Question Discussion & Solution

The correct answer is option 2, i.e. Article 14 to Article 18.

The correct answer is the Ministry of Civil Aviation and Directorate General of Civil Aviation.

• Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) and Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) have granted a conditional exemption to the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) for the deployment of drones for live aerial cinematography of the India Cricket Season in 2021.
• The Drone Rules 2021 are in the final stages of discussion with the Law Ministry and approval is expected by March 2021.
• The conditional exemption will be valid till 31 December or until the full operationalization of the Digital Sky Platform (Phase-1).

The correct answer is The British North-American Act.

Key Points

• The concept of "A Union of States in the Indian Constitution" has been derived from The British North-American Act.
• Federation with a strong Centre is what we call A Union of States in the Indian Constitution hence it is taken from the Canadian constitution i.e  The British North-American Act.

Additional Information

• Concept of Concurrent list, Article 108, Joint sitting of the two houses and Freedom of trade and commerce is taken from Australian Constitution.
• Impeachment of the president, Functions of president and vice-president, Removal of Supreme Court and High court judges, Fundamental Rights, Judicial review, Independence of the judiciary, and the Preamble of the constitution of the Indian constitution is taken from the constitution of the USA.
• Centrifugal form of federalism where the center is stronger than the states, Residuary powers vest with the center, Centre appoints the Governors at the states, Advisory jurisdiction of the supreme court of the constitution of the Indian constitution is taken from the constitution of Canada.
• Fundamental duties and ideals of justice (social, economic, and political),  expressed in the Preamble are taken from the constitution of Russia.
• Concepts of Republic and Ideals of Liberty, Equality, and Fraternity (contained in the Preamble) are taken from the constitution of France.
• Fundamental Rights are suspended during Emergencies are taken from the constitution of Germany.
• The election of members of the Rajya Sabha and the Amendment of the Constitution is taken from the constitution of South Africa.
• The concept of procedure established by Law is taken from the constitution of Japan.

The correct answer is 17.

Key Points

• Untouchability is neither defined in the Constitution nor in the Act.
  • It refers to a social practice that looks down upon certain depressed classes solely on account of their birth and makes any discrimination against them on this ground.
  • In 1976, it was made more stringent and was renamed ‘The Protection of Civil Rights Act, 1955.
  • It defines ‘Civil Right’ as ‘any right accruing to a person by reason of the abolition of untouchability by 'Article 17 of the Constitution.’
  • All offenses under the Act have been made non-compoundable. 

Additional Information

• Article 14 of the Indian Constitution states that “The State shall not deny to any person equality before the law or the equal protection of the laws within the territory of India”.
• Article 48 of DPSP in the Indian Constitution directs the State to prohibit the slaughter of cows, calves, and other milch and draught cattle and to improve their breeds.
• Article 22 is one such Fundamental Right that safeguards the rights of individuals who have been arrested and detained for committing an offence.

The correct answer is Option 2.

• There is no provision for a joint sitting of the Legislative Council and the legislative assembly. In the case of a disagreement, the decision of the Assembly is deemed final. Hence statement 2 is incorrect.

Key Points

State legislature:

• In most states, the Legislature consists of the Governor and the Legislative Assembly (Vidhan Sabha). This means that these states have unicameral Legislature.
• In a few states, there are two houses of the Legislature namely, Legislative Assembly (Vidhan Sabha) and Legislative council (Vidhan Parishad) besides the Governor. Where there are two Houses, the Legislature, is known as bicameral. 
• Legislative Assembly (Vidhan Sabha):
  • There is a Legislative Assembly (Vidhan Sabha) in every State. It represents the people of the State.
  • The members of Vidhan Sabha are directly elected by people on the basis of the universal adult franchise.
  • They are directly elected by all adult citizens registered as voters in the State. 
  • Members are elected from territorial constituencies.
  • Every State is divided into as many (single member) constituencies as the number of members to be elected.
  • As in the case of Lok Sabha, a certain number of seats are reserved for Scheduled Castes, and in some States for Scheduled Tribes also.
  • This depends on the population of these weaker sections in the State.
  • In order to become a Member of Vidhan Sabha a person must: be a citizen of India; have attained the age of 25 years; his/her name must be in voters’ list; must not hold any office of profit i.e.; should not be a government servant. Hence statement 3 is correct.
• Legislative Council (Vidhan Parishad):
  • Vidhan Parishad is the upper House of the State Legislature. It is not in existence in every State.
  • Very few States have a bicameral Legislature that means having two Houses.
  • The Parliament can create Vidhan Parishad in a State where it does not exist, if the Legislative Assembly of the State passes a resolution to this effect by a majority of the total membership of the Assembly and by a majority of not less than two-thirds of the members of the Assembly present and voting, and sends the resolution to the Parliament.
  • Similarly, if a State has a Council and the Assembly wants it to be abolished, it may adopt a resolution by a similar majority and send it to Parliament. In this situation, Parliament resolves to abolish the concerned Legislative Council.
  • According to the Constitution, the total number of members in the Vidhan Parishad of a State should not exceed one-third of the total number of members of Vidhan Sabha but this number should not be less than 40. Hence statement 4 is correct.
  • The Vidhan Parishad is partly elected and partly nominated. Most of the members are indirectly elected in accordance with the principle of proportional representation by means of a single transferable vote system. 
• Sessions of the State Legislature: The State Legislature meets at least twice a year and the interval between two sessions cannot be more than six months. Hence statement 1 is correct.
• The Governor summons and prorogues the sessions of State Legislature.
• He addresses the Vidhan Sabha or both Houses (if there is a bi-cameral Legislature) at the commencement of the first session after each general election and at the commencement of the first session of the year