Moderate Phase - Leaders, Moderate Phase of Indian National Congress

Moderate Phase: During its initial two decades, the Indian National Congress made moderate demands, presenting them to the Government in the form of petitions and adhering to the legal framework. Due to this reason, the early INC leaders were referred to as ‘Moderates’. The efforts of the moderates led to significant legal and constitutional changes, while their critique of government policies also served as essential political training for the public.

Leaders of the Moderate Phase such as Dadabhai Naoroji meticulously documented the economic exploitation perpetuated by the British Government in India. As a result of the proactive endeavours of these leaders during this phase, the government implemented crucial constitutional and agricultural reforms.

Who were the Moderates?

The Indian National Congress (INC) programme during 1885-1905 was very moderate. It called for moderate constitutional reforms, economic relief, administrative reorganisation, and the protection of civil rights.

• Most leaders of this phase were staunch believers in ‘liberalism’ and ‘moderate’ politics and came to be labelled as Moderates to distinguish them from the neo-nationalists of the early 20th century, who were referred to as the Extremists.
• Response of British Government:  Right from the start, the British authorities displayed hostility towards the growing nationalist movement and became distrustful of the INC. British officials, starting from Dufferin downwards, labelled the nationalist leaders as 'disloyal babus, seditious brahmins,' and dangerous villains.
• Important Moderate Leaders: Dadabhai Naoroji, Pherozeshah Mehta, D.E. Wacha, W.C. Bonnerjea, S.N. Banerjee, Gopal Krishna Gokhale.

Methods adopted during Moderate Phase

The moderate phase congressmen had implicit faith in the efficacy of peaceful and constitutional agitation within the four walls of the law and slow, orderly political progress.

They believed in patience and reconciliation rather than violence and hostility. They adhered to the 3P: Petition, Prayer, and Protest.

• Freedom through gradual steps: They believed that if public opinion was created and organised and popular demands were presented to the authorities through petitions, meetings, resolutions, and speeches, the authorities would gradually and incrementally accommodate these demands.
• Medium of communication: The press and the platform at the annual sessions were their agencies. Nevertheless, the press served as the sole medium for disseminating Congress propaganda throughout the year.
• The annual session of INC:
  • During these gatherings, Government policy was vigorously discussed, and resolutions were emphatically passed. However, the most significant limitation was that the Congress sessions lasted merely three days annually. It had no machinery to carry on the work in the interval between the two sessions. 
• Strong faith in the British Government: In the Moderate Phase, the Congress leaders’ belief in the essential sense of justice and goodness of the British nation was strong. 
  • Under the illusion that acquainting the British with the true state of affairs in India would lead to a positive outcome, they diligently worked towards this goal.
  • In pursuit of this objective, they dispatched delegations of prominent Indians to Britain to present the Indian viewpoint. In 1889, the British Committee of the INC was established, and to advance its propaganda efforts, the Committee launched its publication, India, in 1890.

Major Demands during Moderate Phase

During the Moderate phase of INC, there was practically no change in the Congress programme. The major demands were practically the same as those formulated in the first three or four sessions.

Throughout this period, the leaders exercised caution in making their demands, aiming to avoid provoking the government and the potential risk of having their activities suppressed.

• The Key Demands:
• The organisation of the provincial councils
• Simultaneous examination for the I.C.S. in India and England
• The abolition or reconstitution of the Indian Council
• The separation of the Judiciary from the executive
• The repeal of the Arms Act
• The appointment of Indians to the commissioned ranks in the Army
• The reduction of military expenditure
• The introduction of Permanent Settlement to other parts of India
• The freedom of speech and expression.
• No taxation without representation: They demanded Indian control over the public purse and raised the slogan that had earlier been raised by the Americans during their War of Independence, 'No taxation without representation'.
• Demand of Swaraj: It was during the Moderate Phase i.e., in 1905, the Congress put forth the demand for Swaraj or self-rule for Indians within the British Empire on the model of the self-governing colonies like Australia or Canada. The first mention of this demand was made by G.K. Gokhale in 1905 during a speech in Banaras, and it was later explicitly articulated by Dadabhai Naoroji in 1906 at a gathering in Calcutta. 
• Nature of Economic Demands
  • Even though their political demands were moderate, their economic demands were radical in nature. The Indian leaders advocated basically anti-imperialist economic policies.

The Congress voiced its opinions on all significant government measures and registered protests against unpopular ones. Despite the repeated presentation of these demands year after year, the Government scarcely responded to them.

