Nationalism in India — Questions & Answers

Sample questions from Nationalism in India

1. Q1. The Poona Pact of September 1932 was an agreement between:

   • A.Gandhi and the British government
   • B.Mahatma Gandhi and Dr B. R. Ambedkar over reserved seats for the Depressed Classes✓
   • C.Hindus and Muslims
   • D.Congress and the Muslim League
   Solution

   The Poona Pact (September 1932) was an agreement between Gandhi and Dr B. R. Ambedkar; it gave the Depressed Classes (later Scheduled Castes) reserved seats in provincial and central legislative councils, but they were to be voted in by the general electorate, resolving the dispute over separate electorates.

2. Q2. The Simon Commission was opposed by Indians with the slogan "Go back Simon" because it:

   • A.Was too generous to Indians
   • B.Had not a single Indian member, though it was set up to look into the working of the constitutional system in India✓
   • C.Abolished the Congress
   • D.Introduced the salt tax
   Solution

   The Simon Commission, set up to look into the functioning of the constitutional system in India and suggest changes, was opposed because it did not have a single Indian member; when it arrived in 1928 it was greeted with the slogan "Go back Simon".

3. Q3. What did the image of Bharat Mata help nationalist writers and artists achieve?

   • A.It personified the nation as a mother figure and encouraged emotional attachment to the land✓
   • B.It represented the British monarch as the mother of India
   • C.It rejected religious and cultural symbols from public life
   • D.It showed that nationalism depended only on military power
   Solution

   A is correct. Bharat Mata created an emotional and cultural image of the nation. B, C and D misread the nationalist use of symbolism.

4. Q4. The idea of Satyagraha as developed by Mahatma Gandhi emphasised:

   • A.Physical force against oppressors
   • B.The power of truth and the need to search for truth without physical force✓
   • C.Armed revolution
   • D.Complete non-involvement in politics
   Solution

   Satyagraha emphasised the power of truth and the need to search for truth; it suggested that if the cause was true and the struggle against injustice, physical force was not necessary to fight the oppressor.

5. Q5. Which event marked the formal beginning of the Civil Disobedience Movement in 1930?

   • A.The boycott of the Simon Commission in 1928
   • B.The breaking of the salt law at Dandi✓
   • C.The suspension of Non-Cooperation at Chauri Chaura
   • D.The signing of the Poona Pact
   Solution

   B is correct. The Dandi March and salt-law breaking began Civil Disobedience. A preceded it; C ended the earlier movement; D came in 1932.

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