Chapter 6 The Beginnings Of Nationalism Topic C Miscellaneous Strike The Odd One Out
Question 1. Allan Octavian Hume, Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay, Ananda Mohan Basu, Nabagopal Mitra.
Answer: Allan Octavian Hume
Question 2. Hindu Mela, Bharat Sabha, National Congress, Indian League.
Answer: National Congress
Question 3. Ilbert Bill, Arms Act, Vernacular Press Act, Dramatic Performance Act
Answer: Ilbert Bill
Question 4. Ripon, Lytton, Duffrein, Dadabhai Naoroji.
Answer: Dadabhai Naoroji
Question 5. Lahore, Amritsar, Jamaica, Kanpur.
Answer: Jamaica
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Question 6. Womesh Chunder Banerjee, Surendranath Banerjee, Dadabhai
Gangadhar Tilak.
Answer: Bal Gangadhar Tilak.
Question 7. Surendranath Banerjee, Lala Lajpat Rai, Bal Gangadhar Tilak, Bipin Chandra Pal.
Answer: Surendranath Banerjee
Question 8. Anushilan Samity, Indian League, Indian Association, Theosophical Society.
Answer: Anushilan Samity
Question 9. Sanjivani Patrika, Vandemataram Patrika, Jugantar, Daily News.
Answer: Daily News
Question 10. Zamindar Sabha, Bharat Sabha,Puna Sarvajanik Sabha, Bangabhasha Prakashika Sabha.
Answer: Puna Sarvajanik Sabha
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Question 11. Swaraj, Swadeshi, Boycott, Picketing.
Answer: Picketing.
Question 12. Kshudiram Basu, Prafulla Chaki, Bagha Jatin, Bipin Chandra Pal.
Answer: Bipin Chandra Pal
Chapter 6 The Beginnings Of Nationalism Topic C Miscellaneous Match The Columns
Answer: A-1,B-4,C-5,D-3,E-2
Answer: A-3,B-4,C-1,D-5,E-2
Answer: A-5,B-3,C-4,D-1,E-2
Answer: A-4,B-1,C-5,D-2,E-3
Answer: A-2,B-1,C-3,D-5,E-4
Answer: A-3,B-2,C-5,D-4,E-1
Answer: A-5,B-4,C-3,D-2,E-1
Chapter 6 The Beginnings Of Nationalism Topic C Miscellaneous Choose The Correct Alternatives
Question 1. The first session of the National Congress was held at
(Bombay/Goa/Madras).
Answer: Bombay
Question 2. The Moderates demanded that the eligible age for Civil Service examinations should be (20/23/21) years.
Answer: 23
Question 3. Partition of Bengal was planned by(Dufferin/Curzon/Minto).
Answer: Curzon
Question 4. The newspaper associated with revolutionary activities in Bengal was (Jugantar/Hindu Patriot/Sompraksash)
Answer: Jugantar
Chapter 6 The Beginnings Of Nationalism Topic C Miscellaneous Choose Which Statement Is Right And Which Wrong
Question 1. Womesh Chunder Banerjee was the first President of Congress.
Answer: Right
Question 2. Moderates called the activities of the Extremists, ‘three-day tamasha’.
Answer: Right
Question 3. Economic rationalism was proposed by Aurobindo Ghosh.
Answer: Wrong
Question 4. Kshudiram Bose and Profulla Chaki attempted to murder Kingsford.
Answer: Right
History Class 8 WBBSE
Answer Briefly
Question 1. What is meant by the Age of “Sabha samitis’?
Answer:
1. Period:
The period from the Great Revolt (1857) to the establishment of the National Congress (1885) is generally referred to as the age of councils (Sabhas) and associations (Samities).
2. Councils and associations:
Some important councils and associations were the Indian League of Sisir Kumar Ghosh, Indian Association of Surendranath Banerjee and Ananda Mohan Bose,
Hindu Mela of Nabagopal Mitra, Poona Sarvajanik Sabha of Gopal Hari Deshmukh, and Madras Mahajan Sabha of Subrammaniya layer.
3. Role:
The councils and associations first tried to safeguard their own interest. Then they tried to spread nationalism at the regional level.
Question 2. Discuss two main differences between the Moderates and the Extremists.
Answer:
Question 3. What is the importance of the Surat session (1907) of Congress?
Answer:
1. Disgrace of the Congress:
The split in the Congress at the Surat session brought considerable disgrace upon this political organization,
2. Decay of strength:
The Congress became weak when it split up into two groups. So the national movement lost its momentum till Gandhi emerged as a leader.
