Mention any three reasons that made the Congress finally accept the plan.

(1) The COMMUNAL VIOLENCE that had followed Direct Action Day in August 1946 had spread across Bengal, Bihar and Punjab, and the Congress concluded that partition was the only way to stop the killing. (2) The League’s OBSTRUCTION inside the Interim Government had shown that a united India with an unwilling partner would be unworkable; the only alternative to partition was a loose federation with a weak Centre, which would have left India ungovernable. A smaller but strong and united India was preferable. (3) FURTHER DELAY risked civil war and the disintegration of the country, since the Princely States might have declared themselves independent. Accepting the plan secured immediate freedom and a strong central government for the rest of India.

Four marks for three reasons means each must be developed, not merely named. Argue from the CONGRESS point of view — the question asks why they accepted, not what the plan contained. The "weak Centre" argument is the most important and the one examiners look for: Nehru and Patel judged that a divided but strong India was better than a united but paralysed one. Gandhiji’s opposition is worth a closing line, since it shows the decision divided the Congress itself.