Consider the following events leading to the Indian Independence : 1. Lucknow Pact 2. Return of Subhash Chandra Bose to India 3. Cripps Mission 4. Naval Mutiny in Bombay Select the chronological sequence of these events (earliest to latest) from the code given below :
- (a)4, 3, 2, 1
- (b)3, 4, 2, 1
- (c)1, 2, 3, 4
- (d)2, 1, 3, 4
Correct — C, 1, 2, 3, 4. Three of the four events are firmly dated and they already fix the order. The Lucknow Pact was concluded in December 1916, when the Congress and the Muslim League held their sessions in the same city and agreed on separate electorates and weightage, with Tilak and Jinnah as its architects. The Cripps Mission followed in March 1942, when Sir Stafford Cripps reached Delhi with an offer of Dominion status after the war and a constituent assembly, and the talks collapsed within weeks. The naval mutiny in Bombay came last, in February 1946, when ratings of the Royal Indian Navy struck over food, pay and racial insult and the strike spread to ships and shore establishments in several ports. The remaining item, Bose's return to India, is loosely phrased, but on either reading it sits between 1916 and 1942: he returned from England in 1921 after resigning from the Indian Civil Service, and again from Europe in 1936, when he was arrested on landing. Either way the order runs 1, 2, 3, 4. The one option that would place his return before the Lucknow Pact is impossible, since he was still a schoolboy in 1916.
- (a)4, 3, 2, 1 — Reverses the whole sequence, putting the 1946 naval mutiny first and the 1916 Lucknow Pact last.
- (b)3, 4, 2, 1 — Opens with the Cripps Mission of 1942 and closes with the Lucknow Pact of 1916 — the two ends of the chronology exchanged.
- (d)2, 1, 3, 4 — Places Bose's return ahead of the Lucknow Pact of December 1916. Bose was born in 1897 and was still at school then, so no return of his can precede it.
The four events mark four different phases of the movement. The Lucknow Pact belongs to the moment of Congress reunion and Congress-League cooperation during the First World War. Bose's return brings into Indian politics the leader who would later break with Gandhi and build the Indian National Army. The Cripps Mission is the wartime bargaining that failed and led on to Quit India. The naval mutiny of February 1946 is the point at which British confidence in the loyalty of the Indian armed forces broke, and it weighed heavily on the decision to transfer power.
Chronology questions reward anchoring rather than recall of every item. Fix 1916 and 1942 first, and note that the naval mutiny belongs to the very end of British rule; that alone leaves only option (c) among the four codes, because every other option moves one of those three. The vague item, Bose's return, is then irrelevant to the answer, which is worth recognising early rather than agonising over. If you want to hold a date for it, the 1936 return from Europe is the one usually meant in this context — he had been abroad since 1933 and was arrested on landing at Bombay in April 1936.
- The Lucknow Pact was concluded in December 1916 between the Congress and the Muslim League, with Tilak and Jinnah as its architects.
- Subhas Chandra Bose returned from England in 1921 after resigning from the Indian Civil Service, and again from Europe in 1936, when he was arrested on landing.
- The Cripps Mission reached India in March 1942 and its talks broke down in April; the offer was of Dominion status after the war and a constituent assembly.
- The Royal Indian Navy mutiny began in Bombay in February 1946 and spread to other ports and shore establishments.
- Bose left India in January 1941 and never returned to the mainland, which is why any 'return' in this list must be dated to 1921 or 1936.
- December 1916 — the Lucknow Pact between the Congress and the Muslim League
- 1921, and again 1936 — Subhas Chandra Bose returns to India, first from England after resigning from the Indian Civil Service, then from Europe
- March 1942 — the Cripps Mission arrives; the talks collapse in April
- February 1946 — the Royal Indian Navy mutiny begins in Bombay and spreads to other ports
The three dated events already fix the order, and Bose's return falls between the first and the third on either reading.
- Trying to date a vaguely worded item before checking whether the answer depends on it; here it does not.
- Confusing the Cripps Mission of 1942 with the Cabinet Mission of 1946 — Cripps sat on both.
- Placing the naval mutiny after independence; it was in February 1946, eighteen months before.
As a chronological ordering of freedom-struggle events, usually with one loosely worded item that does not change the answer.
Which one of the following statements about the Cripps Mission is not correct?
- (a) It was sent to India by the British Government in March 1942.
- (b) It proposed that the Constitution of India was to be framed by an elected Constituent Assembly of the Indian people.
- (c) Any province which was not prepared to accept the Constitution would be free to retain its constitutional provisions existing at that time.
- (d) The British Government could enter into a separate constitutional arrangement with any of the acceding provinces.
Answer(d) The British Government could enter into a separate constitutional arrangement with any of the acceding provinces.
The third event in this sequence, opened up. Its correct option fixes March 1942 for the mission, which is the anchor that decides the ordering here, and the rest of the option set is the substance of what Cripps actually offered.
- practice — not a real PYQ
The Royal Indian Navy mutiny, which began among ratings in Bombay, took place in which month and year?
- (a)August 1942
- (b)February 1946
- (c)August 1946
- (d)February 1947
Answer(b) February 1946 — the strike spread from Bombay to other ports and shore establishments.
- practice — not a real PYQ
The Lucknow Pact of 1916 is chiefly associated with which pair of leaders?
- (a)Gandhi and Ambedkar
- (b)Tilak and Jinnah
- (c)Nehru and Patel
- (d)Gokhale and Ranade
Answer(b) Tilak and Jinnah — the architects of the Congress-League agreement concluded in December 1916.