Rowlatt Committee - Revision history

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	The '''Rowlatt Committee''' was a Sedition Committee appointed in 1917 by the [[British India]]n Government with [[Sidney Rowlatt]], an ~~English~~ judge, as its president.		The '''Rowlatt Committee''' was a Sedition Committee appointed in 1917 by the [[British India]]n Government with [[Sidney Rowlatt]], an Anglo-Egyptian judge, as its president.

	==Background==		==Background==
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	The Rowlatt Act had a significant impact on the political situation of India, irrevocably placing the country on a path of political action headed by [[Gandhi]] that ultimately dominated the [[Indian independence movement]] for the next 20 years. Also known as the Black Act, it vested the [[Viceroy of India\|Viceroy's]] government with extraordinary powers to quell sedition by silencing the press, detaining the political activists without trial, and arresting without warrant any individuals suspected of sedition or treason. In protest, a nationwide cessation of work (''[[hartal]]'') was called, marking the beginning of widespread, although not nationwide, popular discontent.{{citation needed\|date=October 2018}}		The Rowlatt Act had a significant impact on the political situation of India, irrevocably placing the country on a path of political action headed by [[Gandhi]] that ultimately dominated the [[Indian independence movement]] for the next 20 years. Also known as the Black Act, it vested the [[Viceroy of India\|Viceroy's]] government with extraordinary powers to quell sedition by silencing the press, detaining the political activists without trial, and arresting without warrant any individuals suspected of sedition or treason. In protest, a nationwide cessation of work (''[[hartal]]'') was called, marking the beginning of widespread, although not nationwide, popular discontent.{{citation needed\|date=October 2018}}

	The agitation unleashed by the acts culminated on 13 April 1919, in the [[Jallianwala Bagh massacre]] in [[Amritsar]], Punjab when the ~~British military commander,~~ Brigadier-General [[Reginald Dyer]], blocked the main entrance to the [[Jallianwallah Bagh]], a walled-in courtyard in Amritsar, and ordered his soldiers to fire into an unarmed and unsuspecting crowd of some 6,000 people who had assembled there in defiance of a ban. A total of 1,650 rounds were fired, killing 379 people (as according to an official British commission; Indian estimates ranged as high as 1,500<ref>Ackerman, Peter, and Duvall, Jack, ''A Force More Powerful: A Century of Nonviolent Conflict'' p. 74.</ref>{{full citation needed\|date=October 2018}}) and wounding 1,200 in the episode, which dispelled wartime hopes of home rule and goodwill in a frenzy of post-war reaction.{{citation needed\|date=October 2018}}		The agitation unleashed by the acts culminated on 13 April 1919, in the [[Jallianwala Bagh massacre]] in [[Amritsar]], Punjab when the Brigadier-General [[Reginald Dyer]], blocked the main entrance to the [[Jallianwallah Bagh]], a walled-in courtyard in Amritsar, and ordered his [[British Indian Army]] soldiers to fire into an unarmed and unsuspecting crowd of some 6,000 people who had assembled there in defiance of a ban. A total of 1,650 rounds were fired, killing 379 people (as according to an official British commission; Indian estimates ranged as high as 1,500<ref>Ackerman, Peter, and Duvall, Jack, ''A Force More Powerful: A Century of Nonviolent Conflict'' p. 74.</ref>{{full citation needed\|date=October 2018}}) and wounding 1,200 in the episode, which dispelled wartime hopes of home rule and goodwill in a frenzy of post-war reaction.{{citation needed\|date=October 2018}}

