The Shri Ram School Aravali

Subject: History and Civics

Topic: Subhas Chandra Bose and The Partition of India.
Class 10

Q Who founded the Forward Bloc?

Subhash Chandra Bose.
Q Why did Subhash Chandra Bose decide to form a new party?
Subhash Chandra Bose felt the urgent need for an organised left-wing party in the
Congress. After resigning from the Presidentship of the Congress in 1939, he laid the
foundation of a new party within the Congress to bring the entire left wing under one banner.
This party, known as the Forward Bloc, was formed on May 3rd, 1939.
Q. Mention any three objectives of the Forward Bloc
• Forward Bloc’s immediate objective was the liberation of India with the support of
workers, peasants, youths, and all radical organisations. Subhas believed in an
‘uncompromising anti-imperialist struggle for attaining national independence.’
• Reorganization of agriculture and industry on socialist lines. / Converting Indians to
Socialist lines. / After attaining Independence Forward Bloc would work for the
establishment of a socialist society.
• Abolition of the Zamindari system. Abolition of landlordism. /
• Introduction of a new monetary and credit system.
• Making ‘right to work’ a Fundamental Right of the citizens.
• Providing workers with several kinds of benefits, such as payment of minimum wages
and occupational safety.
• Freedom in matters of religious worship.
• Linguistic and cultural autonomy for all sections of the Indian community.
• Application of the principle of equality and social justice in building up the New Order in
Free India.
• Establishment of a socialist society − Social ownership and control of both production
and distribution.

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Q Who founded the Indian National Army (INA)?
The idea of the Indian National Army (INA) was conceived in Malaya by Mohan Singh,
an Indian officer in the British Indian Army.
Q. What led to the formation of the Indian National Army (INA)? [Understanding]
Mohan Singh, an Indian officer in the British Indian Army, decided not to join the
retreating British Army and instead went to the Japanese for help. The Japanese had, till
then, only encouraged civilian Indians to join anti-British organisations, but had no
concept of forming a military wing consisting of Indians.
Indian prisoners of war [POWs] were handed over by the Japanese to Mohan Singh, who
inducted them into the Indian National Army.
Q: State important objectives of the Indian National Army.
The main objectives of the INA were:
• To mobilise all their forces effectively to lead the Indian people to regain their lost
freedom.
• Since the Indians couldn't organise an armed revolution from their homeland, the task of
organising an armed revolution was to be taken by the Indians living abroad,
especially those living in East Asia and then to confront the British. / To prepare the
Indian people inside and outside India for an armed struggle.
[Subhash said, ‘Since the enemy fights with the sword, we too should fight with the
sword.’ Only then can we “win the race and get the reward of freedom.”]
• To organise an armed revolution and to fight the British army with modern arms.
• To organise a Provisional Government of Free India to mobilise all the forces
effectively.
• Total mobilisation of Indian manpower and money for a total war.
• INA’s motto was ‘unity, faith and sacrifice’.
• Complete Independence of India or throw the British out of India.

Netaji reviewing the troops of the Azad Hind Fauj In 1944 INA hoisted the First Indian National Flag at
Moirang in Manipur 2
Q State the contributions of Subhas Chandra Bose to the national movement.
Subhas Chandra Bose’s contribution
1. Subhash Chandra Bose founded the Forward Bloc in 1939.
2. He was the Supreme Commander of the INA.
3. In 1943, Subhas Chandra Bose announced the formation of the Provisional
Government of Free India and declared war on the Allies.
4. [Nine countries, including Japan, Germany, and Italy. Myanmar and Thailand gave
recognition to the Provisional Government.]
5. The slogans -Jai Hind (Victory to India) and Delhi Chalo (march to Delhi) -became the
battle cry of the INA. He gave the call to his soldiers, ‘Give me blood and I shall
give you freedom’.
6. In 1943, Japan handed over the Andaman and Nicobar Islands to the Provisional
Government of India. They were renamed as Shahid and Swaraj islands by Subhas
Chandra Bose.
7. The INA planted the tricolour flag for the first time on 19 March 1944.
8. Introduced Women's Regiment and gave great importance to recruiting women in the
INA -like Laxmi Swaminathan, later known as Laxmi Sehgal.
9. [In 1944 Provisional Government’s Headquarters were shifted from Singapore to
Rangoon (Yangon). This change was of strategic importance because Myanmar was the
gateway to India’s eastern frontier for Subhas’s liberation army.]
10. The INA, along with the Japanese army, overran many territories in South-East
Asia. They captured Kohima and reached Imphal.
11. Set up the Azad Hind radio.
12. Set up a Free India centre in Berlin.

