UPSC Essentials : Daily subject-wise quiz | Polity and Governance (Week 39)

1. He was the first non-Congress PM to serve a full term.

2. In his term, India successfully conducted three nuclear weapon tests in Pokhran.

3. In his term, the Delhi-Lahore Bus service was started.

The above-mentioned statements refer to which Prime Minister of India?

(a) Morarji Desai

(b) Charan Singh

(c) Atal Bihari Vajpayee

(d) Inder Kumar Gujral

QUESTION 2

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

1. A person born outside India and who has at least one Indian parent will be granted citizenship.

2. If in the opinion of the central government, the applicant has rendered distinguished service to the cause of science, philosophy, art, literature, world peace or human progress will be granted citizenship.

3. India has a national policy on granting asylum or refugee status.

4. Certificate of naturalisation can be granted to a person who is not an illegal immigrant and has resided in India continuously for 3 months before making an application.

How many of the statements given above are correct?

(a) Only one

(b) Only two

(c) Only three

(d) None

QUESTION 3

With reference to the sessions of Parliament in 2023, consider the following statements:

1. In the Budget session, the government faced the no-confidence motion.

2. The maximum share of time spent was in the functioning of the Budget session.

3. In special session, two intruders jumped into the Lok Sabha and set off canisters emitting coloured gas.

How many of the statements given above are correct?

(a) Only one

(b) Only two

(c) All three

(d) None

QUESTION 4

With reference to the amendment to the constitution, consider the following statements:

1. Provisions related to Fundamental Rights can be amended by a simple majority.

2. In special majority, the amendment Bill is passed in both Houses of Parliament by a majority of not less than two thirds of the members present and voting.

3. There is no amendment that requires ratification by the legislatures of the states.

How many of the statements given above are correct?

(a) Only one

(b) Only two

(c) All three

(d) None

QUESTION 5

The government has constituted a committee to explore the possibility of ‘one nation one election’ headed by:

(a) Sunil Arora

(b) Ram Nath Kovind

(c) Justice B P Jeevan Reddy

(d) Manmohan Singh

ANSWERS TO THE MCQs

1. (c)

FYI:

— Atal Bihari Vajpayee, three-time Prime Minister of India and a founding member of the Bharatiya Janata Party, was born on December 25, 1924. Vajpayee, a poet-politician known for his oratory, was instrumental in bringing the BJP greater political acceptability in the late 1990s and early 2000s, the benefits of which the party is reaping today.

— He was the first non-Congress PM to serve a full term. During this term, he launched initiatives such as the Golden Quadrilateral highway network, the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojna, and Kisan credit cards.

— In May 1998, during Vajpayee’s second term in office, India successfully conducted three nuclear weapon tests in Pokhran. These tests, codenamed Operation Shakti (literally, “strength”), would cement India’s capability to deploy nuclear weapons, fulfilling one of the BJP’s key campaign promises.

— He worked tirelessly to repair India’s relationship with Pakistan. Whether through the Lahore Bus Yatra, the Agra Summit following the Kargil War, or backchannel negotiations with Musharraf following the 2001 coup,

— In his time, he spoke with eloquence and panache within and without the chambers of Parliament — even those who did not agree with his politics often admired him as a wordsmith.

Therefore, option (c) is the correct answer.

2. (b)

FYI:

— A migrant from Pakistan (part of which is now Bangladesh) will be granted citizenship under Article 6 of the Constitution if she enters India before July 19, 1948. In Assam, which has seen large-scale migration from East Pakistan (later Bangladesh), a migrant will be granted citizenship if she arrived before the 1971 date specified in the Assam Accord.

— As far as illegal immigrants are concerned, India does not have a national policy on granting asylum or refugee status. The Home Ministry, however, has a standard operating procedure for dealing with foreign nationals who claim to be refugees. Hence, statement 3 is not correct.

— In 1955, the law provided that anyone born in India on or after January 1, 1950 would be deemed a citizen by birth. This was later amended to limit citizenship by birth to those born between January 1, 1950 and January 1, 1987. It is known as Citizenship by birth.

— It was amended again by the Citizenship Amendment Act, 2003; those born after December 3, 2004 will be deemed a citizen of India by birth if one parent is an Indian and the other is not an illegal immigrant. So, if one parent is an illegal immigrant, the child born after 2004 will have to acquire Indian citizenship through other means, not simply by birth.

— The law describes an illegal migrant as a foreigner who:

(i) enters the country without valid travel documents, like a passport and visa, or

(ii) enters with valid documents, but stays beyond the permitted time period.

— A person born outside India and who has at least one Indian parent will be granted citizenship provided that the birth is registered within 1 year with the Indian consulate in the jurisdiction. It is known as Citizenship by descent. Hence, statement 1 is correct.

— Citizenship by registration is for persons related to an Indian citizen through marriage or ancestry.

