Role of press in freedom struggle

 Discuss the Role of Press in Indian freedom struggle?

Answer:

Media is  considered as the fourth piller of democracy. During freedom struggle in india the press especially the vernacular newspapers played an important role.It was due to the efforts made by the Indian press that the exploitation of Britishers came to fore.The press exposed the true nature of Indoan press.

1. The  printing press has had everlasting impact on our

freedom movement. Though the early newspapers were started in

English, eventually the vernacular has helped penetrate the ideologies

of the national leaders and the national movement.

2. Such was the impact of these newspapers that the reactionist viceroys

like Lytton, Curzon and others have tried to obstruct the functioning of

these newspapers through acts like the Vernacular press Act, etc.

3. Specific examples

1. It was in 1857 itself that Payam-e-Azadi started publication in

Hindi and Urdu, calling upon the people to fight against the

British. The paper was soon confiscated and anyone found with a

copy of the paper was prosecuted for sedition.

2. Din Bandhu Mitra published Neel darpan in 1861, urging the

people to stop cultivating the Indigo crop for the white traders.

This started a huge movement.

3. Tilak edited the kesari, a Marathi newspaper, which became one

of the leading media to propagate the message of freedom

movement. It also made the anti-partition movement of Bengal a

national issue.

4. Gandhiji had brought out publications like Young India, Harijan,

etc., to fight various social ills.

5. Subash Chandra Bose and CR Das were not journalists but they

acquired the papers like Forward and Advance which later

attained national status. Jawaharlal Nehru founded the National

Herald.

6. In case of the revolutionary movement, Yugantar, started by

Barindra Kumar Ghosh, was leading daily.

7. Whestarted publication of the journal Ghadar.

8. In 1905, Shyamaji Krishna Verma started publication of a journal

Indian Sociologist from London. It used to publish reports of

political activities taking place at the India House in London.

4. Impact

1. Consolidating nationalism: With the penetration of the

Vernacular Press, nationalism has reached the most remote areas

of the country, where those educated in the vernaculars have

discussed it even with the uneducated.

2. Exposing atrocities: This was done by all the major news papers,

for instance Tilak in Kesari has spoken up about the Plague

epidemic and inaction of the British, for which he was eventually

prosecuted. The drain theory propounded by moderate leaders

such as Dadabhai Naoroji, etc

3. Arousing self-confidence: Several leaders have tried to arouse

self confidence among Indians by informing about the glorious

past of India and has thus aroused self confidence among Indians. 

4. Reforms in social sphere: The vernacular press has also tried to

reform various social issues such as caste discrimination,

women’s rights and even religious reforms. Newspapers like

Darpan, Satyarth Prakash have worked for these reforms. 

5. Revolutionary terrorism: Vernacular press has been at the roots

of growth of the revolutionary nationalism movement. They

propagated their ideas through news papers such as Sandhya, Kal,

Yugantar etc. 

Treaty of Bassein

1. The Treaty of Bassein was essentially a subsidiary alliance signed

between the Britishers and Peshwa, BajiRao II. The system of

subsidiary alliance was used by Wellesley to bring Indian states within

the ambit of British political power as it disarmed and threw British

protectorate over Indian States in the form of Resident being

permanently stationed there.

2. Marathas (Peshwa, Scindias, Holkars) were still a power to reckon with

in western and central India. n the Ghadar party was organised in America, Lala Hardayal