Indian National Congress Sessions


Introduction

Indian National Congress (INC) was established in 1885 with the active participation of Allan Octavian Hume and some other leaders. In pre-independence India, INC was considered one of the most influential political parties. The upliftment of lower classes of Indian citizens and the promotion of basic education among Indians were key working areas of INC. Indian society’s underprivileged sections were a focus area of INC.

Indian National Congress Group Convention 1885

©Multiple Authors Goa University, CC BY-SA 3.0 , via Wikimedia Commons

The Objective of the Indian National Congress

INC was established as a Pan-India organization to spread awareness regarding Indian political rights and colonial policies that are exploitative. A key objective of INC was to successfully promote national unity (Kumar, 2022). The demolition of the British rule’s base in India was another aim and a key objective of INC that helps in rising awareness among young Indians against British rule.

About the Indian National Congress

The establishment of INC is often considered the first and most influential modern nationalist movement in India. This movement helped in emerging the entire British Empire in Africa and Asia. INC was first established in 1885 as a comprising organization with educated elite persons of India to communicate and transfer key thinking of the British to the common Indians (Amin, 2022). INC is referred to as Congress Party and in many subsequent years, different sessions of INC were held in different places.

Details About All Indian National Congress Sessions

All the session of INC is divided into four different segments that are namely, the founding years, the era of pre-independence, the post-independence era and the post-liberalization era.

Four types of sessions of INC

A detailed understanding of each of these types of sessions is helpful in understanding the role of these sessions in Indian history.

Time of the sessions Places Presidents Important information
1885 (December) Bombay W C Banerjee The very first session with 72 delegates led to the spread of awareness regarding the motive of INC.
1886 (December) Calcutta Dadabhai Naoroji It is the next and second session.
1887 (December) Madras (indianexpress, 2022) Badruddin Tyabji (first Muslim president) The third session
1888 (December) Allahabad George Yule (first English president) The fourth session
1889 (December) Bombay Sir William Wedderburn -
1890 (December) Calcutta Feroz Shah Mehta -
1891 (November) Nagpur P. Ananda Charlu -
1892 (December) Allahabad W C Banerjee -
1893 (December) Lahore Dadabhai Naoroji -
1894 (November) Madras Alfred Webb -
1895 (-) Poona Surendranath Banerjee -
1896 (December) Calcutta Rahimatullah M. Sayani The national song “Vande Mataram” was first sung by Rabindranath Tagore.
1897 (October) Amravati C. Sankaran Nair -
1898 (November) Madras Ananda Mohan Bose -
1899 (December) Lucknow Romesh Chunder Dutt The proposition of land revenue’s permanent fixation was submitted
1901 (December) Calcutta Dinshaw Eduljee Wacha
1905 (December) Banaras Gopal Krishna Gokhale Swadeshi movement’s official announcement was made
1906 (December) Calcutta (inc, 2022) Dadabhai Naoroji For most important resolutions regarding Swaraj, national education, swadeshi and boycott movement were adapted.
1907 (December) Surat Rash Behari Ghosh Congress was divided into moderates and extremists and this session was adjourned.
1910 (December) Allahabad Sir William Wedderburn The act of 1909 was introduced by M.A Jinnah that depicts the electorate system.
1911 (December) Calcutta B. N. Dhar Recitation of “Jana- Gana-Mana” for the first time.
1915 (December) Bombay Sir S.P. Sinha Modification of congress to ensure an extremist.
1916 (December) Lucknow A.C. Majumdar Reunion of two divisions of congress Lucknow pact was signed by Muslim League and Congress together.
1917 (December) Calcutta Annie Besant -
1918 (August) Bombay Romesh Chunder Dutt -
1918 (December) Delhi Madan Mohan Malaviya -
1920 (December) Nagpur C.Vijayraghavachariar -
1922 (December) Gaya Deshbandhu Chittaranjan Das -
1924 (December) Belgaum M.K. Gandhi -
1925 (April) Kanpur Mrs Sarojini Naidu -
1927 (December) Madras M.A. Ansari -
1929 (April) Lahore Jawaharlal Nehru -
1931 (March) Karachi Sardar Vallabhai Patel -
1934 (October) Bombay Dr Rajendra Prasad -
1936 (June) Lucknow Jawaharlal Nehru -
1937 (July) Faizpur Jawaharlal Nehru -
1938 (February) Haripura Subhash Chandra Bose -
1939 (March) Tripura Subhash Chandra Bose -
1940 (March) Ramgarh Maulana Abul Kalam Azad -
1941-1945 No such sessions - -
1946 (November) Meerut J.B. Kripalani -

Conclusion

The three most important names in the history of INC are Edulji Wacha, Dadabhai Naoroji and Allan Octavian Hume. Indian Rebellion of the year 1857 was a tough and challenging situation for the British rulers as it was a face-to-face challenge for them from common Indians. This rebellion shook the base of British rule as after this India’s overall control was transferred to British Empire from the East India Company. A.O Hume, the then retired ICS officer, felt that the educated Indians should be united and have a strong political base. This thought of him led to the formation of INC in future. Overall development and growth of Indian culture, educational sector and social attributes were important concerns of INC.

FAQs

Q1. What is the core significance of INC for a developing India?

Ans. At the time of independence in 1947, suitable and strong political support from a political party was very much needed. INC became the most dominant and supporting political party of the then newly independent India.

Q2. Where was the fourth session of INC held and who was the president of the session?

Ans. In the year 1888, the fourth session of INC was held in Allahabad. The president of this session was George Yule who takes an active part in this session.

Q3. What was the motto of INC?

Ans. Proper organization of public opinion and ensuring a supporting educated Indian base were the most required things for a continuous British rule in India. Therefore, INC was established and its key motto was “Ab Hoga Nyay”. This motto was fully followed by the leaders of this party in every possible way.

Updated on: 22-Dec-2022

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