Session 1916 in united)

Team: Rajendra Prasad, J.B. Kripalani, Mahadev Desai, Anugrah Narayan Sinha

Result: Champaran Agrarian Act 1918; tinkathia (indigo on 3/20ths of the holding) abolished.
“Mahatma”: Tagore used it in 1915, before Champaran.
Interests challenged: European indigo planters.

Ahmedabad Mill Workers

1918 | Ahmedabad

Mudda (Issue): Plague Bonus

Weapon: Hunger Strike (a hunger strike)

Mill Owner: Ambalal Sarabhai

Supporter: Anusuya Sarabhai (Ambalal's sister — supported Gandhi)

Result: arbitration awarded a 35% wage increase.

Kheda Satyagraha

1918 | Gujarat

Significance: Local revenue-resistance satyagraha, distinct from all-India NCM (1920)

Issue: demand for revenue suspension after crop failure; code provided suspension below a quarter of normal yield.

Associates: Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel (invited Gandhi), Narahari Parikh, Mohanlal Pandya, Ravi Shankar Vyas

Method: withholding land revenue after crop failure.

Champaran 1917 = first major Indian satyagraha Ahmedabad 1918 = hunger strike in mill dispute Kheda 1918 = withholding revenue after crop failure “Mahatma” = Tagore used in 1915, before Champaran

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Rowlatt Act — 1919

Official Name: Anarchical and Revolutionary Crimes Act, 1919

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The committee was formed in 1917 under the chairmanship of Sidney Rowlatt.

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Called: "Black Act" (Black Act).

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Slogan: "No argument, No lawyer, No Appeal" — without lawyer, without appeal, without argument.

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Objective: suppress revolutionary activities without trial.

Timeline

Feb 1919

Bill Legislative Council arrived in.

18 Mar 1919

The Act was passed.

6 Apr 1919

Gandhi called for a nationwide strike.

10 Apr 1919

Satyapal and Saifuddin Kitchlew arrested in Amritsar; martial law in parts of Punjab followed on 15 April, after the massacre.

Resignations in Protest

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resigned from the Central Legislature: Madan Mohan Malaviya, Mazharul Haq, Mohammad Ali Jinnah.

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Jallianwala Bagh Massacre — 13 April 1919

Baisakhi Day | Amritsar, Punjab

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Date: 13th April 1919 (Baisakhi). Place: Amritsar, Punjab.

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Sequence: 10 April — protest + police firing. 13 April — peaceful gathering (Satyapal + Kichlew's against their arrest). General Dyer ordered firing without warning.

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Revenge: Udham Singh 1940 in London Michael O'Dwyer's assassinated.

Reactions to Massacre

Person	Reaction / Action
Rabindranath Tagore	Renounced knighthood in May 1919.
Mahatma Gandhi	Returned Kaiser-i-Hind medal in August 1920.
Shankaran Nair	Resigned from Viceroy's Executive Council — Most Imp MCQ!
C.F. Andrews	Termed it "Deliberate Brutal Murder".
Dyer and O’Dwyer — Distinction	Reginald Dyer ordered firing and later received a public subscription from British supporters. Michael O’Dwyer was Punjab’s Lieutenant-Governor.

Hunter Committee — Inquiry

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Chairman: Lord William Hunter. Total 8 members — 5 British + 3 Indian.

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Indian Members: Chimanlal Setalvad, Pandit Jagat Narayan, Sardar Sahibzada Sultan Ahmed Khan.

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British members: Lord Hunter, W.F. Rice, George Barrow, G.C. Rankin and Thomas Smith.

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Result: inquiry criticised Dyer’s conduct; he lost active command and retired, but faced no criminal trial. Nationalists criticised inadequate accountability as whitewashing.

13 Apr 1919 = Baisakhi + Massacre Tagore = returned Knighthood Shankaran Nair = resigned from Viceroy's Council Udham Singh = 1940 O'Dwyer killed

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Khilafat Movement — 1919

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Core issue: preserve the Ottoman Caliph’s position and oppose punitive post-war terms. The movement began before the Treaty of Sèvres (1920); caliphate abolished 1924.

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Ali Brothers: Muhammad Ali + Shaukat Ali.

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Other Leaders: Hakim Ajmal Khan, Hasrat Mohani, Maulana Azad.

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All India Khilafat Conference: Delhi, November 1919. President: Mahatma Gandhi, who regarded it as a valuable opportunity for Hindu–Muslim unity.

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Khilafat Day: 17 October 1919.

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End (1924): Mustafa Kemal Pasha's Turkey in reforms introducing after movement end.

Ali Brothers = Muhammad Ali + Shaukat Ali Khilafat Day = 17 Oct 1919 End 1924 = Mustafa Kemal Pasha reforms Gandhi = President of All India Khilafat Conference

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Non-Cooperation Movement — 1920–22

Major all-India mass movement under Gandhi

Tale of Two Sessions

Calcutta Special Session (Sep 1920)

President: Lala Lajpat Rai

Agenda: Gandhi proposed the resolution.

