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RAS question

Who was the Viceroy of India when Ramsay MacDonald announced the Communal Award in 1932?

Correct answer: (C) Lord Willingdon.

Lord Willingdon was Viceroy of India when Ramsay MacDonald announced the Communal Award on 16 August 1932.

  1. (A)

    Lord Linlithgow

  2. (B)

    Lord Reading

  3. (C)

    Lord Willingdon

  4. (D)

    Lord Irwin

Explanation

The date places the event squarely in Lord Willingdon's viceroyalty: he served as Viceroy and Governor-General of India from 18 April 1931 to 18 April 1936, and the Communal Award is listed among the important events of that period. Ramsay MacDonald announced the award on 16 August 1932, while the Civil Disobedience Movement was in full swing. It proposed minority representation in legislatures and retained separate electorates for several communities, including Depressed Classes. Gandhi objected particularly to separate electorates for Depressed Classes, began a fast unto death on 20 September 1932, and the issue was settled through the Poona Pact with B. R. Ambedkar.

Why the other options are wrong

  • (A) Lord Linlithgow came later, so he was not the Viceroy during the 1931-36 Willingdon period in which the Communal Award was announced.
  • (B) Lord Reading was earlier, whereas the cited period for the Communal Award falls under Lord Willingdon's viceroyalty.
  • (D) Lord Irwin had left before 1932, so he could not have been Viceroy when MacDonald announced the Communal Award.

Concept

This tests the chronology of late colonial constitutional politics, especially the link between viceroys and major events. RAS repeats such pairings because they anchor movements, British policy decisions, and pact-making in a clear timeline.

Source

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