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Difficulty: MediumConstitutional Developments, Transfer of Power, and Partition of India

With reference to the constitutional provisions of the Government of India Act of 1935, consider the following statements:

1. It provided for the establishment of an All-India Federation comprising British Indian provinces and princely states as units.
2. It abolished dyarchy at the provincial level and introduced provincial autonomy in its place.
3. The proposed All-India Federation came into operational effect immediately after the passing of the Act.

Which of the statements given above are correct?

  1. 1 and 2 onlyAnswer
  2. B
    1 and 3 only
  3. C
    2 and 3 only
  4. D
    1, 2 and 3

Answer

The statement combination '1 and 2 only' is correct.
The correct answer specifies that statements 1 and 2 are accurate. The Government of India Act of 1935 recommended an All-India Federation comprising British Indian provinces and princely states, and replaced provincial dyarchy with provincial autonomy. However, statement 3 is false because the federal scheme required a minimum threshold of princely state accessions, which was never achieved; thus, the All-India Federation remained entirely unexecuted.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Evaluate Statement 1 regarding the All-India Federation
Statement 1 is correct. The Government of India Act 1935 prescribed a federation consisting of British Indian provinces and princely states.
The Act sought to unify British provinces and Indian princely states under a central federal setup.
2
Evaluate Statement 2 regarding Provincial Autonomy and Dyarchy
Statement 2 is correct. Dyarchy in the provinces (introduced by the 1919 Act) was abolished, replacing it with provincial autonomy, while dyarchy was proposed for the central executive.
Provinces were made autonomous units of administration in responsible government setups.
3
Evaluate Statement 3 regarding the implementation of the Federation
Statement 3 is incorrect. The federation part of the 1935 Act was conditional upon accession by princely states representing at least half of the total princely population and council seats. Since rulers of princely states did not join, the All-India Federation never came into operation.
The federal structure remained unimplemented, and the central executive continued under the Government of India Act 1919 framework until 1947.

Key Concept

Key structural features and implementation status of the Government of India Act 1935
Estimated Time:1m 15s
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Topics

Constitutional Developments, Transfer of Power, and Partition of India