The Rowlatt Act
Under this act, the British government had the following rights:
- They could immediately arrest any person who appears to be involved in terrorism, treason, and rebellion on mere suspicion without any warrant.
- Apart from this, the British government also had the right to imprison the arrested people in jail for two years without giving bail to anyone. The arrested people were not informed about the sections under which they were put in jail.
- The British government gave authority to the police to control the press more strictly.
- The jailed convicts were released only after depositing the securities to ensure their good behaviour.
- Indians were also banned from participating in political, religious, or educational activities.
-This act was opposed by the Indians because they believed that it was an injustice done by the British government. The Indian public was very angry with this law. Their displeasure with the British government increased more than before.
-Those opposing this act included prominent freedom activists and leaders like Mazhar-ul-Haq, Madan Mohan Malviya, and Muhammad Ali Jinnah. All of them, along with the rest of their Indian allies, decided to resign from the council after voting unanimously against the act.
Anti-Rowlatt Satyagraha Movement
In the 1914s, World War I took place in most of the countries of Europe. After the victory of Britain, they started taking control of India. When the war ended in 1918, they decided to introduce the Rowlatt Act law to suppress the activities and movements being carried out by the revolutionaries in the country, so that no Indian could raise their voice against the Britishers. It was enacted by the British government in February 1919. The act was hastily passed in the Imperial Legislative Council despite the united opposition of the Indian members. It was based on the recommendations of the Sedition Committee headed by Sir Sidney Rowlatt. It empowered the government to suppress political activities and allowed the detention of political prisoners without trial for two years.
The Father of the Nation, Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi opposed the Rowlatt Act and he called this act a “Black Law”. Gandhi started a nationwide strike which was later called the Anti-Rowlatt Satyagraha Movement. This movement started as non-violent, but it took the form of violence and riots. Due to this Gandhiji decided to end the satyagraha on April 18, 1919. In this article, we will discuss the Anti-Rowlatt Satyagraha movement and the aftermath that followed.
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