Swadeshi & Extremists · December 1907
Surat Split
At its Surat session, the Congress split between Moderates, who wanted gradual reform, and Extremists, who demanded Swaraj through boycott and mass action.
Causes
- Disagreement over how far to extend boycott and Swadeshi
- Dispute over the Congress presidency
- Frustration with slow constitutional methods
Consequences
- Extremists left the Congress until 1916
- Government repression: Tilak jailed in Mandalay (1908–1914)
- Moderates welcomed the Morley-Minto Reforms
Significance
Weakened the national movement for nearly a decade, showing the cost of disunity.
People
Key terms
Sources
- Bipan Chandra et al., India's Struggle for Independence (Penguin, 1988)
- Sumit Sarkar, Modern India 1885–1947 (Macmillan, 1983)