INDIAN NATIONAL MOVEMENT- 1885 - 1918 THE MODERATES AND THE RADICALS PARTITION OF BENGAL THE MUSLIM LEAGUE SURAT SPLIT MORLEY MINTO REFORMS AND LUCKNOW PACT

THE RADICALS A SECTION OF THE CONGRESS LOST FAITH IN THE BRITISH GOVERNMENT AND MODERATE METHODS OF STRUGGLE . THIS FACTION CAME TO BE CALLED AS THE RADICALS. THUS THE CONGRESS CAME TO HAVE TWO FACTIONS – THE MODERATES AND THE RADICALS. TO THE RIGHT IS A PICTURE OF DADABHAI NAOROJI, A MODERATE LEADER OF THE CONGRESS.

MODERATES – HAD FAITH IN BRITISH SENSE OF JUSTICE, FAVOURED WESTERN EDUCATION, FOLLOWED PRAYER, PETITION AND PROTEST- [THE 3-Ps]. RADICALS – HAD NO FAITH ON BRITISH SENSE OF JUSTICE, FAVOURED NATIONAL EDUCATION, FOLLOWED SWADESHI AND BOYCOTT . TO THE RIGHT IS A PICTURE OF THE TRIO RADICAL LEADERS – LAL-BAL- PAL/ LALA LAJPAT RAI, BAL GANGADHAR TILAK AND BIPIN CHANDRA PAL.

PICTURE ON THE RIGHT – LORD CURZON PARTITION OF BENGAL VICEROY LORD CURZON STATED THAT PARTITION OF BENGAL WOULD HELP IN EFFICIENT ADMINISTRATION AS ITS AREA WAS VERY EXTENSIVE. IN REALITY IT WAS AN ATTEMPT TO DIVIDE THE HINDUS AND MUSLIMS AND WEAKEN THE GROWING STRENGTH OF RADICAL NATIONALISM IN BENGAL. PICTURE ON THE RIGHT – LORD CURZON

BENGAL WAS PARTITIONED INTO EASTERN ANND WESTERN BENGAL PROVINCES WEST BENGAL HAD MAJORITY OF HINDUS AND EAST BENGAL HAD MAJORITY OF MUSLIMS. THIS PARTITION SOWED THE IDEA OF CREATING A SEPARATE NATION PAKISTAN FOR THE MUSLIMS IN THE LATER YEARS.

THE SWADESHI AND BOYCOTT MOVEMENT THE RADICALS POPULARISED SWADESHI – PRODUCTION, USE AND PURCHASE OF INDIAN PRODUCTS AND BOYCOTTED EVERYTHING THAT WAS FOREIGN. HUGE BONFIRES WERE USED TO BURN FOREIGN CLOTHES AND ARTICLES. THIS HELPED THE INDIAN INDUSTRIES, SPECIALLY THE HANDICRAFT AND TEXTILE INDUSTRY TO REVIVE BACK. PEOPLE IN LARGE NUMBERS STARTED BUYING ONLY INDIAN GOODS, ATTENDED ONLY NATIONAL SCHOOLS AND COLLEGES AND EVEN RESIGNED FROM THE BRITISH GOVERNMENT JOBS.

SURAT SPLIT THE DIVIDE BETWEEN THE MODERATES AND THE RADICALS BECAME VERY PROMINENT WHEN THERE WAS AN OPEN RIFT BETWEEN THE TWO FACTIONS OF THE CONGRESS IN ITS SURAT SESSION. RADICAL LEADER TILAK WAS NOT EVEN ALLOWED TO SPEAK ON THE DIAS IN THE SESSION AND THE RADICALS CREATED AN UPROAR ON THIS. AS A RESULT THE RADICALS WERE SUSPENDED FROM THE CONGRESS FOR 9 YEARS FOR INDISCIPLINE. THIS BECAME KNOWN AS THE HISTORICAL SURAT SPLIT.

MUSLIM LEAGUE & MORLEY MINTO REFORMS THE MUSLIM LEAGUE WAS FORMED BY THE MUSLIM COMMUNITY THAT BELIEVED THAT THE CONGRESS WAS A PREDOMINANTLY HINDU PARTY AND WILL NOT FAVOUR THE INTERESTS OF THE MINORITY COMMUNITIES ONCE INDIA GETS ITS FREEDOM FROM THE BRITISH. THE MUSLIM LEAGUE DEMANDED SEPARATE ELECTIONS FOR THE MUSLIMS IN THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ELECTIONS. THIS WAS GRANTED BY MORLEY MINTO AND CAME TO BE KNOWN AS A POPULAR MORLEY- MINTO REFORM.

THE LUCKNOW PACT THE MUSLIMS THOUGHT THAT THE CONGRESS WOULD NOT ACCEPT THE MORLEY-MINTO REFORMS OF A SEPARATE ELECTORATE FOR THE MUSLIMS. BUT SURPRISINGLY THE CONGRESS DID ACCEPT THIS THROUGH A PACT IN THE LUCKNOW SESSION OF THE CONGRESS. THIS ACT OF THE CONGRESS BROUGHT LUCK TO THE PARTY AS IT BROUGHT WITH IT A UNITY AMONG THE HINDUS AND MUSLIMS AND ALSO THE MODERATES AND THE RADICALS. THE LUCKNOW PACT IS THEREFORE CONSIDERED A VERY SIGNIFICANT TURNING POINT IN THE INDIAN FREEDOM MOVEMENT.