NCERT Solutions for Class 12 English Prose 5: Indigo

Rajkumar Shukla is being described as “resolute” because he was determined to do something against the landlord system in Bihar. That is why he followed Gandhiji whereever he went. For weeks he never left Gandhiji’s side. Rajkumar Shukla earnestly wanted that Gandhiji should visit Champaran to solve their problems.

(a) (i) a sharecropper
(iii) delegate

(b) (i) poor
(iii) illiterate.

 Gandhiji was always dressed in a simple dhoti like poor people of India. That is why the servants thought Gandhiji to be another peasant.

First of all Gandhiji began by trying to get the facts. For this purpose he visited the secretary of the British landlords’ association, but he refused to give any information to an outsider. Next he called on the British official commissioner of the Tirhut division in which Champaran district lay. The commissioner bullied him and advised him to leave Tirhut. This shows that Gandhiji was a staunch seeker and believer in truth.

But Gandhiji did not leave and rather proceeded to Motihari, the capital of Champaran. He mobilized the support of lawyers and peasants. He got an official notice to quit Champaran immediately. But he disobeyed the order and was summoned to court. Thousands of farmers’ spontaneous demonstration around the court was their liberation from fear of the British.

Gandhiji just wanted civil disobedience or Satyagraha in a non-violent manner. Later on, for India’s freedom struggle Satyagraha and non-violence became his pillars of strength. He always followed the path of truth and acted according to the voice of his conscience. Thus Champaran was for him a test case in which he was fully successful.

Gandhiji never contented himself with large political or economic solutions. He saw the cultural and social backwardness in the Champaran village. He wanted to do something about it immediately. He appealed to teachers and their wives and teachers from various cities and volunteered them to teach. Primary schools were opened in six villages. Some sort of medical services were also started. This is how the episode of Champaran changed the plight of the peasants.

According to Gandhiji the amount of the refund was less important than the fact that the landlords had been obliged to surrender a part of the money and with it, part of their prestige. The peasant learned courage and how to defend his rights. Keeping it all in view, Gandhiji agreed to a settlement of 25 per cent refund to the farmers. He was right because within a few years the British planters abandoned their estates, which reverted to the peasants.

No freedom movement can be successful until the common people are involved in it. Leaders can guide the 5th aments, but the movements can only be successful if the general public is whole-heartedly involved in it. To fight for the justice to the peasants or share- croppers of Champaran, who were being exploited by the Englishmen landlords, Gandhi led the movement. Many eminent lawyers and other leaders were also involved.

But the “spontaneous demonstration” by the peasants and their involvement contributed a lot to the freedom movement. It was the beginning of their liberation from fear of the British. They learned the virtue of courage and became conscious of their rights. So, within a few years the British planters abandoned their estates, which were returned to the peasants. Thus the ordinary common people too contributed to the freedom movement.

Gandhiji on his way to Champaran, stopped at Muzaffarpur to obtain more complete information. Muzaffarpur lawyers called on Gandhi to brief him. They frequently represented peasant groups in court. He scolded the lawyers for collecting big fees from the sharecroppers. When Gandhi received summons to appear in court, he telegraphed Rajendra Prasad to come from Bihar with influential friends. Thousands of peasants had gathered around the court house.

Rajendra Prasad, Brij Kishor Babu, Maulana Mazharul Huq and several other prominent lawyers had arrived from Bihar. They conferred with Gandhi. Gandhi asked them what they would do if he was sentenced to prison. The senior lawyer replied that they had come to advise and help him. If Gandhi went to jail there would be nobody to advise and they would go home.

Then Gandhiji asked them what about the injustice to the sharecroppers. Then they thought among themselves that Gandhiji was totally a stranger, and yet he was prepared to go to prison for the sake of peasants. They being not only the residents of the adjoining districts but also those who claimed to have served those peasants, should go home, it would be quite shameful abandonment. Then they went back to Gandhi and told him that they were ready to follow him into jail. Gandhi said that the battle of Champaran is won. This is how Gandhi was able to influence the lawyers.

