India - 2.3

Question 1

first round table conference

Answer 1

• November 1930- January 1931
• three British political parties (Labour Party by the Ramsay MacDonald, Conservative group by Samual Hoare and Liberal group Lord Reading)
• 58 delegates representing all shades of Indian political opinion
• no congress present
• despite this, progress was made

Question 2

how did the princes influence the first round table conference?

Answer 2

• sent 16 representatives
• this was unexpected and their support for the concept of dominion status strengthened the case of the Labour government claims
• they established clear policy backed up with evidence

Question 3

outcome of the first round table conference

Answer 3

• India would be run as a type of dominion
• it would be a federation including princely states and 11 British provinces
• there would be Indian participation in all levels of government
• this was accepted by progressive British and moderate Indians, but Churchill and congress were not content.

Question 4

the inauguration of new Delhi

Answer 4

• the British made this the administrative capital of the Raj (used to be Calcutta)
• the new secretariat buildings and viceroy’s residence were designed to convey the solemnity and permanence of the Raj
• the acropolis had four columns representing the four dominions. this suggested India would soon join.
• this contradicted the compromises made at the first round table conference.

Question 5

the second round table conference

Answer 5

• September-december 1931
• similar mix of delegates to the first
• the Gandhi-irwin pact made it possible for congress to attend (Gandhi being the only representative)
• he hoped to symbolise the unity of Indian nationalists
• no workable solution

Question 6

why did the second round table conference fail?

Answer 6

• Congress had decided on prune swaraj and therefore refused to accept any other decision
• Gandhi was particular opposed the untouchables being considered a separate electorate as they should be considered under the Hindu umbrella.
• The Aga Kahn
• Jinnah representing the Muslim League
• Tara Singh the Sikhs
• Dr Ambedkar the untouchables
• all demanded separate electorates
• Hindus and muslims couldn’t agree
• there was a brewing alliance between the muslims and princes and this threatened Congress’ majority.

Question 7

the third round table conference

Answer 7

• November-December 1932
• doomed before it started as only 46 delegates attended
• none from the British Labour Party or Congress
• it discussed the franchise, finance and the role of princely states
• no conclusion due to a lack of representatives and confusion.

Question 8

How did the situation in Britain lead to failure of the round table conference?

Answer 8

• August 1931 the Labour Party resigned and replaced by the national government
• they were facing the depression and the abdication of the King - more pressing than Indian question
• new Secretary of State (Samuel Hoare) had more reservation than his predecessors
• Churchill campaigned against Indian independence. he set up the Indian Defence league with support form 50 conservative MPs wanting Indian subordination.
• the labour party had internal problems and didn’t send any representatives to the third conference.
• always on British terrain and so Eurocentric decision

Question 9

why did congress leas to the failure of the RTC?

Answer 9

• not at first one (Nehru and Gandhi in jail)
• gandhi was adamant that he alone could speak for India (inc muslims)
• he alienated groups seeking separate representation 9e.g. muslims)
• he had a pre-decided agenda and was reluctant to compromise

Question 10

why did divisions over separate electorates lead to failure of the RTC?

Answer 10

• having such a range of delegates made it impossible to satisfy everyones demands leading to confusion and tension
• Jinnah’s tactics made it worse, of playing one group against another as he sought to gain greater concessions for the muslims
• the British supported the idea of separate electorates, drawing them into contention w Gandhi.
• after each one there was a different decision. this create a lack of consistency and clarity

Question 11

viceroy Willingdon

Answer 11

• had worked as governor of Bombay and though of Gandhi as a dangerous Bolshevik, colouring his attitude to nationalism
• he resented gandhi-irwin pact and adopted stricter measures.
• he commissioned the Lloyd barrage across the Indus River, providing work for thousands

Question 12

Indian reaction to the failure of consultation

Answer 12

• helped only those prepared to work with the administration
• Gandhi arrested
• congress outlawed
• all members of Congress Working Committee were imprisoned
• youth organisation banned
• this increased terrorist activity, more women got involved and common boycotts of British hoods
• however, the police never lost control for very long

Question 13

the communal award

Answer 13

• august 1932
• this designated Sikhs, Indian Christians, anglo-Indians, muslims and untouchables as separate classes and therefore entitled to separate electorates
• Gandhi was furious he had wanted to remove the untouchable stigma and saw them as Hindu
• saw it as the British trying to weaken congress
• he launched a fast-unto death, blackmailing them to withdraw the award

Question 14

the yervada (poona) Pact

Answer 14

• September 1932
• Willingdon didn’t want Gandhi to die and inflate the importance of his cause.
• congress didn’t want to lose their leader
• many Hindu leaders met in Bombay to decide on a set of proposals that they took to Poona where Gandhi was in Yervada jail.
• the communal award was for an allocation of 71 seats on the provincial legislatures to the untouchables. Gandhi decided on 148, elected by primary and secondary elections for seats allocated to untouchables.

Question 15

how did the yervada pact impact the untouchables?

