The Constitution of India guarantees freedom of speech and expression. But the freedom is subject to certain reasonable restrictions imposed by the State. These restrictions may relate to which of the following ? 1. Defamation 2. Decency or morality 3. Incitement to an offence Select the correct answer using the code given below :
- A.1 only
- B.2 and 3 only
- C.1 and 3 only
- D.1, 2 and 3
Correct answer
Explanation
The correct answer is D, 1, 2 and 3. All three are grounds listed in Article 19(2) on which the State may place reasonable restrictions on freedom of speech and expression. Article 19(1)(a) guarantees this freedom to citizens, and Article 19(2) lists the grounds for limiting it: the sovereignty and integrity of India, the security of the State, friendly relations with foreign States, public order, decency or morality, contempt of court, defamation and incitement to an offence. Friendly relations, public order and incitement to an offence were added by the First Amendment in 1951, and sovereignty and integrity by the Sixteenth Amendment in 1963. The courts decide whether a particular restriction is reasonable. Option A is wrong because it leaves out decency or morality and incitement to an offence. Option B is wrong because it leaves out defamation. Option C is wrong because it leaves out decency or morality. Exam tip: Article 19(2) has eight grounds; the 1st (1951) and 16th (1963) Amendments added to them.
Practice Questions
View allIn which one of the following States has the President's Rule been imposed most number of times?
- A.Bihar
- B.Karnataka
- C.Manipur
- D.Punjab
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Manipur has been placed under President's Rule more often than any other state, more than ten times since 1967.
Read the full explanation →Which one of the following is not a Constitutional Commission of India?
- A.The National Commission for Scheduled Castes
- B.The National Commission for Scheduled Tribes
- C.The National Commission for Backward Classes
- D.The National Commission for Women
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It was set up in 1992 under the National Commission for Women Act, 1990, so it is a statutory body, not a constitutional one.
Read the full explanation →Which statement about the doctrine of eclipse is correct?
- A.It applies equally to pre-Constitution and post-Constitution laws that violate Fundamental Rights
- B.It applies to pre-Constitution laws, which remain dormant and may revive if the constitutional bar is removed
- C.It permits a court to strike down only the offending part of a statute
- D.It allows a citizen to give up a Fundamental Right voluntarily
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Article 13(1) makes a pre-Constitution law void only to the extent of its inconsistency with the Fundamental Rights, so the Supreme Court in Bhikaji Narain Dhakras, 1955, held that such a law is not erased but merely eclipsed, staying unenforceable until the shadow is lifted, after which it revives.
Read the full explanation →The doctrine of prospective overruling was applied for the first time in India in which case?
- A.I. C. Golaknath versus State of Punjab, 1967
- B.Maneka Gandhi versus Union of India, 1978
- C.Indira Sawhney versus Union of India, 1992
- D.S. R. Bommai versus Union of India, 1994
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An eleven judge bench held by six to five that Parliament cannot abridge Fundamental Rights by amendment, but the Court did not want to unsettle the land reform amendments already acted upon, so it declared that its ruling would operate only for the future.
Read the full explanation →The basic structure doctrine was laid down by the Supreme Court in which case?
- A.Shankari Prasad versus Union of India, 1951
- B.Sajjan Singh versus State of Rajasthan, 1965
- C.Kesavananda Bharati versus State of Kerala, 1973
- D.Minerva Mills versus Union of India, 1980
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A bench of thirteen judges held by a majority of seven to six that Parliament may amend any part of the Constitution under Article 368 but cannot destroy or damage its basic structure or essential features.
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