Indian Polity Mixed Quiz: Set 6

The correct answer is B.R. Ambedkar. The Drafting Committee was set up on 29 August 1947 with seven members, and Dr B.R. Ambedkar was its chairman. The committee published the Draft Constitution in February 1948, and Ambedkar piloted it through the Assembly's clause-by-clause debate, which is why he is remembered as the chief architect of the Constitution.

K.M. Munshi and Mohammad Saadullah were members of the same committee, not its chairman, which makes them the most tempting wrong answers. Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel was not on the Drafting Committee; he chaired the Provincial Constitution Committee and the Advisory Committee on Fundamental Rights, Minorities and Tribal and Excluded Areas. Learn the full list of seven members too, because a common variant asks which name was not a member: Ambedkar, N. Gopalaswamy Ayyangar, Alladi Krishnaswamy Ayyar, K.M. Munshi, Syed Mohammad Saadullah, N. Madhava Rau and T.T. Krishnamachari.

The correct answer is C, Article 360. Article 360 lets the President proclaim a financial emergency when the financial stability or credit of India, or of any part of it, is threatened. Such a proclamation must be approved by both Houses of Parliament within two months, after which it continues indefinitely until revoked; there is no maximum period. During it the Union can direct states to follow canons of financial propriety, and salaries of government servants, including Supreme Court and High Court judges, can be reduced. No financial emergency has ever been declared in India, though it was discussed during the 1991 crisis. D is wrong because Article 352 is the national emergency on grounds of war, external aggression or armed rebellion, imposed in 1962, 1971 and 1975. A is wrong because Article 356 is President's rule, imposed when a state's constitutional machinery fails. B is wrong because Article 359 only suspends the enforcement of fundamental rights during a national emergency. Exam tip: 352 national, 356 state, 360 financial; only 360 has never been used.

The correct answer is France. The ideals of liberty, equality and fraternity in the Preamble were taken from France, where they were the watchwords of the French Revolution. France is also the source of the idea of a republic.

The other options gave India different features. The United Kingdom is the source of parliamentary government, the rule of law, the cabinet system and single citizenship. Canada gave the idea of a federation with a strong Centre and residuary powers vested in the Centre. Ireland gave the Directive Principles of State Policy and the method of electing the President. The ideal of justice in the Preamble, the fourth of its objectives, has a different source again: the Russian Revolution. So of the four objectives, three (liberty, equality and fraternity) trace to France and one (justice) traces to the former USSR, a split that examiners like to test.

The correct answer is D, Governor. Article 361 gives this personal immunity to only two offices, the President of India and the Governor of a State. While in office, no criminal proceedings can be started or continued against them, and no court can order their arrest or imprisonment. A civil case about their personal acts can be filed only after giving two months' written notice. The logic is that both are formal heads who act on ministers' advice, so the ministers answer for the decisions. A is wrong because the Chief Minister heads the state government and can be sued or prosecuted like any citizen; he has no protection under Article 361. B is wrong because a Secretary is a civil servant whose official orders can be challenged in court. C is wrong because the Prime Minister, the real head of the Union executive, enjoys no such immunity either. Exam tip: Article 361 protects only the President and the Governors; Prime Minister and Chief Ministers are not covered.

The correct answer is 86th. The 86th Constitutional Amendment Act, 2002 made education a Fundamental Right by inserting Article 21A, under which the State shall provide free and compulsory education to all children aged six to fourteen years, in the manner it determines by law. That law is the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009, which came into force on 1 April 2010.

The same amendment made two more changes, and both are asked in exams. It rewrote Article 45, a Directive Principle, so that it now asks the State to provide early childhood care and education for children below six. And it added a Fundamental Duty, Article 51A(k), requiring parents or guardians to provide opportunities for education to their child between six and fourteen. So one amendment touched three Parts of the Constitution: Fundamental Rights, Directive Principles and Fundamental Duties. The 85th, 87th and 88th are neighbouring numbers placed as distractors; the 85th Amendment, for example, dealt with consequential seniority in promotions for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes.

