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They ar e nei ther nihi lis t n or anarchist . They are patriots Qh o have raised theirpatriotism to the pitch of a religion. Their religion remarkably fits in with theirpatriot ism an d m akes th e lat ter indescribably intense and alive.Again in the wo rds of K.S. Shelvankar, lndian n at ional ism in the firs t decade of the20th cen tury was

romantic, mystical, aggressive riddled w ith fallacies bu t sound en ough t o restorethe self-respect of the middle classes. It was a self-confident m ilitancy fortifiedby all that was heroic and splendid in India's past.Ti lak and Aurobindo were of the belief that a quasi-religious appeal wouldstrengthen Indian nat ional ism. In the second and third decades of the century,militants in Bengal broadly followed two types of activities. One was concerned withbomb throwing terrorizat ion and destabi l izat ion through creat ing scare amongofficials . The other g roup concentrated on organized rebel lion, infil t rat ion into thearm y and creat ing the grou nds fo r revolt and gueri lla warfare. They did not bel ievein individual assassinations or looting.Tilak represented another and an earl ier s t rand of fadical nat ibnal ism inMaharashtra concentrat ing on the systematic use of scriptural interpretat ions,religious festivals and festivals celebrating the heroic historical figures of the past,l ike Shivaj i to arouse consciousness among people and to ensure enthusiast icpart icipat ion in the cause of the struggle for freedom fro m colonial subject ion a ndhelplessness. In the words of Aurobindo

Mr . Tilak wa s the firs t poli tical leader to break th roug h t he rout ine of i ts(Congress) somew hat academical methods, to bridge th e gulf between the presentnd the past and to restore continui ty to th e pol it ical l i fe of the nat ion he usedmethods which lndianized the movement and brought i t to the masses.Check Your Progress 1Note i) Use the spac e given below for yo ur answer.

ii) Check your answer with that given at the end of the uni t .I Wha t were the main features of lndian response to Bri tish Colonialism?

16 3 M USLIM CO M M UNAL SEPARATISMMany authors have pointed out that nat ional ism of the Maharashtra and Bengalschool antagonized the Muslims of India and was a po tent cause behind the rise ofMuslim communal separat ism. It should be pointed out here that nei ther of thesetwo schools of aggressive, popular an d uncompromisingly ant icolonial nat ional ismwas by intent direct ly against the Muslim interest or meant t o hurt their sent iments.A s a ma tter of fact, in the early stages of militant nationalism in Bengal Mu slimscould be found in the ranks of the mil i tants though not in large numbers. They werealso appreciat ive of the unco mprom ising host il i ty tow ards Brit ish rule and did notoppose the swadeshi movem ent at i ts inception. It is t rue, how ever, that the intensereligious symbolism of b oth th e schoo ls was bolstered by references to ShivZji wh ofought against Muslim rule as well as by Bankim Chandra's novel 'Ana nda Ma th'which hinted a t a revolt and the missionary zeal which the a uth or of the novel lentto this effort did provide grou nds for uneasiness and a sense of al ienat ion in theminds of the Muslims. Of equal importance was certainly the desperate and

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Politica and Relldon ~ concerted efforts on the part of the Brit ish Indian G overnm ent to bring abo ut a ri ftModern ndia he nterft~ee in the nationalist forces, by pulling back sixty two million Muslims from the fold ofnationalism. Under the instructions of Lord Morley who was the Viceroy, and Minto

and egged on by the bureaucracy, a representative delegation of the Muslim upperclasses was invited to be entertained by the Viceroy in his garden at Simla onOctob er 1, 1906 to press on him t he urgent need to protect the interests of theMuslim community, ostensibly against the possible onslaught of the Hindu majority.The Muslim upper classes who were to a large extent depen dent on the colonialgovernment readily obliged. The Viceroy sympathized with the claims made by thedelegat ion for s tate patronag e. Referring to the event , an official wrote to theViceroy that it wasA work of s tatesman ship that will affectlndia and Indian history for many a long year.