In 1917 Gandhiji fought with the British government successfully to get justice to the Champaran peasants. He remained in Champaran for an initial uninterrupted period of seven months. Then again he had been going there for several shorter visits. The Champaran episode was a turning-point in Gandhi’s life. He explained that what he did was an ordinary thing. “I declared that the British could not order me about in my own country.” But Champaran did not begin as an act of defiance.

It grew out of an attempt to alleviate the distress of large number of poor peasants. This was the typical Gandhi pattern. His policies were intertwined with the practical day-to-day problems of the millions. Moreover, in# everything Gandhi did, he tried to mould a new free Indian who could stand on his feet and thus make India free. That is why Gandhiji considered the Champaran episode to be a turning point in his life.

Home-rule is the right of a country or region to govern itself, especially after another country or region has governed it. In those jiays India was ruled by the British Empire. So, the persons like Gandhi wanted freedom of their country and the right of India to govern itself. So they were advocates of home-rule. British rulers thought such persons as their enemies. While on his way to Champaran Gandhiji decided to go first to Muzaffarpur to obtain more complete information.

So he sent a telegram to Professor J.B. Kriplani, of the Arts College in Muzaffarpur. He had seen Professor Kriplani at Tagore’s Shantiniketan school. The train arrived at midnight, 15 April, 1917. Gandhi stayed there for two days in the home of Professor Malkani, a teacher in a government school.

That is why Gandhiji commented that it was an extraordinary thing in those days for a government professor to harbour a man like him who was an advocate of home-rule. In smaller localities the Indians were afraid to show sympathy for advocates of home-rule.

Fear is a negative trait which makes us cowards. Only a fearless person can be a courageous man. In case there is oppression of any kind being inflicted on us then the foremost factor that can help us is the freedom from fear. For the poor persons especially, who have suffered centuries of oppression and slavery, freedom from fear is more important than the legal justice. For instance, during the British rule in India, the people were oppressed. They were just like slaves to whom justice was denied. Legal course of action was so costly and time-consuming that many would not prefer to go by it.

Under such circumstances, what Mahatma Gandhi did was the best. He made the peasants of Champaran and later the people of India free from fear. This made them conscious of their rights. Freedom from fear made them courageous and they were not afraid of fighting with the mighty British Empire to see their country free.

Such a great mass movement based on ‘Satyagraha’ and non-violence could not be successful if they would have been waiting for the legal justice. I think after independence the poor of India are free from fear. Our constitution grants all the citizens of India, whether poor or rich, equal rights and opportunities. The right to vote is granted to them. Now they have freedom of expression which makes them fearless.

A good leader is essentially a person having high principles in life. He takes utmost care of his country and its people. He is admired by the people. He should have the capability to influence the world and to change the flow of time with his or her great thoughts and personality. Like Mahatma Gandhi he should be a prince of truth and the , emissory of peace. He should have firm faith in non-violence.

He should fight for equality and justice without caring for the caste, creed and religion. He should struggle for the unity of the mankind and against any kind of racial discrimination. In this age of atomic weapons, we need a leader who can mobilise the world opinion in favour of world peace.

He must believe that all mankind is one. A good leader must possess the virtuous qualities of simplicity, truthfulness, honesty and strong will power. He should strive to abolish poverty from his country and the world. He should act as a friend, philosopher and guide to the people he is committed.

The words used in the text that are related to legal procedures are given below: represented, brief them, cases, contract, released, agreements, (to serve) notice, summons (to appear in court), trial pleading guilty, penalty, (pronounce) sentence, (furnish) bail, judgement, (case to be) dropped, to court arrest, depositions, evidence.

The author uses quotations in direct speech because to quote the actual words only this form of narration can be used. In direct speech, we use inverted commas to mark off the exact words of the speaker.

Please note the use or non-use of the comma in these sentences. We use the comma to represent the shortest pause. A comma is generally not placed before the word preceded by ‘and’.

Gandhiji first chided the lawyers for charging big fees from the emaciated farmers for representing them in the court. His willingness to court imprisonment for the cause of the peasants, to whom he was a total stranger, inspired the lawyers to follow him to jail.

