Predecessors of Indian National Congress UPSC: Early Associations

Before the Indian National Congress was founded in 1885, Indians were already experimenting with organised political activity. These were not mass movements, but small, elite-led associations that tried to influence the British through petitions and loyal appeals.

The very first spark came from Raja Rammohun Roy, who is rightly regarded as the pioneer of political reform in India. He understood that Indians must demand not just social reform but also political representation.

From the 1830s onwards, several public associations began to emerge in different presidencies of India.

🏛 Early Political Associations (Before 1858)

Political Association	Year	Region	Founders / Leaders	Key Features
Bangabhasha Prakasika Sabha	1836	Bengal Presidency	Associates of Raja Rammohun Roy	Advocated reforms through discussions and petitions.
Landholders’ Society (Zamindari Association)	1837	Bengal Presidency	Radhakant Deb, Dwarkanath Tagore, Prasanna Kumar Tagore, Rajkamal Sen, Bhabani Charan Mitra	First political association of modern India. Represented landlords’ interests; sought extension of Permanent Settlement, judicial reforms, and police/revenue improvements.
Bengal British India Society	1843	Bengal Presidency	Calcutta intellectuals	More broad-based than Zamindari Association; aimed to protect general public interests, though still loyalist in approach.
British India Association	1851	Bengal Presidency	Radhakant Deb (President), Debendranath Tagore (Secretary)	Formed by merging Zamindari Association & Bengal British India Society. Sent petitions to Parliament.
Madras Native Association	1852	Madras Presidency	Gazulu Lakshminarasu Chetty	First political body of Madras Presidency.
Bombay Association	1852	Bombay Presidency	Jagannath Shankar Sheth	First political body of Bombay Presidency.

🌾 Landholders’ Society (1837)

First modern political association of India.
Represented the landed aristocracy of Bengal, Bihar, and Orissa.
Aimed to protect zamindari interests through petitions and persuasion.
Demanded:
- Extension of Permanent Settlement to all of India.
- Reforms in the judiciary, police, and revenue system.
Though limited to landlords, it was significant because it set the trend of modern organised politics.

📜 Bengal British India Society (1843)

Founded in Calcutta.
Loyalist in tone, but broader in base than Zamindari Association.
Represented educated Indians and sought to protect general public interests, not just zamindars.

⚖️ Political Organisations After 1850

By the 1850s, a new urgency appeared because the East India Company’s Charter was due for renewal in 1853. Educated Indians felt they must present their views to the British Parliament. This led to new associations:

British India Association (1851) – Merger of Landholders’ Society and Bengal British India Society.
- Leaders: Raja Radhakant Deb (President), Debendranath Tagore (Secretary).
- Sent petitions demanding:
  - Appointment of Indians in legislative councils.
  - End of Company’s monopoly on salt and indigo.
  - Larger share for Indians in administration.
  - Better conditions for peasants.
- Interestingly, in 1859, it sided with the ryots (peasants) against indigo planters, showing a move beyond pure zamindari interests.
Madras Native Association (1852) – Founded by Gazulu Lakshminarasu Chetty. Represented the educated elite of Madras Presidency.
Bombay Association (1852) – Founded by Jagannath Shankar Sheth, one of Bombay’s most influential citizens.

⚖️ Impact of These Associations

Their efforts were not entirely in vain. The Charter Act of 1853 conceded some demands:

It separated the executive and legislative functions of the Governor-General’s Council.
It added six new members for legislative purposes, widening the scope of representation.

🔎 Nature of Early Political Associations

Provincial or local in character — Bengal, Madras, and Bombay each had their own organisations.
Dominated by wealthy and prominent persons — landlords, merchants, and elite intellectuals.
Loyalist in outlook — they did not demand an end to British rule, but wanted reforms within the colonial framework.
Method of petitioning — long memorials and appeals were sent to British authorities in India and in London.
Focused on:
- Administrative reform.
- Indian participation in governance.
- Spread of education.

👉 In short, these were the training grounds of Indian politics. They were small, elitist, and moderate — but they introduced the idea that Indians could unite, organise, and petition collectively for their rights.

🌟 The Bigger Picture

If we step back, these early associations may seem limited — confined to big cities, run by elites, and lacking mass participation. But their historical importance is huge:

They introduced institutional politics in India.
They familiarised Indians with the methods of modern political activity — meetings, petitions, negotiations.
They created an initial political awakening, preparing the ground for later, larger organisations.

Thus, when the Indian National Congress was finally founded in 1885, it did not emerge out of nowhere. It was standing on the shoulders of these early pioneers who had already sown the seeds of Indian political unity.

Perfect — now we have reached the bridge phase: the years after 1858, when political activity grew more organised and moved steadily towards the formation of the Indian National Congress in 1885. Let’s walk through this carefully, because each association founded in this period was like a stepping stone in the story of Indian nationalism.

🌍 Political Associations After 1858

After the Revolt of 1857, educated Indians became increasingly critical of British rule. They saw through the promises of reform and realised that colonial rule was designed mainly to serve British interests.

The earlier associations (like Landholders’ Society, British India Association, etc.) were provincial and elitist. But now, the new associations founded after 1858 were more inclusive, nationally oriented, and politically active.