— Section 6 of the Citizenship Act states a certificate of naturalisation can be granted to a person who is not an illegal immigrant and has resided in India continuously for 12 months before making an application. This is known as Citizenship by naturalisation. Additionally, in the 14 years before the 12-month period, the person must have lived in India for at least 11 years (relaxed to five years for the categories covered under the new amendment). Hence, statement 4 is not correct.

— If the central government believes that the applicant has rendered distinguished service to the cause of science, philosophy, art, literature, world peace, or human progress in general, it may waive all or any of the Act’s conditions. This is how the Dalai Lama and Pakistani singer Adnan Sami were granted Indian citizenship. Hence, statement 2 is correct.

Therefore, option (b) is the correct answer.

3. (d)

FYI:

— The inauguration of the new parliament building was boycotted by 20 Opposition parties, accounting for 242 MPs in both Houses, in protest of the Prime Minister inaugurating the Parliament and “sidelining” President Droupadi Murmu, the constitutional head of the State.

— Budget Session that saw the second lowest time spent functioning for this government. Hence, statement 2 is not correct.

— The Monsoon and Winter Sessions saw the highest number of Bills passed since 2019. However, each Session was marred by disruptions, and many critical, and contentious, Bills were passed with little to no debate.

— In the Monsoon Session, the Modi government faced a no-confidence motion over the PM’s silence on the ethnic clashes in Manipur. Hence, statement 1 is not correct.

— The government held a Special Session in September, where it introduced the women’s reservation Bill, which sought to allocate 33% of the seats in the Lok Sabha and state Assemblies for women. The Bill was passed by both Houses in this session.

— Among the last Bills passed this year were the three criminal law Bills, which seek to overhaul the existing Indian Penal Code, the Code of Criminal Procedure and the Indian Evidence Act.

— The Winter Session, the government’s penultimate session before the next general election, was the most eventful. On the 13th of December, the anniversary of the 2001 Parliament attack, two intruders entered the Lok Sabha and detonated canisters emitting coloured gas. Hence, statement 3 is not correct.

Therefore, option (d) is the correct answer.

4. (a)

FYI:

— The Constitution prescribes three different standards for amending different provisions.

Simple majority

— Several provisions of the Constitution can be amended using the same simple legislative procedure used to pass any ordinary legislation in Parliament. This is accomplished by a simple majority of those present and voting. For example, admission or establishment of new states, formation of new states, abolition or creation of legislative council. Hence, statement 1 is not correct.

— Article 368, interestingly, does not directly make a list of such ‘less significant’ provisions. However, such provisions are excluded from the scope of Article 368 throughout the Constitution, creating a separate category.

Special majority

— For amending provisions that do not fall under the first category, Article 368 requires that the amendment Bill is passed in both Houses of Parliament by a majority of not less than two thirds of the members present and voting. For example, Fundamental Rights and Directive Principle of State Policy. Hence, statement 2 is correct.

— According to Rule 158 of the Lok Sabha Rules, ‘total membership’ refers to the total number of members of the House, regardless of any current vacancies or absentees.

Ratification by states

— A third category of provisions need not just a special majority to be amended, but also require ratification by the legislatures of at least half of the states. Only after the states’ ratification can such an amendment be presented to the President for assent.  For example, Election of the President and its manner, distribution of legislative powers between the Union and the States. Hence, statement 3 is not correct.

— For example, the Constitution (Ninth Amendment) Act, which established the National Judicial Appointments Commission (NJAC), was passed by both Houses of Parliament and ratified by 16 state legislatures before receiving the President’s assent on December 31, 2014. (On October 16, 2015, a five-judge Bench of the Supreme Court, by a 4-1 majority, declared both the Constitution (Ninth Amendment) Act, 2014 and the National Judicial Appointments Commission Act, 2014 — both of which went into effect in April 2015 — unconstitutional, and reinstated the collegium system of appointing judges to the higher judiciary.)

Therefore, option (a) is the correct answer.

5. (b)

FYI:

— The government has constituted a committee headed by former president of India Ram Nath Kovind to explore the possibility of “one nation, one election”.

— Over the years, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has advocated for simultaneous Lok Sabha and state assembly elections. He stated in June 2019, following his re-election, that a committee would be created to investigate the matter and that a meeting with political party leaders would be scheduled.

— Making polls simultaneous would address various concerns, such as reducing the cost of holding elections and limiting all elections to a single season.

Therefore, option (b) is the correct answer.

Previous Daily Subject-Wise-Quiz

Daily subject-wise quiz — Polity and Governance (Week 38)

Daily Subject-wise quiz — History, Culture, and Social Issues (Week 38)

Daily subject-wise quiz — Environment, Geography, Science and Technology (Week 38)

Daily subject-wise quiz — Economy (Week 38)

Daily subject-wise quiz – International Relations (Week 38)

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