UPSC Essentials | Daily subject-wise quiz : Polity and Governance MCQs on citizenship, joint sitting, ADCs and more (Week 56)

1. The Ministers shall hold office during the pleasure of the Prime Minister.

2. The Council of Ministers shall be collectively responsible to the President.

3. The total number of Ministers, including the Prime Minister, in the Council of Ministers shall not exceed 15% of total members.

How many of the statements given above are correct?

(a) Only one

(b) Only two

(c) All three

(d) None

QUESTION 2

With reference to the autonomous district councils (ADCs), consider the following statements:

1. The Sixth Schedule was adopted under Article 244 of the Constitution with provisions for formation of autonomous administrative divisions within a state.

2. These councils have powers to form courts to hear cases where both parties are members of Scheduled Tribes.

3. The council can make regulations with regard to land, forest and mining.

4. Tripura has the maximum number of ADCs.

How many of the statements given above are correct?

(a) Only one

(b) Only two

(c) Only three

(d) All four

QUESTION 3

Consider the following:

1. The Bill is rejected by the other House.

2. More than six months elapse from the date of the reception of the Bill by the other House without the Bill being passed by it.

3. The Houses have disagreed with the amendments to be made in the Bill.

In how many of the above cases joint sitting of both the houses is required?

(a) Only one

(b) Only two

(c) All three

(d) None

QUESTION 4

With reference to the citizenship of India, consider the following statements:

1. The provisions related to the citizenship were put into effect before the Constitution of India came into effect.

2. The term citizenship is explicitly defined in the Constitution.

Which of the statement(s) given above is/are correct?

(a) 1 only

(b) 2 only

(c) Both 1 and 2

(d) Neither 1 nor 2

QUESTION 5

Which of the following articles of the Constitution of India provides for the prohibition of traffic in human beings and forced labour?

(a) Article 23

(b) Article 24

(c) Article 22

(d) Article 25

ANSWERS TO THE MCQs

1. (a)

FYI:

— There shall be a Council of Ministers with the Prime Minister at the head to aid and advise the President who shall, in the exercise of his functions.

— The Ministers shall hold office during the pleasure of the President. Hence, statement 1 is not correct.

— The Council of Ministers shall be collectively responsible to the House of the People. Hence, statement 2 is not correct.

— The total number of Ministers in the Council of Ministers, including the Prime Minister, shall not exceed 15% of the House of People’s total membership. Hence, statement 3 is correct.

— The President may request that the Council of Ministers revisit such advise, either generally or otherwise, and the President shall act in line with the advice presented following such reconsideration.

— The advice given by Ministers to the President shall not be investigated in any court.

Therefore, option (a) is the correct answer.

(Other Source: Constitution of India)

2. (c)

FYI:

— Candidates from all parties in Assam’s tribal-majority Diphu Lok Sabha constituency have committed to execute Article 244(A) of the Constitution, which would create an autonomous’state within a state’.

— Diphu is the least populated of Assam’s 14 Lok Sabha constituencies, having only 8.9 lakh voters. It is reserved for Scheduled Tribes (STs) and includes six legislative assembly segments in Assam’s three tribal-majority hill districts: Karbi Anglong, West Karbi Anglong, and Dima Hasao.

— These three districts are administered under the provisions of the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution, which describes the “Provisions as to the Administration of Tribal Areas in the States of Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and Mizoram”.

— The Sixth Schedule was adopted under Article 244 of the Constitution with provisions for formation of autonomous administrative divisions within a state. Hence, statement 1 is correct.

— Article 244(A) was inserted by The Constitution (Twenty-second Amendment) Act, 1969, which enabled Parliament to pass an Act to “form within the State of Assam an autonomous State comprising (whether wholly or in part) all or any of… [certain specified] tribal areas”, including Karbi Anglong.

— The autonomous councils under the Sixth Schedule have elected representatives for more decentralised governance of these tribal areas, but they have limited legislative powers, do not have control over law and order, and have only limited financial powers.

— According to the Sixth Schedule, the ADCs administering a region within a state have 30 members with a term of five years and can make laws, rules and regulations with regard to land, forest, water, agriculture, village councils, health, sanitation, village and town level policing, inheritance of property, marriage and divorce, social customs, and mining, among other issues. Hence, statement 3 is correct.

— ADCs also have powers to form courts to hear cases where both parties are members of Scheduled Tribes and the maximum sentence is less than 5 years in prison. Hence, statement 2 is correct.

— Currently, there are 10 ADCs under the Sixth Schedule in the North East, with three each in Assam, Meghalaya and Mizoram, and one in Tripura. Manipur has six ADCs, but these came into existence in 1971 under an act of Parliament. Hence, statement 4 is not correct.

Therefore, option (c) is the correct answer.

3. (c)

FYI:

— Article 108 of the Constitution of India provides for joint sitting of both Houses in certain cases.

— If a bill has been passed by one House and transmitted to the other House—

(a) The other House rejects the Bill; or Hence, statement 1 is correct.

(b) the Houses have finally differed on the amendments to be made in the Bill; Hence, statement 3 is correct.

(c) more than six months elapse from the date of the receipt of the Bill by the other House without the Bill being passed by it, the President may, unless the Bill has elapsed due to a dissolution of the House of the People, notify the Houses by message if they are sitting or by public notification if they are not sitting, of his intention to summon them to meet in a joint sitting for the purpose of deliberating and voting on the Bill. Hence, statement 2 is correct.

Therefore, option (c) is the correct answer.

(Other Source: Constitution of India)

4. (a)

FYI:

— At the start of this Constitution, every individual who has a habitation in the territory of India and—

(a) who was born in Indian territory; or

(a) either of whose parents were born in Indian territory; or

(c) who has been normally resided in Indian territory for at least five years immediately preceding such beginning.

— The Indian Constitution took effect on January 26, 1950. However, it is worth mentioning that the citizenship sections went into effect only on November 29, 1949, the day the Constitution was adopted. Hence, statement 1 is correct.

— The term citizenship is not explicitly defined in the Constitution, Articles 5-11 outline the framework for citizenship at the time of the Constitution’s commencement. Hence, statement 2 is not correct.

Therefore, option (a) is the correct answer.

5. (a)

FYI:

— Article 23 of the Constitution of India provides for the prohibition of traffic in human beings and forced labour.

— Human trafficking, beggary, and other similar types of forced work are illegal, and any violation of this rule is penalised by law.

— Nothing in this article prevents the State from imposing obligatory service for public objectives, and the State shall not discriminate based only on religion, race, caste, or class, or any combination of these.

Therefore, option (a) is the correct answer.

(Source: Constitution of India)

Previous Daily Subject-Wise-Quiz

Daily subject-wise quiz — Polity and Governance (Week 55)

Daily Subject-wise quiz — History, Culture, and Social Issues (Week 55)

Daily subject-wise quiz — Environment, Geography, Science and Technology (Week 55)

Daily subject-wise quiz — Economy (Week 55)

Daily subject-wise quiz – International Relations (Week 55)

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