Consider the following statements about the initial phase of national movement in India: 1. Pherozeshah Mehta, Badruddin Tyabji and others jointly formed Bombay Presidency Association. 2. Surendranath Banerjee and his group formulated the plan of Indian National Conference at Calcutta. 3. Allan Octavian Hume decided to make an all-India body as a rival to the above-mentioned organisations to remove the grievances of poor and marginalised Indians. How many of the above statements is/are correct?

The Bombay Presidency Association was indeed founded in 1885 by Pherozeshah Mehta, Badruddin Tyabji and K.T. Telang, so statement 1 is correct. The Indian National Conference was organised by Surendranath Banerjea in Calcutta in 1883 and 1885, so statement 2 is correct. However, A.O. Hume did not establish the Indian National Congress as a 'rival' to remove the grievances of the poor and marginalised — rather, the Congress was envisioned as a safety valve and a forum to unite educated Indians and to channel political discontent through constitutional means, complementing rather than rivalling these regional bodies. Hence only statements 1 and 2 are correct, giving the answer 2.