Indian Polity Quiz: State Legislature

The correct answer is B, Article 169. It empowers Parliament to abolish an existing Legislative Council or to create one in a State that does not have it, provided the Legislative Assembly of that State first passes a resolution by a majority of its total membership and by not less than two-thirds of the members present and voting. The Article also says that such a law shall not be deemed to be an amendment of the Constitution for the purposes of Article 368, so a simple majority in Parliament is enough. Option A, Article 168, only declares that every State shall have a legislature consisting of the Governor and one or two Houses. Option C, Article 170, deals with the composition of the Legislative Assembly and its range of 60 to 500 members. Option D, Article 171, lays down the composition of the Legislative Council and the fractions by which its members are chosen.

The correct answer is C, 500. Article 170 says the Legislative Assembly of each State shall consist of not more than 500 and not less than 60 members, chosen by direct election from territorial constituencies in the State. Special provisions of the Constitution permit a smaller Assembly in some of the smaller States, which is why a few Assemblies have fewer than 60 seats. Option A, 250, is the ceiling for the Rajya Sabha, and a candidate who confuses the two Houses picks it. Option B, 400, corresponds to no constitutional limit at all and is a plain distractor. Option D, 550, is the maximum elected strength of the Lok Sabha, made up of 530 from the States and 20 from the Union Territories, so it belongs to the Union Parliament and not to a State Assembly.

The correct answer is B, one-sixth. Article 171 divides a Legislative Council into five parts. One-third of the members are elected by electorates of local bodies such as municipalities and district boards, one-twelfth by graduates of three years standing, one-twelfth by teachers of not lower than secondary school standard with three years standing, and one-third by the members of the Legislative Assembly from persons who are not members of the Assembly. The remainder, which works out to one-sixth, is nominated by the Governor from persons having special knowledge or practical experience in literature, science, art, the cooperative movement and social service. Option A, one-third, is the share of the local bodies and separately of the Assembly quota. Options C and D, one-twelfth and one-fourth, belong to the graduates and teachers constituencies and to no category respectively.

The correct answer is C, 30 years. Article 173 lays down the qualifications for membership of a State Legislature: the person must be a citizen of India, must make and subscribe an oath or affirmation before a person authorised by the Election Commission, and must be at least 25 years of age for a seat in the Legislative Assembly or at least 30 years of age for a seat in the Legislative Council. Option A, 21 years, is the age at which a citizen may contest a panchayat or municipal election under most State laws, not a legislature seat. Option B, 25 years, is the age for the Legislative Assembly and for the Lok Sabha, and it is the answer examiners hope a hurried candidate will tick. Option D, 35 years, is the age qualification for the offices of President, Vice-President and Governor, not for a legislator.

The correct answer is A. Article 189 provides that the quorum to constitute a meeting of a House of the Legislature of a State shall be ten members or one-tenth of the total number of members of the House, whichever is greater. The rule is the same as the one Article 100 lays down for the Houses of Parliament, and it protects a small House from a handful of members transacting business. Option B, one-fourth, is the majority requirement in several removal and resolution procedures but never the quorum. Option C is wrong because the Constitution fixes no flat figure of twenty; the floor is ten and it rises with the size of the House. Option D, one-sixth, is the share of a Legislative Council nominated by the Governor under Article 171 and has nothing to do with quorum.

The correct answer is C, four months. When the Legislative Assembly passes an ordinary Bill and sends it to the Legislative Council, the Council may hold it up for a maximum of three months the first time. If the Assembly passes the Bill a second time and sends it again, the Council can delay it by only one month more. Three months and one month together give a total delay of four months, after which the Bill is deemed to have been passed. Option A, fourteen days, is the period for which a Council may keep a Money Bill under Article 198. Option B, one month, is only the second round of the ordinary Bill procedure. Option D, six months, is the maximum gap allowed between two sessions of a House under Article 174 and is not a delay period for Bills.

The correct answer is B. Article 198 lays down the special procedure for Money Bills in a State: such a Bill cannot be introduced in the Legislative Council, and it may be introduced in the Legislative Assembly only on the recommendation of the Governor. Once the Assembly passes it, the Bill goes to the Council, which must return it within fourteen days with its recommendations; the Assembly may accept or reject them, and if the Council does not return the Bill in time it is deemed to have been passed. Option A reverses the rule completely. Option C is wrong on both counts, since the Council cannot originate a Money Bill and the recommendation is the Governor's, not the Chief Minister's. Option D substitutes the President for the Governor; the President enters the picture only under Articles 200 and 201, when a Bill is reserved.

The correct answer is C. Article 200 gives the Governor three choices on an ordinary Bill and adds a fourth course for special cases: he may declare that he assents, that he withholds assent, or that he reserves the Bill for the consideration of the President, and he may return the Bill to the House with a message asking it to reconsider the Bill or any of its provisions. The power to return is expressly available only where the Bill is not a Money Bill, which is why option C is the exception the question is looking for. Options A, B and D are all stated in the Article itself. The Article also provides that if the House passes the returned Bill again, with or without amendment, the Governor shall not withhold assent from it.

The correct answer is C, six years. Article 172 says that the Legislative Council of a State shall not be subject to dissolution, but that as nearly as possible one-third of its members shall retire on the expiration of every second year. A member therefore holds the seat for six years, exactly as a member of the Rajya Sabha does, and the chamber itself is permanent. Option A, four years, matches no constitutional term. Option B, five years, is the life of the Legislative Assembly, which runs for five years from the date of its first sitting unless dissolved sooner. Option D is wrong because the Council is deliberately insulated from the fortunes of the Assembly; when an Assembly is dissolved the Council continues, which is the whole point of a continuing chamber.

The correct answer is B. Article 192 says that if a question arises whether a member of a House of the Legislature of a State has become subject to any of the disqualifications listed in Article 191, the question shall be referred for the decision of the Governor, and his decision shall be final. Before giving any decision the Governor shall obtain the opinion of the Election Commission and shall act according to that opinion, which makes the Commission the effective decision-maker. Option A is wrong for ordinary disqualifications, although the Speaker or Chairman does decide disqualification on the ground of defection under the Tenth Schedule, which is the trap in this question. Option C is wrong because a High Court hears an election petition, not a reference under Article 192. Option D substitutes the President, who performs the parallel role under Article 103 for members of Parliament.

The correct answer is C. The Constitution provides for a joint sitting of the two Houses only at the Union level, under Article 108, where the President may summon the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha to sit together and the Speaker of the Lok Sabha presides. No such device exists for a State Legislature, because the Legislative Council is a purely delaying chamber: once it has held up an ordinary Bill for four months in all, the Bill is deemed passed and the will of the Legislative Assembly prevails without any joint sitting. Option A is wrong because the Governor never presides over a sitting of either House. Option B misapplies Article 108, which is confined to Parliament. Option D invents a power the Speaker does not have; summoning the Houses is the Governor's function under Article 174.