Partition
of Bengal 1905: Causes, Impact
The Partition of Bengal was the territorial
reorganization of Bengal which was announced by the then Viceroy of India, Lord
Curzon on 20 July 1905. The Partition of Bengal was the masterpiece of Curzon’s
internal policy. The Partition of Bengal was carried out on 16 October 1905
under Viceroy Lord Curzon’s presidency. which resulted in the division of
Bengal into Eastern Bengal and Western Bengal. Indians were told that the
partition of Bengal was due to the huge population which was difficult for the
Britishers to administrate. However, the real intention of the British was to
wreck the nerve centre of Nationalism (Bengal) in order to safeguard their
interests. This was rejected widely by the people. Militant Nationalism emerged
as a result of the Partition of Bengal.
Partition
of Bengal 1905
Partition
of Bengal
In December 1903, the British Government
conveyed their idea of the Partition of Bengal. Lord Curzon announced the
Partition of Bengal on 20 July 1905. The idea was to divide Bengal into two –
Bengal and Eastern Bengal. The Western Bengal, Bihar and Orissa were retained
under Bengal while the remaining portion of Bengal and Assam formed the Eastern
Bengal. Calcutta was the capital of Bengal whereas Dhaka was made the capital
of Eastern Bengal. The British government partitioned Bengal on the basis of
language and religion. The western half was to be Hindu majority while the
eastern half was to be Muslim majority.
Background
of the Partition of Bengal
The decision to partition Bengal was made
by Lord Curzon, the then Viceroy of India. It was officially announced on July
19, 1905. The partition aimed to address administrative challenges by creating
two smaller provinces:
Bengal with a predominantly Hindu
population in the west and Eastern Bengal and Assam with a predominantly Muslim
population in the east.
However, the partition was met with strong
opposition from various sections of society, including Indian nationalists,
intellectuals, and religious leaders. They saw it as a deliberate attempt to
weaken the nationalist movement and sow communal divisions. The partition of
Bengal became a significant catalyst for political mobilization. It led to
widespread protests, the emergence of the Swadeshi movement, and the growth of
Indian nationalism. The partition was eventually annulled in 1911 due to
intense popular pressure. Bengal was reunified as a single province.
Reasons
for the Partition of Bengal
The official causes of partition of Bengal
quoted by the British administrators was that it was an administrative
necessity. Bengal had a population of about 78 million which was hard to
administer. They also stated that with the partition, Assam would be brought
under direct administration which would result in the development of the state.
Bengal was the nerve centre of nationalism
in British India. The British believed that by partitioning Bengal the rising
tide of nationalism could be controlled.
Another important reason for the partition
was to bring an end to the political influence of the educated middle class
among whom the Bengal intelligentsia was prominent.
The English-educated middle class of Bengal
saw this partition as a tactic to diminish their authority. Before the
partition was effected Indian national Congress arranged meetings where
petitions against the partition were collected and given to impassive
authorities.
Surendranath Banerjee conceded that the
petitions were ineffective and as the partition date approached, he advocated
for stronger measures including boycotting British goods. He prefers it to be
called swadeshi.
Another motive was to divide the Hindus and
Muslims. They aimed to turn the Muslim communalists against Congress and hamper
the national movement.
Role
of Lord Curzon in the 1905 Partition of Bengal
Lord Curzon was the Viceroy of India during
the years 1899-1905. The Partition of Bengal in the year 1905, during his
viceroyalty, was an event that he had given much importance to. He had
advocated the division of Bengal into two zones on the basis of administrative
efficiency. As he said, because of its enormous size and diversity, it was
impossible to govern Bengal effectively.
Curzon's aim was a Muslim majority in East
Bengal and Assam with Dhaka as its administration unit, and a Hindu majority in
West Bengal with Calcutta as its capital. This move was also in tune with the
British 'divide and rule' policy since it would weaken the rising jingoist
movement in Bengal by introducing religious and regional divisions into it. His
move brought about state-wide protests and the Swadeshi Movement, which later
resulted in the annulment of the partition in 1911 and had far-reaching effects
on Indian nationalism and the freedom struggle.
Reaction
to the Partition of Bengal 1905
The 1905 Partition of Bengal prompted
widespread protests and upheaval, igniting the Swadeshi Movement and uniting
Indians against British colonial policies.
Nationalist’s
Reaction to Bengal Partition
Moderates such as Surendranath Banerjee,
and K.K.Mitra led an anti-partition campaign. They followed a petition, prayer
and protest method Meetings were held all over Bengal and a decision was taken
to boycott foreign goods. The message to Boycott the Manchester cloth and
Liverpool salt was spread throughout Bengal by the leaders. The Indian National
Congress under the leadership of Gopal Krishna Gokhale rejected the Partition
of Bengal and resolved to support the Swadeshi movement and boycott.
People’s
Reaction to Bengal Partition
The Partition of Bengal paved resulted in a
mighty upsurge in the country. The day of partition i.e. 16 October 1905 was
considered the day of mourning throughout Bengal. People from all walks of
joined the anti-partition campaign and walked barefoot on the streets crying
Bande Mataram. People tied Rakhis on each other’s hands to symbolize the unity
between the two halves of Bengal.
Reunification
of Bengal
Due to the relentless anti-partition
movement, in 1911 the Partition of Bengal was annulled by King George and
Bengal and Eastern Bengal were reunited Based on the linguistic lines, Bihar
and Orissa were carved out of Bengal and made into separate provinces.
Likewise, Assam was also made a separate province The capital of British India
was shifted from Bengal to Delhi.
The Partition of Bengal 1905 marked the
turning point in the history of Indian nationalism. Though the Partition was
annulled in 1911, it created a permanent division between two major communities
– Hindus and Muslims. In 1947, Bengal was partitioned again wholly on the basis
of religion.
Surat
Split
The tension between the militants and the
moderates became more pronounced with the appointment of Lord Minto as the new
Viceroy to India in 1906. As the tension was rising between the two groups, a
split was avoided, in the 1906 Calcutta session, by accepting demands of
moderate leaders and electing Dadabhai Naoroji as president. Most of the
moderates, led by Pherozeshah Mehta, were defeated in the election. The
militants managed to pass four resolutions on Swadeshi, Boycott, National
Education, and Self-Government.
The next session of Congress was originally
planned to be held in Poona, considered to be a stronghold of the militants.
Fearing repeat of the Calcutta session, the moderates shifted the venue to
Surat. The militants proposed Lala Lajpat Rai’s name for the next Congress
presidency opposing the moderate’s candidate Rash Behari Ghosh. Lala Lajpat
Rai, however, turned down the offer to avoid the split. The matter finally
boiled down to the question of retaining the four resolutions that were passed
in the Calcutta session in 1906. The Pherozeshah Mehta group sought removal of
those items from the agenda. In order to counter Mehta’s manoeuvering, the
militants decided to oppose the election of Rash Behari Gosh as president. The
session ended in chaos.
The Indian National Congress, born in
December 1885, was now split into two groups – militant and moderate. The
Congress which emerged after the Surat split was more loyal to the British than
they were before. The new Congress, minus the militants, came to be known as
Mehta Congress and the 1908 session of the Congress was attended only by the
moderates who reiterated their loyalty to the Raj. The politics of militants,
on the other hand, could not crystallize into a new political organization. The
primary reason was the repressive measures of the government by putting all the
prominent leaders in jail.