UPSC Prelims 2015 · GS Paper I
Question 26: History and Culture
With reference to Congress Socialist Party, consider the following statements :
- 1.It advocated the boycott of British goods and evasion of taxes.
- 2.It wanted to establish the dictatorship of proletariat.
- 3.It advocated separate electorate for minorities and oppressed classes.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
AnswerUPSC’s answer is (d).
The Congress Socialist Party, formed in 1934 by Jayaprakash Narayan, Acharya Narendra Dev, Ram Manohar Lohia and others, worked inside the Congress to give it a socialist and anti-imperialist programme. Boycott of British goods and tax evasion were Congress movement tactics, not the party's own programme. Its aim was a socialist society reached through the national movement, and UPSC does not accept dictatorship of the proletariat as its goal. As a nationalist body inside the Congress it did not demand separate electorates. None of the statements fits.
- 1. Boycott and tax evasion were tactics of Congress movements, not the CSP's distinct programme.
- 2. The CSP sought a socialist society through the national movement; UPSC does not accept this as its aim.
- 3. As a nationalist body within the Congress it did not demand separate electorates.
Why each option is right or wrong
- (a) Wrong: neither boycott with tax evasion nor dictatorship of the proletariat was the CSP's stated programme.
- (b) Wrong: separate electorates were not a CSP demand; the party worked inside the nationalist Congress.
- (c) Wrong: none of the three statements describes the CSP.
- (d) Correct: none of the statements is correct.
Answer: UPSC’s key. Explanation: written by UPSC Grade, not by UPSC.
Source: UPSC, Civil Services (Preliminary) Examination 2015, General Studies Paper I, Series A. The paper on upsc.gov.in.