Explain three different kinds of sources through which we come to know about Gandhiji. Give any two problems faced while interpreting them.

(a) We come to know about Gandhiji through his writings and speeches and that of his contemporaries. Mahatma Gandhi also regularly published in his journal, Harijan letters that other wrote to him. Nehru edited a collection of letters written to him during the national movement and published ‘A Bunch of Old Letters’.

(b) Another vital source is government records for the British kept a close watch on Gandhi’s activities. The letters and reports written by policemen and other officials are now accessible to the public.

(c) Yet another important sources were the contemporary newspapers published in English as well as the vernaculars which tracked Gandhiji’s movements and reported on his activities. They also stated what the common man thought of him.

(d) But newspaper accounts could be prejudiced or biased. This was because they were published by people who had their own political opinions and world views.

(e) These views shaped what was published and the way events were reported. Accounts published in a London newspaper would be different from a report in an Indian nationalist paper. For example the progress of the salt march can be traced through an American news magazine- The Time. At first this magazine scorned Gandhiji’s physical appearance and were sceptical of the salt march reached its destination. But as the march gathered a massive following, The Time magazine changed its attitude declaring that the salt march had made the British authorities very worried, the magazine went on to salute Gandhiji as a saint and a great statesman.

(f) Moreover official accounts often expressed what the higher officals wanted to believe.

(g) While being aware of the possibilities of a rebellion occurring, they would still like to pretend that nothing was amiss.

(h) A study of the fortnightly reports of the Dandi March shows that the Home Department was unwilling to believe that Gandhiji’s actions had evoked any enthusiastic response from the masses. The march was seen as a drama or a desperate effort to mobilise people who were unwilling to rise against the British.