Dominion status
Topic: The National Movement: Gandhian Era · NCERT: Class 10, Ch 2 "Nationalism in India"
Meaning
Dominion status meant self-government inside the British Empire, as Canada and Australia had. A dominion ran its own affairs but still accepted the British monarch as head of state. For many years, moderate Indian leaders asked for this goal. By the late 1920s, younger Congress leaders such as Jawaharlal Nehru and Subhas Chandra Bose wanted full independence instead.
Example
In October 1929, Viceroy Lord Irwin offered "dominion status" for India in a vague way, at some unnamed future date. The Congress was not satisfied. In December 1929, at its Lahore session, it demanded Purna Swaraj, or complete independence.
Don't confuse with
- Purna Swaraj: complete independence, with all ties to the British Crown cut. Dominion status kept India inside the Empire.
Related concepts
- Swaraj Party
- C.R. Das
- Motilal Nehru
- No-changers
- Constructive programme
- Jawaharlal Nehru
- Subhas Chandra Bose
- Bardoli satyagraha 1928
- Vallabhbhai Patel
- Simon Commission