Mahatma Gandhi’s return to India marked a pivotal chapter in the Indian independence movement. At 46, this iconic leader came back from South Africa in January 1915, ready to ignite change through non-violent resistance. Over the next year, Gandhi traveled widely across India to grasp the nation’s pulse—its people, struggles, and aspirations. During this time, he urged Indians to support the British in World War I by joining the British Indian Army, earning the moniker “Recruiting Sergeant.” Back then, Gandhi trusted deeply in British justice and fair play. In 1916, he founded the Sabarmati Ashram near Ahmedabad, a haven where followers embraced a simple life rooted in truth and non-violence.
### Gandhi’s Early Satyagraha Movements: Building Momentum
After 1916, Gandhi led transformative satyagraha movements over three years, tackling injustices head-on. He championed indigo farmers in Champaran, textile workers in Ahmedabad, and peasants in Kheda. These victories cemented Gandhi as a mass leader with extraordinary appeal, showcasing the power of non-violent protest in the Indian independence movement.
#### Champaran Satyagraha: Gandhi’s First Major Non-Violent Campaign (1917)
In Champaran district of north Bihar, Gandhi launched his inaugural satyagraha against European indigo planters’ harsh practices. The “Tinkathia system” forced peasants to cultivate indigo on 3/20th of their land. By the late 19th century, synthetic dyes diminished natural indigo’s demand, prompting many planters to shut factories. Farmers sought freedom from indigo farming, but release required paying an illegal tax called “Sharahbeshi” or “Tawan.”
Exploited and exhausted, peasants rebelled against indigo cultivation and the tax. Inspired by Gandhi’s South African triumphs, Champaran farmers, led by Rajkumar Shukla, invited him to guide them. In April 1917, Gandhi arrived with key allies like Rajendra Prasad, Mazhar-ul-Haq, J.B. Kripalani, Narhari Parikh, and Mahadev Desai.
Local authorities demanded Gandhi leave Champaran, but he defied the order peacefully, ready for punishment. This bold non-violent defiance was revolutionary in India. As the Government of India didn’t view Gandhi as a rebel yet, it directed officials to retract the order, granting him free access.
Gandhi’s team investigated peasants’ plight thoroughly, spotlighting grievances nationally. The government formed an inquiry committee including Gandhi. Thanks to the probe and publicity, the Tinkathia system ended. The mental uplift was profound—a sub-divisional officer noted on April 29, 1917, that Gandhi was “daily transforming the imagination of the ignorant masses by holding out before them visions of a golden age.” One peasant likened Gandhi to Lord Rama, declaring to the committee: “Now that Gandhi has come, the cultivators have nothing to fear from the demon-like planters.” Rumors flew that the Viceroy or King-Emperor dispatched Gandhi to curb planters, and the British would soon depart Champaran.
The Champaran Agrarian Act of November 1918 aimed to resolve issues, but it didn’t fully eradicate planter oppression or satisfy farmers completely.
#### Ahmedabad Mill Workers’ Strike: Mediating Industrial Disputes (1918)
Shifting from rural woes, Gandhi intervened in an internal industrial clash in Ahmedabad during February–March 1918. Unlike Champaran and Kheda battles against Europeans or officials, this pitted Gujarati mill owners against workers. The spark? Withdrawal of the “plague bonus” from 1917, meant to retain workers amid a plague outbreak. Workers pushed for a 50% wage hike; owners offered just 20%.
Social activist Anasuya Behn Sarabhai and her brother Ambalal Sarabhai, head of the Ahmedabad Mill Owners’ Association, called on Gandhi to mediate. Both sides initially agreed to arbitration, but owners withdrew, insisting the strike end. After analyzing costs, profits, and living expenses, Gandhi convinced workers to lower demands to 35%. Owners locked out workers on February 22, igniting a full strike under Gandhi’s lead in March 1918.
Here, Gandhi fasted unto death for the first time on March 15—to bolster workers’ spirit or sway owners. The fast worked; owners accepted arbitration. The tribunal granted a 35% raise. This win led to the Textile Labour Association’s formation in February 1920, strengthening labor rights in India’s independence era.
#### Kheda Satyagraha: Championing Peasants’ Rights (1918)
In Gujarat’s Kheda district, Gandhi spearheaded his first true peasant satyagraha. Crop failures in 1917–18 left Kunbi-Patidar peasants demanding land revenue remission. Rules mandated full remission if yields dipped below 25% of normal, yet the government denied relief.
The no-revenue drive started in November 1917 under locals Mohanlal Pandya and Shankarlal Parikh from Kapadvanj taluka. Gandhi, via the Gujarat Sabha, assumed leadership after deliberation. With Vallabhbhai Patel and Servants of India Society members, they probed deeply and affirmed peasants’ just claim for remission per revenue codes.
