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Question 97 of 137 · Gandhian Era & Struggle for Independence
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The 'C. R. Formula' (1944), which proposed a plebiscite in Muslim-majority areas after the war as a basis for Congress-League cooperation, was put forward by:

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Answer: Option A — C. Rajagopalachari

Detailed Solution

Rajagopalachari. The "C. R. Formula", also called the "Rajaji Formula", was put forward in 1944 by C. Rajagopalachari (C. R. or Rajaji), with the approval of Mahatma Gandhi.

Background:

  • The Muslim League had demanded Pakistan in its Lahore Resolution (1940).
  • The Congress was opposed to partition, and most of its leaders were in jail after the Quit India Movement.
  • Rajagopalachari felt that the Congress must reach an agreement with the Muslim League to achieve independence.

Main points of the formula:

  • The Muslim League would support the Congress demand for independence, and cooperate in forming a provisional interim government at the centre.
  • After the war, a commission would demarcate the contiguous districts in the north-west and east of India where Muslims were in an absolute majority.
  • In these areas, a plebiscite of all the inhabitants would decide whether they wanted to separate from India.
  • If separation was accepted, agreements would be made for defence, commerce, communications and other essential matters.
  • These terms would apply only if Britain transferred full power to India.

The Gandhi-Jinnah talks:

Gandhi held talks with Jinnah in Bombay in September 1944, on the basis of the C. R. Formula.

Jinnah rejected the formula, because he wanted the Congress to accept the two-nation theory, and wanted only Muslims to vote in the plebiscite.

He also wanted Pakistan to include whole provinces, and opposed any common arrangements for defence and other matters.

The talks failed.

About C. Rajagopalachari:

  • He was born on 10 December 1878 at Thorapalli, in the Salem district of Madras Presidency.
  • He was a lawyer, writer and close associate of Gandhi; he led the salt satyagraha at Vedaranyam (1930).
  • He was the Premier (Chief Minister) of Madras (1937-1939).
  • He was the last Governor-General of India (1948-1950), and the only Indian to hold this post.
  • He was one of the first recipients of the Bharat Ratna (1954).

Why not the other options?

  • ✗R. Das, Rajendra Prasad and C. Sankaran Nair did not put forward this formula.

Quick tip

Remember: C. R. Formula (Rajaji Formula, 1944) = C. Rajagopalachari (plebiscite in Muslim-majority areas after the war); basis of the Gandhi-Jinnah talks (September 1944).

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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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