Modern Indian History MCQs

Notes:
The Lion of Punjab Maharaja Ranjit Singh (1780-1839), was a Sikh ruler known for unifying Punjab into a robust state. Lahore, in present-day Pakistan, was his capital from 1799. He assumed the title Maharaja on April 12, 1801, deliberately choosing the date to coincide with the Baisakhi festival. An added notable achievement of his reign was acquiring the Koh-i-noor diamond. His tomb is in Lahore, affirming the city’s historical significance.

Notes:
Muslim League observed the Direct Action Day on August 16, 1946. The objective of Muslim league was to create an environment of communal riots and terrorism to exhibit that Hindus and Muslims could not reside together.

Notes:
K.M. Panikkar was an Indian scholar, journalist, historian, administrator and diplomat. He wrote that between 1765-1772, British had “established a robber state where, without reference to the rights of the others, they freely plundered and looted under the cover of thier rights”.

Notes:
The British forces under Sir Eyre Coote, defeated the French in the Battle of Wandiwash in 1760 and besieged Pondicherry. After Wandiwash, the French capital of Pondicherry fell to the British in 1761. 

Notes:
The Government of India Act 1919 declared that a royal commission will be set up after ten years to report about the credibility of the Act. But the Indian Statutory Commission was set up in 1927 even before the schedule. There were seven members in the commission. Sir John Simon was the chairman of the commission. Indian nationalists did not accept the commission as there was no Indian member. It was termed as All White Commission. The commission was greeted with Hartal and “Simon Go Back” Slogan when they reached in Bombay on 3rd February 1928. On the basis of the report of the commission published in 1930, the Government of India Act 1935 was drafted

Notes:
The Aliah University (AU) is one of the oldest universities of India and is the First Muslim University of India. It was set up in October 1780 by Warren Hastings near Sealdah in Calcutta. It was also known as Islamic College of Calcutta, Calcutta Madrasah, Calcutta Mohammedan College and Madrasah-e-Aliah.

Notes:
Faraidi ( or Faraizi) movement (1804): It was founded by Haji Shariatullah of village Bahadurpur in Faridpur district, Bengal. The movement had emphasis on strict monotheism and to remove un-Islamic practices from the Muslim society as well as to revive and restore Muslim rule once again by expelling the Christians from India. His successors Dudu Mian and Nowa Mian successfully mobilized the Muslim peasants of central and eastern Bengal against the zamindars and money lenders who were mostly Hindus and the indigo planters who were British. Finally, the movement was suppressed by the Bengal government after a series of arrests, trials and persecutions.

Notes:
In 1913, a social reformer named Govind Guru led the Adivasi Bhils of Rajasthan in a revolt against the British. This was largely due to attempted infringements by the British upon the Bhils’ social and religious reforms, entailing liquor prohibition, abolition of tax and begar from Adivasis, regular cleanliness, the development of social unity, adoption of agriculture, well construction, discontinuation of theft, and termination of Dappa. Despite the just cause, this rebellion was ruthlessly quashed by the British rule.

Notes:
Sambhudan Phonglo, born in 1850, was a significant figure in the Kacha Nagas Uprising in 1882. This took place in the Cacher region of Assam, and it was a revolt against the British land revenue policy. Sambhudan, a freedom fighter from the small village of Longkhor in the North Cachar Hills of present-day Dima Hasao District in Assam, led the uprising. The rebellion was triggered by the annexation of the Cachar region by the British in 1832, which Sambhudan saw as a treacherous move employing the infamous ‘divide and rule’ strategy. Despite the brutal response from the British forces, Sambhudan’s efforts significantly stirred and strengthened the uprising, leaving a profound impact.

Notes:
The First Carnatic (1744-48) war was fought between British East India Company and the French East India Company due to Austrian war of succession in Europe. The French forces under Dupleix defeated the English and captured Madras. Then, in 1748 AD, the peace treaty of
Aix-la-Chapelle was signed and Madras was restored to the British and the exchange of war prisoners took place.