When appeals failed, Gandhi urged peasants at a Nadiad meeting on March 22, 1918, to withhold revenue until granted remission—even those able to pay, in solidarity. Masses joined, courting arrest in this non-violent protest.
Gandhi later discovered secret government orders to collect only from payers, meeting his goal. The campaign ended in June 1918. Still, the government recouped about 39% of revenue, impacting only 70 of 559 villages significantly.
These local satyagraha movements—Champaran, Ahmedabad, and Kheda—propelled Gandhi to national fame. They tested satyagraha, bridged him to the masses, revealed societal strengths and flaws, and drew youth support, fueling the broader Indian independence movement.
### Gandhi’s Dive into National Politics: The Rowlatt Satyagraha
Until early 1919, Gandhi stayed somewhat aloof from all-India politics, trusting British justice. He expected Swaraj (self-government) post-World War I for India’s wartime aid. When denied, his faith wavered. The Rowlatt Act’s passage in February 1919 turned him into a staunch foe of British rule.
#### Understanding the Rowlatt Act
In 1918, the Sedition Committee, led by Justice Sidney Rowlatt, proposed a harsh law—the Rowlatt Act, dubbed the “Black Act.” Despite Indian opposition, it passed the Central Legislature from February 6 to March 1919. It allowed jailing Indians without trial for up to two years, suspending habeas corpus—a core British legal right.
#### Launching the Satyagraha Sabha
Resentment boiled over the Rowlatt Act, but Gandhi proposed a novel, non-violent nationwide response beyond petitions. On February 24, 1919, he and allies formed the Satyagraha Sabha in Bombay. Volunteers vowed to flout Rowlatt laws, sell prohibited books, and accept jail—a fresh tactic in India’s freedom fight.
Support poured from Home Rule Leagues, Muslim groups, and the Sabha. Funds and volunteers came chiefly from Bombay activists. Gandhi secured backing from Muslim leaders like Maulana Abdul Bari of Lucknow.
#### Nationwide Call for Non-Violent Protest
March–April 1919 saw massive awakening. Gandhi summoned a nationwide hartal on April 6, 1919 (shifted from March 30)—strikes, fasts, prayers, and law violations. Set for Sunday, he advised Sunday workers to get employer nods.
#### Facing Repression and Sparking Violence
British forces aimed to quash the movement, unprepared for vast non-violent action. Gandhi’s arrest on April 9, 1919, at Palwal en route to Delhi, and return to Bombay, incited violence in Punjab (Amritsar, Lahore, Gujranwala), Gujarat (Ahmedabad, Viramgam, Nadiad), Delhi, Bombay, and somewhat Calcutta.
#### The Horror of Amritsar and Jallianwala Bagh Massacre
In Punjab, Hindu-Muslim-Sikh unity alarmed officials, notably Lt. Governor Michael O’Dwyer. Peaceful hartals on March 30 and April 6 in Amritsar were huge. On April 9, leaders Dr. Satyapal and Dr. Saifuddin Kitchlu were deported. A 30,000-strong protest on April 10 faced firing near Hall Bridge, killing about 20 and prompting attacks on British symbols.
On April 13, 1919—Baisakhi—a peaceful gathering at enclosed Jallianwala Bagh protested deportations and the Rowlatt Act. Brigadier-General Reginald Dyer ordered firing on the trapped, unarmed crowd without warning. Official toll: 379 dead, over 1,200 injured; Indian figures higher. This massacre stunned India.
Post-massacre, Punjab endured martial law: arrests, torture, tribunals, floggings, crawling orders, saluting mandates, and humiliations.
#### Turmoil in Other Regions
– **Lahore**: Strong Hindu-Muslim unity in hartals; violence followed Gandhi’s arrest and Amritsar news.
– **Gujranwala, Gujarat, and Lyallpur**: Workers and lower classes joined; property attacks met bombings and reprisals.
– **Delhi**: Strikes and demos; firings killed several; Swami Shraddhanand revered across faiths.
– **Ahmedabad**: Riots post-arrest; 51 buildings burned; martial law.
– **Bombay and Calcutta**: Mostly peaceful hartals with minor violence.
#### Lasting Impact of the Rowlatt Satyagraha
The brutality, especially Jallianwala Bagh Massacre, unmasked Britain’s “civilized” facade. Rabindranath Tagore renounced his knighthood on May 30, 1919, calling honors shameful amid horror.
Distraught by violence (notably Ahmedabad), Gandhi suspended satyagraha on April 18, 1919.
Politically, it faltered—the Act stayed, and violence breached non-violence vows. Gandhi called it a “Himalayan blunder,” admitting insufficient non-violence training.
Yet, its legacy endures: India’s first mass movement, shifting nationalism from elite to popular. It elevated Gandhi nationally and made satyagraha the freedom struggle’s cornerstone.
