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Q.Identify the immediate reason of launching the 'Quit India Movement' by Gandhiji against the British rule. (A) Cabinet Mission (B) Cripps Mission (C) Simon Commission (D) Mountbatten Plan

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The immediate trigger for the Quit India Movement was the failure of the Cripps Mission (1942), which offered only vague promises of post-war dominion status and refused to transfer power immediately, leading Gandhi to launch the "Do or Die" struggle.

The Quit India Movement (August 1942) was not a sudden decision — it was the culmination of growing frustration with British wartime policies. By 1942, the British had dragged India into World War II without consulting Indian leaders, and the Congress had resigned from provincial governments in protest. The final straw was the Cripps Mission, which arrived in March 1942 with a proposal that seemed promising but turned out to be a complete disappointment.

Why the Cripps Mission failed

The British government sent Sir Stafford Cripps to negotiate Indian support for the war effort. His offer included:

  • Dominion status after the war (not immediately).
  • A constituent assembly to frame a constitution.
  • The right for provinces to opt out of the Indian Union (a virtual veto for Muslim League).

But the deal-breaker was this: the British would retain complete control of defence and the war effort during the war, and the promise of dominion status was vague and post-dated. Congress wanted immediate transfer of power and a national government responsible to the legislature — not a distant promise. Cripps also refused to appoint an Indian as Defence Member.

Gandhi called the Cripps offer a "post-dated cheque on a failing bank." The failure proved that the British were unwilling to part with power even in the midst of a world war. This convinced Gandhi that only a mass struggle could force the British to leave.

The immediate sequence

  1. The Cripps Mission failed in April 1942. …

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