Why did the people boycott the commission "the Simon go back"
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ROUTINE scholarship sometimes fails to capture the thrill of critical
moments. The "Simon Go Back" agitation of 1928 is a case in point. It
was the first all-India struggle after the non-cooperation movement of
the early twenties. In November 1927 the British appointed the Indian
Statutory Commission, headed by John Simon. Britain had been unwilling
to make a commitment on India's constitutional advance. The people had
enough and were further irked by the commission, its exclusively
British composition and the manner of its appointment.
The commission was to inquire into the " working of the system of
government, the growth of education and the development of
representative institutions and matters connected therewith" . It was
to report further on the degree of "Responsible Govern-ment". The
terms of reference were provocative: it was to report on "whether and
to what extent it is desirable to establish the principle of
Responsible Government or to extend , modify or restrict the degree of
Responsible Government".
The move fell far short of the Congress demand for a Round-Table
Conference or a Convention Parliament. A few days before the
commission was publicly announced, the Viceroy called Gandhiji and
other political leaders for a meeting. Gandhiji, who was in Mangalore,
came up a thousand miles north for the purpose. On seeing the paper
which the Viceroy handed over, he asked why it had simply not been
placed in a "one-anna envelope" and posted to him. The report in The
Hindu of November 9, 1927 suggested that Gandhiji gave an indication
to the Viceroy that such a commission could be met with a boycott. On
November 10 the the Congress President, Srinivas Iyengar, declared:
"We cannot be parties to an enquiry into our fitness for swaraj or for
any measure of Responsible Government."
A women's meeting in Bombay, presided over by Sarojini Naidu, in early
December 1927 also called for a boycott. The Congress and most other
political parties resolved to oppose the statutory commission. At its
Madras session later the same month the Cong-ress passed a resolution
calling for a boycott. The commission toured India precisely 75 years
ago, from February 1928 to April 1929. In the preceding month, a
committee headed by the new Cong-ress President, M.A. Ansari, and
including, among others, the famous Dalit leader and freedom fighter,
Chaudhuri Behari Lal, called for a hartal. The commission reached Bom-
bay on February 3, 1928. The Bombay Chronicle on that day carried
Mahatma Gandhi's one-line statement saying that the boycott should be
peaceful and "show the nation's strength of purpose".
The "Simon Go Back" slogan which rang out throughout India was coined
by the Bombay-based Congress Socialist, Yusuf Meherally, whose birth
centenary also happens to fall this year (2003). As Bombay, the
Gateway to India, greeted the commission with Meherally's slogan, the
same words were echoed by the rest of the country. Meherally himself
was arrested in Bombay, placed inside a drum and rolled for a long
distance on the road. Later he described it wryly as "a moving
experience."
Jinnah, who played a leading role in the boycott, told the (Central)
Legis-lative Assembly that "barring a few 'jo-hukumists' and flunkeys,
the country was for boycott". However, there were some important
exceptions. Dr Ambedkar, for example, did give evidence before the
commission. As in Iraq in 2003, where most expenses of the occupying
forces are being borne by Iraq through its national budget, so in 1928
the expenses of the Simon Commission were on the Indian account. In
the legislature, Motilal Nehru moved a cut motion for Rs 3,40,000,
that being the cost of the commission. He argued that the (British)
Parliament "must nurture its own child and not foist its cost on
India". Motilal Nehru's motion was passed by 66 votes to 59.
Noted journalist M. Chalapathi Rau wrote of the agitation : "In its
completeness, the boycott brought together all communities as they had
not been brought together since the Khilafat days."
This agitation touched the masses, and people gave free play to their
sense of fun: A kite with the "Go Back" slogan descended when members
of the commission were having tea at a party thrown by some Talukadars
in the Lucknow Baradari Maidan. The kite swooped down low enough to be
read but went up again and could not be traced by the police. In the
1930s, it used to be a prized possession of the UP Pradesh Congress
Committee. In Banaras, officialdom decided that the commissioners
should have a ride up the Ganges in the "Mor-Pankhi", the personal
barge of the Maharaja of Banaras. The idea was to give the
Commissioners a view of the ghats. The protesters got wind of it. A
motor-boat was requisitioned. With the "Go Back" slogans prominently
displayed, it kept pace with the barge, taking a parallel course
between it and the ghats.
moments. The "Simon Go Back" agitation of 1928 is a case in point. It
was the first all-India struggle after the non-cooperation movement of
the early twenties. In November 1927 the British appointed the Indian
Statutory Commission, headed by John Simon. Britain had been unwilling
to make a commitment on India's constitutional advance. The people had
enough and were further irked by the commission, its exclusively
British composition and the manner of its appointment.
