Previous Year Question
Which one of the following statements is not correct about Dadabhai Naoroji?
He was the first Indian to be appointed as professor of Mathematics and Physics at Elphinstone College, Bombay.
He was elected as the member of British Parliament in 1892.
He started a Gujarati Journal, ‘Rast Goftar’.
For four times he had presided over the Indian National Congress.
Correct Answer: D
Detailed Solution
Statement (d) is not correct because Dadabhai Naoroji presided over the Indian National Congress not four times, but three times.
Dadabhai Naoroji was one of the major early leaders of the Indian national movement. He is also remembered as the “Grand Old Man of India.” He played an important role in explaining Indian poverty and colonial economic exploitation through the use of statistical evidence.
Statement (a) is correct. Dadabhai Naoroji taught Mathematics and Natural Philosophy at the Elphinstone institution and is regarded as the first Indian to become a full professor there. Along with teaching, he was also associated with activities relating to women's education and social reform.
Statement (b) is correct. Dadabhai Naoroji was elected to the British House of Commons in 1892 from Finsbury Central as a Liberal Party candidate. He was among the pioneering Indians elected to the British Parliament and served there from 1892 to 1895.
Statement (c) is also correct. He started the Gujarati journal Rast Goftar, meaning “Truth Teller,” in 1851. It was used to promote social and religious reform among the Parsis and to spread awareness regarding civic and public issues.
However, statement (d) is incorrect. Dadabhai Naoroji presided over the Indian National Congress only three times — at Calcutta in 1886, Lahore in 1893 and Calcutta in 1906. The Calcutta Session of 1906 was particularly significant because under his presidential leadership, Swaraj received prominence as the goal of Indian political aspirations.
He was highly respected by both the Moderates and the more assertive nationalist leaders within the Congress. Among his economic ideas, the Drain of Wealth Theory was particularly important, and he later developed his economic critique in his famous work Poverty and Un-British Rule in India.