Indian Freedom Movement

Sardar Patel worked with Gandhi in Kheda Satyagraha. Exam tip is to remember Gujarat Satyagrahas separately.

Ahmedabad Mill Workers Satyagraha took place in 1918. Exam tip is to remember it among Gandhi's early movements.

The Rowlatt Act was introduced by the British government in 1919. It allowed detention without a regular trial and was therefore viewed as a serious attack on civil rights. Indians opposed it through protests and hartals, and Mahatma Gandhi called for a nationwide Satyagraha against the law. The protest became an important early stage of the mass freedom movement.

The correct choice is 1919, option C. This year should also be connected with the Rowlatt Satyagraha and the Jallianwala Bagh massacre, which occurred in the same historical setting. The other years do not fit: 1915 was Gandhi’s return to India, 1917 saw important local movements, and 1931 belongs to a later phase of the freedom struggle. Thus the supplied answer is historically consistent.

Direct answer: Option D, Baisakhi. The Jallianwala Bagh massacre occurred on 13 April 1919 in Amritsar, Punjab. That date was Baisakhi, an important harvest festival and a day when many people gathered in the city. General Reginald Dyer ordered troops to fire on the unarmed crowd gathered at Jallianwala Bagh, making the event a major symbol of colonial repression. Option D is correct because Baisakhi identifies the festival on that date. Option A, Diwali, is the festival of lights and falls on a different date, usually in October or November. Option B, Holi, is the spring festival of colours and generally occurs in February or March. Option C, Eid, is an Islamic festival whose date changes according to the lunar calendar; it was not the festival linked to this massacre. Memory chain: 13 April 1919—Amritsar—Jallianwala Bagh—Baisakhi.

The Non-Cooperation Movement was a mass national movement against British rule. Mahatma Gandhi led it by encouraging Indians to withdraw cooperation from colonial institutions in a peaceful and organized manner. People were urged to leave government schools and colleges, avoid certain courts and offices, reject foreign goods, and promote self-reliance. Its growth showed how a political struggle could involve ordinary people across many regions.

Option A is correct because Gandhi provided the central leadership, programme, and principle of non-violent non-cooperation. The movement began in 1920 and was later withdrawn after the violent Chauri Chaura incident in 1922. Lord Curzon, General Dyer, and Mir Jafar belonged to different historical contexts and were not leaders of this movement. Thus the supplied answer is historically consistent.

Gandhi stopped the movement after violence at Chauri Chaura. Exam tip is to remember nonviolence as Gandhi's key principle.

The Swaraj Party was formed after withdrawal of the Non-Cooperation Movement. Exam tip is to remember C R Das and Motilal Nehru.

The direct answer is D, none. The Simon Commission was appointed by the British government in 1927 to examine constitutional reforms in India, but all its members were British. Therefore, it had zero Indian members. This exclusion caused the well-known protest slogan “Simon Go Back.” Option A, one, is wrong because not even one Indian was included. Option B, two, and option C, three, are also wrong because the number of Indian members remained zero, not a small positive number. Option D, none, is correct and explains the strong opposition from Indian political groups. Remember the fact chain: Simon Commission—1927—no Indian member—“Simon Go Back.” Do not confuse the number of members with the number of years or protest leaders.

The Motilal Nehru committee prepared the Nehru Report. Exam tip is to remember 1928 and constitutional draft together.

The Poorna Swaraj (complete independence) resolution was adopted at the 1929 Lahore Session of the Indian National Congress, presided over by Jawaharlal Nehru. The year 1935 is associated with the Government of India Act, not this resolution. Exam tip: Remember the 1929 Lahore Session along with Independence Day observed on 26 January 1930.

Salt became a powerful symbol because it was used by every household, rich or poor. The colonial government imposed a salt tax and prevented Indians from freely making or collecting salt from the sea. By choosing salt, Gandhi connected a political protest with an everyday hardship faced by ordinary people. This made the movement easy to understand and encouraged broad public participation.

The correct choice is Salt, option C. During the Dandi March in 1930, Gandhi and his followers travelled from Sabarmati Ashram to the coastal village of Dandi. There, he broke the salt law by making salt from seawater. Cotton, rice and tea were important products, but none of them was the central symbol of this march. Therefore, the supplied answer correctly identifies salt.