Similar views were expressed by bo th Morley and Minto.The same year on December 30 the All lndia Muslim League was founded topro mo te feelings of loyalty to the British governm ent and to protect the political an dother rights of Indian Muslims. In 1908 and in the following year, the Lea guedema nded the extension of representat ion o n comm unal basis. In the year 1909, theMorley-Minto Reforms brough t forward the divisive doctrine of minori tyreprese ntation o n the basis of religion. T he efforts of the British to divide Indian sand to use one against anothe r was given anoth er expression thro ugh the doctrine ofcomm unal representat ion. I t was designed to s trengthen communalism, introducepolitical discrimination and create endless complications, especially for the Congressand the nationalist forces engaged in the struggle to free India from colonial'subject ion. The Congress prom ptly protested against the principle of com muna lrepresentat ion as well as dispropor t ionate representat ion given to the Muslims. Th eCongress also pointed out in its Lahore session of 1909 that the distinctions to bebrought about were

unjust, invidious, and humiliating.In the analysis of this highly regrettable and regressive development in the strugglefor freedom, proper weightage should be given to the religious symbolism of militantnat ional ism, the role of the Muslim upper class as well as the m alicious andmischievous policies of the British government.16 3 1 ain Trends of uslim Political ThinkingIf we analyse Muslim political thinking of the first two decades of'the twentiethcentury, it will be seen that the main trends in their thinking during this period were:a ) that the Congress does not ade quately represent al l the nat ional i t ies and races ofIndia;b) that the Muslims are backward educa t ional ly an d in economic standing, andconst i tute a m inori ty comp ared to l h e Hindus. Therefore, in any future systemof representa tive government and adminis t ra t ion in lnd ia the ~ u s l i m i il l be

swamped by tpe Hindus;c ) that the M uslims are different from the Hindu s in their cul ture , moral code,social organisat ion, religion a nd therefore const i tute a separate ent i ty ornationality.In addit ion to the ab ove , there were other t rends of though t each of which had i tsasceridance and decline among the Muslims, e.g., it is the duty of Muslims to beloyal to the government, seek protection including political rights. Another trendstoo d for joining the fight against the British gover nmen t. Ther e was a small, thoughoccasionally influential, nationalist group which held the opinion that the twoommunities should co-operate in a s many sphe res of act ion as possible including thenat ional ist s t ruggle an d that Hindu s should show m ore generosity to therequirements and sent iments of the minori ty community. Apart from these t rends ofthinking, the pan-Islamic sensit ivity always played an importan t role in p romptingthe Indian Muslims to uni te their ranks for act ion.

It will be seen that as India's p olitical strugg le unfolde d, the M uslim League, whichclaimed to represent the ent irecommunity, and succeeded in substant ial ly

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establishing its claim o nly after 1937, pitched its political dem and on t he basis of oneor more of the trends of thought listed above. Sir Syed Ahmed Khan's plea forconsidering the Muslims as a distinct an d separa te nationality on groun ds of race,culture, religion, physique, social organisation, moral code, political outlook andhistorical associations was a substantive form ulation on which M .A. Jinna h basedhis 'Two N ation Theory' an d the demand for part i t ion of lndia in 1940. Loyalty toand dependence on the British colonial government for special favours andprotection of Muslim interests resulted in sepa rate electorates, job reservation a nddemand for parity of status with the majority community in political representation.From the assumed incompatibility of Muslim interests with those of the Hindus,possible intolerance and co mm unal flare-ups tha t compromised the temper andstrength of the anti-colonial struggle of Gandhian Congress and the Marxist partiesappears to be a logical development. Similarly, pan-Islamic sentiment and religiousaffinity with the Muslim ca use everywhere, of which Iqb al theorized so eloquently,rallied th e Indian M uslims for Khilafat Non-Co-operation struggle against thegovernment by the All India Khilafat Committee and the Indian Na tional Congressduring 1920-22. The nat ional ist t rend of tho ught a mo ng the M uslims saw i tsascendancy in years of the First World War. It was a trend subscribeP to by some ofthe eminent scholars and professional men l ike M.A.N. Hydari , R.M. Sayani ,M o h a m m a d Ali , M.A. Ansari , Maulana Abul Kalam Azad and M.A. Jinnah.From what has been said above, i t should be evident that in the thought pat tern ofthe Muslims, the desire for peace, amity a nd co-operat ive act ion was present andattained temporary dominance at different periods of the anti-colonial struggle inIndia. But it could not become the effective pattern for the entire period underconsideration. In the following passages, we take a lobk at Hindu religion basedpolitical thinking as well as nationalist discourse in an attempt to ascertain the-na ture of the problem that existed.

