Rowlatt Act: Provisions and Repercussions
The Rowlatt Act , passed by the Imperial Legislative Council in February 1919, gave the British government the power to imprison anyone suspected of anti-British conspiracy ideas for up to two years without trial and convict them summarily without a jury. The Rowlatt Act was called as black law . The act replaced the Defence of India Act (1915), enacted during the First World War, with a permanent statute that gave the British more power over Indians, based on the recommendation of a commission led by Justice S.A.T. Rowlatt. The Indian leaders, particularly Mahatma Gandhi, opposed the harsh legislation and organised a protest campaign culminating in the horrific Jallianwala Bagh massacre in April 1919 and the ensuing Non-Cooperation Movement. Why was Rowlatt Act imposed? The 'Anarchical and Revolutionary Crimes Act of 1919,' popularly called the 'Rowlatt Act,' was enacted by the British to deter Indians from rising against them by suppressing revolutionary groups and...