ABSTRACT
The non-cooperation-Khilafat phase of Indian politics (1919-21) represented an unprecedented scale of collaboration between the two largest religious communities of India – the Hindus and the Muslims. However, by 1922, after a sudden withdrawal of the movement, changes began to occur. The void created by the nationalistic politics was overtaken by competing religious sentiments. The volatile context was further fuelled by the shudhi (purification) and sangathan (organisation) movements of the Arya Samaj in north India. The propaganda was equally and strongly reciprocated by the Muslims of the region. Printing press became an important site for competitive communalism. It turned into a bitter war of tracts and pamphlets which not only involved criticism of each other’s faith but went as far as to vilify prominent figures of the other religion. 1 It was in this context that the pamphlet Rangila Rasul (The Merry Sage) first appeared.
