satyagraha

Champaran Satyagraha (1917)

The Champaran Satyagraha in 1917 was Mahatma Gandhi’s first major campaign of nonviolent resistance in India. It took place in Champaran, then part of Bihar and Orissa province (now in Bihar state), where tenant farmers were forced to follow the tinkathia system. This arrangement required farmers to plant indigo on 3 of every 20 parts (15 percent) of their land—and often on the best portions—regardless of the effect on soil or food crops. This reduced food production. Farmers also faced arbitrary rent increases, unfair levies, and forced labor. With the rise of synthetic dyes, indigo prices fell, pushing farmers deeper into debt and poverty. Many of those who refused to cultivate indigo faced harsh punishments, including beatings, cattle confiscation, or loss of their land.

By 1917 discontent was widespread, and Gandhi was invited to Champaran by the farmer-leader Raj Kumar Shukla. Rather than immediately launching a protest, Gandhi investigated conditions, collecting thousands of testimonies with the help of volunteers such as Rajendra Prasad and J.B. Kripalani. Gandhi soon realized that the community was largely uneducated, so he started education programs with the help of the volunteers and his wife, Kasturba Gandhi. Mahatma Gandhi’s presence alarmed officials because they thought he could intensify the volatile situation in Champaran, and they ordered him to leave. He refused, choosing arrest over compliance. The trial drew large crowds in his support, and the government withdrew the case, allowing him to continue his inquiry. This marked one of Gandhi’s first acts of civil disobedience in India.

Explore Britannica Premium!

The trusted destination for professionals, college students, and lifelong learners.

SUBSCRIBE

The growing public pressure compelled the colonial government to seek a negotiated solution by June 1917. The lieutenant governor of Bihar and Orissa invited Gandhi for talks, and the authorities agreed to form the Champaran Agrarian Enquiry Committee, in which Gandhi served as a representative for the farmers. Over the next several months, Gandhi worked within this committee—alongside British officials, planters’ delegates, and local landlords—to examine the indigo cultivation system and recommend reforms. The inquiry validated virtually all the complaints raised by the cultivators. In October 1917 the committee released a unanimous report that called for comprehensive changes to ameliorate the farmers’ condition.

Major reforms were adopted as a result of the Champaran Satyagraha and were later codified in the Champaran Agrarian Act of 1918. The tinkathia system was abolished, ending the requirement for tenants to grow indigo and allowing them to plant crops of their choice.

Ahmedabad Mill Strike (1918)

The Ahmedabad Mill Strike arose from a wage conflict in Ahmedabad’s textile mills. During a plague epidemic in 1917–18, mill owners had introduced a “plague bonus” to retain workers. When the epidemic subsided, the bonus was withdrawn, effectively reducing wages. Additionally, World War I had increased the cost of living, leaving workers unable to meet basic expenses. On top of that, working conditions in the mills were poor—with long hours, harsh discipline, and no legal protection for labor rights. Struggling to afford essentials, the workers went on strike, demanding a wage increase of about 35 percent to offset the soaring inflation, but the owners offered only a 20 percent raise. Tensions escalated when the owners responded by staging a lockout and hiring replacement workers from outside the area to break the strike, and some laborers were arbitrarily dismissed. The wage dispute quickly turned into a test of justice for the oppressed industrial workers.

Labor activist Anasuya Sarabhai sought Gandhi’s help as a mediator. Gandhi, respected by both workers and mill owners, urged workers to launch a peaceful strike until their demands were met. Under Gandhi’s guidance, this strike began in February 1918. The workers stopped work and picketed peacefully, even as mill owners threatened them with dismissals and attempted to bring in strikebreakers. When early negotiations stalled and the workers’ resolve started wavering in the face of hardship, Gandhi resorted to a different form of protest: a hunger strike.

In mid-March 1918 Gandhi announced that he would fast until a resolution was reached, using his personal suffering as a way to underscore the justice of the workers’ cause and to put moral pressure on the mill owners. This was the first time Gandhi employed a hunger strike as a tool of agitation in India’s freedom movement. His fast, which lasted from March 15 to March 18, according to records, had a galvanizing effect: It boosted the morale of the workers and generated public sympathy for their struggle while significantly increasing pressure on the mill owners to negotiate in good faith.

