Question

In 1920, the Nagpur session of the Congress adopted a resolution for the Non-cooperation Movement under the leadership of Mahatma Gandhi. In this context, briefly explain:
A) The objectives of the movement
B) The reasons for its subsequent withdrawal
C) Any two far-reaching effects of this movement

Answer 1

Hint:
On September 5, 1920, Mahatma Gandhi initiated the Non-cooperation Movement with the goal of self-governance and absolute independence. It was withdrawn in 1922.

Complete step by step solution:
 a) The main force behind the non-cooperation movement was Mahatma Gandhi. In March 1920, he released a manifesto declaring the non-violent non-cooperation movement's ideology. In the Nagpur Session of Congress held in December 1920, the key non-cooperation agreements were undertaken. A programme was introduced to surrender names, to boycott schools, courts, and councils, to boycott international goods, to encourage the preservation of Hindu-Muslim unity and strict non-violence.

 The objectives of the Non-cooperation Movement were:
Adopt the principles of Swadeshi
Embrace swadeshi habits such as spinning and weaving hands
Act for social eradication of untouchability

b) In February 1922, in the aftermath of the Chauri Chaura incident, Gandhiji called off the movement. A violent mob set fire to a police station in Chauri Chaura, Uttar Pradesh, killing 22 police officers during a confrontation between the police and the movement's demonstrators. Gandhiji called off the movement claiming that people through “ahimsa” were not ready for an uprising against the government. Many leaders such as Motilal Nehru and C R Das opposed the movement's suspension only due to occasional instances of violence.

c) Two far-reaching effects of the movement were:
 The Non-cooperation Movement was a genuine mass movement in which lakhs of Indians participated by nonviolent means in the open protest against the government.
It shook the British government who were stumped by the scale of the campaign.

Note:
Gandhi had claimed that the movement could attain Indians “swaraj” or self-rule within a year. However, swaraj could not be achieved within a year.