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Before the formation of the Indian National Congress in 1885, several political associations emerged in different parts of India.
They represented an important transition:
LOCAL GRIEVANCES ↓ REGIONAL POLITICAL ASSOCIATIONS ↓ ALL-INDIA POLITICAL CONSCIOUSNESS ↓ INDIAN NATIONAL CONGRESS.
These organisations:
1836 → Bangabhasha Prakasika Sabha.
1836 → Zamindari Association / Landholders' Society.
1843 → Bengal British India Society.
1851 → British Indian Association.
1852 → Madras Native Association.
1852 → Bombay Association.
1866 → East India Association.
1870 → Poona Sarvajanik Sabha.
1875 → Indian League.
1876 → Indian Association.
1884 → Madras Mahajana Sabha.
1885 → Bombay Presidency Association.
1885 → Indian National Congress.
MASTER EVOLUTION:
LOCAL ASSOCIATIONS ↓ REGIONAL ASSOCIATIONS ↓ POLITICAL COOPERATION ↓ ALL-INDIA ORGANISATION ↓ INDIAN NATIONAL CONGRESS.
REGION:
Bengal.
SIGNIFICANCE:
IMPORTANCE:
MARKED THE EARLY DEVELOPMENT OF ORGANISED PUBLIC POLITICAL ACTIVITY IN BENGAL.
REGION:
Bengal.
MAIN CHARACTER:
Represented the interests of:
→ Zamindars and landholders.
METHODS:
LIMITATION:
Primarily represented a specific class.
SIGNIFICANCE:
ONE OF THE EARLIEST POLITICAL ASSOCIATIONS TO USE CONSTITUTIONAL METHODS FOR ARTICULATING INDIAN INTERESTS.
REGION:
Bengal.
OBJECTIVE:
SIGNIFICANCE:
Represented a broader intellectual and political engagement with questions of governance.
CHRONOLOGY:
ZAMINDARI ASSOCIATION ↓ BENGAL BRITISH INDIA SOCIETY ↓ BRITISH INDIAN ASSOCIATION.
REGION:
Bengal.
FORMATION:
Developed through the merger of important earlier political associations.
OBJECTIVE:
SIGNIFICANCE:
REPRESENTED AN IMPORTANT STEP TOWARDS MORE ORGANISED AND INSTITUTIONALISED POLITICAL REPRESENTATION.
REGION:
Madras Presidency.
SIGNIFICANCE:
LIMITATION:
Its influence declined over time.
LATER DEVELOPMENT:
MADRAS NATIVE ASSOCIATION ↓ POLITICAL AWAKENING IN MADRAS ↓ MADRAS MAHAJANA SABHA.
REGION:
Bombay.
IMPORTANT ASSOCIATION:
Dadabhai Naoroji was associated with the early political awakening in Bombay.
OBJECTIVE:
SIGNIFICANCE:
HELPED DEVELOP POLITICAL CONSCIOUSNESS IN WESTERN INDIA.
FOUNDER:
Dadabhai Naoroji.
PLACE:
London.
OBJECTIVE:
SIGNIFICANCE:
INDIA ↓ LONDON ↓ BRITISH PUBLIC OPINION ↓ INDIAN POLITICAL DEMANDS.
IMPORTANT FACT:
→ Important early attempt to internationalise Indian political issues.
REGION:
Poona.
IMPORTANT ASSOCIATIONS:
OBJECTIVE:
SIGNIFICANCE:
IMPORTANT PRECURSOR TO ORGANISED NATIONAL POLITICS IN WESTERN INDIA.
REGION:
Bengal.
OBJECTIVE:
SIGNIFICANCE:
Represented the growing attempt to move beyond narrow regional politics.
FOUNDERS:
PLACE:
Calcutta.
OBJECTIVES:
IMPORTANT ACTIVITIES:
SIGNIFICANCE:
ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT PRE-CONGRESS POLITICAL ASSOCIATIONS AND A MAJOR STEP TOWARDS ALL-INDIA NATIONALISM.
REGION:
Madras.
IMPORTANT LEADERS:
OBJECTIVES:
SIGNIFICANCE:
BECAME AN IMPORTANT POLITICAL PLATFORM IN SOUTH INDIA AND CONTRIBUTED TO THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE ALL-INDIA NATIONAL MOVEMENT.
REGION:
Bombay.
FOUNDERS:
OBJECTIVE:
SIGNIFICANCE:
ONE OF THE LAST MAJOR REGIONAL POLITICAL ASSOCIATIONS TO EMERGE BEFORE THE FORMATION OF THE INDIAN NATIONAL CONGRESS.
FORMATION:
PLACE OF FIRST SESSION:
Bombay.
FIRST PRESIDENT:
W.C. Bonnerjee.
SIGNIFICANCE:
The Congress represented the culmination of the earlier process of political association.
EARLY POLITICAL ASSOCIATIONS ↓ REGIONAL POLITICAL NETWORKS ↓ ALL-INDIA POLITICAL COOPERATION ↓ INDIAN NATIONAL CONGRESS.
1836
Bangabhasha Prakasika Sabha → Bengal.
Zamindari Association → Bengal.
1843
Bengal British India Society → Bengal.
1851
British Indian Association → Bengal.
1852
Madras Native Association → Madras.
Bombay Association → Bombay.
1866
East India Association → London.
1870
Poona Sarvajanik Sabha → Maharashtra.
1875
Indian League → Bengal.
1876
Indian Association → Calcutta.
1884
Madras Mahajana Sabha → Madras.
1885
Bombay Presidency Association → Bombay.
Indian National Congress → All India.
BENGAL
Bangabhasha Prakasika Sabha ↓ Zamindari Association ↓ Bengal British India Society ↓ British Indian Association ↓ Indian League ↓ Indian Association.
