Vision Academy EducareVision Academy Educare
Question 96 of 137 · Gandhian Era & Struggle for Independence
Questionmedium
This question was previously asked in

SSC

Matangini Hazra, who was shot dead by the police at Tamluk in Bengal in 1942 while leading a procession with the national flag, was affectionately called:

Answer View answer ▾

Answer: Option A — Gandhi Buri (Old Lady Gandhi)

Detailed Solution

Matangini Hazra was affectionately called "Gandhi Buri" ("Old Lady Gandhi") because of her devotion to Gandhi and his ideals.

About Matangini Hazra:

  • She was born on 19 October 1870 in a poor peasant family in the village of Hogla, near Tamluk, in the Midnapore district of Bengal.
  • She was married as a child to a much older man, and became a widow at the age of 18.
  • She had no formal education.
  • She was inspired by Gandhi's ideas, and joined the freedom struggle in her old age.
  • She wore khadi, spun yarn on the charkha, and worked for the poor and sick in her village.

Role in the freedom struggle:

  • She took part in the Civil Disobedience Movement, including the salt satyagraha and the protests against the chowkidari tax, and was imprisoned.
  • She was imprisoned at Baharampur jail.

Her death (29 September 1942):

  • During the Quit India Movement, the nationalists of Midnapore planned to capture the police stations and government offices of the Tamluk area.
  • Matangini Hazra, at the age of 71 (some sources say 73), led a procession of thousands of people, most of them women, towards the Tamluk police station.
  • When the police opened fire, she continued to move forward holding the national flag, and urged the police not to shoot.
  • She was shot three times, and died with the national flag still held high, chanting "Vande Mataram".

Remembrance:

  • She became a symbol of courage and sacrifice in the Quit India Movement.
  • Her statue stands in Kolkata (on the Maidan) and at Tamluk.
  • A postage stamp was issued in her honour in 2002.
  • Several roads and schools in West Bengal are named after her.

The Tamluk parallel government:

After the events of 1942, a parallel national government was set up in Tamluk, which functioned for about two years.

Why not the other options?

  • ✗"Mother of the Nation", "Bengal Kesari" and "Didi" were not her popular names.

Quick tip

Remember: Matangini Hazra = "Gandhi Buri" (Old Lady Gandhi); shot dead at Tamluk (Midnapore) on 29 September 1942, holding the national flag during Quit India.

💬 Discussions on this question

Ask a doubt ›

Still stuck on this question? Ask our faculty and fellow students — answers appear here.

Ask a doubt

More Gandhian Era & Struggle for Independence Questions

View all ›
  1. Q1.The Quit India Movement was launched by Mahatma Gandhi on:
  2. Q2.Who started the secret Congress Radio during the Quit India Movement?
  3. Q3.The Bardoli Satyagraha of 1928 was led by:
  4. Q4.The Harijan Sevak Sangh was founded in 1932 by:
  5. Q5.Rabindranath Tagore renounced his knighthood in protest against:

More General Knowledge Questions

  1. Q1.The techniques of Rasa and Bhava used in Indian classical dance trace their origin to which ancient text?Indian Dance Forms
  2. Q2.Lavani, Powada, Koli, Waghya Murali and Dhangari Gaja are folk dances of which state?Indian Dance Forms
  3. Q3.The one-act play associated with the Sattriya tradition of Assam is called:Indian Dance Forms
  4. Q4.Which dance form of Goa is known as the 'Warrior Dance'?Indian Dance Forms
  5. Q5.Manipuri dance is based on the Rasleela themes of:Indian Dance Forms

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.

‹ All Gandhian Era & Struggle for Independence questionsBrowse all topics ›