Government of India Act 1935 & Quit India Movement (1942) - UPSC Notes
Study the Government of India Act 1935, August Offer, Cripps Mission, and Quit India Movement (1942) for UPSC with key provisions, events, and significance.
Background, Wardha Resolution, and Launch of the Struggle
The failure of the Cripps Mission and the fear of a Japanese invasion of India led Gandhi to begin his campaign for the British to quit India. Gandhi believed that the presence of the British in India was an invitation for Japan to invade India and that their withdrawal would remove this threat.
On 14
July 1942, at a meeting of the Congress Working Committee in Wardha, Gandhi drafted the Quit India Resolution. On 7
August 1942, the Congress session began in Bombay. The next day, on 8
August 1942, the Congress ratified the Wardha Resolution and sanctioned a non-violent mass struggle under Gandhi's leadership. This historic meeting took place at Gowalia Tank Maidan in Bombay, which was officially renamed August Kranti Maidan.
The meeting ended around midnight on 8
August 1942. In the early hours of 9
August, the police arrested Gandhi, Abul Kalam Azad, and other eminent Congress leaders, such as Nehru and Patel. Within a week, members of the entire Congress leadership had been arrested. The news of the arrests shocked the people, who took to the streets to protest. The movement thereafter became directionless and leaderless.
The movement is often regarded as the final battle for the independence of India, as it mobilised millions of Indians to participate in the struggle against colonial rule. The movement was characterised by its clear demand that the British leave India immediately. The slogan "Quit India" captured the essence of the movement, emphasising that India would no longer tolerate British rule.
The movement witnessed unprecedented mass participation across India. Indians, including students, farmers, women, and even school-going children, joined the struggle.
Viceroy Lord Linlithgow described it as the most serious rebellion since 1857. Subhas Chandra Bose described it as guerrilla warfare.
While Gandhi's movements were non-violent in nature, the Quit India Movement marked a departure from this approach. Four major parallel governments were established during the movement: Ballia (Uttar Pradesh), Tamluk (Bengal), Satara (Maharashtra), and Talcher (Orissa).
After September 1942, on account of increasing British repression, the movement went underground. It then took the shape of revolutionary activities. The prominent leaders of the underground activities were Achyut Patwardhan, Aruna Asaf Ali, Ram Manohar Lohia, etc.
The most significant underground activity was the establishment of Congress Radio, with Usha Mehta as the announcer. Ram Manohar Lohia regularly broadcast on this radio, which continued until November 1942, when it was discovered and confiscated by the British police.
The Muslim League kept aloof from the movement and gave the slogan "Divide and Quit" at its 1943 Karachi session. On 23
March 1943, the League organised celebrations under the name Pakistan Day.
Government of India Act, 1935
The Government of India Act, 1935, was the longest constitutional statute enacted by the British Parliament for colonial India. It introduced provincial autonomy, proposed an All-India Federation, abolished dyarchy in the provinces, and provided for dyarchy at the Centre. The federal scheme never came into operation because the princely states did not join the federation.
Main Constitutional Provisions (Federation, Dyarchy, and Autonomy)
The proposed federation was to include British Indian provinces and princely states, with accession by princely states being voluntary. The Act divided legislative powers into three lists: the Federal List (59 subjects), the Provincial List (54 subjects), and the Concurrent List (36 subjects). Residuary powers were vested in the Governor-General. This division influenced later constitutional arrangements, although independent India's Constitution developed a different framework and safeguards.
Provincial dyarchy was abolished, and provincial autonomy was introduced. Ministers responsible to provincial legislatures administered provincial subjects, but Governors retained special responsibilities and discretionary powers. The Act introduced bicameral legislatures in six of the eleven British Indian provinces: Bengal, Bombay, Madras, Bihar, Assam, and the United Provinces. The franchise was expanded but remained restricted; the system did not establish universal adult suffrage.
At the Centre, dyarchy divided subjects into reserved and transferred categories. Reserved subjects included defence, ecclesiastical affairs, external affairs, and tribal areas, which were administered by the Governor-General with the assistance of executive councillors. Transferred subjects were to be administered by ministers. The Governor-General and provincial Governors possessed extensive emergency powers and special responsibilities, including the protection of minorities and the interests of civil servants.
