Gandhi’s Return to India

Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi returned to India on January 9, 1915, after spending 21 years in South Africa. He landed at Apollo Bunder in Bombay aboard the steamship SS Arabia alongside his wife, Kasturba Gandhi. His work against racial discrimination in South Africa had made him well known among Indian political leaders and the public. A large crowd, including prominent leaders like Dinshaw Wacha and Jahangir Petit, welcomed him. In June 1915, the British administration awarded Gandhi the Kaisar-i-Hind Gold Medal for his contribution to the Indian Ambulance Corps during the Boer War.

Role of Gopal Krishna Gokhale

Gopal Krishna Gokhale served as Gandhi’s political mentor. Gokhale had visited South Africa in 1912 and guided Gandhi during his civil rights campaigns there. Upon Gandhi’s return, Gokhale gave him specific advice regarding Indian political affairs.

• Observation Period: Gokhale advised Gandhi to spend his first year traveling across India to understand ground realities before taking part in active politics.
• Travel across India: Gandhi traveled extensively by third-class railway compartments, observing the conditions of rural peasants, laborers, and urban workers.
• Servants of India Society: Gokhale invited Gandhi to join the Servants of India Society, though Gandhi withdrew his application due to differences in opinion with other members regarding political methods.

Establishment of Ashram and BHU Speech

In May 1915, Gandhi set up his first ashram at Kochrab near Ahmedabad, funded by local merchants. The ashram was later shifted to the banks of the Sabarmati River in June 1917 and came to be known as the Sabarmati Ashram.

Banaras Hindu University Speech (1916)

Gandhi delivered his first major public address in India in February 1916 at the opening ceremony of Banaras Hindu University (BHU). The audience included princes, colonial officials, and Congress leaders.

• Critique of Elitism: Gandhi criticized Indian elites and princes for their ostentatious display of wealth amidst widespread poverty.
• Focus on Peasants: He declared that self-government would have no meaning unless it addressed the plight of the agrarian peasantry.
• Language Issue: He expressed concern over the use of English instead of Indian regional languages for national public discourse.

Early Local Satyagrahas (1917–1918)

Gandhi’s entry into active politics occurred through three localized struggles addressing specific socioeconomic grievances.

• Champaran Satyagraha (1917): Located in Bihar, this was Gandhi’s first civil disobedience movement in India. He was invited by Raj Kumar Shukla to inspect the grievances of indigo farmers forced into the Tinkathia system by European planters. The government appointed an inquiry committee with Gandhi as a member, leading to the abolition of the system.
• Ahmedabad Mill Strike (1918): This conflict involved cotton mill owners and workers over the withdrawal of the “plague bonus.” Gandhi undertook his first hunger strike in India, securing a 35% wage increase for the workers.
• Kheda Satyagraha (1918): Located in Gujarat, this movement was triggered by crop failure where authorities refused revenue remissions. Organized alongside Vallabhbhai Patel and Indulal Yagnik, peasants refused to pay land revenue, marking Gandhi’s first non-cooperation movement in India.

Key Facts and Historical Context

The Government of India marks January 9 as Pravasi Bharatiya Divas (Non-Resident Indian Day) to commemorate Gandhi’s return from South Africa and honor the contributions of the overseas Indian diaspora. Lord Hardinge II was the Viceroy of India when Gandhi arrived in January 1915, succeeded by Lord Chelmsford in 1916. Gandhi initially supported British military recruitment efforts during the First World War, as he believed military cooperation would earn India constitutional concessions after the war. C.F. Andrews (Charles Freer Andrews), an English priest and close friend of Gandhi, played a key role in convincing Gandhi to return to India from South Africa on the advice of Gokhale. Gandhi surrendered his Kaisar-i-Hind Gold Medal in August 1920 as part of the Non-Cooperation Movement to protest against the Rowlatt Act, the Jallianwala Bagh massacre, and the Khilafat injustice.