Part 1
1. The provincial governments were given more powers under the system of Dyarchy. Under this system which of the following subjects were remained under the direct control of the Governor?a. Education
b. Public Health
c. Finance
d. Local Self-Government
Answer: c
Explanation:
In 1918, Edwin Montagu, the Secretary of State, and Lord Chelmsford, the Viceroy, produced their scheme of constitutional reforms which led to the enactment of the Government of India Act of 1919. The Provincial Legislative Councils were enlarged and the majority of their members were to be elected. The provincial governments were given more powers under the system of Dyarchy. Under this system some subjects, such as finance and law and order, were called „reserved‟ subjects and remained under the direct control of the Governor; others such as education, public health, and local self-government, were called „transferred‟ subjects and were to be controlled by ministers responsible to the legislatures. This also meant that while some of the spending departments were transferred, the Governor retained complete control over the finances. The Governor could, moreover, overrule the ministers on any grounds that he considered special.
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2. In which of the following year, the Sabarmati Ashram was founded?
a. 1915
b. 1916
c. 1917
d. 1918
Answer: b
Explanation:
Gandhi returned to India in 1915 at the age of 46. He was keen to serve his country and his people. He first decided to study Indian conditions before deciding the field of his work. In 1916 he founded the Sabarmati Ashram at Ahmedabad where his friends and followers were to learn and practise the ideals of truth and non-violence.
3. Who among the following had founded the Satyagraha Sabha?
a. Mahatma Gandhi
b. Sardar Ballabhbhai Patel
c. Bal Gangadhar Tilak
d. Mohammad Ali Jauhar
Answer: a
Explanation:
Along with other nationalists, Gandhi was also aroused by the Rowlatt Act. In February 1919, he founded the Satyagraha Sabha whose members took a pledge to disobey the Act and thus to court arrest and imprisonment. Here was a new method of struggle. The nationalist movement, whether under the Moderate or Extremist leadership, had hitherto confined its struggle to agitation. Big meetings and demonstrations, refusal to cooperate with the Government, a boycott of foreign cloth and schools, or individual acts of terrorism were the only forms of political work known to the nationalists. Satyagraha immediately raised the movement to a new> higher level. Nationalists could now act in place of giving only verbal expression to their dissatisfaction and anger. The National Congress was now to become an organisation for political action.
4. Which of the following proposed separate electorate for Muslims for the first time?
a) Indian Council Act, 1892
b) Indian Council Act, 1909
c) Government of India Act, 1919
d) Government of India Act, 1935
Answer: b
Explanation:
The Indian Council Act, 1909 provided for the separate electorate for Muslims for the first time. With this, Lord Minto has been known as 'Father of Communal Electorate'. The provision for separate electorate for Muslims is strongly believed to be the cause of the partition of India in 1947.
5. Jallianwalla Bagh Massacre happened on 13 April 1919 at Amritsar, the crowd gathered to protest against the arrest of which of the following leaders?
a. Dr. Saifuddin Kitchlu
b. Dr. Satyapal
c. Both a and b
d. None of the above
Answer: c
Explanation:
The Government was determined to suppress the mass agitation. It repeatedly lathi-charged and fired upon unarmed demonstrators at Bombay, Ahmadabad, Calcutta, Delhi and other cities. Gandhiji gave a call for a mighty hartal on 6 April 1919. The people responded with unprecedented enthusiasm. The Government decided to meet the popular protest with repression, particularly in the Punjab. At this time was perpetrated one of the worst political crimes in modern history. An unarmed but large crowd had gathered on 13 April 1919 at Amritsar (in the Punjab) in the Jallianwalla Bagh, to protest against the arrest of their popular leaders, Dr. Saifuddin Kitchlu and Dr. Satyapal. General Dyer, the military commander of Amritsar, decided to terrorise the people of Amritsar into complete submission. Jallianwala Bagh was a large open space which was enclosed on three sides by buildings and had only one exit. He surrounded the Bagh (garden) with his army unit, closed the exit with his troops, and then ordered his men to shoot into the trapped crowd with rifles and machine-guns. They fired till their ammunition was exhausted. Thousands were killed and wounded.
