Why did Mahatma Gandhi consider the salt tax more oppressive than other taxes?
Mahatma Gandhi considered the salt tax more oppressive than other taxes because it was a fourfold curse on the people. It deprived them of a valuable village industry, involved wanton destruction of natural salt that nature produced in abundance, and imposed an unheard-of tax of more than 1,000 per cent on a starving population.
Unlike other taxes, the salt tax targeted a vital necessity. Salt was indispensable in every Indian household, yet people were forbidden from making it even for domestic use. The government destroyed natural salt it could not sell profitably, preventing people from using what nature produced freely. This wicked policy made the salt tax uniquely oppressive.
Explanation
The answer draws directly from Gandhi's writings in the textbook where he explains the 'fourfold curse' of the salt monopoly. The key points are: (1) destruction of village industry, (2) wanton destruction of natural salt, (3) excessive taxation exceeding 1,000%, and (4) taxing a vital necessity while preventing domestic production. The textbook emphasizes that salt was indispensable in every household, making this tax particularly oppressive compared to others.