C.R. Das: Proposal's opposition (oppose)

Outcome: Proposal narrowly passed

Nagpur Annual Session (Dec 1920)

President: C. Vijayaraghavachariar

Agenda: Proposal Final Approval was obtained

C.R. Das: Resolution himself move (support)

Outcome: 15-member Congress Working Committee (CWC) was formed

Movement Details

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Start date: 1 August 1920. Bal Gangadhar Tilak died that same morning.

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Tilak Swaraj Fund (1921): target ₹1 crore to finance NCM; raised over one crore rapidly.

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Participation: Middle class, Business class, Peasants, Students, Women.

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Significance: Hindu-Muslim Unity one new height on reached.

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Spread: Punjab, Madras Presidency (Andhra + Guntur), Malabar, Assam.

1 Aug 1920 = NCM start + Tilak death C.R. Das = Calcutta oppose → Nagpur support Tilak Swaraj Fund 1921 = ₹1 crore target CWC = 15 members was formed Nagpur 1920

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Chauri-Chaura Incident & NCM Suspension

The Incident

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Date: 4th February 1922.

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Place: Chauri-Chaura, Gorakhpur, Uttar province.

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Key local figure: Bhagwan Ahir. A crowd gathered to protest against his beating.

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Incident: A clash occurred between the police and local people, after which the crowd set the police station on fire.

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Result: 22 Policemen were burned alive (died).

Suspension of NCM

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Announcement Date: 12th February 1922.

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Place: Bardoli (Gujarat) → called "Bardoli Resolution."

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Reason: The violence at Chauri Chaura; Gandhi strongly opposed violence.

Consequences for Gandhi Ji

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Arrested: 10th March 1922.

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Sentenced: 18th March 1922 — 6 years's sentence.

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Release: He was released in February 1924 because of ill health.

Famous Quotes — Distinguish the Campaigns

Mahatma Gandhi

“Himalayan miscalculation” — Gandhi’s admission during the Rowlatt Satyagraha, April 1919, about premature mass civil disobedience; not the 1922 NCM withdrawal.

Subhash Chandra Bose

"National Calamity" (National Calamity) — NCM withdrawing said. (very times asked is!)

Other Contemporary Movements

Movement	Year	Region / Note
Guru's Bagh Satyagraha	1922–23	Punjab
Flag Satyagraha (flag Satyagraha)	1923	Nagpur
Borsad Satyagraha	1923	Gujarat
Tarakeshwar Satyagraha	1924	Bengal
Vaikom Satyagraha	1924–25	Kerala — access to approach roads around Vaikom temple

4 Feb 1922 = Chauri-Chaura (22 police) 12 Feb 1922 = Bardoli Resolution = NCM withdrawal Bose = "National Calamity" Gandhi arrested 10 Mar, sentenced 18 Mar 1922

⚠️ Trap #1 — Pravasi Bharatiya Divas = 9 January

Gandhi returned to India 9 January 1915 [cite: 3]. On the same day Pravasi Bharatiya Divas is observed[cite: 3]. South Africa from return was — for the first time not arrived the[cite: 3].

⚠️ Trap #2 — "Mahatma" title kisgave?

Tagore popularised “Mahatma” and used it in correspondence from 1915, before Champaran. Earlier uses also exist. Gokhale was Gandhi’s political guru.

⚠️ Trap #3 — Indian Women's Association = Annie Besant, Gandhi not

Women’s Indian Association (1917) — Annie Besant, Margaret Cousins and Dorothy Jinarajadasa; not Gandhi.

⚠️ Trap #4 — Shankaran Nair — most important MCQ

C. Sankaran Nair resigned from the Viceroy’s Executive Council. Tagore renounced knighthood in May 1919; Gandhi returned his medal in August 1920.

⚠️ Trap #5 — C.R. Das before oppose, then support

C. R. Das opposed the Non-Cooperation proposal at the Calcutta Session of 1920[cite: 3], but personally moved the supporting resolution at the Nagpur Session later that year[cite: 3]. His role differed between the two sessions.

⚠️ Trap #6 — "Himalayan Blunder" context

Gandhi’s “Himalayan miscalculation” concerned the Rowlatt Satyagraha (1919). Bose’s “National Calamity” concerned suspension of NCM (1922).

⚠️ Trap #7 — NCM start date = Tilak death date

The Non-Cooperation Movement began on 1 August 1920, the same morning that Bal Gangadhar Tilak died[cite: 3]. This coincidence is frequently asked in examinations.

⚠️ Trap #8 — Rowlatt Act resignations

Madan Mohan Malaviya, Mazharul Haq and Mohammad Ali Jinnah resigned from the Central Legislature in protest against the Rowlatt Act[cite: 3], not from the Viceroy's Executive Council.

⚠️ Trap #9 — Khilafat end = Mustafa Kemal Pasha 1924

Khilafat Movement 1919 began in — 1924 ended in when Mustafa Kemal Pasha Turkey in reforms introduced (Caliphate abolish's)[cite: 3]. Turkish reforms = Khilafat's end.

⚠️ Trap #10 — Who invited Gandhi to Champaran?

Rajkumar Shukla invited Gandhi to Champaran after meeting him at the Lucknow Session of 1916[cite: 3]. Gandhi's team included Rajendra Prasad, J. B. Kripalani and Mahadev Desai[cite: 3]. Shukla was the person who brought Gandhi there, not the movement's principal leader.