Previous Year Question
Who of the following had regarded the Karachi Session of Indian National Congress (1931) as the ‘pinnacle of Mahatma Gandhi’s popularity and prestige’?
S.C. Bose
Pattabhi Sitaramayya
Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel
Sardar Kishan Singh
Correct Answer: A
Detailed Solution
The Karachi Session of the Indian National Congress was held in March 1931 and was presided over by Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel.
In his book The Indian Struggle, Subhas Chandra Bose described the Karachi Congress as the pinnacle of Mahatma Gandhi's popularity and prestige. He wrote that he travelled with Gandhi for some days at the time and personally observed the unprecedented crowds that greeted him at different places.
Its immediate background was the Gandhi-Irwin Pact of 5 March 1931. According to Bose, the settlement was then viewed by ordinary people as a political victory for Gandhi, which further enhanced his popularity.
The Karachi Session endorsed the Gandhi-Irwin Pact and reiterated the objective of Purna Swaraj. The important resolution on Fundamental Rights and the National Economic Programme was also adopted at this session.
The Fundamental Rights resolution included matters such as freedom of speech and press, freedom of religion, equality before the law, adult suffrage, labour rights and free primary education.
Therefore, the leader who described the Karachi Session as the pinnacle of Gandhi's popularity and prestige was Subhas Chandra Bose.