Question

in the meerut conspiracy case ,no allegations were made against whom?

Answer 1

The Sessions Court of Meerut overturned the conviction of the following people in the Meerut Conspiracy case, in 1933 – Desai, Mitra, Jhabwala, Sehgal, Khasle, Gauri Shankar, Kadara, Alve and Hutchinson.

It was a controversial case against several trade union activists – including three British subjects, in British India during 1929. They were arrested for allegedly organising a railway strike. The British were actually fearful of infiltration into the country by communists, who they thought were behind the strike.  

Answer 2

In 1928 there was a six-month-long strike in Bombay Textile Mills led by the Girni Kamgar Union. The whole of 1928 witnessed unprecedented industrial unrest. this period also saw the crystallization of many communist groups, which leaders like S.A.Dange, Mujaffar Ahmed, P.C. Joshi, Sohan Singh Joshi etc.

       Alarmed at the increasing strength of the union movement under extremist influence, the government restored to legislative restrictions and passed Public safety ordinance and the Trade Disputes Act.

      In this regard, in march 1929, the government arrested 31 labour leaders and the three and a half year trial resulted in the conviction of Mujaffar Ahmed , Dange, Joglekar, Ben bradly, Shaukat Usmani and others. the trial got worldwide publicity but weakened the working class movement.

     the workers participated during 1930 in the Civil Disobedience Movement but after 1931  there was a dip in the working class movement because  of a split in 1931 in which the corporatist trend by N.M. Joshi broke away from the AITUC to set up the all India trade union federation. In 1935, the communist rejoined the AITUC.