Gandhi Irwin Pact: Date, Key Accord, Significance & Struggle for Independence

• Gandhi Irwin Pact. 

• March 5, 1931. 

• Mahatma Gandhi and Lord Irwin (representing the British colonial government in India). 

• To end the Civil Disobedience Movement and secure the release of political prisoners, including Gandhi. 
• The Congress agreed to participate in the Second Round Table Conference in London to discuss the future of India’s political system. 

• Agreed to suspend the Civil Disobedience Movement but did not abandon the demand for complete independence. 

• Agreed to release political prisoners and hold discussions with Congress, but did not commit to granting immediate independence. 

• The pact marked a temporary truce between Congress and the British colonial government and paved the way for future negotiations. 
• It also marked a new phase in the Indian independence movement. 

• The Second Round Table Conference was held in London, but no agreement was reached on India’s political future. 
• Congress resumed the Civil Disobedience Movement in 1932, and India gained its independence in 1947. 

#PW-OnlyIAS Edge

• Limited Work Capacity: Gandhi’s decision to suspend the civil disobedience movement, as agreed under the Gandhi Irwin Pact, was not a retreat, because mass movements are short-lived, and the masses’ capacity to make sacrifices is limited.
• Exhaustion: Shopkeepers and merchants were showing signs of exhaustion. Youth were disappointed, but many people were thrilled that the government recognized their movement and treated their leader as an equal.  
• Criticism of Gandhi: Some sections of the Indian nationalist movement criticized Gandhi’s signing of the pact. Critics claimed it amounted to a retreat because it halted the ongoing resistance movement without obtaining concrete concessions from the British government.
• Tactical Move: Gandhi, on the other hand, saw the pact as a strategic move to build trust and lay the groundwork for future negotiations. He believed that a temporary halt to protests would allow for dialogue and prevent further bloodshed.