Gandhi employed non-cooperation, non-violence and peaceful resistance as his "weapons" in the struggle against the British Raj.
In Punjab, the Jallianwala Bagh massacre of civilians by British troops (also known as the Amritsar Massacre) caused deep trauma to the nation, leading to increased public anger and acts of violence.
Gandhi criticised both the actions of the British Raj and the retaliatory violence of Indians.
It was after the massacre and subsequent violence that Gandhi's mind focused upon obtaining complete self-government and control of all Indian government institutions, maturing soon into Swaraj or complete individual, spiritual, political independence.
In December 1921, Gandhi was invested with executive authority on behalf of the Indian National Congress.
Under his leadership, the Congress was reorganised with a new constitution, with the goal of Swaraj. Membership in the party was opened to anyone prepared to pay a token fee.
A hierarchy of committees was set up to improve discipline, transforming the party from an elite organisation to one of mass national appeal. Gandhi expanded his non-violence platform to include the swadeshi policy — the boycott of foreign-made goods, especially British goods. Linked to this was his advocacy that khadi (homespun cloth) be worn by all Indians instead of British-made textiles. Gandhi exhorted Indian men and women, rich or poor, to spend time each day spinningkhadi in support of the independence movement.
Gandhi even invented a small portable spinning wheel that could be folded into the size of a small typewriter.
"Non-cooperation" enjoyed widespread appeal and success, increasing excitement and participation from all strata of Indian society. Yet, just as the movement reached its apex, it ended abruptly as a result of a violent clash in the town of Chauri Chaura, Uttar Pradesh, in February 1922. Fearing that the movement was about to take a turn towards violence, and convinced that this would be the undoing of all his work, Gandhi called off the campaign of mass civil disobedience
Gandhi was arrested on 10 March 1922, tried for sedition, and sentenced to
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| Sabarmati Ashram, Gandhi's home in Gujarat |
He was released in
February 1924 for an appendicitis operation, having served only 2 years.
Without Gandhi's unifying personality, the Indian National Congress began to
splinter during his years in prison, splitting into two factions, one led by
Chitta Ranjan Das and Motilal Nehrufavouring party participation in the legislatures, and the other led by Chakravarti Rajagopalachariand Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, opposing this move.