Direct answer: Option D, he made salt and broke the law. At Dandi, Gandhi completed the Salt March in 1930. He picked up or made salt from seawater, deliberately violating the British salt law, which restricted salt production and imposed a tax. The action was peaceful but symbolic: an ordinary necessity was used to show that an unjust law could be disobeyed non-violently. Option D is correct and is closely connected with the launch of the Civil Disobedience Movement. Option A is wrong because Gandhi did not lay a railway line at Dandi. Option B is wrong because the Indian National Congress was founded in 1885, long before the Dandi action, and not by Gandhi there. Option C is wrong because the Cabinet Mission came to India in 1946 and was not called by Gandhi at Dandi. Exam chain: 1930, Sabarmati to Dandi, salt, Civil Disobedience.

Civil Disobedience protested by breaking unjust laws. Exam tip is to connect it with Salt Satyagraha.

The Gandhi-Irwin Pact was connected with the Civil Disobedience Movement, so option B is correct. The agreement was signed in 1931 between Mahatma Gandhi, representing the Indian National Congress, and Lord Irwin, the Viceroy of India. It came after the first phase of the Civil Disobedience Movement, which had included the Salt March and opposition to unjust colonial laws. The pact temporarily reduced confrontation and allowed Congress to take part in discussions in London.

The Quit India Movement began later, in 1942, so option A cannot be correct. The Swadeshi Movement belonged mainly to the period after the 1905 partition of Bengal, while the Ghadar movement was associated with revolutionary activity during the First World War period. The date 1931 and the names Gandhi and Irwin therefore point clearly to the Civil Disobedience Movement. Hence the correct choice is B.

Subhas Chandra Bose became president at the Haripura Session of 1938. Exam tip is to remember Haripura and Bose together.

Vinoba Bhave was the first Individual Satyagrahi. Exam tip is to link it with 1940 and the Second World War.

The Cripps Mission came in 1942 before the Quit India Movement. Exam tip is to remember both events in sequence.

The Quit India resolution was passed by the Indian National Congress on 8 August 1942 at Gowalia Tank Maidan, Bombay. Mahatma Gandhi gave the call of “Do or Die,” and the movement spread widely after major leaders were arrested on 9 August. 26 January 1930 is associated with the Purna Swaraj Day, not the Quit India Movement. Exam tip: remember Quit India Movement—August 1942—“Do or Die” together.

On 9 August 1942, Aruna Asaf Ali hoisted the Congress flag at Gowalia Tank Maidan in Bombay. This became an important symbol of the beginning of the Quit India Movement. Dandi coast is associated with the Salt March of 1930, not the Quit India Movement. Exam tip: remember Gowalia Tank Maidan with Aruna Asaf Ali and the Quit India Movement.

Usha Mehta spread messages through Congress Radio. Exam tip is to link underground activities with the Quit India Movement.

Jayaprakash Narayan was linked with underground activities in 1942. Exam tip is to remember young socialist leaders.

Subhas Chandra Bose was popularly and respectfully known as “Netaji”. He was a leading figure associated with the Indian National Army (INA), also called Azad Hind Fauj. “Punjab Kesari” refers to Lala Lajpat Rai, “Nightingale of India” to Sarojini Naidu, and “Grand Old Man” to Dadabhai Naoroji. Exam tip: remember the association Subhas Chandra Bose—Netaji—INA.

Option A, Subhas Chandra Bose, is correct. Bose proclaimed the Provisional Government of Free India, or Azad Hind, in Singapore in 1943 while leading the Indian National Army and seeking international support for India’s liberation from British rule. The government was part of his strategy to give the independence struggle an organised political and military form outside British control. Mahatma Gandhi led mass non-violent movements, but he did not form this provisional government. Gopal Krishna Gokhale belonged to an earlier phase of moderate nationalism, and Dadabhai Naoroji was an important early nationalist leader; neither established Azad Hind.

Captain Lakshmi Sahgal was associated with the Rani Jhansi Regiment. Exam tip is to link it with women's military participation.

INA trials increased sympathy for soldiers and nationalism. Exam tip is to remember the Red Fort trials.