UPSC Prelims 2021
Modern History Previous Year Questions (PYQs)

Detailed Explanation:

Answer: Option 4 — Officers of the Indian National Army

Shah Nawaz Khan, Prem Kumar Sehgal, and Gurbaksh Singh Dhillon were senior officers of the Indian National Army (INA), also known as the Azad Hind Fauj, led by Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose. They are famously remembered for the historic Red Fort Trials (INA Trials) of 1945-46, where they were court-martialed by the British for 'waging war against the King-Emperor'. The trials sparked massive nationalist demonstrations across India and became a turning point in India's freedom struggle, with the Indian National Congress organizing an INA Defence Committee comprising legal luminaries like Bhulabhai Desai, Tej Bahadur Sapru, and Jawaharlal Nehru to defend them.

📝 Short Notes: Red Fort Trials and INA

• Indian National Army (INA): Formed in 1942 by Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose from Indian prisoners of war and expatriates in Southeast Asia to fight British rule.
• Red Fort Trials (November 1945 - May 1946): Court-martial of INA officers at Red Fort, Delhi. The first trial featured three officers representing different communities - Shah Nawaz Khan (Muslim), Prem Kumar Sehgal (Hindu), and Gurbaksh Singh Dhillon (Sikh).
• Charges: Waging war against the King-Emperor, murder, and abetment of murder.
• Public Response: Massive demonstrations, strikes, and protests across India; united Hindus, Muslims, and Sikhs in nationalist fervor.
• Defence Committee: Led by Bhulabhai Desai; included Tej Bahadur Sapru, Jawaharlal Nehru, and Kailash Nath Katju.
• Outcome: All three were sentenced to deportation for life, but the Commander-in-Chief remitted the sentences due to public pressure. The trials accelerated British decision to leave India.
• Legacy: The INA trials demonstrated that the British could no longer rely on Indian armed forces' loyalty and significantly contributed to the independence movement.

Detailed Explanation:

Answer: Option 1 — The Quit India Resolution was adopted by the AICC.

On 8th August 1942, the All India Congress Committee (AICC) passed the historic Quit India Resolution at Bombay, launching the Quit India Movement under Mahatma Gandhi's leadership. This marked a decisive phase in India's freedom struggle, demanding immediate British withdrawal from India.

✅ Option 1 – Correct: The Quit India Resolution was indeed adopted by the AICC on 8th August 1942 at Bombay (now Mumbai).
❌ Option 2 – Incorrect: The expansion of the Viceroy's Executive Council was part of the August Offer of 1940, not related to 8th August 1942.
❌ Option 3 – Incorrect: Congress ministries resigned in seven provinces in October-November 1939 following the outbreak of World War II, not in 1942.
❌ Option 4 – Incorrect: Cripps Mission proposing Dominion Status occurred in March 1942, not on 8th August 1942.

📝 Short Notes: Quit India Movement (1942)

Detailed Explanation:

Answer: Option 1 — 1 Only

This question tests knowledge of the early English East India Company factories established in the first quarter of the 17th century (1600-1625). Of the three locations mentioned, only Broach had an operational English factory during this period.

✅ Statement 1 – Correct: Broach (Bharuch, Gujarat) was established as an English factory in 1616-1617, soon after the establishment of the Surat factory (1613), making it one of the early trading posts on the western coast.

❌ Statement 2 – Incorrect: Chicacole (Srikakulam, Andhra Pradesh) was not an English factory in the first quarter of the 17th century; the English presence on the eastern coast was primarily at Masulipatnam (established 1611).

❌ Statement 3 – Incorrect: Trichinopoly (Tiruchirappalli, Tamil Nadu) did not have an English factory in the early 17th century; it gained strategic importance only during the mid-18th century Carnatic Wars between the English and French.

📝 Short Notes: Early English East India Company Factories (17th Century)

Detailed Explanation:

Answer: Option 3 — Rabindranath Tagore translated the National Anthem from Bengali to English here.

