At the Surat Session held in 1907 the Split in the Congress became official. In this context answer the following question:

(a) What led to the split at the Surat Session?
Or
What differences were there between the early nationalists and the assertive nationalists as regards the Methods for attaining Swaraj?

(b) What repressive measures were taken by the Government to suppress the Assertive Nationalists after the Surat Split?

(a) The important developments at the Surat Session that led to the Split in the Congress were:

1. The word 'Swaraj' was uttered for the first time by any Congress President in the Kolkata Session in 1906.
2. Another remarkable feature of the Kolkata Session was that the resolutions on 'Swadeshi' and 'Boycott' were also adopted by the Congress.
3. This dearly showed that dynamism was gaining ground in the Congress.
4. Leaders having moderate political opinions, were not happy with these developments.
5. They wanted to insert a clause in the Congress Constitution that Swaraj was to be achieved through constitutional means.
6. Assertive nationalists, on the other hand, believed that unless they put strong pressure on the government, they would never achieve their objective.
7. Swadeshi and Boycott were the basic components of their programme and methods of struggle.
8. That is why the Congress got split in 1907 at Surat.

(b) The government took the following repressive measures to suppress the Assertive Nationalists after the Surat Split:

1. Since the movement for boycott of British goods was gaining ground, the Government launched a campaign of repression.
2. Bal Gangadhar Tilak was lodged in Myanmar's Mandalay prison.
3. Under the Seditious Meetings Act of 1907, the District Magistrates could prohibit the holding of meetings.
4. The Newspapers Act of 1908 was aimed at punishing those editors whose papers contained writings against British rule.
5. Rajani Palme Dutt says, "Police action was carried out with great vigour…school-children were arrested for singing national songs."
6. Such measures failed to arrest the nationalist movement. On the contrary, there grew up revolutionary groups in Bengal and Punjab.