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Indigo and Poets and… (Class 12 English SQP 2026-27, Q12B)

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EnglishCBSE Class 12 · Sample paper, session 2026-27 · 5 marks · Long answer

CBSE Class 12 English sample paper 2026-27: question 12(B)

From the official CBSE sample question paper for 2026-27, section C, question 12(B), for 5 marks. Try it first; the hints and our step-by-step solution are below.

Q12(B) · 5 marks · Long answerIndigo

Indigo and Poets and Pancakes present power operating in very different contexts. Gandhi’s actions in Champaran and the ironic portrayal of Gemini Studios bring out ways in which authority is questioned in these texts. Discuss.

Source: official sample paper from cbseacademic.nic.in (PDF). See it in the full Sample paper 2026-27.

Hints

Open one hint at a time and try again before the next.

Hint 1

Contrast open resistance in Indigo with ironic mockery in Poets and Pancakes.

Hint 2

In Indigo, note what Gandhi did when ordered to leave and what followed.

Hint 3

Think about how the author treats the Legal Adviser's importance.

Step-by-step solution

Each step shows the marks it earns, as an examiner would award them. Checked by an independent re-solve from the question paper.

Verified: two independent solves agree and the official marking scheme matchesChecked 2026-11-01

  1. Introduction: In Indigo and Poets and Pancakes authority works in different contexts, colonial rule and a film studio, and is questioned through moral action and irony.

    1 mark

  2. Indigo: British planters forced the Champaran peasants to grow indigo on part of their land and surrender it at unfair prices. Gandhi refused the order to leave Champaran and chose arrest, and the peasants gathered in support.

    2 marks

  3. His calm defiance led to an official inquiry that exposed the injustice and brought reform for the peasants.

    1 mark

  4. Poets and Pancakes, Gemini Studios: authority works through hierarchy, status and insecurity, as with the Legal Adviser whose influence far exceeded his contribution. The author's irony exposes such hollow power. Conclusion: authority can be challenged by ethical resistance or by exposing its emptiness. (The last two points together earn the final 1 mark.)

    1 mark

Answer: In Indigo, Gandhi's non-violent defiance challenges colonial authority; in Poets and Pancakes, irony exposes hollow authority in Gemini Studios.

Where the marks are

  • Introduction (1 mark)
  • Planters' exploitation and Gandhi's defiance (2 marks)
  • Inquiry and reform as outcome (1 mark)
  • Gemini Studios hierarchy exposed through irony and conclusion (1 mark)

Revise the chapter

  • Chapter: Indigo (notes, formulas, where marks are lost and every past question)

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