Answer 15

• untouchables would be allocated 18% of the centra. assembly seats as long as they stood for general election
• this led to an abandonment of separate electorates as it created reserved seats but voting was by the general electorate
• a specific sum of money was to be set aside by every provincial assembly for untouchable education.
• Hindus declared that untouchables should have the same rights (untouchability abolition week).
• yet took 20 years before untouchability was abolished by law

Question 16

how did the British government react to the yervada pact?

Answer 16

• made the adjustments to the new Indian constitution
• however the RTC showed there were deep divisions between the Indian populations and therefore struggled to come to agreements
• this convinced them the GoIA was needed.

Question 17

Joseph Rudyard Kipling

Answer 17

• British journalist and Cabinet during WW1
• he grew up in a British Raj setting with much of his work being centred around Indian life (e.g. the Jungle Book)
• vie president of the Indian Defence League and a strong imperialist

Question 18

daily mail

Answer 18

• Lord Rothermere was the proprietor and wrote a series of article under the general heading ‘if we lose India’
• laced with distorted ‘facts’ like Congress being an insignificant group of semi-educated Hindus and fake photos of British troops quelling riots.
• gave the message that the Indians were unfit to govern themselves
• it suggested India was integral to the British economy and therefore independence may cause trade to suffer

Question 19

Stanley Baldwin

Answer 19

• prime minister during the GoIA 1936
• suggested British empire was an organic organisation that had to evolve or die.
• fewer than 50 MPs supporting Churchill’s No campaign

Question 20

the Government of India Act

Answer 20

• 1935
• British written constitution to be imposed in India
• a federation was proposed but never implemented. Only the clauses about provincial government were implemented.
• India would be divided into 11 provinces controlling everything bar defence and foreign affairs
• Burma shall no longer be a province (own gov)
• each province would have a governor appointed by his majesty with emergency powers (also protect minority interests and public service)
• a dyarchy (both appointed and elected officials) abolished
• two new states (Sindh and Orissa) created
• the viceroy would still be in control but should follow the advice of an Executive Committee (mainly Indians)

Question 21

why did congress oppose the 1935 act?

Answer 21

• was not purna swaraj
• some provincial governments might end up as Muslim dominated. They did not support the reserving of seats for minority groups.
• different governors and therefore conditions would create inconsistency in their campaign
• afraid that splinter groups of congress supporters would use princely state agitation to build up a power base of their own and challenge the central congress leader

Question 22

why did the muslim league oppose the 1935 act?

Answer 22

• it didn’t offer enough power to the muslims in central or provincial legislatures
• no guarantee to protect their rights

Question 23

why did the princes oppose the 1935 act?

Answer 23

• led to a loss of power from princes. there were fears that they would join with tory imperialists like Churchill to prevent complete implementation of the act
• they also faced problems from their own subjects as there was increasingly pressure to reform before any fed agreement was reached and confirmed the autocracy of the princes
• unrest and violence broke out in some states (e.g. Hyderabad)

Question 24

dilemma of the 1936 election

Answer 24

• both congress and Muslim league
• not participating would show they rejected the 1935 act
• but if the elections went ahead regardless then they could miss out on representation
• both therefore took part

Question 25

how was congress impacted by the 1937 election?

Answer 25

congress was highly successful gaining control of the majority of provinces

• this effectively made them a partner to the British gov (some supported this and others did not) (Gandhi did, Nehru didn’t)
• Gandhi liked using parliamentary tactics even if they had to temporarily cooperate with the Raj
• he negotiated with the British, gaining the assurance that provincial governors would not interfere with normal administration.

Question 26

what happened to congress in 1938?

Answer 26

• in 1938 congress was torn apart by in-fighting over presidency. there was pressure for Bose to quit
• Bose had considerable support from peasants, students and workers so became president
• Nehru refused to stand and so Gandhi supported Sitaramayya
• Bloc won, however the party couldn’t function due to senior rifts and therefore he resigned and launched the forward bloc party aimed at a revolutionary overthrow of the Raj

Question 27

how was the muslim league affected by the 1937 election?

Answer 27

• won three provinces (Bengal, Punjab and Sind)
• they faired badly due to a lack of strong leadership. Jinnah only returned in 1935 and so had limited time
• governance worked as well as it did in congress led provinces (relieve poverty, control money lenders etc)
• in Congress provinces there was a greater focus on basic craft education

Question 28

what were the muslim league’s two alternatives after the 1937 election?

Answer 28

• attract mass support to win a majority in others or enter a power sharing agreement with congress (unlikely from congress)
• congress ignored many minorities and behaved spitefully to their enemies
• e.g. fiscal policies drawn up to hurt muslim landowners
• they hoisted congress flags on muslim minority buildings.

Question 29

how did Jinnah respond to the 1937 election?

Answer 29

• personal appearances, mass rallies and press interviews, referencing the glory of the Mughal empire
• Tipu Sultan Day started in honour of the Muslim sultan who defeated the British in 1782
• looked to the future by targeting uni students to give identity and purpose
• it showed that they would never win a general election, fuelling the idea of separatism
• in 1938 met with Bose, Nehru and Gandhi but talks broke down due to his insistence that the Muslim League be seen as the sole party for India’s muslims
• congress wanted to be seen as an inclusive party.

