UPSC Prelims 2025 Q12: Non-Cooperation Programme Components Explained

Consider the following subjects with regard to Non-Cooperation Programme:

I. Boycott of law-courts and foreign cloth

II. Observance of strict non-violence

III. Retention of titles and honours without using them in public

IV. Establishment of Panchayats for settling disputes

How many of the above were parts of Non-Cooperation Programme?

  1. Only one
  2. Only two
  3. Only three
  4. All the four

Answer: (c) Only three

Statement-wise explanation

  • I: correct — The special Congress session at Calcutta (September 1920) adopted the programme, and the Nagpur session (December 1920) confirmed it. It called for a boycott of government law courts, government schools and colleges, and the 1920 legislative council elections. Boycotting foreign cloth, and burning it in public, went hand in hand with swadeshi and hand-spinning.
  • II: correct — Gandhi's resolution called for 'progressive non-violent non-co-operation'. At Nagpur, Congress changed its creed: the goal became swaraj by 'peaceful and legitimate means', replacing the old 'constitutional means'. Non-violence was so central that Gandhi called the movement off in February 1922 after the violence at Chauri Chaura.
  • III: incorrect — The programme asked people to give up titles and honorary offices, not keep them. Surrender of titles was the first step in the staged plan. Gandhi set the example by returning the Kaiser-i-Hind medal and his other war medals in August 1920. Keeping a title quietly while not using it in public was never part of the programme.
  • IV: correct — The boycott of British law courts needed a replacement. So the Nagpur programme asked for panchayats, or arbitration courts, to settle disputes. This was the 'constructive' side of the movement, along with national schools and colleges, the Tilak Swaraj Fund and hand-spinning.

How to eliminate

Statements I and II can be settled from basic knowledge. Boycotting courts and foreign cloth is the best-known image of 1920–22. Non-violence was the defining feature of every Gandhian campaign, and Chauri Chaura proves it. Statement III gives itself away: it is a watered-down halfway position ('retain but don't use in public'), and non-cooperation meant refusing every link with the government, starting with giving up titles. Halfway wording like this in a list of programme items is a common UPSC trap. With I and II correct and III wrong, the only choice left is between 'only two' and 'only three'. That turns on Statement IV. Remember that every boycott came with a positive alternative: law courts were replaced by panchayats, government schools by national schools, and foreign cloth by khadi.

Know more

The Non-Cooperation programme (1920–22) had two halves. One was negative: boycott and withdrawal. The other was constructive: building parallel Indian institutions.

Boycott / surrender Constructive alternative
Titles and honorary offices —
Government law courts Panchayats / arbitration courts
Government schools and colleges National schools (e.g. Jamia Millia, Kashi Vidyapith, Gujarat Vidyapith)
Legislative council elections (1920) —
Foreign cloth and goods Swadeshi, charkha, khadi
Official functions Tilak Swaraj Fund, volunteer corps

Timeline

  • 1 August 1920: the movement begins. Gandhi returns his Kaiser-i-Hind medal.
  • September 1920, Calcutta special session (president Lala Lajpat Rai): the programme is adopted, linking the Khilafat and Punjab wrongs with the demand for swaraj.
  • December 1920, Nagpur session (president C. Vijayaraghavachariar): the programme is confirmed. The creed becomes swaraj by 'peaceful and legitimate means'. Congress committees are reorganised on linguistic lines.
  • Stages: surrender of titles first. Then the boycott of civil services, police and army. Non-payment of taxes was to come last, if the government turned to repression.
  • February 1922: Chauri Chaura. Gandhi withdraws the movement at Bardoli.

Exam angle: UPSC often tests the pairing of a boycott with its alternative, and the order of the stages. A statement that softens a boycott ('retain', 'partially', 'only in public') usually changes what the programme actually said.

NCERT Concepts to Revise

  • Non-cooperation movement: The whole question is about what Gandhi's first all-India mass campaign actually asked people to do.
  • Nagpur session 1920: The December 1920 Nagpur session confirmed the programme items tested here and changed the Congress creed.
  • Khilafat movement: The programme was adopted jointly with the Khilafat cause, which shaped its scope and its timing in 1920.
  • Tilak Swaraj Fund: The Tilak Swaraj Fund was part of the constructive side of the programme, alongside the alternative institutions.
  • Chauri Chaura incident: The Chauri Chaura incident shows how strictly Gandhi held the movement to its founding principles.

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