Two statements labelled as Assertion (A) and Reason (R) are given below. Read them carefully and choose the correct option :
Assertion (A) : The Sepoys proclaimed Bahadur Shah Zafar as their leader in the Revolt of 1857.
Reason (R) : Bahadur Shah Zafar’s acceptance gave legitimacy to the Revolt of 1857.
Assertion (A) : The Sepoys proclaimed Bahadur Shah Zafar as their leader in the Revolt of 1857.
Reason (R) : Bahadur Shah Zafar’s acceptance gave legitimacy to the Revolt of 1857.
Show Hint
• Bahadur Shah Zafar was the last Mughal Emperor and was exiled to Rangoon after the revolt failed.
- Both Assertion (A) and Reason (R) are true and Reason (R) is the correct explanation of the Assertion (A).
- Both Assertion (A) and Reason (R) are true, but Reason (R) is not the correct explanation of the Assertion (A).
- Assertion (A) is true, but Reason (R) is false.
- Assertion (A) is false, but Reason (R) is true.
The Correct Option is A
Solution and Explanation
• The Revolt of 1857 required a unifying symbol to transform a series of military mutinies into a broader political rebellion.
• The Mughal Emperor, despite having limited actual power, remained the traditional and symbolic sovereign of India in the eyes of many.
Step 1: Evaluate the Assertion (A)
When the sepoys of Meerut reached Delhi on May 11, 1857, they marched to the Red Fort and demanded that Bahadur Shah Zafar become their leader.
By accepting this role, he became the titular head of the rebellion. Thus, (A) is true.
Step 2: Evaluate the Reason (R)
The rebels understood that their actions would be viewed as mere lawlessness unless they were conducted under the banner of a legitimate authority. The Mughal name provided this legitimacy, as many Indian rulers and the public still recognized the Mughal crown as the source of legal authority. Thus, (R) is true.
Step 3: Determine the logical connection
The reason the sepoys chose him specifically (the action in A) was to gain the political and traditional standing (the reason in R) necessary to challenge the British East India Company. Therefore, (R) is the correct explanation for (A).
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Top CBSE CLASS XII The Great Revolt of 1857 Questions
- Which one of the following policies by the British led to discontent among Indian soldiers, contributing to the Revolt of 1857?
Read the given source carefully and answer the questions that follow:
Two rebels of 1857
Shah MalShah Mal lived in a large village in pargana Barout in Uttar Pradesh. He belonged to a clan of Jat cultivators whose kinship ties extended over chaurasee des (eighty-four villages). The lands in the region were irrigated and fertile, with rich dark loam soil. Many of the villagers were prosperous and saw the British land revenue system as oppressive: the revenue demand was high and its collection inflexible. Consequently cultivators were losing land to outsiders, to traders and moneylenders who were coming into the area.
Shah Mal mobilised the headmen and cultivators of chaurasee des, moving at night from village to village, urging people to rebel against the British. As in many other places, the revolt against the British turned into a general rebellion against all signs of oppression and injustice. Cultivators left their fields and plundered the houses of moneylenders and traders. Displaced proprietors took possession of the lands they had lost. Shah Mal’s men attacked government buildings, destroyed the bridge over the river, and dug up metalled roads – partly to prevent government forces from coming into the area, and partly because bridges and roads were seen as symbols of British rule. They sent supplies to the sepoys who had mutinied in Delhi and stopped all official communication between British headquarters and Meerut. Locally acknowledged as the Raja, Shah Mal took over the bungalow of an English officer, turned it into a “hall of justice”, settling disputes and dispensing judgments. He also set up an amazingly effective network of intelligence. For a period the people of the area felt that firangi raj was over, and their raj had come.
Shah Mal was killed in battle in July 1857.
How did Shah Mal’s leadership contribute to the spread of the rebellion?
Read the given source carefully and answer the questions that follow:
Two rebels of 1857
Shah MalShah Mal lived in a large village in pargana Barout in Uttar Pradesh. He belonged to a clan of Jat cultivators whose kinship ties extended over chaurasee des (eighty-four villages). The lands in the region were irrigated and fertile, with rich dark loam soil. Many of the villagers were prosperous and saw the British land revenue system as oppressive: the revenue demand was high and its collection inflexible. Consequently cultivators were losing land to outsiders, to traders and moneylenders who were coming into the area.
Shah Mal mobilised the headmen and cultivators of chaurasee des, moving at night from village to village, urging people to rebel against the British. As in many other places, the revolt against the British turned into a general rebellion against all signs of oppression and injustice. Cultivators left their fields and plundered the houses of moneylenders and traders. Displaced proprietors took possession of the lands they had lost. Shah Mal’s men attacked government buildings, destroyed the bridge over the river, and dug up metalled roads – partly to prevent government forces from coming into the area, and partly because bridges and roads were seen as symbols of British rule. They sent supplies to the sepoys who had mutinied in Delhi and stopped all official communication between British headquarters and Meerut. Locally acknowledged as the Raja, Shah Mal took over the bungalow of an English officer, turned it into a “hall of justice”, settling disputes and dispensing judgments. He also set up an amazingly effective network of intelligence. For a period the people of the area felt that firangi raj was over, and their raj had come.
Shah Mal was killed in battle in July 1857.
How did the rebellion led by Shah Mal challenge the authority of the British?
- Choose the correct option from the following to fill in the blank regarding the leaders of the Revolt of 1857.
Arrah (Bihar) : Kunwar Singh; _______ : Birjis Qadr
- How has Indian imagery preserved Rani Laxmibai’s contribution during the Revolt of 1857? Explain.
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