Indian Polity and Constitution Mixed Practice — MCQs with Answers (Set 16)

The correct answer is to recommend transfers and postings for senior civil servants, insulating them from arbitrary interference.

The correct answer is the Cabinet Secretary. UPSC has directly tested the false claim that the Prime Minister holds this post.

The correct answer is Article 77. It requires that all executive action of the Government of India be expressed to be taken in the name of the President.

The correct answer is the President is the de jure (nominal) head; the PM is the de facto (real) head. This is the standard formal-vs-real distinction tested by UPSC.

The correct answer is Article 74. It requires the President to act on the aid and advice of the Council of Ministers, headed by the Prime Minister.

The correct answer is Article 53. Article 53(1) vests the executive power of the Union in the President.

The Tribes Advisory Council can have up to 20 members, of whom at least three-fourths must be Scheduled Tribe MLAs of that state. It advises the Governor on matters affecting Scheduled Tribe welfare.

Under paragraph 6 of the Fifth Schedule, the President declares an area to be a Scheduled Area, and can later alter or de-notify it — but always after consulting the Governor of the state concerned.

Article 244(1) applies the Fifth Schedule to the administration of Scheduled Areas and Scheduled Tribes in any state other than Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura, and Mizoram (which fall under the Sixth Schedule instead).

The correct answer is (b) 1, 2 and 4. The H.N. Sanyal Committee’s report did lead to the Contempt of Courts Act, 1971. The Constitution (Articles 129 and 215) does empower the Supreme Court and High Courts, as Courts of Record, to punish contempt of themselves. Parliament does hold law-making power over contempt of court. All three are true. But it is the 1971 Act, not the Constitution itself, that defines Civil Contempt and Criminal Contempt — Statement 3 is false. Read more.

The correct answer is (a) 1 only. Article 128 lets the CJI recall a retired Supreme Court judge, with the President’s prior consent — Statement 1 is true. The Supreme Court’s review power comes from an explicit constitutional provision, Article 137. High Courts have no equivalent explicit constitutional review power — Statement 2 is false. Read more.

The correct answer is none. No sitting Supreme Court judge in India has ever been removed through this process, though motions have been attempted.

The correct answer is a majority of total membership of that House, and not less than two-thirds of members present and voting. This special majority is required in each House separately.

The correct answer is a Supreme Court or High Court judge, a Chief Justice of a High Court, and a distinguished jurist. Only if this committee finds the judge guilty does the motion proceed toward a vote.

The correct answer is Article 124(4). The Constitution sets this ground for removal but does not define the terms — that detail is left to the Judges (Inquiry) Act, 1968.

The correct answer is 3 and 4 only. The Speaker CAN refuse to admit a removal motion under the 1968 Act — Statement 1 is false. The Constitution does not define “misbehaviour” or “incapacity” — Statement 2 is false. This was asked in UPSC CSP 2019, Q46.

The correct answer is (d) Neither 1 nor 2. Article 171 caps a Legislative Council’s size at one-third of the Legislative Assembly’s membership, not half or more — Statement 1 is false. The Council elects its own Chairman from among its members; the Governor does not nominate the Chairman — Statement 2 is false. Read more.

The correct answer is (a) protect the interests of Scheduled Tribes. The Fifth Schedule governs the administration of Scheduled Areas and Scheduled Tribes in most States, and the Sixth Schedule provides for autonomous tribal administration in Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and Mizoram. Both exist specifically to protect Scheduled Tribes’ interests. Read more.

Chromite, Kyanite, and Sillimanite are all officially designated major minerals in India. Bentonite, by contrast, is classified as a minor mineral, regulated by state governments.

The Labour Bureau compiles this information. This is UPSC Prelims 2022, Question 71, and the official key gives Labour Bureau. It publishes data on industrial disputes, closures, retrenchments and lay-offs. The Central Statistics Office is the trap option.

Both statements are correct. This is UPSC Prelims 2019, Question 60, and the official key gives Both 1 and 2. The final notification of 16 March 2018, G.S.R. 235(E), extended fixed-term employment to all sectors. The Indian Express noted that this makes it easier for companies to lay off workers. A fixed-term job ends on expiry with no notice. Separately, the rules say no notice of termination is needed for a temporary workman. The earlier G.S.R. 17(E) of 8 January 2018 was only a draft.

The correct answer is 2 and 3 only. Credit rating agencies in India are regulated by SEBI, under the SEBI (Credit Rating Agencies) Regulations, 1999 — not by RBI, so Statement 1 is wrong. ICRA Limited is a public limited company listed on the stock exchanges, making Statement 2 correct. Brickwork Ratings is a SEBI-registered Indian credit rating agency, making Statement 3 correct too.

Only the National Commission for Backward Classes is constitutional (Article 338B, added by the 102nd Amendment, 2018). The NHRC is statutory (Protection of Human Rights Act, 1993), the Law Commission is a non-statutory advisory body, and the NCDRC is statutory (Consumer Protection Act) — so only one of the four is a constitutional body.

The 1st Amendment (1951), effective 18 June 1951, added the Ninth Schedule and Article 31B to shield laws like zamindari-abolition land reforms — which courts had struck down as violating Fundamental Rights — from further judicial challenge.

The Model Act shifts the stated goal from custody and punishment toward reformation and rehabilitation of inmates.