MAHATMA GANDHI AND THE NATIONALIST MOVEMENT: CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE AND BEYOND
A LEADER ANNOUNCES HIMSELF
After spending around two decades in South Africa, Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (often referred to as Mahatma Gandhi) returned to India in January 1915.
Gandhi’s Time In South Africa
1.Role: Gandhi initially went to South Africa as a lawyer but over time, he emerged as a leader of the Indian community there.
2.Significance: South Africa was crucial in Gandhi’s evolution as a leader. Historian Chandran Devanesan even claimed that South Africa was “the making of the Mahatma”.
3.Satyagraha: It was in South Africa that Gandhi formulated the technique of non-violent protest called ‘satyagraha’.
4.Social Reforms: In South Africa, Gandhi began promoting religious harmony and also worked on addressing caste-based discrimination and gender inequities prevalent among Indians.