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3. Rise of Extremists:
As a far-reaching effect of the Surat split, Indian politics from the early phase of the Congress till the rise of Gandhi was chiefly dominated by the Extremists.
Question 4. Why did secret societies grow up in Bengal at the beginning of the twentieth century?
Answer:
1. Spread of revolutionism:
The revolutionaries who believed in armed struggle formed many secret organizations to spread revolutionist ideas.
2. Collect funds:
The revolutionaries needed. money to collect arms and conduct their activities. So many secret societies grew up to collect funds.
3. Unification of revolutionaries:
Many secret societies grew up to unify the revolutionaries and train them.
Some of these were Anushilan Samity, Dhaka Anushilan Samity, Jugantar Samity, Sadhana Samity, Suhrid Samity, and Brati Samity.
Write In Your Own Words
Question 1. Make a critical analysis of Hume’s role in the foundation of Congress. Do you think Congress could have been formed without Hume? Give reasons for your answer.
Answer:
Controversy over the foundation of the National Congress
The chief credit for establishing the National Congress goes to Allen Octavian Hume, a retired English official.
However, modern historian Dr. Amalesh Tripathy does not want to accept Hume as the founder of the National Congress.
He thinks that Hume had no role in establishing the National Congress because the background had already been created before he took up the initiative. The reasons are
- Duffrein had no regard for Hume and so the Hume Duffrein conspiracy was baseless.
- Hume was the Secretary of the Revenue, Agriculture, and Commerce Department. So it was not possible for him to examine the documents of the Home departments and formulate the Safety Valve theory.
- Again, there is no justification as to why Hume took up the initiative of establishing the National Congress as an antidote for destructive forces in India after six years of his retirement.
So it can be said that the role of Hume in establishing the National Congress is merely an exaggeration.
Hume’s Contribution To The Establishment Of the National Congress-
1. Introduction of ‘safety valve’ theory:
Allan Octavian Hume had worked as a secretary of the British government at Simla for some time. At that time he saw some documents from the Home department.
He concluded that there was some dissatisfaction among the lower-class Indians against British rule and revolts could occur at any time.
So he tried to establish the National Congress as a safety value.
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2. Open letter:
Hume tried to give shape to his ‘safety valve’ theory. So he wrote an open letter to the graduates of Kolkata University on March 1, 1883, urging them to organize
themselves for the social, political, mental, and moral progress of their country
3. Establishment of Indian National Union:
Hume made a ceaseless attempt to build up an all-Indian political organization. He contacted the Indian leaders in different parts of India.
As a first step in building an all-Indian political organization, he founded Indian National Union in 1883. In the same year, he also arranged for an all-India. conference in Poona.
4. Hume Dufferin conspiracy:
Some historians like Girija Prasad Mukherjee and C.F. Andrews think that Hume had met Duffrein and submitted a proposal of building an all-India political organization.
The Marxist writer Rajani Pam Dutta thinks that the Congress was the outcome of the HumeDuffrein conspiracy.
Question 2. What was the main position of economic nationalism? Do you find any similarity in its stand with that of the Boycott and Swadeshi movement? Give reasons.
Answer:
Main Gist Of Economic Nationalism
See Salient Points.
Link Between Economic Nationalism And Boycott And Swadesh Movement
1. The advocates of economic nationalism blamed the British administrative policy for the financial crisis in India. The British used the Indian markets to sell goods.
manufactured in Britain. So the sale of Indian commodities was adversely affected. There was a link between
economic nationalism and Boycott and Swadeshi movements because it was on this background that
the issues of buying native goods and discarding foreign goods had found a place in the agenda of the two movements.
2. The economic nationalists said that the agro-based Indian economy was being used to protect the financial interest of Britain.
As a result, native agriculture and industry were being destroyed. Therefore, attempts were made to set up indigenous industries with
the help of native capital so that India did not become the sole investment ground of the British.
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Question 3. What was the main proposal of the Extremist movement? Do you support the use of religious symbols in their movement? Give reasons for your answer.
Answer:
Main Idea Of Extremist Movement-
1. Aim:
The Extremists aimed at attaining Swaraj but the concept of ‘Swaraj’ had been explained by different leaders in different ways.
According to Bipin Chandra Pal and Aurobindo Ghosh ‘Swaraj’ meant complete freedom which could not be achieved under British rule.
Tilak felt that it was possible to establish ‘Swaraj’ if the administrative machinery could be brought under the control of the Indians.
