UPSC Essentials | Daily subject-wise quiz: Polity and Governance MCQs on suspension of member of Parliament, fundamental rights and more (Week 148)

3. can pass between the Chair and any member who is speaking.

4. can leave the House when the Speaker is addressing the House.

Select the correct answer using the codes given below:

(a) 2 and 4 only

(b) 1, 2 and 4

(c) 2 only

(d) 3 and 4 only

Relevance: This question tests Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Business in the Lok Sabha, a frequently asked but often under-prepared area. It links directly to current instances of disorderly conduct, suspensions of MPs, and disruptions in Parliament, which UPSC closely tracks.

Explanation

— Invoking Rule 349(i) of the Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Business in the Lok Sabha, Speaker Om Birla directed Gandhi not to quote from a purported extract of the book.

— Rule 349 of the Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Business in the Lok Sabha lays down behavioural and procedural norms that Members of Parliament must follow during debates.

— Whilst the House is sitting, a member—

(i) shall not read any book, newspaper or letter except in connection with the business of the House; Hence, statement 1 is not correct.

(ii) shall not interrupt any member while speaking by disorderly expression or noises or in any other disorderly manner; Hence, statement 2 is correct.

(iii) shall bow to the Chair while entering or leaving the House, and also when taking or leaving one’s own seat;

(iv) shall not pass between the Chair and any member who is speaking; Hence, statement 3 is not correct.

(v) shall not leave the House when the Speaker is addressing the House; Hence, statement 4 is not correct.

(vi) shall always address the Chair;

(vii) shall keep to one’s own usual seat while addressing the House;

(viii) shall maintain silence when not speaking in the House, etc.

Therefore, option (c) is the correct answer.

(Other Source: sansad.in)

QUESTION 2

Which of the following is/are considered a fundamental right under the Article 21?

1. Privacy

2. Speedy Trial

3. Freedom from Abuse

4. Menstrual hygiene

Select the correct answer using the codes given below:

(a) 1, 2 and 3

(b) 3 and 4 only

(c) 2, 3 and 4

(d) 1, 2, 3 and 4

Relevance: This question tests understanding of judicial expansion of Article 21, a core UPSC Prelims theme. It also examines the ability to differentiate between explicitly recognised Fundamental Rights and welfare/health entitlements derived from dignity.

Explanation

— Prefacing their judgment with this quote from American educator Melissa Berton, a Supreme Court bench of Justices J B Pardiwala and R Mahadevan, delivered a landmark verdict recognising the access to menstrual hygiene as not just a health issue but as a constitutional right.

— The court issued a continuing mandamus — a judicial order through which it keeps a matter pending to monitor compliance — directing the Centre and states to ensure free sanitary napkins and functional toilets in all schools.

— The judgment notes that “equal consideration for all may demand very unequal treatment in favour of the disadvantaged.” In the context of schools, it said that if a girl child cannot attend classes because she lacks menstrual absorbents or a toilet, she is not on an equal footing with her male counterparts.

— The judgment went on to place menstrual health within the right to life and personal liberty guaranteed by Article 21 of the Constitution. It held that the right to life includes the right to live with dignity.

— Right to Privacy: Declared a fundamental right under Article 21, protecting personal liberty against state invasion (Justice K.S. Puttaswamy case, 2017).

— Right to Speedy Trial/Fair Procedure: Derived from the broad interpretation of personal liberty (Maneka Gandhi v. Union of India).

— Right to Dignity/Freedom from Abuse: Outlawed instant triple talaq (Shayara Bano case, 2017).

Therefore, option (d) is the correct answer.

QUESTION 3

What empowers the Speaker to suspend a member for disorderly conduct?

(a) Parliamentary conventions and legislative precedents

(b) Tenth Schedule of the Constitution of India

(c) Lok Sabha Rules of Procedure

(d) Article 105 of the Constitution of India

Relevance: The question tests the source of authority behind actions of constitutional functionaries, a recurring UPSC Prelims theme. Suspension of MPs is frequently in news due to disruptions in Parliament, making it a high-probability current–polity linkage area.

