Annie Besant, Irish activist in London, fought for the causes she thought were right, such as, women’s rights, secularism, birth control, Fabian socialism and workers’ rights. In 1893, Besant became a part of the Theosophical Society and came to India. The society is based in Chennai and is known as the Theosophical Society, Adyar. Besant spent most of her time on the betterment of society and even towards India’s freedom struggle. Annie Besant went on to establish the All India Home Rule League on 1st August 1916, which was a political organization which aimed at self-government, termed as “Home Rule”. The league wanted to secure for India the statue of a dominion within the British Empire, such as countries like Australia, Canada, South Africa, New Zealand and Newfoundland then. Besant’s league had an All India character, but was founded on Besant’s Theosophical contacts; it reached its zenith in year’s time with 27,000 members. The Home Rule League organized discussions and lectures and set up reading rooms, also distributing pamphlets educating people of what they sought to achieve through this movement. Members of the league were powerful orators and petitions of thousands of Indians were submitted to the British authorities.
The philosophy of the league was a combination of theosophy, social reform, ancient Hindu wisdom and the claims of achievement of the West which had already been anticipated by Hindu Rishis many years before they happened. The league influenced a lot of people by its philosophy, primarily because the Brahmo Samaj and the Arya Samaj had not reached the majority by then. A lot of young men groomed by the home rule movement went on to become future leaders in Indian politics, namely Satyamuri of Chennai, Jitendralal Banerji of Kolkata, Jawaharlal Nehru and Khaliquzzaman of Allahabad, Jamunadas Dwarkadas and Indulal Yajnik, among others.
The popularity of the Home Rule League began declining with the coming of the Satyagraha Movement by Mahatma Gandhi. By 1920 the Home Rule League elected Gandhi as its President and within a year from then it would merge into the Indian National Congress forming a united political front.
Reference:
http://www.mapsofindia.com/on-this-day/1-august-1916-annie-besant-starts-the-home-rule-league
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