Pre-Gandhian Era: Indian National Movement and Social Reform

Barindra Kumar Ghose was the key organizer of the revolutionary conspiracy behind the Alipore Bomb Case (1908-1909). While Aurobindo Ghosh was tried as the ideological leader, Barindra was directly implicated in managing the bomb plot and recruiting revolutionaries. The case became a landmark in India's freedom struggle.

Sir William Jones founded the Asiatic Society in Calcutta in 1784 to study Oriental literature, history, and culture. Jones, a jurist and scholar, wanted to systematically document India's rich heritage. The society became crucial for rediscovering ancient Indian texts and promoting cross-cultural intellectual exchange.

The Gadar Party, initially the Pacific Coast Hindustan Association, was formed in 1913 in the United States under the leadership of Lala Hardayal.

 The entire Indian national movement has been divided into three eras.

1. Moderate Era (1885-1905)
2. Extremist Era (1905-1919)
3. Gandhian Era (1919-1947)

The birth of Indian National Congress was a landmark in the history of India. It saw light on 28^th December, 1885 in Gokuldas Tejpal Sanskrit Pathshala Hall, Bombay, with W. C. Banerjee as its first President.

Madan Lal Dhingra assassinated Sir William Curzon Wyllie in London in 1907. This act of political revenge was in response to the execution of Indian revolutionaries and the suppression of freedom movements. Dhingra's martyrdom inspired many revolutionaries and marked the internationalization of India's struggle.

Rash Behari Ghosh was Congress President in 1907 when the Surat split occurred between moderates and extremists. The moderate leadership suspended the extremists from the party, leading to a decade-long division. This period saw the Congress under moderate control focusing on constitutional methods.

In 1814, Ram Mohan came and settled in Calcutta and in 1815, he founded the Atmiya Sabha - an association for the dissemination of the religious truth and the promotion of free discussions of theological subjects. 

In December 1906 at Calcutta, the INC, under Dadabhai Naoroji, adopted 'swaraj' (self-government) as the goal of the Indian people. 

 <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:" sans-serif;="" font-size:="" 13px;="" line-height:="" 19px;="">20 August 1828 the first assembly of the Brahmo Sabha (progenitor of the Brahmo Samaj) was held at the North Calcutta house of Feringhee Kamal Bose

The Secretary of State for India or India Secretary was the British Cabinet minister responsible for the Government of India, Burma and Aden, and the political head of the Indian Office. The post was created in 1858 when the East India Company's rule in India ended and British India was brought under the direct administration of the government in London, beginning a period that is often called the British Raj. 

The Montagu-Chelmsford Reforms were reforms introduced by the British Government in India to introduce self-governing institutions gradually to India. The reforms take their name from Edwin Samuel Montagu, the Secretary of State for India during the latter parts of World War I and Lord Chelmsford, Viceroy of India between 1916 and 1921. The reforms were outlined in the Montagu-Chelmsford Report prepared in 1918 and formed the basis of the Government of India Act 1919. Indian nationalists considered that the reforms did not go far enough while British conservatives were critical of them. 

Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, Jinnah and Gopal Krishna Gokhale

On 6^th October, 1839, Debendranath Tagore, son of (Prince) Dwarkanath Tagore, established Tattvaranjini Sabha, which was shortly thereafter renamed the Tattwabodhini (Truth-seekers) Sabha. Initially confined to immediate members of the Tagore family, in 2 years, it mustered over 500 members. In 1840, Debendranath published a Bangla translation of Katha Upanishad. 

Annie Besant opened the Central Hindu College, Benares (Varanasi), in 1898, later receiving the honorary degree of D. L. by the Benares Hindu University. A vocal supporter for Indian Home Rule, she was interned by the British authorities during the first world war. In 1917, she was declared as the President of the Indian National Congress party.