Ordinary people stood by and supported Gandhiji in their own little ways. Rajkumar Shukla and Professor Malkani defied all odds to contribute in the fight. Professor JB Kriplani motivated a large number of students and welcomed Gandhiji at the Muzaffarpur railway station at midnight. The spontaneous demonstration outside the court was also quite significant. Civil disobedience could triumph in India only because of the courage and unity of ordinary people.

Rajkumar Shukla was one of the poor impoverished sharecroppers of the Champaran district. He had gone to the Lucknow session of the Indian National Congress to take Gandhiji to Champaran to fight the injustice and the exploitation of the sharecroppers.

The British landlords forced all tenants to plant 15% of their holdings with indigo and surrender the entire indigo harvest as rent. This was done on a long term contract.When the landlords learned that Germany had developed synthetic indigo, they wanted to dissolve the agreement.

However, they asked the sharecroppers to pay them compensation for being released from the 15% arrangement. Obviously, synthetic indigo would be cheaper and more readily available and thus would bring down the price of natural indigo.

The episode of Champaran helped the peasants immensely. It removed their mortal fear of the British. They were made aware of their rights and had courage to fight for them. Within a few years the British planters abandoned their estates, which reverted to the peasants.Slowly indigo sharecropping disappeared from the district of Champaran.

The average Indians in smaller localities were afraid to show sympathy for advocates of ‘home rule’. They probably feared some bad consequences. It is for this reason that Gandhiji recalls Professor Malkani’s offering him shelter in his own home as an extraordinary thing.

Gandhiji made efforts to learn the complete truth about the injustice done to the peasants in Champaran. His patient waiting for the response of the authorities, his refusal to quit Champaran and his acceptance of the meagre 25 per cent refund to the farmers, are all based on his principle of Satyagraha. He was merely requesting for truth and justice.
Gandhiji helping the officials to regulate the crowd during the spontaneous demonstration and his willingness to court arrest are instances of his non-violent methods.

After his first meeting with Shukla, Gandhiji did not visit Champaran immediately because he had prior commitments in other parts of the country. He was expected to visit Kanpur after which he returned to his ashram near Ahmedabad. It was only after his visit to Calcutta was he able to attend to the problem highlighted by Shukla.

Rajkumar Shukla established himself as a resolute man by going along with Gandhiji everywhere that he went until the time Gandhiji agreed to help him. He was adamant to take Gandhiji to Champaran to solve the problems faced by sharecroppers there and so he resolutely went everywhere with Gandhiji until, impressed with his tenacity, Gandhiji agreed.

Gandhiji came along with Rajkumar Shukla, who was a peasant, to Rajendra Prasad’s house. He was dressed very simply, so he was treated like an untouchable peasant by not being allowed to drink water from the well.

The terms of the indigo contract between the British and the peasants were that the peasants were sharecropper tenants, had to plant 15% of the land holding with indigo and surrender the entire indigo harvest to the British landlords as rent.

The peasants of Champaran’s villages were culturally and socially backward, besides being crushed and fear-stricken by the British due to the sharecropper agreement. Gandhiji freed them from exploitation by teaching them that they had rights and also supporters of their cause. The backwardness was tackled by opening primary schools, improving the healthcare facilities and teaching the villagers personal cleanliness and community sanitation.

Gandhi was critical of the Muzzafarpur lawyers for charging a heavy fee from the sharecroppers, as the peasants were so crushed and fear-stricken that going to the law courts was useless. The real relief for them would be to be free from fear.

Gandhi told the court that he was involved in a ‘conflict of duties’, i.e. he must not set a bad example by breaking the law (by refusing to comply with the eviction order), but he must also render the humanitarian and national service for which he had come to Champaran.

When Gandhiji got to know about the plight of the peasant groups in Champaran from his discussion with the lawyers, he came to the conclusion that the poor peasants were so crushed and fear-stricken that law courts were useless in their case. Going to courts overburdened the sharecroppers with heavy litigation expenses. What really needed to be done was to make them free from fear.

