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HISTORY

The Claim

Mahatma Gandhi renounced a Knighthood in response to the Jallianwala Bagh massacre of 1919.

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The Short Version

This claim confuses two historical figures and two distinct British honors. It was Rabindranath Tagore — not Mahatma Gandhi — who renounced a knighthood in protest of the 1919 Jallianwala Bagh massacre. Gandhi held the Kaiser-i-Hind medal, an entirely different civilian honor, which he returned in 1920 as part of the broader Non-Cooperation Movement. The claim is wrong on both the person and the nature of the honor.

Caveats

  • Gandhi never held a knighthood; he held the Kaiser-i-Hind medal, a categorically different British honor. Conflating the two is a factual error.
  • The knighthood renunciation in response to Jallianwala Bagh was performed by Rabindranath Tagore in May 1919, not by Gandhi.
  • Gandhi's return of the Kaiser-i-Hind medal occurred in 1920 during the Non-Cooperation Movement, driven by multiple causes including but not limited to the Jallianwala Bagh massacre.

The Receipts

  1. Jallianwala Bagh: A turning point in the Freedom struggle under ...

    Press Information Bureau (PIB), Government of India

  2. [PDF] rabindranath tagore's “letter renouncing knighthood” in 1919 british ...

    Columbia University Libraries Journals

  3. Jallianwala Bagh Massacre: 107 Years of Remembrance, Resistance, and Resolve

    visionias.in

  4. Ministry of Tourism presents4th Independence Day themed Webinar- Jallianwala Bagh: A turning point in the Freedom struggle under Dekho Apna Desh Series - PIB

    PIB

  5. Who renounced his knighthood title after 'Jallianwala Bagh' massacre? - Testbook

    testbook.com

  6. Jallianwala Bagh Massacre: 107 Years of Remembrance, Resistance, and Resolve

    Drishti IAS

  7. April 2019 marks the 100 years anniversary of Rowlatt Satyagraha which was started by Mahatma Gandhi in 1919. - Drishti IAS

    Drishti IAS

  8. Regarding the aftermath of the Jallianwala Bagh massacre and the withdrawal of the Satyagraha, consider the following statements

    ForumIAS

  9. Fact-check: Did Gandhi renounce knighthood after Jallianwala Bagh?

    The Hindu

  10. Jallianwala Bagh Massacre 1919 - Drishti IAS

    drishtiias.com

+ 9 more sources — see the full list on Lenz

Filed Under

Jallianwala Bagh MassacreMahatma GandhiMamata BanerjeeWest Bengal

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