Read the passage and answer the question :
The volume of information being gained daily shows how wickedly the salt tax has been designed. In order to prevent the use of salt that has not paid the tax which is at times even fourteen times its value, the Government destroys the salt it cannot sell profitably. Thus it taxes the nation's vital necessity; it prevents the public from manufacturing it and destroys what nature manufactures without effort. No adjective is strong enough for characterising this wicked dog-in-the-manger policy. From various sources I hear tales of such wanton destruction of the nation's property in all parts of India. Maunds if not tons of salt are said to be destroyed on the Konkan coast. The same tale comes from Dandi. Wherever there is likelihood of natural salt being taken away by the people living in the neighbourhood of such areas for their personal use, salt officers are posted for the sole purpose of carrying on destruction. Thus valuable national property is destroyed at national expense and salt taken out of the mouths of the people.
Which of the following is NOT True of the speeches given by Gandhi on this March to the seashore?
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 4
The correct answer is Option (4) → You will attain ‘Swaraj’ merely by repealing of the salt taxes and other taxes.
The police reports on the march reproduce the speeches Gandhiji gave at the villages on the way to the seashore.
Option (1) He called upon officials to renounce government employment. Correct statement. In these speeches he called upon local officials to renounce government employment and join the freedom struggle.
Option (2) If you are out for ‘Swaraj’, you must serve untouchables. Correct statement. At the village of Wasna he told the upper castes that if they were out for Swaraj, they must serve the untouchables and make amends for the wrongs done to them.
Option (3) For ‘Swaraj’, Hindus, Muslims, Parsis and Sikhs will have to unite. Correct statement. In the same speech he said that for Swaraj, Hindus, Muslims, Parsis and Sikhs will have to unite.
Option (4) You will attain ‘Swaraj’ merely by repealing of the salt taxes and other taxes. Incorrect statement. Gandhiji said the opposite: “You won’t get Swaraj merely by the repeal of the salt taxes or other taxes.” For him, Swaraj also needed the removal of untouchability and unity among the communities.
NCERT (2026-27): “3.1 Dandi … The progress of Gandhiji’s march to the seashore can be traced from the secret reports filed by the police officials deputed to monitor his movements. These reproduce the speeches he gave at the villages en route, in which he called upon local officials to renounce government employment and join the freedom struggle. In one village, Wasna, Gandhiji told the upper castes that ‘if you are out for Swaraj you must serve untouchables. You won’t get Swaraj merely by the repeal of the salt taxes or other taxes. For Swaraj you must make amends for the wrongs which you did to the untouchables. For Swaraj, Hindus, Muslims, Parsis and Sikhs will have to unite. These are the steps towards Swaraj.…” |