Newspapers and journals of the freedom struggle are asked in exactly one form — a paper is named and you supply the founder or editor, or a leader is named and you supply the paper. The set is fixed, it never changes, and it is one of the densest sources of easy marks in modern Indian history. This post arranges every publication exams ask about, grouped by leader and by period, adds the press laws that go with them, and ends with previous year questions.
Key Points (Quick Revision)
- Bengal Gazette (1780) — James Augustus Hicky — India's first newspaper
- Kesari and Maratha — Bal Gangadhar Tilak
- Young India, Navjivan and Harijan — Mahatma Gandhi
- Al-Hilal and Al-Balagh — Maulana Abul Kalam Azad
- Vernacular Press Act 1878 — Lord Lytton; repealed by Lord Ripon in 1882
1. The earliest newspapers
| Publication | Year | Started by |
|---|---|---|
| Bengal Gazette, also called Hicky's Gazette | 1780 | James Augustus Hicky — the first newspaper in India |
| Digdarshan | 1818 | Serampore missionaries — first Bengali monthly |
| Samachar Darpan | 1818 | John Clark Marshman — first Bengali newspaper |
| Sambad Kaumudi | 1821 | Raja Ram Mohan Roy, in Bengali |
| Mirat-ul-Akhbar | 1822 | Raja Ram Mohan Roy, in Persian |
| Bombay Samachar | 1822 | Fardunjee Marzban, in Gujarati |
Hicky's Bengal Gazette of 1780 is the most asked single fact in this topic, and the expected answer includes both the year and the name James Augustus Hicky. Raja Ram Mohan Roy is asked for two papers in two languages — Sambad Kaumudi in Bengali and Mirat-ul-Akhbar in Persian — and papers use one as a distractor for the other.
2. Papers of the moderate and early nationalist period
| Publication | Associated with |
|---|---|
| Rast Goftar (Gujarati) | Dadabhai Naoroji |
| Voice of India | Dadabhai Naoroji |
| The Hindu (1878) | G. Subramania Iyer and associates |
| Swadesamitran (Tamil) | G. Subramania Iyer |
| Amrita Bazar Patrika | Sisir Kumar Ghosh and Motilal Ghosh |
| Bengalee | Surendranath Banerjee |
| Indian Mirror | Devendranath Tagore |
| Som Prakash | Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar |
| Hindu Patriot | Harish Chandra Mukherjee |
| Sudharak | Gopal Krishna Gokhale |
| Tahzib-ul-Akhlaq | Syed Ahmed Khan |
| Bombay Chronicle | Pherozeshah Mehta, edited by B. G. Horniman |
Dadabhai Naoroji and G. Subramania Iyer are each asked for two publications, which is why both appear twice above. Amrita Bazar Patrika carries an extra fact worth knowing: it switched from Bengali to English overnight to escape the Vernacular Press Act of 1878, and that manoeuvre is itself a question.
3. Papers of the extremist and revolutionary period
| Publication | Associated with | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Kesari (Marathi) | Bal Gangadhar Tilak | His Marathi paper |
| Maratha (English) | Bal Gangadhar Tilak | His English paper |
| Bande Mataram | Aurobindo Ghosh | English daily from Calcutta |
| Bande Mataram (Paris) | Madam Bhikaji Cama | Published from abroad |
| Yugantar | Barindra Kumar Ghosh and Bhupendranath Datta | Revolutionary Bengali weekly |
| Sandhya | Brahmabandhab Upadhyay | Bengali daily |
| Ghadar | Ghadar Party, associated with Lala Har Dayal | Published from San Francisco |
| Indian Sociologist | Shyamji Krishna Varma | From London |
| Talwar | Virendranath Chattopadhyay | From Berlin |
| Free Hindustan | Taraknath Das | From North America |
Tilak with Kesari and Maratha is the most asked pair in the entire topic, and the distinction between them is the language — Kesari in Marathi, Maratha in English. That is the exact form the question takes.
There are two Bande Mataram publications, and mixing them is a common error. Aurobindo Ghosh ran the English daily from Calcutta; Madam Bhikaji Cama published one from Paris. If the question mentions abroad or Paris, the answer is Cama.
The four papers published from outside India — Ghadar, Indian Sociologist, Talwar and Free Hindustan — are asked as a group, usually by the city or country they came from.
4. Gandhi, Nehru and the mass movement period
| Publication | Associated with |
|---|---|
| Indian Opinion | Mahatma Gandhi, from South Africa |
| Young India | Mahatma Gandhi |
| Navjivan (Gujarati) | Mahatma Gandhi |
| Harijan | Mahatma Gandhi |
| Al-Hilal and Al-Balagh | Maulana Abul Kalam Azad |
| Comrade (English) and Hamdard (Urdu) | Maulana Mohammad Ali |
| The Independent | Motilal Nehru |
| Leader | Madan Mohan Malaviya |
| New India and Commonweal | Annie Besant |
| Pratap | Ganesh Shankar Vidyarthi |
| Mooknayak, Bahishkrit Bharat and Janata | Dr B. R. Ambedkar |
| Prabuddha Bharata and Udbodhan | Swami Vivekananda |
| Kranti | S. A. Dange |
Gandhi is asked for four publications, and the one that catches candidates is Indian Opinion, which he started in South Africa before returning to India. Maulana Mohammad Ali also ran two in two languages — Comrade in English and Hamdard in Urdu — which is the same question shape as Tilak's pair.
