Despite repressive measures, nationalist newspapers grew in numbers in all parts of India.
They reported on colonial misrule and encouraged nationalist activities. Attempts to throttle nationalist criticism provoked militant protest.
This in turn led to a renewed cycle of persecution and protests. When Punjab revolutionaries were deported in 1907, Balgangadhar Tilak wrote with great sympathy about them in his Kesari. This led to his imprisonment in 1908, provoking in turn widespread protests all over India.