Volume-XII, Issue-II, March 2026 |
ঔপনিবেশিক বাংলায় অহিংসা আন্দোলন ঋত্বিক সরকার, গবেষক, রাজা নরেন্দ্রলাল খান মহিলা মহাবিদ্যালয়, পশ্চিমবঙ্গ, ভারত |
Received: 19.03.2026 | Accepted: 20.03.2026 | Published Online: 31.03.2026 | Page No: | ||||
DOI: 10.29032/ijhsss.vol.12.issue.02W. | |||||||
The Non-Violence Movement in Colonial Bengal Hritwik Sarkar, Research scholar, Raja Narendra Lal khan Womens' College, West Bengal, India | ||
ABSTRACT | ||
This paper examines the nature, development, and impact of non-violent movements in colonial Bengal. It explores how the tradition of non-violent resistance gradually evolved in response to British colonial rule and socio-economic exploitation. Beginning with early agrarian protests such as the Indigo Revolt and later peasant mobilizations, the study traces the emergence of organized forms of peaceful protest such as boycott, non-cooperation, and civil resistance. The paper also highlights the influence of Mahatma Gandhi and the spread of Gandhian ideas of Ahimsa and Satyagraha, particularly during the Non-Cooperation Movement. The study analyses the social and cultural effects of non-violent movements in Bengal, including the rise of nationalist consciousness, the growth of national education, the expansion of Swadeshi industries, and increased participation of women in political activities. The movement also stimulated literary and cultural expressions of nationalism, with intellectual figures such as Rabindranath Tagore contributing to the ideological environment of resistance. At the same time, the paper evaluates the limitations and criticisms of non-violent politics in Bengal. Some historians, including R. C. Majumdar, have pointed out the simultaneous growth of revolutionary nationalism, suggesting that not all nationalists believed non-violence alone could secure independence. Others, such as Ranajit Guha, emphasize the need to examine the role of subaltern groups and rural society in understanding the full dynamics of nationalist movements. | ||
Keywords: Non-violent Movement, Colonial Bengal, Nationalism, Satyagraha |