The commission was to inquire into the " working of the system of
government, the growth of education and the development of
representative institutions and matters connected therewith" . It was
to report further on the degree of "Responsible Govern-ment". The
terms of reference were provocative: it was to report on "whether and
to what extent it is desirable to establish the principle of
Responsible Government or to extend , modify or restrict the degree of
Responsible Government".
The move fell far short of the Congress demand for a Round-Table
Conference or a Convention Parliament. A few days before the
commission was publicly announced, the Viceroy called Gandhiji and
other political leaders for a meeting. Gandhiji, who was in Mangalore,
came up a thousand miles north for the purpose. On seeing the paper
which the Viceroy handed over, he asked why it had simply not been
placed in a "one-anna envelope" and posted to him. The report in The
Hindu of November 9, 1927 suggested that Gandhiji gave an indication
to the Viceroy that such a commission could be met with a boycott. On
November 10 the the Congress President, Srinivas Iyengar, declared:
"We cannot be parties to an enquiry into our fitness for swaraj or for
any measure of Responsible Government."
A women's meeting in Bombay, presided over by Sarojini Naidu, in early
December 1927 also called for a boycott. The Congress and most other
political parties resolved to oppose the statutory commission. At its
Madras session later the same month the Cong-ress passed a resolution
calling for a boycott. The commission toured India precisely 75 years
ago, from February 1928 to April 1929. In the preceding month, a
committee headed by the new Cong-ress President, M.A. Ansari, and
including, among others, the famous Dalit leader and freedom fighter,
Chaudhuri Behari Lal, called for a hartal. The commission reached Bom-
bay on February 3, 1928. The Bombay Chronicle on that day carried
Mahatma Gandhi's one-line statement saying that the boycott should be
peaceful and "show the nation's strength of purpose".
The "Simon Go Back" slogan which rang out throughout India was coined
by the Bombay-based Congress Socialist, Yusuf Meherally, whose birth
centenary also happens to fall this year (2003). As Bombay, the
Gateway to India, greeted the commission with Meherally's slogan, the
same words were echoed by the rest of the country. Meherally himself
was arrested in Bombay, placed inside a drum and rolled for a long
distance on the road. Later he described it wryly as "a moving
experience."
Jinnah, who played a leading role in the boycott, told the (Central)
Legis-lative Assembly that "barring a few 'jo-hukumists' and flunkeys,
the country was for boycott". However, there were some important
exceptions. Dr Ambedkar, for example, did give evidence before the
commission. As in Iraq in 2003, where most expenses of the occupying
forces are being borne by Iraq through its national budget, so in 1928
the expenses of the Simon Commission were on the Indian account. In
the legislature, Motilal Nehru moved a cut motion for Rs 3,40,000,
that being the cost of the commission. He argued that the (British)
Parliament "must nurture its own child and not foist its cost on
India". Motilal Nehru's motion was passed by 66 votes to 59.
Noted journalist M. Chalapathi Rau wrote of the agitation : "In its
completeness, the boycott brought together all communities as they had
not been brought together since the Khilafat days."
This agitation touched the masses, and people gave free play to their
sense of fun: A kite with the "Go Back" slogan descended when members
of the commission were having tea at a party thrown by some Talukadars
in the Lucknow Baradari Maidan. The kite swooped down low enough to be
read but went up again and could not be traced by the police. In the
1930s, it used to be a prized possession of the UP Pradesh Congress
Committee. In Banaras, officialdom decided that the commissioners
should have a ride up the Ganges in the "Mor-Pankhi", the personal
barge of the Maharaja of Banaras. The idea was to give the
Commissioners a view of the ghats. The protesters got wind of it. A
motor-boat was requisitioned. With the "Go Back" slogans prominently
displayed, it kept pace with the barge, taking a parallel course
between it and the ghats.
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It was opposed by Nehru, Gandhi, Jinnah (Pakistan), the Muslim League and Indian National Congress because it contained seven members of the British Parliament but no Indians. Indians saw it as a violation to their right of self determination and insult to their self respect.
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