Contributions of Nationalists during the Moderate Phase

• Economic critique of British Imperialism during the Moderate Phase
• The reduction in the high military expenditure of the Government of India. The Congress made a declaration stating that British rule had resulted in poverty and famines.
• They attributed the impoverishment of peasants and zamindars to the increased land revenue, and food shortages were blamed on the export of grains to Europe.
• Through the Drain Theory, they effectively conveyed a powerful symbol of foreign exploitation of India, which deeply resonated with the public.
• Numerous resolutions were passed at the INC session concerning the salt tax, the treatment of overseas Indian labourers, and the hardships faced by forest dwellers due to intervention by the forest administration.
• They emphasised the need for fundamental changes in the existing economic relations between India and England.
• They strongly resisted the efforts of foreign rulers to transform India into a mere supplier of raw materials and a market for British manufacturers. 
• They expressed criticism towards the official policies concerning tariff, trade, transport, and taxation, as these were seen as hindering rather than supporting the growth of the indigenous industry.
• Dadabhai characterised British rule as a perpetual and steadily intensifying foreign invasion that was gradually causing the country's destruction.
• This indicates that despite comprising an educated elite, Congress did not solely advocate for professional groups, zamindars, or industrialists.
• Constitutional reforms and propaganda in the legislature
• Expansion of Legislative Councils: Between 1885 and 1892, their primary demand persisted in the expansion and reform of the Legislative Councils. 
• The early nationalists sought greater participation in the governance of their own country and appealed to democratic principles, but they refrained from demanding immediate fulfilment of their goal.
• Indian Council Act of 1892: As a result of their agitation, the British Government was compelled to pass the Indian Councils Act of 1892. However, the nationalists expressed complete dissatisfaction with the Act and deemed it a deception.
• Campaign for general administrative reform
• The Indianization of the administration was a part of the movement against racism, as the majority of crucial positions during that time were dominated by white officials.
• Protection of civil rights
• They acknowledged the utmost importance of freedom of the press and speech, vehemently opposing any efforts to limit them. In fact, the movement to eliminate press restrictions became an integral part of the nationalist struggle for freedom.
• Welfare activities: The Moderate Phase leaders placed significant emphasis on promoting primary education among the masses.
• Agricultural development: They advocated for the establishment of agricultural banks to rescue the peasants from the grip of money lenders.

Evaluation of the Nationalists during the Moderate Phase

During its early phases, the nationalist movement and the INC experienced limited success. The government introduced very few of the reforms advocated by the nationalists. Critics also observed that the national movement lacked widespread support among the masses during this period.

However, the succeeding generations were determined to address these weaknesses. They aimed to build upon the achievements of the early movement, using them as a foundation for a more robust and vigorous national movement in the years to come.

• Achievements during the Moderate Phase:
• It provided political training to individuals, popularised democratic and nationalist ideas among them, promoted a modern perspective, and revealed the detrimental consequences of British rule.
• It created awareness among the people about the economic nature of British imperialism.
• It formulated a unified political and economic agenda that could serve as a rallying point for the Indian people to engage in future political struggles.
• It firmly established the principle that India should be governed in the best interests of its own people.
• Participation: Belonging to the urban educated middle class, they exhibited broad-mindedness and were free from narrow and sectional class interests.
• Inclusiveness: It welcomed individuals from all classes and communities, and its program was expansive enough to encompass all interests. It could be described more as a movement than a mere party. 
• Economic criticism: The early Congress leadership provided a distinctive and invaluable service to the nation by presenting this formidable critique of the financial underpinnings of the Raj. 
• The British Hostility: While the political tone of the INC may have been gentle, starting from the fourth session of the Congress, the government began to adopt a hostile attitude towards it. 
  • For example, they supported and promoted the Aligarh movement as a counter to the Congress. The British administration's stance towards Congress turned even more hostile during Lord Curzon’s tenure.
• Evolving Congress Goals: As times evolved, the moderates began to shift their stance. By 1905, Gokhale started advocating for self-rule as the ultimate objective, and in 1906, Dadabhai Naoroji mentioned the term Swaraj as the Congress's goal.
• Struggles of Leadership during the Moderate Phase: The Moderates found themselves in a challenging situation as extremist leadership emerged within the Congress.
• Extremists' Rise in Congress: The extremists were drawing support from a young segment of political activists. In the altered circumstances, the Extremists took centre stage within the Congress.

As the Indian National Movement progressed, the influence of liberals and moderates, who advocated for a constitutional system within the British dominion, waned gradually.