Modern Indian History
🔒 Log in to trackGandhian Era & Road to Independence (1915–1947)
🔒 Log in to trackGandhi returned to India in 1915 and led the freedom struggle through mass movements. Each movement has a year, a cause and an end. Exams mostly ask dates, places, session presidents and pacts, often as a chronological order question.
Gandhi's first three struggles
Gandhi landed in India on 9 January 1915, now Pravasi Bharatiya Divas. He had built the method of satyagraha (truth-force, peaceful resistance) in South Africa from 1906.
| Year | Struggle | Key fact |
|---|---|---|
| 1917 | Champaran, Bihar | Against forced indigo growing (tinkathia system). Rajkumar Shukla brought Gandhi. His first satyagraha in India. |
| 1918 | Ahmedabad mill strike | For workers' plague bonus. His first hunger strike. |
| 1918 | Kheda, Gujarat | No-revenue campaign for famine-hit farmers, with Vallabhbhai Patel |
Rowlatt to Swaraj Party (1919 to 1923)
- Rowlatt Act (1919): arrest without trial — "no dalil, no vakil, no appeal". A nationwide hartal followed.
- Jallianwala Bagh, Amritsar (13 April 1919, Baisakhi): General Dyer fired on an unarmed crowd. Tagore gave up his knighthood. The Hunter Committee enquired. Udham Singh shot Michael O'Dwyer in London (1940).
- Khilafat movement (Ali brothers): joined with Gandhi's Non-Cooperation Movement (NCM). NCM began on 1 August 1920. A Calcutta special session approved it; the Nagpur session ratified it. People boycotted schools, courts, titles and foreign cloth.
- Chauri Chaura (5 February 1922, Gorakhpur): a mob burnt a police station. Gandhi withdrew the NCM (Bardoli resolution).
- Swaraj Party (1923): C.R. Das and Motilal Nehru; they entered the councils.
From Simon to Purna Swaraj
- Simon Commission (appointed 1927, arrived 1928): all-white, met with "Simon Go Back". Lala Lajpat Rai was hurt in a lathi charge at Lahore and died on 17 November 1928.
- Nehru Report (1928), by Motilal Nehru: first Indian draft constitution; asked for Dominion Status.
- Lahore session (December 1929): president Jawaharlal Nehru; Purna Swaraj (complete independence) resolution. 26 January 1930 was the first Independence Day.
Civil Disobedience (1930–34)
Gandhi's Dandi March broke the salt law.
- Started 12 March 1930 from Sabarmati Ashram with 78 followers.
- About 385 km (240 miles); salt law broken at Dandi on 6 April 1930.
| Year | Event | Key fact |
|---|---|---|
| 1931 | Gandhi–Irwin Pact (5 March) | Ended this phase; Gandhi went alone to the Second Round Table Conference |
| 1931 | Karachi session | President Vallabhbhai Patel; resolution on Fundamental Rights and Economic Policy |
| 1932 | Communal Award | Separate electorates for the Depressed Classes |
| 1932 | Poona Pact (24 Sept) | Gandhi and Ambedkar: reserved seats instead, within joint electorates |
| 1935 | Government of India Act | Provincial autonomy; basis of much of the Constitution; Congress ministries 1937–39 |
Quit India and the INA (1939–1945)
- 1939, Tripuri: Subhas Bose was re-elected president, then resigned and formed the Forward Bloc.
- 1940: August Offer; Individual Satyagraha — Vinoba Bhave was the first satyagrahi.
- March 1942: Cripps Mission — Gandhi called it a "post-dated cheque on a crashing bank".
- 8 August 1942: Quit India resolution at Gowalia Tank, Bombay; slogan "Do or Die". Leaders were arrested at once. Aruna Asaf Ali hoisted the flag. Usha Mehta ran the Congress Radio. Parallel governments came up at Ballia (Chittu Pandey), Satara (Nana Patil) and Tamluk.
- 21 October 1943: Subhas Bose proclaimed the Azad Hind Government in Singapore. INA slogan: "Delhi Chalo". He also said "Give me blood, I will give you freedom". The Rani Jhansi Regiment was led by Lakshmi Sahgal.