6. Which of the following right chronological order with respect to the movements or agitations launched by Mahatma Gandhi?
a. Ahmedabad Mill Strike –Non-Cooperation-Champaran
b. Champaran-Ahmedabad Mill Strike-Non-Cooperation
c. Ahmedabad Mill Strike -Champaran-Non-Cooperation
d. Non-Cooperation -Champaran- Ahmedabad Mill Strike
Answer: b
Explanation:
Gandhi launched the Champaran satyagraha in April 1917 for the rights of indigo farmers in rural Bihar. In March 1918, under the leadership of Gandhi, there was a strike in the cotton mills in Gujarat region which revolved around the issue of plague bonus. The non-cooperation movement was launched on 1st August 1920.
7. Who among the following started the English weekly ‘New India’?
a. Mahatma Gandhi
b. Bipin Chandra Pal
c. Dada Bhai Naoroji
d. Madan Mohan Malviya
Answer: c
Explanation:
Dadabhai Naoroji, known as the Grand Old Man of India, was a Parsi intellectual, educator, cotton trader, and an early Indian political and social leader. He was a Liberal Party Member of Parliament (MP) in the United Kingdom House of Commons between 1892 and 1895, and the first Asian to be a British MP.
Naoroji is also credited with the founding of the Indian National Congress, along with A.O. Hume and Dinshaw Edulji Wacha. His book Poverty and Un-British Rule in India brought attention to the draining of India's wealth into Britain. He was also a member of the Second International along with Kautsky and Plekhanov.
8. Consider the following statements about Swami Vivekananda.
1. He founded the Ramakrishna Mission in 1897.
2. Lectures from Colombo to Almora are a book based on his various lectures.
Which of the above statement(s) is/are correct?
a. 1 only
b. 2 only
c. Both 1 and 2
d. Neither 1 nor 2
Answer: c
Explanation:
Swami Vivekananda, who was born as Narendranath Datta, was an Indian Hindu monk and a chief disciple of the 19th-century Indian mystic Ramakrishna. He founded the Ramakrishna Mission, which conducts extensive work in health care, disaster relief, rural management, tribal welfare, elementary and higher education and culture.
9. The Indian National Congress as a microscopic minority described by:
a. Lord Curzon
b. Lord Wellesley
c. Lord Dufferin
d. Lord Ripon
Answer: c
Explanation:
Lord Dufferin was the Viceroy in British India between 1884 and 1888. He initially did not take the Indian National Congress much seriously. Then, there was a blast and all of a sudden a Pamphlet appeared titled “The Rising Tide“. Another pamphlet appeared titled “An Old Man’s Home“. These were against the British in general and Lord Dufferin in particular. He called Congress as representative of “microscopic minority of India”.
10. The Montague-Chelmsford Proposals were related to:
a. Judicial reforms
b. Educational reforms
c. Constitutional reforms
d. Police reforms
Answer: c
Explanation:
The Montague-Chelmsford Proposals were given a shape of policy through the Government of India Act, 1919. The primary objective of the proposals is to increase the association of Indians in every branch of the administration and the gradual development of self-governing institutions with a view to the progressive realization of responsible government in India as an integral part of the British Empire.
Part 2
1. Consider the following statements regarding the Montagu-Chelmsford Reforms:
1. In 1918, Edwin Montagu, the Secretary of State, and Lord Chelmsford, the Viceroy, produced their scheme of constitutional reforms which led to the enactment of the Government of India Act of 1919.
2. After the scheme of constitutional reforms, the Provincial Legislative Councils were enlarged and the majority of their members were to be elected.
3. The provincial governments were given more powers under the system of Diarchy.
Which of the above statement is true?
a. 1 and 2
b. 2 and 3
c. 1 and 3
d. 1, 2 and 3
Answer: d
Explanation:
In 1918, Edwin Montagu, the Secretary of State, and Lord Chelmsford, the Viceroy, produced their scheme of constitutional reforms which led to the enactment of the Government of India Act of 1919. The Provincial Legislative Councils were enlarged and the majority of their members were to be elected. The provincial governments were given more powers under the system of Diarchy. Under this system some subjects, such as finance and law and order, were called „reserved‟ subjects and remained under the direct control of the Governor; others such as education, public health, and local self-government, were called „transferred‟ subjects and were to be controlled by ministers responsible to the legislatures.
