11. KHILAFAT MOVEMENT & NON-COOPERATION MOVEMENT (1919–1922)

11. KHILAFAT MOVEMENT & NON-COOPERATION MOVEMENT (1919–1922)

11.1 Khilafat Movement (1919–1924)

• Pan-Islamic movement by Indian Muslims to pressure the British government to preserve the authority of the Ottoman Caliph (Khalifa) of Turkey — seen as spiritual head of Muslims worldwide — after Turkey's defeat in WWI led to harsh treatment under the Treaty of Sèvres.
• Leaders: Maulana Mohammad Ali and Maulana Shaukat Ali (the "Ali Brothers"), Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, Hakim Ajmal Khan, Hasrat Mohani.
• Khilafat Committee formed 1919; All India Khilafat Conference held.
• Gandhi saw this as a historic opportunity to unite Hindus and Muslims in a joint anti-British movement; he actively supported the Khilafat cause and merged it with the Non-Cooperation Movement.
• The movement collapsed after Mustafa Kemal Pasha (Ataturk) abolished the Caliphate itself in 1924 — removing the very basis of the movement.

11.2 Non-Cooperation Movement (1920–1922)

• Launched by Gandhi; formally approved at the special INC session at Calcutta (September 1920), chaired by Lala Lajpat Rai, and confirmed at the Nagpur Session (December 1920).
• Combined the Khilafat grievance and Punjab (Jallianwala Bagh) grievance with the demand for Swaraj.
• Programme:
  • Surrender of titles and honorary posts.
  • Boycott of government schools, colleges, courts, legislative councils, foreign goods.
  • Boycott of elections to legislative councils (1920).
  • Promotion of Swadeshi — hand-spun khadi, revival of the charkha (spinning wheel).
  • Establishment of national schools/colleges — e.g., Jamia Millia Islamia (1920, Aligarh, later Delhi), Kashi Vidyapith, Bihar Vidyapith, Gujarat Vidyapith.
  • Resignation from government jobs, titles (e.g., Rabindranath Tagore's knighthood already surrendered in 1919).
• Massive popular participation — first true mass movement of the national struggle; involved peasants, students, workers, women.
• Notable events: Prince of Wales' visit boycotted (1921); C.R. Das and Motilal Nehru gave up lucrative legal practices to join.
• Chauri Chaura incident (5 February 1922): In Chauri Chaura, Gorakhpur district, UP, an angry mob set fire to a police station, killing 22 policemen, after police had earlier fired on a peaceful procession.
• Gandhi, deeply disturbed by this violence (contrary to his principle of strict non-violence/ahimsa), withdrew the Non-Cooperation Movement on 12 February 1922 — a decision criticised by some contemporaries (e.g., young nationalists including Nehru and Bhagat Singh's generation felt it was premature) but defended by Gandhi as essential to preserving the movement's non-violent character.
• Gandhi was arrested in March 1922, tried for sedition (the famous "Great Trial"), sentenced to 6 years' imprisonment (released early in 1924 due to ill health/appendicitis surgery).

Key Facts / Quick Revision Points — Khilafat & Non-Cooperation

• Khilafat Movement — Ali Brothers (Mohammad Ali, Shaukat Ali); ended 1924 when Ataturk abolished Caliphate.
• NCM launched 1920 (Calcutta special session, Sept 1920; confirmed Nagpur, Dec 1920).
• Chauri Chaura incident — 5 Feb 1922; NCM withdrawn 12 Feb 1922.
• Jamia Millia Islamia founded 1920 as part of NCM's national education programme.
• Gandhi's "Great Trial" — 1922, sentenced 6 years, released 1924.