The Timaru Herald THURSDAY, APRIL 10, 1930. INDIA'S NEW “WAR.”

Timaru Herald, Volume CXXV, Issue 18540, 10 April 1930, Page 8

The Timaru Herald THURSDAY, APRIL 10, 1930. INDIA'S NEW “WAR.”

II is obvious I 1011, the Indian Govpi-mnent bus disappointed the followers of Mr Gandhi, who had cherished the false illusion that the authorities would play into Ihe hands of the Indian revolutionaries by thus early making a martyr of their leader. The cable messages this morning indicate that thousands of villagers who journeyed to Bombay Presidency, expecting to see the Gandhi arrested, have been sadly disappointed! The authorities are completely ignoring the leader of the independence party, and he is now exhorting his hearers to abandon their attitude of nonviolence and resist the confiscation of the smallest quantity of salt. It is significant, however, that Mr Gandhi is urging the Indian women to defy the authorities to touch them, which would, of course constitute a deadly insult in native eyes. It is quite Clear, however, that the prophecies made early in February that the. Government of India would soon be faced with a serious campaign for the overthrowing of civil authority in the Gujerat district of Bombay Presidency, have been fulfilled by recent developments. At Ahmedabad in February, Mr Gandhi obtained the committee’s full permission to start a civil disobedience movement. As in 1921 Mr Gandhi is again standing forth as the unfettered leader of an organised attempt to reduce the Government of India to impotence by means of the nonpayment of taxes. For the moment, the Congress has faded into the background, merely promising help, while Mr Gandhi assumes full control as “general” in what his followers call the new “war of independence.” The main objective of the movement now in progress is the breaking of the Government’s salt monopoly, and the picketing of the liquor shops and foreign cloth shops. The programme outlined some months ago included the refusal of the peasants to pay taxes in selected areas, the organisation of private salt factories to defeat the Government monopoly, and the refusal of dockers to unload foreign salt. At the outset, Mr Gandhi’s followers were jubilant over the confidence the Congress placed in the “general,” and despite the emphasis then officially laid on the non-violent nature of the campaign, it is significant that Mr Gandhi is now appealing to his followers to abandon their attitude of non-violence, while many of his extremist supporters are already talking of a forthcoming “war of independence.” “The bugle has been sounded and the war of independence declared, with Mr Gandhi as the general,” stated one mem bo v of the Working Committee, who went out of his way to emphasise the generally held view that the Congress has, completely disappeared from the picture. One notable feature of the campaign is the outspoken views of the supporters of the new general. A Sikh member of the Congress Working Committee declared that their threat was not an empty one, and that the British would have lo leave India, while another member said that, civil disobedience was the only method open io a disarmed nation. Every inch of India was theirs, and they would shed their blood for the protection of their property.” Dr. Choitram declared that youths must come forward with the watchword “Heaven if Dead, Freedom if Alive.” A Madras member of the committee said that the first war of independence in 1857 (the Indian Mutiny) failed for want of discipline. The second war of independence would be a different affair. If their general, Mr Gandhi, was thrown into prison they would break open the prison and set him free. Pundit Jawaharlal Nehru, describing the occasion as a glorious day in the history of their country, said that the Youth Leagues, which had in the past made a great noise, would now have an opportunity of showing what they could do. The formal resolution passed by the Working Committee declares that

In the opinion of the committee civil disobedience should be initiated and controlled by those who believe in nonviolence, for the purpose of achieving Purna Swaraj (complete independence) ;

The committee welcomes the proposal of Mr Gandhi and authorises him and those working with him to start civil disobedience as and when they desire and in any manner and to any extent they decide; The committee hopes that in the event of a mass movement taking place, all those rendering voluntary co-operation to the Government, such as lawyers and students, will withdraw their co-operation and throw themselves- into the final struggle for freedom.

Dramatic developments may come, although they are not anticipated, in view of the aim of the new movement to challenge the Government’s hold on the salt monopoly, but it is not yet clear that Mr Gandhi, despite the picturesque nature of his campaign, is able to count on that whole-hearted support of the natives which is vital if the new “war of independence” is to emerge beyond the more or less farcical stage in which it has Halted so lone. f