2. Policy:
The Extremists followed the policy of Swadeshi, boycott, and self-sacrifice.
3. Ideals:
The idea of the Extremists was to follow Hinduism, past history, and complete patriotism.
4. Method:
The Extremists wanted to have their demands fulfilled through direct struggle. They wanted to become self-dependent and attain complete independence.
Dispute Over The Use Of Religious Symbols By The Extremists
1. Many Extremists leaders described the past history of India as fully glorious. However, such an explanation turned out to be a glorification of Hinduism.
Tilak composed a treatise on Gita (Gita rahasya) Aurabindo’s writings reflect the flawlessness of The Gita.
Lajpat Rai wrote the biography of Shri Krishna in Urdu, Brahma Bandhav wrote ‘Sri Krishna tattva in Bengali, and Ashwini Kumar Dutta wrote ‘Bhakti Yoga’.
Thus an attempt was made to spread extremist thinking among the people by following The Gita and by describing the character of Shri Krishna as an example.
2. The Extremists also tried to present the valiant picture of the Maratha hero Shivaji before the people.
They thought that Shivaji was not only a symbol of political struggle or struggle for independence but also a symbol of noble ideals.
Tilak started the Ganapati and Shivaji festivals in Maharashtra.
3. The Punjabis were once again stirred by the reminiscence of Ranjit Singh. Again, people in Bengal were inspired by the stories of the struggle of Pradapaditya and Sitaram.
4. The Extremists tried to compare the Aryans, Hindu kingdoms, and native heroes to Anglo- Saxons, Western countries, and European heroes respectively.
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They tried to establish the superiority of the Indians over the Europeans and in doing so, they became prejudiced toward the Hindu religion.
Comment: All the above reasons show that the use of religious symbols in the Extremist government is not justifiable.
The revival of Hinduism created an adverse effect on the Muslims and made them biased.
Question 4. What was the background of revolutionary terrorism? Why did it largely fail?
Answer:
Background for Terrorist Activities
1. Foundation of different secret societies:
Terrorist activities started and spread through different secret societies.
The Anushilan Samity emerged as the first center of revolutionary activities.
Other secret associations were ‘Sadhana Samity’ and ‘Suhrid’ Samity of Mymensingh, ‘Brati Samity’ of Faridpur, and ‘Mukti Sangha’ of Dhaka.
Such associations were also set up at Saharanpur in Punjab and ‘Nasik, Pune, and Nagpur in Maharashtra.
The members were initiated into revolutionist ideals and then they carried out different revolutionary activities.
2. Failure of the Swadeshi Movement:
terrorist movements started only after the failure of the Swadeshi movement.
As passive resistance failed under the tremendous pressure of the repressive policies of the government,
revolutionary terrorism or violent struggle emerged as an alternative. In the context of armed revolutionary activities in Bengal, Punjab.
and Maharashtra Gandhiji said that the awareness created by the Swadeshi and Boycott movements in Bengal had spread from Punjab in the North to Kanyakumari in the South.
3. Weakness of Congress movement:
The young leaders of the Congress lost faith in the ‘Political beggary’ i.e. prayer and petition policy of the Moderates and initiated the Extremist or militant nationalistic ideals.
When extremist activities also failed, a background was created for the rise of revolutionary ‘terrorism based on violence.
4. Economic exploitation by the government:
The Indigenous industries, agriculture, and trade were almost ruined due to the colonial exploitation policy of the government.
This policy prepared the grounds for the rise of revolutionary terrorism.
5. Repressive measures of the British:
The British government usurped the independence of the Indians by passing some repressive acts.
The Dramatic Performance Act was passed by Northbrook in 1878.
The Vernacular Press Act was passed by Lytton in 1878.
The Arms Act of 1878, Curzon’s Municipality Act of 1899, and the University Act of 1904 compelled the younger generation to adopt a combative attitude towards the British.
6. Influence of international events:
The younger generation was highly influenced by Italy’s defeat in Italy Abyssinian War,
the defeat of England in the Anglo-Boer War, Russia’s defeat in the Russo-Japanese War, the French Revolution, the American War of Independence, the Nihilist movement against Tzardom in Russia, and the nationalist struggle of Ireland.
They thought that British domination could be removed only through armed struggle.
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Reasons For Failure
1. Organisational weakness:
The organization of the secret societies and other associations was quite weak.
We may mention Anushilan Samity, Jugantar Dal, Sadhana Samity, Suhrid Samity, and Brati Samity in this context.
