UPSC Prelims · Modern History PYQ
Brahmo Samaj, Arya Samaj, Aligarh Movement, Self-Respect Movement, and the reformers who reshaped 19th-century Indian society.
Includes
Consider the following statements about Raja Ram Mohan Roy:
I. He possessed great love and respect for the traditional philosophical systems of the East.
II. He desired his countrymen to accept the rational and scientific approach and the principle of human dignity and social equality of all men and women.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
Correct answer: C. Both I and II
Explanation
Both statements about Raja Ram Mohan Roy are accurate: he combined deep respect for classical Eastern philosophy with a strong push for rational, scientific thinking and social equality.
Who provided legal defence to the people arrested in the aftermath of Chauri Chaura incident?
Correct answer: B. Madan Mohan Malaviya and Krishna Kant
Explanation
Madan Mohan Malaviya provided legal defence to those arrested and tried following the Chauri-Chaura incident.
Who among the following was the founder of the ‘Self-Respect Movement’?
Correct answer: A. ‘Periyar’ E. V. Ramaswamy Naicker
Explanation
E.V. Ramaswamy Naicker ('Periyar') founded the Self-Respect Movement in Tamil Nadu in 1925.
Who among the following was associated as Secretary with Hindu Female School which later came to be known as Bethune Female School?
Correct answer: C. Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar
Explanation
Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar served as Secretary of the Hindu Female School, which was later renamed the Bethune School after its founder, John Elliot Drinkwater Bethune.
Who among the following was associated with the publication of the first Marathi newspaper for the depressed classes, ‘Din Bandhu’?
Correct answer: A. Gopal Baba Walangkar
Explanation
Gopal Baba Walangkar is credited with early efforts to voice the concerns of the depressed classes through the Marathi newspaper 'Din Bandhu'.
In the context of Indian history, the Rakhmabai case of 1884 revolved around
1. Women's right to gain education
2. Age of consent
3. Restitution of conjugal rights
Select the correct answer using the code given below:
Correct answer: B. 2 and 3 only
Explanation
The 1884 Rakhmabai case centred on the age of consent and a husband's suit for restitution of conjugal rights, not on issues of women's education.
Which among the following events happened earliest?
Correct answer: B. Dinabandhu Mitra wrote Neeldarpan.
Explanation
Dinabandhu Mitra's play 'Neel Darpan' (1860), portraying the exploitation of indigo cultivators, predates the other events listed.
Satya Shodhak Samaj organized
Correct answer: C. an anti-caste movement in Maharashtra
Explanation
Jyotirao Phule founded the Satya Shodhak Samaj in 1873 to organise an anti-caste, anti-Brahmanical reform movement in Maharashtra.
Consider the following:
1. Calcutta Unitarian Committee
2. Tabernacle of New Dispensation
3. Indian Reform Association Keshab Chandra Sen is associated with the establishment of which of the above?
Correct answer: B. 2 and 3 only
Explanation
After splitting from the Brahmo Samaj, Keshab Chandra Sen founded the Tabernacle of the New Dispensation and the Indian Reform Association, rather than the earlier Calcutta Unitarian Committee.
During Indian freedom struggle, the National Social Conference was formed. What was the reason for its formation?
Correct answer: B. Indian National Congress did not want to include social reforms in its deliberations and decided to form a separate body for such a purpose
Explanation
The National Social Conference was formed specifically because the Congress did not want to take up social reform in its own deliberations, prompting reformers to set up a separate body for the purpose.
Which of the following statements is/are correct regarding Brahmo Samaj?
1. It opposed idolatry.
2. It denied the need for a priestly class for interpreting the religious texts.
3. It popularized the doctrine that the Vedas are infallible.
Select the correct answer using the codes given below:
Correct answer: B. 1 and 2 only
Explanation
The Brahmo Samaj rejected idol worship and priestly intermediaries, but it did not treat the Vedas as infallible scripture — over time it moved further away from strict Vedic authority.
In collaboration with David Hare and Alexander Duff, who of the following established Hindu College at Calcutta?
Correct answer: D. Raja Rammohan Roy
Explanation
Raja Rammohan Roy, together with David Hare and Alexander Duff, helped establish Hindu College in Calcutta in 1817.
Who among the following started the newspaper "Shome Prakash"?
Correct answer: B. Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar
Explanation
Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar started the influential Bengali weekly journal 'Shome Prakash' ('Somprakash').
Who among the following wrote the book "Bahubivah"?
Correct answer: B. Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar
Explanation
Among his social reform writings, Vidyasagar authored 'Bahubivah,' a tract opposing polygamy.
Consider the following statements :
1. Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar founded the Bethune School at Calcutta with the main aim of encouraging education for women.
2. Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay was the first graduate of the Calcutta University.
3. Keshav Chandra Sen’s campaign against Sati led to the enactment of a law to ban Sati by the then Governor General.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
Correct answer: B. 1 and 2
Explanation
Vidyasagar did found the Bethune School for women's education, and Bankimchandra Chattopadhyay was indeed among the earliest graduates of Calcutta University, both true; but the anti-Sati campaign and 1829 legislation are linked to Raja Ram Mohan Roy, not Keshab Chandra Sen, who was born only after Sati had already been banned.
Consider the following statements:
I. Arya Samaj was founded in 1835.
II. Lala Lajpat Rai opposed the appeal of Arya Samaj to the authority of Vedas in support of its social reform programmes.
III. Under Keshab Chandra Sen, the Brahmo Samaj campaigned for women’s education.
IV. Vinoba Bhave founded the Sarvodaya Samaj to work among refugees. Which of these statements are correct?
Correct answer: D. III and IV
Explanation
The Arya Samaj was founded in 1875, not 1835, so statement I is wrong; Lala Lajpat Rai was himself a committed Arya Samajist who upheld Vedic authority rather than opposing it, so statement II is wrong; Keshab Chandra Sen's Brahmo current did campaign for women's education (III, true), and Vinoba Bhave's Sarvodaya work is linked to constructive welfare programmes (IV, true) — leaving only III and IV.
Assertion (A): The first ever Bill to make primary education compulsory in India was rejected in 1911. Reason (R): Discontent would have increased if every cultivator could read.
Correct answer: A. Both A and R are true, and R is the correct explanation of A
Explanation
Both statements are true here, and the reason correctly accounts for the assertion: the colonial government feared that widespread rural literacy could fuel political unrest, and so rejected Gokhale's 1911 bill for compulsory primary education.
M.C. Setalvad, B.N. Rao and Alladi Krishnaswamy Iyer were distinguished members of the
Correct answer: D. Servants of India Society
Explanation
M.C. Setalvad, B.N. Rau, and Alladi Krishnaswami Iyer were all jurists shaped by the same tradition of constitutional, moderate public engagement associated with the Servants of India Society.
His ‘principal forte was social and religious reform. He relied upon legislation to do away with social ills and worked unceasingly for the eradication of child marriage, the purdah system …… To encourage consideration of social problems on a national scale, he inaugurated the Indian National Social Conference, which for many years met for its annual sessions alongside the Indian National Congress.’ The reference in this passage is to
Correct answer: C. Mahadev Govind Ranade
Explanation
This description matches Mahadev Govind Ranade, who used legislative work and the Indian National Social Conference to campaign against child marriage and the practice of purdah.
100. Which one of the following pairs is not correctly matched?
Correct answer: D. Bal Gangadhar Tilak — Satya Shodhak Sabha
Explanation
Bal Gangadhar Tilak is not correctly paired here with the Satya Shodhak Sabha, which was actually founded by Jyotirao Phule, not Tilak.