The Post War National Upsurge in India: Path to Independence

The conclusion of the War in India was met with an immense sigh of relief. However, the limited benefits such as windfall gains and super-profits for capitalists, along with employment opportunities for the middle class, were overshadowed by the widespread ravages and miseries it inflicted. The colony struggled under the weight of the war effort, facing issues like famine, inflation, scarcity, hoarding, and black-marketing. Despite the heroic efforts of a leaderless people, the Quit India Movement was swiftly suppressed in eight weeks. Though pockets of resistance persisted, keeping the torch ablaze, they couldn’t withstand the challenges for an extended period.

Congress Leaders Encounter Enthusiastic and Anti-British Crowds Post-1945 Release

Upon their release from jail in mid-June 1945, Congress leaders anticipated encountering a demoralised populace, still affected by the 1942 repression, disoriented due to the lack of leadership, and battered by the wartime hardships. 

• To their astonishment, they were met with tumultuous crowds eagerly awaiting them—impatient, restless, and resolutely anti-British, indicating a surprisingly resilient and determined sentiment among the people.

Two Strands of National Upsurge

In the final years of British rule in India, two distinct strands of national fervour emerged. 

• Negotiations and Communal Tensions: The first involved intricate negotiations among the government, Congress, and Muslim League, marked by communal tensions that ultimately led to the momentous events of independence and partition. 
• Militant Mass Movements: Concurrently, a second strand unfolded as sporadic, localised, and often militant mass actions by workers, peasants, and state populations. 
  • This included the widespread strike wave triggered by the INA Release Movement, Tebhaga movement, Worli revolt, Punjab Kisan Morchas, Travancore peoples’ struggle, and the Telangana peasant revolt. 

Post-Ban Resurgence

• Resurgence of Energy: Following the government’s decision to lift the ban on Congress and release its leaders in June 1945, their anticipation of encountering a demoralised populace was overturned. 
  • Instead, they were met with enthusiastic and impatient crowds, signalling a resurgence of popular energy after three years of repression. 
• The release of Congress leaders heightened people’s expectations. Significant political shifts occurred despite the failure of the Wavell Plan, supported by the Conservative government in Britain, to break the constitutional deadlock. 
• In July 1945, the Labour Party assumed power in Britain, with Clement Attlee becoming the new prime minister and Pethick Lawrence the secretary of state for India. Subsequently, in August 1945, elections for central and provincial assemblies were announced. 
  • In September 1945, the government declared its intention to convene a constituent assembly after the elections, emphasizing alignment with the principles of the Cripps Offer.

Why  Change in Government’s Attitude?

• Post-War Shift in Global Power: The conclusion of the War marked a shift in the global power dynamic, with the UK losing its status as a major power. At the same time, the USA and USSR emerged as superpowers, both supportive of India’s quest for independence.
  • The newly elected Labour government displayed greater sympathy toward Indian demands.
  • Across Europe, there was a surge in socialist and radical governments.
• British Weakness: The exhaustion of British soldiers and the battered British economy contributed to a weakened stance. 
  • By 1945, the British government in London owed India £1.2 billion, facing additional strain from the US Lend-Lease agreement, settled only in 2006.
• An anti-imperialist sentiment swept through Southeast Asia, particularly in Vietnam and Indonesia, resisting attempts to reinstate French and Dutch rule.
• Fear of Congress Revolt: Officials were apprehensive about a potential Congress revolt, anticipating a more perilous situation than the 1942 scenario due to potential attacks on communications, agrarian uprisings, labor unrest, and army disaffection, coupled with the presence of INA men with military experience.
• Inevitable elections loomed after the war’s conclusion, as the last elections had taken place in 1934 for the Centre and in 1937 for the provinces. 
  • The British retreat was an imminent necessity, accelerated by the Labour government.

Congress Election Campaign and INA Trials

Election Campaign for Nationalistic Aim

The election campaign during the last years of British rule in India aimed to mobilize Indians against British dominance, going beyond a mere solicitation of votes. 

