India

The Indian national flag, adopted by the INC in 1931 and still in use today.

India, known formally as the Republic of India is a regional and influential South Asian power located in the Indian subcontinent. Receiving independence in the 1930s, it is very young yet harbors a great deal of potential. It borders Khudastan and Khalistan to the West, Bengal to the east and Nepal to the north.

# **History:**

## **Aftermath of the Cairo War, growing unrest in the 1920s**

The Cairo War, despite thousands of Indians hoping that it would bring change to the subcontinent, and ultimately that it would give India the opportunity to receive independence, would see the opposite effect occur. During the Cairo War, the British Empire suffered a great deal of inner strife and upheaval, especially in India, inspired by the successful Egyptian uprising in Cairo. As the war went onward, many Indian soldiers, who were mostly serving in the Pacific and in the last few months of conflict, serving in their homeland against Afghanistan and Persia by the end of the war began to mutiny, tired of serving in the Great War and, in their point of view, another pointless war. However, this mutiny was not taken lightly by both British soldiers, officers and generals alike and most men who mutinied were severely punished. These stories began surfacing from person-to-person until the whole of India caught wind of these abuses, resulting in massive demonstrations in New Delhi, Amritsar and Bombay.

As the British, already having their hands tied in the Cairo War proved ineffective at quelling unrest in India as few British officers and generals remained in the Raj. Eventually these uprisings would be taken down, but it would come at a cost of the entire of India's loyalty. In Amritsar in July of 1920, Sikhs protested in the city against the brutal treatment against Sikh soldiers at the hand of the British. Further outrage was caused when rumors emerged that Hindu soldiers were also helping abuse Sikh soldiers, and in this increased outrage Sikh nationalists flooded Amritsar, demanding an independent Sikh state. After 9 days on July 11 it seemed like this protest which turned into a riot could very well transform into a rebellion, resulting in many British officers panicking. In the end, British general (WIP) was tasked with crushing the uprising. On July 22nd, he entered Amritsar with his army of loyal Hindu soldiers and from the very start wanted to crush the uprising with no mercy. He did just that, and after 5 days the city was once again under full Raj control, at the expense of 200 Sikh civilians, stirring up anti-British sentiment across the whole of India. With the uprising crushed, British officer (WIP) was given the task of killing off all resistance in India. Because of his ferocity, many Indians fled the cities for their lives after Amritsar, and when he entered Bombay or New Delhi to crush the riots in the city he was met with little resistance. Still, anti-British sentiment was at its height, and the British Raj could not be fully pacified until February of 1921 even months after peace was secured in the Treaty of Valletta.

In spite of the Raj's successful pacification of its land and people, what the British didn't realize was that due to the harsh flattening of Indian mutinies and riots, Indian society would be entrenched with a new passion for nationalism and pro-independence movements. It got even worse, as back in London the government, in order to ensure no anti-British sentiment may cause mayhem in British India harshly clamped down on its Indian population. Reprisals and brutality at the hands of the colonial army dramatically increased, using the excuse "flush out any resistance" to do so. But it was a recurring cycle: The British reprisals resulted in anti-British sentiment which resulted in anti-British violence which developed into British reprisals, so on and so forth. The Raj stayed like this for the better part of the late 1920s, with many movements, including the Indian National Congress forced underground and becoming increasingly radical from being a centrist ideology to veering towards the left and radical socialism.

However, the 1927 Great Crash completely overturned Raj society. Agricultural prices plummeted, thousands were forced out of their jobs as well as major amounts of credit contraction. The crash only strengthened nationalism among the Indian populations, who believed that the only reason the crash spread to India was because of its colonial status in the faltering British Empire. For the first time in years anti-colonial sentiment ran rampant as protests filled the streets demanding an end to British rule in India. As usual, the British colonial forces and any loyalist Indian forces clamped down on protestors resulting in civilian deaths. This time the British government was even less inclined to reach an agreement with the Indian population, especially the INC which radicalized more and more people towards socialism. In this vein after the protests, which began in November were gone by January, 1928, prominent socialist, nationalist and republican forces met together in Bombay, known as the Indian Independence Congress. The congress lasted about 1 week, but it would be vital in the coming years for India as the congress laid the foundation for a united front, ranging from socialists, syndicalists, liberals, nationalists, and even autocratic populists. The only thing that united them was the disdain for the Raj and the longing for Indian independence. After the congress the INC would effectively be dissolved in every way but name, as the INC would be the spearhead for the united front and would grow after to become the biggest threat to British colonialism in India. At the moment, the INC did not pose a major threat to the British Raj, and it was only when the British Election Crisis occurred that the INC found their moment to fully liberate all of India from the clutches of British imperialism.

