Why INC split into two at Surat session?

In 1885 when the Indian National Congress was established, its initial phase 1885-1905 was known as the period of the moderates because they dominated the Indian National Congress. The Moderates used petition, prayers, meetings, leaflets, pamphlets, memorandum and delegations to present their demands to the British government.

Their only notable achievements were the expansion of the legislative council by the Indian Councils Act of 1892. This created dissatisfaction among the people. The Extremists wanted Lala Lajpat Rai and Bal Gangadhar Tilak as president. The Moderates supported Rash Bihari Ghosh. Gopal Krishna Gokhale moved the meeting place from Nagpur to Surat fearing that in Nagpur, Bal Gangadhar Tilak would win. The partition of Bengal in 1905 drove the rise of extremism in INC.

When the British Government refused to annul the partition of Bengal in face of mass protests of the people of Bengal arousing the sympathy of the Indian people that disillusioned many young leaders, came to known as Neo-Nationalists or Extremists. They were called extremist because they believed that success could be achieved only through bold means.

As Surat was in Bombay Presidency/Province, Tilak's birthplace. Nagpur Province was the province of British India that covered parts of the present-day states of Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and Chhattisgarh, with Nagpur city as the capital. Since Surat was the home province of Tilak, he couldn't preside over the meeting. Hence it was decided that Ghosh would be president. Extremists protested in the INC meeting as Tilak was not given permission even to speak by Pandit Madan Mohan Malviya. Extremists reacted by throwing eggs and footwear and called for the meeting to be cancelled. After all these worst situation Moderates held a secret meeting and decided to expel the Extremists. And finally in 1907 at Surat annual session they separated.

When were political conditions created for the INC?

Founded upon the authority of British civil servant Allan Octavian Hume, the Congress was created to provide a platform for civic and political dialogue of educated Indians with the British Raj.

After the Indian Rebellion of 1857 and the transfer of India from the East India Company to the British Empire (the Raj), it was the goal of the Raj to support and justify its governance of India with the aid of English-educated Indians, who would be familiar and friendly to British culture and political thinking.

Hume embarked on an endeavor to get an organization started by reaching-out to selected alumni of the University of Calcutta, writing in his 1883 letter that, "Every nation secures precisely as good a Government as it merits. If you the picked men, the most highly educated of the nation, cannot, scorning personal ease and selfish objects, make a resolute struggle to secure greater freedom for yourselves and your country, a more impartial administration, a larger share in the management of your own affairs, then we, your friends, are wrong and our adversaries right, then are Lord Ripon's noble aspirations for your good fruitless and visionary, then, at present at any rate all hopes of progress are at an end and India truly neither desires nor deserves any better Government than she enjoys."

In May 1885, Hume secured the Viceroy's approval to create an "Indian National Union", which would be affiliated with the government and act as a platform to voice Indian public opinion. On 12 October 1885, Hume and a group of educated Indians also published "An Appeal from the People of India to the Electors of Great Britain and Ireland".

The Appeal asked British voters in the 1885 British general election to support candidates sympathetic to the positions of Indians. These included opposition to taxing India to finance the British campaigns in Afghanistan, and support for legislative reform in India.

The appeal was a failure, and was interpreted by many Indians as "a rude shock, but a true realization that they had to fight their battles alone."

Where the popular sessions of INC held with what purpose?