Bose meeting with Hitler in East Prussia, in May 1942. India was liberated, and the tricolour flag was hoisted
in 1944.

Netaji in Germany

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 The original flag was designed by Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose, and the hammer and sickle were added later.

Independence and Partition of India

Cabinet Mission Plan- The Cabinet Mission came to India to discuss the transfer of
power from the British government. to the Indian leadership, to preserve India's unity
and grant it independence.

Mountbatten-Nehru Jinnah into accepting a truncated nation, Clement Attlee, the Prime Minister of the United
Kingdom.

The Cabinet Mission was sent to India by the British government in 1946 to discuss the
transfer of power to the Indian leadership, to preserve India's unity and to grant it
independence. It was formulated at the initiative of Clement Attlee, the PM of the United
Kingdom.
The mission had three British cabinet members – P. Lawrence, Stafford Cripps, & and
A.V. Alexander.
Q Mention the clauses/proposals of the Cabinet Mission.
(i) A Federal Union: There was to be a Federal Union including both British Provinces in
India and the Princely States. The Central Government was to have only three subjects
under its jurisdiction: (i) Defence, (ii) foreign affairs, and(iii) communications. The
Union Government should have the power to raise the finances required for the above-
mentioned subjects.
(ii) The Subjects to be retained by the Provinces and the Princely States: All subjects
other than the central subjects, like defence and foreign affairs, would be under the
control of the provinces-accepting Provincial Autonomy.
(iii) The Princely States would retain all subjects other than those ceded to the Union.

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 The Princely States would retain all subjects other than those ceded to the Union.
(iv) Powers of the Union: The Union would have its executive and legislature, composed of
members elected by all provinces.
(v) The provinces would be divided into three Groups: Provinces would be free to form
Groups, and each Group would be like a Regional Union. Each group could determine the
provincial subjects to be taken in common.
• Group A would include six Hindu-majority provinces. - (i) Madras, (ii) Bombay, (iii)
Central Provinces, (iv) United Provinces, (v) Bihar, and (vi) Orissa [
• Group B would include three Muslim-majority provinces- (i) Punjab, (ii) NWFP
[Northwest Frontier Province, the present-day Baluchistan region and (iii) Sindh.
• Group C would include (i) Bengal and (ii) Assam.
A Province could opt out of any group and join another by a majority of votes.
(vi) A Constitution–making body: A Constituent Assembly would frame the new
Constitution of the Indian Union.
(vii) Formation of an Interim Government: The Cabinet Mission recommended the
formation of an Interim Government at the Centre. For the time being, the Viceroy
would reconstitute his Executive Council, consisting of all communities.
(viii) Freedom to join the Commonwealth-India would be free to remain within the British
Commonwealth or secede from it.
(ix) Transfer of Power- It would be necessary to work out a Treaty between the
Constituent Assembly and the United Kingdom would be necessary for matters arising
out of the transfer of power.
(x) Representation of Minorities-Separate representation was to be given to Muslims and
Sikhs.

