The Indian National Movement (1885-1916)
(The Trail)
A. Fill in the blanks.
1. The early nationalists spread unity, political awareness among the people.
2. The assertive nationalists believed that British rule in India was not a blessing but a curse.
3. After the partition of Bengal, the assertive nationalists adopted the methods of boycott, swadeshi and national education to achieve the goal of swaraj.
4. The early nationalist leaders expelled the assertive nationalists from the Congress at the Surat session in 1907.
5. Separate electorates meant that the Muslim voters would elect Muslim representatives representatives.
B. Match the following.
=
|
A |
B |
|---|---|
|
1. Dadabhai Naoroji |
a. 1905. [3] |
|
2. assertive nationalists |
b. separate electorates. [5] |
|
3. partition of Bengal |
c. use of only Indian goods. [4] |
|
4. swadeshi |
d. immediate freedom from British rule. [2] |
|
5. Muslim League |
e. early nationalists. [1] |
C. Choose the correct answer.
1. The history of the Indian national movement is broadly categorised into three/four/five phases.
2.Bal Gangadhar Tilak/Dadabhai Naoroji/Surendranath Banerjee was an important assertive nationalist leader.
3. The British followed the policy of divide and rule by dividing Bengal/Punjab/Gujarat on communal lines.
4. The Muslim League was established in 1905/1914/1918.
5. Two Home Rule League were formed in 1916/1914/1918.
D. State whether the following are true or false.
1. The early nationalists believed in the justice and fair play of the British. [T]
2. The early nationalists presented their grievances to the British in the form of protests and strikes. [F]
3. The political beliefs, aims and methods of the assertive nationalists were the same as those of the early nationalists. [F]
4. The assertive nationalists had no faith in the constitutional methods followed by the early nationalists. [T]
5. Tilak knew that the British would concede to the demand of swaraj easily without any struggle. [F]
F. Answer the following questions in one or two words/sentences.
1. Mention two leaders of the early nationalist phase.
= Dadabhai Naoroji and Surendranath Banerjee.
2. Mention two leaders of the assertive nationalist phase.
= Bal Gangadhar Tilak and Lala Lajpat Rai.
3. Why were the assertive nationalists disillusioned with the leadership of the early nationalists?
= The assertive nationalists had no faith in the constitutional methods followed by the early nationalists. Twenty years of prayers, petitions, appeals, resolutions and representations had failed to yield any concrete result.
4. When and why was Bengal partitioned?
= The British partitioned Bengal in 1905 in pursuance of their policy of divide and rule.
5. Where and under whose leadership was the Muslim League established?
= The Muslim League was established in December 1906, under the leadership of Nawab Salimullah Khan in Decca(now known as Dhaka).
6. Mention two objectives of the Muslim League?
= i) To promote among the Muslims a feeling of loyalty towards the British government.
ii) To protect and promote the political rights of the Muslims.
7. Why was the introduction of separate electorates a death blow to national unity?
= The introduction of separate electorates sounded the death knoll of national unity. It was the first definite step on the road to the partition of India.
8. Why did the Indian nationalists support the war effort of the British when the First World War broke out?
= The British and their allies declared that they were fighting the war to make the world 'safe for democracy' and to promote the right of all nations to form self-governments. This led the Indian nationalists to believe that a grateful Britain would reward Indian's loyalty and fulfil its demands for self-government.
9. What was the main aim of the Home Rule League?
= The main aim of the Leagues was to achieve self-government within the British empire after the war.
F. Answer the following in details.
1. With reference to the early nationalists, discuss the following:
a. Beliefs of the early nationalists.
= i) The early nationalists believed that British rule was a blessing because it had conferred several benefits on India. They felt that at that stage of history, it was in their own interests to remain under the British since they were not yesterday to govern themselves.
ii) The early nationalists were convinced that the British could be persuaded to introduce necessary reforms and the government could be transformed to suit the interest of the Indian subjects.
iii) They had great faith in the British sense of justice and fair play.
b. Methods of the early nationalists.
= The early nationalists adopted peaceful and constitutional methods. They presented their grievances to the government to pass laws to remove those grievances. They believed that the government would gradually give in to their demand.
They promoted unity, spread political awareness among the people and built up a strong public opinion through meetings, lectures and the press. They also sent delegations to England to persuade the British government to introduce necessary reforms.
c. Important contributions made by the early nationalists to the national movement.
= i) The early nationalists established a solid foundation which served as a base for a more radical approach in later years.
ii) The spread political awareness among the people and installed in them a sense of national unity. The people began to think of themselves as members of one single nation - the Indian nation. The path for a united national struggle was laid.
iii) The Congress under the early nationalists trained the Indians in political affairs. They educated them in political matters and familiarized them with ideas of freedom, government, democracy, secularism, nationalism, etc. This knowledge of and training in political affairs helped Indian nationalists to organize and raise the national movement to the next stage of development.
2. With reference to the rise of the assertive nationalists within the Congress:
a. The beliefs of the assertive nationalists.
= The assertive nationalists had no faith in the British sense of justice and fair play. They believed that the British Rule in India was not a blessing but a curse. They were convinced that the British had no intensions of introducing reforms for the welfare of the Indian. They realized that the British interests were different and chased with the Indian interests. India could never grow and progress under British rule.
b. The Objectives of the Assertive Nationalists.
= The goal of the assertive nationalists was not self-government in 'gradual' stage but immediate freedom (swaraj) from the British rule.
c. How the methods of the assertive nationalists differ from those of the early nationalists.
= The assertive nationalists had no faith in the constitutional methods followed by the early nationalists. Twenty years of prayers, petitions, appeals, resolutions and representations had failed to yield any concrete results.
3. With reference to the Lucknow session of the Congress of 1916, answer the following questions:
a. What was the Lucknow Pact?
= The changed attitude of the Indian Muslims brought the League and the Congress close to one another. The growing unity between them led to the signing of the Lucknow Pact in 1916.
b. What was the objective of the Lucknow Pact?
= The Lucknow Pact was an agreement signing by the Muslim League and the Congress to pave the way for a joint scheme of political reforms in India.
c. What were the results of the Lucknow Pact?
= Under the Lucknow Pact, the League, jointly with the Congress, put forward the demand for a Dominion Status for India. this was an important step towards Hindu-Muslim unity.