1. Which of the following are ‘Extra-Constitutional’ devices for promoting Centre-State coordination?

(1) National Institution for Transforming India

(2) Inter-State Council

(3) Zonal Councils

(4) Finance Commission of India

Select the correct answer using the code given below:

(a) 1 and 2 only

(b) 1 and 3 only

(c) 2 and 3 only

(d) 3 and 4 only

Answer: (b) Explanation:

• Inter-State Council (Article 263) and Finance Commission (Article 280) are Constitutional bodies as provisions related to their formation and functioning are provided in the Constitution itself. The Inter State Council is formed by the President with a purpose to discuss or investigate policies, subjects of common interest, and disputes among states. It is headed by the Prime Minister of India.

• Union Finance Commission is constituted by the President of India under Article 280 every five years. It is formed to define the financial relations between the central government of India and the individual state governments.

• NITI Aayog (National Institution for Transforming India) and Zonal Councils are extra Constitutional bodies. NITI Aayog is an extra- constitutional non-statutory body created by Executive. It is a policy think tank of the Government of India, established with the aim to achieve Sustainable Development Goals and to enhance cooperative federalism by fostering the involvement of State Governments of India in the economic policy-making process using a bottom-up approach.

• Zonal Councils are statutory bodies created under State Reorganization Act 1956 and the North Eastern Council Act, 1971. These are advisory councils and are made up of the states of India that have been grouped into six zones to foster cooperation among them.

2. Consider the following pairs:

List-I List-II

1. Persons of Indian : An Indian citizen who is ordinarily residing outside Origin (PIO) India and holds an Indian Passport

2. Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) : A foreigner registered so under the Citizenship Act, 1955

3. Non Resident Indian (NRI) : A person who or any of whose ancestors was an Indian national and who is presently holding another country’s citizenship / nationality i.e. he/she is holding a foreign passport.

Which of the pairs given above is/are correctly matched?

(a) 1 and 3 only

(b) 2 only

(c) 3 only

(d) None of the above

Answer: (b) Explanation:

• NRI: non-resident Indian An Indian citizen who is ordinarily residing outside India and holds an Indian Passport. An Indian citizen residing outside India for a combined total of at least 183 days in a financial year (from April 1 to March 31).

• PIO : person of Indian origin Person who or whose any of ancestors was an Indian national and who is presently holding another country’s citizenship / nationality i.e. he/she is holding foreign passport

• OCI : Overseas citizen of India A person registered so under the Citizenship Act, 1955. The following groups of people cannot have OCI status:

i. Anyone who was ever a citizen of Pakistan or Bangladesh ii. Anyone whose parents or grandparents were citizens of Afghanistan, Pakistan, Bangladesh, China, or Sri Lanka iii. Anyone who served in a foreign military or worked in a foreign defence department

3. Which of the following political scientist called Indian Federalism as a ‘Cooperative Federalism’?

(a) Ivor Jennings

(b) Morris Jones

(c) Granville Austin

(d) Alexandrowicz

Answer: (c) Explanation: Option (c) is correct: Granville Austin stated that the Constituent Assembly produced a new kind of federalism to meet India’s peculiar needs. But ‘India’s peculiar needs’ have compounded manifolds thus posing a formidable challenge of enlisting the desired cooperation from all three – the Centre, the States and the local – sets of government. Hence, for efficient and effective working of the three layers of the Government cooperative federalism is essential in India. Ivor Jennings has described Indian Federalism as a “federation with a strong centralising tendency”. Morris Jones termed Indian federalism as a “bargaining federalism”. Alexandrowicz stated that “India is a case sui generis ( i.e., unique in character).

4. The Indian Constitution envisages certain independent bodies as the bulwarks of the democratic system of Government in India. Which among the following is not one of them?

(a) The Election Commission of India

(b) National Human Rights Commission

(c) Comptroller and Auditor General of India

(d) State Public Service Commissions

Answer: (b) Explanation: The Indian Constitution not only provides for the legislative, executive and judicial organs of the government (Central and state) but also establishes certain independent bodies. They are envisaged by the Constitution as the bulwarks of the democratic system of Government in India. These are: (a) Election Commission to ensure free and fair elections to the Parliament, the state legislatures, the office of President of India and the office of Vice-president of India. (b) Comptroller and Auditor-General of India to audit the accounts of the Central and state governments. He acts as the guardian of public purse and comments on the legality and propriety of government expenditure. (c) Union Public Service Commission to conduct examinations for recruitment to all-India services and higher Central services and to advise the President on disciplinary matters. (d) State Public Service Commission in every state to conduct examinations for recruitment to state services and to advice the governor on disciplinary matters. Hence, option (b) is the correct answer. The Constitution ensures the independence of these bodies through various provisions like security of tenure, fixed service conditions, expenses being charged on the Consolidated Fund of India, and so on.

5. Consider the following pairs:

Constitutional Amendment Provisions Added

1. The First Amendment 1951 : Ninth Schedule

2. The Seventy-Third Amendment 1992 : Panchayati Raj System

3. The Fifty-second Amendment 2014 : Anti Defection Law

Which of the pairs given above is/are correctly matched?

(a) 2 only

(b) 1 and 2 only

(c) 2 and 3 only

(d) 1, 2 and 3

Answer: (d) Explanation: Pair 1 is correctly matched: The First Amendment of the Constitution of India, enacted in 1951, provided against abuse of freedom of speech and expression, validation of zamindari abolition laws, and clarified that the right to equality does not bar the enactment of laws which provide "special consideration" for weaker sections of society. This Amendment set the precedent of amending the Constitution to overcome judicial judgements impeding fulfilment of the government's perceived responsibilities to particular policies and programmes. It inserted Ninth Schedule to the Constitution to protect the land reform and other laws present in it from the judicial review. It also inserted Articles 31A and 31B. Pair 2 is correctly matched: The 73rd Amendment 1992 added a new Part IX to the constitution titled “The Panchayats” covering provisions from Article 243 to 243(O); and a new Eleventh Schedule covering 29 subjects within the functions of the Panchayats. This amendment implements the Article 40 of the DPSP which says that “State shall take steps to organise village panchayats and endow them with such powers and authority as may be necessary to enable them to function as units of self-government”. Pair 3 is correctly matched: 52nd Constitutional Amendment Act 1985 Anti Defection Law - Provide disqualification of members from parliament and assembly in case of defection from one party to other. However, parts of the 10th Schedule to the Constitution of India was struck down by the Supreme Court in the case of Kihoto Hollohan v. Zachillhu 1992 ,for being in contravention with Article 368 of the Constitution.