Non-Cooperation and Civil Disobedience
Non-Cooperation and Civil Disobedience
The two mass movements of the 1920s and 1930s together supply 2 to 3 questions in the Part-II history block. They are date-heavy, so build a single timeline and revise it as one line rather than learning each event separately.
The Road to Non-Cooperation
- Rowlatt Act, 1919 — allowed detention without trial; called the black act.
- Jallianwala Bagh, 13 April 1919 — General Dyer ordered firing on an unarmed gathering at Amritsar.
- Rabindranath Tagore returned his knighthood in protest.
- The Hunter Commission was appointed to inquire into the massacre.
These three shocks turned a constitutional movement into a mass one.
Non-Cooperation Movement, 1920-1922
Launched by Gandhi in 1920 alongside the Khilafat issue, it asked Indians to withdraw cooperation from British institutions.
- Surrender of titles and honours, boycott of courts, schools and councils.
- Boycott of foreign cloth and promotion of khadi.
- National institutions were founded in this period, including Kashi Vidyapith and Jamia Millia Islamia.
Gandhi withdrew the movement after the Chauri Chaura incident of 5 February 1922, when a crowd set fire to a police station in Gorakhpur district. The withdrawal of a successful movement over one violent episode is itself a favourite question, because it shows non-violence was a principle and not a tactic.
✗ Non-Cooperation was withdrawn after Jallianwala Bagh | ✓ It was withdrawn after Chauri Chaura, on 5 February 1922
Simon Commission and Purna Swaraj
| Event | Year | Point to remember |
|---|---|---|
| Simon Commission arrives | 1928 | No Indian member; met with Simon Go Back |
| Lala Lajpat Rai injured | 1928 | Died after a lathi charge at Lahore |
| Nehru Report | 1928 | Indian draft constitution |
| Lahore Session | 1929 | Purna Swaraj resolution passed |
| First Independence Day | 26 January 1930 | Observed across the country |
The date 26 January was chosen again in 1950 for the Constitution to come into force, which links this topic to polity.
Civil Disobedience and the Dandi March
Gandhi began the movement with the Dandi March, walking from Sabarmati Ashram from 12 March 1930 and breaking the salt law at Dandi on 6 April 1930.
- Salt was chosen because it was taxed and used by every household, rich or poor.
- The Gandhi-Irwin Pact of 1931 suspended the movement and led Gandhi to the Second Round Table Conference.
- Three Round Table Conferences were held between 1930 and 1932.
- The Government of India Act, 1935 introduced provincial autonomy.
चौरीचौरा (5 फरवरी 1922) के बाद गांधीजी ने असहयोग आंदोलन वापस लिया।
TRE pointer: This topic is examined as a sequence, so a question often gives four events and asks for the correct chronological order. Practise the order rather than isolated dates: Rowlatt and Jallianwala 1919, Non-Cooperation 1920, Chauri Chaura 1922, Simon 1928, Purna Swaraj 1929, Dandi 1930, Gandhi-Irwin 1931, Act of 1935. Sequencing questions cannot be guessed profitably when a wrong answer costs −1/3.
60-Second Recap
- Rowlatt Act 1919 allowed detention without trial; Jallianwala Bagh on 13 April 1919.
- Non-Cooperation launched in 1920 with the Khilafat issue.
- Withdrawn after Chauri Chaura on 5 February 1922.
- Simon Commission 1928 had no Indian member; Lahore Session 1929 passed Purna Swaraj.
- 26 January 1930 was observed as the first Independence Day.
- Dandi March began 12 March 1930 and the salt law was broken on 6 April 1930.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why did Gandhi call off the Non-Cooperation Movement?
Because of the Chauri Chaura incident on 5 February 1922, when a crowd of protesters set a police station on fire in Gorakhpur district and policemen died. Gandhi held that a movement built on non-violence could not continue after such an act, and he withdrew it despite opposition.
Why did Gandhi choose salt for the Civil Disobedience Movement?
Because the salt tax touched every Indian household regardless of wealth or religion, making it the perfect symbol of unjust rule. Breaking the salt law was simple, visible and could be repeated anywhere in the country, which is what turned it into a genuinely mass movement.
When was the Purna Swaraj resolution passed?
At the Lahore session of the Congress in 1929, presided over by Jawaharlal Nehru. The Congress then called on Indians to observe 26 January 1930 as the first Independence Day, which is why that date was later chosen for the Constitution to come into force in 1950.
What was the Simon Commission and why was it opposed?
It was a British commission appointed in 1927 and arriving in 1928 to review constitutional reforms in India. It was boycotted because it had no Indian member at all. Protesters met it with black flags and the slogan Simon Go Back; Lala Lajpat Rai died after a lathi charge at Lahore.