2. Consider the following statements regarding the powers of Governor after Montagu-Chelmsford Reforms:
1. Under this system, some subjects, such as finance and law and order, were called „reserved‟ subjects and remained under the direct control of the Governor.
2. The Governor remained with partial control over the finances after Montagu-Chelmsford Reforms.
3. The Governor could, moreover, overrule the ministers on any grounds that he considered special.
Which of the above statement is true?
a. 1 and 2
b. 2 and 3
c. 1 and 3
d. 1, 2 and 3
Answer: c
Explanation:
Under this system some subjects, such as finance and law and order, were called „reserved‟ subjects and remained under the direct control of the Governor; others such as education, public health, and local self-government, were called „transferred‟ subjects and were to be controlled by ministers responsible to the legislatures. This also meant that while some of the spending departments were transferred, the Governor retained complete control over the finances. The Governor could, moreover, overrule the ministers on any grounds that he considered special. At the centre, there were to be two houses of legislature, the lower house, the Legislative Assembly, were to have 41 nominated members in a total strength of 144. The upper house, the Council of State, was to have 26 nominated and 34 elected members. The legislature had virtually no control over the Governor-General and his Executive Council. On the other hand, the Central Government had unrestricted control over the provincial governments. Moreover the right to vote was severely restricted. In 1920, the total number of voters was 909,874 for the lower house and 17,364 for the upper house.
3. The Indian National Congress met in a special session at Bombay in August 1918 under the presidentship of which of the following Indian nationalists to consider the Montagu-Chelmsford Reform proposals?
a. Abul Kalam Azad
b. Hasan Imam
c. Madan Mohan Malaviya
d. Mazhar-ul-Huq
Answer: b
Explanation:
Indian nationalists had, however, advanced far beyond such halting concessions. They were no longer willing to let an alien government decide their fitness for self-government, nor would they be satisfied with the shadow of political power. The Indian National Congress met in a special session at Bombay in August 1918 under the presidentship of Hasan Imam to consider the reform proposals. It condemned them as “disappointing and unsatisfactory” and demanded effective self-government instead. Some of the veteran Congress leaders led by Surendranath Banerjee were in favour of accepting the government proposals and left the Congress at this time. They refused to attend the Bombay session, where they would have formed an insignificant minority, and founded the Indian Liberal Federation. They came to be known as Liberals and played a minor role in Indian politics hereafter.
4. In which of the following country Mahatma pursued legal education?
a. Britain
b. South Africa
c. India
d. Russia
Answer: a
Explanation:
M.K, Gandhi was born on 2 October 1869 at Porbandar in Gujarat. After getting his legal education in Britain, he went to South Africa to practise law. Imbued with a high sense of justice, he was revolted by the injustice, discrimination, and degradation to which Indians lead to submit in the South African colonies. Indian labourers who had gone to South Africa and the merchants who followed were denied the right to vote. They had to register and pay a poll-tax. They could not reside except in prescribed locations which were unsanitary and congested. In some of the South African colonies, the Asians, as also the Africans, could not stay out of doors after 9 p.m.; nor could they use public footpaths. Gandhi soon became the leader of the struggle against these conditions and during 1893-94 was engaged in a heroic though unequal struggle against the racist authorities of South Africa.
5. Gandhi's first great experiment in Satyagraha came in which of the following places of India?a. Sabarmati
b. Dandi
c. Champaran
d. Kheda
Answer: c
Explanation:
Gandhi‟s first great experiment in Satyagraha came in 1917 in Champaran, a district in Bihar. The peasantry on the indigo plantations in the district was excessively oppressed by the European planters. Tliey were compelled to grow indigo on at least 3/20th of their land and to sell it at prices fixed by the planters. Similar conditions had prevailed earlier in Bengal, but as a result of a major uprising during 1859-61, the peasants there had won their freedom from the indigo planters.
1. Anusuyya Sarabhai assisted Mahatma Gandhi during which of the following agitations?
a. Ahmedabad Mill Strike
b. Dandi
c. Champaran
d. Kheda
Answer: a
Explanation:
In 1918, Mahatma Gandhi intervened in a dispute between the workers and mill owners of Ahmadabad. He undertook a fast unto death to force a compromise. The mill owners relented on the fourth day and agreed to give the workers 35 per cent increase in wages. He also supported the peasants of Khaira in Gujarat in their struggle against the collection of land revenue when their crops had failed. Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel left his lucrative practice at the Bar at this time to help Gandhi.
