With reference to 8th August, 1942 in Indian history, which one of the following statements is correct? ​

The correct answer is A. On 8 August 1942, the All India Congress Committee met at Gowalia Tank Maidan in Bombay and adopted the Quit India Resolution, which demanded an immediate end to British rule. Gandhi's call of 'Do or Die' came from this session. The venue is now called August Kranti Maidan.

Why the others are wrong:

• B: On 8 August 1942, Linlithgow announced the 'August Offer', which proposed expanding the Viceroy's Executive Council with more Indians. It was a proposal, not an actual expansion. The Council was enlarged later, in 1943, and Congress had rejected the offer.
• C: Congress ministries resigned in seven provinces in October-November 1939, after the Viceroy declared India at war without consulting Indians. That was not in 1942.
• D: Cripps Mission, March 1942, offered Dominion Status after the war, with a right to secede. That was earlier, and the Quit India move was a reaction to its failure.

The core concept is the shift from the Cripps Mission to the Quit India movement. For Mains, it is useful for questions on the decline of constitutional negotiations and the rise of mass struggle in the 1940s.

Trap: Aspirants often mix up the August Offer with the Quit India Resolution, because both belong to 8 August 1942. Remember that the offer was a constitutional proposal, and the resolution was the mass call for withdrawal.