UPSC Essentials : Daily subject-wise quiz | Polity and Governance (Week 34)

1. The advice tendered by Ministers to the President can be inquired in any court.

2. The Ministers shall hold office during the pleasure of the President

3. The total number of Ministers, including the Prime Minister, in the Council of Ministers shall not exceed 12 per cent 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

Which of the following statements is not correct about the election commissioner (EC) and chief election commissioner (CEC)?

(a) The President makes the appointment on the advice of the Union Council of Ministers headed by the Prime Minister.

(b) The Representation of the People Act, 1950, and The Representation of the People Act, 1951 are introduced to define and enlarge the powers of the Commission.

(c) The Constitution lays down a specific legislative process for the appointment of the CEC and ECs.

(d) CEC and EC must hold the post for a period of six years or until he/she attains the age of sixty-five years, whichever is earlier.

QUESTION 3

With reference to the Indian Citizenship Act of 1955, consider the following statements:

1. If a person has ever held an Indian passport and has obtained a passport of another country, they are not required to surrender their Indian passport.

2. Persons of Indian Origin are not allowed dual citizenship.

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 4

With reference to the Data Protection Board (DPB), consider the following statements:

1. It will be established through the Digital Personal Data Protection Act (DPDP), 2023

2. The board will have quasi-judicial powers.

3. The members of the board will be appointed partially by the central government and partially by the state governments.

How many of the statements given above are correct?

(a) Only one

(b) Only two

(c) All three

(d) None

QUESTION 5

Which of the following articles of the Constitution of India provides for sessions of Parliament, prorogation and dissolution?

(a) Article 85

(b) Article 86

(c) Article 87

(d) Article 88

ANSWERS TO THE MCQs

1. (a)

FYI:

— Article 74 of the Constitution of India states that “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, act in accordance with such advice.”

— The President may require the Council of Ministers to reconsider such advice, either generally or otherwise, and the President shall act in accordance with the advice tendered after such reconsideration.

— The question of whether any and if so what, advice was tendered by Ministers to the President shall not be inquired into in any court. Hence, statement 1 is not correct.

— The Prime Minister shall be appointed by the President and the other Ministers shall be appointed by the President on the advice of the Prime Minister.

— The total number of Ministers, including the Prime Minister, in the Council of Ministers shall not exceed fifteen per cent of the total number of members of the House of the People. Hence, statement 3 is not correct.

— The Ministers shall hold office during the pleasure of the President. Hence, statement 2 is correct.

— The Council of Ministers shall be collectively responsible to the House of the People.

Therefore, option (a) is the correct answer.

(Source: Constitution of India)

2. (c)

FYI:

— There are five Articles (324-329) in Part XV (Elections) of the Constitution. Article 324 of the Constitution vests the “superintendence, direction and control of elections” in an Election Commission consisting “of the Chief Election Commissioner and such number of other Election Commissioners, if any, as the President may from time to time fix”.

— The Constitution does not lay down a specific legislative process for the appointment of the CEC and ECs.

— The President makes the appointment on the advice of the Union Council of Ministers headed by the Prime Minister.

— The Representation of the People Act, 1950, and The Representation of the People Act, 1951 are introduced to define and enlarge the powers of the Commission.

— The SC said Article 324 “is a plenary provision vesting the whole responsibility for national and State elections” in the ECI “and, therefore, the necessary powers to discharge that function”.

— The Election Commission (Conditions of Service of Election Commissioners and Transaction of Business) Act, 1991 (EC Act) requires that the EC and CEC must hold the post for a period of six years or until he/she attains the age of sixty-five years, whichever is earlier. This law essentially governs the conditions of service of the CEC and ECs.

Therefore, option (c) is the correct answer.

3. (b)

FYI:

— Between 2011 and 2022, close to 70,000 Indians surrendered their passports at regional passport offices (RPOs) across the country, with eight states – Goa, Punjab, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Delhi and Chandigarh – accounting for over 90 per cent of the surrendered documents.

— Under The Indian Citizenship Act of 1955, Persons of Indian Origin are not allowed dual citizenship. Hence, statement 2 is correct.

— If a person has ever held an Indian passport and has obtained a passport of another country, they are required to immediately surrender their Indian passport. Hence, statement 1 is not correct.

— Of the 69,303 passports surrendered, Goa accounted for the highest number – 28,031, or 40.45 per cent – followed by Punjab (including the UT of Chandigarh) where 9,557 passports (13.79 per cent) were surrendered at the RPOs in Amritsar, Jalandhar and Chandigarh.

— The southern states of Kerala (3,650 surrendered passports, 5.27 per cent) and Tamil Nadu (2,946 surrendered passports, 4.25 per cent) also featured on the list of states where a substantial number of people relinquished their passport.

Therefore, option (b) is the correct answer.

4. (b)

FYI:

— The Rajya Sabha “unanimously” passed the Digital Personal Data Protection Bill (DPDP), 2023 and drew the curtains on a journey that began roughly a decade ago.

— The Act declares that for the “security of the state, maintenance of public order or preventing incitement to any cognisable offence relating to any of these, and the processing by the central government of any personal data that such instrumentality may furnish to it”.

— The Act also provides that the central government notify a Significant Data Fiduciary (SDF), and impose obligations on it, including periodic audits and data protection impact assessments, among others.

— The Act mandates the establishment of an adjudicatory body, Data Protection Board (DPB). Hence, statement 1 is correct.

— The board will enjoy quasi-judicial powers. Hence, statement 2 is correct.

— The members of the board will be completely appointed by the central government. Hence, statement 3 is not correct.

Therefore, option (b) is the correct answer.

5. (a)

FYI:

— Article 85 of the Constitution of India provides for sessions of Parliament, prorogation and dissolution.

— The President shall from time to time summon each House of Parliament to meet at such time and place as he thinks fit, but six months shall not intervene between its last sitting in one session and the date appointed for its first sitting in the next session.

— The President may from time to time—

(a) prorogue the Houses or either House;

(b) dissolve the House of the People.

Therefore, option (a) is the correct answer.

(Other Source: Constitution of India)

Previous Daily Subject-Wise-Quiz

Daily subject-wise quiz — Polity and Governance (Week 33)

Daily Subject-wise quiz — History, Culture, and Social Issues (Week 33)

Daily subject-wise quiz — Environment, Geography, Science and Technology (Week 33)

Daily subject-wise quiz — Economy (Week 33)

Daily subject-wise quiz – International Relations (Week 33)

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