During 1921 and 1922 the Non-Cooperation Movement gained
momentum.
→ Thousands of students left government-controlled schools and
colleges
→ Many lawyers gave up their practises
→ British titles were surrendered
→ Legislatures were boycotted
→ People lit public bonfires of foreign cloth.
In most cases, the calls for non-cooperation were related to local
grievances.
→ In Kheda, Gujrat, Patidar peasants organised non-violent campaigns
against the high land revenue demand of the British.
→ In coastal Andhra and interior Tamil Nadu, liquor shops were picketed.
→ In the Guntur district of Andhra Pradesh, tribals and poor peasants
protested against the colonial state for restricting their use of forest
resources. They staged a number of “forest satyagrahas”, sometimes
sending their cattle into forests without paying grazing fees.
→ In Punjab, the Akali agitation of the Sikhs sought to remove corrupt
mahants - supported by the British - from their gurudwaras.
→ In Assam, tea garden labourers demanded a big increase in their
wages. When the demands were not met, they left the British-owned
plantations.
People thought Gandhiji as messiah, someone who could help them
overcome their misery and poverty. Peasants believed that he would help
them in their fight against zamindars, while agricultural labourers felt
that he would provide them with land.