Explanation

— Eight Opposition members were suspended from Lok Sabha for their alleged “misconduct”, including throwing paper at the Chair, for the remainder of the ongoing Budget Session.

— Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju moved the resolution to suspend the Opposition members for their “misconduct” and “utter disregard to the House and authority of the chair through reaching the table of the Secretary General and other officers in the Well of the House and throwing papers on the Chair…”

— Rule 374 (2) of the Lok Sabha Rules of Procedure empowers the Speaker to suspend a member for disorderly conduct.

Therefore, option (c) is the correct answer.

QUESTION 4

With reference to the Committee on Public Undertaking, consider the following statements:

1. It is a Parliamentary Committee consisting of 30 Members.

2. The members are elected from both the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha.

3. The Chairman of the committee is appointed by the Chairman of the Rajya Sabha.

How many of the statements given above are correct?

(a) Only one

(b) Only two

(c) All three

(d) None

Relevance: This question tests factual clarity on Parliamentary Committees, a recurring and high-yield Polity area in Prelims. It checks the ability to avoid over-interpretation and judge statements strictly as worded, a key UPSC skill. Frequently confused aspects—composition, method of election, and appointment of Chairperson—are classic UPSC traps.

Explanation

— The Committee on Public Undertakings is a Parliamentary Committee consisting of 22 Members, fifteen of whom are elected by the Lok Sabha every year from amongst its Members according to the principle of proportional representation by means of a single transferable vote and seven Members to be nominated by Rajya Sabha for being associated with the Committee. Hence, statement 1 is not correct and statement 2 is correct.

— The Chairman is appointed by the Speaker from amongst the Members of the Committee. Hence, statement 3 is not correct.

— A Minister is not eligible to become a Member of the Committee. If a Member after his election to the Committee is appointed a Minister, he ceases to be a Member of the Committee from the date of such appointment.

— The term of the Committee does not exceed one year.

Therefore, option (a) is the correct answer.

(Source: sansad.in)

QUESTION 5

Consider the following pairs:

1. Starred Questions – Questions to which written answers are given by Ministers.

2. Unstarred Questions – Questions to which answers are desired to be given orally on the floor of the House during the Question Hour.

3. Short Notice Questions – Such questions can be asked orally in the House.

How many of the pairs given above are correct?

(a) Only one pair

(b) Only two pairs

(c) All three pairs

(d) None of the above pairs

Relevance: This question Hour is a high-frequency UPSC topic, especially types of questions and their procedures. It tests ability to spot reversal and timing traps, commonly used by UPSC in Polity MCQs. It is directly linked to parliamentary accountability of the executive, a core constitutional principle.

Explanation

— Questions in the Parliament have been categorised as under:-

— Starred Questions: Questions to which answers are desired to be given orally on the floor of the House during the Question Hour. These are distinguished in the printed lists by asterisks. Hence, pair 1 is not correct.

— Unstarred Questions: Questions to which written answers are given by Ministers which are deemed to have been laid on the Table of the House at the end of the Question Hour. Hence, pair 2 is not correct.

— Short Notice Questions: Such questions can be asked orally in the House after the Question Hour or as the first item in the agenda where there is no Question Hour at a notice shorter than that prescribed for Starred and Unstarred Questions. These must relate to a subject-matter considered by the Chairman to be of urgent public importance. Hence, pair 3 is correct.

— Supplementary Questions: These are questions which arise out of a Minister’s answer to a Starred or Short Notice Question. These can be asked with the Chair’s permission immediately after the Minister has answered the main question, for the purpose of further elucidating any matter of fact.

Therefore, option (a) is the correct answer.

(Source: cms.rajyasabha.nic.in)

Previous Daily Subject-Wise-Quiz

Daily Subject-wise quiz — History, Culture, and Social Issues (Week 143)

Daily subject-wise quiz — Polity and Governance (Week 147)

Daily subject-wise quiz —  Science and Technology (Week 147)

Daily subject-wise quiz — Economy (Week 147)

Daily subject-wise quiz — Environment and Geography (Week 147)

Daily subject-wise quiz – International Relations (Week 147)

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