Who was the first to put forward the idea of a Constituent Assembly for India, in 1934?
- A.M.N. Roy
- B.Jawaharlal Nehru
- C.Mahatma Gandhi
- D.Subhas Chandra Bose
Correct answer
Explanation
The correct answer is M.N. Roy. Manabendra Nath Roy, a pioneer of the communist movement in India, was the first to put forward the idea of a Constituent Assembly, in 1934. The Indian National Congress took up the idea and made it an official demand in 1935, and the British government accepted the demand in principle in the August Offer of 1940. The Assembly itself was finally formed in 1946 under the Cabinet Mission Plan.
Jawaharlal Nehru is the most tempting wrong answer, because he became closely identified with the demand and later moved the Objectives Resolution in the Assembly on 13 December 1946; but the idea was first put forward by Roy. Mahatma Gandhi and Subhas Chandra Bose are not credited with first proposing it. When a question uses the words "first" or "originally", it is usually testing exactly this: the difference between who proposed an idea and who carried it forward.
Read the full article: Making of the Indian Constitution: Notes, Key Dates and PYQs
Practice Questions
View allThe constituent assembly was formed on the recommendation of the Cabinet Mission which visited India in______.
- A.1962
- B.1959
- C.1952
- D.1946
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The Cabinet Mission came to India in 1946 to work out how power would be handed over, and its plan laid down how a Constituent Assembly would be formed: 389 seats in all, 296 for British India and 93 for the princely states, with the members from the provinces elected…
Read the full explanation →When did the first meeting of the Constituent Assembly take place?
- A.January 1950
- B.August 1945
- C.December 1946
- D.July 1948
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The Constituent Assembly met for the first time on 9 December 1946. The Muslim League boycotted the sitting and pressed its demand for a separate Pakistan, and Dr Sachchidananda Sinha, the oldest member, presided as temporary President.
Read the full explanation →Who presided over the first meeting of the Constituent Assembly as its temporary President?
- A.Dr Rajendra Prasad
- B.Dr Sachchidananda Sinha
- C.Jawaharlal Nehru
- D.G.V. Mavalankar
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When the Constituent Assembly met for the first time on 9 December 1946, Sinha, its oldest member, was made the temporary President, following the French practice of letting the senior-most member preside until a regular head is chosen.
Read the full explanation →Who replaced Sachchidananda Sinha as Chairman of the Constituent Assembly of India?
- A.Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru
- B.Dr. Rajendra Prasad
- C.Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel
- D.Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi
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Dr Sachchidananda Sinha presided over the first sitting of the Constituent Assembly on 9 December 1946 only as its temporary President.
Read the full explanation →Who moved the Objective Resolution that was later adapted as the Preamble of the Constitution of India?
- A.Rajendra Prasad
- B.JB Kripalani
- C.Jawaharlal Nehru
- D.BR Ambedkar
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Nehru moved the Objectives Resolution in the Constituent Assembly on 13 December 1946, and the Assembly adopted it on 22 January 1947.
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