Calcutta special session 1920
Topic: The National Movement: Gandhian Era · NCERT: Beyond NCERT
Meaning
The Calcutta special session was an extra meeting of the Indian National Congress, held in September 1920. A special session is a meeting called outside the usual yearly session. Lala Lajpat Rai presided over it. At this session the Congress first approved Gandhi's plan of non-cooperation, joined with the Khilafat cause. It was a turning point: for the first time, the Congress chose mass action under Gandhi's lead.
Example
At Calcutta in September 1920, the Congress approved the step-by-step plan. People would first give up British titles. Then they would boycott government jobs, courts, councils, schools and foreign goods. The regular Nagpur session in December 1920 confirmed the plan, and the movement began in January 1921.
Don't confuse with
- Nagpur session, December 1920: confirmed and formally adopted the plan. Calcutta was where it was first proposed and approved.
Related concepts
- Hind Swaraj
- Swaraj
- Khilafat movement
- Ali brothers
- Caliphate
- Jazirat-ul-Arab
- Mustafa Kemal Ataturk
- Nagpur session 1920
- Non-cooperation movement
- Louis Fischer