Congress Sessions — Set 4
Indian History · कांग्रेस अधिवेशन · Questions 31–40 of 80
Who presided over the Amravati session of 1897?
Correct Answer: B. C. Sankaran Nair
• **C. Sankaran Nair** = presided **Amravati session (1897)** — prominent Kerala lawyer and jurist. • Criticized government's **mishandling of the plague and famine** — a scathing condemnation on record. • Later became a member of Viceroy's Executive Council; resigned over Jallianwala Bagh. • 💡 N.G. Chandavarkar = 1900 Lahore; Ananda Mohan Bose = Congress leader but presided 1898 Madras; Ramesh Chunder Dutt = 1899 Lucknow — C. Sankaran Nair presided 1897 Amravati.
Who was the President of the Lucknow session in 1899?
Correct Answer: D. Ramesh Chunder Dutt
• **Ramesh Chunder Dutt (R.C. Dutt)** = presided **Lucknow session (1899)** — economic historian. • Famous for critiquing British **economic drain** — wrote 'Economic History of India' (2 vols). • Demanded **permanent fixation of land revenue** — reducing peasants' burden under colonial rule. • 💡 Ganesh Narayan Chandavarkar = 1900 Lahore; Dinshaw Wacha = 1901 Calcutta; Lal Mohan Ghosh = 1903 Madras — R.C. Dutt presided 1899 Lucknow.
Who presided over the 1903 Madras session?
Correct Answer: B. Lal Mohan Ghosh
• **Lal Mohan Ghosh** = presided **1903 Madras session** — barrister and skilled orator from Bengal. • Criticized **Lord Curzon's extravagant Delhi Durbar** — money wasted while Indians suffered poverty. • Lal Mohan Ghosh also contested elections to British Parliament — early Indian political aspirant abroad. • 💡 Henry Cotton = 1904 Bombay; Pherozeshah Mehta = 1890 Calcutta; Surendranath Banerjee = 1895 Poona — Lal Mohan Ghosh presided 1903 Madras.
The Congress constitution was formally adopted in which session?
Correct Answer: C. Madras, 1908
• **Congress constitution adopted** = **Madras session (1908)** — presided by Rash Behari Ghosh. • Followed the **1907 Surat Split** — constitution designed to formalize Moderates' control and exclude Extremists. • Moderates dominated Congress 1908–1916; Extremists rejoined only at 1916 Lucknow session. • 💡 Surat 1907 = split occurred (Rash Behari Ghosh was president-elect); Lahore 1909 = Madan Mohan Malaviya presided; Allahabad 1910 = Wedderburn presided — constitution adopted at Madras 1908.
Who presided over the 1909 Lahore session?
Correct Answer: C. Madan Mohan Malaviya
• **Madan Mohan Malaviya** = presided **1909 Lahore session** — opposed Morley-Minto separate electorates. • Condemned **separate electorates** for Muslims introduced by Morley-Minto Reforms (1909) as divisive. • Malaviya = founder of BHU (Banaras Hindu University, 1916); 4-time Congress President. • 💡 William Wedderburn = 1910 Allahabad; Bishan Narayan Dar = 1911 Calcutta; R.N. Mudholkar = 1912 Bankipore — Madan Mohan Malaviya presided 1909 Lahore.
Who presided over the 1910 Allahabad session?
Correct Answer: B. William Wedderburn
• **William Wedderburn** = presided **1910 Allahabad session** — his **second** Congress presidency (first: 1889 Bombay). • Attempted to bridge **Hindu-Muslim divide** — a British ICS officer who genuinely supported Indian rights. • Wedderburn also co-founded the British Committee of the INC to lobby in London. • 💡 Henry Cotton = 1904 Bombay; Alfred Webb = 1894 Madras; George Yule = 1888 Allahabad — Wedderburn presided twice: 1889 Bombay and 1910 Allahabad.
Who was the President of the 1913 Karachi session?
Correct Answer: A. Nawab Syed Mohammed Bahadur
• **Nawab Syed Mohammed Bahadur** = presided **1913 Karachi session** — nationalist Muslim leader from Madras. • Session discussed **condition of Indians in South Africa** — Gandhi was still active there in 1913. • Shows early Congress had Muslim leaders at the helm — inclusive pre-Partition political tradition. • 💡 Rahimtullah Sayani = 1896 Calcutta (Vande Mataram); Badruddin Tyabji = first Muslim President (1887); Hakim Ajmal Khan = 1921 Ahmedabad — Nawab Syed Mohammed Bahadur presided 1913 Karachi.
Who presided over the 1914 Madras session?
Correct Answer: A. Bhupendra Nath Bose
• **Bhupendra Nath Bose** = presided **1914 Madras session** — coincided with start of **World War I**. • Congress expressed **loyalty to British Crown** hoping for self-governance concessions after the war. • This loyalty strategy failed — instead British gave Rowlatt Act (1919), leading to Jallianwala Bagh. • 💡 S.P. Sinha = 1915 Bombay; Ambica Charan Mazumdar = 1916 Lucknow; Annie Besant = 1917 Calcutta — Bhupendra Nath Bose presided 1914 Madras.
Who defeated Pattabhi Sitaramayya in the 1939 Tripuri presidential election?
Correct Answer: C. Subhash Chandra Bose
• **Subhash Chandra Bose** = defeated **Pattabhi Sitaramayya** in 1939 Tripuri presidential election. • Sitaramayya was **Gandhi's preferred candidate** — Bose's win (1580 vs 1377 votes) was a major upset. • Gandhi called the defeat his own — Bose was isolated by Working Committee and resigned in April 1939. • 💡 Jawaharlal Nehru = supported neither openly; Abul Kalam Azad = succeeded Bose after resignation; Vallabhbhai Patel = Working Committee member who opposed Bose — Subhash Chandra Bose won Tripuri 1939.
Who took over as President after Subhash Chandra Bose resigned in 1939?
Correct Answer: A. Rajendra Prasad
• **Rajendra Prasad** = took over as Congress President after **Bose's resignation (1939)**. • Bose resigned due to differences with Gandhi and the Working Committee — then formed **Forward Bloc** (1939). • Rajendra Prasad later became India's first President (1950–1962) — a key Gandhian leader. • 💡 Abul Kalam Azad = became President after Prasad (1940–1946); Sardar Patel = didn't become President; Jawaharlal Nehru = became Prime Minister — Rajendra Prasad succeeded Bose in 1939.