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Women in Aparna Basu Women in S atjagraha Aparna Basu PUBLICATIONS DIVISION MINISTRY OF INFORMATION AND BROADCASTING GOVERNMENT OF INDIA First Edition: 2018 ISBN: 978-81-230-2807-1 PD BN GLI-ENG-OP-042-2018-19 © Author Price: ? 150.00 Published by the Director General, Publications Division, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Government of India, Soochna Bhawan, CGO Complex, Lodhi Road, New Delhi-110 003 Website: www.publicationsdivision.nic.in Editor: Anuj Sharma Cover Design: Rajesh Kumar Sales Centres: Soochna Bhawan, CGO Complex, Lodhi Road, New Delhi -110 003 • Hall N0.196, Old Secretariat, Delhi-110054 • 701, C-Wing, 7th Floor, Kendriya Sadan, CBD, Belapur, Navi Mumbai-400614 • 8, Esplanade East, Kolkata-700069 • A’ Wing, F-Block, Ground Floor, Rajaji Bhawan, Besant Nagar, Chennai-600090 • Press Road, Near Govt. Press, Thiruvananthapuram-695001 • Room No. 204, 2nd Floor, C.G.O. Towers, Kavadiguda, Hyderabad-500080. • 1st Floor, 'F' Wing, Kendriya Sadan, Koramangala, Bangalore-560034 1 Bihar State Co-operative Bank Building, Ashoka Rajpath, Patna-800004 • Hall N0.1,2nd Floor, Kendriya Bhawan, Sector-H, Aliganj, Lucknow-226024 • Ambica Complex, 1st Floor, Above UCO Bank, Paldi, Ahmedabad- 380007 Processed at: National Gandhi Museum, New Delhi -110002 Printed at: J.K Offset Graphics Pvt. Ltd Foreword ‘Steadfastness’ and ‘Humility’, these two concepts are associated with the philosophy of Gandhiji. Despite all the challenges in front of him, with an unthinkable perseverance Bapu challenged the biggest empire of his time, and emerged victorious. But was the victory only because of him; or that of a few people around him? Of course, he was the master designer of the movement, but in my humble opinion, Indian Independence Movement was fundamentally a “Movement of masses”, in which Gandhiji inspired and empowered the Indians with the mantra of truth and non-violence. He not only spearheaded the movement, but also united all the positive forces in and around India. I often wonder at the phenomenon he might have been to inspire people from all parts of the country to come together challenging the multiple identities that we Indians grapple with till date. Most of all, I wonder the truthfulness with which he might have inspired the Indian Women to break the shackles of society and orthodoxy, and come out of their homes and walk as equals, or even more. During the course of this book, we will discover that women formed an integral part of Gandhiji’s mass movement from his days in South Africa itself, where the Satyagraha movement attracted women to fight against injustice and discrimination based on colour, culture and religion. When all marriages, with the exception of Christian rites and registered by the Registrar of Marriages, were declared invalid by Cape Supreme Court on March 14, 1913, Gandhiji very justly said: “A nation that cannot protect its women’s honour and the interests of it children does not deserve to be called by that name. Such people are not a nation but mere brutes.” His insistence on women participation in mass movements continued in India too. During his first Satyagraha on Indian soil, Champaran Satyagraha in 1917, among the 25 volunteers during this Satyagraha, 12 were women. While in the initial period he involved women only in constructive work including Khadi - spinning and weaving, later he exposed them to the the active agitation, picketing, boycott of foreign cloth, etc. Salt satyagraha was perhaps the first great battleground, where women came out in large number and courted arrested, and 1942 Quit India Movement the pinnacle. The elite and ordinary, urban and rural, rich and poor and educated and illiterate all the womenfolk together shared the space in the streets during protest and shared the experiences of imprisonment under British Raj. “Here as elsewhere the part played by women is indescribable. When the history of this movement comes to be written, the sacrifices made by the women of India will occupy the foremost place and just as with women so also with children,” Mahatma had surmised. “Women in Satyagraha” also has two women at its core. While the author Prof. Aparna Basu, Chairperson, National Gandhi Museum, is a known scholar of Gandhian thought, Dr Sadhana Rout, Director General, Publications Division, is dedicated to ensure that the Gandhian literature reaches maximum people in published form. The humility, zeal and dedication of both these women is worthy of emulation by younger generation. This wonderful document on the imprints of women in the Gandhi’s Satyagraha based on the archival materials, photos, published materials is the result of a blossoming partnership between Publications Division and National Gandhi Museum. Under the agreement, the two organizations are not only coming out with new titles on various facets of Gandhian thought and struggle, but also restoring lost heritage Gandhiana titles, as also translating them in various Official Indian languages, as a mark of respect to Mahatma while we approach 150th year of his birth. May this dedication toward the ideals set by Mahatma Gandhi guide us forever. A. Annamalai Director National Gandhi Musuem • ‘ Contents CHAPTER PAGES Introduction i Gandhi’s Appeal to Women 9 In the Pre-Gandhian Era 11 Swadeshi Movement 15 Annie Besant and Home Rule League 21 Satyagraha in South Africa 27 Back in India 31 Rowlatt Satyagraha and Jallianwala Bagh 32 Non Cooperation Movement 35 Borsad and Bardoli Satyagrahas 53 Civil Disobedience Movement 56 Quit India Movement 86 Constructive Programme 100 Conclusion 116 Endnotes 141 Bibliography 147 Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2018 with funding from Public.Resource.Org https://archive.org/details/womeninsatyagrahOOapar