Question

How did the Non-Cooperation Movement spread to the countryside and drew into its
fold the struggles of peasants and tribal communities? Elaborate.

Answer 1

The Non-cooperation movement was a reaction to the oppressive policies of the British Indian government such as the Rowlatt Act and the Jallianwala Bagh massacre. A meeting of civilians held at Jallianwala Baghnear the Golden Temple in Amritsar was fired upon by soldiers under the command of Brigadier-General Reginald Dyer, killing 379 protesters and injuring thousands. The outcry generated by the massacre led to thousands of unrests and more deaths at the hands of the police. The massacre became the most infamous event of British rule in India.

Gandhi was horrified. He lost all faith in the goodness of the British government and declared that it would be a "sin" to cooperate with the "satanic" government.

Indian Muslims who had participated in the Khilafat movement to restore the status of the Caliph gave their support to the non-cooperation movement. In response to the Jallianwala Bagh Massacre and other violence in Punjab, the movement sought to secure Swaraj, independence for India. Gandhi promised Swaraj in one year if his Non-Cooperation programme was fully implemented. The other reason to start the non-cooperation movement was that Gandhi lost faith in constitutional methods and turned from cooperator of British rule to non-cooperator.