The frustrated workers of the mill turned to Anusuyya Sarabhai, a social worker who was also the sister of the president of the Ahmedabad Mill Owner’s Association (founded 1891 to develop the textile industry in Ahmedabad), for help in fighting for economic justice. Anusuyya soon urged Mohandas Gandhi, who was respected by the mill owners and workers, to intervene and help resolve the impasse between the workers and the employers. Gandhi proposed an arbitration board comprised of three representatives from each side to engage in dialogues to resolve the issue. Though both sides had agreed to this arbitration and chosen their representatives, the mill owners refused to partake in the first meeting when the labourers struck work. The strike had been prompted by the labourers’ anticipation of a lock-out in all the mills, but nonetheless, Gandhi apologized to the mill owners for the ill timing of the strike.
2. Satyagraha Sabha was founded by Mahatma Gandhi against which of the following Acts?
a. Government of India Act, 1935
b. Rowlatt Act, 1919
c. Official Secret Act, 1923
d. The Indian Councils Act, 1909
Answer: b
Explanation:
Along with other nationalists, Gandhi was also aroused by the Rowlatt Act. In February 1919, he founded the Satyagraha Sabha whose members took a pledge to disobey the Act and thus to court arrest and imprisonment. Here was a new method of struggle. The nationalist movement, whether under the Moderate or Extremist leadership, had hitherto confined its struggle to agitation. Big meetings and demonstrations, refusal to cooperate with the Government, boycott of foreign cloth and schools, or individual acts of terrorism were the only forms of political work known to the nationalists. Satyagraha immediately raised the movement to a new higher level. Nationalists could now act in place of giving only verbal expression to their dissatisfaction and anger. The National Congress was now to become an organisation for political action.
3. On 6 April 1919, which of the following historical events took place in India?
a. Jallianwalla Bagh Massacre
b. Dandi March
c. Non Cooperation
d. Bengal partition
Answer: a
Explanation:
The Government was determined to suppress the mass agitation. It repeatedly lathi-charged and fired upon unarmed demonstrators at Bombay, Ahmadabad, Calcutta, Delhi and other cities. Gandhiji gave a call for a mighty hartal on 6 April 1919. The people responded with unprecedented enthusiasm. The Government decided to meet the popular protest with repression, particularly in Punjab. At this time was perpetrated one of the worst political crimes in modern history. An unarmed but large crowd had gathered on 13 April 1919 at Amritsar (in Punjab) in the Jallianwalla Bagh, to protest against the arrest of their popular leaders, Dr. Saifuddin Kitchlu and Dr. Satyapal.
General Dyer, the military commander of Amritsar, decided to terrorise the people of Amritsar into complete submission. Jallianwala Bagh was a large open space which was enclosed on three sides by buildings and had only one exit. He surrounded the Bagh (garden) with his army unit, closed the exit with his troops, and then ordered his men to shoot into the trapped crowd with rifles and machine-guns. They fired till their ammunition was exhausted.
3. The people were gathered in Jallianwalla Bagh to protest the arrest of whom among the following leaders?
a. Bhagat Singh and Dr. Satyapal
b. Bhagat Singh and Rajguru
c. Dr. Saifuddin Kitchlu and Mahatma Gandhi
d. Dr. Saifuddin Kitchlu and Dr. Satyapal
Answer: d
Explanation:
The British Government was determined to suppress the mass agitation. It repeatedly lathi-charged and fired upon unarmed demonstrators at Bombay, Ahmadabad, Calcutta, Delhi and other cities. Gandhiji gave a call for a mighty hartal on 6 April 1919. The people responded with unprecedented enthusiasm. The Government decided to meet the popular protest with repression, particularly in Punjab. At this time was perpetrated one of the worst political crimes in modern history. An unarmed but large crowd had gathered on 13 April 1919 at Amritsar (in Punjab) in the Jallianwalla Bagh, to protest against the arrest of their popular leaders, Dr. Saifuddin Kitchlu and Dr. Satyapal.
