Tribal and peasant movements

• Causes
• Strategies
• Nature
• Role and contribution in Indian freedom struggles

INTRODUCTION
In 1857, the general masses' and lower-class people's grievances against British
colonial rule were expressed for the first time in the Indian subcontinent in the
form of a revolt. Though historians often refer to the revolt of 1857 as the
Sepoy Mutiny or the first struggle of Indians against the British, we can say that
some of the popular resistance movements pursued by various tribal and
peasant groups laid the groundwork for this struggle. They used their voices to
speak out against a system that oppressed them. Peasants and tribals both had
their own reasons for resisting colonial rule. To be honest, both the colonial
government and the landlords, the Zamindars, exploited them. Due to the
rising demand for land revenue, peasants became impoverished and were
forced to take out loans or sell their lands to landlords. They became so
impoverished as a result of the loss of their lands that they rebelled against the
British. Tribal resistance to British rule, on the other hand, had some
justification.
Following the occupation of the tribals' homeland, the British administration
designated tribal chiefs as Zamindars rather than kings. Furthermore, they
abolished the tribals' old taxation and revenue system, which was a major
source of concern for the tribals, prompting them to raise anti-British slogans.
Tribal people began to lose their lands as a result of the British government's
new administrative system, and were reduced to the status of agricultural
labourers and rack-vented tenants on the land they cultivated. As a result,
among the tribal people, a wave of resentment against the British arose. The
arrival of money lenders, traders, and contractors, as well as the protection
provided by colonial rule, has always been a source of contention between
tribals and the British. Some of the major causes of tribal movements in British
India include British efforts to tighten control over forest zones for revenue
purposes, religious activities of Christian Missionaries in their areas, British
efforts to suppress certain tribal traditions and practises such as human
sacrifices, and British efforts to recruit unpaid tribal labour for menial work.
 • TRIBAL MOVEMENTS
The tribal movements were sporadic outbursts in response to local grievances,
most of which were economic in nature.

In British India, tribals made up nearly a quarter of the total population..

Many of India’s diverse tribal communities went against the British’s forced
invasions into their regions. Before the advent of the colonisers, the tribal
groups had lived discreetly and in touch with nature around their forests for
centuries. The British came along and created radical transformation to their
lifestyle. This consigned them to a position of slaves and borrowers rather than
rulers of their very own land. The uprisings were essentially a reaction to this
unwanted incursion and a struggle for freedom.Their autonomy and self-
sufficiency were disrupted shortly after British rule was established, resulting
in the rise and spread of as many as 70 major tribal uprisings in the 19th and
early 20th centuries. These, on the other hand, were limited to a single tribe
and led by a local tribal leader.
Because of its policy of land revenue settlement, the British administration
dealt a severe blow to the tribal economy. Increased official control of forest
zones for revenue purposes had a negative impact on the tribes'
socioeconomic well-being. They missed out on the chance to shift cultivation.
They lost their traditional rights to graze on forest land and use forest timber
for fuel. They were forced to work for forest contractors, who exploited them.
The spread of Christianity by European missionaries caused their traditional
religion to disintegrate. One of the goals of British rule, according to the tribals,
was to convert them to Christianity. This was especially true in Bihar and
Assam's hilly regions. Tribal uprisings against the British government erupted in
response to these circumstances. We've gone over a few major tribal uprisings
that posed a serious threat to the Company's rule.

What were the causes of Tribal revolts during Colonial Rule?

• Introduction of Permanent Settlement in Agriculture: The tribals’

mainstay was agriculture, hunting, fishing and the use of forest produce.
With the influx of non-tribals into the traditional regions of the tribals, the
practice of settled agriculture was introduced.
• This led to a loss of land for the tribal population. The tribals were reduced
to being landless agricultural labourers.
 • Loss of livelihood: There were restrictions imposed on the use of forest
produce, on shifting agriculture and on hunting practices. This led to the
loss of livelihood for the tribals.
• Introduction of the outsiders: The British introduced outsiders like money
lenders into the tribal areas which led to severe exploitation of the local
tribals. They became bonded labourers under the new economic system.
• Private ownership by non-tribal landlords: The tribal societies had a
system of joint ownership of land which was replaced by the notion of
private property.
• Introduction of Forest Acts: A Forest Department was set up in 1864 by
the government mainly to control the rich resources of Indian forests.
• Religious Conversions: The work of the Christian missionaries also led to
social upheaval in tribal society and this was also resented by them as they
considered the work of missionaries an extension of colonialism.
• Unregulated Tax Regime by Britishers: A section of the tribal rebellion
was a response to the landlords’ attempts to impose taxes on the
traditional use of timber and grazing areas, police exaction, new excise
regulations, low country traders’ and moneylenders’ exploitation, and
limitations on shifting agriculture in forests.

