Why was Bengal partitioned in 1905? How did Hindus react on it?
Answers
Answer:
After the Muslim majority province of Eastern Bengal and Assam had been created prominent Muslims started seeing it as advantageous. Muslims, especially in Eastern Bengal, had been backward in the period of United Bengal. The Hindu protest against the partition was seen as interference in a Muslim province.
Lord Curzon's intention was to divide Bengalis, not Hindus from Muslims. The Western districts formed the other province with Orissa and Bihar. The union of western Bengal with Orissa and Bihar reduced the speakers of the Bengali language to a minority.
Answer:
The leadership of the Indian National Congress viewed the partition as attempt to ‘divide and rule’ and as a proof of the government’s vindictive antipathy towards the outspoken Bhadralok intellectuals. Mother-goddess worshipping Bengali Hindus believed that the partition was tantamount to the vivisection , of their ‘Mother province’. ‘Bande-Mataram’ (Hail Motherland) almost became the national anthem of the Indian National Congress. Defeat of the partition became the immediate target of Bengalee nationalism. Agitation against the partition manifested itself in the form of mass meetings, rural unrest and a swadeshi movement to boycott the import of British manufactured goods. Swadeshi and Boycott were the twin weapons of this nationalism and Swaraj (self-government) its main objective. Swaraj was first mentioned in the presidential address of Dadabhai Naoroji as the Congress goal at its Calcutta session in 1906.
Leaders like surendranath banerjea along with journalists like Krishna Kumar Mitra, editor of the Sanjivani (13 July 1905) urged the people to boycott British goods, observe mourning and sever all contact with official bodies. In a meeting held at Calcutta on 7 August 1905 (hailed as the birthday of Indian nationalism) a resolution to abstain from purchases of British products so long as ‘Partition resolution is not withdrawn’ was accepted with acclaim. This national spirit was popularized by the patriotic songs of dwijendralal roy, rajanikanta sen and rabindranath tagore. As with other political movements of the day this also took on religious overtones. Pujas were offered to emphasize the solemn nature of the occasion.