Eka movement
Also called: Unity movement · Topic: The National Movement: Gandhian Era · NCERT: Beyond NCERT
Meaning
The Eka (meaning "unity") movement was a peasant movement in the United Provinces in late 1921 and 1922. It began in the Hardoi, Bahraich and Sitapur districts. Peasants protested against rents set far above the recorded amount, illegal extra charges and the harsh treatment by landlords' rent-collectors. At its meetings, members swore a religious oath of unity to pay only the recorded rent and not to do begar (forced unpaid labour). The movement shows that peasant anger often went beyond what the Congress leaders wanted.
Example
The Congress and Khilafat leaders began the movement in 1921. Soon a low-caste leader, Madari Pasi, took over, and it slipped out of Congress control. The government put it down by force by about March 1922.
Don't confuse with
- Oudh Kisan Sabha: set up in October 1920 by Baba Ramchandra and Jawaharlal Nehru, in southern Awadh. The Eka movement came a little later, in northern Awadh, under Madari Pasi.
Related concepts
- Gandhi as Mahatma
- Shahid Amin
- Gandhi's dhoti and loincloth
- Charkha
- Khadi
- Linguistic Pradesh Congress Committees
- Praja Mandal
- All India States Peoples Conference
- Bijolia movement
- Abul Kalam Azad