The correct answer is C, Governor. Under Article 171, the Governor nominates one-sixth of the members of a State Legislative Council. These members must have special knowledge or practical experience in literature, science, art, the co-operative movement or social service. The rest are elected: one-third by local bodies, one-third by the members of the Legislative Assembly, one-twelfth by graduates and one-twelfth by teachers. The Council's total strength cannot be more than one-third of the Assembly's strength and not less than 40. A is wrong because the State Election Commissioner conducts elections to panchayats and municipalities and makes no nominations to the Council. B is wrong because the President nominates 12 members to the Rajya Sabha, not to a state Council. D is wrong because the Chief Minister heads the state government, but the Constitution gives the power of nomination to the Governor. Exam tip: Council formula, 1/3 local bodies, 1/3 MLAs, 1/12 graduates, 1/12 teachers and 1/6 nominated by the Governor.

The correct answer is Participation of workers in the management of industries. The 42nd Amendment Act, 1976 inserted Article 43A, which asks the State to take steps, by suitable legislation or in any other way, to secure the participation of workers in the management of undertakings and industrial establishments. The same amendment added Article 39A (free legal aid) and Article 48A (environment) and rewrote Article 39(f) on the healthy development of children.

The three other options are Directive Principles that were in the Constitution from the start, in 1950, which is exactly what makes the question hard. Equal pay for equal work for men and women is Article 39(d). The right to work, to education and to public assistance in unemployment, old age, sickness and disablement is Article 41. A living wage and humane conditions of work are Articles 43 and 42. The quickest check is the letter: the Directive Principles added later carry a letter after the number (39A, 43A, 43B, 48A), while the original ones do not.

The correct answer is C, 61st Amendment. The Constitution (Sixty-first Amendment) Act, 1988 changed Article 326, which provides for elections to the Lok Sabha and the State Legislative Assemblies on the basis of adult suffrage, and lowered the voting age from 21 to 18 years. It was passed under Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi and came into force in March 1989, so the Lok Sabha election of 1989 was the first in which 18-year-olds could vote. The aim was to give young people, a large part of the population, a voice in choosing governments. Option A is wrong because the 66th Amendment (1990) added more land reform laws to the Ninth Schedule. Option B is wrong because the 62nd Amendment (1989) extended the reservation of seats for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes in legislatures for another ten years. Option D is wrong because the 63rd Amendment (1989) repealed the special emergency provisions for Punjab added by the 59th Amendment. Exam tip: 61st Amendment, 1988, Article 326, voting age 21 to 18.

The correct answer is C, 14 days. Under Article 109 a Money Bill can be introduced only in the Lok Sabha, and after it is passed there it is sent to the Rajya Sabha, which cannot reject or amend it. The Rajya Sabha must return the Bill within fourteen days, with or without recommendations; the Lok Sabha may accept or reject those recommendations, and if the Bill is not returned within fourteen days it is deemed to have been passed by both Houses in the form the Lok Sabha passed it. Whether a Bill is a Money Bill is decided by the Speaker of the Lok Sabha under Article 110, and the Speaker's certificate is final. The President cannot return a Money Bill for reconsideration. A, 12 days, B, 21 days, and D, 30 days, are not periods laid down anywhere in the Constitution for Money Bills; the 14-day limit is the only one, and the same 14 days applies to a state Legislative Council under Article 198. Exam tip: Money Bill, Article 110 defines it, Article 109 gives the Rajya Sabha 14 days, and the Speaker's decision is final.

The correct answer is A, Article 11. Part II of the Constitution, Articles 5 to 11, deals with citizenship. Articles 5 to 10 only settled who was a citizen when the Constitution commenced on 26 January 1950; Article 11 then hands the whole subject to Parliament, giving it full power to make any law on acquisition and termination of citizenship. Using this power Parliament passed the Citizenship Act 1955, which lists five ways of acquiring citizenship: birth, descent, registration, naturalisation and incorporation of territory. India provides single citizenship, and citizenship is a Union List subject (Entry 17). Option B is wrong because Article 5 defines citizenship at the commencement of the Constitution by domicile. Option C is wrong because Article 8 covers persons of Indian origin living outside India. Option D is wrong because Article 6 covers migrants who came from Pakistan. Exam tip: Articles 5 to 10 = who was a citizen in 1950, Article 11 = Parliament's power, Citizenship Act = 1955.