Madanapalle in Andhra Pradesh holds a unique place in Indian history as the location where Rabindranath Tagore translated 'Jana Gana Mana' from Bengali to English. During his stay at the Besant Theosophical College in Madanapalle in February 1919, Tagore rendered the translation titled "The Morning Song of India."

❌ Option 1 – Incorrect: Pingali Venkayya designed the tricolour Indian National Flag but presented it to Mahatma Gandhi at the INC session in Bezwada (now Vijayawada), not Madanapalle.

❌ Option 2 – Incorrect: Pattabhi Sitaramaiah was a prominent leader in Andhra Pradesh and served as Congress President, but he did not lead the Quit India Movement from Madanapalle.

✅ Option 3 – Correct: Rabindranath Tagore translated Jana Gana Mana from Bengali to English as "The Morning Song of India" during his stay at Madanapalle in 1919.

❌ Option 4 – Incorrect: The Theosophical Society was founded in New York (1875) and moved its international headquarters to Adyar, Chennai (1882), not Madanapalle.

📝 Short Notes: Jana Gana Mana and National Symbols

• Composition: Jana Gana Mana was originally composed in Bengali by Rabindranath Tagore in 1911.
• First Performance: It was first sung at the Calcutta Session of the Indian National Congress on December 27, 1911.
• English Translation: Tagore translated it to English as "The Morning Song of India" at Madanapalle, Andhra Pradesh in February 1919.
• Adoption as National Anthem: The Constituent Assembly adopted Jana Gana Mana as India's National Anthem on January 24, 1950.
• Duration: The full version has five stanzas; the official playing time of the shortened version is approximately 52 seconds.
• Nobel Prize: Rabindranath Tagore was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1913, becoming the first non-European to receive this honor.

Detailed Explanation:

Answer: Option 3 — Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar

Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar served as Secretary of the Hindu Female School (established in 1849), which was later renamed Bethune Female School in honor of its founder J.E.D. Bethune. Vidyasagar played a crucial role in promoting women's education in Bengal and was instrumental in the administration and development of this pioneering institution for female higher education in India.

📝 Short Notes: Social Reformers and Women's Education

Detailed Explanation:

Answer: Option 2 — 2 only

The Montagu-Chelmsford Reforms of 1919 introduced limited electoral reforms but did not grant universal voting rights to all women above the age of 21. The Government of India Act of 1935, however, explicitly provided reserved seats for women in both provincial and central legislatures, marking a significant step towards women's political representation.

❌ Statement 1 – Incorrect: The Montagu-Chelmsford Reforms did not recommend granting voting rights to all women above 21; voting rights remained restricted based on property, income, and education qualifications.

✅ Statement 2 – Correct: The Government of India Act of 1935 introduced reserved seats for women in provincial and central legislatures to ensure their political representation.

📝 Short Notes: Constitutional Reforms (1919-1935)

Detailed Explanation:

Answer: Option 3 — Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi

Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi translated a collection of ancient Indian religious lyrics from Sanskrit and other Indian languages into English during his imprisonment in Yerwada Jail in 1930. This work was published in London in 1934 under the title 'Songs from Prison'.

Why other options are incorrect:
Bal Gangadhar Tilak: He is well-known for his work 'Gita Rahasya', which he wrote while imprisoned in Mandalay (1908-1914), and 'The Arctic Home in the Vedas'. He is not associated with 'Songs from Prison'.
Jawaharlal Nehru: His major literary contributions include 'The Discovery of India' and 'Glimpses of World History', both written during his various terms in prison, but not 'Songs from Prison'.
Sarojini Naidu: Known as the 'Nightingale of India', she was a prolific poet whose works include 'The Golden Threshold', 'The Bird of Time', and 'The Broken Wing', but she is not associated with the translation 'Songs from Prison'.

📝 Short Notes: Prison Literature by Freedom Fighters