INDIGO
Short Answer Type Questions
Question.1. Why did Gandhiji feel that taking the Champaran
case to court was useless?
Answer. 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.
2. How did the Champaran peasants react when they heard
that a Mahatma had come to help them?
Answer. When the Champaran peasants heard that a Mahatma had
come to help them, they assembled in Motihari in large number.
Thousands of peasants held a demonstration around the courthouse
where Gandhiji was supposed to appear. The crowd was so
uncontrollable that the officials felt powerless, and Gandhiji himself
helped the authorities to regulate the crowd.
3. What made the Lieutenant Governor drop the case against
Gandhiji?
Answer. When Gandhiji was asked to appear in the court in Motihari,
thousands of peasants held a demonstration arounck the courthouse.
The officials felt helpless and the government was baffled. The trial
was postponed, as the judge didn’t want to aggravate the situation. He
held up the sentence for several days, after which Gandhiji was
released without bail. All these events made the Lieutenant Governor
drop the case against Gandhiji.
4. Why do you think Gandhi considered the Champaran episode
to be a turning point in his life?
Answer. The Champaran episode began as an attempt to alleviate the
distress of poor peasants. Ultimately it proved to be a turning point in
Gandhiji’s life because it was a loud proclaimation that made the
British realise that Gandhiji could not be ordered about in his own
country. It infused courage to question British authority in the masses
and laid the foundation of non-cooperation as a new tool to fight the
British tooth and nail.
5. Why did Gandhi agree to the planters’ offer of a 25% refund
to the farmers?
Answer. Gandhiji agreed to a settlement of 25% refund to the farmers
in order to break the deadlock between the landlords and peasants.
For him the amount of the refund was not very important. The fact that
the landlords had been obliged to surrender a part of their money as
well as their prestige gave a moral victory to the farmers. Thus,
Gandhiji not only made the landlords accept their dishonesty but also
made the farmers learn a lesson in defending their rights with courage.
Long Answer Type Questions
1.Why did Gandhiji agree to a settlement of 25% refund to the
farmers? How did it influence the peasant-landlord relationship
in Champaran?
Answer. Under an ancient arrangement, the peasants of Champaran
were sharecroppers. The landlords forced the Indian tenants to plant
15% of their holding with indigo and surrender the entire indigo
harvest as rent.
After Germany developed synthetic indigo, the landlords wanted to
dissolve the agreement, as synthetic indigo would be cheaper. They
asked the peasants for compensation to release them from this
arrangement. Most of them signed it willingly, but felt cheated after
they learned about synthetic indigo.
Gandhiji fought their case 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 surprise, Gandhiji agreed to a refund of only 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.
2.Gandhiji’s loyalty was not a loyalty to abstractions; it was a
loyalty to living human beings. Why did Gandhiji continue his
stay in Champaran even after indigo sharecropping
disappeared?
Answer. After the Champaran battle was won and the land reverted to
the peasants, Gandhiji continued to stay on in the region. His loyalty
was, indeed, 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, but his politics was
always intertwined with the practical day to day problems of the
millions.
