Swaraj Party to Salt March (1923–1930)

Swaraj Party to Salt March (1923–1930)

Swaraj Party (1923)

Background

• Gandhi's decision to call off the agitation caused frustration among the masses.

• His decision came in for severe criticism from his colleagues like Motilal Nehru, C. R. Das and N.C. Kelkar, who organsied the Swaraj Party.

• The foundations of the Swaraj party were laid on Jan 1, 1923, as the "Congress Khilafat-Swaraj Party".

Objective

• It proposed then an alternative programme of diverting the movement from widespread civil disobedience programme to restrictive one which would encourage its member to enter into legislative councils (established under Mont-ford Reforms of 1919) by contesting elections to wreck the legislature from within and to use moral pressure to compel the authority to concede to the popular demand for self government.

Achievements

• In the election held in 1923, the Swaraj Party captured 45 of the 145 seats.

• In provincial elections, they secured a few seats, but in the Central Province, they secured a clear majority.

• In Bengal, the Swaraj Party was the largest.

• They followed the policy of undiluted opposition.

• The Swarajists demanded the release of all the political prisoners, provincial autonomy, and the repeal of the repressive laws imposed by the government.

Decline

• However, after the death of C.R. Das in 1925, they drifted towards a policy of cooperation with the government.

• This led to dissension, and the party broke up in 1926.

Simon Commission (1927)

Purpose

• The activities of the Swaraj Party had induced the British government to review the working of the dyarchy system introduced by the Montague-Chelmsford Reforms of 1910 and to report as to what extent a representative government could be introduced in India.

• The British government appointed the Simon Commission in November 1427 for the task.

• All members of this commission were Europeans (Whites). Indian political leaders felt insulted and decided to boycott the commission.

Reaction

• Wherever the commission went, there were cries of 'Simon Go Back'. It was while leading a demonstration against the Simon Commission in Lahore that a fatal lathi-blow was dealt to Lala Lajpat Rai.

• It was his death that Bhagat Singh and his comrades were seeking to avenge when they killed a white police official, Saunders, in December 1928.

Nehru Committee Report (1928)

Formation

• The Committee was set up under the chairmanship of Motilal Nehru to determine the principles of the constitution before actually drafting it.

• The chief architects of the report were Motilal Nehru and Tej Bahadur Sapru.

Debate

• The recommendation evoked a lively debate concerning the goal of India: Dominion Status or Complete Independence.

14 Points of Jinnah (March 9, 1929)

Response to the Nehru Report

• Jinnah, the leader of the Muslim League, did not accept the Nehru Report. Jinnah thereafter drew up a list of demands, which was called the 14 points of Jinnah.

Lahore Session (Dec, 1929)

Resolution

• At its annual session held in Lahore in December 1929, under the presidentship of Jawaharlal Nehru, the Indian National Congress passed a resolution declaring 'Pooma Swaraj' (Complete Independence) to be the goal of the national movement.

Symbolic Action

• On Dec. 31, 1929, the newly adopted tricolour flag was unfurled, and Jan. 26 was fixed as the Independence Day, which was to be celebrated every year, pleading to the people not to submit to British rule any longer.

Dandi March / Salt Satyagraha (1930)

Launch

• To achieve the goal of 'Complete Independence', Gandhi launched another civil disobedience movement.

• Along with 78 followers, Gandhi started his famous march from Sabarmati Ashram on March 12, 1930, for the small village of Dandi (Navsari District) to break the Salt Law.

• Gandhi covered a distance of 240 miles in 24 days (March 12–April 5).

Breaking the Salt Law

• On reaching the seashore on April 6, he broke the Salt Law by picking up salt from the seashore.

• By picking a handful of salt, Gandhi inaugurated the Civil Disobedience Movement, a movement that was to remain unsurpassed in the history of Indian National Movement for the countrywide mass participation it unleashed.

• The movement became so powerful that it sparked off patriotism even among the Indian soldiers in the army.

• The Garhwal soldiers refused to fire on the people at Peshwar. Gandhiji was arrested on May 5, 1930.

National Impact

• This was followed by another round of boycott of foreign goods, and it took the shape of a nationwide Civil Disobedience Movement in which ladies also participated.

• Soon thereafter followed repressive measures such as mass arrests, lathi-charge, police firing, etc. About 1,00,000 people went to jail.

Final Thoughts

The period from 1923 to 1930 marked a critical phase in India’s freedom struggle, where political strategies evolved and mass participation deepened.

The formation of the Swaraj Party signified a shift toward legislative resistance, while movements like the Salt Satyagraha reignited the spirit of civil disobedience across the nation.

Events such as the Simon Commission boycott, the Nehru Report, and the Lahore Session of 1929 laid a strong ideological foundation for complete independence. These historic developments not only united Indians from all walks of life but also sent a clear message to British authorities: the demand for Purna Swaraj was now a national will, not just a political agenda.