The Act provided for a Federal Court, established in 1937, with Sir Maurice Gwyer as its first Chief Justice. It also abolished the Council of India attached to the Secretary of State and separated Burma from British India with effect from 1 April 1937. Women's representation and voting rights were expanded, although the franchise remained limited.
Political Response, 1937 Elections, and Working of Provincial Ministries
The Congress criticised the Act because it did not establish full responsible government at the Centre and preserved extensive discretionary powers for British authorities. Nevertheless, the Congress contested the provincial elections of 1937 and formed ministries in several provinces. These ministries used their limited authority to pursue reforms and demonstrate the capacity of Indian leaders to govern, while remaining constrained by the Act and the Governors' powers.
The experience of provincial ministries was important for administrative training and political mobilisation. It also revealed the gap between elected Indian ministers and the ultimate authority retained by the colonial state. In 1939, the Viceroy declared India to be at war with Germany without consulting Indian political leaders. Congress ministries resigned in protest, deepening the political crisis.
Wartime Political Developments (1940-1942)
August Offer (1940) and Indian Response
On 8 August 1940, Viceroy Lord Linlithgow announced the August Offer from Shimla in the context of the Second World War. Britain sought Indian cooperation in the war while political pressure for self-government was increasing. The offer proposed that the eventual objective was Dominion Status, expanded the Viceroy's Executive Council to include more Indians, and promised that no future constitution would be adopted without the consent of minorities.
The offer was rejected by the Congress because it did not provide an immediate transfer of effective power or a clear timetable for independence. Jawaharlal Nehru dismissed the idea of Dominion Status as outdated, while Gandhi argued that the declaration widened the gulf between Indian nationalists and British rulers. The minority-consent provision was also controversial because it could allow a minority veto over constitutional change.
The Muslim League viewed the protection of minority interests as significant but continued to press its own political demands. The August Offer did not resolve the conflict over representation, constitutional safeguards, or the timing of self-government. It did, however, acknowledge that Indians would need a role in framing a future constitution.
Individual Satyagraha (1940-1941) and the Road to Quit India
Following the rejection of the August Offer, Gandhi launched Individual Satyagraha in 1940. It was intended to assert the right to free speech and oppose India's participation in the war without Indian consent, while avoiding an immediate mass uprising during wartime. Vinoba Bhave was selected as the first individual satyagrahi, followed by other Congress leaders. Arrests and restrictions continued.
The war altered the international and domestic setting. Britain's dependence on Indian resources and manpower increased, but political power remained concentrated in colonial hands. The failure of constitutional negotiations and the arrival of the Cripps Mission in 1942, which offered proposals for a post-war constitutional process but no immediate responsible government, intensified Congress dissatisfaction.
Mass Mobilization, Underground Resistance, and Parallel Governments
The Congress Working Committee and the All-India Congress Committee debated the next course of action as the war continued. The Quit India Resolution was adopted in August 1942, and Gandhi called for mass resistance with the slogan commonly remembered as "Do or Die". The demand was that the British should end their rule in India.
The British authorities acted quickly. Gandhi and other senior Congress leaders were arrested on 9 August 1942, before they could direct a sustained campaign. The removal of the leadership caused spontaneous protests, strikes, demonstrations, and attacks on symbols of colonial authority in several regions. Railway lines, telegraph wires, and government buildings were targeted by some groups, while many activists organised underground communication and propaganda networks.
The movement was geographically uneven and included students, workers, peasants, and local political organisers. Underground activists such as Usha Mehta helped operate clandestine radio broadcasts. In some areas, parallel administrations briefly emerged. The colonial state used mass arrests, censorship, collective fines, and force to suppress the movement. The absence of the top Congress leadership limited central coordination, but it also meant that local initiatives took different forms.
