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Question 113 of 137 · Gandhian Era & Struggle for Independence
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In the Interim Government of 1946, the Finance portfolio was held by:

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Answer: Option D — Liaquat Ali Khan

Detailed Solution

In the Interim Government of 1946, the Finance portfolio was held by Liaquat Ali Khan of the Muslim League, after the League joined the government in October 1946.

The "poor man's budget":

  • Liaquat Ali Khan presented the Budget for 1947-48 in February 1947.
  • It was called the "poor man's budget" because it proposed heavy taxes on business profits and set up a commission to investigate tax evasion.
  • Indian businessmen, many of whom supported the Congress, were unhappy with it.
  • The Congress saw it as an attempt by the Muslim League to target its supporters.

Control over finance:

  • As Finance Member, Liaquat had control over the expenditure of all other departments.
  • This allowed the League to obstruct the work of Congress ministers, which showed that a coalition between the two parties could not work.

Why the League got Finance:

  • When the League joined, the Congress offered it the Finance portfolio, thinking it would be too technical for the League to handle.
  • The League accepted, and Liaquat used the post effectively.

About Liaquat Ali Khan:

  • He was a close associate of Muhammad Ali Jinnah and the General Secretary of the Muslim League.
  • After partition, he became the first Prime Minister of Pakistan in August 1947.
  • He was assassinated in Rawalpindi in October 1951.
  • He signed the Nehru-Liaquat Pact (Delhi Pact) with Jawaharlal Nehru in April 1950, on the protection of minorities in both countries.

Other League members of the Interim Government:

I.I. Chundrigar: Commerce.

Abdur Rab Nishtar: Communications.

Ghazanfar Ali Khan: Health.

Jogendra Nath Mandal: Law.

Other members:

John Mathai held Industries and Supplies, and later Finance after independence.

C.H. Bhabha held Works, Mines and Power.

Why not the other options?

John Mathai, C.H. Bhabha and Rajendra Prasad held other portfolios.

Quick tip

Remember: Finance in the Interim Government = Liaquat Ali Khan ("poor man's budget", 1947); later first PM of Pakistan.

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Gandhian Era & Struggle for Independence — Preparation

This question tests your understanding of Gandhian Era & Struggle for Independence, a key topic in the General Knowledge section. The detailed solution above uses a step-by-step approach to show the reasoning, and where available, a shortcut that helps you solve similar questions in under 90 seconds during the actual exam.

This topic covers the freedom struggle from Gandhi's return to India in 1915 to independence in 1947: the Champaran, Kheda and Ahmedabad movements, the Rowlatt Act and Jallianwala Bagh, the Non-Cooperation, Civil Disobedience and Quit India movements, the Round Table Conferences, the Cripps Mission, the Cabinet Mission and the partition of India. Most questions ask about the year, cause or result of a movement, or the event that ended it. For example, the Chauri Chaura incident (1922) led Gandhi to call off the Non-Cooperation Movement, and the Dandi March (1930) started the Civil Disobedience Movement. Learning these events on a timeline is the best way to avoid confusion. Practise the Gandhian era questions below, written in the style of the general awareness sections of exams such as SSC, banking, railways, CUET GAT, MAH CET and CLAT. Each question comes with a detailed explanation that adds related facts, so every question helps you revise more than one point.

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