Mahatma Gandhi Returns from South Africa to India on 9 January 1915

M.K. Gandhi went to South Africa on 24 May 1893 to attend to a legal matter on behalf of a client from his hometown of Porbandar in Gujarat. He spent about 21 years in South Africa where he developed his philosophy of Satyagraha (non-violent resistance) and became a prominent leader in the Indian community’s struggle for civil rights.

Gandhi Return to India 1915

After spending about 21 years in South Africa, M.K. Gandhi decided to return to India. Gandhi took ‘S.S. Arabia’ ship from Cape Town in South Africa on 19 July 1914 and reached Apollo Bunder in Bombay on 9 January 1915.

To mark the occasion and contribution of the Indian community living abroad, every year since 2003, 9th January is celebrated as Pravasi Bharatiya Divas or Non-Resident Indian Day (NRI Day).

The work done by M.K. Gandhi in South Africa for the Indian community influenced several leaders in India. On his return from South Africa, M.K. Gandhi was greeted amid jostling and cheers by a huge crowd at Apollo Bunder in Bombay. Three days later he was honored by the people of Bombay at a magnificent reception in the palatial house of a Bombay magnate Jehangir Petit.

Gopal Krishna Gokhale, Political Mentor or Guru of Gandhi

M.K. Gandhi was influenced by Gopal Krishna Gokhale. Gandhi considered Gokhale as his political mentor. Gokhale persuaded Gandhi not to express himself upon public questions for a year, which was to be a “year of probation”. And also persuaded to travel into various parts of India and understand its problems. Gandhi started his journey and travelled to Rangoon in Myanmar to meet Dr. Pranjivan Mehta, a Mumbai-born physician, lawyer and jeweler who settled in Burma.

While on way to Rangoon, Gandhi halted at Shanti Niketan in Calcutta. While Gandhi was in Calcutta, Gokhale died of physical stress and strain on  19 February 1915 in Pune, Maharashtra. Gandhi was stunned. He mourned Gokhale by going barefoot for a year.  Gandhi described Gokhale as,

Pure as crystal, gentle as a lamb, brave as a lion and chivalrous to a fault and the most perfect man in the political field.

Gandhi Travels to Various Parts of India

Later, in April 1915, Gandhi travelled to Kumbh Mela in Haridwar, Uttarakhand. The primary reason to travel to Haridwar was to meet Mahatma Munshi Ram also known as Swami Shraddhanand, the Arya Samaj leader who established Gurukul in Kangri in Haridwar in 1902. The Haridwar experiences proved to be of inestimable value to Gandhi as it led him to decide where he wants to live and what he wants to do next.

Gandhi Established Satyagraha Ashram or Sabarmati Ashram in Ahmedabad

Influenced by the Haridwar experience, in May 1915, M.K. Gandhi established ‘Satyagraha Ashram’ in Kochrab, near Ahmedabad in Gujarat. It was the spiritual retreat for him and his followers. The Ashram was similar to Phoenix Farm of South Africa. He invited untouchable or ‘harijan’ families to live in the Ashram. Later in June 1917, the Ashram was moved near Sabarmati River in Ahmedabad and renamed as Sabarmati Ashram.

In June 1915, Mahatma Gandhiji was awarded ‘Kaisar-i-Hind’ gold medal by the Viceroy Lord Hardinge for his contribution to ambulance services in South Africa. However, in later years in 1920 Gandhi returned the medal as part of the protest against the Jallianwala Bagh massacre.

In February 1916, Gandhiji travelled to Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, and participated in the opening ceremony of Banaras Hindu University (BHU) in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh and delivered speech. In December 1916, he met with Jawahar Lal Nehru for the first time while participating in the annual session of Congress held in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh.

Read Next: Champaran Satyagraha, April 1917

Sources: www.mkgandhi.org
Comprehensive Modern Indian History : From 1707 to The Modern Times by Brijesh Singh