Q1(b). Discuss the post-Second World War which led to the India’s Independence.

“Britain won the war, but lost the empire.” – A.J.P. Taylor

The Second World War (1939–45) transformed global power structures and shattered the economic and political foundations of British imperialism. For India, the war years triggered mass political mobilisation, military unrest, and international pressure together making independence inevitable. The era marked a decisive shift where colonial authority collapsed under internal resistance and external constraints.

Economic Bankruptcy of Britain After WWII

Britain emerged from the war heavily weakened its national debt rose to nearly 250% of GDP, industries collapsed, and it depended on American loans. Maintaining India, which cost nearly £440 million annually, became unsustainable. The fiscal crisis forced Britain to reconsider the viability of empire.

Impact of INA Trials and National Awakening

The trials of the Indian National Army (INA) in late 1945 ignited countrywide protests. For the first time, large sections of Indian soldiers, peasants, students, lawyers, and workers united in support of the INA.

In Haryana, which historically contributed significant numbers to the British Indian Army (e.g., Rohtak, Jhajjar, Hisar belts), returning soldiers played a crucial role in mobilising anti-colonial sentiment and openly questioning colonial loyalty.

Royal Indian Navy (RIN) Mutiny, 1946

The naval mutiny by nearly 20,000 sailors across Bombay, Karachi and Madras shook British confidence. The revolt spread rapidly, supported by workers and students.

Its influence echoed among military families in Haryana, where resentment grew against poor service conditions during the war weakening the British Indian Army’s reliability.

Political Turbulence and Mass Movements

Though suppressed, the Quit India Movement (1942) left colonial administration paralysed for years. Communal tensions in 1946 Calcutta, Noakhali, Punjab further convinced the British that prolonged rule risked civil war. The failure of the Wavell Plan and Cabinet Mission Plan exposed administrative paralysis.

International Pressure and New World Order

Post-war, the United Nations Charter (1945) endorsed self-determination as a global principle. The USA and USSR emerged as superpowers critical of colonialism. Britain could no longer justify imperial dominance.

Labour Government and Policy Shift

The Labour Party’s rise in 1945 under Clement Attlee, who believed empire was morally indefensible and economically ruinous, accelerated the decolonisation process. Lord Mountbatten prioritised a quick and orderly transfer of power.

Economic fatigue, military dissent, political upheaval, and moral collapse of imperialism converged to make British withdrawal inevitable, culminating in the Indian Independence Act of 15 August 1947.