	==Committee members==		==Committee members==

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	==Background==		==Background==
	The purpose of the Rowlatt Committee was to evaluate [[Revolutionary movement for Indian independence\|political terrorism in India]],<ref>{{Cite news\|url=https://www.thehindu.com/archives/the-rowlatt-committee/article23446482.ece\|title=The Rowlatt Committee\|date=2018-04-06\|work=The Hindu\|access-date=2020-01-26\|language=en-IN\|issn=0971-751X}}</ref> especially in the [[Bengal Presidency\|Bengal]] and [[Punjab Province (British India)\|Punjab Province]]s, its impact, and the links with the German government and the [[Bolshevik]]s in Russia.{{sfnp\|Tinker\|1968\|p=92\|ps=}}<ref>{{cite journal \|author=Leonard A. Gordon \|date=February 1968 \|title=Portrait of a Bengal Revolutionary \|journal=The Journal of Asian Studies \|volume=27 \|issue=2 \|pages=197–216 \|jstor=2051747 \|doi=10.2307/2051747 }}</ref> It was instituted towards the end of World War I when the Indian revolutionary movement had been especially active and had achieved considerable success, potency and momentum and [[Hindu–German Conspiracy\|massive assistance]] had been received from [[German Empire\|Germany]], which planned to destabilise British India.{{sfnp\|Collett\|2007\|p=218\|ps=}} These included supporting and financing Indian seditionist organisations [[Berlin Committee\|in Germany]] and [[Ghadar Party\|in United States]] as well as a destabilisation in the political situation in neighbouring [[Afghanistan]] following [[Niedermayer-Hentig Expedition\|a diplomatic mission]] that had attempted to rally the Amir of Afghanistan against British India. Attempts were also made by the [[Provisional Government of India]] established in Afghanistan following the mission to establish contacts with the [[Bolshevik]]s. A further reason for institution of the committee was emerging civil and labour unrest in India around the post-war recession - such as the Bombay mill worker's strikes and unrest in Punjab{{citation needed\|date=October 2018}} - and the [[1918 flu pandemic]] that killed nearly 13 million people in the country.{{sfnp\|Chandler\|Wright\|2001\|p=179\|ps=}}		The purpose of the Rowlatt Committee was to evaluate [[Revolutionary movement for Indian independence\|political terrorism in India]],<ref>{{Cite news\|url=https://www.thehindu.com/archives/the-rowlatt-committee/article23446482.ece\|title=The Rowlatt Committee\|date=2018-04-06\|work=The Hindu\|access-date=2020-01-26\|language=en-IN\|issn=0971-751X}}</ref> especially in the [[Bengal Presidency\|Bengal]] and [[Punjab Province (British India)\|Punjab Province]]s, its impact, and the links with the German government and the [[Bolshevik]]s in Russia.{{sfnp\|Tinker\|1968\|p=92\|ps=}}<ref>{{cite journal \|author=Leonard A. Gordon \|date=February 1968 \|title=Portrait of a Bengal Revolutionary \|journal=The Journal of Asian Studies \|volume=27 \|issue=2 \|pages=197–216 \|jstor=2051747 \|doi=10.2307/2051747 }}</ref> It was instituted towards the end of World War I when the Indian revolutionary movement had been especially active and had achieved considerable success, potency and momentum and [[Hindu–German Conspiracy\|massive assistance]] had been received from [[German Empire\|Germany]], which planned to destabilise British India.{{sfnp\|Collett\|2007\|p=218\|ps=}} These included supporting and financing Indian seditionist organisations [[Berlin Committee\|in Germany]] and [[Ghadar Party\|in United States]] as well as a destabilisation in the political situation in neighbouring [[Emirate of Afghanistan\|Afghanistan]] following [[Niedermayer-Hentig Expedition\|a diplomatic mission]] that had attempted to rally the Amir of Afghanistan against British India. Attempts were also made by the [[Provisional Government of India]] established in Afghanistan following the mission to establish contacts with the [[Bolshevik]]s. A further reason for institution of the committee was emerging civil and labour unrest in India around the post-war recession - such as the Bombay mill worker's strikes and unrest in Punjab{{citation needed\|date=October 2018}} - and the [[1918 flu pandemic]] that killed nearly 13 million people in the country.{{sfnp\|Chandler\|Wright\|2001\|p=179\|ps=}}

	The evidence produced before the committee substantiated the German link, although no conclusive evidence was found for a significant contribution or threat from the Bolsheviks. On the recommendations of the committee, the [[Rowlatt Act]], an extension of the [[Defence of India Act 1915]], was enforced in response to the threat in Punjab and Bengal.{{sfnp\|Tinker\|1968\|p=92\|ps=}}		The evidence produced before the committee substantiated the German link, although no conclusive evidence was found for a significant contribution or threat from the Bolsheviks. On the recommendations of the committee, the [[Rowlatt Act]], an extension of the [[Defence of India Act 1915]], was enforced in response to the threat in Punjab and Bengal.{{sfnp\|Tinker\|1968\|p=92\|ps=}}

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Background

New page

{{EngvarB|date=July 2016}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2016}}
The '''Rowlatt Committee''' was a Sedition Committee appointed in 1917 by the [[British India]]n Government with [[Sidney Rowlatt]], an English judge, as its president.

==Background==
The purpose of the Rowlatt Committee was to evaluate [[Revolutionary movement for Indian independence|political terrorism in India]],<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.thehindu.com/archives/the-rowlatt-committee/article23446482.ece|title=The Rowlatt Committee|date=2018-04-06|work=The Hindu|access-date=2020-01-26|language=en-IN|issn=0971-751X}}</ref> especially in the [[Bengal Presidency|Bengal]] and [[Punjab Province (British India)|Punjab Province]]s, its impact, and the links with the German government and the [[Bolshevik]]s in Russia.{{sfnp|Tinker|1968|p=92|ps=}}<ref>{{cite journal |author=Leonard A. Gordon |date=February 1968 |title=Portrait of a Bengal Revolutionary |journal=The Journal of Asian Studies |volume=27 |issue=2 |pages=197–216 |jstor=2051747 |doi=10.2307/2051747 }}</ref> It was instituted towards the end of World War I when the Indian revolutionary movement had been especially active and had achieved considerable success, potency and momentum and [[Hindu–German Conspiracy|massive assistance]] had been received from [[German Empire|Germany]], which planned to destabilise British India.{{sfnp|Collett|2007|p=218|ps=}} These included supporting and financing Indian seditionist organisations [[Berlin Committee|in Germany]] and [[Ghadar Party|in United States]] as well as a destabilisation in the political situation in neighbouring [[Afghanistan]] following [[Niedermayer-Hentig Expedition|a diplomatic mission]] that had attempted to rally the Amir of Afghanistan against British India. Attempts were also made by the [[Provisional Government of India]] established in Afghanistan following the mission to establish contacts with the [[Bolshevik]]s. A further reason for institution of the committee was emerging civil and labour unrest in India around the post-war recession - such as the Bombay mill worker's strikes and unrest in Punjab{{citation needed|date=October 2018}} - and the [[1918 flu pandemic]] that killed nearly 13 million people in the country.{{sfnp|Chandler|Wright|2001|p=179|ps=}}

