The First World War, Khilafat and Non-Cooperation

The First World War, Khilafat and Non-Cooperation Movement — How Did Indian Nationalism Emerge?

The growth of modern nationalism in India is deeply connected to the struggle against colonial rule. As Indian society confronted the impact of British policies, different classes and communities discovered a shared sense of unity -- even though their experiences of colonialism varied widely. From the 1920s onward, the national movement expanded into new regions, drew in diverse social groups, and adopted new methods of resistance under the leadership of Mahatma Gandhi^?.

Impact of the First World War on India

The war placed enormous economic burdens on the Indian population. Defence spending soared, funded through war loans and higher taxes -- customs duties were increased and income tax was introduced for the first time. Between 1913 and 1918, prices roughly doubled, causing severe hardship among ordinary people. Rural areas bore an additional burden as villages were compelled to supply soldiers, and forced recruitment^? generated widespread resentment.

The post-war years brought no relief. Crop failures in 1918-19 and 1920-21 led to acute food shortages across many regions. An influenza epidemic struck simultaneously, and according to the 1921 Census, between 12 and 13 million people died from the combined effects of famine and disease. Popular expectations that wartime hardships would ease after the conflict ended were left unfulfilled.

Timeline: From World War I to Non-Cooperation

1.1 The Idea of Satyagraha

The philosophy of satyagraha rested on the conviction that truth possesses an inherent power. If a cause was just and the struggle was directed against genuine injustice, then physical force was unnecessary. A satyagrahi could prevail without aggression or vengeance by appealing to the conscience of those in power. Gandhi believed that people -- including oppressors themselves -- needed to be persuaded to recognise truth rather than being coerced into accepting it. He was convinced that this principle of non-violent action, rooted in dharma, could bring together all Indians regardless of their differences.

Upon arriving in India, Gandhi put these ideas into practice through a series of localised campaigns. In 1917, he went to Champaran^? in Bihar, where peasants were suffering under an exploitative plantation system. That same year, he supported the peasants of Kheda district in Gujarat, who could not pay revenue after crop failure and a plague outbreak. In 1918, he organised a movement among cotton mill workers in Ahmedabad.

1.2 The Rowlatt Act

Building on the success of his early campaigns, Gandhi decided in 1919 to launch a nationwide satyagraha against the proposed Rowlatt Act^?. This legislation had been pushed through the Imperial Legislative Council despite unanimous opposition from its Indian members. The Act granted the colonial government sweeping powers to suppress political activities, including the authority to detain political prisoners without trial for up to two years.

Gandhi called for non-violent civil disobedience against these unjust measures, beginning with a hartal^? on 6 April. The response was significant: rallies took place in numerous cities, railway workers went on strike, and shops shut their doors. However, the British administration, alarmed by this popular surge and fearing disruption to communication networks like railways and telegraph lines, cracked down on nationalist leaders. In Amritsar, local leaders were arrested and Gandhi himself was prevented from entering Delhi.

The massacre sparked widespread fury across northern India. Strikes erupted, people clashed with police, and government buildings were attacked. The colonial response was brutal: satyagrahis were humiliated and forced to crawl on streets, people were flogged, and villages near Gujranwala in Punjab were bombed from the air. Seeing the violence spiral, Gandhi called off the movement.

1.3 Why Non-Cooperation?

Although the Rowlatt satyagraha had gained widespread support, it remained largely confined to urban areas. Gandhi recognised the need for a broader movement that could mobilise all of India. He was also convinced that Hindu-Muslim unity was essential for any mass movement to succeed. The Khilafat issue^? provided an opportunity to build this unity.

Following Turkey's defeat in the First World War, there were fears that a harsh peace treaty would strip the Ottoman emperor -- the Khalifa, the spiritual head of the Islamic world -- of his temporal powers. Muslim leaders like the brothers Muhammad Ali and Shaukat Ali formed a Khilafat Committee in Bombay in March 1919 and began collaborating with Gandhi on the possibility of united mass action.

The Programme of Non-Cooperation

Gandhi proposed a phased approach to the movement. It would begin with the surrender of government-awarded titles, followed by a boycott of civil services, the army, police, courts, legislative councils, schools, and foreign goods. If the government responded with repression, the campaign would escalate into full civil disobedience.

Through the summer of 1920, Gandhi and Shaukat Ali toured extensively to build popular support. However, there was considerable opposition within the Congress itself. Many leaders were reluctant to boycott council elections scheduled for November 1920, and some feared the movement could descend into popular violence. After months of intense debate between September and December, a compromise was reached at the Nagpur Congress session in December 1920, where the Non-Cooperation programme was formally adopted.