The Political Stage Of Mr. Gandhi

Gandhi was an Indian lawyer, politician, social activist and writer who would lead the independence movement of India to free the country of British rule (“Mahatma Gandhi,” 2017). He would prove that a single person could change the course of history and take on the entire British Empire. Gandhi’s principles of nonviolence and civil disobedience are attributed to his success in gaining independence for India. The act of passive resistance allowed Gandhi to generate more support for his movement for independence while making it difficult for the British to find reasons to arrest them. He argued that although violence could be more effective than peaceful

Throughout modern history, Britain’s exponential growth inevitably affected the future of many nations in the contemporary world- in particular, the culturally intertwined state of India. Even in the initial stages of colonisation, India was forcefully occupied by the British East India Company; however, it was not until 1858 that a dictatorship was officially announced and the nation was forced to regard England as 'the true homeland'. Amidst societal unease and a growing discontent with the British rulers by the poor peasants, India's emancipation seemed inevitable in order for the nation to truly progress. In effect, a revolutionary leader spawned; Mohandas Gandhi. His great philosophical mind held innovative ideas which were instrumental in the achievement of Indian Independence- with his thoughtful ideologies and beliefs paving the way for oppressed Indians to ultimately unite against British imperialism. Consequently, this resulted in the monumental Satyagraha campaign that triumphed successfully against the British authorities.

It became evident that the British could maintain the empire only at enormous cost. At the end of the Second World War, they saw the writing on the wall, and initiated a number of constitutional moves to effect the transfer of power to the sovereign State of India. For the first and perhaps the only time in history, the power of a mighty global empire 'on which the sun never set', had been challenged and overcome by the moral might of a people armed only with ideals and courage.

In 1757, Great Britain extended its empire into India. This occupation would not fully end until 1947. In the time between, there were many movements by the Indian people to gain independence from the British. The movement that finally succeeded in winning India’s independence was led by one of the most influential figures of the 20th century, Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi. Gandhi’s methods for fighting against the occupation of the British were very different from those of any of the freedom movements before. And that was why it worked. Gandhi did not agree with the general reasoning of the time: that conflicts could be solved through negotiation and forceful resistance.1 Rather, his faith led him to go

In 1939 World War II broke out in Europe. Britain proclaimed India’s involvement in the war without consulting the Indian people. This led to increased protest and volatility. In 1942 India established a national army and proposed the Quit India Movement. This movement promised to lend Indian military support to Britain in return for complete independence. If they refused this treaty the Indian people promised civil disobedience. In 1947 India was granted its independence and became self governing (Luscombe, 2012). On January 26, 1950 the Republic of India was proclaimed and it drafted a constitution. The first democratic elections were held in 1952. However the Hindus and Muslims were not united and colonial India was divided into Muslim Pakistan and Hindu India (History, 2010).

Throughout the years many historians have compilated and examined why Indian people were so desperate to gain back their independence from the British Empire during their rule over India, from 1612 to 1947. The reasoning can most definitely be found as the British discriminated against Indian people as they believe that they were inferior; it is no surprise that Indian people fought so hard for their independence. Throughout the British Raj, they placed and put forward unbelievably racist acts and laws which discriminated against Indian people. Which of course led to Indians to rebel against the British rule and which the British reacted with causing massacres. Explaining the nationalistic many India’s felt during the British Raj.

Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi and Ho Chi Minh are the leaders of national independent movements from late 19th to early 20th century. Both of them defeated the colonial rulers and won national independence. This paper will talk about the influences of ideas and circumstances, the goals that they wanted to get and the historical significance of their behaviors.

Aroused by the massacre of Amritsar in 1919, Gandhi devoted his life to gaining India’s independence from Great Britain. As the dominant figure used his persuasive philosophy of non-violent confrontation, he inspired political activists with many persuasions throughout the world (Andrews 23). Not only was Mahatma Gandhi a great peacemaker, but also his work to achieve freedom and equality for all people was greatly acknowledged. Gandhi’s unconventional style of leadership gained him the love of a country and eventually enabled him to lead the independence movement in India.

It’s clear that Gandhi’s campaigns of non-cooperation and attending political meetings with high ranked British officials during the early 1930s, were hugely significant as they mounted pressure on the Raj, leaving the British with no other alternative than to make concessions towards the nationalists. However, Purna Swaraj wasn’t achieved by Gandhi’s campaigns in the 1930s, due to the limitations of his methods as he was unable to cooperate and negotiate with the British. Conversely, demands for nationalism increased across India and the British began to lose any moral authority they had over the Indians.

The question for this investigation is: “How did WW1 affect India’s social development with Great Britain?

Eventually Gandhi helped pave the way for India’s independence however it wasn’t all over. India began to divide between Muslim’s and Hindu’s and it was settled that the North and Eastern parts of India would be given to Muslim’s and called Pakistan and Hindu’s would be left with the rest of India as their homeland. Thus happening all against Gandhi’s wishes. As scenes move on, Gandhi takes ill, and it becomes known that he has gone on a hunger strike due to the violence between Muslims and Hindu’s. At one point it is clarified

Mahatma Gandhi taught us what Christ and Buddha had longed to teach long ago. He became an immortal spirit who guides us through the path of peace and non-violence. Gandhi demonstrated acts of truth and non-violence in South Africa. The non-violent protest of Gandhi got huge popularity. It was here that he cultivated in him the idea of ‘Satyagraha’, which he was to put into practice afterwards, both in South Africa and India. In South Africa, Gandhi endeavored hard to secure for the colored people, including Indians who were domiciled there, equal rights with the White People. In this context he had to court imprisonment several times. After arriving in India, Mahatma Gandhi joined the Indian National congress, which was at that time more or less a social institution. He made Congress an organization, which was to play its vital role in the winning of the country’s independence. Before he joined the Congress and took its reins in his hands, it was predominantly an organization of the Upper Middle Class people. Mahatma Gandhi changed it into a mass-organization, in which the peasants began to take an active part. He firmly believed that freedom can be achieved in a peaceful manner. He wanted all his followers to always maintain truth and integrity. The principles of Ahimsa were practiced in all of the independence

Mahatma Gandhi (1869-1948), was an admirable man whom in his life, was able to influence thousands of people and gain an enormous amount of followers in regards to his ways and beliefs. Even today, he is widely known as 'the Father of Modern India' and is often solely credited for the successful movement for independence; however, there are other important factors contributing to the gain of Indian Independence, including the state of Britain, post World War II. Gandhi also failed to achieve unity to those that were Hindu and Muslim andthus, taking these facts into consideration, it is to a considerable extent that Gandhi may take the credit for India gaining independence in 1947.

In this essay I hope to look at the issues of conflict in South Asia focusing on India and in particular the continuing Hindu-Muslim tensions, and look at possible reasons for the continuing conflict which appears to have escalated since the withdrawal of British Rule from India. Multiple events had shaped the Indian subcontinent with

“Religion should pervade every one of our actions” (Gandhi, “My Religion,” 7). As one of the most influential people ever seen, Gandhi lived and loved religion. This love was both a product of his nature and his environment. Politics and religion has been intertwined in Southeast Asian since the beginning of settlement; furthermore, the Hindu-Muslim conflict started as soon as Islam entered the Indian subcontinent. Despite this long history, many people thought nothing of Indian politics until its independence movement from Britain in the 1900s. During this time, Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, better known by the respectful name Mahatma Gandhi, began to influence the world. Gandhi’s political stance did not just arise, but was affected by a myriad of religious factors in India.