The Last Phase-Independence and Partition of India ( 1942-47) — Important Questions

August 16, 1946

The Direct Action Day was observed by the Muslim League on August 16, 1946. This led to massive communal riots, especially in Calcutta, where nearly 5,000 people died and over 15,000 were injured. July 29, 1946 was when the Muslim League rejected the Cabinet Mission Plan. August 14, 1946 was when Nehru was invited to form the interim government. September 2, 1946 was when the interim government was actually formed.

389 members

The Cabinet Mission Plan proposed a Constituent Assembly of 389 members in total. This included 292 members from British Indian provinces, 4 from Chief Commissioner's provinces, and 93 from Indian princely states. The 292 figure represents only the provincial representatives, not the total. 201 was the number of seats won by Congress in the elections. 93 was the number allocated to princely states alone.

Jawaharlal Nehru

Jawaharlal Nehru became the first Prime Minister of independent India on August 15, 1947. He had already been heading the interim government since September 1946. Mahatma Gandhi was the leader of the freedom movement but never held any official government position. Sardar Patel became the Deputy Prime Minister and Home Minister. Maulana Azad became the Education Minister in Nehru's cabinet.

North-West Frontier Province

NWFP stands for North-West Frontier Province. This was a province in the northwestern part of British India, bordering Afghanistan. According to the Mountbatten Plan, a referendum was to be held in NWFP to determine whether it would join India or Pakistan. The other options are incorrect variations that don't represent any actual historical entity.