Who among the following was NOT associated with the Kanpur Conspiracy Case of 1924?
- (a)Muzaffar Ahmed
- (b)Nalini Gupta
- (c)Shaukat Usmani
- (d)M.A. Ansari
Correct — D, M.A. Ansari. The Kanpur (Cawnpore) Bolshevik Conspiracy Case of 1924 was a prosecution launched by the colonial government against India's early communists, charging them with conspiring 'to deprive the King-Emperor of his sovereignty of British India.' The prominent accused were Muzaffar Ahmad, Shaukat Usmani, S.A. Dange and Nalini Gupta (with M.N. Roy, then abroad, named as an absconder). Dr. Mukhtar Ahmad Ansari (M.A. Ansari) was a nationalist physician and Congress leader — President of the Indian National Congress in 1927 — and had no connection with this communist conspiracy case. Hence he is the one NOT associated with it.
- (a)Muzaffar Ahmed — Wrong (he WAS associated) — Muzaffar Ahmad, a pioneer of the communist movement in Bengal, was one of the accused convicted and sentenced in the case, so he cannot be the 'not associated' answer.
- (b)Nalini Gupta — Wrong (he WAS associated) — Nalini Gupta was among the accused tried and sentenced in the Kanpur Bolshevik Conspiracy Case, so he is not the odd one out.
- (c)Shaukat Usmani — Wrong (he WAS associated) — Shaukat Usmani was one of the early communists convicted in this very case, so he is genuinely linked to it.
The Kanpur Bolshevik Conspiracy Case (1924) was one of the colonial state's first attempts to crush the nascent communist movement in India. The government prosecuted a handful of early communists for conspiring against the sovereignty of the British Crown; four of the accused were convicted and given four years' rigorous imprisonment. The trial actually publicised communist ideas, and the Communist Party of India was formally organised at Kanpur in 1925. A far larger prosecution, the Meerut Conspiracy Case, followed in 1929.
The trap is that Muzaffar Ahmad, Nalini Gupta and Shaukat Usmani are all genuine early-communist names tied to this case, so they look interchangeable. You must recognise that M.A. Ansari belonged to mainstream Congress nationalism (he was INC President in 1927), not to the communist conspiracy cases — making him the clear exception.
- Kanpur (Cawnpore) Bolshevik Conspiracy Case, 1924 — early communists charged with conspiring against the King-Emperor's sovereignty.
- Main accused: Muzaffar Ahmad, S.A. Dange, Shaukat Usmani and Nalini Gupta (M.N. Roy named but abroad).
- Four accused were sentenced to four years' rigorous imprisonment.
- M.A. Ansari (Mukhtar Ahmad Ansari) was a Congress nationalist and INC President in 1927, unconnected with the case.
- Confusing communist conspiracy-case figures with mainstream Congress leaders
- Confusing the Kanpur Bolshevik Conspiracy Case (1924) with the later Meerut Conspiracy Case (1929)
UPPSC and UPSC ask 'who was / was NOT associated with X case or movement' — you must know each person's political affiliation, not just the name.
No directly related past PYQ was found.
- practice — not a real PYQ
The Kanpur Bolshevik Conspiracy Case (1924) was primarily directed against which group?
- (a)Early communists
- (b)Moderate Congress leaders
- (c)Revolutionary terrorists of the Hindustan Republican Association
- (d)Khilafat movement leaders
Answer(a) Early communists — the accused were charged with conspiring against the sovereignty of the British Crown.
- practice — not a real PYQ
Which conspiracy case, larger than the Kanpur case, was launched in 1929 against communists and trade-union leaders?
- (a)Meerut Conspiracy Case
- (b)Lahore Conspiracy Case
- (c)Kakori Conspiracy Case
- (d)Alipore Bomb Case
Answer(a) Meerut Conspiracy Case — the 1929 prosecution of communists and labour leaders.