Who remarked, South Africa was “the making of the Mahatma”, in reference to M.K. Gandhi?
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 4
The correct answer is Option (4) → Chandran Devanesan
Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi returned to India in January 1915 after about two decades abroad, spent mostly in South Africa. There he first forged the method of non-violent protest called satyagraha, promoted harmony between religions, and made upper-caste Indians aware of their unfair treatment of low castes and women. That is why the historian Chandran Devanesan remarked that South Africa was “the making of the Mahatma”.
Note: A same/similar question was asked in CUET (UG) in the papers below.
| 2026 | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 |
| 29-05 S2 | 03-06 S2* | – | 09-06 S3* 22-06 S3* | – |
* A similar question.
NCERT (2025-26): “1. A Leader Announces Himself … In January 1915, Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi returned to his homeland after two decades of residence abroad. These years had been spent for the most part in South Africa, where he went as a lawyer, and in time became a leader of the Indian community in that territory. As the historian Chandran Devanesan has remarked, South Africa was ‘the making of the Mahatma’. It was in South Africa that Mahatma Gandhi first forged the distinctive techniques of non-violent protest known as satyagraha, first promoted harmony between religions, and first alerted upper-caste Indians to their discriminatory treatment of low castes and women.…” |