Question
Which one of the following statements about the Eka Movement and Bardoli Satyagraha is correct?
A
The Eka Movement was throughout supported and organized by the Congress while Bardoli Satyagraha was initially independent of Congress influence and was only in the last stages supported by the Congress.
B
The Eka Movement was provided leadership by the taluqdars of Awadh, whereas the Bardoli Satyagraha was a movement of the landless labourers.
C
The Bardoli Satyagraha was a campaign against the enhancement of land revenue, while the Eka Movement was a protest against excessive extraction of rents.
D
The Eka Movement was located in the Varanasi and Mirzapur districts of the present-day U.P., while the Bardoli Satyagraha took place in Saurashtra.
The Two Movements — Side-by-Side
🔵 Eka Movement
Unity Movement · 1921–1922
Location: Hardoi, Bahraich, Sitapur, Barabanki — districts of Awadh, present-day UP
Started by: Congress + Khilafat movement (jointly) — November 1921
Later led by: Madari Pasi — a low-caste (Pasi/Dalit) leader who took over when Congress withdrew
Who were the protesters? Peasant tenants — not taluqdars. Taluqdars were actually the exploiters here
✅ Cause: Excessive rents — often exceeding 50% of recorded rent, extracted by taluqdars/zamindars and oppressive thekedars (rent collectors)
Congress connection: Initially supported, then Congress WITHDREW when movement turned violent under Madari Pasi
End: Suppressed by British authorities by March 1922
Each Option — Detailed Analysis
Option A — ✗ Wrong
Congress relation is exactly reversed
Option A says Eka was throughout supported by Congress, and Bardoli was initially independent. Exactly backwards. Eka was initially by Congress but Congress WITHDREW when Madari Pasi turned it violent. Bardoli was Congress-led from inception with Patel at the helm.
Congress relationships swapped
Option B — ✗ Wrong
Leadership and participants both wrong
Says Eka was led by taluqdars — completely false. Taluqdars were the oppressors, not the leaders. Eka was a peasant movement against taluqdars. Also, Bardoli was NOT a movement of landless labourers — it was landed Patidar farmers protesting a tax hike.
Both halves of the statement are false
Option C — ✓ Correct
Both causes correctly stated
Bardoli = land revenue enhancement (22% hike by Bombay Presidency). Eka = excessive extraction of rents (rents often 50%+ above recorded levels, extracted by taluqdars/thekedars). Both descriptions are factually precise.
✓ Factually accurate on both movements
Option D — ✗ Wrong
Both locations are wrong
Says Eka was in Varanasi and Mirzapur — wrong. Eka was in Hardoi, Bahraich, Sitapur, Barabanki (all in Awadh region). Says Bardoli was in Saurashtra — wrong. Bardoli taluka is in Surat district, Gujarat — not Saurashtra.
Both locations incorrectly stated
🔑 The Key Distinction — Rent vs Land Revenue
Rent (Eka Movement): Money paid by tenant farmers to zamindars/taluqdars/landlords for the right to cultivate their land. A private transaction between landlord and peasant. Thekedars (middlemen) often extracted far more than official rates.
Land Revenue (Bardoli Satyagraha): A government tax assessed on land — paid directly to the colonial state (Bombay Presidency). The Bombay government hiked this assessment by 22% in 1927 despite crop failures.
Same pain, different oppressor: Eka peasants suffered from private landlord exploitation. Bardoli peasants suffered from state tax policy. Both were peasant movements — but against very different systems.
Land Revenue (Bardoli Satyagraha): A government tax assessed on land — paid directly to the colonial state (Bombay Presidency). The Bombay government hiked this assessment by 22% in 1927 despite crop failures.
Same pain, different oppressor: Eka peasants suffered from private landlord exploitation. Bardoli peasants suffered from state tax policy. Both were peasant movements — but against very different systems.