Kol Rebellion in 1832

• The Kols were among the tribes who lived in and around Chhotanagpur.

• They had complete authority underneath their community rulers, but

that all ended when the Britishers arrived.
• The merchants and moneylenders arrived with the Britishers.
• The Kols were subsequently forced to sell their property to foreign
farmers as well as pay massive taxation. Many became bonded
labourers as a result of this.
• The Kols were also irritated by the British legal policies.
• In 1831-32, the Kols organised and revolted against the Britishers and
moneylenders.
 • They murdered several strangers and set fire to homes. This violent
struggle lasted two years until being ruthlessly repressed by the
Britishers, who used superior weapons to do so.
• The Kol Revolt was so fierce that troops from Benares and Calcutta were
summoned to put it down.

SANTHAL UPRISING
The Santhal Uprising, which took place just before the Revolt of 1857 in the
Santhal area of Chollangpur in the present-day state of Jharkhand, was a major
tribal resistance movement.
The method of their struggle was very violent and bandit in nature.
of the main reasons for their protest was the Zamindars' exploitation of money
lenders and intermediaries. The Santhals were forced to speak out against
British rule after their properties and lands were confiscated. Furthermore, the
Santhals were more concerned about forced labour and sexual exploitation of
tribal women at work sites. ten thousand Santhals gathered in Bhaghadihi to
declare war on the British. To suppress them, the latter was forced to deploy
the army's regular columns. The defeat of the British army under Major
Burrough by the Santhals at the initial stage was a significant incident of the
rebellion. By the end of 1856, however, the Santhals had been defeated by the
British army. The Company created a separate district of Santhal Paragana to
keep the Santhals from revolting in the future.

MUNDA UPRISING
The 1899-1900 Munda uprising, led by Birsa Munda, also known as Birsite, was
the most significant tribal uprising of the nineteenth century. In Tribal
language, this uprising is referred to as Ulgulum (the Great Tumult).
• Chotanagpur was home to the Mundas.

• The Mundas used the Khunt Katti structure, which was a land-sharing
system. The Khunkatti structure was supplanted by the Zamindari
system upon the arrival of the Britishers. The tribals were compelled to
work and were indebted as a result.
• Birsa Munda was a brilliant strategist who raised a Munda Militia that
included Munda women.
 • Birsa Munda, an effective and charismatic commander, declared a revolt
in 1894.
• He planned a public uprising against the administration. He pushed
individuals to forgo paying their obligations and taxes.
• He was caught and imprisoned for two years before his parole in 1897.
• He led an armed rebellion against the landowners and the authorities in
December 1899.
• Government buildings, landlords’ homes, churches, as well as British
property were all set ablaze by the Mundas.
• Despite their unwavering courage, the rebellious Mundas were no
match for the British. The Munda uprising came to an end with the
arrest of Birsa Munda and
•
• his subsequent death in prison. It was, however, a watershed moment in
the history of tribal movements.

RAMPA REBELLION
Rampa is a tribal region in Andhra Pradesh's Godavari district that saw a tribal
uprising in the 19th century. Due to the British's excessive exploitation, the
tribals of Rampa revolted against them. The Rampa tribals were harmed when
the British used them as unpaid labourers for the construction of forest roads.
non-tribal leader to lead a tribal uprising, believed in Gandhi's ideology, but
not his methods,
•
• Raju raised a Rampa Militia and waged guerilla warfare against the
British as a result. The latter employed a large number of men and spent
a large sum of money (roughly Rupees15 lakhs) to put down the
uprising, which culminated in Sitaram Raju's arrest and killing in May
1924.
• Thus, the Rampa uprising was the catalyst for the integration of the
tribal movement into the larger national movement.
•

TANA BHAGAT MOVEMENT

Sanskritization Movement:
The Tana Bhagat movement began in 1920 among the Mundas and Oraons of
Jharkhand's Chottanagpur region, led by tribal mendicants known as Bhagat.
Tana Bhagat is the name given to the movement after them. There were
numerous Tana
Bhagat movements, which began as Sanskritization efforts to resurrect the
Oraons' original religion. Following the launch of the non-cooperation
movement, Gandhian nationalists became interested in beginning constructive
work among the tribals, which led to the linking of these movements with local
grievances and, eventually, the national movement.
Initially, these movements grew out of Tana Bhagat's appeal to his followers to
abstain from eating meat and drinking alcohol. The movement was
transformed into a powerful movement for internal reforms and the
overthrow of the British in the second stage. The Tana Bhagats became
engulfed in the fever of nationalism in 1920, when they joined the freedom
struggle by picketing liquor stores, holding demonstrations, and staging
Satyagrahas, among other things. During this time, nationalist symbols such as
honouring the poster of Bharatmata wearing the Gandhian cap, honouring the
Congress flag, and so on, became matters of religious faith for Tana Bhagat
supporters. It was a one-of-a-kind movement in which tribals joined the
national movement directly and expressed anti-British sentiments through a
variety of methods and symbols.

