The National Liberal Federation (the Liberal Party), formed by Moderates who left the Congress in 1918-19, was led by:

• Jayakar. The National Liberal Federation of India (the Indian Liberal Party) was formed in 1918-1919 by Moderate leaders who left the Congress; its prominent leaders included Tej Bahadur Sapru, M. R. Jayakar, Surendranath Banerjea and V. S. Srinivasa Sastri.

Background:

• In 1918, the Montagu-Chelmsford Report proposed constitutional reforms, including dyarchy in the provinces.
• The Congress, dominated by the Extremists and the new leadership, rejected the reforms as inadequate.
• The Moderates felt that the reforms should be accepted and worked, as they were a step towards self-government.

The formation:

• The Moderates held a separate conference in Bombay in November 1918, under Surendranath Banerjea.
• This led to the formation of the All India Moderates' Conference, which became the National Liberal Federation of India in 1919.

Its ideas:

• It believed in constitutional methods, cooperation with the British government, and gradual progress towards self-government (Dominion Status).
• It opposed Gandhi's mass movements such as non-cooperation and civil disobedience.

Its leaders:

• Tej Bahadur Sapru: a constitutional lawyer, who took part in the talks in London on constitutional reforms.
• R. Jayakar: a lawyer from Bombay, who also took part in the talks, and later became a judge.
• S. Srinivasa Sastri: a scholar and orator, known as the "Silver-tongued orator of the British Empire".
• Surendranath Banerjea: the veteran Moderate leader of Bengal.

Role:

• The Liberals were few in number, but they were respected for their ability and experience.
• They acted as mediators between the Congress and the British government, for example in the negotiations in 1931 and 1932.

Decline:

After Independence, the party became insignificant.

Why not the other options?

Motilal Nehru and C. R. Das, Tilak and Besant, and M. N. Roy and Dange led other parties or movements.