Question

Who coined the term ‘Quit India’ as a clarion call asking the British to leave India immediately?

Answer 1

Hint: On August 8, 1942, during the Bombay session of the All India Congress Committee, Mahatma Gandhi launched the Quit India Movement, also known as the August Movement, to urge an end to British rule in India.

Complete answer:
Quit India movement -
- At a meeting of the All-India Congress Committee in Mumbai on August 8, 1942, Mahatma Gandhi issued a clarion call to remove British rule and launched the Quit India Movement.
- In a speech held at the Gowalia Tank Maidan, today known as August Kranti Maidan, Gandhiji proclaimed, "Do or Die."
- During the Quit India Movement, Aruna Asaf Ali, also known as the 'Grand Old Lady of the Independence Movement,' is credited for flying the Indian flag at the Gowalia Tank Maidan in Mumbai.

The Reasons for the Quit India Movement –
- The failure of Cripps Mission was the immediate cause of the Quit India campaign.
- During World War II, the INC did not provide unequivocal assistance to the British, as the British had believed.
- The Indian masses had developed a strong sense of nationalism and self-rule.

Yusuf Meherally, a communist and labor unionist who also served as Mayor of Mumbai, coined the slogan "Quit India."

Despite popular belief, Mahatma Gandhi did not coin the slogan "Quit India." Yusuf Meherally was the one who had done it. Meherally is said to have coined the phrase while at a meeting with Gandhi and several advisors. Gandhi had asked the gathering what the best independence slogan was, and after receiving various responses, Gandhi endorsed "Quit India."

Note: The tagline "Simon Go Back" was also coined by Meherally.
The British mercilessly suppressed the Quit India campaign, killing protesters, lathi-charging them, torching villages, and levying hefty penalties.