UPSC Static Quiz – Polity : 14 May 2025

Solution: a)

Any member of the Parliament can oppose the introduction of a bill by stating that it initiates legislation outside the legislative competence of the Parliament.

The real opportunity for probing a bill’s constitutionality arises when a parliamentary committee is examining it.

Government bills do not automatically go to committees for examination. Ministers get an option to refer their bill to a select committee.

Solution: c)

Article 200 of the Constitution provides certain options for the Governor to exercise when a Bill reaches him from the Assembly. The provision concerned makes it clear that a Bill can be reserved for the consideration of the President only if the Governor forms an opinion that the Bill would endanger the position of the High Court by whittling away its powers. The Constitution does not mention any other type of Bill which is required to be reserved for the consideration of the President.

The fact that the Constitution does not mention the grounds on which a Governor may withhold assent to a Bill shows that this power should be exercised by the Governor extremely sparingly and after very careful consideration of the consequences of such action.

Solution: d)

The UPSC has its genesis in the Civil Service Commission set up by the British government in 1854. Prior to this, civil servants for India were nominated by the East India Company, and then trained at Haileybury College in London.

However, following a report by Lord Thomas Macaulay, it was decided that instead of nominations, civil servants should be selected through a competitive exam. Thus, the Civil Service Commission was set up, and for some years, exams were held only in London. It was a decade later, in 1864, that Satyendranath Tagore (brother of Rabindranath Tagore) became the first Indian to clear the exam. The exam started being held in India only from 1922, after the First World War.

Solution: c)

Article 361 of the Constitution prohibits the court from initiating proceedings against a Governor or the President for any act done in exercise of their powers. They enjoy complete immunity from court proceedings.

It may be noted that the Governor while declaring that he withholds assent will have to disclose the reason for such refusal. If the grounds for refusal disclose mala fide or extraneous considerations or ultra vires, the Governor’s action of refusal could be struck down as unconstitutional. This point has been settled by a Constitution bench of the Supreme Court in Rameshwar Prasad and Ors. vs Union Of India and Anr.

Since the Constitution does not fix any timeline for the Governor to decide the question of assent, he can wait for any length of time without doing anything. Not fixing any time line does not and cannot mean that the Governor can indefinitely sit on the Bill that has been passed by an Assembly.

Solution: d)

The word sovereignty appears in the beginning of the Preamble to the Constitution of India, as the first attribute of the independent republic of India. Its placement as the first among the core principles of the republic underlines its importance in the Constitution.

Sovereignty is mentioned in the Constitution under Fundamental Duties, which are to be followed by all Indian citizens but cannot be legally enforced. Article 51A(c) states that it is the duty of all citizens “to uphold and protect the sovereignty, unity and integrity of India.”

It is also mentioned in the oaths for positions like the Chief Justices, Union Ministers and Members of Parliament under the Third schedule: “…I will bear true faith and allegiance to the Constitution of India as by law established, that I will uphold the sovereignty and integrity of India…”