October 2 marked the birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi, the father of our nation. It was he who led the Indian Freedom Movement against British colonialism since his return from South Africa to India in 1915.

India’s freedom struggle was part of the process of its renaissance and resurgence which began towards the beginning of the 19th century even as the British hold was expanding in the Indian sub-continent. That resurgence led to deep introspection on the part of enlightened persons all over the sub-continent who were concerned about the reasons for India’s decline. In 1857 large sections of the Indian people attempted to throw off the British yoke but the First Struggle for Independence failed. That did not lead to a permanent sense of despondency because by the closing decades of the 19th century some sections of Indians had decided not only to continue with the process of reforming Indian society but also to imbue a sense of patriotism among the people. It was natural that different Indian leaders adopted different methods for taking India forward and regaining independence. 

Where Gandhiji brought an entirely new perspective and method to the Freedom Struggle was through his successful appeal to ordinary Indians to join it and in so doing convert it into a mass movement. This was one decisive change from the past; the other was his insistence that the freedom struggle would follow the path........

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