British rule brought new landlords, moneylenders, planters and forest laws. Farmers and tribal people lost land and fell into debt. Many of them rose up, often long before the Congress existed. Each rising had a clear enemy and a clear leader. That is exactly what exams ask.
Tribal risings
Forests, land and the hated outsider.
Tribal people lived by forests and shifting farming. British laws took away their forests. Outsiders called dikus (moneylenders, traders, landlords) took their land through debt. Tribal risings usually wanted to bring back the old way of life.
- 1831–32Kol rising
Chotanagpur. Led by Buddhu Bhagat and others, against outsiders taking Kol land.
- 1855–56Santhal Hul
Rajmahal hills. Brothers Sidhu and Kanhu Murmu against moneylenders, zamindars and police.
- 1879Rampa rising
Hills of Andhra, against new forest and toddy rules.
- 1899–1900Munda Ulgulan
Near Ranchi. Led by Birsa Munda.
- 1922–24Second Rampa rising
Led by Alluri Sitarama Raju, who was killed in 1924.
The Santhals of the Rajmahal hills were trapped in debt by outside moneylenders (mahajans). On 30 June 1855 the brothers Sidhu and Kanhu called them to revolt. The British crushed it with troops and martial law. Then they made a separate Santhal Parganas district, with special rules for the Santhals.
- Called Dharti Aba (Father of the Earth)
- Arrested 3 Feb 1900; died in Ranchi jail, June 1900
- His birthday, 15 November, is Janjatiya Gaurav Divas
Ulgulan is a Mundari word meaning the Great Tumult. Birsa's followers attacked churches, police posts and landlords in 1899–1900. After it, the British passed the Chotanagpur Tenancy Act, 1908. It limited the transfer of tribal land to outsiders.
Peasants against planters, moneylenders and landlords
From the Indigo revolt to Bardoli.
In Bengal, European planters forced farmers to grow indigo for a very low price. In 1859–60 the farmers simply refused to sow it. The play Neel Darpan (1860) by Dinabandhu Mitra showed the planters' cruelty. A government Indigo Commission (1860) followed, and indigo planting in Bengal soon collapsed.
The Moplah (Mappila) rising of 1921 broke out in Malabar (Kerala). Muslim tenants rose against landlords and British rule. It mixed with the Khilafat movement and, in places, turned communal. The British put it down with martial law.
| Gandhian struggle | Year | Key facts |
|---|---|---|
| Champaran (Bihar) | 1917 | Against the tinkathia system of forced indigo. Gandhi's first satyagraha in India. |
| Kheda (Gujarat) | 1918 | Crops failed but revenue was still demanded. Gandhi, with Vallabhbhai Patel. |
| Bardoli (Gujarat) | 1928 | Revenue raised by about 22%. Led by Vallabhbhai Patel; women called him "Sardar". |
Punjab: the Kuka revolt
A religious movement that defied the British.
The Namdhari or Kuka movement began as Sikh religious reform. From 1857, Baba Ram Singh led it from Bhaini Sahib near Ludhiana. His followers chanted loudly in ecstasy, so people called them Kukas (from kook, a cry). They wore white and lived simply.
Ram Singh told his followers to boycott British goods, schools, courts and the postal service. They used their own messengers and settled disputes among themselves. Some historians call this an early form of non-cooperation. The Kukas also stood strongly for cow protection.
- 1857Bhaini Sahib
Baba Ram Singh begins his mission at Baisakhi.
- 1871Clashes over cow slaughter
Kukas attack butchers at Amritsar and Raikot.
- Jan 1872Malerkotla
Kukas march on Malerkotla. About 66 of them are executed without trial, on the orders of British officials.
- 1872Ram Singh exiled
He is deported to Burma. British records report his death there in 1885.
Punjab, 1907: Pagri Sambhal Jatta
Canal colony farmers stand up.
The British had settled farmers in new canal colonies, like the Chenab Colony around Lyallpur. In 1906–07 a Colonisation Bill cut their rights over their own land. Canal water rates were raised too. The farmers protested across Punjab in 1907.
- Colonisation Bill and higher water ratesCanal colony farmers lose rights and pay more.
- Ajit SinghMass meetings, 1907Sardar Ajit Singh, uncle of Bhagat Singh, leads the protest.
- "Pagri Sambhal Jatta"The song by Banke Dayal, editor of Jhang Sial, becomes the movement's cry.
- MandalayMay 1907: deportationLajpat Rai and Ajit Singh are sent to Mandalay in Burma without trial.
- The Bill is droppedViceroy Lord Minto refuses to sign it. The farmers win.
