Indian Polity Quiz: Important Articles of the Constitution

The correct answer is C, Part III. Article 32 is the right to constitutional remedies, and it sits in Part III, the chapter of Fundamental Rights, which runs from Article 12 to Article 35. Under Article 32 a citizen may move the Supreme Court directly for the enforcement of a fundamental right, and the Court may issue the writs of habeas corpus, mandamus, prohibition, certiorari and quo warranto. Dr B. R. Ambedkar called this article the heart and soul of the Constitution. Option A is wrong because Part II covers citizenship, Articles 5 to 11. Option B is wrong because Part I deals with the Union and its territory, Articles 1 to 4, including the formation of new states. Option D is wrong because Part IV holds the Directive Principles of State Policy, Articles 36 to 51, which are not enforceable in any court and are therefore the opposite of a remedy article.

The correct answer is D, Article 110. Article 110 defines a Money Bill as a bill dealing only with matters such as the imposition or abolition of a tax, borrowing by the Government of India, the custody of the Consolidated Fund or the Contingency Fund, and the appropriation of money out of the Consolidated Fund. A Money Bill can be introduced only in the Lok Sabha and only on the recommendation of the President, and the Speaker's certificate on whether a bill is a Money Bill is final. Option A is wrong because Article 114 deals with Appropriation Bills, which authorise withdrawals from the Consolidated Fund. Option B is wrong because Article 112 provides for the annual financial statement, the Budget. Option C is wrong because Article 116 covers votes on account, votes of credit and exceptional grants.

The correct answer is C, Article 44. Article 44 is a Directive Principle in Part IV and says that the State shall endeavour to secure for the citizens a uniform civil code throughout the territory of India. Like every directive principle it is not enforceable by any court, though the Supreme Court has referred to it in several judgments on personal law. Option A is wrong because Article 42 directs the State to provide for just and humane conditions of work and for maternity relief. Option B is wrong because Article 43 asks for a living wage and decent conditions of work for workers, including cottage industry in rural areas. Option D is wrong because Article 45, after the Eighty-sixth Amendment, directs the State to provide early childhood care and education for children below the age of six years; before that amendment it covered free and compulsory education up to the age of fourteen.

The correct answer is C, Article 51A. The Fundamental Duties were not in the Constitution as adopted. They were inserted as Article 51A in a new Part IVA by the Forty-second Amendment Act of 1976, on the recommendation of the Swaran Singh Committee, and one more duty, the duty of a parent or guardian to provide education to a child, was added by the Eighty-sixth Amendment of 2002. Option A is wrong because Article 48A, also added by the Forty-second Amendment, directs the State to protect and improve the environment and to safeguard forests and wildlife; it is a directive principle, not a duty of citizens. Option B is wrong because Article 49 asks the State to protect monuments and places of national importance. Option D is wrong because Article 50 directs the separation of the judiciary from the executive in the public services of the State.

The correct answer is A, Article 123. Article 123 allows the President, when either House of Parliament is not in session, to promulgate an ordinance that has the same force as an Act of Parliament. The ordinance must be laid before both Houses when they reassemble and ceases to operate six weeks after that date unless it is approved earlier. Option B is wrong because Article 213 gives the identical power to a Governor for a state, which is the standard distractor in this question; candidates must remember 123 for the Union and 213 for a state. Option C is wrong because Article 143 lets the President refer a question of law or fact of public importance to the Supreme Court for its advisory opinion. Option D is wrong because Article 356 provides for President's rule in a state when its government cannot be carried on in accordance with the Constitution.

The correct answer is B, Finance Commission. Article 280 requires the President to constitute a Finance Commission every fifth year, or earlier if required, with a chairman and four other members. It recommends how the net proceeds of taxes should be distributed between the Union and the states, how the share of each state should be settled, and what grants-in-aid should be paid to the states out of the Consolidated Fund of India. Option A is wrong because the Election Commission is created by Article 324. Option C is wrong because the Comptroller and Auditor General is provided for by Article 148, with duties and powers under Article 149. Option D is wrong because Article 315 provides for a Public Service Commission for the Union and for each state, with the UPSC chairman and members appointed under Article 316.

