At the Surat session of INC in 1907, held on the banks of the Tapti River, the Indian National Congress split into two factions: extremists and moderates. Lokmanya Tilak, Lajpat Rai, and Bipin Chandra Pal led the extremists, while Gopal Krishna Gokhale led the moderates. The moderate and extremist delegates of the Congress met in Surat in an atmosphere charged with excitement and anger. The ridicule and venorn heaped on the moderates by the extremists in the mass meetings held in Surat a few days before the session, and the extremists were energized by the rumor that the moderates wanted to scuttle their Kolkata resolutions. The Congress session began with extremists objecting to the duly elected president for the year, Rash Behari Ghosh. The split was unavoidable because both sides came to the session prepared for a fight. In this article, we will discuss the Surat session of 1907 which will be helpful for UPSC exam preparation.

Surat Session - Background

• At the Indian National Congress session in Benaras in December 1905, the extremists wished to expand the Boycott and Swadeshi Movement to regions other than Bengal, as well as to include all forms of associations in the boycott programme, thereby launching a nationwide mass movement.
• The Moderates, on the other hand, advocated for strictly constitutional methods of protesting Bengal's partition.
• As a concession to the militants, the goal of the Indian National Congress was defined as ‘swarajya,' or self-government, at the Congress session in Calcutta in December 1906. For the first time, the word swaraj was mentioned, but its connotation was not specified.
• The Calcutta session emboldened the extremists, who called for widespread passive resistance and a boycott of schools, colleges, legislative councils, municipalities, law courts, and other institutions.
• Encouraged by the news that council reforms were on the horizon, the Moderates decided to scale back the Calcutta programme. The extremists believed that the people had been aroused and that the fight for liberty had begun.
• The Moderates saw the council reforms as a chance to realize their dream of Indian participation in government.
• By the time of the 1907 session in Surat, both sides had adopted rigid positions that left no room for compromise.
• The split was unavoidable, and the Congress was now dominated by the Moderates, who wasted no time in reiterating Congress' commitment to the goal of self-government within the British Empire and to constitutional methods alone for achieving this goal.

Surat Session - Features

• The Congress was on the verge of breaking up. Nagpur was scheduled to host the 1907 session. But Nagpur was Bal Gangadhar Tilak's stronghold.
• The moderates were well aware that the local delegates would raise issues in favor of the extremists. As a result, Gopal Krishna Gokhle had the venue changed to Surat, a Congress stronghold.
• The 1907 Surat session was held on the banks of the Tapti river in Surat.
• The extremist camp was led by Lal Bal and Pal, while the moderate camp was led by Gopal Krishna Gokhle.
• Dr. Rash Behari Ghosh presided over the Surat meeting.
• This session of Congress was held in an atmosphere of rage and resentment. Dr. Rash Behari Ghosh was elected, but extremists objected to the outcome.
• The extremists initially dominated the session, but they soon accepted Dr. Rash Behari Ghosh as president and offered to cooperate. However, the meeting was called to a halt. Congress became divided.
• By the time the next session of Congress convened in Madras in 1908 under Dr. Rash Behari Ghosh, the extremist camp that had been facing the Lathis and arrested by the British Government, was now in a comfortable position as Congress was divided.

Surat Split 1907

• The Surat Split was caused by an ideological divide between moderates and extremists.
• These divisions became more pronounced after the partition of Bengal and as a result of the massive mass support attracted by the Swadeshi movement.
• Congress authorized the launch of mass anti-Bengali partition movements in December 1905.
• Because they believed in the policy of petition and prayer, moderates were opposed to it wholeheartedly. However, due to public pressure, they were unable to oppose the formation of mass movements.
• By December 1906, extremists had gained so much confidence that they desired to be President.
• However, Dadabhai Naoroji was elected as resolutions on Swaraj, boycott, and nationalism education were passed in Calcutta.
• The growing power of Indian nationalism posed a serious challenge to British rule.

*For detailed notes of this topic, check this link Surat Split(1907)

About Rash Behari Ghosh

• Rash Behari Ghosh was born on December 23, 1845. He was a moderate Congress leader, eminent legal expert, social worker, and philanthropist. He was born in the Bankura District of the Bengal Presidency.
• Ghosh was a member of the Indian National Congress and succeeded Dadabhai Naoroji as its president.
• He presided over two sessions, one in Surat (1907) and the other in Madras (1908).
• Between 1891 and 1894, he served on the Bengal Legislative Council, and again between 1906 and 1909.
• He also served on the Secretary of State's Council of India in 1891 and 1893. During his time there, he was in charge of tabling two bills that were passed by the government and enacted.
• One of the bills dealt with a court sale in a debt case, while the other dealt with pre-emption law.
• He was widely known and respected as a legal scholar. Even today, his work on mortgage law is regarded as a classic.
• The British government bestowed upon him the CIE (Companion of the Order of the Indian Empire) in 1896 and the CSI (Companion of the Order of the Star of India) in 1909.

Surat Session 1907 - Outcome

• The Surat Split was a huge failure for Indian nationalists on the one hand, and a huge success for the British on the other. Surat Split accomplished what the British failed to achieve in the Bengal Partition.
• Expulsion of extremists nullified the effect of both sections of Nationalists, because moderates and extremists could only be effective when they worked together.
• If extremists wield the sword, moderates wield the shield; however, once they leave, the effect is lost.
• Surat Split enabled the British to ignore moderates while successfully suppressing extremists. Tilak was sentenced to hard labor and deported to Myanmar.
• Arvindo Ghosh was tried in connection with the Alipur Bombing. Despite being acquitted, he left active politics and retired to the presidency.
• The Swadeshi Movement died suddenly as a result of the Surat Split. It was a movement led by extremists, and once they were removed from Congress, the movement lost its leadership and died out suddenly.
• Because no mass agitation could be organized in India for decades, the Surat Split transformed the atmosphere of political activism into passivism.
• Surat's split and the failure of the Swadeshi movement disillusioned the younger generation of nationalists; they lost faith in the efficacy of peaceful methods and began to believe that British bondage could only be broken through the use of the western hammer of violation.
• This way of thinking fueled the revolutionary extremist movement. Surat Split taught Indian nationalists a valuable lesson. They realized their error.
• This bitter experience came in handy when similar ideological differences arose as a result of the Non-Cooperation Movement's abrupt withdrawal in 1920-21. Because of the difficult lesson learned by Surat Split, another split could be avoided consciously.

Conclusion

The Extremists set two main goals for the Surat Session of Congress. The extremists demanded that Lala Lajpat Rai be appointed President of the INC. The second demand was for Swaraj's resolution. Both demands were rejected by the Moderates. The Moderates' ideology was slammed by the trio of Lala Lajpat Rai, Bal Gangadhar Tilak, and Bipin Chandra Pal. These three leaders challenged the Indian National Movement's nationalist vocabulary by introducing concepts such as boycott, Swadeshi, and national education. The British Divide and Rule policy resulted in the Surat Split. Following the Surat Split in 1907, the Moderates demanded colonial self-government in contrast to the Extremists' demand for total independence.