Emergence of Gandhi

The emergence of Gandhi was a watershed moment in the history of Indian nationalism. Gandhi returned to India from South Africa in 1915. During his early years, he spent his time at the Sabarmati Ashram in Ahmedabad, which was relatively unknown to the general public. In taking his political stance, he sought advice from Gopal Krishna Gokhale. Gokhale advised Gandhi to first thoroughly research the socio-political situation in the country and then act accordingly. However, Gandhi quickly rose to prominence in the political arena as a result of his capable leadership in a number of local conflicts.

Early Career

• On October 2, 1869, Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi was born in Porbandar, Gujarat’s princely state of Kathiawar. His father was a state diwan (minister).
• After studying law in England, Gandhi traveled to South Africa in 1893 in connection with a case involving his client, Dada Abdullah.
• In South Africa, he witnessed the ugly face of white racism, as well as the humiliation and contempt, showed to Asians who had come to South Africa as laborers.
• He chose to remain in South Africa in order to organize the Indian workers and enable them to fight for their rights.
• Gandhi spent 20 years of his life (1893 – 1914) in South Africa working as an attorney and a public worker.
• There he developed the idea of Satyagraha and used it against the Asiatic Registration Law. It also resulted in the first jail sentence in Mahatma Gandhi’s life.
• Although it couldn’t stop him from evolving into one of the most impactful and respected leaders in South Africa.
• He remained there until 1914 when he returned to India.

Gandhi’s Experiment with truth in South Africa

• The Indians in South Africa were divided into three groups:
  • indentured Indian laborers, primarily from South India, who had migrated to South Africa after 1890 to work on sugar plantations;
  • merchants—mostly Meman Muslims who had followed the laborers; and
  • ex-indentured laborers who had settled down with their children in South Africa after their contracts expired.
• These Indians were mostly illiterate and spoke little or no English. They accepted racial discrimination as a normal part of life.
• These Indian immigrants had to deal with a slew of handicaps.
  • They were not allowed to vote.
  • They could only live in designated areas that were unsanitary and congested.
• Asians and Africans in some colonies were unable to leave their homes after dark and nor were they allowed using public footpaths.

Phases of Struggle

Moderate Phase of Struggle (1894-1906)

• During this period, Gandhi relied on petitions and memorials to South African and British authorities.
• He hoped that once the authorities were made aware of the plight of Indians, they would take genuine steps to address their grievances, as Indians were, after all, British subjects.
• To unite various sections of Indians, he founded the Natal Indian Congress and launched the newspaper Indian Opinion.

Phase of Passive Resistance or Satyagraha (1906-1914)

• The second phase, which began in 1906, was distinguished by Gandhi’s use of the method of passive resistance or civil disobedience known as satyagraha.
• After a series of negotiations involving Gandhi, Lord Hardinge, C.F. Andrews, and General Smuts, an agreement was reached.
• The South African government conceded the major Indian demands relating to the poll tax, registration certificates, and marriages solemnized according to Indian rites, and promised to treat the issue of Indian immigration sympathetically.