Here are the major ones:

Association	Year	Region	Founders	Significance
East India Association	1866	London	Dadabhai Naoroji	First organisation linking Indians and Britain; aimed to influence British public opinion.
Poona Sarvajanik Sabha	1870	Poona (Bombay Presidency)	M.G. Ranade, G.V. Joshi (Sarvajanik Kaka), S.H. Chiplunkar	Represented local interests; mediated between people and government; early attempt at popular participation.
India League	1875	Calcutta (Bengal)	Sisir Kumar Ghosh, Sambhu Charan Mukherjee	Represented middle class; fostered nationalist spirit; emphasised all-India outlook.
Indian Association	1876	Calcutta (Bengal)	Surendranath Banerjee, Ananda Mohan Bose	Strongly political; sought sustained agitation on national issues; considered a precursor to INC.
Madras Mahajan Sabha	1884	Madras Presidency	M. Veeraraghavachariar, G. Subramania Iyer, P. Anandacharlu	First major political body of Madras; actively engaged in spreading political awareness.
Bombay Presidency Association	1885	Bombay Presidency	Pherozeshah Mehta, K.T. Telang, Badruddin Tyabji	Represented Bombay intelligentsia; worked for reforms in administration and law.
Indian National Congress	1885	Pan-India	A.O. Hume (with Indian leaders)	First truly national political organisation.

✍️ East India Association (1866)

Founded by Dadabhai Naoroji in London.
Aim: to explain the Indian case before the British public and Parliament. Dadabhai believed that if ordinary Britons knew the truth, they would support Indian welfare.
Later, branches opened in Bombay, Calcutta, and Madras.

This was India’s first attempt to directly influence British opinion from within Britain itself.

⚖️ Poona Sarvajanik Sabha (1870)

Leaders: M.G. Ranade, G.V. Joshi (Sarvajanik Kaka), S.H. Chiplunkar.
Purpose: To act as a bridge between the government and the people.
Composition: sardars, landowners, businessmen, teachers, lawyers, and government servants.

Key Activities:

1875: Submitted a petition to the House of Commons, demanding Indian representation in Parliament.
Deccan Riots (1875): Supported peasants against oppressive moneylenders.
1876 famine: Organised relief work.
Set up Nyay Sabhas (arbitration courts) to provide cheaper justice.

👉 The Sabha combined reformist vision with practical politics, and sowed seeds of local self-government.

🌿 India League (1875)

Founded in Calcutta by Sisir Kumar Ghosh (editor of Amrita Bazar Patrika) with Sambhu Charan Mukherjee.
Aimed at stimulating nationalist feeling and political education, especially among the middle class.
Stood above provincial or communal interests, with an all-India outlook.
Leaders like Ananda Mohan Bose, Durga Mohan Das, Nabagopal Mitra, and Surendranath Banerjee were associated.

👉 This was a transition organisation, bridging local associations and the later all-India Congress.

🇮🇳 Indian Association (1876)

Perhaps the most important organisation before the INC.

Founded by Surendranath Banerjee and Ananda Mohan Bose in Calcutta.
Aim: to unite Indians on a common political programme and develop strong public opinion.
More radical than earlier associations — it believed in sustained political agitation, not just petitions.

Major Agitations:

Civil Service demands – raised the issue of age limit in the ICS exam (Indians wanted it raised back to 21).
Against repressive laws – opposed Arms Act and Vernacular Press Act.
Tenant rights – campaigned to protect peasants against zamindars.
Workers’ rights – demanded better conditions in tea plantations.

🏛 National Conference, Calcutta (1883)

Organised by the Indian Association.
Attended by leaders from across India.
Adopted a programme very similar to what the Congress would later adopt.

Historians call this a “dress rehearsal” for the Indian National Congress.

And indeed, in 1886, the Indian Association merged with the INC.

📌 Madras Mahajan Sabha (1884)

Founded by M. Veeraraghavachariar, G. Subramania Iyer, P. Anandacharlu.
First major political body of the Madras Presidency.
Played a central role in mobilising South Indian opinion and later helped in the founding of INC.

⚖️ Bombay Presidency Association (1885)

Founded by three stalwarts: Pherozeshah Mehta, K.T. Telang, and Badruddin Tyabji.
Represented Bombay’s educated classes.
Sent petitions for reforms in administration, judiciary, and law.

🌟 The Bigger Picture

These associations were not mass movements. They were elitist, urban, and moderate in approach. But they were vital for three reasons:

They created a network of political activists across presidencies — Bengal, Bombay, Madras, and Poona.
They taught the methods of modern politics — meetings, petitions, public opinion building, conferences.
They sowed the idea of an all-India political platform.

Thus, by the early 1880s, the ground was fully prepared. When A.O. Hume and Indian leaders came together in 1885 to found the Indian National Congress, it was not a sudden accident — it was the natural culmination of two decades of political organisation.

Excellent — now we arrive at the crucial milestone in India’s freedom struggle: the foundation of the Indian National Congress (INC) in 1885. This is often seen as the moment when the scattered energies of reformers, associations, and regional leaders finally crystallised into a pan-Indian political organisation. Well, let me narrate you the story in the next section.

Predecessors of the Indian National Congress