The deadlock ended after about three weeks, when both sides agreed to arbitration, and a settlement soon followed. The arbitrators upheld the workers’ demands, and the textile mill owners agreed to a 35 percent wage increase. The strike concluded with the workers winning not only higher pay but also improved working conditions and recognition of their rights.

Kheda Satyagraha (1918)

The Kheda Satyagraha of 1918 was a farmer protest in the Kheda (Kaira) district in Gujarat province against colonial tax policies during a time of crop failure and famine. In early 1918 the Kheda region was hit by heavy rains and a consequent famine, ruining the harvest and leaving farmers in hardship. Crop yields were estimated to be well below the 25 percent threshold that by law entitled farmers to a full tax remission. Yet the colonial administration demanded the full land tax, ignoring the official famine code that allowed tax suspension after severe crop failures. This refusal to waive taxes under dire conditions led the farmers of Kheda to organize a tax revolt.

Local leaders turned to Gandhi, who had recently led the successful satyagraha movements in Champaran and Ahmedabad, to help their cause. Gandhi agreed to support the Kheda farmers, and in March 1918 he mobilized a team of local volunteers—most notably Vallabhbhai Patel—to lead the campaign in the town of Nadiad. Working through the Gujarat Sabha (a regional political body), Gandhi and Patel, along with other local activists, toured Kheda’s villages to organize the farmers. They urged farmers to adopt a strategy of nonviolent noncooperation by refusing to pay the land tax until their demand for suspension was met. The villagers took a formal pledge (satyagraha oath) affirming that they would withhold tax payments and “gladly suffer the consequences” rather than compromise their self-respect. Alongside the tax strike, the movement imposed a social boycott of government revenue officials to pressure the authorities. Although Gandhi guided the struggle’s overall strategy, he entrusted Patel with much of the on-ground leadership. Patel’s involvement proved instrumental in sustaining the satyagraha.

The Kheda campaign lasted several months. During this time British authorities tried to suppress the agitation through punitive measures such as fines and property seizures. Despite these pressures, the farmers remained firm and nonviolent. By the end of May 1918, facing the farmers’ unrelenting resolve, the colonial government partially conceded to their demands. Officials agreed to suspend tax collection in Kheda for that year and grant revenue remission in the affected areas. Land seizures by British officials were also stopped. After these assurances of relief, Gandhi called off the satyagraha in June 1918. Though not all taxes were waived, the tax relief won was seen as a significant victory for the protesters.

Noncooperation movement (1920–22)

The noncooperation movement was an early large-scale act of civil disobedience that sought Indian self-rule (swaraj). Sparked by the repressive Rowlatt Act (1919) and the Jallianwala Bagh Massacre (1919), it mobilized mass resistance against British rule but ultimately proved unsuccessful.

For a full treatment see noncooperation movement.

Salt March (1930)

The Salt March (March–April 1930) was a major nonviolent protest led by Gandhi against the British salt monopoly. By law, Indians were forbidden from producing or selling salt and forced to buy heavily taxed, imported salt—an unfair burden on people experiencing poverty. To defy this, Gandhi marched 240 miles (385 km) from Sabarmati Ashram in Ahmedabad to the coastal town of Dandi, in the province of Gujarat. He started on March 12 with a small group of followers that grew into hundreds along the way. On April 6, Gandhi and his followers collected handfuls of salt along the shore, thus technically “producing” salt and breaking the law.

For a full treatment see Salt March.

Quit India Movement (1942–43)

The Quit India Movement was a mass uprising against British rule during World War II, launched by Gandhi and the Indian National Congress. Planned as a nonviolent campaign, it turned violent after British authorities arrested Congress leaders, sparking widespread unrest. By the end of 1943, at least 1,000 Indians had been killed and about 60,000 imprisoned. Though it failed to secure immediate independence, the movement revealed the depth of anti-colonial sentiment and pressured the British to hasten India’s decolonization after the war.

For a full treatment see Quit India Movement.