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Quit India Movement Day, also called August Kranti Diwas, was observed on 8 August 2026, marking 84 years since the movement was launched in 1942.
The Quit India Resolution was passed by the All India Congress Committee at Gowalia Tank Maidan, Bombay, on 8 August 1942, where Mahatma Gandhi gave the 'Do or Die' call.
The phrase 'Quit India' is attributed to Congress leader Yusuf Meherally, while Gandhi's own call to the nation was 'Do or Die'.
British authorities arrested Gandhi, Nehru, Patel and Azad in the early hours of 9 August 1942, triggering a leaderless mass uprising.
The day has no officially announced national theme; it is observed to honour the sacrifices of freedom fighters.
Japan attacks Pearl Harbor and advances rapidly through Southeast Asia, bringing the Second World War close to India's frontiers.
The Cripps Mission, sent by British Prime Minister Winston Churchill under Sir Stafford Cripps, offers post-war Dominion Status rather than immediate self-government. Indian leaders reject it.
The Congress Working Committee meets at Wardha and passes the draft Quit India resolution.
The AICC session at Gowalia Tank Maidan, Bombay, formally ratifies the Quit India Resolution. Gandhi delivers the 'Do or Die' call.
At about 5:00 AM the British launch mass arrests, detaining Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru, Sardar Patel and Maulana Azad before the movement can be organised. Aruna Asaf Ali hoists the national flag at Gowalia Tank Maidan.
Parallel governments are set up at Tamluk, Satara and Ballia; Usha Mehta operates the secret Congress Radio; over 100,000 people are imprisoned.
India attains independence, the movement having made continued British rule politically unsustainable.
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Literally 'August Revolution', the popular name for the Quit India Movement launched on 8 August 1942.
Parallel government — independent local administrations established by nationalists during the movement, notably at Tamluk, Satara and Ballia.
A British mission led by Sir Stafford Cripps in March 1942 offering Dominion Status after the war; its rejection precipitated the Quit India Movement.
Self-government within the British Empire while retaining the British Crown as head of state — short of the complete independence the Congress demanded.