Question

Why was the Dandi March undertaken by Gandhiji?
A.To oppose the salt law
B.Purna Swaraj
C.To boycott foreign goods
D.To protest against Jallianwala Bagh tragedy

Answer 1

Hint:Salt was a daily requirement and it was freely available in nature. When there is a tax for salt it is unjust to impose. It created worldwide attention which gave force to the Indian independence movement and led to the starting of the nationwide Civil Disobedience Movement.

Complete answer:
The salt satyagraha was representational to avoid this kind of tax. The salt satyagraha signified the breaking of all the harsh and unfair laws of the British government peacefully. Mahatma Gandhi and his volunteers left Sabarmati Ashram on March 12,1930 , to protest against the British inequalities and salt monopoly, and this movement is known as the Dandi March. The British practiced a monopoly over the production of salt and collecting a heavy tax in the name of salt. Gandhi tries to destroy the laws by producing salt from the seawater upon reaching Dandi.

In the view of Mahatma Gandhi, he found in salt a powerful symbol that could unite the nation. On 31 January 1930, he sent a letter to Viceroy Irwin with certain demands. The letter stating eleven demands of the Indian people. The most rousing demand was to abolish the salt tax of the British government. Salt was one of the most vital food items consumed by both rich and poor alike and a tax on it was considered as oppression on the poor people by the British government. Mahatma Gandhi's letter was a challenge for them. If his demands were not fulfilled by the British government on 11 March and he had to launch a Civil Disobedience Campaign. So, Mahatma Gandhi started Salt March with him and 78 of his trusted volunteers to abolish the tax on salt. So Gandhiji undertakes Dandi March to oppose the salt law created by the Britishers.

Hence, the correct answer is option (A).

Note:The March was completed 240 miles, from Gandhiji’s ashram - Sabarmati to Dandi. The volunteers walked for 24 days. Thousands came to hear Mahatma Gandhi wherever he stopped his campaign. On 6 th April, he and his volunteers reached Dandi and ceremonially violated the law, manufacturing salt by boiling seawater. This march led to the beginning of the Civil Disobedience Movement.