Indian Association

The Indian National Association also known as Indian Association was the first avowed nationalist organization founded in British India by Surendranath Banerjee and Ananda Mohan Bose in 1876. The objectives of this Association were "promoting by every legitimate means the political, intellectual and material advancement of the people". The Association attracted educated Indians and civic leaders from all parts of the country, and became an important forum for India's aspirations for independence. It later merged with the Indian National Congress.

Its origins are from the Zamindari Sabha (Association) founded by Dwarkanath Tagore and his illustrious cousin Prasanna Kumar Tagore in 1839. and the Adi Brahmo Sabha founded in 1866. In 1851 it took shape as the British Indian Association with Debendranath Tagore as its Honorary Secretary. In 1857 the Association supported the East India Company in the Sepoy Mutiny, calling for stern punishment for the rebels. In 1866 Pandit Navin Chandra Roy was appointed Secretary of the Association, a post which he held for 4 years, before he finally moved to Lahore in the course of his employment. Ramanath Tagore was the President from 1867 to 1877. After a stormy meeting in 1870 a resolution moved by nationalist Adi Dharma faction of Baboo Hemendranath Tagore was approved to voice the concerns of educated Indians to the British authorities on issues of discrimination, participation of Indians in the Indian Civil Service, and the political empowerment and representation of Indians. This resulted in a split, whereby Freemason Crown loyalists formed a breakaway association called the Indian Reform Association under Keshub Chunder Sen to "uplift the common people but only give them political representation when they are ready for it". In 1871 a branch was established by Adi Dharm faction in Oudh (modern Lucknow) by Dakshinaranjan Mukherjee for demanding Indian elected representation in legislatures.

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