General Dyer, the military commander of Amritsar, decided to terrorise the people of Amritsar into complete submission. Jallianwala Bagh was a large open space which was enclosed on three sides by buildings and had only one exit. He surrounded the Bagh (garden) with his army unit, closed the exit with his troops, and then ordered his men to shoot into the trapped crowd with rifles and machine-guns. They fired till their ammunition was exhausted.
4. Which of the following leaders were among those who left Congress after the declaration of non- cooperation programme because they still believed in the lawful struggle?
1. Subhas Chandra Bose
2. Annie Besant
3. G.S. Kharpade
4. Mohammad Ali Jinnah
5. 5 ) Jawahar Lal Nehru
Codes:
a. 1, 2, 3 and 5
b. 2, 3 and 4
c. Only 1 and 2
d. All of the above
Answer: b
Explanation:
With the declaration of non- cooperation programme by the Congress in the Nagpur session of 1920, many groups of revolutionary terrorists, especially those from Bengal, also pledged support to the Congress programme. But at this stage, some leaders like Mohammad Ali Jinnah, Annie Besant, G.S. Kharpade and B.C. Pal left the Congress as they believed in a constitutional and lawful struggle while some others like Surendranath Banerjee founded the Indian National Liberal Federation.
5. Who among the following was associated with the Heraka religious movement?
a. Rani Gaidinliu
b. J.M. Sengupta
c. Aruna Asaf Ali
d. None of the above
Answer: a
Explanation:
Rani Gaidinliu was a Naga political and spiritual leader who had led a revolt against British colonial rule in India. Her political struggle in present Northeast India was based on Gandhian principles of Satyagraha, non-violence, self-reliance. She also had played an important role in India’s wider freedom movement by spreading the message of Gandhi Ji in Manipur region. She was born on 26 January 1915 in Nungkao (a Rongmei village) in the north-eastern state of Manipur. She died on 17 February 1993 in Longkao, Manipur. Freedom struggle: She had participated in the freedom struggle at a very young age of 13 after she came under the influence Heraka religious movement.
Heraka religious movement: This movement which was launched by her cousin Haipou Jadonang initially to reform the Zealiangrong Naga communities.
Part 4
1. After which of the following incident, the Bardoli resolution was passed?
a. Jallianwala Bagh massacre
b. Chauri Chaura incident
c. Death of Lala Lajpat Rai
d. None of the above
Answer: b
Explanation:
On February 4, 1922, a mob of 3000 peasants gathered to picket a liquor shop at Chauri Chaura, a town near Gorakhpur, Uttar Pradesh. The local administration sent armed police to control the situation. The Police tried to disperse the crowd by firing two shots in the air. So stone pelting started. The police fired and killed 3 people. The result was that outrageous mob set the Police Chauki on fire and all 23 Police wallas inside got burnt alive.
On 12 February 1922, when the Congress leaders met at Bardoli, Gandhi decided to withdraw the Noncooperation movement. It was a bit controversial but by that time Gandhi’s figure was respected by every Congressman. Thus, they accepted this decision, but they got demoralized and disintegrated. Gandhi was arrested on 10 March 1922 and trialled at Ahmadabad. A simple prison of 6 years was awarded to him. The Bardoli resolution stunned the country and had a mixed reception among the nationalists while some had implicit faith in Gandhiji, others resented this decision to retreat.
2. Consider the following statements regarding the contribution of Khilafat agitation:
1. It had brought urban Muslims into the nationalist movement responsible in part for the feeling of nationalist enthusiasm and exhilaration that prevailed in the country in those days.
2. It was inevitable that different sections of society would come to understand the need for freedom through their particular demands and experiences.
