Context

4th February 2021 marks the 100^th year celebration of Chauri Chaura at Gorakhpur, Uttar Pradesh.

About Chauri Chaura Incident

• The ‘Chauri Chaura’ incident is a landmark event in the country’s fight for independence.
• The incidenttook place on 4 February 1922 at ChauriChaura in the Gorakhpur district of the United Province (modern Uttar Pradesh) in British India.
• During this, a large group of protesters participating in the Non-cooperation movement, clashed with police who opened fire.
• In retaliation the demonstrators attacked and set fire to a police station, killing all of its occupants.
• The incident led to the death of three civilians and 22 policemen. 
• Mahatma Gandhi, who was strictly against violence, halted the non-co-operation movement on the national level on 12 February 1922, as a direct result of this incident.

Quick Facts Date: February 5, 1922 Place: Chauri Chaura, Gorakhpur district, The United Provinces Nature of Incident: Violent attack Number of Casualties: 25 deaths Historical Significance: ‘Non-cooperation Movement’ was called off due to the incident

Non-Cooperation Movement

• The Non-Cooperation Movement was launched in 1920 in response to two key events in 1919 —
  • the Rowlatt Act
  • the Jallianwala Bagh massacre
• Under the Rowlatt Act, political cases could be tried without a jury and the suspect detained for an indefinite period of time.
• The Act had sparked widespread protests across the country and in April 1919, Gandhi had planned to visit Amritsar to join one such protest. However, he was stopped in Delhi and arrestedon 10 April, along with other prominent leaders. This angered the people of Amritsar who took to the streets.
• Following this, General Reginald Dyer was tasked with restoring order in the city and among other measures, a ban was put in place on public gatherings.
• On 13 April 1919, General Dyer opened fireon a gathering of unarmed men, women and children at Jallianwala Bagh, killing hundreds. More than 10,000 people had gathered in the park to protest the British rule.
• While official statistics note that 400 civilians died, the actual number is believed to be much higher.
• The Jallianwala Bagh massacre marked a turning point in India’s history as well as Gandhi’s approach to independence. He now demanded purna swaraj or complete independence from the British.
• The Non Cooperation Movement was the first step towards this total independence.