16 3 2 Religious magery and SymbolismThe freque nt recourse to rel igious Imagery a nd symbolism t o explain social andeconomic condit ions of a people or t o bring in to focus poli tical ideas and goalscould com e abo ut as a result of the high degree of religious orien tation of a personor a comm unity, o r m ore deliberately to get quick political results by motivating apeople to action on the basis of emotive fervour, a sense of mission, and allegianceto a cause. T o individuals or comm unit ies having such orientat ion, no other frame ofreference except that which is based on one's religion is valid for understanding andevaluation of larger reality. This is so because to the m religion is the only source ofrelevant knowledge. It is obvious that political discourse based on such frameworksof reference gives rise to channe ls of comm ,unication th at a re exclusive to a set ofbelievers am ong whom each wo rd/sym bol having a rel igious con notat ion assumes ameaning which is unfzmiliar to others. It follows that in a country with a socialcomposition such as India's, th e use of religious symbolism is bound to be seen asrelevant for only one community of co-religionists. For others, it will be alienating.Such alienation is independent of secular, nationalist intentions of those who speak,write an d act to produce a nationalist discourse. Th at is why in colonial lnd iawhenev er religious ideas were linked w ith a n essentially political discour se it resultedin Hindu or Muslim nationalism.

Check Your Progress 2Note: i) Use the space given below for your answer.ii) Check your answer with tha t given at the end of the uni t .

I) Briefly discuss the main features of Muslim separatist thought.

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Politicsand Religion inModern India : he Interface

Dayanand, Vivekananda and Savarkar were three persons whose ideas on religion,culture and politics had significantly strengthened the foundation of revivalistnationalist politics in India.

16 4 1 Dayanand SaraswatiDayanand Saraswati, a monotheist Hindu reformer of the 19th century exercisedconsiderable influence as a revivalist nationalist. Dayanand was one of the first toassert that foreign rule constitutes an aggression on India s culture (the essence ofIndia) which is defined by vedic religion andl social organization of the Hindus.Dryanand believed that the vedic religion contained the supreme truths from which~ i n d u s ave stayed far. He gave an inspired critique of the Hindu religion as it waspractised in his time and advocated return t o the polity and society of vedic times.Although, not many considered his suggested panacea as workable, large number ofHindus were deeply moved by his uncomprtomising opposition t o foreign rule and hmilitant reformism as typified in the Arya Siamaj, the organization Dayanand hadestablished to implement his ideas.16 4 2 Swami VivekanandaSwami Vivekananda, vedantist and an extraordinary monk of the late 19th centuryIndia, prote and talked extensively on the idea of r7iritual freedom, which accordinto him is tied up with religious norms, and the subsequent degeneration of freedominto rights that have material power as their-basis. Vivekananda discoursed thatlndia lost her freedom because of the prevalence of the doctrine of rights( Adhikarwad ). Under the influence of material culture and the doctrine of rightsindividual human beings loose their sociality, and society gets structured into anelaborate system of specific roles. This has weakened India s urge for freedom.Vivekananda warned that unless lndia underwent a cultural revolution, the promiseof freedom which was a part of the legacy of the ancient culture will never beredleemed. Consequently, Vivekananda s message of revolution, for th e realization offreedom despite its unmistakable universality coincided with and energized the Hindrevivalist current of nationalism which projected its message of political freedomthrough religious-cultural symbolikm.16 4 3 V D SavarkarLike Dayanand; Savarkar also stressed the role of race, religion and nationhood. BuSavarkar s formulation was different and challenging. Fo r him, people of differentreligions sharing a feeling of belonging to a common territory (eg. the geographicalentity called India) can equally share common racial and religious ethos. This, hecallled. Hindutva which farmed the basis of India s nationhood. In the make up ofHindutva, Hindu culture has a greater role to play than religiosity while Savarkar sconceptualization permits a composite nationhood in 1ndia.His stand against pan-lslamism and his emphasis on Hindu culture were resented by religious minorities.

heck Your rogress 3Note i) Use the space given below for your answer.

ii) Check your answer with those given a t the end of the unit.I) Mention the main features of Hindu Revivailism.