They tried to gather foreign assistance to shield their weaknesses but, in most cases, their attempts failed.
2. Role of betrayers:
An important reason for the failure of the revolutionary movement in India was the role of betrayers like Naren Gosai, Kripal Sinha, and others.
They used to leak out plans and information which helped the English espionage and police a lot. As the government could know about
the plans of the revolutionaries beforehand they could easily take up measures to foil the plans.
3. Difference of opinion and inner conflict:
Though the objective of all the revolutionist groups was the same yet they differed in their methods.
There was a lack of unity and integrity from the very beginning.
Pramathanath Mitra and Jadugopal Mukherjee tried to make it a mass movement while Barindra Kumar Ghosh, Bhupendranath Dutta, and Pulin Behari Das directed the movement toward secret murders and terrorism.
4. Regional confinement:
The revolutionary movement took place in different places sporadically. The armed movements were mostly witnessed in Bengal,
Punjab, Maharashtra, and to some extent in Bihar, Madras, Orissa, and U.P. but this movement could never assume an all-India character.
5. Domination of Hinduism:
The revolutionaries did not come from all sections of society. About ninety percent of them were Hindus.
As those movements were mainly led by the Hindus, a large section of Muslims remained aloof.
6. Lack of popular base:
The participants in the revolutionary movement were mainly upper-class people who were small landlords, teachers, clerks, traders, doctors, journalists, and young students.
However, a large section of society consisting of farmers and laborers kept themselves away. So there was a lack of a popular base which rendered the movement a failure.
Imagine and write
Question 1. Suppose you are an Extremist leader. You have to organize a movement in different parts of Bengal. Make a rough draft of the lecture you want to present to the public.
Answer:
Dear friends,
Today all of you have assembled in this meeting for a noble purpose, i.e., to take a vow to free Mother India from the shackles of slavery.
You know that the activities of Moderate leaders have failed. Their method of prayer, please, and the petition is nothing but political beggary.
So let us aim for complete independence which will be absolutely free of British control. So we have to launch direct movements against the British to achieve our aim.
We, the extremists, believe in swadeshi, boycotts and spiritual power, and self-sacrifice. Therefore, we appeal to you to keep faith in us and our policies.
We can not forget the noble sacrifices and patriotism of Rana Pratap, Shivaji, and Laxmibai. of Jhansi.
Today the British government is unduly imposing the Dramatic Performance Act, Vernacular Press Act, and Arms. Act, Municipality Act, and University Act on us.
They are developing the industries of their country by using the raw materials of our country. Again,
they are destroying our industries by selling the goods manufactured in England in our markets. Our only companions are poverty, starvation, and famine.
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We have to disentangle ourselves from these. We cannot let this happen anymore. Friends, we are not alone in this struggle.
We have leaders like Lala Lajpat Rai, Bipin Chandra Pal, Bal Gangadhar Tilak, and Aurobindo Ghosh with us.
You must remember that Swaraj is our birthright and we must have it. It’s not only my call to you but swami Vivekananda has called you saying, “Awake, arise.
Your motherland is praying for your noble sacrifice. Let us say together “Vande Mataram,” “Vande Mataram,”, “Vande Mataram.”
Question 2. Suppose you have joined the Swadeshi movement under the leadership of Rabindranath Tagore. Nar rate your experience on Raksha Bandhan day in a letter to your friend.
Answer:
Dear Neel,
Hope you and your family members are keeping well. I, along with my family, am in the best of spirits.
The Swadeshi movement started in Kolkata under the leadership of Kaviguru Rabindranath Tagore. I hope you have already seen it in the Amrita Bazar Patrika.
I have also joined the movement. Today, October 16, was the day of bringing the partition of Bengal into force.
Today the Bengalees expressed their grievances and anguish through various solemn programs.
The Raksha Bandhan planned by Rabindranath Tagore was the main part of this program.
The residents of both parts of Bengal tied yellow threads on each other’s wrists after a holy bath in the Ganges.
They did this to keep their fraternal bonds intact and to maintain the unity of their motherland.
We sang the ‘Vande Mataram’ under the leadership of Rabindranath. Then we sang some of his patriotic compositions. These songs inspired us with patriotic feelings.
While singing these songs we also walked in a barefooted procession. Along with us, i.e., the students there were many eminent persons and leaders.
I had the fortune of meeting some great personalities and teachers of Shantiniketan. I also took blessings from the Kavi guru.
I shall always remember this day throughout my life. Keep well. Waiting for your reply.
Yours lovingly,
Dev