Indian Polity & Constitution MCQs

Notes:
Article 352 of the Indian Constitution 1949 deals with the National emergency that can be proclaimed on the grounds of security threat or the situation crisis in India. In the history of independent India, there were three periods during which a state of emergency was deemed to have existed. It has been proclaimed three times so far-1962, 1971 and 1975. Financial emergency (article 360) has not been declared so far.

Notes:
The era of PILs started in India in 1979 when a Lawyer Kapila Hingorani filed a petition regarding the condition of the prisoners detained in the Bihar jail in Supreme Court. This petition is known as Hussainara Khatoon Vs State of Bihar. This case resulted in release of 40,000 prisoners, whose suits were pending in the court. The case was heared by justice PN Bhagwati, who is now known as father of PIL litigation in India. However, in SP Gupta vs Union of India case later Supreme Court had defined the term “public interest litigation”.

Notes:
The Contingency Fund of India is established under Article 267 of the Indian Constitution. It was enacted by the Contingency Fund of India Act 1950. This fund is used to meet unexpected or unforeseen expenditure.

Notes:
The Lokpal and Lokayukta Office in India was conceptualized based on the Office of Ombudsman in Scandinavian nations. These Ombudsman roles serve as governmental watchdogs, participating in the regulation of public administration.

Notes:
Matters which are not included in any of the three lists (Union, State, Concurrent) are known as residuary subjects

Notes:
Constitution (28th) Amendment Act, 1972 abolished the special privileges of ICS officers and empowered the Parliament to determine their service conditions. It has provisions of deletion of article 314 and inclusion of a new article 312-A which confers powers on Parliament to vary or revoke by law the conditions of Civil Services.

Notes:
Article 343(1) of the constitution declares Hindi in Devanagari script as official language of India.

Notes:
Supreme Court of India was established on January 28, 1950, two days after India became a Sovereign Democratic Republic. The inauguration took place in the Chamber of Princes in the Parliament building. The Supreme Court functioned from the same chamber until 1958, when it shifted to the present building.  India adopted its own constitution on January 26, 1950. The Supreme Court replaced the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council as the highest court of appeal. The Constitution of 1950 envisaged a Supreme Court with one Chief Justice and 7 puisne Judges. The number of SC judges was increased by the Parliament and currently, there are 34 judges including the Chief Justice of India (CJI).

Notes:
The concept of judicial review, which gives the judiciary the power to review the constitutionality of legislative and executive acts, is borrowed in the Indian Constitution from the United States. Article 13 and Article 32 specifically provide for judicial review and are inspired by the 1803 landmark case of Marbury v. Madison in the US Supreme Court. This laid down judicial review allowing American courts to examine the constitutional validity of acts by the legislature and executive. Thus, the power of courts to judicially review laws and actions to check their alignment with the Constitution comes from legal principles established in the American constitutional system.

Notes:
The 89th Amendment of the Constitution of India which came into force on 19 February 2004 established the National Commission for Scheduled Tribes under the Article 338A.