• The first session of the Indian National Congress was held at Bombay in 1885 which presided by W.C. Bannerjee and the purpose behind this session was the "formation of INC"
• The second session of the INC was held at Calcutta in 1886 which presided by the great grand old man "Dadabhai Naroji"
• Third session held at Madras in 1887. It was also one of the important session because it was "presided by the first Muslim Syed Badruddin Tyabji"
• Fourth Session was held at Allahabad in 1888. It was also an important session because it was "presided by the first English President, George Yule"
• 1896 session at Calcutta. President: Rahimtullah Sayani, important because National Song ‘Vande Mataram’ sung for the first time by Rabindranath Tagore.
• 1899 session at Lucknow. President: Romesh Chandra Dutt. Important because demand raised for permanent fixation of Land revenue
• 1901 session at Calcutta. President: Dinshaw E.Wacha. Important because for the first time Gandhiji appeared on the Congress platform
• 1905 session at  Benaras. President: Gopal Krishan Gokhale. Important due to the formal proclamation of Swadeshi movement against the government
• 1906 session at Calcutta. President: Dadabhai Naoroji. In this session, they adopted four resolutions on Swaraj (Self Government), Boycott Movement, Swadeshi & National Education
• 1907 session at Surat. President: Rash Bihari Ghosh. This was the session in which Congress split into two groups- Moderates & Extremist and session adjourned.
• 1910 session at Allahabad. President: Sir William Wedderburn. In this session M.A Jinnah decried the separate electorate system introduced by the act of 1909
• 1911 session at Calcutta. President: B.N. This was the session where the first-time recital of Jan-Gan-Man in Congress session
• 1915: Bombay. President: Sir S.P. Sing a. Constitution of the Congress was altered to admit the delegates from the extremist section
• 1916 session at Lucknow. President: A.C. Majumdar. Unity between two factions-Moderates and Extremists of Congress and Lucknow Pact signed between Congress and Muslim League to build political consensus
• 1917: Calcutta. President: Annie Besant, First Woman President of Congress
• 1920 (Special Session) at Calcutta. President: Lala Lajpat Rai. In this Mahatma Gandhi moved the Non-cooperation resolution
• 1920: Nagpur. President: C. Vijayaraghavachariar. This was the session in which MA Jinnah left the Indian National Congress
• 1922 session at Gaya. President: C.R. Das. Formation of the Swaraj Party
• 1924 session at Belgaum and this was the only Session presided over by Mahatma Gandhi
• 1925 session at Kanpur. President: Sarojini Naidu, First Indian Woman President
• 1927 session atMadras. President:  M.A. Ansari. Passed a resolution against the use of Indian troops in China, Iran and Mesopotamia, passed a resolution against the boycott of Simon Commission and adoption of a resolution on Purna Swaraj
• 1929 session at Lahore. President: Jawahar Lal Nehru. Passed the resolution on ‘Poorna Swaraj, 'Civil Disobedience movement' for complete independence to be launched and 26 January to be observed as ‘Independence Day’.
• 1931: Karachi. President: Vallabhbhai Patel. Purpose: Resolutions on Fundamental Rights and National Economic Programme, Endorsement of Gandhi-Irwin pact and Gandhi nominated to represent INC in the Second Round Table Conference to be held in London
• 1937: Faizpur. President: Jawahar Lal Nehru. First Session to be held in a village
• 1938: Haripura. President: Subhas Chandra Bose. National Planning Committee set up under Jawahar Lal Nehru.
• 1940: Ramgarh. President: Abul Kalam Azad.Civil Disobedience movement to be launched at appropriate time and circumstances.
• 1941–45: This Period is marked by events i.e. Quit India movement, RIN Mutiny & INA trials. The phase of constitutional negotiations such as Cripps Mission, Wavell Plan and Cabinet Mission.
• 1946: Meerut. President: J.B Kripalani. The last session before independence and J.B Kriplani was the president of INC at independence.

Who were the early Congress leaders?

The Indian National Congress divided into two phases: the initial phase was from 1885-1905 which carried by the Moderates and the second phase was from 1907 which carried by the extremist.

Initial leaders of the INC called moderates because of their thinking and activities which were not extreme. They raised their demand is moderate nature. For this, they used resolutions and constitutional methods. They were A.O. Hume, W.C. Banerjee, Surendra Nath Banerjee, Dadabhai Naoroji, Feroze Shah Mehta, Gopalakrishna Gokhale, Pandit Madan Mohan Malaviya, Badruddin Tyabji, Justice Ranade and G.Subramanya Aiyar.

In the second phase, INC leaders were extremist. After the division of Bengal in 1905, the extremist rise. They were called extremist because they believed that success could be achieved only through bold means. They were Lala Lajpat Rai, Lokmanya Bal Gangadhar Tilak, Bipin Chandra Pal, Aurobindo Ghose, Rajnarayan Bose and Ashwini Kumar Dutt.

A.O.Hume who was entered in India as a civil servant in 1849 at Bengal province. After his retirement in 1882 from civil services he indulged in political activities and 1885, he established the biggest political parties Indian National Congress.

Dadabhai Naoroji, the Grand Oldman of India, was one of the founding members of the Indian National Congress (INC) and became its President thrice in 1886, 1893 and 1906.

Lal Bal Pal’ (Lala Lajpat Rai, Bal Gangadhar Tilak, and Bipin Chandra Pal) were a triumvirate of assertive nationalists in British-ruled India in the early 20th century, from 1905 to 1918. They advocated the Swadeshi movement involving the boycott of all imported items and the use of Indian-made goods in 1907 during the anti-Partition agitation in Bengal which began in 1905.

Annie Besant was the first woman President of the Indian National Congress. She was a British socialist, theosophist, women's rights activist, writer, orator, educationalist, and philanthropist. In late 1917 she was elected as the President of INC.

How Extremist were different from Moderates?

About Moderates

• Moderates believed in Liberalism and Moderate Politics. They believed that the British rulers were merely unaware of the plight of the Indian masses and that once they were made aware the British authorities would do their utmost to improve the lives of the local populace.
• The moderates found their support base in the Zamindars and the upper-middle-class
• Moderates wanted greater autonomy and self-rule while still under the nominal rule of the British crown
• Moderates limited their struggle to constitutional means
• Prayer, Petition, Persuasion, and Philanthropy. Their demands were constitutional, and so was their agitation. Their methods were regarded as ‘Passive Resistance’.
• Dadabai Naoroji, A.O. Hume we're few leaders.

About Extremist

• The Extremist leaders firmly believed that the British had no interest of the Indian people in mind. It was evident from the lacklustre response from the authorities during a plague or famine
• The extremists found their support bases among the educated middle-class and lower classes
• Extremists wanted completed independence from British rule
• Extremists often used extra-constitutional methods during their activities
• Extremists were radical in terms of their approach, and believed in militant methods including but not limited to the assassination of key personnel
• Lala Lajpat Rai, Bal Gangadhar Tilak were few leaders.
• They opposed the idealizing of the Western culture by the moderates and considered it a cultural capitulation to the British rulers.