Gandhi begins hunger strikes – 1933
Gandhi was a leader in the Indian campaign of home rule. He wanted to spread his
own brand passive resistance across India and the world. In 1920, the concept of
Satyagraha landed Gandhi in prison (1922-1924) by the British government and he
withdrew from political action until 1930, when he returned with a new civil
disobedience campaign. He got jailed again, but only briefly. When he returned to
India, 1932, he begun another civil disobedience campaign and he was jailed again.
Eight months later, he announced that he was begging a “fast unto death”. His goal
was to protest against British support of a new Indian constitution, which gave the
country’s lowest classes their separate political representation for a period of 70
years. He believed this would permanently and unfairly divide Indian’s social classes.
His six-day fast ended after the British government accepted principal terms of a
settlement between higher cast Indians and the untouchables that reversed the
separation decision. Gandhi’s influence only grew and he was called “Great Soul”. As
a result, he continued turning to the hunger strikes as a method of resistance. On
January 12, 1948, Gandhi had his last successful one in New Delhi, to entice Hindus
and Muslims to work in that city toward peace. Unfortunately, he was assassinated
by a Hindu extremist, two weeks later, on his way to an evening prayer meeting.
Batsiou Christina