Background of the Kheda Satyagraha
The Kheda Satyagraha of 1918 was a Satyagraha movement organized by Mahatma Gandhi in the Kheda district of the state of Gujarat, India, during the British Raj. It was a major uprising within the Indian independence movement. It was the second Satyagraha movement, launched seven days after the Ahmedabad Mill Strike. Following the successful Satyagraha in Champ ran, Bihar, Gandhiji organized this movement to support farmers who were unable to pay land revenue due to famine and a plague epidemic.
Leaders who participated in the Kheda Satyagraha
In Gujarat, Mahatma Gandhi primarily served as the spiritual leader of the struggle. He received support from Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel—who was new to the Satyagraha movement—as well as from other local lawyers and advocates, such as Indi Lal Yagnik, Shankar Lal Banker, Mahadev Desai, Narhari Parikh, Mohanlal Pandya, and Ravishankar Vyas. He toured rural areas, organized the villagers, and provided them with political leadership and direction.
The Struggle for the Kheda Satyagraha
In 1918, British officials increased taxes in the Kheda region by 23%, even as the area was grappling with the aftermath of the 'Chania Famine' and other calamities, which had triggered outbreaks of diseases such as cholera and the plague. Despite meetings held by Sardar Patel and Mahatma Gandhi, the Collector of Nadiad refused to grant any form of relief under the 'Ana vary' system of taxation. Initially spearheaded by Mohanlal Pandya and Narhari Parikh, this movement subsequently garnered the support of the Gujarat Sabha and the National Congress. Patel and his associates organized a massive uprising to protest the taxes, and various ethnic and caste communities within Kheda united to lend their support to the movement. Citing the prevailing famine conditions, the farmers of Kheda signed a petition demanding a complete waiver of taxes for the current year. The Bombay-based government rejected this petition. They issued a warning stating that if the farmers failed to pay their taxes, their lands and property would be confiscated, and many individuals would be arrested.
When the farmers refused to pay taxes, the government's tax collectors and inspectors dispatched thugs to confiscate their property and livestock; meanwhile, the police seized their lands and all agricultural assets. The farmers neither resisted their arrest nor responded with violence to the force employed by the government. Instead, they donated their savings and valuables to the 'Gujarat Sabha,' the organization officially orchestrating this protest.
In terms of discipline and unity, this movement was truly unparalleled. Even when the farmers were stripped of all their personal property, land, and means of livelihood, the vast majority of the farmers in Kheda remained completely united in their support of Patel. Sympathizers from other parts of Gujarat, undeterred by the government machinery, stepped forward to assist by sheltering the protesting farmers' relatives and safeguarding their property. Any Indian who attempted to purchase the lands confiscated by the government was completely ostracized by society. Although nationalists such as Sardar Singh Caesar called for the initiation of similar sympathetic movements in other parts of the country, Gandhi and Patel firmly rejected this idea.
The Outcome of the Kheda Satyagraha
Ultimately, the government attempted to broker an honorable settlement that would be acceptable to both parties. Taxes were suspended for that year and the following year, and the proposed increase in the tax rate was reduced.
The people collectively ensured that the confiscated lands were returned to their original owners. Those who had purchased the confiscated lands were persuaded to return them—even though the British government had officially declared that it would stand by the buyers.
The Kheda Satyagraha of 1918 proved to be a major turning point in the Indian independence movement. It played a pivotal role in establishing Gandhiji as the leader of the Indian people. Some of the key outcomes of this Satyagraha were as follows:
The government neither collected revenue from the farmers nor confiscated their lands.
Land taxes were levied only upon those who possessed the financial capacity to pay them.
The task of restoring the confiscated lands to their original owners was also successfully accomplished through the cooperation of all concerned parties.
Gandhiji decided to withdraw from this struggle (even though not all of the farmers' demands had been fully met).
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