Historical eventAugust 161946

Direct Action Day

Widespread riots between Hindus and Muslims took place in Calcutta following the All-India Muslim League's call for an independent Pakistan.

80th anniversary in 2026

Everything on August 16Original source

In context

When
Friday, August 16 194680 years ago
Category
Historical eventA dated happening — a battle, treaty, launch, discovery, disaster or decision — recorded on this calendar day.
Era
20th century · 1940s
Anniversary
80th in 2026
Recorded from
Wikipedia “On this day” feed

At a glance

Dates: From 1946-08-16.

Place: India.

Type: riot.

Deaths reported: 4000.

What came before

Background In 1946, the Indian independence movement against the British Raj had reached a pivotal stage. British Prime Minister Clement Attlee sent a three-member Cabinet Mission to India aimed at discussing and finalising plans for the transfer of power from the British Raj to the Indian leadership. [ 1 ] After holding talks with the representatives of the Indian National Congress and the All India Muslim League—the two largest political parties in the Constituent Assembly of India—on 16 May 1946,

Prelude Since the 11–14 February 1946 riots in Calcutta, communal tension had been high. Hindu and Muslim newspapers whipped up public sentiment with inflammatory and highly partisan reporting that heightened antagonism between the two communities. [ 1 ] Adding further fuel to inflamed Muslim communal sentiments was a pamphlet written by the Mayor of Calcutta, Syed Mohammed Usman, where he said, "We Muslims have had the crown and have ruled. Do not lose hearts, be ready and take swords.

What happened

Widespread riots between Hindus and Muslims took place in Calcutta following the All-India Muslim League's call for an independent Pakistan.

August 16 through the years

Other entries on the same calendar day, in order.

  1. 1946Direct Action Day
  2. 2005West Caribbean Airways Flight 708
  3. 2008Trump International Hotel and Tower (Chicago)
  4. 20092009 World Championships in Athletics
  5. 2010AIRES Flight 8250
  6. 2012South African Police Service
  7. 2013MV St. Thomas Aquinas
  8. 2015Trigana Air Flight 267
  9. 2015Douma massacre (2015)
  10. 2015Assassination of Shuja Khanzada
  11. 2020August Complex fire

Also in 1946

  • October 22Operation OsoaviakhimOver twenty-two hundred engineers and technicians from eastern Germany are forced to relocate to the Soviet Union, along with their famil…
  • July 5Bikini AtollNamed after Bikini Atoll, the site of the nuclear-weapons test Operation Crossroads in the Marshall Islands, the modern bikini was introd…
  • October 271946 Bihar riotsInter-religious riots in which Hindu mobs targeted Muslim families began in the Indian state of Bihar, resulting in 2,000 to 30,000 deaths.
  • May 1Pilbara strikeStart of three-year Pilbara strike of Indigenous Australians.
  • July 22King David Hotel bombingKing David Hotel bombing: A Zionist underground organisation, the Irgun, bombs the King David Hotel in Jerusalem, site of the civil admin…
  • December 26Bugsy SiegelAmerican gangster Bugsy Siegel opened The Flamingo Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, the oldest casino still in operation on the Las Vegas Strip.
  • June 21946 Italian institutional referendumBirth of the Italian Republic: In a referendum, Italians vote to turn Italy from a monarchy into a Republic. After the referendum, King U…
  • August 7Turkish StraitsThe Soviet Union informed Turkey that the way in which the latter was handling the Turkish Straits no longer represented the security int…

Everything we record for 1946 →

Sources

Cite this page

“Direct Action Day”, What's On This Date, https://whatsonthisdate.com/app/event/direct-action-day-1946-august-16, accessed October 24, 2026.

Cite the underlying source as well — the source links above go to the record this entry is adapted from.

Questions about this entry

When did Direct Action Day happen?

August 16 1946 — 80 years ago, on a Friday.

Where does this text come from?

Wikipedia “On this day” feed. Summaries are short adaptations that link back to the source, not reprints.

How do I cite this page?

Use the ready-made citation near the sources at the bottom of the page, and follow the source link to cite the underlying record as well.

Text adapted from Wikipedia under CC BY-SA 4.0 and from Wikidata (CC0). Images come from Wikimedia Commons; credit and licence are shown with each image. Editorial entries are © What's On This Date. Sources & licensing · How this site works.