Centenary of the 1924 Belgaum Congress session is being celebrated in Belagavi, Karnataka, on 26-27th December 2024. This event commemorates Mahatma Gandhi’s chairmanship of the historic 39th All-India Congress session in Belgaum, where he made significant contributions to the Congress Party’s ideology and organizational structure. The Indian National Congress (INC) has planned various events in Belagavi to celebrate the 100th anniversary. These include a two-day extended session of the Congress Working Committee (CWC) and a public rally on the theme ‘Jai Bapu, Jai Bhim, Jai Samvidhaan’ .
Significance of the 1924 Belgaum Session of Congress
- Gandhi’s Leadership: It was the only Congress session which was presided over by Gandhiji as the party chief. Gandhi had held the post of the Congress president between December 1924 and April 1925. Gandhi’s first visit to Belgaum in 1916 was at the invitation of local leader Deshpande.
- Focus on Social Change: Gandhi emphasized combating untouchability, promoting khadi, and supporting village industries, transforming Congress into a movement for both political independence and social reform. Khadi spinning was mandatory for Congress members and mandated the submission of 2,000 yards of khadi cloth monthly.
- Gandhi reduced Congress membership fees by 90%.Hindu-Muslim Unity: Gandhi used the platform to advocate for Hindu-Muslim unity, which was essential to the broader freedom movement.
- Social and Economic Upliftment: Gandhi also focused on issues like sanitation, town planning, and the use of cows for economic upliftment of farmers, with a specific stance on cow protection. He stressed that his advocacy for cow protection was not linked to religious conversion or violence against Muslims. He praised the sanitation volunteers, noting that 40 out of 70 were Brahmins, emphasising social service across castes. He criticized the session’s excessive expenditure on VIPs and called for equal treatment of all members in future sessions.
- Cultural Significance: The session was marked by notable musical performances, including by Hindustani maestro Vishnu Digambar Paluskar and young Gangubai Hangal, along with the Kannada song “Udayavagali Namma Chaluva Kannada Nadu.”
- Legacy of the Session: The Pampa Sarovara well, dug for the session, continues to supply water to parts of south Belagavi.
Key Sessions of the Indian National Congress
- 1885: First Session in Bombay, presided by W.C. Banerjee – Formation of the Indian National Congress.
- 1886: Second Session in Calcutta, presided by Dadabhai Naoroji.
- 1887: Third Session in Madras, presided by Syed Badruddin Tyabji – First Muslim President.
- 1888: Fourth Session in Allahabad, presided by George Yule – First English President.
- 1896: Calcutta – National Song ‘Vande Mataram’ sung by Rabindranath Tagore.
- 1901: Calcutta – First appearance of Gandhiji on the Congress platform.
- 1905: Benaras – Formal proclamation of the Swadeshi Movement. Held under the presidency of Gopal Krishna Gokhale.
- 1906: Calcutta – President Dadabhai Naoroji – Resolutions on Swaraj, Boycott, Swadeshi & National Education.
- 1907: Surat – President Rash Bihari Ghosh – Split between Moderates and Extremists.
- 1916: Lucknow – President A.C. Majumdar – Unity between Moderates and Extremists; Lucknow Pact with Muslim League.
- 1917: Calcutta – President Annie Besant – First Woman President of Congress.
- 1919: Amritsar – President Motilal Nehru – Support for Khilafat Movement.
- 1920: Calcutta – President Lala Lajpat Rai – Gandhi moves Non-cooperation resolution.
- 1924: Belgaum – President Mahatma Gandhi – Only session presided over by Gandhi.
- 1927: Madras – President Dr. M.A. Ansari – Resolutions against Simon Commission and for Purna Swaraj.
- 1929: Lahore – President Jawaharlal Nehru – Resolution on Poorna Swaraj; Civil Disobedience movement launched.
- 1931: Karachi – President Vallabhbhai Patel – Resolutions on Fundamental Rights and National Economic Programme.
- 1936: Lucknow – President Jawaharlal Nehru – Shift towards socialist ideas.
- 1938: Haripura – President Subhas Chandra Bose – National Planning Committee formed.
- 1939: Tripuri – President Rajendra Prasad – Bose re-elected but resigns; Forward Bloc formed.
- 1940: Ramgarh – President Abul Kalam Azad – Civil Disobedience movement postponed.
1946: Meerut – President J.B. Kripalani – Last session before Independence