Gandhi received a summons to appear in court. The next day thousands of peasants had assembled in Motihari. They didn’t know much about Gandhi. But they knew that he had come there only to take up their cause. Thousands of them held a demonstration.

Thousands of peasants held a spontaneous demonstration in Motihari. The officials felt helpless and the government was baffled. The pressure of the people was mounting. The judge didn’t want to aggravate the situation. He held up the sentence for several days and finally released Gandhi without bail, thus dropping the case against Gandhiji.

CF Andrews wanted to stay in Champaran and help the peasants, but Gandhiji objected to it because he wanted to mould ‘a new free Indian’. He wanted Indians to stand on their own feet. So, he taught everybody a lesson in self-reliance.

Gandhiji considered the Champaran episode to be a turning point in his life because it was the first successful civil disobedience movement for him. Though it began as an ordinary attempt to free the poor peasants from injustice and exploitation, it was important because it wiped out the mortal fear of the Britishers from the hearts of the simple farmers.

Muzaffarpur was en route to Champaran. Gandhiji decided to first go to Muzaffarpur because he wanted more complete information about the conditions in Champaran than Shukla was capable of imparting. It did prove helpful as the lawyers in Muzaffarpur, who frequently represented the peasant groups in the courts, briefed Gandhiji about their cases.

Gandhiji asked the lawyers what they would do if he was arrested. The lawyers first replied that they would return home, but when Gandhiji asked them for a solution about the injustice to the . sharecroppers, they realised their mistake. They thought that when a total stranger was ready to go to jail for the poor peasants, their going home would be utterly shameful.They decided to follow Gandhiji into jail. This made Gandhiji exclaim, ‘The battle of Champaran is won,’ as he was happy to have convinced the lawyers and won their trust.

When the landlords agreed to pay a refund of only 25%, they wanted to create a deadlock which would prolong the dispute. To everybody’s surprise, Gandhi accepted the offer. According to him, the amount of refund was less important than the fact that the landlords had been obliged to surrender part of their money and with it, part of their prestige.

The Champaran episode was one of the major events in the struggle for independence. It was in the course of this small but significant movement that Gandhiji decided to spur the exit of the British from India.A close examination of the problem of the Champaran peasants opened Gandhiji’s eyes to the unjust policies of the British.

He realised that people had to be made free from fear and only then could they be freed from foreign oppression. The spontaneous demonstration of the people proved that Gandhiji had the nation’s support in his fight against the Britishers.

The triumph of the civil disobedience at Champaran motivated the launching of the movement on a large scale during the freedom movement. Gandhiji swinning the case of the sharecroppers proved that British authority could be challenged. Hence, the Champaran episode served as a stepping stone to the Indian struggle for independence.

When Gandhiji visited Muzaffarpur and was briefed on the situation by the lawyers who Jf represented the peasants in the courts, he concluded that going to law courts was useless. The real relief for the peasants would I be to be free from fear.Gandhiji was ordered to leave Tirhut, but he I instead proceeded to Motihari. Gandhiji I disobeyed the order to leave Champaran. He I didn’t mind going to jail for the peasants.

Gandhiji influenced the lawyers to fight for the just cause. They together collected ™ depositions by about ten thousand peasants. Investigations were conducted. Evidence collected by them was so overwhelming that Gandhiji managed to get 25% refund from the landlords, who considered themselves above the law. He showed the poor peasants that they had rights and also defenders to protect them and fight for their cause.

The success of the Champaran episode made Gandhiji decide to speed up the exit of the British from India. Gandhiji concluded that the root cause of the problem was fear, so going to law courts to solve the dispute was useless. It brought him face to face with reality and he became aware of the miserable condition of the poor, illiterate farmers. He also realised the exploitation that lay beneath the policies of the Britishers.

The spontaneous demonstration by the peasants was the beginning of their liberation from fear of the British. Civil disobedience had’triumphed for the first time in modern India. Gahdhiji declared that the British could not order him about in his own country. Thus, it was a turning point in his life, which also served as a source of strength and motivation for his future movements.

