What was one main feature of the Rowlatt Act of 1919?
- AIt allowed the government to arrest and jail people without trial in a court
- BIt ended all press censorship in India
- CIt gave all Indians the right to vote
- DIt made English and Hindi the official languages of India
Show answer and explanation
Correct answer: (a) It allowed the government to arrest and jail people without trial in a court
Explanation
The Rowlatt Act (1919), the Anarchical and Revolutionary Crimes Act, was based on the report of the Sedition Committee under Sir Sidney Rowlatt. It allowed the government to arrest people and keep them in jail without trial for up to two years, and to try political cases in special courts with no appeal. Indians called it "no *vakil*, no *dalil*, no *appeal*".
Gandhi called a nationwide satyagraha against it (6 April 1919), the first all-India movement he led. The Jallianwala Bagh massacre followed on 13 April 1919.