What was the Khilafat Movement?

The politically-conscious Muslims were critical of the treatment meted out to the Ottoman (or Turkish) Empire by Britain and its allies who had partitioned it and taken away Thrace from Turkey. This was in violation to the earlier pledge of the British Premiers. The Muslims also felt that the position of the Sultan of Turkey, who was also regarded by many as the Caliph or the religious head of the Muslims, should not be undermined. A Khilafat Committee was soon formed under the leadership of the Ali brothers, Maulana Azad, Hakim Ajmal Khan, and Hasrat Mohani, and a country-wide agitation was organised. The All-India Khilafat Conference held at Delhi in November 1919 decided to withdraw all cooperation from the Government if their demands were not met. A new stream came into the nationalist movement with the Khilafat movement.