Indian National Congress Sessions and Presidents Notes for SSC Exams

The Indian National Congress was founded in 1885, and its yearly sessions are linked with almost every major event of the freedom struggle. SSC exams regularly ask "Who presided over the session at X?" or "In which session was Purna Swaraj declared?". These INC sessions and presidents notes give the important sessions in table form with the president, the place, the year and the key event, so that you can revise the whole list in one sitting.

Foundation of the Congress

• The Indian National Congress was founded on 28 December 1885 in Bombay.
• A. O. Hume, a retired British civil servant, played the main role in its founding.
• The first president was W. C. Bonnerjee, and the first session was held at Gokuldas Tejpal Sanskrit College, Bombay.
• 72 delegates attended the first session.

Important Sessions Before 1915

Important Sessions from 1917 to 1947

Presidents Who Are Frequently Asked

Link Between Sessions and Events

• Surat 1907: The party split into Moderates and Extremists.
• Lucknow 1916: The two groups reunited, and the Lucknow Pact with the Muslim League was signed.
• Calcutta 1920: The Non-Cooperation Movement was approved.
• Lahore 1929: Purna Swaraj became the aim, and 26 January was fixed as Independence Day.
• Karachi 1931: The Congress accepted the Gandhi-Irwin Pact and passed a resolution on Fundamental Rights.

Quick Tips

• Learn the sessions in the order of events, not in the order of years only.
• Use the "first" facts (first woman, first Muslim, first English) as separate flash cards.
• Remember the three sessions of Nehru as president in 1929, 1936 and 1937.
• Note that Dadabhai Naoroji and Motilal Nehru were each president more than once.

Quick Revision Points

• The Congress was founded in 1885 in Bombay, with W. C. Bonnerjee as president.
• The Surat split took place in 1907.
• Annie Besant was the first woman president and Sarojini Naidu was the first Indian woman president.
• The Lahore session of 1929 declared Purna Swaraj.
• Gandhi presided over the Belgaum session in 1924.

Practice Questions With Answers

1. Who was the first president of the Indian National Congress?
   Answer: W. C. Bonnerjee
2. Who was the first Muslim president of the Congress?
   Answer: Badruddin Tyabji
3. Where did the Congress split in 1907?
   Answer: Surat
4. Who was the first woman president of the Congress?
   Answer: Annie Besant
5. Who was the first Indian woman president of the Congress?
   Answer: Sarojini Naidu
6. In which session was Purna Swaraj declared?
   Answer: Lahore session of 1929
7. Which session was presided over by Mahatma Gandhi?
   Answer: Belgaum, 1924
8. Who presided over the Karachi session of 1931?
   Answer: Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel
9. In which session was Jana Gana Mana sung for the first time?
   Answer: Calcutta, 1911
10. Who was the Congress president at the time of independence?
    Answer: J. B. Kripalani

How to Practise This Chapter

Make flash cards of year, place and president, and test yourself for ten minutes daily. Then solve questions from our practice papers and the previous year papers page. Read the previous chapter, Governor-Generals and Viceroys of India, and the next chapter, the Gandhian Era. The Indian History notes page has the full chapter list.

Frequently Asked Questions

When was the Indian National Congress founded?

The Indian National Congress was founded on 28 December 1885 in Bombay (now Mumbai).

Who founded the Indian National Congress?

A. O. Hume, a retired British civil servant, took the main initiative to found the Congress, with the help of Indian leaders such as Dadabhai Naoroji and W. C. Bonnerjee.

Who was the first president of the Congress?

W. C. Bonnerjee was the first president, at the first session in Bombay in 1885.

Who was the first woman president of the Congress?

Annie Besant was the first woman president, at the Calcutta session of 1917.

Who was the first Indian woman president of the Congress?

Sarojini Naidu was the first Indian woman president, at the Kanpur session of 1925.

In which session did the Congress split?

The Congress split into Moderates and Extremists at the Surat session in 1907. Rashbehari Ghosh was the president.

Which session declared Purna Swaraj?

The Lahore session of December 1929, presided over by Jawaharlal Nehru, declared Purna Swaraj as the aim of the Congress.

Which session was presided over by Mahatma Gandhi?

Gandhi presided over the Belgaum session in 1924. It was the only session he presided over.

Who was the longest serving Congress president?

Maulana Abul Kalam Azad served the longest in the pre-independence period, from 1940 to 1946, because no session was held in the war years.

Who presided over the Congress when India became independent?

J. B. Kripalani was the Congress president at the time of independence in 1947.

How can I remember the sessions list easily?

Learn the sessions with the event of that year, make flash cards, and revise them weekly. The first-time facts such as first woman or first Muslim president are the easiest to score.

How many questions come from the Congress sessions in SSC exams?

Usually one question comes from this topic in SSC General Awareness papers, though the number changes from year to year.