Why is it said that Gandhiji played a major role in calming the riots?

           The violence between Hindus and Muslims swept India in the late 1940s. A situation close to a civil war prevailed in north, north-west, and north-east India.

          It appeared as if the Congress leaders had become fed up with the communal violence, and the British policy of inactivity. The only way out of this communal and constitutional deadlock was the acceptance of the Muslim League’s demand in some form or the other. Gandhiji was disappointed at the response of the members of the League.

          Gandhi started his journey to Noakhali, Bengal, on 6th November. For four months, he stayed in Noakhali and visited all the areas of dispute to restore peace and communal harmony. He held prayer meetings, and he preached courage, forgiveness, and truth. Gandhiji moved from Bengal to Bihar later.

          Gandhiji appeared as a peacemaker in the villages of Bihar. The killings lasted for one month. Gandhiji’s charismatic presence calmed the people, but the demand for a separate nation-state was heard from all parts of the country.