Mahatma Gandhi’s Speech.

Mr. Gandhi, in supporting the non-co-operation resolution of Mr. C.R. Das, spoke in Hindi for a few minutes, after which he spoke in English, in the course of which he referred to Moulana Hasrat Mohani’s amendment for deletion of conscience clause and said there had been absolutely no violation of obligation. “It is a misconception and misconstruction of the purport of the resolution. The Congress resolution does not bind a man’s conscience and is never intended to supersede a man’s conscience. I have never made a fetish of the mandate of the Congress and even now, although I feel that the majority are of the opinion that I hold, make bold to say that I shall never be party to making the Congress itself a fetish or its mandate a fetish. I shall always reserve the right of conscience, whenever that conscience tells me that it is against the mandate of the Congress. If a single Mahomedan says that it cannot be a matter of conscience with a boy under sixteen, that he has no right to think for himself, he has no right, because these are the implications, he has no right to consult his parents, all well for him. The Congress will not prevent him, but he will not say this in the name of the Congress. Similarly with reference to the boys of twelve or under sixteen, you must leave alone boys under sixteen, because they are of a tender age. That is the practices we have hitherto adopted; and that must remain the practice if we want to stand justified before the bar of public conscience and before the bar of civilised opinion. If there is a boy of twelve years, who finds that it is against his conscience to stay in these schools, there is no power on earth that can prevent him from doing according to his conscience.”

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