Road to freedom (1946–47)
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| 1946 | RIN (navy) mutiny; Cabinet Mission — Pethick-Lawrence, Cripps, Alexander |
| 16 Aug 1946 | Direct Action Day |
| 2 Sept 1946 | Interim Government formed |
| 3 June 1947 | Mountbatten Plan |
| 18 July 1947 | Indian Independence Act |
| 15 Aug 1947 | Independence |
Revolutionaries of the 1920s and 1930s
| Event | Date | People |
|---|---|---|
| Kakori train action | 9 Aug 1925 | Ram Prasad Bismil, Ashfaqulla Khan (HRA) |
| HSRA formed | 1928 | Bhagat Singh, Chandrashekhar Azad (Feroz Shah Kotla, Delhi) |
| Central Assembly bomb | 8 April 1929 | Bhagat Singh and Batukeshwar Dutt |
| Chittagong armoury raid | 1930 | Surya Sen |
| Hanged | 23 March 1931 | Bhagat Singh, Rajguru, Sukhdev (Martyrs' Day) |
Tip: Session presidents: Lahore 1929 = Jawaharlal, Karachi 1931 = Patel, Tripuri 1939 = Bose.
Question types you will see
Each type: how to recognise it, the method step by step, and one question to try.
Gandhi's early satyagrahas
"Gandhi's first satyagraha in India", tinkathia, first hunger strike, no-revenue campaign.
Champaran 1917 = indigo, tinkathia, Bihar, first satyagraha.
Ahmedabad 1918 = mill workers, first hunger strike.
Kheda 1918 = no revenue, with Patel.
The three struggles differ in one word each: indigo, mill, revenue.
In which struggle did Gandhi first use a hunger strike in India? (a) Champaran (b) Kheda (c) Ahmedabad mill strike (d) Bardoli
Show solutionHide solution
Champaran = first satyagraha, not hunger strike; cut (a).
Kheda = no-revenue; Bardoli (1928) was Patel's movement.
(c) Ahmedabad mill strike, 1918
Rowlatt Act and Jallianwala Bagh
"No dalil, no vakil, no appeal", Jallianwala date, General Dyer, reactions.
Rowlatt Act 1919 = arrest without trial.
Jallianwala: 13 April 1919, Baisakhi, Amritsar, General Dyer.
Reactions: Tagore gave up his knighthood; Hunter Committee; Udham Singh shot O'Dwyer (1940).
The Rowlatt Act led straight to the Amritsar meeting, so the facts come as a set.
Who gave up his knighthood in protest against the Jallianwala Bagh massacre?
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Massacre: 13 April 1919.
The poet who returned his title was Tagore.
Rabindranath Tagore
Non-Cooperation and Chauri Chaura
"Why was the NCM withdrawn?", Chauri Chaura, Khilafat, Swaraj Party.
NCM began 1 August 1920, joined with Khilafat.
Chauri Chaura, 5 February 1922: police station burnt, NCM withdrawn.
Swaraj Party 1923: C.R. Das and Motilal Nehru.
Violence at Chauri Chaura broke Gandhi's non-violence rule, so he stopped the movement.
The Non-Cooperation Movement was withdrawn in 1922 after the incident at:
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1922 + violence + police station.
The place was in Gorakhpur district.
Chauri Chaura
Dandi March and the pacts
Dandi dates, salt law, Gandhi–Irwin Pact, Round Table Conference, Communal Award, Poona Pact.
Dandi: 12 March–6 April 1930, 78 marchers, from Sabarmati.
Gandhi–Irwin Pact: 5 March 1931; then Second Round Table Conference.
Communal Award 1932 → Poona Pact 1932 (Gandhi and Ambedkar).
One pact per year: 1931 with Irwin, 1932 with Ambedkar.
The Poona Pact of 1932 was signed between Gandhi and: (a) Lord Irwin (b) B.R. Ambedkar (c) Jinnah (d) Subhas Bose
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Irwin is the 1931 pact; cut (a).
The Poona Pact settled seats for the Depressed Classes.
(b) B.R. Ambedkar
Simon Commission to Purna Swaraj
Simon Commission, Lajpat Rai's death, Nehru Report, Lahore 1929, 26 January 1930.
Simon: appointed 1927, arrived 1928, all-white, "Simon Go Back".
Lajpat Rai hurt at Lahore; died 17 November 1928.
Nehru Report 1928 (Motilal); Lahore December 1929 (Jawaharlal), Purna Swaraj.
Each step answered the previous one, so the order is fixed.
The Purna Swaraj resolution was passed at the Lahore session under the presidency of:
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Lahore, December 1929.
Session presidents: Lahore = Jawaharlal.
Jawaharlal Nehru
Quit India, INA and the last steps
"Do or Die", Gowalia Tank, parallel governments, Azad Hind, Cabinet Mission, Mountbatten Plan.
Quit India: 8 August 1942, Gowalia Tank, Bombay, "Do or Die".
Heroes: Aruna Asaf Ali (flag), Usha Mehta (radio); Ballia, Satara, Tamluk.
