What was Rowlatt Act?

Rowlatt Act was passed by the British government in 1919 to prevent revolutionary activities by Indians after World War I. It empowered British authorities to arrest Indians without giving them the right of fair trial. It sparked widespread outrage across India. Gandhiji launched the Rowlatt Satyagraha, a non-violent satyagraha against it. In response, British government arrested and detained many leaders under the Rowlatt Act. On 13th April 1919, a peaceful protest was organised at Jallianwala Bagh. But most of the people there were locals and pilgrims who came to visit the nearby Golden temple on the occasion of Baisakhi. General Dyer ordered his troops to indiscriminately open fire on the unarmed and peaceful crowd. This killed hundreds of people there. This Act was strongly condemned worldwide. Rowlatt Act and Rowlatt Satyagraha changed the trajectory of Indian freedom struggle. It established Gandhiji as a leader and changed the strategy of freedom struggle to non-violent mass agitations.

Rowlatt Act of 1919 was introduced by the British government in the aftermath of World War I. Its history is deeply intertwined with the political dynamics of the time. During World War I, India supported the British side through manpower and other resources. After the World war there was high discontent in India due to various factors, including economic hardships, suppression of civil liberties, and discriminatory British policies. In 1917, the British government appointed the Sedition committee known as Rowlatt Committee, chaired by British judge Sir Sidney Rowlatt, to investigate revolutionary activities in India and propose measures to combat it. On the recommendation of the committee, Rowlatt Act was passed in 1919 to empower the colonial government to detain individuals suspected of involvement in revolutionary or seditious activities without any trial. The Act was passed despite strong opposition from Indian leaders. The passage of the Rowlatt Act sparked widespread outrage and protests across India.

The Rowlatt Act was passed by the colonial government in 1919 to empower the British authorities to detain or arrest Indians suspected of sedition or revolutionary activities without trial and to try them before special tribunals. It is also known as the Anarchical and Revolutionary Crimes Act of 1919. It was named as Rowlatt Act as the committee which recommended it was headed by a British judge Sir Sidney Rowlatt. The Act sparked widespread opposition and protests across India, culminating in the tragic Jallianwala Bagh Massacre.

• Detention without trial : The Act empowered the British authorities to detain the individuals just on suspicion of any revolutionary activities without the right of just trial given to the individual. Suspects could be held in custody for up to two years without being formally charged or presented before a court.
• Special tribunals : Act included the provision of establishment of special tribunals for the trials of individuals arrested under it. Such tribunals consisted of British judges only and had the authority to impose severe penalties without the usual safeguards of a fair trial.
• No appeal : The suspects detained under the Rowlatt Act had no right to appeal the charges brought against them.
• Suspension of basic civil liberties : The Act imposed significant restrictions on basic civil liberties, including freedom of speech, assembly, and the press.
• Censorship : The Act empowered the British authorities to censor newspapers, books, and other publications suspected of promoting revolutionary ideas.

• The passage of the Rowlatt Act sparked immediate public cry and widespread outrage. The Act was viewed as the violation of their basic civil liberties and human rights.
• The Act triggered various protests and demonstrations demanding the repeal of the Act. These protests were particularly intense in urban centres like Lahore, Delhi, and Mumbai.
• Mahatma Gandhi called for a nationwide strike in response of the Act. The call for non-cooperation with British authorities led to widespread boycotts of British goods. It marked the beginning of the Non-cooperation movement.
• Mahatma Gandhi launched the non-violent movement against the Act known as the Rowlatt Satyagraha.