The correct answer is C, Article 360. Article 360 allows the President to declare a Financial Emergency if satisfied that a situation has arisen by which the financial stability or credit of India or of any part of its territory is threatened. During its operation the Union may direct states on financial propriety and may reduce the salaries of public servants, including judges of the Supreme Court and the High Courts. A Financial Emergency has never been proclaimed in India. Option A is wrong because Article 352 is the National Emergency, on the ground of war, external aggression or armed rebellion. Option B is wrong because Article 356 is President's rule in a state, often called State Emergency. Option D is wrong because Article 365 merely says that a state's failure to comply with a direction of the Union may be treated as a failure of constitutional machinery.

The correct answer is C, the Eighty-sixth Amendment. The Eighty-sixth Amendment Act of 2002 inserted Article 21A, which makes free and compulsory education for every child between the ages of six and fourteen a fundamental right. The same amendment recast Article 45 to cover early childhood care and education below the age of six and added the duty of a parent or guardian to provide education in Article 51A. Option A is wrong because the Forty-second Amendment of 1976 added Fundamental Duties, the words socialist and secular to the Preamble, and Articles 39A, 43A and 48A. Option B is wrong because the Forty-fourth Amendment of 1978 removed the right to property from Part III and placed it in Article 300A. Option D is wrong because the Ninety-third Amendment of 2005 enabled reservation in educational institutions through Article 15, clause 5.

The correct answer is A, the procedure for amendment of the Constitution. Article 368, in Part XX, gives Parliament the power to amend the Constitution and lays down the procedure: a bill may be introduced in either House, must be passed by each House by a majority of its total membership and by a two-thirds majority of the members present and voting, and certain amendments touching federal matters must also be ratified by the legislatures of half the states. In the Kesavananda Bharati case the Supreme Court held that this power cannot be used to destroy the basic structure of the Constitution. Option B is wrong because the emergency provisions are Articles 352 to 360 in Part XVIII. Option C is wrong because the official language of the Union is Article 343 in Part XVII. Option D is wrong because elections are dealt with in Part XV, Articles 324 to 329.

The correct answer is A, Article 262. Article 262 allows Parliament to provide by law for the adjudication of any dispute or complaint about the use, distribution or control of the waters of an inter-state river or river valley, and clause 2 allows Parliament to bar the Supreme Court and every other court from such a dispute. Parliament used this power to pass the Inter-State River Water Disputes Act, 1956, under which tribunals decide disputes such as those over the Cauvery, the Krishna and the Ravi-Beas. Option B is wrong because Article 263 provides for an Inter-State Council to investigate and discuss subjects of common interest. Option C is wrong because Article 131 is the original jurisdiction of the Supreme Court in disputes between the Union and states, which Article 262 expressly keeps out for water disputes. Option D is wrong because Article 143 is the advisory jurisdiction of the Supreme Court.

The correct answer is B, the Election Commission of India. Article 324 vests the superintendence, direction and control of the preparation of electoral rolls and the conduct of all elections to Parliament, to the state legislatures and to the offices of President and Vice-President in the Election Commission. Option A is wrong because the President only appoints the Chief Election Commissioner and the other Election Commissioners; the President does not conduct elections. Option C is wrong because Parliament makes election law, such as the Representation of the People Acts of 1950 and 1951, but does not conduct elections. Option D is wrong because the Supreme Court hears election disputes concerning the President and Vice-President under Article 71, while election petitions about parliamentary and assembly seats go first to the High Courts; courts do not supervise the polls.

The correct answer is C, Article 17. Article 17 abolishes untouchability and forbids its practice in any form, and declares that the enforcement of any disability arising out of untouchability shall be an offence punishable by law. Parliament gave effect to it through the Protection of Civil Rights Act, 1955. The right is absolute, available against the State and against private persons alike. Option A is wrong because Article 15 prohibits discrimination on grounds of religion, race, caste, sex or place of birth and allows special provisions for women, children and backward classes. Option B is wrong because Article 16 guarantees equality of opportunity in matters of public employment and permits reservation for backward classes. Option D is wrong because Article 18 abolishes titles, except military and academic distinctions, and this is the article under which the status of awards such as the Bharat Ratna is discussed.