द इण्डियन स्ट्रगल / भारतीय स्वाधीनता संग्राम (नेताजी सुभाष चन्द्र बोस - ऐतिहासिक विश्लेषण)

SIGNS OF COMING UPHEAVAL 199
On the other hand, the leaders who had cried halt at the
Calcutta Congress had not been able to achieve anything.
The Mahatma had further compromised himself by making
statements to the effect that if there was no response from the
Government by December 31st, 1929, he would be an
'independencewallah' on January 1st, 1930. His orthodox
followers like himself, had all along been advocates of
Dominion Home Rule and they did not like to depart from
that attitude. But the Mahatma felt that in the atmosphere
then prevailing in the country, a resolution on independence
would be carried in spite of his opposition and it was therefore
much better for him to move it.
The Congress met under the Presidentship of Pandit
J. L. Nehru at Lahore. As had been anticipated, the President
was a figurehead and the entire proceedings were dominated
by Mahatma Gandhi, who by advocating independence, was
able to win over some of the Left-Wing elements as well.
The Madras Congress in 1927, though it passed a resolution
on independence, had not altered the goal as defined in the
Congress Constitution, and this was done at Lahore. There
was considerable excitement over a clause in the resolution
moved by the Mahatma, which congratulated the Viceroy on
his providential escape when his train was bombed. The
feeling in the Congress was that that clause was uncalled for
in a political resolution, but the Mahatma insisted on retaining
it, probably because he wanted to placate Lord Irwin and
prepare the ground for a rapprochement in future. Be that
as it may, the Mahatma made it a question of confidence and
by a narrow margin, he won. Next came the question of the
plan of campaign for the coming year. Here the Mahatma
was quite unprepared. A resolution was passed by the
Congress calling upon Congressmen to resign their seats in
the Legislatures and thereby the victory of the Swarajists in
1923 was avenged in 1929. As for the positive part of his
plan, the Working Committee adopted a resolution, at the
instance of the Mahatma, recommending that autonomous
boards, like the All-India Spinners' Association, should be
organised for carrying on propaganda for the removal of
untouchability, for the promotion of temperance and sup-