UPPSC Prelims 2008 Polity and Governance Questions with Solutions

Explanation

Judicial review is the power of the judiciary to examine the constitutionality of legislative enactments and executive orders. In the United States, this doctrine was famously established by the Supreme Court in the landmark case Marbury v. Madison (1803), where Chief Justice John Marshall asserted that the judiciary has the authority to void acts of Congress that are in conflict with the Constitution. In India, the Constitution provides for judicial review through several provisions, most notably Article 13, which mandates that any law inconsistent with fundamental rights is void. Furthermore, Articles 32 and 226 empower the Supreme Court and High Courts to issue writs and review the validity of laws to ensure they adhere to constitutional principles. The Indian system of judicial review was largely inspired by the American model, though it operates within the specific framework of the Indian constitutional text and the basic structure doctrine.

Explanation

Dr. B.R. Ambedkar, the chief architect of the Indian Constitution, described the Right to Constitutional Remedies under Article 32 as the heart and soul of the Constitution. He emphasized that a declaration of fundamental rights is meaningless without an effective machinery for their enforcement. Article 32 provides this machinery by granting citizens the right to move the Supreme Court for the protection of their fundamental rights. The court is empowered to issue various writs, such as Habeas Corpus, Mandamus, Prohibition, Quo Warranto, and Certiorari, to ensure justice. This provision makes the fundamental rights real and functional, acting as a safeguard against any arbitrary actions by the state, which is why it is regarded as the most important part of the constitutional structure.

Explanation

The Sarkaria Commission was established by the Government of India in June 1983 under the chairmanship of Justice Ranjit Singh Sarkaria, a retired judge of the Supreme Court. Its primary mandate was to examine the existing arrangements between the Union and the States in all spheres and recommend changes within the framework of the Constitution to improve their functional relationship. The commission submitted its comprehensive report in 1988, featuring 247 recommendations that addressed critical issues such as the appointment and role of Governors, the application of Article 356 (President's Rule), the distribution of legislative powers, and the sharing of financial resources. A key outcome of its suggestions was the setting up of the Inter-State Council in 1990 to facilitate better coordination between the Central and State governments.

Explanation

Article 111 of the Indian Constitution defines the procedure for the President to grant assent to Bills passed by the Parliament. It stipulates that once a Bill has been passed by both the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha, it must be presented to the President. At this stage, the President has the constitutional authority to either declare assent to the Bill or withhold assent from it. If the President chooses to withhold assent, the Bill does not become an Act and ceases to have any legal effect. This Article also provides the President with the power to return a Bill, provided it is not a Money Bill, to the Houses for reconsideration. However, the explicit mention of the power to withhold assent in the text of Article 111 serves as the legal basis for the exercise of the presidential veto in the Indian legislative process.

Explanation

The demand for reviewing Centre-State relations has been a persistent feature of Indian federalism, as evidenced by the appointment of high-level bodies like the Sarkaria Commission in 1983 and the Punchhi Commission in 2007. This demand stems primarily from the structural fiscal imbalance inherent in the Constitution, where the Union holds the most elastic and lucrative sources of revenue such as income tax and customs, while the States are tasked with capital-intensive developmental sectors including agriculture, health, and education. Because the States lack sufficient independent resources to fund these responsibilities, they become heavily dependent on the Union for financial transfers and discretionary grants. This economic dependency and the perceived encroachment on state autonomy create political friction, making the lack of adequate resources a direct and primary reason why States seek a comprehensive review of the federal framework.

Explanation

The Mandal Commission, officially known as the Socially and Educationally Backward Classes Commission (SEBC), was established on January 1, 1979, by the Janata Party government. Prime Minister Morarji Desai appointed the commission under the chairmanship of B.P. Mandal to identify the socially or educationally backward classes of India and suggest measures for their advancement. The commission was mandated under Article 340 of the Indian Constitution, which provides for the appointment of a commission to investigate the conditions of backward classes. It eventually recommended a 27 percent reservation for Other Backward Classes (OBCs) in central government services and public sector undertakings.

Explanation

Article 129 of the Constitution of India designates the Supreme Court as a Court of Record. This status implies that the records of the court's proceedings, acts, and decisions are preserved for perpetual memory and testimony. These records possess evidentiary value and are accepted as conclusive evidence of the matters they contain; they cannot be questioned or challenged regarding their accuracy when produced before any court. Consequently, these decisions serve as binding legal precedents for all other courts within the territory of India, ensuring consistency and stability in the judicial system.

Explanation

The sex ratio in India, defined as the number of females per 1,000 males, reached its highest recorded level of the 20th century during the Census of 1901, where it stood at 972. Following 1901, the ratio underwent a general decline for several decades, recording values such as 964 in 1911, 955 in 1921, and 950 in 1931. Although there were marginal increases in certain census years like 1951 (946), 1981 (934), and 2001 (933), none of these figures surpassed the peak value observed at the start of the century. Consequently, the 1901 Census remains the historical high point for the sex ratio in the post-1900 demographic record of India.