Bose: Azad Hind, Singapore, 21 October 1943.
Cabinet Mission 1946 → Mountbatten Plan 3 June 1947 → 15 August 1947.
The last five years have many firsts, but each name has one clear role.
Aruna Asaf Ali is remembered in the Quit India Movement for:
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Leaders were arrested the night of 8 August 1942.
She raised the flag at Gowalia Tank, Bombay.
Hoisting the flag at Gowalia Tank
Arrange freedom-movement events in order
"Arrange in chronological order" with any four events from 1915 to 1947.
Write the year (and month if two share a year) beside each item.
Find the earliest; keep only options that start with it.
Check the last item to pick between the rest.
This is the most asked question type in the topic, and years settle it.
Arrange in order: 1. Dandi March 2. Chauri Chaura 3. Quit India 4. Jallianwala Bagh
Show solutionHide solution
Jallianwala 1919, Chauri Chaura 1922, Dandi 1930, Quit India 1942.
So 4, 2, 1, 3.
4, 2, 1, 3
Revolutionary ↔ action
Kakori, Assembly bomb, Chittagong raid, HSRA, Bhagat Singh's execution.
Kakori 1925 = Bismil, Ashfaqulla Khan.
HSRA 1928 = Bhagat Singh, Chandrashekhar Azad.
Assembly bomb 8 April 1929 = Bhagat Singh, B.K. Dutt; Chittagong 1930 = Surya Sen.
23 March 1931 = Bhagat Singh, Rajguru, Sukhdev hanged.
Each action has one or two names, so match the event first.
Who threw a bomb in the Central Legislative Assembly on 8 April 1929 along with Bhagat Singh?
Show solutionHide solution
Rajguru and Sukhdev were hanged with him but did not throw the bomb.
His partner in the Assembly was B.K. Dutt.
Batukeshwar Dutt
Shortcuts that save time
Champaran 1917 (indigo, Bihar) → Ahmedabad 1918 (mill workers, hunger strike) → Kheda 1918 (farmers, revenue).
Gandhi's first hunger strike in India was during:
Show solutionHide solution
Hunger strike = the "A" in C-A-K.
Ahmedabad 1918, for the mill workers' bonus.
Ahmedabad mill strike, 1918
Lahore 1929 = Jawaharlal (Purna Swaraj) · Karachi 1931 = Patel (Fundamental Rights) · Tripuri 1939 = Bose.
12 March start · 6 April salt law broken · 78 marchers · about 385 km (240 miles) · from Sabarmati Ashram.
Mistakes to avoid
Where most students lose marks on this subtopic.
Saying Purna Swaraj was declared on 26 January 1930.
It was adopted at Lahore in December 1929. 26 January 1930 was the first Independence Day.
Saying the Poona Pact was between Gandhi and Irwin.
Poona Pact (1932) = Gandhi and Ambedkar. Gandhi–Irwin Pact = 1931.
Placing the Quit India launch in Delhi.
Quit India was launched at Gowalia Tank, Bombay, on 8 August 1942.
Saying the Azad Hind Government was set up in Rangoon or Tokyo.
It was proclaimed in Singapore (21 October 1943).
Calling Champaran Gandhi's first hunger strike.
Champaran (1917) was his first satyagraha in India. The first hunger strike was at Ahmedabad (1918).
Mixing the Communal Award and the Poona Pact.
Communal Award gave separate electorates. Poona Pact replaced them with reserved seats in joint electorates.
Quick revision
Read this the night before the exam.
Return 9 Jan 1915 → Champaran 1917 → Ahmedabad and Kheda 1918.
1919: Rowlatt Act → Jallianwala (13 April, Dyer) → Tagore gives up knighthood.
NCM 1 Aug 1920 → Chauri Chaura 5 Feb 1922 → Swaraj Party 1923.
Simon 1928 → Nehru Report 1928 → Lahore 1929 (Purna Swaraj) → 26 Jan 1930.
Dandi 12 March–6 April 1930 → Gandhi–Irwin 5 March 1931 → Poona Pact 24 Sept 1932.
Quit India 8 Aug 1942, Gowalia Tank, "Do or Die"; Azad Hind, Singapore, 21 Oct 1943.
Mountbatten Plan 3 June 1947 → Independence Act 18 July → 15 Aug 1947.
Bhagat Singh: Assembly bomb 8 April 1929; hanged 23 March 1931.
Practice: 21 questions
Sets of 10, mixed across the question types above. Every answer has a step-by-step explanation.
Topic test · 10 questions
Suggested time 4 min · wrong answers go to your mistake notebook automatically.