The correct answer is C, Nyaya Panchayat. A Nyaya Panchayat is a village court for small civil and criminal disputes, a judicial body that some states created, so it is not a tier of local self-government. The Balwant Rai Mehta Committee was set up in 1957 to review the Community Development Programme and recommended ‘democratic decentralisation’ through three linked tiers. It wanted the block-level body to be the main executive body and the district body to guide and supervise. Rajasthan was the first state to adopt the scheme, at Nagaur on 2 October 1959, and Andhra Pradesh followed soon after. Option A is wrong because the Gram Panchayat is the first tier, at the village level. Option B is wrong because the Panchayat Samiti is the middle tier, at the block level. Option D is wrong because the Zila Panchayat, also called the Zila Parishad, is the top tier, at the district level. Exam tip: Balwant Rai Mehta 1957, three tiers, Nagaur 1959; the Ashok Mehta Committee of 1977 proposed two tiers.

The correct answer is B, Fourth Schedule. The Fourth Schedule allots the seats of the Rajya Sabha, the Council of States, among the States and Union Territories. Uttar Pradesh gets the most with 31, followed by Maharashtra with 19 and Tamil Nadu with 18, while small states such as Goa, Sikkim and Mizoram get one seat each. Article 80 fixes the House at not more than 250 members, 12 of them nominated by the President for their work in literature, science, art and social service. Members are elected by the State Legislative Assemblies by proportional representation and serve six years, with one-third retiring every two years. A is wrong because the First Schedule lists the States and Union Territories and their territories. C is wrong because the Third Schedule contains the forms of oaths and affirmations. D is wrong because the Second Schedule gives the salaries and allowances of the President, Governors, judges and other officials. Exam tip: Schedule 1 = States and UTs, Schedule 2 = salaries, Schedule 3 = oaths, Schedule 4 = Rajya Sabha seats.

The correct answer is B, The Keshavanand Bharati Case in 1973. On 24 April 1973 a 13-judge bench, the largest in the Court’s history, ruled by 7 to 6 that Parliament can amend any part of the Constitution under Article 368, including Fundamental Rights, but cannot alter or destroy its basic structure. The judges did not give a closed list; features such as the supremacy of the Constitution, the rule of law, secularism, federalism, separation of powers and judicial review have since been treated as part of it. The case began as a challenge by the head of a Kerala math to land reform laws. Option A is wrong because the Golaknath case (1967) held that Parliament could not amend Fundamental Rights at all; Kesavananda overruled this. Option C is wrong because the Shankari Prasad case (1951) upheld the First Amendment and said Fundamental Rights could be amended. Option D is wrong because the Sajjan Singh case (1965) repeated that view while upholding the 17th Amendment. Exam tip: Shankari Prasad 1951, Sajjan Singh 1965, Golaknath 1967, Kesavananda 1973, Minerva Mills 1980.

The correct answer is B, Fundamental duties. These words form clause (b) of Article 51A, the list of duties every citizen owes the nation. The Fundamental Duties were added as Part IVA by the 42nd Amendment Act, 1976 on the advice of the Swaran Singh Committee, and the idea was borrowed from the Constitution of the former USSR. There were ten duties at first; the 86th Amendment Act, 2002 added the eleventh, asking parents to give their children aged 6 to 14 a chance of education. Clause (a) asks citizens to respect the Constitution, the National Flag and the National Anthem, and clause (b) is the line in this question. Option A is wrong because the Directive Principles in Part IV are instructions to the State, not duties of citizens. Option C is wrong because the Fundamental Rights in Part III are claims a citizen can enforce in court. Option D is wrong because the Preamble states the ideals of justice, liberty, equality and fraternity but lists no duties. Exam tip: Article 51A, Part IVA, 42nd Amendment 1976, eleven duties today.

The correct answer is D, Article 3. Article 3 lets Parliament, by an ordinary law, form a new state by separating territory from a state, join states, and change the area, boundaries or name of any state. Haryana was created this way: Parliament passed the Punjab Reorganisation Act, 1966 on the basis of the Shah Commission's report, and Haryana came into being on 1 November 1966, with Chandigarh made a Union Territory and the joint capital. A bill under Article 3 can be introduced only on the President's recommendation, and the President must first refer it to the legislature of the state concerned for its views, though Parliament is not bound by them. Option A is wrong because Article 239 deals with the administration of Union Territories. Option B is wrong because Article 371 gives special provisions for Maharashtra and Gujarat, such as development boards for their regions. Option C is wrong because Article 1 only declares that India, that is Bharat, shall be a Union of States. Exam tip: new states come under Article 3, with a simple majority; Haryana Day is 1 November.