The evidence produced before the committee substantiated the German link, although no conclusive evidence was found for a significant contribution or threat from the Bolsheviks. On the recommendations of the committee, the [[Rowlatt Act]], an extension of the [[Defence of India Act 1915]], was enforced in response to the threat in Punjab and Bengal.{{sfnp|Tinker|1968|p=92|ps=}}

The Rowlatt Act had a significant impact on the political situation of India, irrevocably placing the country on a path of political action headed by [[Gandhi]] that ultimately dominated the [[Indian independence movement]] for the next 20 years. Also known as the Black Act, it vested the [[Viceroy of India|Viceroy's]] government with extraordinary powers to quell sedition by silencing the press, detaining the political activists without trial, and arresting without warrant any individuals suspected of sedition or treason. In protest, a nationwide cessation of work (''[[hartal]]'') was called, marking the beginning of widespread, although not nationwide, popular discontent.{{citation needed|date=October 2018}}

The agitation unleashed by the acts culminated on 13 April 1919, in the [[Jallianwala Bagh massacre]] in [[Amritsar]], Punjab when the British military commander, Brigadier-General [[Reginald Dyer]], blocked the main entrance to the [[Jallianwallah Bagh]], a walled-in courtyard in Amritsar, and ordered his soldiers to fire into an unarmed and unsuspecting crowd of some 6,000 people who had assembled there in defiance of a ban. A total of 1,650 rounds were fired, killing 379 people (as according to an official British commission; Indian estimates ranged as high as 1,500<ref>Ackerman, Peter, and Duvall, Jack, ''A Force More Powerful: A Century of Nonviolent Conflict'' p. 74.</ref>{{full citation needed|date=October 2018}}) and wounding 1,200 in the episode, which dispelled wartime hopes of home rule and goodwill in a frenzy of post-war reaction.{{citation needed|date=October 2018}}

==Committee members==
*[[Sidney Rowlatt]] - President
*J. D. V. Hodge - Secretary (a member of the Bengal Civil Service)
*[[Basil Scott]] - Member ([[List of Chief Justices of the Bombay High Court|Chief Justice of the Bombay High Court]])
* [[C. V. Kumaraswami Sastri]] - Member (judge of [[Madras High Court]])
*Verney Lovett - Member (member of Board of Revenue for [[United Provinces of Agra and Oudh|United Provinces]])
*P. C. Mitter - Member (member of [[Bengal Legislative Council]])

==See also==
*[[Hindu–German Conspiracy]]

==References==
'''Citations'''
{{Reflist}}
'''Bibliography'''
{{refbegin}}
* {{Citation
| last = Tinker
| first = Hugh
| title = India in the First World War and after. 1918-19: From War to Peace.
| journal=Journal of Contemporary History
| volume=3
| issue=4
| date=Oct 1968
| pages=89–107
| url =
| issn = 0022-0094
| doi = 10.1177/002200946800300407
}}.
* {{Citation
| last =Collett
| first = Nigel
| year = 2007
| edition=New
| title = The Butcher of Amritsar: General Reginald Dyer
| url =
| publisher = Hambledon & London
| isbn = 978-1-85285-575-8
}}.
* {{Citation
| last1 =Chandler
| first1 = Malcolm
| last2=Wright
| first2=John
| year = 2001
| title = Modern World History.
| url =
| publisher = Heinemann Educational Publishers. 2nd Review edition
| isbn = 978-0-435-31141-4
}}
{{refend}}

==Further reading==
*{{cite journal |first1=J. Daniel |last1=Elam |first2=Chris |last2=Moffat |year=2016 |title=On the Form, Politics and Effects of Writing Revolution |journal=South Asia: Journal of South Asian Studies |volume=39 |issue=3 |pages=513–524 |doi=10.1080/00856401.2016.1199293 |doi-access=free }}

==External links==
*[https://archive.org/details/seditionreport00indirich Rowlatt Committee report]
{{Hindu-German Conspiracy}}
{{Indian committees}}
{{Indian independence movement}}

{{authority control}}

[[Category:Indian independence movement]]
[[Category:1918 in British India]]
[[Category:Hindu–German Conspiracy]]
[[Category:Government agencies of India]]
[[Category:1918 in India]]