3. The Khilafat agitation represented much wider feelings of the Muslims than their concern for the Caliph.
Which of the above statements is/are correct?
a. 1 only
b. 1 and 2
c. 2 and 3
d. 1, 2 and 3
Answer: d
Explanation:
The Khilafat agitation had made an important contribution to the non-cooperation movement. It had brought urban Muslims into the nationalist movement and had been, thus, responsible in part for the feeling of nationalist enthusiasm and exhilaration that prevailed in the country in those days. Some historians have criticised it for having mixed politics with religion. As a result, they say, religious consciousness spread to politics, end in the long run, the forces of communalism were strengthened. This is true to some extent. There was, of course, nothing wrong in the nationalist movement taking up a demand that affected Muslims only. It was inevitable that different sections of society would come to understand the need for freedom through their particular demands and experiences. The nationalist leadership, however, failed to some extent in raising the religious political consciousness of the Muslims to the higher plane of secular political consciousness. At the same time, it should also be kept in view that the Khilafat agitation represented much wider feelings of the Muslims than their concern for the Caliph. It was, in reality, an aspect of the general spread of anti-imperialist feelings among the Muslims. These feelings found concrete expression on the Khilafat question. After all, there was no protest in India when Kamal Pasha abolished the Caliphate in 1924.
3. The Congress- Khilafat Swaraj Party was founded by:
a. Jawaharlal Nehru
b. Motilal Nehru
c. Mahatma Gandhi
d. Subhash Chandra Bose
Answer: b
Explanation:
In December 1922, Das and Motilal Nehru formed the Congress-Khilafat Swaraj Party with Das as president and Motilal Nehru as one of the secretaries. The new party was to function as a group within the Congress. It accepted the Congress programme except in one respect— it would take part in Council elections.
The Swarajists and the "no-changers” now engaged in fierce political controversy. Even Gandhiji, who had been released on 5 February 1924 on grounds of health, failed in his efforts to unite them. But on his advice, the two groups agreed to remain in the Congress thought they would work in their separate ways.
4. Consider the following statements regarding the ideologies of "no-changers" in the modern history of India:
1. The ‘No-changers’ opposed council entry.
2. They advocated concentration on constructive work and continuation of boycott and noncooperation.
3. This school of thought led by Vallabhbhai Patel, Rajendra Prasad, C. Rajagopalachari & M.A. Ansari came to be known as the ‘No-changers’.
Which of the above statements is/are correct?
a. 1 only
b. 1 and 2
c. 2 and 3
d. 1, 2 and 3
Answer: d
Explanation:
Disintegration and disorganisation set in after the withdrawal of the civil' disobedience movement. Enthusiasm evaporated and disillusionment and discouragement prevailed in the ranks of the Congress party. Moreover, a serious difference arose among the leaders.
A fresh lead was now given by C.R-. Das and Martial Nehru who advocated a new line of political activity under the changed conditions. They said that nationalists should end the boycott of the Legislative Councils, enter them, obstruct their working according to official plans, expose their weaknesses, and thus use them to arouse public enthusiasm. Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, Dr. Ansari, Babu Rajendra Prasad, and others, known as "no-changers", opposed Council-entry. They warned that legislative politics would weaken nationalist fervour and create rivalries among the leaders. They, therefore, continued to emphasise the constructive programme of spinning, temperance, Hindu-Muslim unity, and removal of untouchability.
The Swarajists and the "no-changers” now engaged in fierce political controversy. Even Gandhiji, who had been released on 5 February 1924 on grounds of health, failed in his efforts to unite them. But on his advice, the two groups agreed to remain in the Congress thought they would work in their separate ways.
5. In December 1917, which of the following organisations was/were established?
a. Hindu Mahasabha
b. Muslim League
c. Swaraj Party
d. Both a and b
Answer: d
Explanation:
As the non-cooperation movement petered out and the people felt frustrated, communalism reared its ugly head. The communal elements took advantage of the situation to propagate their views and after 1923 the country was repeatedly plunged into communal riots. The Muslim League and the Hindu Mahasabha, which was founded in December 1917, once again became active. The result was that the growing feeling that all people were Indians first received a set-back. Even the Swarajist Party, whose main leaders, Motilal Nehru and Das, were staunch nationalists, was split by communalism, A group known as “responsivists", including Madan Mohan Malviya, Lala Lajpat Rai, and N.C, Kelkar, offered cooperation to the Government so that the so-called Hindu interests might be safeguarded. They accused Motilal Nehru of letting down Hindus, of being anti-Hindu, of favouring cow-slaughter, and of eating beef. The Muslim communalists were no less active in fighting for the loaves and fishes or office. G&ndhiji, who had repeatedly asserted that “Hindu-Muslim unity must be our creed for all time and under all circumstances” tried to intervene and improve the situation.
