Moderate Phase (1885–1905)

Introduction
• The Moderate phase of the Indian National Congress (1885–1905) marked the beginning of a secular, democratic, and political awakening in India.
• Objectives of early nationalists:
  – Lay the foundation of a secular and democratic national movement.
  – Politicize and politically educate the masses.
  – Create an all-India leadership.
  – Develop an anti-colonial nationalist ideology.

Key Moderate Leaders
• Dadabhai Naoroji
• Pherozeshah Mehta
• Dinshaw Wacha
• W.C. Banerjee
• Surendranath Banerjee
• These leaders followed liberal and constitutional methods and were called “Moderates” to distinguish them from later “Extremists.”

Moderate Beliefs and Approach
• Firm belief in constitutional agitation, lawful methods, and gradual reform.
• They believed British rulers were not deliberately unjust but ill-informed.
• Hence, they sought:
  – Public opinion formation.
  – Petitions, meetings, resolutions to convey Indian demands.
• A British Committee of INC was established in London in 1899 to influence Parliament.

Demands of Moderates
• Constitutional Reforms
• Economic Reforms
• Administrative Reforms
• Social and political rights

Constitutional Reforms
• From 1885–1892, Moderates demanded:
  – Expansion of Legislative Councils.
  – Election of Indian representatives.
  – Greater powers for councils.
• Their efforts led to the Indian Councils Act, 1892:
  – Increased number of members at imperial and provincial levels.
  – Limited and indirect election introduced.
  – Councils allowed to discuss budgets but not vote.
• Moderates criticized the Act as inadequate and raised the slogan:
  – “No taxation without representation.”
• They demanded Indian control over the public purse and true representative institutions.

Economic Reforms
• Dadabhai Naoroji declared British rule as “an everlasting, constantly increasing foreign invasion.”
• Moderates blamed the British for:
  – Decline of Indian industries.
  – Excessive drain of wealth.
  – High taxation.
• Solutions proposed:
  – Promotion of swadeshi industries.
  – Boycott of British goods.
  – Reduction in land revenue and salt tax.
  – Lower military expenditure.
• They fought for better conditions for plantation labourers.

Administrative Reforms
• Their main demand: Indianisation of higher services on economic and moral grounds.
  – Europeans were paid high salaries, increasing administrative costs.
  – Europeans repatriated their salaries and pensions → increasing “drain.”
• Other administrative demands:
  – Separation of judiciary from executive.
  – Opposed the reduction of juries’ powers.
  – Opposed disarming of Indians; demanded right to bear arms.
  – Development of state welfare functions.
  – More technical and higher educational institutions.
  – Agricultural banks to protect peasants from moneylenders.
  – Expansion of medical and health facilities.
  – Police reforms to improve efficiency and honesty.

Methods of Political Work (Moderate Strategy)
• Known as “3P”:
  – Prayer
  – Petition
  – Protest
• Strong advocates of freedom of speech and expression.
• Wanted removal of Arms Act and press restrictions.
• British Committee started the journal “India” (1889).
• Dadabhai Naoroji spent years in England to present India’s case.
• Viceroy Dufferin ridiculed Congress as representing only a “microscopic minority.”
• Lord Curzon (1900) stated he wished to witness the “peaceful demise of Congress.”

Assessment of Moderate Phase
• Critics say the Moderates achieved little due to:
  – Excessive faith in British justice.
  – Lack of mass mobilization.
• Yet they achieved:
  – Establishment of nationalism as a political truth.
  – Creation of strong public opinion.
  – Emergence of educated political leadership.

Contributions of the Moderates
• Major intellectual contribution: Economic critique of colonialism.
• Dadabhai Naoroji’s “Drain Theory” exposed economic exploitation.
• Key thinkers:
  – R.C. Dutt, Dinshaw Wacha, G.V. Joshi, G. Subramania Aiyar, G.K. Gokhale, P.C. Ray.
• Built public opinion that poverty was linked to colonial exploitation.
• Trained an entire generation of nationalists in political work.

Success of Moderates
• Indian Councils Act, 1892 as an achievement.
• Created an educated political class: lawyers, activists, doctors, engineers.
• Helped develop:
  – Administrative reforms.
  – Constitutional traditions.
  – Secular political culture.
• Promoted religious harmony and unity.
• Their liberal ideology shaped India’s post-independence constitutional outlook.

Limitations of Moderates
• Limited mass appeal since they focused on educated elites.
• Over-reliance on British goodwill reduced their effectiveness.
• Their methods appeared slow and inadequate in the face of colonial repression.

Conclusion
• The Moderate phase laid the intellectual and institutional foundation of Indian nationalism.
• They exposed colonial exploitation, built political consciousness, and prepared India for later mass movements.
• Their role remains crucial as the first organized phase of the freedom struggle.

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Subject: Modern History

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