Question map
With reference to 8th August, 1942 in Indian history, which one of the following statements is correct?
Explanation
The correct answer is Option 1. On August 8, 1942, the All India Congress Committee (AICC) met at Gowalia Tank Maidan in Bombay and formally adopted the historic Quit India Resolution. This resolution demanded an immediate end to British rule and authorized Mahatma Gandhi to lead a non-violent mass struggle, famously known as the August Kranti.
- Option 2 is incorrect because the expansion of the Viceroy’s Executive Council occurred earlier, notably under the August Offer (1940) and subsequent 1941 reforms.
- Option 3 is incorrect because the Congress ministries resigned in October/November 1939, protesting India's unilateral involvement in World War II.
- Option 4 is incorrect because the Cripps Mission proposals were presented in March 1942. Their failure to provide immediate self-rule was the primary catalyst for the Quit India movement launched in August.
PROVENANCE & STUDY PATTERN
Full viewThis is a 'Timeline Anchor' question. 8th August 1942 is one of the top 5 most critical dates in Modern Indian History (August Kranti). The options are designed to punish aspirants who confuse the chronology of 1939 (Resignations), 1940 (August Offer), and 1942 (Cripps & Quit India).
This question can be broken into the following sub-statements. Tap a statement sentence to jump into its detailed analysis.
- Statement 1: With reference to 8 August 1942 in Indian history, did the All‑India Congress Committee adopt the Quit India Resolution on that date?
- Statement 2: With reference to 8 August 1942 in Indian history, was the Viceroy's Executive Council expanded to include more Indians on that date?
- Statement 3: With reference to 8 August 1942 in Indian history, did the Congress ministries resign in seven provinces on that date?
- Statement 4: With reference to 8 August 1942 in Indian history, did Sir Stafford Cripps propose an Indian Union with full Dominion Status to be granted after the Second World War?
- Explicitly records that the All India Congress Committee met at Bombay on 8 August 1942.
- Directly states that the AICC passed the famous 'Quit India' Resolution at that meeting.
- Specifies that on 8 August 1942 in Bombay the All India Congress Committee endorsed the Quit India resolution.
- Links the AICC endorsement on that date to Gandhi's 'Do or Die' speech, confirming the meeting's significance.
- States the Quit India Resolution was ratified at the Congress meeting at Gowalia Tank, Bombay, on August 8, 1942.
- Describes prior CWC action in July and that the resolution was to be approved by the AICC in August, showing procedural continuity.
- Discusses the Cripps Mission (1942) and notes only a 'vague commitment' to increase Indian members of the Viceroy's Executive Council.
- The passage says Cripps 'failed to present any concrete proposals' beyond that vague commitment, implying no concrete expansion was enacted at that time.
- Refers to a proposal that 'An Indian representative member was to be added to the Viceroy’s Executive', indicating an addition was proposed rather than already implemented.
- This supports the view that changes were proposed (not necessarily effected) rather than an expansion having taken place on 8 August 1942.
- Describes the Wavell Plan (June 1945) which proposed the Viceroy's Executive Council be made almost entirely Indian.
- By locating a clear expansion proposal in 1945, this passage indicates significant changes occurred later, not on 8 August 1942.
Explicitly records an 'August 8' offer by Linlithgow that included 'expansion of the Viceroy's Council (or the Executive Council) to accommodate more Indians', but dates this to 1940 in the snippet.
A student could compare the year given here (1940) with the statement's year (1942) on a timeline to see a mismatch and thus question the claim.
Summarises the August Offer (August 1940) proposing expansion of the Viceroy's Executive Council to have a majority of Indians.
Use the specific mention of 'August 1940' and the August Offer as a known event to check whether any similar expansion occurred on 8 August 1942.
States that in July 1941 the Viceroy's executive council was actually enlarged to give Indians a majority (8 out of 12).
A student can place this concrete enlargement in July 1941 on a timeline to assess whether another enlargement on 8 August 1942 would be redundant or unexpected.
Describes later proposals (Wavell Plan, 1945) for reconstructing the Executive Council with mainly Indian members, showing that council composition was repeatedly discussed across years.
Combine this pattern of multiple reforms/proposals (1940 offer, 1941 enlargement, 1945 Wavell Plan) with a timeline to evaluate whether an expansion specifically on 8 Aug 1942 fits the documented sequence.
