RAS question
The Vedaranyam Salt March in Tamil Nadu during the Civil Disobedience Movement was led by:
Correct answer: (B) C. Rajagopalachari.
C. Rajagopalachari led the Vedaranyam Salt March in Tamil Nadu during the Civil Disobedience Movement.
Explanation
The Vedaranyam Salt March, also called the Vedaranyam Satyagraha, was the Madras Presidency parallel to Gandhi's Dandi March. It was modelled on the Dandi March, organised as a non-violent civil disobedience protest against the British salt tax, and led by C. Rajagopalachari, a close associate of Gandhi. The march began at Trichinopoly, moved towards the eastern coast, and culminated at Vedaranyam, where the act of collecting salt directly from the sea broke the salt law. Rajagopalachari, or Rajaji, was therefore the precise leader of this Tamil Nadu salt satyagraha rather than another southern nationalist leader.
Why the other options are wrong
- (A) T. Prakasam was not the leader of the Vedaranyam Salt March.
- (C) E.V. Ramasamy Periyar does not fit this event because C. Rajagopalachari led the Vedaranyam Salt March.
- (D) Potti Sriramulu was associated with later linguistic-state agitation, while Rajagopalachari led the Vedaranyam Salt March during the Civil Disobedience Movement.
Concept
The Civil Disobedience Movement spread through regional adaptations of the Salt Satyagraha outside Gandhi's Dandi route. RAS frequently connects national movements with their provincial leaders and local forms of protest.