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S O M E A S PE C T S O F H IN D U MU SL IM P R O B L E M

problem was the language of commun icat ion (including the use ofous or c ultura l symbols).ect of the same problem has been obliquely referred t o by Jawa harlal

t Congress leadership was equally applicable to the leadership of theim L eague. The M uslim League leadership was composed of rich landlords andout tha t one of the biggest mistakes of thess leadership was that Congress approac hed only the M uslim leadership and

ents from 1920 onw ards. Between 1914 and 1922 Hindu-M uslimionship appea red to have touched a peak insofar as cordiali tv is conterne d.l it ical developments, and th e misery of the com mon people at hom eices and famines affected M uslim and Hindu feelingske. The Luckno w Pact between the Congress and the League in 1916, and th eg 1919-22 appe ared t o be a real breakthr ough . In retrospect,

dence. There was an almost immediate a nd sh arp deteriorat ion in theunal s i tuat ion which continued unti l 1928. The-widesp read sense of ipsul tlowing the announc ement of the al l white Simon Comm ission (1927), thepects of anothe r dose of const i tut ional reforms, and perhaps the fai lure of thei p hase of politics b f both sides prom oted relatively simp le proposalsst Muslims for a more viable uni ty of purp ose an d act ion between the

the civil disobedience move ments of 1930-32, Muslim partic ipation w a sn o t ast was in the Khilafat Non-Co-ope ration Move ment. Any ho pe ofable Conference of 1931 which G andh i at tended. Th e Conferenceat ions did no t go well for G andh i and the Congress. The conservat ives, the

ngs at the Second Round Table Conference. Se parate electorates

the hope of Hind u-Muslim unity was given up. There appe ared to bek of enthusiasm on the part of Congressons to provincial legislatures, the League s request f or a co alition ministry in

want of zealous implem entation which such a prop osalved. Soo n after thetdeman d f or part i t ion was heard, an d a forma l resolut ions app aren t resignat ion o n the part of the Congress? Why this extreme

ons or dem and for too ma ny guarantees. Neither was l ikely to succeed innging a bou t uni ty of purpose an d act ion.

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Polltks and hdigion in Check Your rbgress 4odern ndia : he nterface Nde: i ) Use the space given below for your answer.

i i) Check you r answer with that given at the end of the uni t.I) Briefly discuss the various aspects of the Hindu-Musl im problem.

1 6.6 L E T U S S U M U PIn th e present unit, you were introduce d t o the interface of politics a nd religion inmode rn India in th e wa ke of British rule. You were told ab ou t revivalist H indunationalism as well as Muslim communalism. It is hoped that all this would haveprovided you with a goo d insight into the vario us linkages between politics an drel igion; which in turn can help you understand events taking place in contemporarIndia.

16.7 SOM E USEF UL BOOKSPantham Thomas and Deutsch Kenneth L: Political Thought in Modern India SaPublication, New Delhi, 1986. tD u n g en V an D en P . H . M . The Punjab Tradition Allen and Unwin, London 1972Rai La jpat Lala: Writings and Speeches. Vol. 2 Delhi, 1966.Savark ar V.D. :Hindutva Veer Savarkar Prakashan, 5th ed, 1969.d h an d ra B i pan :Nationalism and Colonialism in Modern India Orient Longman,New Delhi, 1979.Hasan Mushirul :Nationalism and Communal Polirics in India Ma noh ar, New De1979.Sh ak i r M o i n :Secularisarion o j Muslim Behaviour Minerva Associates, Calcutta, 19

16 . 8 . ANSW ERS TO CHECK YO UR PRO G RESSEXERCISES

Check Your rogressI) Se e Section 16.2 a n d Sub-section 16.2.2 16.2.4Check Your rogressI) Se e Section 16.3 an d Sub-section 16.3.1 and 16.3.2Check Your rogress 3I) See Section 16.4 an d Sub- section 16.4.1 16.4.3Check Your rogress 4