Uprisings in villages that unsettled the British during Quit India movement

As the fight to end the colonial regime engulfed the length and breadth of the country during the Quit India movement, some villages in Karnataka sprang a surprise on the British, when they collectively plunged into the freedom struggle.

The villages of Morab and Byahatti in Dharwad district and Koganur in Gadag district, with a population of 1,500 to 2,000 each were in the limelight for their stiff resistance to the British. Each house in these villages had a member joining the protests.

In 1942, the Quit India movement ignited the urge for freedom among youth.

"Students from these villages had joined the freedom struggle, inspired by Mahatma Gandhi's clarion call, 'karo ya maro' (do or die). The arrest of Gandhi and other leaders in Bombay and the declaration of Congress as an illegal body had enraged them," said Shivanand Shettar, professor of Gandhian Studies, Karnatak University, Dharwad.

During the protests held in Dharwad and Hubballi, local leaders were arrested too. This resulted in even more youth taking part in the resistance.

On September 15, in a single night, multiple railway stations were set on fire. A month later, a group of 200 people from different villages surrounded the house of the acting village chief in Morab, and demanded his resignation.

The village of Morab, in particular, saw a significant uprising.

"The protesters declared Morab as a 'free village' and cut a trench across the road leading to the village. They covered the trench with twigs and soil, based on the model of the khedda system (a method used to capture elephants), to prevent the police vehicles from entering the 'freed' village," Shettar said.

As G C Patil and Basavaraj Kunchur write in their book, Kidikaarida Morab, the leaders of Morab had become a challenge for the British government, which was intent on containing their activities and putting them behind bars. They were soon arrested, and a total of 124 people from the villages were detained. After months, the Dharwad court declared them innocent and they were released.

Along with the people of Morab, freedom fighters from Koganur stood up to the oppressive regime.

Some were shot dead, others seriously injured in firing by the British officials. The authorities even imprisoned the pregnant wife of one of the freedom fighters.

The arrest of their leaders motivated the youth of rural Karnataka participate in the freedom struggle.

"The people of Morab played an important role in the freedom struggle. Till date, the whole village remembers the names of all the fighters and pays tribute to them every year," said Shettar.

The bold and persistent resistance of their ancestors inspires the youth of these villages till today.