Question 30

attitudes towards the British Raj after the 1937 election

Answer 30

• 1935-39 the raj experienced popularity
• Congress chief ministers looked to the raj for practical guidance and professional help
• recruitment to the ICS boomed

Question 31

what impact did the SWW have?

Answer 31

• drove Hindu and Muslims together, unifying India’s nationalist movement
• highlighted the innate contradiction of fighting a war for liberty and democracy with a power denying these principals to the subcontinent
• Lithlingow committed 300 million Indians to war without consulting them

Question 32

how did congress react to the SWW?

Answer 32

• shocked at first as Lithlingow’s actions undermined the power sharing nature of the GoIA
• Gandhi urged the British to negotiate with Hitler, using peaceful means
• Gandhi gave his wholehearted support to the British people, and Nehru sympathised with them in their fight against fascism
• yet they weren’t prepared to dight unless granted immediate swaraj
• in the early months, Indian claims for purna swaraj were not listened to and therefore Congress members resigned from provincial ministries
• this was not affected a many lost real positions of power, and authority reverted to the British

Question 33

how did the Muslim League respond the SWW?

Answer 33

• congress had virtually retired from the political scene, strengthening the ML’s position
• Jinnah launched a period of celebration to commemorate their release from Hindu bondage.
• however they caused no offence to ordinary Hindus
• Nehru wrote to Jinnah in December expressing sadness that their political values seemed to differ, hoping to find common ground
• Jinnah wanted Congress to recognise their authority as the main organisation in India.

Question 34

facts about indian contribution to the war

Answer 34

• 30 Indians were awarded a Victoria cross
• conscription wasn’t used on the home front
• 2.3 million societies, of which 19,000 died
• most people were motivated by their need for a job, it wasn’t just imperial exploitation
• they also helped with hacking out roads and mining for coal in Bihar

Question 35

the Lahore resolution

Answer 35

• set out what the Muslim League considered to be the basic principals of any new constitution for India
  1. those areas where muslims were in the majority should be grouped to form separate independent states
  2. Minorities had to be protected
• it drove home separatism as Jinnah no longer saw Hindu-Muslim rapprochement as possible
• it could be argued that Jinnah didn’t actually want this and was using the idea of separate states to gain separate representation
• for example, Fazul Huq was present in the drafts (Bengali politician) who was a strong opponent of a separate Pakistan

Question 36

how did Congress react to the Lahore resolution?

Answer 36

• Gandhi didn’t support the idea.
• mini satyagraha campaigns broke out but the Raj regained control by jailing perpetuators
• Nehru denounced the idea for separatism, touring India trying to rally support. Some youth carried field Marshall batons, in case they came into conflict with Muslims
• They couldn’t do much as they withdrew form provincial assemblies, weakening their political influence

Question 37

the August Offer

Answer 37

-in may 1940, Lord Lithlingow met with Jinnah in Simla to discuss India and the War. Jinnah’s proposals became the basis of the offer
Jinnah’s proposals:
-representative Indians should join his executive council
-a war advisory council would be established that would include the princes and other interested parties
-an assurance that the government wouldn’t accept any new constitution without prior approval of Muslim India. or in a system that denied significant groups
-the role played by Muslims in the Indian army strengthened Jinnah’s hand, especially when compared to Congress’s obstructive attitude.
-there was a recognition that Congress didn’t speak for all of India, millions of muslims needed their interests safeguarded. This rose questions about who power should be transferred to?

Question 38

what did Bose do in 1939?

Answer 38

• he left the Congress Party and formed the Forward Bloc Party (a terrorist organisation who wanted Britain to quit India)
• at first they tried to rally all of the left wing sections within congress to develop an alternative socialist leadership
• they held an all-indie conference in Nagpur
• he was arrested in 1941 but escaped in January
• the Indian authorities banned Forward Bloc and raided offices in search of seditious material
• However, their actions continued, intermittently and without central direction (e.g. underground resistance)

Question 39

How did Bose interact with British allies?

Answer 39

• he travelled to the USSR to beg Stalin’s support for Indian independence. he was already facing invasion so declined
• he then turned to Germany. Hitler was worried that a loss of British influence would cause Russia to move in
• they urged him to spread anti-British propaganda and then agreed to work with him

Question 40

what did Bose do with Hitler?

Answer 40

• Bose moved to Japan where he formed the INA, using members as spies in mainland India
• Bose then had plans for a full-scale invasion of India, but the Japanese just wanted to invade Imphal, the capital city of the state Manipur (this was on the frontier to Burma which Japan had control of)
• 6000 INA were sent

Question 41

was Bose’s invasion successful?

Answer 41

• 600 deserted suggesting they had few loyal supporters
• 400 killed
• 1500 died from diseases such as malaria
• other surrendered
• Bose died in a plane crash, however, one of the Indian government inquiries suggested that he faked his own death