The correct answer is C, The President shall exercise his/her functions on the advice of the Council of Ministers, headed by the Prime Minister. The 42nd Amendment made that advice binding on the President. Before 1976, Article 74(1) only said there shall be a Council of Ministers with the Prime Minister at its head to aid and advise the President. The 42nd Amendment Act, 1976 added that the President "shall act in accordance with such advice". The 44th Amendment Act, 1978 then let the President send the advice back once for reconsideration, but the advice given after that must be followed. Option A is wrong because vesting executive power in the President is Article 53, which the 42nd Amendment did not touch. Option B is wrong because the Prime Minister's duty to keep the President informed is Article 78. Option D is wrong because summoning and proroguing the Houses is Article 85. Exam tip: the 42nd Amendment made the advice binding, and the 44th Amendment allowed one return for reconsideration.

The correct answer is B, Kaka Saheb Kalelkar. The first Backward Classes Commission, set up by the President under Article 340 in January 1953, was headed by the Gandhian writer Kaka Kalelkar. It submitted its report in 1955, but the Centre did not accept its main recommendations. The second Backward Classes Commission was set up in 1979 under B. P. Mandal, a former Chief Minister of Bihar, and its 27 per cent reservation for OBCs in central jobs was implemented in 1990. The 102nd Amendment of 2018 later gave the National Commission for Backward Classes constitutional status under Article 338B. Option A is wrong because Jagjivan Ram, also from Bihar, was a Dalit leader and Deputy Prime Minister, not the head of this commission. Option C is wrong because B. D. Sharma was an IAS officer known for his work on tribal rights. Option D is wrong because the first commission had only one chairman, Kalelkar. Exam tip: first commission Kalelkar 1953, second Mandal 1979, NCBC made constitutional in 2018.

The correct answer is C, the lower court prohibiting continuation of proceedings in a case. Prohibition is issued by a higher court to a lower court or tribunal to stop it from acting beyond its jurisdiction. The Supreme Court issues writs under Article 32 and the High Courts under Article 226. Prohibition is preventive: it comes while the case is still pending and stops the lower court from going ahead. Its partner, certiorari, is corrective, because it quashes an order already passed without jurisdiction. Both lie only against judicial and quasi-judicial bodies, never against legislatures or private persons. Option A is wrong because commands to government officers come through mandamus, and prohibition is not issued to administrative authorities. Option B is wrong because no writ can direct a legislature to pass a law. Option D is wrong because it describes no writ; a policy is tested through judicial review. Exam tip: prohibition stops a case midway, certiorari cancels the order after it is made.

The correct answer is C, The post of the SGI is a constitutional post. It is the one false statement, because the Constitution creates only the Attorney General, not the Solicitor General. Article 76 provides for the Attorney General for India, the chief legal advisor to the Government and the highest law officer. The Solicitor General is the second law officer who assists the Attorney General; the post rests on the Law Officers (Conditions of Service) Rules, 1987, so it is a non-constitutional post. The detail that sticks: only the Attorney General gets an Article number and, under Article 88, the right to speak in both Houses of Parliament. A is a true statement, since the chief legal advisor is the Attorney General, not the SGI. B is true, because the SGI ranks just below the Attorney General as the second law officer. D is true, as the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet appoints the SGI and the Additional Solicitors General. Exam tip: Attorney General, Article 76, constitutional; Solicitor General, no Article, non-constitutional.

The correct answer is C, the Governor of the State. Under Article 316, the Chairman and the other members of a State Public Service Commission are appointed by the Governor. The provisions on public service commissions sit in Part XIV of the Constitution, Articles 315 to 323. A member of a State commission holds office for six years or until the age of 62, whichever comes first. The twist a paper setter loves is removal: although the Governor appoints them, only the President can remove them, under Article 317, and the Governor can only suspend a member while the matter is referred to the Supreme Court. Option A is wrong because the UPSC Chairman has no role in choosing the head of a State commission. Option B is wrong because the President appoints the UPSC Chairman, not the head of the BPSC or any other State commission. Option D is wrong because the Chief Minister only advises; the formal appointment is made by the Governor. Exam tip: appointed by the Governor, removed by the President, term six years or age 62.