Civil disobedience
The National Assembly convened in December 1929 at Lahore. The convention was presided over by Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru. The convention passed a resolution of complete independence. On January 26, 1930, the people took the oath of independence. The Lahore Convention also passed a resolution on civil disobedience.
Civil disobedience:
Under Gandhiji's leadership, a civil disobedience movement was started. Civil disobedience is the breaking of oppressive laws with prior notice and the acceptance of punishment without resistance. Salt is an essential element of man's daily life, yet the government imposed a tax on salt; So Gandhiji decided to hold a salt satyagraha against this unjust tax.
Dandi Yatra:
On March 12, 1930, Mahatma Gandhi, along with his Sarojini colleagues, set foot from the Sabarmati Ashram in Gujarat to the beach at Dandi. The distance from Sabarmati to Dandi was 385 km. On the way, they were met by people from villages. Gandhiji reached Dandi on 5th April. The next day they broke the salt law by picking up salt from the beach. Sarojini Naidu led the Salt Satyagraha at Dharasana in Gujarat.
A chaotic movement began across the country. People broke the forest law by cutting down trees in the forest. The farmers refused to give up farming. Carrying a tricolor flag in his hand, Babu Genu, a mill worker from Mumbai, fell in front of a truck carrying foreign cloth and sacrificed for the country. The civil disobedience movement was led by Northwest Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan. Mallappa Dhanshetti, Shrikrishna Sarda, Kurban Hussain and Jagannath Shinde were hanged during the Satyagraha at Solapur.
The feature of the civil disobedience movement was the active participation of women, farmers, tribals and dalits. Many women like Kasturba Gandhi, Avantikabai Gokhale, Hansaben Mehta, Kamla Nehru had participated in it.
Round Table Council:
Three roundtables were held in London to draw up a plan for political reform in India. These three conferences were chaired by Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar was present. The first conference was not attended by the National Assembly. Babasaheb Ambedkar demanded a democratic state for India from the British government. He also demanded a separate constituency for Dalits. Gandhiji attended the second conference as a representative of the National Assembly. There Gandhiji demanded India's independence, but it was not accepted. The third conference was not attended by any representative of the National Assembly. At the conference, the Prime Minister of England, Ramsay MacDonald, announced the verdict.
Pune Agreement:
According to the caste verdict, Dalits were to be given separate constituencies. Against this, Gandhiji started a fast-unto-death in Yerawada Jail. The leaders of the National Assembly, Dr. He urged Babasaheb Ambedkar to reconsider his demand for an independent constituency. In view of the wider national interest, Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar agreed. According to the agreement, Dalits should be given 148 reserved seats in the legislature instead of independent constituencies. This agreement is called 'Pune Agreement'. After the Pune Agreement, Gandhiji went on a hunger strike.
