Bal Gangadhar Tilak

Bal Gangadhar Tilak went to London in the later half of 1918. He wanted to explain ‘Home Rule’ demand to the English public.His other objective was to sue London Times reporter Valentine C. for writing scurrilous reports against him to vilify him when the reporter had visited India. Tilak lost case and was asked to […]

Tilak convinced the soft line leaders that his ‘Home Rule’ idea was not a militancy act. It was just a demand for right of Indians to rule over themselves, a self rule. The leaders agreed with him in principle but they were still reluctant to join Tilak’s campaign whole heartedly. They had reservations.So, Tilak decided

The year of 1914 came and progressed towards the end of Tilak’s jail term. He pulled himself out of the world of books and waited for his release. He wished to be with his children as soon as possible.The 400 books he received in jail to study were sent to his home at Poona.At long

With Tilak out of the picture the hard liners were in disarray. Many went underground. Most of his close associates were arrested one after the another.The Congress party kept silence. Some soft line leaders did protest against the harsh penalty meted out to Tilak.At Mandalay, Tilak was kept in an upper floor cabin of a

Bal Gangadhar Tilak continued to attack the rulers through his newspaper and periodicals. He wrote some very critical and condemnatory articles against the British. In one article he called upon the people to rise in armed revolution against the foreign rule.On 24th June, 1908 Bal Gangadhar Tilak was suddenly arrested.A young lawyer, Mohammad Ali Jinnah

Meanwhile the Congress party was rocked by confrontation between the softliners and the hard liners. Both the sides had hardened their stands and there was no scope for any compromise. And finally, on 27th December, 1907 the party split in two groups to the dismay of the people.The British rulers were gladdened. No news could

Bal Gangadhar Tilak worked for prohibition in the country. It does not mean that he was a pigheaded orthodox bigot. He was compelled to adopt that posture due to the circumstances. The social condition had become so horrendous that the poor were killing themselves by drinking out of sheer frustration of the situation which allowed

Sir Henry Cotton presided over the Congress session held in Bombay in 1904. Sir Henry wanted the Congress to become more active politically and represent people’s problems to the government to serve as the true voice of the people. His view was heartily supported by hardliners of the party.But the softliners would not welcome the

He resumed his political battle in 1899 with an inspiring article in ‘Kesari’ calling upon all the groups of Congress to sort out their difference and come together to continue battle for independence. He appeared to be in a hurry. May be, he wanted to make up for the lost time in Tai Maharaj case.Since

Tilak had become physically very weak. He badly needed rest and a period of recuperation to recover physically and emotionally.So, after his release Tilak went to Singhgarh hills with his wife and other members of his family. There was a famous Singhgarh fort from where the Maratha hero Chhatrapati Shivaji had fought famous battles against

The killing of Officer Rand was a shocker for the administration and the British government. It was a grim warning to the government that Indians won’t be taking things lying down any more.The portents were grim. The murder was daringly executed.The authorities blamed the press for inciting people against the administration and particular officers. The

In the last quarter of the 19th century India suffered 18 famines and 2 crore people died. The people of India had a bitter experience of cruelty and callous attitude of British administration during these famines.The government did nothing to help the affected people. Infact it treated the famines as deserving punishment to Indians from

Bal Gangadhar Tilak was an innovative person, a man of ideas. He thought of introducing religious functions in Maharashtra on the lines of Durgapuja of Bengal and Ramlila in North India. The functions were to be used for political mass awakening. He began it with ‘Shivaji Festival’ which was organised to be celebrated all over

Congress party was also a place where Bal Gangadhar Tilak could meet other political and reformist leaders of the country, exchange views, update one another and draw inspiration from one another. The discussions would prove greatly educative.Englishmen often complained that Indians were not patient and were easily excitable which was proving a hurdle in the

Congress party came into existence in 1885. It was the beginning of the organised political movement in post 1857 India. All those who were politically conscious flocked to the party. Bal Gangadhar Tilak was no exception. The party was formed by an Englishman named Sir A.O. Hume. In the beginning Congress party was supposed to