• Beginning: Rowlatt Act empowered the British government to arrest Indians without any safeguard to fair trial. It sparked widespread resistance by Indian mass. Mahatma Gandhi in response to the Act, called for a nationwide campaign of nonviolent resistance, which he termed Satyagraha (truth force).
• Course of the movement
  • Beginning : On Mahatma Gandhi’s call, the first major protest was organised on 30th March 1919, came to be known as Rowlatt Satyagraha. The nationwide hartal (strike) began on April 6, 1919.
  • Satyagraha Sabhas : Satyagraha Sabhas were established by Gandhi ji to mobilise the masses and spread awareness for the non-violent protest against the Rowlatt Act. The first Satyagraha Sabha was organised in Bombay. It was followed by the setting up of Satyagraha committees in other places like Delhi, Gujarat, Allahabad. Gandhiji also tried to utilize the Home Rule League in mobilising the masses during Rowlatt Satyagraha.
  • The protests also witnessed the civil disobedience and boycott of British goods, closing down of shops and transport systems etc.
• Response of British government : The British colonial government responded to the Rowlatt Satyagraha with repression and arrests. Thousands of Indians, including Mahatma Gandhi and other leaders of the Indian National Congress, were detained without trial under the provisions of the Rowlatt Act.
  • There were some instances of violence during the war. The growing unrest resulted in the Jallianwala bagh massacre on 13th April 1919.

• April 9, 1919 : In response to the protest against Rowlatt Act, Dr. Satyapal and Dr. Saifuddin Kitchlew, prominent leaders of the Indian National Congress, were arrested in Amritsar, Punjab.
• April 10, 1919 : In response to the arrest of Dr. Satyapal and Dr. Kitchlew, violent protests erupted in Amritsar. Many British buildings were attacked and many Britishers were assaulted in the protest.
• April 11, 1919 : In response to the violence, Martial law was imposed in Amritsar, giving General Reginald Dyer command over the city.
• April 13, 1919 : On this day, thousands of people gathered at the Jallianwala bagh on the festival of Baisakhi. Many were gathered to protest against the arrest of their leaders and the oppressive policies of the British government while most were local residents and pilgrims who came to visit the golden temple.
• In the evening, General Dyer arrived at Jallianwala Bagh with British troops and ordered his troops to indiscriminately open fire on the unarmed and peaceful crowd. The firing lasted for about 10 to 15 minutes, resulting in hundreds of deaths and thousands of injuries.
• Aftermath : The massacre led to widespread condemnation both in India and internationally. In the protest, Rabinandranath Tagore renounced his Knighthood and Gandhi also gave up his title of Kaiser-i-Hind.
• Hunter commission : In response to the widespread condemnation of the massacre, a commission was appointed by the British government on October 14, 1919 to investigate the massacre known as the Hunter commission after the name of chairman, Lord William Hunter. It also had Indian members.
  • The Commission released its report on July 29, 1920 in which the actions of Dyer were criticised as unjustified. However, no severe penalties were imposed on General Dyer.
• March 13, 1940 : Uddham Singh, a freedom fighter assassinated Michael O'Dwyer, the Lieutenant Governor of Punjab at the time of the massacre, in retaliation of the order given by him to General Dyer for the killings in Jalianwala Bagh.

• Rowlatt Satyagraha was one of the first mass protests against the British rule. It was a unified and organised response from the Indian masses against the oppressive Rowlatt Act.
• It established Mahatma Gandhi as a mass leader.
• It saw widespread participation from people across different regions, communities, and social strata in India.
• It changes the Indian freedom struggle towards non-violent mass agitations.
• The repressive measures of the Rowlatt Act and Jallianwala bagh massacre attracted international attention and condemnation. The British image was tarnished on the global scale.

The Rowlatt Act was repealed in March 1922 by the British government in response to mounting pressure and criticism, both domestically and internationally, following the Jallianwala Bagh Massacre.

Rowlatt Act of 1919 stands as a stark reminder of the oppressive measures imposed by the British colonial government in India. It violated the basic rights of Indians and hence ignited widespread protests across India. It contributed in shaping the trajectory of India's struggle for independence. The indiscriminate and brutal violence unleashed on unarmed civilians by British troops in Jallianwala bagh shocked the nation and galvanized the struggle for independence.