Natal Indian Congress | Mahatma Gandhi

Context:

22^nd August marks the 130^th anniversary of Natal Indian Congress

Natal Indian Congress (NIC):

• Founded on – 22 August 1894 by Mahatma Gandhi in the Natal Colony, South Africa
• Purpose – Fight discrimination against Indians in South Africa
• Initially focused on petitions and extra-parliamentary protests
• Became more confrontational under Monty Naicker during 1940s
• Participated with the African National Congress (ANC) in its defiance campaign against apartheid1.
• Was dormant in the 1960s due to state repression and revived in 1971
• Significant Actions –
  • Petition against disenfranchisement
  • Campaign against the Asiatic Land Tenure and Indian Representation Act (1946-1948)
  • Boycotted the South African Indian Council and Tricameral Parliament

Mahatma Gandhi:

• Birth – 2^nd October 1869 in Porbandar, Gujarat
  • 2^nd October is observed as International Day of Non-Violence
• Father of the Nation (first called by Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose)
• Ideology – Believed in the ideas of Non-violence, Truth, Honesty, Care for Mother Nature, Compassion, Welfare of Downtrodden
• Political Mentor – Gopal Krishna Gokhale
• Return to India from South Africa – 9^th January 1915
  • Pravasi Bharatiya Divas is celebrated on 9th January
• Death – 30^th January 1948
  • Shot dead by Nathuram Godse
  • 30^th January is observed as Martyrs’ Day
• Nominated 5 times for Nobel Peace Prize
• Books – Hind Swaraj, My Experiments with Truth (Autobiography)
• Weeklies – Harijan, Navjivan, Young India and Indian Opinion

Major movements led by Gandhi:

• Champaran Satyagraha (1917) – Gandhi’s 1^st Civil Disobedience movement
• Ahmedabad Mill Strike (1918) – 1^st Hunger Strike
• Kheda Satyagraha (1918)
• Non-Cooperation Movement (1920-22)
• Civil Disobedience Movement (1930-34)
• Quit India Movement (1942)
• Key Agreements –
  • Gandhi-Irwin Pact (1931) – Led to suspension of Civil Disobedience Movement
  • Poona Pact (1932) – Between Gandhi and B.R. Ambedkar; abandoned separate electorates for depressed classes

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Previous Year Question

Who among the following is associated with ‘Songs from Prison’, a translation of ancient Indian religious lyrics in English?

[UPSC Civil Service Exam – 2021 Prelims]

(a) Bal Gangadhar Tilak
(b) Jawaharlal Nehru
(c) Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi
(d) Sarojini Naidu

Answer: (c)

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