Congress Session
First Phase: Foundation and Moderate Era (1885–1905)
1885 – Bombay
- President: W.C. Bonnerjee
- Significance: First Congress Session
- Attended by 72 delegates
📝 PYQ (BPSC 63rd): Who presided over first Congress session? → W.C. Bonnerjee
1886 – Calcutta
- President: Dadabhai Naoroji
- Congress merged with National Conference
1889 – Bombay
- President: Sir William Wedderburn
- First time Muslim leaders participated
1896 – Calcutta
- President: Rahimtulla Sayani
- First time Vande Mataram sung in Congress
1905 – Benaras
- President: Gopal Krishna Gokhale
- Critical of Partition of Bengal
Second Phase: Extremist Era & Split (1906–1916)
1906 – Calcutta
- President: Dadabhai Naoroji
- Declared Congress goals: Swaraj, Swadeshi, Boycott, National Education
📝 PYQ (BPSC 65th): In which session was Swaraj adopted? → Calcutta 1906
1907 – Surat
- President (Planned): Rash Behari Ghosh
- Event: Split between Moderates and Extremists
📝 PYQ (BPSC 64th): Surat session is famous for? → Split in Congress
1916 – Lucknow
- President: Ambika Charan Majumdar
- Congress–Muslim League Pact (Lucknow Pact)
- Reunification of Extremists and Moderates
📝 PYQ (BPSC 66th): Lucknow Pact signed in which year? → 1916
Third Phase: Gandhi Era (1917–1947)
1917 – Calcutta
- President: Annie Besant
- First woman to preside Congress session
- Home Rule Movement gained momentum
1920 – Nagpur
- President: C. Vijayaraghavachariar
- Congress adopted Non-Cooperation Movement
- Gandhi's leadership consolidated
1924 – Belgaum
- President: Mahatma Gandhi
- Only session presided by Gandhi
1929 – Lahore
- President: Jawaharlal Nehru
- Purna Swaraj (Complete Independence) declared
- 26 January 1930 to be observed as Independence Day
📝 PYQ (BPSC 65th): Purna Swaraj declared in? → Lahore Session 1929
1931 – Karachi
- President: Vallabhbhai Patel
- Adopted Fundamental Rights and National Economic Programme
- After Gandhi-Irwin Pact
1939 – Tripuri
- President: Subhas Chandra Bose (re-elected)
- Conflict with Gandhians; Bose resigned
- Formed Forward Bloc later
Final Phase: Towards Independence
1940 Ramgarh (Bihar)
- President: Maulana Abul Kalam Azad
- Rejected August Offer
- Emphasised on full independence
📝 PYQ (BPSC 66th): Which Congress session held in Bihar? → Ramgarh, 1940
1946 Meerut
- President: J.B. Kripalani
- Last session before independence
- Discussed Cabinet Mission Plan
Key Congress Sessions Held in Bihar
1. 1912 – Bankipur (Patna)
- President: Rash Behari Ghosh
- Context: First Congress session after the creation of Bihar and Orissa Province (1912)
- Highlights:
- Emphasis on education reforms and industrial development in Bihar
- Support for Indianisation of civil services
📝 Expected MCQ: Congress session in 1912 was held at? → Bankipur
2. 1922 – Gaya Session
- President: C.R. Das
- Context: Post Non-Cooperation withdrawal phase
- Highlights:
- Split between Pro-Changers and No-Changers
- Gandhi was in prison, so leadership divided
- Rajendra Prasad emerged as a key conciliator
📝 PYQ (BPSC 64th): C.R. Das presided over which session? → Gaya 1922
3. 1934 – Patna Congress Meet (AICC Meeting)
- Not a formal session but an important meeting
- Significance:
- Reorganization of Congress party structure
- Bihar Congress Committee became active
- Dr. Rajendra Prasad played leading role in grassroots expansion
4. 1939 – Ramgarh Session (then Bihar, now Jharkhand)
- President: Maulana Abul Kalam Azad
- Context: After Bose resigned at Tripuri
- Highlights:
- Congress rejected British war effort in WWII
- Resolved to start mass struggle for Poorna Swaraj
- Strong resistance to August Offer (1940)
- Jai Prakash Narayan and Srikrishna Sinha took active part
📝 PYQ (BPSC 66th): Where was 1940 session of INC held? → Ramgarh
5. 1948 – Patna Session (Post-Independence)
- President: Dr. Pattabhi Sitaramayya
- Context: First session after Gandhi’s assassination
- Highlights:
- Emotional remembrance of Gandhi
- Focus on Constitution-making and reconstruction
- Bihar Congress leaders discussed future of democratic planning
Major Bihar Congress Leaders
Dr. Rajendra Prasad
- First Bihari President of INC
- Key role in Champaran Satyagraha, Salt Satyagraha, and Constituent Assembly
- Presided over Bombay Session (1934) of INC
Srikrishna Sinha (Sri Babu)
- Led Bihar during Quit India Movement
- First CM of Bihar after independence
- Focused on land reforms, anti-zamindari
Anugrah Narayan Sinha
- Finance Minister in Bihar’s first cabinet
- Participated in Salt March and freedom struggle
- Known as "Bihar Vibhuti"
Jai Prakash Narayan (JP)
- Key youth leader from Bihar during 1930s
- Founded Congress Socialist Party in 1934
- Played major role in Quit India Movement
📝 PYQ (BPSC CDPO 2019): Who is known as "Bihar Vibhuti"? → Anugrah Narayan Sinha
Bihar’s Role in Congress Politics
- Bihar became a hub of nationalist politics, especially after Champaran Satyagraha
- Played key role in rural mobilisation, constructive programs, and Khadi promotion
- Home to several national leaders who shaped India’s freedom and early democratic planning
Quick Recap
- 1885, Bombay – First session, W.C. Bonnerjee
- 1906, Calcutta – Swaraj demand
- 1907, Surat – Congress split
- 1912, Bankipur – First in Bihar
- 1916, Lucknow – Congress-League Pact
- 1922, Gaya – C.R. Das
- 1929, Lahore – Purna Swaraj
- 1931, Karachi – Fundamental Rights
- 1939, Ramgarh – War opposition, Maulana Azad
- 1948, Patna – Post-independence direction
Sources Used
- Spectrum – A Brief History of Modern India
- Lucent GK – Modern History
- Drishti Bihar Special Book
- Bihar State Archives – Gandhi and Congress Sessions
- Ghatna Chakra BPSC PYQs
- Eduteria Tathya Sangrah – Modern History