Rajkumar Shukla was a peasant sharecropper from Champaran district in Bihar. He met Gandhiji at the December 1916 annual convention of the Indian National Congress in Lucknow. Illiterate but resolute, Shukla had come to seek Gandhiji’s help for bringing justice to the peasants of his region who were exploited by their British landlords. Gandhiji told him that he had an appointment in Kanpur and also had prior engagements in other parts of India. Shukla was patient.

When Gandhiji returned to his ashram near Ahmedabad, Shukla followed him. Impressed by his steadfast attitude, Gandhiji asked him to be in Calcutta on a particular date and to take him to his district from there. Many months passed but Shukla remembered to meet Gandhiji on the appointed day and spot. He waited till Gandhiji was free and then the two of them boarded a train to Patna.

Most of the arable land in Champaran was divided into large estates owned by Englishmen and worked on by Indian tenants. The chief commercial crop was indigo. The landlords compelled all the tenants to plant 15% of their holdings with indigo and surrender the entire indigo harvest as rent.

This was done through a long-term contract.When the landlords learned that Germany had developed synthetic indigo, they obtained agreements from the sharecroppers to pay them compensation for being released from the 15% arrangement.Gandhiji, with the lawyers of Muzaffarpur, conducted an inquiry into the grievances of the farmers. The investigations, documentation and evidence collected favoured the peasants.

Hence, Gandhiji asked for only 50% of the money as compensation as opposed to the landlord’s thinking that he might demand the whole amount they had extorted. However, an agreement was reached at 25% of the money to be compensated to the peasants. Gandhiji accepted the settlement because he did not want a deadlock between the landlords and the peasants. Thus, Gandhiji played a very proactive role in resolving the issue.

When Gandhiji visited Champaran to look into the grievances of the peasants, he was served with an official notice to quit Champaran immediately. Gandhiji returned the notice with the remark that he would disobey the order. This was the beginning of civil disobedience.As a result, Gandhiji was ordered to appear in the court next day. Thousands of peasants put up a demonstration at the courthouse.

The powerless officials appealed to Gandhiji to help them manage the crowd, which he no doubt did. The magistrate demanded Gandhiji to furnish bail, but Gandhiji did not comply with the orders. Then he released Gandhiji without bail. After several days, the case was dropped by the Lieutenant- Governor. This was the start of the triumph of civil disobedience in India.

Gandhiji undertook the visit to Champaran on the insistence of Rajkumar Shukla, a sharecropper peasant. On reaching Muzaffarpur, he obtained complete information about the conditions prevailing there. He met the lawyers who acquainted him with the situation and the sharecropping arrangement.

When Gandhiji arrived in Champaran, he found that the grievances of the peasants were really of a serious nature. He continued with the investigation and documentation about the whole issue, which was very time consuming. From April to June, Gandhiji worked incessantly.

Finally the Lt Governor constituted a commission of inquiry where Gandhiji agreed to the compensation of 25% for the farmers. After this Gandhiji took up the work of eradicating cultural and social backwardness in the villages of Champaran. All these engagements and commitments took much time and occupied almost a year of Gandhiji’s life.

Gandhiji wished to obtain more information about the conditions in Champaran than Shukla could impart. He visited Muzaffarpur to inquire from the lawyers there about the issue. He collected all the facts and met the Commissioner, but he was advised to leave Champaran. Gandhiji did not leave, as he was fighting for truth, and decided to launch a peaceful ‘satyagraha’ and non-violent movement.

Next morning, there was a spontaneous demonstration by the peasants. Gandhiji helped the officials in regulating the crowd, as he did not want any form of violence. After showing some early hesitation, prominent lawyers declared their unqualified support, which resulted in dropping of the case.

On the basis of the evidence collected after a thorough investigation, Gandhiji succeeded in making the landlords agree to refund 25% of the compensation money. Thus, Gandhiji’s peaceful and non-violent civil disobedience and satyagraha brought about the desired result.

The objective of Gandhiji in his Champaran campaign was to mould a new free Indian who could stand on his own feet and thus make India free. He succeeded because, as Rajendra Prasad said, “Gandhi in this way taught us a lesson in self-reliance”. The peasants did not take the help of any specialist lawyers or any Englishmen like CF Andrews to fight their case. This gave them a new-found confidence in fighting their own battles and they were liberated from fear of the British.

