Muslims

Question 1

How did WW1 strain the loyalties of Muslim Indians?

Answer 1

• Many Muslim Indians had long regarded the Sultan of Turkey as their caliph, their most important spiritual leader.
• Loyalties challenged by Turkey’s alliance with Germany which placed it against British India
• 1919 peace settlements further increased tensions as the Treaty of Sevres significantly reduced the size of Turkey, and forces within Turkey removed the Sultan from power.

This led to the formation of the Khilafat movement in India to unite Indian Muslims to support the caliph.

Question 2

What did the Khilafat movement entail?

Answer 2

The Khilafat movement spread rapidly through India, and entailed:

• Using Islamic symbols to unite the diverse Muslim communities within India.
• The repudation of British rule in India, legitimising Muslim participation in nationalist movements.

Question 3

How did the Khilafat movement combine with Gandhi’s non-cooperation campaigns?

Answer 3

Muslim leaders joined with Gandhi in mobilising people for the 1920-22 non-cooperation campaign.

In return, Gandhi endorsed the Khilafat movement, bringing the weight of Hindu opinion behind previously a Muslim movement.

Question 4

Which notable incident during the non-cooperation campaign demonstrates Muslim participation?

Answer 4

One notable example of Muslim participation is the jihad declared by the Muslim Moplahs of Malaba in Rangkur, which included:

• The killing of British people and wealthy Hindu and Muslim landowners and moneylenders.
• The forced conversion of Hindu peasants and labourers to Islam.

Question 5

What were the benefits Gandhi recieved from supporting the Khilafat movement?

Answer 5

In supporting the Khilafat movement, Gandhi gained the support of a large number of Muslim spiritual and political leaders for his policy of non-violent cooperation.

Question 6

Why did Jinnah dislike Gandhi’s support of the Khilafat movement?

Answer 6

Jinnah believed Gandhi’s support of the Khilafat movement to be an opportunistic move on Gandhi’s part.

Furthermore, it threatened to create schisms between Muslims, as it endangered the preestablished political institutions and a more orderly process towards independence.

Question 7

Why had the Khilafat movement collapsed by 1923?

Answer 7

• Turkey rejected the caliphate and became a secular state. With the