Young advocate M.K. Gandhi emerged as a successful lawyer in South Africa. He ran a flourishing law firm, but political preoccupations eventually brought his legal work to a standstill. As Johannesburg’s only successful Indian attorney, as well as one of the most prominent Indians in the country, Gandhi’s services were in great demand. He held retainers from leading Indian traders, but his office also served poorer sections of the community. A series of anti-Indian laws brought him many clients. He built a lucrative practice which, at its peak, brought him £5 000 a year, but as passive resistance intensified, he was increasingly drawn into the political arena, to the detriment of the practice. Having refused to register under the Transvaal Asiatic Registration Act, Gandhi and twenty-six of his comrades were summoned to appear before the magistrate, Mr H. H. Jordan. The court ordered Gandhi to leave Transvaal within forty-eight hours. He did not do so and on 10 January 1908 he was arrested and again brought before Mr Jordan. Inside the crowded courtroom were hundreds of Indian as well as fellow legal practitioners.

While Mahatma Gandhi went to South Africa for a temporary assignment, he ended up staying for 21 years because of certain incidents that he encountered. The first, and most significant incident that he encountered was soon after he reached South Africa. He was travelling by train, and despite having a valid first class ticket, the conductor ordered him to shift to the third class compartment, solely due to his skin colour. On his noncompliance, he was thrown out of the train. He had to spend an entire night in the waiting room, where he was suffering from the extremely cold weather. He pondered over the situation and was considering going back to India, but instead, decided to stay and fight against racism. This incident thus was the decisive moment in his life, and from that very day, he resolutely began his non-violent fight against racism.

When he visited Durban Courthouse, the local Magistrate asked him to remove his turban. Removing turban was a sign of disrespect in India, so he refused to do the same and left the court. This incident was published in a local newspaper and grab the attention to Gandhi's strong sense of personal dignity.