"Pagri Sambhal Jatta" means "Guard your turban, O farmer", that is, guard your honour. It was written by Banke Dayal. The movement it named was led by Ajit Singh.
The 1907 deportationsTap to open
- Lala Lajpat Rai and Ajit Singh were deported to Mandalay (Burma) in May 1907, without trial.
- Both were released in November 1907, after the Bill had been dropped.
Kisan Sabhas and the last big struggles
Peasants organise across India.
Baba Ramchandra led the Awadh Kisan Sabha; Madari Pasi led the Eka (unity) movement.
First president Swami Sahajanand Saraswati; secretary N. G. Ranga.
Sharecroppers demanded two-thirds of the crop instead of half.
Peasants against the Nizam and big landlords.
Later peasant struggles, from the 1920s to independence.
- Santhal Hul (1855)
- Sidhu and Kanhu Murmu
- Munda Ulgulan (1899)
- Birsa Munda
- Faraizi movement
- Haji Shariatullah, then Dudu Miyan
- Second Rampa rising
- Alluri Sitarama Raju
- Neel Darpan (1860)
- Dinabandhu Mitra
- Bardoli (1928)
- Vallabhbhai Patel
- Kuka revolt (1872)
- Baba Ram Singh
- Pagri Sambhal Jatta (1907)
- Song: Banke Dayal; leader: Ajit Singh
- All India Kisan Sabha (1936)
- Swami Sahajanand Saraswati
Everything on one look
Every rising, its leader, year and cause.
- Kol, 1831–32: Chotanagpur
- Santhal Hul, 1855–56: Sidhu and Kanhu
- Munda Ulgulan, 1899–1900: Birsa Munda
- Chotanagpur Tenancy Act, 1908
- Rampa, 1922–24: Alluri Sitarama Raju
- Faraizi, 1818: Haji Shariatullah
- Indigo revolt, 1859–60: Neel Darpan
- Pabna, 1873; Deccan riots, 1875
- Moplah, 1921: Malabar
- Bardoli, 1928: Vallabhbhai Patel
- Kuka revolt, 1872: Baba Ram Singh
- 1907: Ajit Singh, Pagri Sambhal Jatta
- Sidhu and Kanhu led the Santhals; Birsa Munda led the Mundas.
- Ulgulan = Munda rising (1899–1900); Hul = Santhal rising (1855).
- Indigo revolt (1859–60) was in Bengal; Champaran (1917) was in Bihar.
- Neel Darpan was written by Dinabandhu Mitra.
- Deccan riots were against moneylenders; Pabna was against zamindars.
- Bardoli was led by Patel, not Gandhi; the women gave him the title Sardar.
- Kuka revolt: Baba Ram Singh, not Ajit Singh.
- "Pagri Sambhal Jatta" was written by Banke Dayal; the movement was led by Ajit Singh.
- 1907 agitation was against the Colonisation Bill, not the Rowlatt Bill (1919).
- All India Kisan Sabha: Lucknow, 1936, president Sahajanand Saraswati.
- Kol rising: 1831–32, Chotanagpur
- Santhal Hul: 1855, Sidhu and Kanhu
- After the Hul: Santhal Parganas district
- Ulgulan: Birsa Munda, 1899–1900
- Birsa Munda: Dharti Aba; died 1900
- Janjatiya Gaurav Divas: 15 November
- Chotanagpur Tenancy Act: 1908
- Faraizi: Haji Shariatullah, 1818
- Indigo revolt: Bengal, 1859–60
- Neel Darpan: Dinabandhu Mitra, 1860
- Pabna revolt: 1873; Bengal Tenancy Act 1885
- Deccan riots: 1875; Relief Act 1879
- Moplah rising: Malabar, 1921
- Champaran: 1917, tinkathia
- Bardoli: 1928, Vallabhbhai Patel
- Kuka revolt: Baba Ram Singh, Malerkotla 1872
- Pagri Sambhal Jatta: Banke Dayal (song), Ajit Singh
- Lajpat Rai, Ajit Singh deported: Mandalay, 1907
- All India Kisan Sabha: Lucknow 1936, Sahajanand
- Tebhaga: Bengal 1946; Telangana: 1946–51
Why did the Punjab farmers protest in 1907, and what was the result?
Show answer
The Colonisation Bill cut the rights of canal colony settlers, and water rates were raised. Ajit Singh led the protest, with the song "Pagri Sambhal Jatta" by Banke Dayal. Ajit Singh and Lajpat Rai were deported to Mandalay, but Lord Minto dropped the Bill.