Rowlatt Act and its Dark side

Supriyo Chaudhuri
Class: X, Section - B
Maharaja Agrasen Vidyalaya
Ahmedabad

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 Background of Rowlatt Act
 During the First World War the British India Government had enacted a
Defence of India Act, 1915 in order to suppress any nationalist activity in India.
It invested extrajudicial powers in the police and army to crush any dissent.

 As the act was expiring with the culmination of the First World War, the
government instituted a committee under Justice S.A.T Rowlatt to suggest
measures which can check nationalist sentiments among Indians.

 The committee suggested a number of legislations to replace Defence of India

Act, 1915. Rowlatt himself called these measures ‘extrajudicial’ and justified
their use to maintain ‘peace’. 

 In February, 1919 these bills were passed and made into ‘Acts’ on 18 March,
1919. These repressive acts which provided police with extrajudicial powers to
crush any dissent from Indians, but, were opposed by the Indians unitedly.

 India had participated in the First World War with lull confidence in the
promises of British Government. Indian leaders had hoped that they would get
freedom after the cessation of hostilities, what India got was the Rowlatt Act.
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 What is Act Rowlatt Act and Why it was passed?
• In 1919, the Rowlatt Act was passed hurriedly through the
Imperial Legislative Council, despite the united opposition of
the Indian members.
• The act was passed as per recommendations of the Rowlatt
Committee chaired by a judge, Sidney Rowlatt, after whom
the act is named.
• The British government’s primary intention was to repress
the growing nationalist movement and political activities in
the country.
• According to this law, political prisoners
could be detained in prison without trial
for two years.
• This Act was passed to counter all political
unrest, which manifested itself in many
situations. By this Act the British
government wanted to increase their grip
on power over the common people.
• It also placed severe restrictions on the
freedom of the press. 4
How was Rowlatt Act opposed by the people in India?
 Mahatma Gandhi wanted non-violent civil disobedience against
such unjust law.
 British administration decided to suppress the nationalists.
 The act was widely condemned by Indian leaders and the public.
The bills came to be known as ‘black bills’.

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 Rowlatt Act and its consequences?
 Several Rallies were organised in various cities, workers went on
strike in railway workshops, and shops closed down.
 Local leaders were picked up from Amritsar, and Gandhi ji was
barred from entering Delhi.

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 Protest against Rowlatt Act
 Gandhi ji and the other leaders called for a ‘Hartal’ (suspension
of work) on April 6 to show Indians’ objection with this rule. This
was called the Rowlatt Satyagraha.

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 Impact of the Rowlatt Act in Indian politics
• The act was passed despite
unanimous opposition from the
Indian members of the council,
all of whom resigned in protest.
These included Mohammed Ali
Jinnah, Madan Mohan Malviya
and Mazhar Ul Haq.
• Two popular Congress leaders Satya Pal and Saifuddin Kitchlew
were arrested.
 The protest was so intense that army
was called in Punjab to tackle the situation.
The Jallianwala Bagh massacre took place
when many villagers gathered in the
park for the celebration of  Baisakhi. The
gatherers wanted to also peacefully protest.
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 Nationwide Satyagraha against Rowlatt Act
 On the day of the Baisakhi festival on 13th. April 1919 a crowd of
non-violent protestors had gathered in a public garden in
Jallianwala Bagh, Amritsar. Also among the crowd were
pilgrims who had come to celebrate Baisakhi.
 Due to this Rowlatt Act, the situation in Punjab was alarming.
Punjab was put under martial law which meant that it became
unlawful for more than 4 people to assemble at a place.

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 Jallianwala Bagh Massacre
 The Lieutenant-Governor of Punjab at that time was Michael
O’Dwyer. He came to Jallianwals Bagh with his troops and blocked
the only narrow entrance to the garden and without warning, he
ordered his troops to fire at the unarmed crowd which included
children as well.
 The indiscriminate firing went on for about 10 minutes until the
1650 rounds of ammunition were exhausted. This resulted the
deaths of at least 1000 people and injured more than 1500 people

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 Dark Shadow of the Rowlatt Act
 In protest against the massacre and the British failure to give
due justice to the victims, Rabindranath Tagore gave up his
knighthood and Gandhiji relinquished his title ‘Kaiser-e-hind’
bestowed on him by the British for his services during the Boer
War in South Africa.

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 Jallianwala Bagh Memorial
 This tragedy came as a rude shock to Indians and totally destroyed
their faith in the British system of justice. National leaders
condemned the act and Dyer unequivocally. Some people in British
Government like Winston Churchill and former Prime Minister H.H
Ashquith criticised his actions.

Bullet Holes on Jallianwala Bagh Walls Jallianwala Bagh Memorial, Amritsar12

 Reactions on Rowlatt Act
 Gandhi "We do not want to punish Dyer. We
have no desire for revenge. We want to change
the system that produced Dyer”.
 Ben Spoor, Labour Party "Amritsar was not an
isolated event any more than General Dyer was
an isolated officer.”
 Gandhi, C. R. Das, Fazl-ul-Huq and Abbas Tyabji. ‘A calculated
piece of inhumanity towards utterly innocent and unarmed men,
including children ... unparalleled for its ferocity in the history of
modern British administration’
 Churchill: – "a monstrous event",
– a "great slaughter or massacre upon a particular crowd of
people, with the intention of terrorising not merely, the rest of the
crowd, but the whole district or country".
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 Overview of the Rowlatt Act, 1919
Rowlatt Act, 1919
Long Title Anarchical and Revolutionary Crimes Act of 1919
Territorial Extent The whole of British India
Enacted by Imperial Legislative Council
Enacted 21st March 1919
Commenced 21st March 1919
Status Repealed

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