## **Indian turmoil and civil war**

In October of 1931, British elections allowed Oswald Mosely to become Prime Minister, while in Scotland the Scottish Socialist Republic won by a landslide victory. Mosely then declared the elections illegitimate, resulting in Scotland ceding from the British Empire. The violence in the British Isles soon would be known as the British Civil War. The INC and the millions living in the Indian subcontinent waited anxiously for news from the Scottish secession, but for most the 1931 election was the last straw. Mosely, an autocratic populist would not allow India any autonomy and would impose his idea of English superiority on the country. Soon after Scotland ceded, British Africa lay in turmoil as Africans took up arms in their respective countries. In no more than 2 months British Africa would be non-existent. As the British were forced out of Africa, the violence in the British Raj reached a fever pitch in November. On November 11th, the British Raj began forcefully conscripting males about the age of 18 for the Isles, but in most cases, it was only added fuel to the fire of Indian nationalism. The Raj was already tearing at the seams, but this forceful conscription pushed most over the edge. Fighting broke out across hundreds of villages and towns, as the people tried to defend themselves against the British. In some cases however, it was unsuccessful as the British colonial army raised 5 villages to the ground, killing an estimated 5-10,000 people. Naturally people were furious, but on December 5th the continent would change forever, as in Hyderabad, a city ravaged by fighting, the INC delivered the Indian declaration of independence. This news was all it took to force the remaining loyalists out of the country, as the INC in front of a crowd of people rallied the entire population of India towards the revolutionary cause. The message spread like wildfire, and it launched the short period of the Indian Civil War.

For the next several months towns and villages saw Indian guerrilla forces liberate themselves as any loyalist forces were too low in morale to fight, and any manpower capable for battle in the Raj was moved to the Isles for the civil war. As such it was there was a major power vacuum in the country, allowing Muslims and Sikhs to rise up some time later. In the span of two years, British South Asia would collapse in its entirety. Muslims in British Pashtunistan declared their independence as did Muslims in Bengal and western India. 2 months into the war and the Burmese also issue their declaration of independence as parts of southern Burma fall into rebel hands. 4 months later Indian rebels captured New Delhi and upon hearing this Mosely was forced to sue for peace with India with added pressure from parliament, who wanted peace and no fighting. In the Treaty of Bombay, the British recognize the current political situation in the subcontinent and in Burma. As for the remaining states, they all recognize each other and their territorial integrity which helped calm down the public who were afraid that war between the newly independent Khudastan and Bengal would break out. Thankfully, nothing came of these fears.

## **Independence and struggles as a new state**

In March of 1933 the INC announced nationwide elections to be held. Any an all persons above 21 are eligible to vote, and millions turned up in the ballots to caste their pick. Several people ran for the president all across the political spectrum, from autocratic populist Subhas Chandra Bose to syndicalist Jawaharlal Nehru, but in the end the people voted on socialist politician Jawaharlal Nehru. Serving in politics since 1912, and even served as president of the Indian National Congress once in 1919. After the Cairo War and brutal repressions began, he soon adopted sympathetic views towards socialism and ran for president under the guise of ending the caste system, bringing equal rights to all along with anti-colonialist rhetoric, which made him very popular. In late April he was inaugurated as the first president of India.

Once inaugurated, Nehru began plans to socialize India. Not wanting to be as radical as factions like communists or syndicalists, Nehru after 6 months of being in office finally solved the ongoing dispute over what to do with non-Indian natives (E.I European settlers). Nehru thus created new laws which imposed higher taxation on settlers and most controversially, he ordered the immediate seizure of their wealth and property as the Europeans, even after 6 months still harbored more riches than most in society. With different assets seized he used them to fund different projects, helping parts of the lower class as well as opening functioning schools, railroads and highways. Although more people came to his support it also caused a split in Indian society, as the wealthy class feared their possessions would be taken as well, began funding more conservative Indian parties and conservative sectors of the INC.

Most in India agree that Nehru has grown increasingly radical towards the left which, although it has strengthened Indian communism, anarchism and syndicalism there are many people who feel out of touch with his behavior, as his opposition grows every day. The Indian constitution had set in place that elections are held every 4 years. The next election is set in March of 1937 with the general public anxious for the results, as conservative and leftist parties continually grow, opposing one and another as some people fear a civil war could break out.