Paika rebellion

• In several recent descriptions, the 1817 Paika Rebellion in Odisha’s

Khurda is referred to as the “original” first war of Indian Independence.
• That year, the Paikas – a class of military retainers traditionally recruited
by the kings of Odisha – revolted against the British colonial rulers mainly
over being dispossessed of their land holdings.
• In the run-up to the revolt, the British had dethroned and exiled the
Khurda king in 1803, and then started introducing new revenue
settlements.

• There were various scattered revolts under different inspirations from

time to time. Such as the
Ramosi Uprising and Bhil uprisings in Maharashtra.

In 1868 the Naikda forest tribe attacked police stations in a bid to establish a
dharma-raj. In 1882 the Kacha Nagas of Cachar attacked the whites inspired by
a miracle worker called Sambhudan who claimed magical powers which would
make his followers immune to bullets.

PEASANT AND TRIBAL MOVEMENTS IN ASSAM

Such as PHULGURI UPRISING
Revolt from THE NAGAS, GAROS AND LUSHAIS

Peasant movements

▪ Causes of the Movements:

o Peasant Atrocities: The peasants suffered fromhigh

rents, illegal levies, arbitrary evictions and unpaid
labour in Zamindari areas. The Government levied heavy
land revenue.
o Massive Losses for Indian Industries: The movements
arose when British economic policies resulted in the
ruin of traditional handicrafts and other small
industries leading to change of ownership and
overburdening of agrarian land, and massive debt and
impoverishment of peasantry.
o Unfavourable Policies: The economic policies of British
government used to protect the landlords and
moneylenders and exploited the peasants. The peasants
rose in revolt against this injustice on many occasions.
British strategies were designed to take advantage of their colonies. High rents,
illegal taxation, arbitrary evictions, and unpaid work were all problems for
farmers in the Zamindari regions. The overcrowding of territory was caused by
the demise of Indian handicrafts.
Indigo Rebellion (1859-62):

o In order to increase their profits, the European planters persuaded

the peasants to plant Indigo instead of food crops.
o The farmers were discontent growing indigo because:

o Low prices were offered for growing indigo.

o Indigo was not lucrative.
o Indigo planting decreased the fertility of the soil.
o The peasants suffered at the hands of the traders and the
middleman. Consequently, they launched a movement for non
cultivation of indigo in Bengal.
o They were supported by the press and the missionaries.
o began with the rots of
o The peasants even went on strike, raised funds to fight the court cases
brought against them, and took legal action against the planters on their
own. The indigo agitators used social boycotts and caste pressures to
persuade the planters' household servants to leave their employer's
employ.
The government appointed an Indigo Commissionand issued an order in
November 1860, notifying that it was illegal to force the ryots to cultivate
indigo. This marked the victory for the peasants.

▪ Pabna Movement (1870s-80s):

o In larger parts of Eastern Bengal, landlords forcefully

collected rents and land taxes, often enhanced for the
poor peasants.
o The peasants were also prevented from
acquiringOccupancy Right under Act X of 1859.
o In May 1873 an Agrarian League was formed in the
Yusufshahi Pargana of Pabna district, Patna (East
Bengal).
 ▪ Rent strikes were organised, funds were
raised and the struggle spread throughout
Patna and to other districts of East Bengal.
▪ The struggle was mainly legal resistance and
little violence.
o The discontent continued till 1885 when the Government
by the Bengal Tenancy Act of 1885enhanced the
occupancy rights.
o The struggle was supported by Bankim Chandra
Chatterjee, R.C. Dutt and the Indian
Association under Surendranath Banerjea.
Deccan Riots (1875):

o The Deccan peasants uprising was directed mainly against the

excesses of the Marwari and Gujarati money lenders.
o The ryots suffered heavy taxation under the Ryotwari system. The
land revenue was also raised by 50% in 1867.
o Social Boycott: In 1874, the ryots organised a social boycott
movement against the moneylenders.

o They refused to buy from the moneylenders’ shops and

cultivate their fields.
o The barbers, washermen, and shoemakers refused to
serve them.
o The Government succeeded in repressing the movement. As a
conciliatory measure, the Deccan Agriculturists Relief Act was passed
in 1879.

