Image: Gandhi, historical photograph from the Quit India period.
In August 1942, the Indian National Congress launched the Quit India Movement, demanding an end to British rule. Gandhi gave the campaign its most famous call: “Do or Die.”
Why the movement began
The Second World War had intensified political tensions in India. Congress leaders argued that India should not remain under colonial rule while being drawn into the war without an agreement on independence.
The August 1942 resolution
The All India Congress Committee adopted the Quit India resolution in Bombay on 8 August 1942.
Gandhi’s call
Gandhi urged Indians to act with determination while maintaining nonviolent principles. British authorities arrested Gandhi and other senior Congress leaders soon after the resolution.
What followed
With much of the Congress leadership imprisoned, protests and acts of resistance spread in many parts of India. Some episodes involved violence and damage to government property, despite the leadership’s stated commitment to nonviolence.
Historical importance
The movement became one of the largest nationwide challenges to British authority during the final years of colonial rule.
Read NewsNationOnline’s Gandhi in prison feature and explore the Gandhi Heritage Portal.
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