The Gandhi-Irwin Pact included which of the following?
- 1.Invitation to Congress to participate in the Round Table Conference
- 2.Withdrawal of Ordinances promulgated in connection with the Civil Disobedience Movement
- 3.Acceptance of Gandhiji's suggestion for enquiry into police excesses
- 4.Release of only those prisoners who were not charged with violence
Select the correct answer using the code given below:
Why UPSC dropped it · explanation
UPSC dropped this question from evaluation in its final answer key.
UPSC dropped this question from evaluation in its final answer key. The facts: the Gandhi-Irwin Pact of March 1931 suspended civil disobedience in return for withdrawal of the civil-disobedience ordinances, release of prisoners held for non-violent offences and Congress participation in further constitutional talks. Gandhi's demand for a public enquiry into police excesses was not accepted; he agreed not to press it.
- ✓ 1. The settlement provided for the participation of Congress representatives in further discussions on constitutional reform, which followed at the Second Round Table Conference in London (late 1931), where Gandhi represented the Congress.
- ✓ 2. Paragraph 10 of the settlement says ordinances promulgated in connection with the civil disobedience movement would be withdrawn (the terrorism ordinance of 1931 was excluded).
- ✗ 3. Gandhi had asked for a public enquiry into police conduct, but the Government saw great difficulty in it, and the text records that he agreed not to press the matter.
- ✓ 4. Prisoners were to be released only if they had been imprisoned in connection with the movement for offences that did not involve violence (other than technical violence) or incitement to it.
Remember · Gandhi-Irwin Pact (March 1931): civil disobedience suspended; ordinances withdrawn; non-violent prisoners released; Congress to attend the Round Table Conference; no public enquiry into police excesses.
📘 Read it in NCERT: Class 12 Themes in Indian History, Part III, Ch 3 (practise this chapter)
Sources
- NCERT Class 12 · Themes in Indian History, Part III, Chapter 3 “A second Round Table Conference was held in London in the latter part of 1931. Here, Gandhiji represented the Congress.”
- Collected Works of Mahatma Gandhi, Vol. 45 (Publications Division, Govt of India), Appendix: text of the Delhi settlement, para 2 ↗ · reference work “As regards constitutional questions, the scope of future discussion is stated, with the assent of His Majesty’s Government, to be with the object of considering further the scheme for the constitutional Government of India discussed at the Round Table Conference. … Ordinances promulgated in connection with the civil disobedience movement will be withdrawn. … Having regard to these considerations, Mr. Gandhi agreed not to press the matter. … Those prisoners will be released who are undergoing imprisonment in connection with the civil disobedience movement for offences which did not involve violence, other than technical violence, or incitement to such violence.”
Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper I (2020, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). ·