Ambedkar's three publications are asked increasingly often, with Mooknayak of 1920 being the first and the one usually named.
5. Press laws and the officials attached to them
Press questions rarely come alone — the law and the Governor-General or Viceroy behind it are asked in the same breath.
| Measure | Year | Associated with |
|---|---|---|
| Censorship of Press Act | 1799 | Lord Wellesley |
| Licensing Regulations, called Adam's Regulations | 1823 | John Adam, acting Governor-General |
| Press Act of 1835, repealing earlier restrictions | 1835 | Charles Metcalfe, called the Liberator of the Indian Press |
| Vernacular Press Act | 1878 | Lord Lytton; aimed at Indian-language papers |
| Repeal of the Vernacular Press Act | 1882 | Lord Ripon |
| Newspapers (Incitement to Offences) Act | 1908 | Lord Minto II |
| Indian Press Act | 1910 | Lord Minto II |
Three pairings carry most of the marks here. Metcalfe is the Liberator of the Press. Lytton passed the Vernacular Press Act and Ripon repealed it — the two are asked against each other constantly. And the Vernacular Press Act applied only to Indian-language papers, not English ones, which is precisely why Amrita Bazar Patrika switched to English to escape it.
6. Previous year questions
- Which was the first newspaper published in India? — Bengal Gazette, 1780
- Who started the Bengal Gazette? — James Augustus Hicky
- Kesari was published by whom? — Bal Gangadhar Tilak
- Which English paper was started by Tilak? — Maratha
- Who started Sambad Kaumudi? — Raja Ram Mohan Roy
- Amrita Bazar Patrika was founded by whom? — Sisir Kumar Ghosh and Motilal Ghosh
- Al-Hilal was published by whom? — Maulana Abul Kalam Azad
- Which paper did Gandhi start in South Africa? — Indian Opinion
- Comrade was started by whom? — Maulana Mohammad Ali
- Who published Bande Mataram from Calcutta? — Aurobindo Ghosh
- Mooknayak was started by whom? — Dr B. R. Ambedkar
- The Vernacular Press Act was passed by which Viceroy? — Lord Lytton
- Who repealed the Vernacular Press Act? — Lord Ripon
- Who is called the Liberator of the Indian Press? — Charles Metcalfe
- Rast Goftar was associated with which leader? — Dadabhai Naoroji
7. How to revise this topic
Revise by leader, not by publication. Most questions give the paper and ask for the person, but the leaders are the shorter list and several of them own two or three publications each — Tilak, Gandhi, Naoroji, Mohammad Ali, Ambedkar, Azad and Raja Ram Mohan Roy. Learning them as clusters means one recall failure does not take a whole group with it.
Then handle the deliberate confusions. Kesari against Maratha and Comrade against Hamdard are both language pairs by one person. Two Bande Mataram publications, one in Calcutta and one in Paris. Sambad Kaumudi against Mirat-ul-Akhbar, both by Roy in different languages. Four pairs, learnt in both directions, close most of the gap.
Finally keep the press laws on their own card with the official attached. Wellesley 1799, Metcalfe 1835, Lytton 1878, Ripon 1882. Those four dates answer nearly every press-law question asked.
8. Frequently Asked Questions
Which was the first newspaper in India?
The Bengal Gazette, started in 1780 by James Augustus Hicky in Calcutta. It is also called Hicky's Gazette, and the expected answer usually includes both the year and the founder's name.
What is the difference between Kesari and Maratha?
Both were started by Bal Gangadhar Tilak, and the difference is the language. Kesari was his Marathi paper and Maratha his English one. This is the most frequently asked pair in the topic and the two are used as options against each other.
Which newspapers did Mahatma Gandhi run?
Indian Opinion, which he started in South Africa, and then Young India, Navjivan in Gujarati and Harijan in India. Indian Opinion is the one candidates most often miss, because it predates his return.
Who passed and who repealed the Vernacular Press Act?
Lord Lytton passed it in 1878, aimed specifically at Indian-language newspapers, and Lord Ripon repealed it in 1882. Amrita Bazar Patrika famously switched from Bengali to English overnight to escape the Act.
Who is known as the Liberator of the Indian Press?
Charles Metcalfe, for the Press Act of 1835 which repealed the earlier restrictive licensing regulations. He is asked by that title rather than by the Act itself.
For more History topics in simple language, see our Governors-General and Viceroys and Formation of the Indian National Congress posts, or browse the History section. Preparing for a specific exam? Start with the SSC CGL guide or join the 100 Hour GS Course.