CBSE Class 10 Social Science Nationalism in India Important Questions Set 03

Important Questions

Question 1. Name the writer of the book 'Hind Swaraj'.
Answer:
Mahatma Gandhi wrote the book 'Hind Swaraj' (1909).

Teacher's Note:
a) Gandhi wrote Hind Swaraj in 1909.
b) The book argued that British rule survived only through Indian cooperation.

Question 2. Trace the reason for which Gandhiji started Satyagraha in 1919.
Answer:
Gandhiji started Satyagraha in 1919 to protest against the Rowlatt Act.

Teacher's Note:
a) The 1919 Satyagraha was launched to protest the Rowlatt Act.
b) The Act gave the government sweeping powers to repress political activity.

Question 3. What did the British do to repress the Rowlatt Satyagrahis?
Answer:
The British decided to clamp down on the Rowlatt Satyagrahis, including arresting local leaders in Amritsar, imposing martial law, and ultimately leading to the Jallianwala Bagh massacre.

Teacher's Note:
a) The British response was severe repression, including martial law.
b) This culminated in the Jallianwala Bagh massacre at Amritsar.

Question 4. In which of the following places did Mahatma Gandhi first organise Satyagraha in India: (a) Dandi (b) Ahmedabad (c) Kheda (d) Champaran?
Answer:
(d) Champaran — Gandhi first organised Satyagraha in India at Champaran in 1917, to support peasants against the oppressive indigo plantation system.

Teacher's Note:
a) Champaran (1917) was Gandhi's first Satyagraha in India.
b) Kheda and Ahmedabad followed soon after, also in 1917-18.

Question 5. Why did Gandhiji decide to launch a nationwide Satyagraha against the proposed Rowlatt Act, 1919? Explain any three reasons.
Answer:
The Rowlatt Act had been hurriedly passed through the Imperial Legislative Council despite the united opposition of the Indian members.
It gave the government enormous power to repress political activities.
It allowed detention of political prisoners without trial for two years.
It was seen as a deeply unjust law, prompting Gandhiji to call for nationwide resistance.

Teacher's Note:
a) The Rowlatt Act was passed over unanimous Indian objection and allowed detention without trial.
b) Its sweeping repressive powers made it a clear target for nationwide Satyagraha.

Question 6. Discuss the various stages of the Non-Cooperation Movement launched by Mahatma Gandhi.
Answer:
Gandhiji proposed that the movement should unfold in stages:
1st stage: surrender of titles that the government had awarded.
2nd stage: boycott of civil services, the army, police, courts, legislative councils, schools and foreign goods.
3rd stage: if the government resorted to repression, a full civil disobedience campaign would be launched.

Teacher's Note:
a) The Non-Cooperation Movement was planned to escalate in three deliberate stages.
b) This phased approach let the movement build strength before moving to full civil disobedience.

Question 7. How could Non-Cooperation become a movement? Give your opinion.
Answer:
It was Gandhiji's view that British rule in India was established with the cooperation of Indians.
If Indians refused to cooperate, British rule in India would collapse within a year and Swaraj would come.
Gandhiji proposed that the movement should unfold in stages.
If the government resorted to repression, a full civil disobedience campaign would be launched.
Mahatma Gandhi and Shaukat Ali toured extensively, mobilising popular support for the movement.

Teacher's Note:
a) Gandhi's key insight was that British rule depended on Indian cooperation.
b) Withdrawing that cooperation, in planned stages, became the movement's core strategy.

Question 8. “British rule in India would have collapsed if Indians had not cooperated.” How did this statement help in starting a mass movement in India against British rule?
Answer:
Mahatma Gandhi declared that British rule was established in India with the cooperation of Indians, and that if Indians refused to cooperate, British rule in India would collapse within a year.
He proposed that the movement should unfold in stages, giving ordinary people a clear and achievable role in resisting British rule.
This framing turned an abstract political goal into a practical, mass-participation strategy, helping Non-Cooperation grow into a genuine mass movement.

Teacher's Note:
a) Gandhi's insight reframed independence as something achievable through mass non-cooperation, not just elite politics.
b) This made the movement accessible to ordinary Indians across the country.