dec 26, 1907 - Surat Split in INC 1907

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Ultimately, RasBehari Ghosh became the president.

Pretext: There was much public debate and disagreement between the moderate
and the revolutionary nationalists. The latter wanted to extend the Swadeshi
and Boycott movement from Bengal to the rest of the country, and to extend
the boycott to every form of association with the colonial government. The
moderates wanted to confine the Boycott movement to Bengal and even
there, to limit it to the boycott of foreign goods. There was a tussle between
the two groups for the presidentship of the National Congress for that year
(1906). In the end, Dadabhai Naoroji, respected by all nationalists as a great
patriot, was chosen as a compromise. Dadabhai electrified the nationalist
ranks by openly declaring in his presidential address that the goal of the
Indian national movement was “‘self-government’ or Swaraj like that of the
United Kingdom or the Colonies.”

The moderate leaders, having
captured the machinery of the Congress, excluded the more aggressive
elements from it.


The 1907 INC meeting was to be held in Nagpur. The Extremists wanted leaders were not released till that date. Some of the new extremists came into being with the same policy of prior extremists. The Moderates supported Rash Bihari Ghosh. Gopal Krishna Gokhale moved the meeting place from Nagpur to Surat fearing that in Nagpur, Bal Gangadhar Tilak would win. The partition of Bengal drove the rise of extremism in INC.

An INC meeting was shifted from Nagpur to Surat. Since Surat was in the home province of Bal Gangadhar Tilak, he could not preside over the meeting. But what outraged the extremists was that he was not even given permission to speak. This led to a violent altercation between the two factions and the meeting being cancelled.

In 1907 the Surat session was held at the bank of the Tapti river in Surat. The Extremist camp was led by Lal Bal Pal and the moderate camp was led by Gopal Krishna Gokhle. Here congress met in an atmosphere of anger and resentment. Dr. Rash Behari Ghosh was elected in the session but extremists had an objection to this election. Initially the extremists protested against the election but soon they accepted Dr. Rash Behari Ghosh as the president and offered to cooperate. But the session was suspended. Congress got split.

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