Image: Gandhi during the Quit India period, historical photograph.
In August 1942, the Indian National Congress launched the Quit India Movement, demanding an end to British rule. Gandhi gave the movement its central call for mass resistance with the phrase “Do or Die.”
Why Quit India was launched
The movement emerged during the Second World War after the failure of the Cripps Mission to secure agreement on India’s constitutional future.
The Bombay session
Congress adopted the Quit India resolution at Bombay on 8 August 1942. Gandhi addressed the gathering at Gowalia Tank Maidan, now known as August Kranti Maidan.
Mass arrests
British authorities arrested Gandhi and other Congress leaders soon after the resolution. With much of the leadership imprisoned, protests and underground activities continued in many parts of India.
Different forms of resistance
The movement included strikes, demonstrations, disruption of communications and underground political activity. Some actions became violent, despite Gandhi’s stated commitment to nonviolence.
Historical significance
Quit India became a major episode in the final phase of the independence struggle. Britain ultimately transferred power in 1947, although the path to independence also involved many other political and international developments.
Read NewsNationOnline’s Non-Cooperation feature and Gandhi’s final years feature.
आपके लिए सुझाव
