The causes of the rise of revolutionary activities are largely similar to the ones that gave rise to Extremist Nationalism. The emergence of revolutionary ideology in India during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries was the result of several internal and external influences working on the minds of the youth. The revolutionary movement in India began in Bengal, Maharashtra, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, Orissa, Bihar, and Madras provinces, but it was primarily active in Bengal, Maharashtra, and Punjab because these regions were more politically active than other parts of the country. In this article, we will discuss the reasons for the Decline of Revolutionary Activities which will be helpful for UPSC exam preparation.

Rise of Revolutionary Activities

• The activities of revolutionary heroism arose as a result of the rise of militant nationalism.
• The first phase, which lasted until 1917, took on a more activist tone as a result of the Swadeshi and Boycott Movement.
• As a result of the Non-Cooperation Movement, the second phase began.
• After the open movement's demise, the younger nationalists who had been a part of it found it impossible to drop out and fade into the background.
• They looked for ways to express their patriotic energies but were disillusioned by the failure of the leadership, including the Extremists, to find new forms of struggle to put the new militant trends into practice.
• Although the extremist leaders called on the youth to make sacrifices, they were unable to establish an effective organization or find new forms of political work to channel these revolutionary energies.
• Because all avenues of peaceful political protest were closed to them due to government repression, the youth believed that in order to achieve nationalist goals of independence, the British had to be physically expelled.
• Liberation through revolution, heroism, and supreme sacrifice, assassinating unpopular British officials, instilling fear in rulers, and inciting people to expel the British with force drew in new nationalists.

Revolutionary Programme

• The revolutionaries considered but did not find it practical to implement, the options of launching a violent mass revolution across the country or attempting to undermine the Army's loyalties.
• Rather, they chose to follow in the footsteps of Russian nihilists or Irish nationalists.
• Individual heroic actions included organizing assassinations of unpopular officials as well as traitors and informers among the revolutionaries themselves.
• They conducted swadeshi dacoities to raise funds for revolutionary activities; and (during the First World War) organized military conspiracies with the expectation of assistance from Britain's enemies.
• The plan was to instill fear in the hearts of the rulers, arouse the people, and remove their fear of authority.
• The revolutionaries hoped to inspire the people by appealing to patriotism, particularly among the idealistic youth who would eventually drive the British out.
• Extremist leaders failed to ideologically counter the revolutionaries because they failed to distinguish between a revolution based on mass activity and one based on individual violent activity, allowing individualistic violent activities to take root.

Revolutionary Activities

Revolutionary Activities in Maharashtra

• The Chapaker brothers (Deodar and Balkrishana Chapeau) assassinated Lt. Ayerst in Poona in 1897, but Rand, the president of the Plague Committee, was the intended target.
• They were apprehended, tried, and hanged.
• Similarly, Bal Gangadhar Tilak was imprisoned for inciting terrorism through his writings.

Revolutionary Activities in Bengal

• Bengal became a hotspot for terrorist activity. In 1908, Prafulla Chaki and Khudiram Bose threw a bomb at Kennedy's carriage, mistaking it for that of Muzaffarpur's judge, Kingsford.
• Previously, the concerned judge had sentenced a number of young people to death.
• Two women were killed in the incident, and Prafulla shot himself dead before he could be apprehended by police. Khudiram, on the other hand, was tried and executed.

Revolutionary Activities in Punjab

• Under the leadership of Lala Hardayal, Avado Bihar, Amir Chandra, J.M. Chatterjee, and others, Punjab also became a hotbed of revolutionary activity.
• There were also revolutionary organizations such as the 'Kitty Kinas Party and the 'Naujawan Sabha.'
• The 'Hindustan Republic Association' was founded by Chandra Shekhar Azad. Later, it was renamed the 'Hindustan Socialist Republic Association.'
• Its leaders, including Bhagat Singh, Raj Guru, and Sukh Dev, were executed for their roles in the Kakori train robbery, the bombing of the Assembly hall, and other terrorist activities.
• In fact, for the British government, Punjab became a raging volcano.

Revolutionary Activities Abroad

• Revolutionary activities continued unabated even abroad. Following the assassination of District Magistrate Rand, Shyamji Krishna Verma of Kathiawar traveled to London and established the Indian Home Rule Society.
• V.D.Savarkar went to London in 1906 and joined the 'Indian Society.' It advocated for revolutionary terrorism.
• Madan Lal Dhingra, a member of this society, assassinated Sir William Curzon Willy, the ADC to India's Secretary of State.
• Lala Hardayal, a revolutionary young man from Punjab, founded the Gadar Party and also published The Gadar, a weekly newspaper.
  • Its goal was to spark a revolution in India that would liberate the country from British rule.
  • The United States government ordered Lala Hardayal to leave the country due to his involvement in anti-British propaganda.
• The Komagata Maru case fueled revolutionary terrorism. This Japanese ship, which had brought revolutionary Sikhs to Canada, was denied anchoring in a Canadian port and was forced to return to Calcutta.

Government Response to Revolutionary Activities

In order to meet revolutionary activities, the government of India passed several repressive legislations including:

• The Prevention of Seditious Meeting Act, 1907
• The Explosives Substances Act, 1908
• The Indian Criminal Law Amendment Act, 1908
• The Newspaper (Incitement to Offenses Act), 1908
• The Press Act, 1910
• The Defense of India Rules, 1915

Decline of Revolutionary Activities

• There was no central, all-India organization that could control the activities in an organized manner.
• These movements appealed to the youth who had faced the hostilities of British rule, but the mass following in the rural belt was unavailable.
• After the First World War, there was a brief respite in revolutionary activity as prisoners held under the Defense of India Rules were released.
• There was an atmosphere of conciliation following Montagu's August 1917 statement and talk of constitutional reforms, and the arrival of Gandhi on the scene with the program of nonviolent non-cooperation promised new hope.
• After 1918 the revolutionary activities came to a temporary halt. There was stern government repression along with a series of harsh and severe laws. There was also a lack of popular response.
• Discussions began on the new Constitutional Reforms (Government of India Act 1919) which generated an atmosphere of compromise.
• Germany failed to deliver on its promises of arms and funds to be used against Britain.
• The United States' entry into the war and subsequent dominance in the war demoralized Germany and the allies, making it difficult for them to assist the Indian cause.
• Montagu's package of self-government for Indians dampened the revolutionary activists' enthusiasm.
• The Congress Party and other upper-middle-class politicians and leaders have always been critical of these movements' methods.
• Gandhiji arrived on the national scene and emphasized non-violent means which also halted the pace of revolutionary activities.
• On account of the very nature of revolutionary terrorism, it could be taken up by only a handful of individuals while the masses still awaited a form of political action that could accommodate their weaknesses while utilizing their strength simultaneously.

Conclusion

Although they did not achieve their stated goal of achieving independence through armed revolt, they were successful in arousing people, removing their fear of authority from their minds, and striking terror into the hearts of the rulers. The Revolutionaries organized rebellions against the British government, and they grew stronger and more determined as they gained support from foreign nations hostile to the British. Despite gaining popularity and a dedicated following, both the terrorist and revolutionary movements were unable to achieve their goals of liberating India from British rule.

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