Answer:
THE APPROACH
INTRODUCTION: Mention in brief about the Moderates, their ideology, and their struggles to gain widespread support for their political goals by the end of the nineteenth century.
BODY: Elaborate upon the methods and contribution of the moderates. Also discuss the reasons for their failure to achieve the political goals.
THE CONCLUSION: Write a relevant conclusion citing their contribution and importance despite their failures.
INTRODUCTION:
Moderates were a prominent faction within the Indian nationalist movement. they advocated political and administrative reforms within the framework of British rule. Their efforts created a new environment the stage for legal and constitutional changes. Due to some inherent limitations, they failed gain widespread support for their ideology and failed to achieve their stated political goals.
BODY:
The initial phase of the congress (1885–1905) is referred to as the moderate period. During this time, the Congress worked on specific goals and focused on strengthening its organization.
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- The fundamental goal of the Moderates was to establish self-government within the British Empire. They believed in patience and reconciliation over violence and confrontation; thus they pursued their goals through constitutional and nonviolent means.
The Moderate Ideology
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- The early nationalists made modest demands in a peaceful manner due to two main reasons:
1. Most of the moderate leaders had a belief in the British sense of justice. They admired the fact that association with the British had exposed India to the modern way life.
2. INC was a young organisation in its early stage of development. They did not want to incur the wrath of the British rulers.
The Moderate Methodology
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- The moderates disfavoured a direct confrontation with the British rulers but wanted to change their rule to reflect the interests of the country.
- The moderate leaders adopted the strategy of influencing and organising public opinion to compel the British to approve their demands gradually.
- They sought to promote national consciousness and educate the people on political issues by organising meetings, passing resolutions and giving speeches.
- Outside India, they made efforts to carry out active propaganda to influence the public opinion in Britain by sending delegations of leading Indians to Britain.
Reasons for failure to achieve the political goals
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- Non-inclusive in nature: Moderate group consisted mostly of Western-educated elite and privileged sections such as the Bhadralok in The backward regions and underprivileged groups remained outside their zone of contact and influence, until the entry of Gandhi.
- Elitist nature of demands: Their demands or their presentation was primarily elitist in the nature. For instance, their resolutions were in English and had little impact on ordinary Indians and did not adequately address the economic hardships faced by the Indian population.
- Non-effective methods: The moderates sought reformation of British rule in India, but their methods were not much effective. The Moderates believed in constitutional methods and peaceful agitation to achieve their goals which yielded little results.
- Narrow social base: They had a narrow social base because they lacked political faith in the public, believing that there were multiple divides and subdivisions in Indian society, and that the masses were largely illiterate and held conservative ideas and beliefs.
- Rise of Extremist ideology: The masses were drawn to the extremist ideology that included both passive resistance and direct action with the objective of achieving complete independence (Swaraj). Extremist figures like Bal Gangadhar Tilak, Lala Lajpat Rai, were excellent orators and prolific writers in vernacular media which gained more popularity and supporters.
- Division within Congress: The division between the Moderates and Extremists within the Congress weakened the organization and diluted the effectiveness of the nationalist movement.
- British repression: As the nationalist movement gained momentum, the British authorities adopted repressive measures to counter it.
CONCLUSION:
The approach of the Moderate leaders failed due to above mentioned factors like elitist nature, non-inclusive nature, ineffective method and rise of extremists. Despite their inability to connect with the masses, they represented the most progressive forces of the time and created a solid base for a vigorous, militant, mass based national movement.
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