Lord Mountbatten

Lord Mountbatten assumed office as Viceroy in March 1947. Being sent with the definite
object of transferring power to India, he was to advise the government in England as to
which of the two plans should be chosen- the one which (i) preserved the unity of India but
gave the maximum powers to provinces, or the other which (ii) divided India into two
independent states.
He was convinced that India was to be partitioned. Transfer of power to Indians could only
be based on the partition of the country.
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Q. Mention the clauses /provisions of the Mountbatten Plan.
On 3rd June 1947, he announced his plan. The main clauses of the Mountbatten plan, the
main points or the clauses of the plan, were as follows:
• Partition of Bengal and Punjab – The partition of Bengal and Punjab was proposed,
provided that the Legislative Assemblies of the two provinces decided in favour of
partition.
• The existing Constituent Assembly would continue to work, but the Constitution
framed by it would not apply to Pakistan. A separate Constituent Assembly would be
constituted for those parts of India which decided in favour of partition.
• The Legislative Assembly of Sindh was to take its own decision at a special meeting
• North-West Frontier Province – A referendum was to be held to decide the future of
the province.
• The Muslim-majority district of Sylhet was to decide by referendum whether it would
join East Bengal or remain in Assam.
• The Princely States – (i) the Princely States were free to associate themselves with
either of the Dominions, (ii) remain independent, and (iii) the treaties with the
Princely States would come to an end.
• Creation of a Boundary Commission -to settle the boundaries of the two Dominions in
case of partition.
• Relations between the two new dominions - it was for the two dominions to decide
what relation they would have with the British Commonwealth and with each other.
• Transfer of Power before the end of 1947- The plan ended with a declaration that the
transfer of power would take place not in June 1948, but much earlier than that.

Q. Why did Congress accept the Mountbatten Plan? State reasons to justify its
acceptance.
The Congress accepted the plan as it felt it had no other alternative.
The reasons were:
(i) Communal riots had taken a serious turn because of the ‘Direct Action’ of the Muslim
League. There were large-scale communal riots in the country, and they were all
convinced that the partition of India was the only solution to this problem.
(ii) The Muslim League had joined the interim government to obstruct and not to
cooperate with the Congress. Congress was convinced that it could not have a joint
administration with the League.
(iii) The leaders realised that a delay in the transfer of power could lead to a civil war.
(iv) The only alternative to Partition was a Federation with a weak centre. The disruptive
forces, dynastic, communal, and regional, could be kept under control only by a strong
Centre. A smaller India with a strong central authority was better than a bigger state with
a weak Centre.
(v) The leaders felt that Partition would rid the Constitution of Separate Electorates and
other undemocratic procedures.
(vi) Any further continuation of British rule would mean a greater calamity for India.
/People and leaders were fed up with their rule in India/wanted to get rid of the British
rule by paying any price.

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 Q. What were the clauses of the Indian Independence Act of 1947?
The Indian Independence Bill was passed by the British Parliament on 15th July 1947.
Received the Royal assent on July 18. The main provisions of the clauses of the Indian
Independence Act were as follows:
(i) Two new Dominions: The Act provided for the creation of two independent
dominions from 15th August 1947 to be known as India and Pakistan. Pakistan
was to comprise East Bengal, West Punjab, Sindh, Baluchistan, Northwest Frontier
Province and the District of Sylhet in Assam. India was to comprise all the remaining
territories included in British India.
(ii) Governor General for each of the Dominions – There would be a Governor General
for each of the Dominions. The Governor General was to function as a Constitutional
Head. There was no sphere in which he could act against the wishes of the
ministers.
(iii) Constituent assemblies to serve as central legislatures: Pakistan would have a
separate Constituent Assembly. The Constituent Assemblies of the two Dominions
are to serve as their Central Legislatures also.
(iv) The office of the Secretary of State would be abolished.
(v) Princely States:
(a) The Princely States would become independent of the British authority, and all
powers and authority exercisable by His Majesty would be terminated.
(b) All treaties and agreements made by the British with reference to the States would
lapse/terminate from August 15, 1947
(c) The arrangements concerning customs, transit and communication were to continue
until they were denounced by the States or the two Dominions.
(vi) Division of the Indian army and the sharing of Assets.
(vii) Safeguarding the interests of the Existing Officers.
(viii) Both would have separate constituent assemblies, which would even serve as
central legislatures.

Lord Mountbatten swore in Jawaharlal Nehru as the first Prime Minister of free India on Aug 15, 1947.

Tryst With Destiny happens to be one of the greatest speeches of the 20th century. Moreover, this speech
shows the essence of India's triumph over British colonial rule.
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