Explicitly states the Congress ministries resigned in October 1939 after the outbreak of World War II (gives a different date for resignations).
A student could compare this date (Oct 1939) with 8 Aug 1942 to judge that resignations did not occur on the latter date.
States the Congress Working Committee decided that all Congress ministries in the provinces would resign after the 1939 war declaration and describes subsequent suspension of provincial legislatures.
Use this rule/pattern (resignation in 1939 as reaction to war declaration) to infer resignations were tied to 1939 events, not to the Quit India date in 1942.
Lists the provinces where Congress ministries were formed (Bombay, Madras, Central Provinces, Orissa, United Provinces, Bihar and later NWFP and Assam), providing the scope/number of provinces involved.
A student can count and cross-check how many provinces had ministries to assess the claim of 'seven provinces' and whether resignations could refer to those specific provinces.
Records that the All India Congress Committee ratified the Quit India resolution at Bombay on 8 August 1942 (connects that date to Quit India, not to ministerial resignations).
Combine this with evidence of when ministries resigned (1939) to separate the Quit India events of 8 Aug 1942 from the earlier provincial resignations.
Notes the mass arrests of Congress leaders early on 9 August 1942 following the 8 August Quit India meeting, reinforcing that Aug 8–9 is associated with the Quit India launch and arrests rather than provincial resignations.
A student could use this chronological pattern (Quit India on 8 Aug, arrests on 9 Aug) to further argue the major actions on those dates were movement-related, not ministerial resignations.
- Explicitly records that Cripps promised Dominion Status and a constitution‑making body after the war.
- Mentions the draft constitution mechanism (partly elected and nominated), linking dominion status to post‑war constitution‑making.
- Summarises the Cripps Plan as offering dominion status and setting up a Constituent Assembly.
- Connects the plan to its political outcome (rejection by the Congress), confirming the proposal's content.
- States that in 1942 Cripps came with a draft proposal for framing an independent constitution to be adopted after World War II.
- Links Cripps' mission directly to post‑war constitution formation and the objective of independent constitutional status.
- [THE VERDICT]: Absolute Sitter. Direct hit from Spectrum (Chapter 23) or Old NCERT (Bipin Chandra). If you got this wrong, your core history timeline is broken.
- [THE CONCEPTUAL TRIGGER]: The 'Turbulent 40s' Chronology. UPSC loves mixing up the chain reaction: WWII starts → Congress Resigns → August Offer → Individual Satyagraha → Cripps → Quit India.
- [THE HORIZONTAL EXPANSION]: Master the 'August' Trinity: (1) August Declaration (1917, Montagu), (2) August Offer (1940, Linlithgow), (3) August Kranti (1942, Gandhi). Also, memorize the precursor: The 'Wardha Resolution' (July 1942) which authorized Gandhi, ratified later at Bombay on Aug 8.
- [THE STRATEGIC METACOGNITION]: Do not study events in isolation. Study them as 'Action-Reaction'. Quit India (Aug 1942) was the direct reaction to the failure of Cripps (March 1942). Congress Resignations (1939) were the reaction to India's involuntary entry into WWII.
The CWC authorised the Quit India resolution in July and the AICC ratified it on 8 August 1942.
High-yield for questions on internal Congress procedures and timelines; helps explain how major campaign decisions were formalised. Connects to studies of party structures, leadership roles, and sequence-of-events questions in modern Indian history.
- Rajiv Ahir. A Brief History of Modern India (2019 ed.). SPECTRUM. > Chapter 23: Quit India Movement, Demand for Pakistan, and the INA > The 'Quit India' Resolution > p. 448
- India and the Contemporary World – II. History-Class X . NCERT(Revised ed 2025) > Chapter 2: Nationalism in India > Quit India Movement > p. 49
The AICC meeting at Gowalia Tank, Bombay on 8 August 1942 is the site/date where the Quit India Resolution was ratified.
Useful for questions on pivotal locations and dates in the independence movement and for linking speeches (e.g., Gandhi's 'Do or Die') to concrete events. Enables quick elimination in date/place matching and cause-effect questions.