WESTERN INDIA
Bombay Association ↓ Poona Sarvajanik Sabha ↓ Bombay Presidency Association ↓ Indian National Congress.
SOUTH INDIA
Madras Native Association ↓ Madras Mahajana Sabha ↓ Participation in All-India Nationalism.
ABROAD
East India Association ↓ British Public Opinion ↓ International Presentation of Indian Issues.
CLASS / LOCAL INTERESTS ↓
ZAMINDARI ASSOCIATION + EARLY REGIONAL ASSOCIATIONS ↓
BROADER POLITICAL REPRESENTATION ↓
BRITISH INDIAN ASSOCIATION ↓
REGIONAL POLITICAL ORGANISATIONS ↓
POONA SARVAJANIK SABHA + INDIAN ASSOCIATION + MADRAS MAHAJANA SABHA + BOMBAY PRESIDENCY ASSOCIATION ↓
INTER-REGIONAL POLITICAL UNITY ↓
INDIAN NATIONAL CONGRESS.
DADABHAI NAOROJI → East India Association. → Bombay political awakening.
M.G. RANADE → Poona Sarvajanik Sabha.
GANESH VASUDEO JOSHI → Poona Sarvajanik Sabha.
SURENDRANATH BANERJEA → Indian Association.
ANANDA MOHAN BOSE → Indian Association.
G. SUBRAMANIA IYER → Madras Mahajana Sabha.
P. ANANDACHARLU → Madras Mahajana Sabha.
PHEROZESHAH MEHTA → Bombay Presidency Association.
K.T. TELANG → Bombay Presidency Association.
BADRUDDIN TYABJI → Bombay Presidency Association.
EARLY ASSOCIATIONS ↓
POLITICAL EDUCATION + PETITIONING + PUBLIC OPINION ↓
REGIONAL POLITICAL ORGANISATIONS ↓
COOPERATION BETWEEN REGIONS ↓
COMMON POLITICAL DEMANDS ↓
ALL-INDIA POLITICAL CONSCIOUSNESS ↓
INDIAN NATIONAL CONGRESS ↓
ORGANISED NATIONAL MOVEMENT.
1836 → Bangabhasha Prakasika Sabha. → Zamindari Association.
1843 → Bengal British India Society.
1851 → British Indian Association.
1852 → Bombay Association.
1866 → East India Association.
1870 → Poona Sarvajanik Sabha.
1875 → Indian League.
1876 → Indian Association.
1884 → Madras Mahajana Sabha.
1885 → Bombay Presidency Association.
1885 → Indian National Congress.
CHAIN 1 — BENGAL
ZAMINDARI ASSOCIATION ↓ BENGAL BRITISH INDIA SOCIETY ↓ BRITISH INDIAN ASSOCIATION ↓ INDIAN LEAGUE ↓ INDIAN ASSOCIATION.
CHAIN 2 — WESTERN INDIA
BOMBAY ASSOCIATION ↓ POONA SARVAJANIK SABHA ↓ BOMBAY PRESIDENCY ASSOCIATION.
CHAIN 3 — SOUTH INDIA
MADRAS NATIVE ASSOCIATION ↓ MADRAS MAHAJANA SABHA.
CHAIN 4 — ALL-INDIA DEVELOPMENT
REGIONAL ASSOCIATIONS ↓ POLITICAL UNITY ↓ INDIAN NATIONAL CONGRESS.
TRAP 1:
Indian Association was founded after the INC.
WRONG.
Indian Association:
→ 1876.
INC:
→ 1885.
TRAP 2:
East India Association was founded in India.
WRONG.
It was founded in:
→ London.
TRAP 3:
Poona Sarvajanik Sabha came after Madras Mahajana Sabha.
WRONG.
Poona Sarvajanik Sabha:
→ 1870.
Madras Mahajana Sabha:
→ 1884.
TRAP 4:
Bombay Presidency Association came before the Indian Association.
WRONG.
Indian Association:
→ 1876.
Bombay Presidency Association:
→ 1885.
TRAP 5:
All political associations before Congress were all-India bodies.
WRONG.
Most were:
→ Regional associations.
TRAP 6:
Early associations directly began mass movements.
WRONG.
Their principal methods included:
→ Petitions. → Public meetings. → Political education. → Constitutional agitation.
1851 → British Indian Association.
1852 → Bombay Association.
1866 → East India Association.
1870 → Poona Sarvajanik Sabha.
1875 → Indian League.
1876 → Indian Association.
1884 → Madras Mahajana Sabha.
1885 → Bombay Presidency Association.
1885 → Indian National Congress.
MEMORY CHAIN:
BIA ↓ BOMBAY ↓ EAST INDIA ↓ POONA ↓ INDIAN LEAGUE ↓ INDIAN ASSOCIATION ↓ MADRAS ↓ BOMBAY PRESIDENCY ↓ CONGRESS.
1851 → British Indian Association.
1852 → Bombay Association.
1866 → East India Association.
1870 → Poona Sarvajanik Sabha.
1875 → Indian League.
1876 → Indian Association.
1884 → Madras Mahajana Sabha.
1885 → Bombay Presidency Association.
1885 → Indian National Congress.
MASTER EVOLUTION:
REGIONAL GRIEVANCES ↓ POLITICAL ASSOCIATIONS ↓ POLITICAL EDUCATION ↓ INTER-REGIONAL UNITY ↓ INDIAN NATIONAL CONGRESS.
The political associations that emerged before the Indian National Congress played a crucial role in transforming local and regional grievances into organised political demands. Through petitions, public meetings, political education and inter-regional cooperation, they created the institutional and intellectual foundations for all-India nationalism and the formation of the Indian National Congress.
