1. The phrase ‘Breakwaters in the storm’ in the context of modern Indian history has been used for:

(a) Modern educated Indian intelligentsia

(b) Landlords and Moneylenders

(c) Princely States

(d) The Upper castes and the Conservatives

Answer: (c) Explanation: After the Revolt of 1857 the British reversed their policy towards the Indian states. Most of the Indian princes had not only remained loyal to the British but had actively aided the latter in suppressing the Revolt. In this context, Lord Canning had given them the epithet of ‘Breakwaters in the storm’. Their loyalty was now rewarded with the announcement that their right to adopt heirs would be respected and the integrity of their territories guaranteed against future annexation. The experience of the 1857 Revolt had made them decided to use the princely states as firm props of British rule in India. However, the British made it clear that the princes ruled their states merely as agents of the British crown. The princes accepted this subordinate position and willingly became junior partners in the empire because they were assured of their continued existence as rulers of their states.

2. Which of the following statements hold true for ‘Government of India Act, 1919’?

(a) It introduced dyarchy at the Central government.

(b) Under it, finance and law & order were declared transferred subjects.

(c) Some of the Congress leaders were in favour of accepting the proposal.

(d) It introduced some restrictions on Central government over the Provincial governments.

Answer: (c) Explanation: In line with the Government policy, Montagu’s statement in 1917 resulted in further constitutional reforms in 1918, known as Montagu-Chelmsford reforms or Montford reforms. Based on these, the Government of India Act 1919 was enacted. The main provisions were the following: The Central Legislature would comprise of two chambers- The Council of State and the Indian Legislative Assembly. The Central Legislature could enact laws on any matter for the whole of India. The Governor-General was empowered to summon, prorogue, dissolve the Chambers, and to promulgate Ordinances. The number of Indians in Viceroy's Executive Council would be three out of eight members. Establishment of unicameral Provincial Legislative Councils. Dyarchy was introduced in the Provinces (Makes option a wrong). Subjects were divided into - Reserved subjects like Finance, Law and Order, army, police etc. (Makes option b wrong). Transferred subjects like Public Health, Education, agriculture, local self-government etc. The central government had unrestricted control over provincial governments (Makes option d wrong). Some of the veteran Congress leaders led by Surendranath Banerjee were in favour of accepting the government proposals. They left the Congress at this time and founded Indian Liberal Federation (Thus option c is correct).

3. Consider the following statements regarding Communist politics in pre-independent India:

(1) M.N. Roy became the first Indian to be elected to the leadership position at the Communist International.

(2) Muzaffar Ahmed and S.A. Dange were tried in the Kanpur Conspiracy Case.

(3) In 1925, the Communist Party of India came into existence.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

(a) 1 only

(b) 1 and 2 only

(c) 2 and 3 only

(d) 1, 2 and 3

Answer: (d) Explanation: In 1920, Roy was invited to Moscow to attend the second conference of the Communist International. Roy had several meetings with Lenin before the Conference. He differed with Lenin on the role of the local bourgeoisie in nationalist movements. On Lenin's recommendation, the supplementary thesis on the subject prepared by Roy was adopted along with Lenin's thesis by the second conference of the Communist International. The following years witnessed Roy's rapid rise in the international communist hierarchy. By the end of 1926, Roy was elected as a member of all the four-official policy-making bodies of the Comintern - the praesidium, the political secretariat, the executive committee and the world congress. (Thus, statement 1 is correct). In 1924, the Government had tried to cripple the nascent communist movement by trying S.A. Dange, Muzaffar Ahmed, Nalini Gupta and Shaukat Usmani in the Kanpur Bolshevik Conspiracy Case. All four were sentenced to four years of imprisonment. (Thus, statement 2 is correct), The Communist Party of India was formed on 26 December 1925 at the first Party Conference in Kanpur, then Cawnpore. The founding members of the party were M.N. Roy, Evelyn Trent Roy (Roy's wife), Abani Mukherji, Rosa Fitingof (Abani's wife), Mohammad Ali (Ahmed Hasan), Mohammad Shafiq Siddiqui, Rafiq Ahmed of Bhopal and M.P.B.T. Acharya, and Sultan Ahmed Khan Tarin of North-West Frontier Province. (Thus, statement 3 is correct)

4. Consider the following statements regarding the ‘All India States People’s Conference’ in the Princely States?

(1) The All India States People’s Conference was founded in 1927 to coordinate political activities in different States.

(2) Subhash Chandra Bose became the President of All India States People’s Conference in 1939.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

(a) 1 only

(b) 2 only

(c) Both 1 and 2

(d) Neither 1 nor 2

Answer: (a) Explanation: In many Princely States, during the first quarter of 20th century, Praja Mandals or States’ People’s Conferences were organised e.g. in Mysore, Hyderabad, Baroda, the Kathiawad States, the Deccan States, Jamnagar, Indore, and Nawanagar. This process came to a head in December 1927 with the convening of the All India States’ People’s Conference (AISPC) which was attended by 700 political workers from the States and All India States People’s Conference was founded (Thus, statement 1 is correct). The men chiefly responsible for this initiative were Balwant Rai Mehta, Maniklal Kothari and G.R. Abhyankar. Jawaharlal Nehru was invited to become the President of the All-India body in 1935, became the President in 1939 and remained so until 1946. (Thus, statement 2 is incorrect)

5. Which of the following statements regarding the text of ‘The Pledge of Independence’ of 26 January 1930 is/are correct?

(1) It talked about the fourfold disasters – Economic, Political, Cultural and Social, that the British rule over India had caused.

(2) It stated that the most effective way of gaining independence was non-violence.

(3) It mentioned freedom as an inalienable right for full opportunities to grow.

Select the correct answer using the code given below:

(a) 1 only

(b) 1 and 2 only

(c) 2 and 3 only

(d) 1, 2 and 3

Answer: (c) Explanation: The Indian National Congress met in Lahore in December 1929. The pledge was approved by the Congress just before midnight on December 31, 1929. The pledge was taken by the public on January 26, 1930. One option before the Congress was to demand Dominion Status, under which India would have still remained at least nominally under British rule. The Congress rejected this option and instead asked for Purna Swaraj, which means Full Independence. It talked about the fourfold disaster – Economic, Political, Cultural and Spiritual, that the British rule over India has caused. (Thus, statement 1 is incorrect). It stated that it is the inalienable right of the Indian people, as of any other people, to have freedom and to enjoy the fruits of their toil and have the necessities of life, so that they may have full opportunities of growth (Thus, statement 3 is correct). It recognized that the most effective way of gaining our freedom is through non-violence (Thus, statement 2 is correct).