- Rajiv Ahir. A Brief History of Modern India (2019 ed.). SPECTRUM. > Chapter 23: Quit India Movement, Demand for Pakistan, and the INA > The 'Quit India' Resolution > p. 448
- India and the Contemporary World – II. History-Class X . NCERT(Revised ed 2025) > Chapter 2: Nationalism in India > Quit India Movement > p. 49
The ratification on 8 August 1942 was followed by the arrest of leaders (from August 9), triggering the mass movement.
Important for explaining consequences of political resolutions — connects decision to repression and mass uprisings. Helps answer questions on outcomes, state response, and chronology of the Quit India Movement.
- Rajiv Ahir. A Brief History of Modern India (2019 ed.). SPECTRUM. > Chapter 23: Quit India Movement, Demand for Pakistan, and the INA > Summary > p. 460
- History , class XII (Tamilnadu state board 2024 ed.) > Chapter 7: Last Phase of Indian National Movement > Quit India > p. 87
The August Offer proposed expansion of the Viceroy's Executive Council to include more Indians.
High-yield for understanding British wartime concessions and Indian political responses; ties directly to the origins of Individual Satyagraha and later demands for a constituent assembly. Mastery helps answer timeline and cause-effect questions on constitutional concessions during WWII.
- History , class XII (Tamilnadu state board 2024 ed.) > Chapter 7: Last Phase of Indian National Movement > August Offer > p. 85
- Rajiv Ahir. A Brief History of Modern India (2019 ed.). SPECTRUM. > Chapter 22: Nationalist Response in the Wake of World War II > August Offer > p. 439
The Viceroy's Executive Council was enlarged in July 1941 to give Indians a majority of 8 out of 12 members.
Clarifies the actual date of Indian-majority representation in the Executive Council and the limits of Indian authority (defence, finance, home remained with the British). Useful for questions testing precise chronology and the extent of Indian participation in governance.
- Rajiv Ahir. A Brief History of Modern India (2019 ed.). SPECTRUM. > Chapter 22: Nationalist Response in the Wake of World War II > Evaluation > p. 440
The Wavell Plan proposed reconstructing the Executive Council with almost all Indian members and equal Hindu-Muslim representation.
Explains late-war negotiations over interim government arrangements and communal representation; connects to Simla Conference outcomes and the formation of the interim government in 1946. Essential for questions on post-war constitutional transitions.
- History , class XII (Tamilnadu state board 2024 ed.) > Chapter 7: Last Phase of Indian National Movement > Wavell Plan > p. 92
- Rajiv Ahir. A Brief History of Modern India (2019 ed.). SPECTRUM. > Chapter 23: Quit India Movement, Demand for Pakistan, and the INA > The Plan > p. 455
Congress ministries resigned in protest soon after the outbreak of the Second World War in 1939, not on 8 August 1942.
High-yield for chronology questions: distinguishes the 1939 mass resignation (cause: India's involuntary entry into WWII) from later events in 1942. Connects to provincial governance, the Day of Deliverance, and Congress–League political moves; useful for causal and timeline-based UPSC questions.
- History , class XII (Tamilnadu state board 2024 ed.) > Chapter 6: Communalism in Nationalist Politics > 6.5 Observation of Day of Deliverance > p. 79
- Rajiv Ahir. A Brief History of Modern India (2019 ed.). SPECTRUM. > Chapter 21: Congress Rule in Provinces > Congress Rule in Provinces ✫ 415 > p. 415
- THEMES IN INDIAN HISTORY PART III, History CLASS XII (NCERT 2025 ed.) > Chapter 11: MAHATMA GANDHI AND THE NATIONALIST MOVEMENT > Fig. 11.10 > p. 302
While everyone knows the date, few remember the procedure: The Quit India Resolution was moved by Jawaharlal Nehru and seconded by Sardar Patel. Also, the specific venue: Gowalia Tank Maidan (now August Kranti Maidan).
Use the 'Kranti' (Revolution) Logic. 8th August is celebrated as 'August Kranti'. A 'Revolution' implies a mass uprising (Option A). Option B is a bureaucratic reform, Option C is a passive protest (resignation), and Option D is a diplomatic proposal. Only A fits the spirit of a 'Kranti'.
Link this to Mains GS1 (Freedom Struggle - Mass Movements): The immediate aftermath of this resolution was the formation of 'Parallel Governments' (Ballia, Tamluk, Satara). This links to GS2 (Local Governance history) and the concept of 'state breakdown'.