Comparative Facts — Quick Reference
| Parameter | Eka Movement | Bardoli Satyagraha |
| Year | 1921–1922 | 1928 |
| Location | Hardoi, Bahraich, Sitapur, Barabanki — Awadh, UP | Bardoli taluka, Surat district, Gujarat |
| Leader | Initially Congress + Khilafat; then Madari Pasi (low-caste) | Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel (Congress leader) |
| Who protested | Peasant tenants — low caste, tribal cultivators | Landed Patidar/Kunbi farmers — NOT landless labourers |
| Cause | Excessive rents — often 50%+ above recorded rate | 22% enhancement in land revenue assessment by Bombay Presidency |
| Oppressor | Private landlords — taluqdars, zamindars, thekedars | Colonial government — Bombay Presidency |
| Congress role | Initially involved, then WITHDREW when Madari Pasi turned violent | Congress-led from inception — Patel, Congress committees |
| Method | Militant tactics — rent strikes, oaths (Eka pledge), later violence | Non-violent — no-tax campaign, Gandhian Satyagraha |
| Outcome | Suppressed by 1922; Madari Pasi never arrested | Success — Maxwell-Broomfield Committee; government conceded |
| Connected to | Non-Cooperation Movement (1920–22) | Build-up to Civil Disobedience Movement (1930) |
| Sources | Bipan Chandra; Gyan Pandey; Wikipedia — Eka Movement | Bipan Chandra; NCERT Class 12; Wikipedia — Bardoli Satyagraha |
UPSC Prelims — Has This Been Asked Before?
UPSC Prelims (Various years)
Bardoli Satyagraha has been tested multiple times — location (Surat district, not Saurashtra), leader (Patel), cause (land revenue hike), and the title “Sardar” given to Patel by women of Bardoli. Classic UPSC target topic.
Key facts: Surat district · Patel · 22% land revenue hike · 1928 · “Sardar” title
UPSC Prelims (Various years)
Eka Movement tested as part of Non-Cooperation era peasant movements alongside Kisan Sabha, Awadh peasant uprisings. Madari Pasi as a low-caste leader taking over from Congress is a frequently tested distinguishing fact.
Key facts: Awadh UP · Madari Pasi · Rent grievances · Congress withdrew · 1921–22
UPSC Prelims 2026 ← THIS QUESTION
First time UPSC directly compared both movements in a single question with all four options testing different aspects: Congress role (A), leadership/participants (B), cause (C), and location (D). All four options deliberately swap or misstate key facts.
Answer: (C) — causes are correctly stated; all other options contain deliberate errors
Pattern Observation
UPSC loves pairing two similar-seeming movements and asking for distinctions. Common pairings: Eka vs Awadh Kisan Sabha, Bardoli vs Champaran Satyagraha, Deccan Riots vs Indigo Revolt. Prepare each movement’s: location · leader · cause · Congress role · outcome.
Prepare: Location + Leader + Cause + Congress connection + Outcome for each movement
Memory Trick — Never Forget This
🧠 Remember It This Way
EKA = RENTS / BARDOLI = REVENUE — Two R’s, different targets. Eka = Rents (private landlord to tenant). Bardoli = Revenue (government land tax). Never mix these up.
EKA location: Hardoi, Bahraich, Sitapur, Barabanki — all in Awadh, UP. NOT Varanasi or Mirzapur. Remember “HBSB” — like a chant.
BARDOLI location: Surat district, Gujarat — NOT Saurashtra. Surat and Saurashtra both start with ‘S’ — UPSC exploits this. Bardoli = Surat. Remember: Patel = Gujarat = Surat.
Congress role: In Eka, Congress STARTED then LEFT (Madari Pasi took over, went violent). In Bardoli, Congress LED FROM START TO FINISH (Patel, model Gandhian campaign). Opposite trajectories.
Leadership trap: Taluqdars were the oppressors in Eka — NOT the leaders. The leaders were peasant farmers under Madari Pasi. Option B tries to make taluqdars sound like leaders — that’s the trap.
