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FREEDOM MOVEMENT
Eternal India
encyclopedia
KHILAFAT MOVEMENT
The Sultan of Turkey was accepted and
honoured in the Muslim world as the
Caliph
of the Islamic Community and
Khilafat,
i .e.,
his state that was governed on religious prin-
ciples was regarded as holy by Muslims all
over the world and particularly in India.
The illtreatment of the
Caliph
of Tur-
key, the head of Islam, by the English and
the allied powers after the First World War
was the reason for the second movement
started by Gandhi. Turkey had sided with
Germany in that war and by the treaty, the
allies gave away large chunks of Turkey to
Greece, Italy and France. Widespread
Muslim anxiety over the future of Turkey
and its sultan led to the formation of an all-
India Khilafat Committee in September
1919 and two months later some of its
members expressed themselves in favour
of non co-operation with the government as
a mode of protest against the British indif-
ference to Turkey's plight.
The dismemberment of the Turkish
empire after the end of the First World War
offended the religious sentiments of the
Muslims and caused them to adopt an anti-
British attitude.
The two brothers, Muhammad Ali and
Shaukat Ali, and Maulana Abul Kalam Azad
organised the Khilafat movement. The
Khilafat Day was observed in Delhi on 20th
October 1919.
Abul
Kalam
Azad
“The
proceedings
of
the
Khilafat
Day
in Delhi provide an object-lesson in the
politics of the day, in as much as the obser-
vance in Delhi was characterised by the
total absence of any organisation (excepting
meeting). The day began with complete sus-
pension of business by both Hindus and
Mussalmans,
followed
by
prayers
in
the
Junta Masjid and ended in a monster meet-
ing of Hindus and Mussalmans in the noto-
rious Queen's Gardens in the evening.. It is
said and not without justification that the
peaceful demonstration and the hartal of
Friday last have supplied a most crushing
report to the insolent assertion of Lord
Sydenham and others of his kind that hartal
is always a signal for rebellion or riot.
Delhi's demonstration on 17th October was
as spontaneous as it was universal, Hindus
and Mussalmans joining their hands quite
voluntarily in a daily increasing feeling of
genuine fraternity and fellowship. It was
understood first on Thursday eve that the
Mussalmans intended making their protest
against the proposed dismemberment of
Turkey by observing a hartal and it was
heard that the Hindus meant to evince their
sympathy with their Muslim fellow citizens
by observing a hartal also. ”
The atrocities in the Punjab stirred the
country and Gandhi saw in the Khilafat move-
ment an opportunity to unite Hindus and
Muslims.
As Gandhi said,
‘If the demand for the
Khilafat could be made into India's national
demand
,
the Muslims of India would work
hand in hand with the non-Muslims. ’
Thus
he blended the just Indian resentment over
the Rowlatt Act with the Muslim
resentment over the Khilafat and started a
non-violent
‘satyagraha’
against
the
British raj.
“Several friends have enquired what
should be the position regarding the
forthcomig Peace Celebrations. On the
Khilafat Day, I know that resolutions were
passed at some meetings to the effect that the
Mahomedans could not participate in the
celebrations if the Khilafat question was not
satisfactorily settled, as there can be no
peace in Indian estimation. So long as the
great question remains unsolved and the
Mahomedan sentiment is in danger of being
lacerated and millions of Mahomedans
remaining in suspense of grief, it is hardly
possible for the Hindus, Parsis, Christians,
Jews and others for whom India is the land of
their adoption or birth to take part in the
forthcoming rejoicings. I venture to think
that His Excellency the Viceroy can, if he
will, tell His Majesty's Ministers that Indians
cannot participate in the celebrations so
long as the Khilafat question remains
unsettled, and I do hope that His Majesty's
Ministers will recognise the necessity of
securing and publishing an honourable
settlement of the question before asking us to
take part in the peace celebrations. ”
-Gandhiji's letter on the Peace Celebrations,
(Bombay Chronicle of 3 Nov, 1919.)
The death of Tilak on August 1, 1920,
made Gandhi the undisputed leader of the
Indian freedom struggle. On the same day, he
took up the leadership of the All-India
hartal
for which a call had been given by the Central
Khilafat Committee. The Committee thus
started the Khilafat movement. Gandhiji's
support added strength to it. Many Hindus
joined the movement under his leadership on
the strength of his logic that
‘rendering help in
times of need was the true test of friendship,
and if we do not extend our helping hand to the
Muslims in their hour of need Hindu-Muslim
unity would be out of the question. ’
The Bombay Chronicle
22 Oct, 1919.
The New Government of
India Act of 1919
The Montagu Chelmsford Report was
published on July 8, 1918; and the Act was
passed by the British Parliament on December
23, 1919 and the reforms became effective
from January 3,1921.
The Act brought about radical changes in
the provincial administration. A dual system
was introduced in Bengal and in eight other
provinces. The various departments of ad-
ministration were divided into two categories-
Reserved and Transferred.
The number of members of the
provincial
Legislative Council was substantially in-
creased.
The Act provided a Legislative Assem-
bly and a Council of State for the Central
Government and Legislative Council for each
of the provinces.
The Act of 1919 was the subject of dis-
cussion in the Amritsar session of the Con-
gress held on Dec 27, 1919.
Chittaranjan Das favoured a total rejec-
tion of the reforms.
This was the first occasion when
Gandhiji
took a prominent and active part in the pro-
ceedings of the Congress.
The Congress accepted a compromise
resolution moved by Tilak.
It said
‘But in the view of the Congress,
so long as absolute Home Rule is not granted,
the reforms be accepted and worked with a
view to the achievement of absolute Home
Rule and the Congress expresses its thanks to
Montagu for the same ’.