The fact that the British planters agreed to refund some of the money paid by the peasants was the crucial point that made the Champaran campaign successful. It showed that both the British and Indians could be treated equally. This ultimately led them in the freedom struggle and gave India its freedom.

After the Champaran battle was won and the land reverted to the peasants, Gandhiji continued to stay on in the region. His loyalty was to living human beings and he realised that a lot needed to be done for the upliftment of the peasants in the villages of Champaran.

Gandhiji took the initiative and began the work of eradicating their cultural and social backwardness. Primary schools were started so that the poor peasants and their children could be educated. Gandhiji appealed to teachers, and many of his disciples, including his wife and son, volunteered for the work.

Health conditions in the area were also miserable. Gandhiji got a doctor to volunteer his services for six months. All this goes to prove that Gandhiji’s loyalty was not to abstractions; his politics was always intertwined with the practical day-to-day problems of the millions.

Gandhiji fought the case on behalf of the sharecroppers and the evidence that he collected was so overwhelming that the landlords were asked to repay. When Gandhiji asked for 50% repayment, the landlords offered to pay only 25% as they wanted to create a deadlock and thus prolong the dispute. To everybody’s surprise, ‘ Gandhiji agreed to a refund of 25%.

Gandhiji explained that the amount of refund was not important. What mattered was that the landlords were obliged to surrender a part of their money and with it, part of their prestige. The peasants saw that they had rights and persons to support them in upholding their rights. They learned courage. Gradually, indigo sharecropping disappeared from the area and the land came back to the poor peasants.

We see two real examples of exploitation in our books. One is of the indigo sharecroppers at the hands of the British and the other is of the bangle workers of Firozabad. Numerous such incidents are also reported in the newspapers. Gandhiji taught us a very wonderful way to counter the problems of exploitation.

The exploited are fear-stricken’. The real relief comes for them when they get free from fear. Next is the path of non-violence and civil disobedience. Not bowing to the demands of the oppressor can do wonders for the  exploited.Finally, Gandhiji’s lesson in self-reliance is the most important to curb the menace of exploitation. Until one is self-reliant, one cannot fight against injustice.

When Gandhiji learned about the conditions of the peasants of Champaran, he concluded that the peasants were so crushed and fear-stricken that going to law courts was useless. The real relief would come if they were free from fear. The conclusion that Gandhiji reached is still true in every sense. The Indian poor are very much like the Champaran peasants. The peasants of Champaran were exploited by the foreign rulers, while the poor of India today are victimised by the bureaucrats, money lenders and corrupt politicians. Years of exploitation have destroyed all hopes and dreams of the poor. They don’t try to challenge injustice.

They fear that the oppressors will find some way to prove them guilty. This fear prevents them from taking any action or step which would help them alleviate their misery and poverty. There is no leader among them who can encourage them to fight against their tormentors. They live miserably and will . continue to do so until they are free from fear p itself.

Self-reliance was a virtue which was of utmost importance to Gandhiji. He wanted to “mould a new free Indian who could stand on his own feet and thus make India free”. During the Champaran episode, when the lawyers wanted to take CF Andrews, an Englishman, into their fold to uphold their cause, Gandhiji vehemently opposed the move. He made them understand that they should rely on themselves to win the battle. In this way Gandhiji taught them a lesson in self-reliance.

Gandhiji proved that the British authority, hitherto dreaded and unquestioned, could be challenged by Indians. The success of Champaran marked the triumph of civil disobedience in India, It was another stepping stone to the beginning of India’s freedom movement.

In a similar manner, the sharecroppers’ episode in Champaran was,connected to the above two themes. Gandhiji went to Champaran to fight for the cause of the peasants who were deceived and cheated by the British landlords. Thus, Louis Fischer has rightly said that self-reliance, Indian independence and help to sharecroppers were all bound together.

1.Answer:
(b) a politician
(c) a delegate
(d) a landlord

2.Answer:
(b) physically strong