Significance, Limitations, and Impact on the Colonial State
The Quit India Movement was one of the most extensive challenges to British authority during the war. It made clear that the demand for independence could not be postponed indefinitely and that colonial government required coercion to maintain control. The movement also exposed the limits of Britain's claim to be fighting a war for freedom while denying self-government to India.
The movement did not force immediate British withdrawal. It was suppressed through arrests and repression, and Congress leaders remained imprisoned for much of the war. Yet the experience strengthened the political climate for independence after 1945. The post-war situation was further transformed by the INA trials, labour unrest, the Royal Indian Navy revolt, economic difficulties, and Britain's changing international position.
Detailed Institutional Analysis of the Government of India Act, 1935
Key Features of the 1935 Act
In August 1935, the British Parliament passed the Government of India Act, 1935, the lengthiest constitutional Act enacted for British India. The two major features of the Government of India Act, 1935, were as follows:
Abolition of provincial dyarchy and introduction of dyarchy at the Centre.
Provision for an All-India Federation comprising British Indian territories and princely states.
It provided for the establishment of an All-India Federation consisting of provinces and princely states as units. For princely states, participation in the federation was voluntary. However, the federation never came into being because the princely states did not join it.
The most remarkable feature of the Act was provincial autonomy. With the abolition of dyarchy in the provinces, the entire provincial administration was handled by responsible ministers who were accountable to the provincial legislatures.
The Act divided powers between the Centre and the provinces into three lists: the Federal List (for the Centre, with 59 subjects), the Provincial List (for the provinces, with 54 subjects), and the Concurrent List (for both, with 36 subjects). Residuary powers were given to the Viceroy (Governor-General). It is believed that the distribution of powers between the Centre and the States in the Indian Constitution was based on the scheme provided in the Act of 1935.
The Act introduced bicameralism in six out of eleven British Indian provinces. Thus, the legislatures of Bengal, Bombay, Madras, Bihar, Assam, and the United Provinces were made bicameral, consisting of a legislative council (upper house). However, many restrictions were placed on them.
The Government of India Act, 1935, provided for the establishment of a Federal Court consisting of one Chief Justice and not more than six judges to interpret the Act and adjudicate disputes relating to federal matters. This court was established in 1937. The first Chief Justice was Sir Maurice Gwyer (1937–1943). It functioned until the establishment of the Supreme Court of India on 28 January 1950. The other two judges were Sir Shah Muhammad Sulaiman and Mukund Ramrao Jayakar.
The Supreme Court of Judicature was established in Calcutta in 1774 and functioned until 1862, when it was replaced by the Calcutta High Court under the Indian High Courts Act of 1861, marking a shift in the highest court system of British India.
The Government of India Act, 1935, introduced dyarchy at the Centre. The federal subjects were divided into two categories: reserved and transferred. The reserved subjects were to be administered by the Governor-General on the advice of executive councillors, while the transferred subjects were to be administered on the advice of ministers. The reserved subjects included defence, ecclesiastical affairs, external affairs, and the administration of tribal areas. The remaining subjects were classified as transferred subjects.
The Act gave the Governor-General and provincial Governors significant emergency powers. They also had special responsibilities regarding specified subjects, such as preventing any grave threat to the peace or tranquillity of a province, safeguarding the legitimate interests of minorities, and protecting the rights of civil servants. In these matters, they had full freedom to accept or reject the advice of the Council of Ministers.
The Act provided reserved seats for women in the legislatures. Women's suffrage was expanded under the Government of India Act, 1935, which included reserved seats for women in both the central and provincial legislatures.
The Act abolished the Council of India attached to the Secretary of State, which had been established by the Government of India Act of 1858.
The Act separated Myanmar (then Burma) from British India and declared it a distinct Crown Colony with effect from 1 April 1937.
Specific Proposals and Limitations of the August Offer
The accompanying PDF identifies the announcement as having been made by Viceroy Lord Linlithgow on 8 August 1940 from Shimla. It lists Dominion Status as the future objective, the expansion of the Viceroy's Executive Council to include more Indians, and the assurance that no future constitution would be adopted without minority consent. The same notes record the Congress's rejection of the offer and Nehru's and Gandhi's critical responses.
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