20th Century Peasant Movements (Gandhian Phase)

▪ Champaran Satyagraha (1917):

o The peasantry on the indigo plantations in

the Champaran district of Bihar was excessively
oppressed by the European planters and compelled to
 grow indigo on at least 3/20th of their land and sell it at
prices fixed by the planters.
o In 1917, Mahatma Gandhi reached Champaran and
began to conduct a detailed inquiry into the condition of
the peasantry.
o He defied the orders of district officials for leaving
Champaran.
o In June 1917, the Government appointed an enquiry
committee with Gandhiji as one of the members.
▪ As a result, the tinkathia system was abolished, and peasants were
compensated for illegal increases in their dues.
o

Kheda Satyagraha (1918):

o It was chiefly directed against the Government.

o In 1918, the crops failed in the Kheda district of Gujarat but the
government refused to remit land revenue and insisted on its full
collection.
o Gandhiji along with Sardar Vallabhai Patelsupported the peasants
and advised them to withhold payment of revenues till their
demand for its remission was met.
▪ Bardoli Satyagraha (1928):

o Enhancement of land revenue by 30% in the Bardoli

district of Gujarat by the British government led to the
organisation of a ‘No-Revenue Campaign’ by the Bardoli
peasants under the leadership of Vallabhai Patel.
o A woman in Bardoli gave Vallabhai Patel the title of
‘Sardar’.
o Unsuccessful attempts of the British to suppress the
movement by large scale attachment of cattle and land
resulted in the appointment of an enquiry committee.
o The enquiry came to the conclusion that the increase
had been unjustified and reduced the enhancement to
6.03%.
 o The Bardoli Satyagraha was an attempt by Indian
peasants to stage a peaceful protest against British rule
in India. It was a pivotal moment in the Civil
Disobedience Movement, which was a component of the
Indian Independence Struggle.
Later the various peasant revolts under different umbrellas culminated in the
formation of the All India Kisan Sabha (AIKS) at the Lucknow session of the
Indian National Congress in April 1936 with Swami Sahajanand Saraswati
elected as its first President.In the closing years of British rule, there were two
spectacular peasant struggles– The Tebhaga movement in Bengal and the
Telangana movement in Andhra. of the Tebhaga (sharing by thirds) movement
was to reduce the share given to landlords to one-third. In many areas, the
agitations turned violent, and landlords fled villages leaving parts of the
countryside in the hands of the Kisan Sabha. Thus it has become almost like an
overthrow of the zamindari class by the exploited peasant

REVOLT OF THE RAMOSIS in Marashtra.

classes.
Other imp. Revolts are MOPLAH UPRISING

Difference between 19th and 20th Century Peasant

Movements

19th Century
20th Century Peasant
Characteristics Peasant
Movements
Movements

Objective of The objective The peasants were

Movements: of these brought into
movements the broader struggle
were centered against
almost wholly colonialismbeginning
on economic with Champaran,
issues rather Kheda and later
than ending Bardoli movement.
the
 exploitation of
the peasants.

Leadership: The leadership The movements

of these were led by Congress
revolts were and communist
from leaders.
the peasantry
itself.

Extent of Territorial All India

Movements: reach movements.
waslimited to The chief form of
a particular mobilisation was
local region. through holding kisan
conferences and
meetings.

Understanding Directed There was

of towards anemergence of
Colonialism: specific and anti-colonialism
limited consciousnessamong
objectives and peasants.
redressal of
particular
grievances.

Colonialism
was not the
target of
these
movements.

Formal No formal Emergence of

Organization: organization. independent class
organisations of
These caused kisans in rural India.
movements to
be a short
 term The All India Kisan
phenomenon. Sabha was formed in
1936.

Significance of the Movements

▪ Awareness among the Indians: Though these revolts were not

aimed at uprooting the British rule from India, they created
awareness among the Indians.

o The peasants developed a strong awareness of their

legal rights and asserted them in and outside the courts.
▪ Inspired other Revolts: They felt a need to organise and fight
against exploitation and oppression.

o These rebellions prepared the ground for various other

uprisings such as Sikh Wars in Punjab and finally
the Revolt of 1857.
▪ Unity Among the Peasantry: Because of the non-differentiation in
the peasantry, and the all-embracing nature of the anti imperialist
struggle, the Peasant Movement was able to unite all sections of
the peasantry including the landless labourers and its anti-feudal
and anti-imperialist crusade.
▪ Peasants’ Voices were Heard: Due to the peasants fighting directly
for their own demands, their voices were heard.

o In the Indigo rebellion, Bardoli Satyagraha, Pabna

movement and Deccan riots, the demands of peasants
were responded to.
o Formation of various Kisan Sabhas to hear the peasants'
demands during the Non Cooperation Movement.
▪ Growth of Nationalism: The ideology of non-violence had given
much strength to the peasants who participated in the movement.

o The movement also contributed to the growth of

nationalism.
▪ Encouraged Post-Independence Reforms: These movements
created an atmosphere for post- independence agrarian reforms,
for instance, ’abolition of Zamindari.

o They eroded the power of the landed class, thus adding

to the transformation of the agrarian structure.
o