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Indian Decolonization

Indian Decolonization. 1947-Present. India and Britain. India supported Allies during WWI, GB promised eventual self-rule in return; did not give it Indian National Congress staged protests after WWI, but divided by religion: Hindu and Muslim

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Indian Decolonization

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  1. Indian Decolonization 1947-Present

  2. India and Britain • India supported Allies during WWI, GB promised eventual self-rule in return; did not give it • Indian National Congress staged protests after WWI, but divided by religion: Hindu and Muslim • British passed laws that could arrest and jail nationalists without trial • April 1919, Amritsar Massacre • Brits declared all large gatherings illegal • 10,000 unarmed Indians gathered in walled garden , British troops blocked only exit and fired; 400 dead (many children), 1200 injured • Indians shocked and more determined to rid British control

  3. Gandhi • Mohandas K. Gandhi, after massacre became leading nationalist • Educated in GB • Passive resistance, civil disobedience: boycotted British goods, refused to pay taxes, disregarded British laws • Used ahimsa (nonviolence) and satyagraha (search for truth) • Tried to improve status of untouchables • Called Mahatma “Great soul” • Boycotted British cloth, spun cloth 30 minutes a day and always wore homespun clothes, symbol of INC became spinning wheel

  4. Salt • Indian workers needed salt to replace what they lost in sweat daily • British controlled salt mines and ocean salt fields, heavily taxed all salt • 1930, Gandhi staged a march to the sea • British did not arrest him, but did arrest thousands of followers • Continued throughout the 1930s

  5. Government of India Act • 1935, passed by Parliament • Gave provincial legislatures control over agriculture, health, public works • GB remained in control of national laws, finance, defense, foreign affairs • Most nationalists rejected, but INC at urging of Gandhi, accepted it as first step toward full independence

  6. Hindu-Muslim Relations • As independence grew nearer, Muslims worried about how they would be treated by Hindus, formed Muslim League, headed by Mohammed Ali Jinnah, demanded separate Muslim nation • Hindus led by Jawaharlal Nehru, wanted united India • Gandhi greatly concerned about split

  7. Independence and Division • 1947, after WWII, British agreed to give India independence • Riots between Hindus and Muslims convinced GB to partition India into India (Hindu) and Pakistan (Muslim) • August 15, 1947: Independence for both countries • Mass migration of 12 million between India and Pakistan • 1 Million died in violence between religious groups • Gandhi killed by Hindu extremist angered by Gandhi’s call for peace and reconciliation • More than 60 million Muslims remained in India

  8. Independent India • Democratic government with an elected legislature, led by Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru (1947 until his death in 1964) • Wanted modern, industrialized state with religious freedom and social equality • Universal suffrage • Ban caste distinctions • Improve status of women • Mixed economy; private and government owned • Non-alignment: tied to neither superpower Doctors in India protesting affirmative action against caste system

  9. Nehru “Dynasty” • After Nehru’s death, his daughter Indira Gandhi became PM • Continued father’s policies • Accused of violating election laws, forced to resign in 1977 • Returned to office in 1980, but ethnic unrest in Punjab region of N. India • Sikhs wanted own state, occupied shrine in Punjab, Gandhi ordered troops to get them out • Gandhi assassinated by her own Sikh bodyguard • Her son, Rajiv Gandhi was PM from 1984-89, but assassinated in 1991

  10. India since 1991 • Struggle with poverty, disease, illiteracy • Free compulsory education through age 14, 52% literacy rate • Religious freedoms, but still differences caused by revival of traditional Hinduism in wake of modernization • Five-Year plans helped boost economy

  11. Pakistan • India has fought three wars with Pakistan; 1947, 1965, 1971 • Both claimed Kashmir region; Hindu prince ruled mostly Muslim population • Indian troops helped Bangladesh break away from Pakistan in 1971 • Both nations worked to develop nuclear weapons, 1998 both successfully tested nuclear bombs • 1999 Indian and Pakistani PMs met and relations became less tense

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