• It actively expressed nationalist sentiments, particularly in response to the harsh repression witnessed during the 1942 Quit India movement. 
• The campaign strategically highlighted the bravery of leaderless individuals, glorifying martyrs through memorials and condemning officials responsible for causing pain. 
• Relief funds were collected for the sufferers, and promises of inquiries and threats of punishment to guilty officials were articulated.
• Fears of Congress’s Return: The anticipation of Congress ministries potentially returning to power, especially in provinces where repression had been severe, heightened fears among government personnel. 
  • Consequently, a ‘gentleman’s agreement’ with Congress seemed imperative to the government.
• Mass Pressure on INA Trials: Mass pressure against the trial of Indian National Army (INA) prisoners of war, often described as “an edge of a volcano,” led to a significant shift in the government’s policy. 
  • Initially planning public trials for hundreds of INA prisoners, the British intended to dismiss them from service and detain around 7,000 without trial. 
• The Red Fort Trials: The decision to hold the first trial at the Red Fort in Delhi in November 1945, with individuals like Hindu leader Prem Kumar Sehgal, Muslim leader Shah Nawaz Khan, and Sikh leader Gurbaksh Singh Dhillon in the dock, compounded the folly of the British administration.
• Indian Army Deployments Abroad: Another concern arose with the deployment of Indian Army units to reinstate French and Dutch colonial control in Vietnam and Indonesia, intensifying anti-imperialist sentiments among certain urban populations and within the military.

Congress Support for INA Prisoners

• During the first post-war Congress session in September 1945 in Bombay, a robust resolution was passed, expressing Congress’s backing for the INA cause.
• Legal defense for INA prisoners in court was coordinated by Bhulabhai Desai, Tej Bahadur Sapru, Kailash Nath Katju, Jawaharlal Nehru, and Asaf Ali.
• The INA Relief and Enquiry Committee distributed modest amounts of money and food while assisting in securing employment for those affected.
• Organized efforts were made for fund collection.

The INA Agitation—A Landmark on Many Counts

The campaign for the release of INA prisoners reached unprecedented levels of fervor and intensity. It gained extensive publicity through widespread press coverage, daily editorials, pamphlet distribution containing occasional threats of reprisal, graffiti conveying similar messages, public meetings, and celebrations of INA Day (November 12, 1945) and INA week (November 5-11).

• Widespread Geographical Reach: The movement spanned a broad geographical area and saw the active participation of diverse social groups and political parties. 
  • While the agitation had its nerve centers in Delhi, Bombay, Calcutta, Madras, United Provinces towns, and Punjab, it extended to remote locations like Coorg, Balochistan, and Assam. 
• Various forms of participation emerged, including fund contributions from film stars, municipal committees, Indians living abroad, gurudwaras, and tongawallah. 
• Activities ranged from participating in meetings, shop closures, political groups demanding prisoner release, contributing to INA funds, student meetings, class boycotts, organizing kisan conferences, and the All India Women’s Conference advocating the release of INA prisoners.
• Broad Political Support: Beyond the Congress, other supporters of the INA cause, to varying degrees, included the Muslim League, Communist Party, Unionists, Akalis, Justice Party, Ahrars in Rawalpindi, Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, Hindu Mahasabha, and the Sikh League.
• Pro-INA sentiments even surfaced in traditional strongholds of the Raj. Government employees collected funds, loyalists with titles appealed to the government to abandon trials for the sake of good Indo-British relations, and men from the armed forces unexpectedly showed sympathy, attending meetings, receiving those released (often in uniforms), and contributing funds.

• The central theme evolved into questioning Britain’s right to decide matters concerning Indians. 
  •  Britain acknowledged the political significance of the INA issue, which each day took on more of an ‘Indian versus British’ character.

Conclusion

The post-war national upsurge in India was fueled by widespread discontent with British rule, exacerbated by wartime hardships and economic strain. The Congress leaders’ release sparked renewed anti-British sentiments, leading to mass movements and strikes. The INA trials became a focal point of nationalist mobilisation, gaining broad political and public support. Ultimately, the shifting global power dynamics, British weaknesses, and rising national fervour hastened India’s inevitable path to independence, culminating in the end of colonial rule.

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