London refused, and when Congress announced a "Quit India" campaign in August 1942, tens of thousands of its leaders were imprisoned by the British for the duration. Political parties such as the Muslim League and the Hindu Mahasabha supported the British war effort while the largest and most influential political party existing in India at the time, the Indian National Congress, demanded independence before it would help Britain. Viceroy Linlithgow declared that India was at war with Germany without consultations with Indian politicians. Field Marshal Sir Claude Auchinleck, former Commander-in-Chief, India, stated that Britain "couldn't have come through both wars if they hadn't had the Indian Army." Over 87,000 Indian soldiers (including those from modern day Pakistan, Bangladesh& Nepalese Gurkhas), and 3 million civilians died in World War II.
Indian troops were also redeployed in former colonies such as Singapore and Hong Kong, with the Japanese surrender in August 1945, after the end of World War II.
Indians fought with distinction throughout the world, including in the European theatre against Germany, North African Campaign against fascist Italy, and in the southeast Asian theatre while also defending the Indian subcontinent against the Japanese forces, including British Burma and the Crown colony of Ceylon. India also provided the base for American operations in support of China in the China Burma India Theater. The British Raj, as part of the Allied Nations, sent over two and a half million soldiers to fight under British command against the Axis powers. British India officially declared war on Nazi Germany in September 1939. Indian women training for air raid precautions (ARP) duties in Bombay, 1942.ĭuring the Second World War (1939–1945), India was a part of the British Empire, with the British holding territories in India that included over six hundred autonomous Princely States.