UPSC Essentials brings to you its initiative of daily subject-wise quizzes. These quizzes are designed to help you revise some of the most important topics from the static part of the syllabus. Each day, we cover one new subject. Attempt today’s subject quiz on Polity and Governance to check your progress. Come back tomorrow to solve the History, Culture, and Social Issues MCQs. Don’t miss checking the answers and explanations at the end of the quiz.

With reference to the Ninth Schedule, consider the following statements:

1. It contains a list of central and state laws that cannot be challenged in court on the violation of fundamental rights.

2. The schedule became part of the constitution by the seventh amendment.

3. Most of the laws protected under the Schedule concern agriculture/land issues.

How many of the statements given above are correct?

(a) Only one

(b) Only two

(c) All three

(d) None

Consider the following pairs:

 (Article)                     (State)

1. 371(A)                      Assam

2. 371 (C)                   Nagaland

3. 371 (G)                   Mizoram

How many pairs given above are correctly matched?

(a) Only one

(b) Only two

(c) All three

(d) None

Consider the following statements about co-operative societies:

1. Cooperatives are covered under the state list.

2. They are formed at the grassroots level by people to harness the power of collective bargaining in the marketplace.

Which of the statement(s) given above is/are correct?

(a) 1 only

(b) 2 only

(c) Both 1 and 2

(d) Neither 1 nor 2

With reference to the Article 356 of the Constitution of India, consider the following statements:

1. According to the provisions of Article 356, President’s Rule in a state can be imposed for six months at a time.

2. Article 356 was inspired by the Government of India Act of 1935.

3. It empowers the President to withdraw only legislative powers and not the executive powers of any state.

How many of the above statements are correct?

(a) Only one

(b) Only two

(c) All three

(d) None

With reference to the ordinance in the constitution, consider the following statements:

1. President has the power to promulgate Ordinances when both Houses of Parliament are not in session.

2. If an Ordinance makes a law that Parliament is not competent to enact under the Constitution, it shall be considered void.

Which of the statement(s) given above is/are correct?

(a) 1 only

(b) 2 only

(c) Both 1 and 2

(d) Neither 1 nor 2

FYI:

— The Ninth Schedule contains a list of central and state laws which cannot be challenged in court. Currently, 284 such laws are shielded from judicial review.

— Most of the laws protected under the Schedule concern agriculture/land issues. Hence, statement 3 is correct.

— The Schedule became a part of the Constitution in 1951 when the document was amended for the first time. Hence, statement 2 is not correct.

— It was created by the new Article 31B, which along with 31A was brought in by the government to protect laws related to agrarian reform and for abolishing the Zamindari system. While A. 31A extends protection to ‘classes’ of laws, A. 31B shields specific laws or enactments.

— Article 31B reads: “Without prejudice to the generality of the provisions contained in article 31A, none of the Acts and Regulations specified in the Ninth Schedule nor any of the provisions thereof shall be deemed to be void, or ever to have become void, on the ground that such Act, Regulation or provision is inconsistent with, or takes away or abridges any of the rights conferred by, any provisions of this Part, and notwithstanding any judgment, decree or order of any court or Tribunal to the contrary, each of the said Acts and Regulations shall, subject to the power of any competent Legislature to repeal or amend it, continue in force.”

— The First Amendment added 13 laws to the Schedule. Subsequent amendments in 1955, 1964, 1971, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1984, 1990, 1994, and 1999 have taken the number of protected laws to 284.

— When the Tamil Nadu law was challenged in 2007 (I R Coelho v State of Tamil Nadu), the Supreme Court ruled in a unanimous nine-judge verdict that while laws placed under Ninth Schedule cannot be challenged on the grounds of violation of fundamental rights, they can be challenged on the ground of violating the basic structure of the Constitution. Hence, statement 1 is correct.

— The court clarified that the laws cannot escape the “basic structure” test if inserted into the Ninth Schedule after 1973, as it was in 1973 that the basic structure test was evolved in the Kesavananda Bharati case as the ultimate test to examine the constitutional validity of laws.

Therefore, option (b) is the correct answer.

FYI:

Therefore, option (a) is the correct answer.

FYI:

— The Lok Sabha referred the Multi-State Co-operative Societies (Amendment), Bill, 2022 to a joint committee of Parliament.

— Cooperatives are organisations formed at the grassroots level by people to harness collective bargaining power in the marketplace. This can mean different kinds of arrangements, such as using a common resource or sharing capital, to derive a common gain that would otherwise be difficult for an individual producer to get. Hence, statement 2 is correct.

— Cooperatives are a state subject under the Constitution, meaning they come under the state governments’ jurisdiction, but there are many societies whose members and areas of operation are spread across more than one state. For example, most sugar mills along the districts on the Karnataka-Maharashtra border procure cane from both states. Hence, statement 1 is correct.

— In agriculture, cooperative dairies, sugar mills, spinning mills etc. are formed with the pooled resources of farmers who wish to process their produce.

—Amul from Gujarat is perhaps the best-known cooperative society in India, but the numbers show their prevalence, there are nearly 2 lakh cooperative dairy societies and 330 cooperative sugar mill operations across the country.

Therefore, option (c) is the correct answer.

FYI:

— Article 356 of the Indian Constitution contains provisions for the imposition of “President’s Rule” in a state, removing an elected government.

— Article 356 was inspired by Section 93 of the Government of India Act of 1935. Hence, statement 2 is correct.

— Article 356 empowers the President to withdraw executive and legislative powers of any state “if he is satisfied that a situation has arisen in which the government of the state cannot be carried on in accordance with the provisions of the Constitution”. Hence, statement 3 is not correct.

— According to the provisions of Article 356, the President’s Rule in a state can be imposed for six months at a time for a maximum duration of three years. Every six months, Parliamentary approval to impose President’s Rule will be required again. Hence, statement 1 is correct.

Therefore, option (b) is the correct answer.

FYI:

— Under Article 123 of the Constitution (“Power of President to promulgate Ordinances during recess of Parliament”), “if at any time, except when both Houses of Parliament are in session, the President is satisfied that circumstances exist which render it necessary for him to take immediate action, he may promulgate such Ordinances as the circumstances appear to him to require.” Hence, statement 1 is correct.

— An Ordinance “shall have the same force and effect as an Act of Parliament”. But the government is required to bring an Ordinance before Parliament for ratification — and failure to do so will lead to its lapsing “at the expiration of six weeks from the reassembly of Parliament”.

— The Ordinance may lapse earlier if the President withdraws it — or if both Houses pass resolutions disapproving it.

— If an Ordinance makes a law that Parliament is not competent to enact under the Constitution, it shall be considered void. Hence, statement 2 is correct.

— Article 213 deals with the broadly analogous powers of the Governor to promulgate/ withdraw an Ordinance when the state legislature is not in session.

Therefore, option (c) is the correct answer.

Daily subject-wise quiz — Polity and Governance (Week 41)

Daily Subject-wise quiz — History, Culture, and Social Issues (Week 41)

Daily subject-wise quiz — Environment, Geography, Science and Technology (Week 41)

Daily subject-wise quiz — Economy (Week 41)

Daily subject-wise quiz – International Relations (Week 41)

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