Khilafat Movement
The Khilafat movement (1919–22) was a political campaign launched by Indian Muslims in British India over British policy against Turkey and the planned dismemberment of the Ottoman Empire after World War I by Allied forces.[1][2][3]
Leaders participating in the movement included Shaukat Ali, Maulana Mohammad Ali Jauhar,[4] Hakim Ajmal Khan,[5][6] and Abul Kalam Azad[7] who organised the movement to redress the grievances of Turkey.[8]
Mahatma Gandhi had supported the movement as part of his opposition to the British Empire, and he also advocated for a wider non-cooperation movement at the same time.[9] Vallabhbhai Patel, Bal Gangadhar Tilak and other Hindu and Congress figures also supported the movement.[10][11]
Generally described as a protest against the sanctions placed on the Ottoman Empire after the First World War by the Treaty of Sèvres, the movement is also noted for promoting Hindu-Muslim unity.[12] It ended in 1922 after the end of the non-cooperation movement.[13][14][15][16][17]
Challenges to British colonization[edit]
Up to the turn of the 20th century, the British system of political control was effective in Sindh. During the Khilafat movement, however, the British dealt with another major challenge to their rule.[32]
The Khilafat movement represented the first occasion on which a major number of Sindhi pirs came together on a common platform to oppose British policy, and their involvement showed the way in which they were being gradually involved in the issues of the broader Indian Muslim community. Similar to their co-religionists elsewhere, many of these pirs were affected due to the rise in pan-Islamic sentiment and also by the changing awareness of the position of Muslims in South Asia. Their participation in the agitation severely threatened to undermine the position of the British colonial rule in Sindh. Yet, regardless of the significant influence of the pirs and the considerable support which they attracted for the Khilafat cause, the system of control proved its credibility by reducing the threat posed to British rule to one of manageable proportions.[32]
The British system of control was seriously threatened by the involvement of Sindhi pirs in the Khilafat movement. The concerns of the movement appealed strongly to a major section of the province's religious leadership as a result of the rise in interest in pan-Islamic issues during the years leading up to 1919. Support for broader Islamic concerns during this period was directly associated with the gradual erosion of the barriers which had isolated the Sindh region from developments taking place.[32]
Legacy[edit]
The movement is noted to have played a role in boosting unity among Hindus and Muslims. The Congress supported the movement in response to the divide and rule strategy by the British.[33] The period of 1919-1922 is widely seen as the heyday of Hindu-Muslim unity.[12] Mustafa Kemal Atatürk had thanked the Congress for its sympathy, and hoped that that it would soon gain Swaraj.[34]
The movement is described as a milestone in the growth of the Muslim nationalism and the history of civil disobedience in India. Critics, however, argue that the movement was not nationalist or anti-imperialist but its religious rhetoric concealed a weak and uncertain religious agenda.[35]
Omair Anas, writing for the Turkish outlet Daily Sabah, noted that "It is impossible to recall Turkey's anti-colonial struggle without mentioning Gandhi's support for the unity and integrity of the then-crumbling Ottoman Empire."[36]