Explanation

Based on the Census of India 2001 data, which was the relevant demographic record for the 2008 examination, the states are ranked by population in a specific descending sequence. Maharashtra was the most populous among the four states listed, with a population of approximately 96.8 million. Bihar followed with a population of about 83.0 million. West Bengal held the third position in this group with a population of roughly 80.1 million. Andhra Pradesh, prior to the formation of Telangana, had a population of approximately 76.2 million. This hierarchy establishes the correct descending order as Maharashtra, Bihar, West Bengal, and Andhra Pradesh, which corresponds to the sequence 3, 2, 4, 1.

Explanation

In 2008, Narayan Datt Tiwari served as the Governor of Andhra Pradesh, having assumed the office in August 2007. Raghunandan Lal Bhatia was appointed as the Governor of Bihar in July 2008, transferring from his previous post in Kerala. S.C. Jamir served as the Governor of Maharashtra, taking charge in July 2008. Gopal Krishna Gandhi held the position of the Governor of West Bengal from December 2004 until December 2009. Therefore, the states match with their respective governors in the sequence 4, 3, 2, 1.

Explanation

Barack Obama served as the United States Senator representing Illinois from January 2005 until his resignation in November 2008. He was elected to this position in 2004 with a significant majority, becoming the fifth African American senator in U.S. history. Before his tenure in the federal Senate, he established his political career in the same state by serving three terms in the Illinois State Senate from 1997 to 2004. He resigned his seat in the U.S. Senate shortly after winning the 2008 presidential election to prepare for his transition to the White House.

Explanation

The G-8 (Group of Eight) was an international forum for the governments of eight of the world's most highly industrialized and developed nations. During the period relevant to the question, the member countries were Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the United States. The organization began as the G-6 in 1975, expanded to the G-7 in 1976 with the addition of Canada, and became the G-8 in 1997 when Russia was formally admitted as a full member. The nations of Britain, Canada, Germany, and Italy were all integral members of this group, which met annually to discuss and coordinate global issues such as economic growth, international security, and energy policy.

Explanation

The Government of India Act 1919, also known as the Montagu-Chelmsford Reforms, provided for the establishment of a Public Service Commission in India for the first time under Section 96C. The Act envisioned an independent body to handle the recruitment and regulation of the civil services. Following the recommendations of the Royal Commission on the Superior Civil Services in India, presided over by Lord Lee in 1924, the Central Public Service Commission was subsequently established on October 1, 1926. This body was tasked with ensuring a merit-based selection process for the public services, marking the functional origin of what later became the Union Public Service Commission.

Explanation

Under Article 342 of the Constitution of India, the President may specify the tribes or tribal communities which shall be deemed to be Scheduled Tribes in relation to a particular State or Union Territory. Punjab is one of the states where no tribal community has been notified as a Scheduled Tribe by the Central Government. While the state possesses a significant Scheduled Caste population, it lacks any groups officially recognized under the Scheduled Tribes category as per the Constitution (Scheduled Tribes) Order, 1950. This status also applies to the neighboring state of Haryana and the Union Territories of Chandigarh, Delhi, and Puducherry.

Explanation

The National Development Council (NDC) was established on August 6, 1952, by an executive resolution of the Government of India. It was formed following the recommendation of the First Five Year Plan to facilitate cooperation between the Central and State Governments in the formulation and execution of national development plans. As the apex body for decision-making on development matters, it is presided over by the Prime Minister and includes Union Cabinet Ministers, Chief Ministers of all states and Union Territories, and members of the Planning Commission. The Council serves to strengthen and mobilize the efforts and resources of the nation in support of the Five Year Plans and to ensure balanced and rapid development across all parts of the country.

Explanation

Article 1(1) of the Indian Constitution explicitly states that India, that is Bharat, shall be a Union of States. Dr. B.R. Ambedkar, the chairman of the Drafting Committee, emphasized the use of the term Union to signify two critical aspects of the Indian polity. First, the Indian federation is not the result of a voluntary agreement among the constituent states, unlike the model of the United States. Second, because the union is not a contractual arrangement, no state has the right to secede from it. This phrasing clarifies that the country is an indestructible whole, organized into states solely for the convenience of administration.

Explanation

Under Article 168 of the Constitution of India, states are permitted to have either a unicameral or a bicameral legislature. As of 2008, Rajasthan maintains a unicameral system consisting solely of the Legislative Assembly. While Article 169 provides a constitutional mechanism for the Parliament to create a Legislative Council if the state assembly passes a resolution by a special majority, Rajasthan has not implemented such a second chamber. The state has operated with only one house since its inception, meaning all legislative functions and the passing of bills are conducted entirely within the Vidhan Sabha.

Explanation

Under the Constitution of Jammu and Kashmir, which was adopted in 1956 and remained in effect until 2019, the term of the Legislative Assembly was six years. Section 52 of this state constitution specifically mandated that the Assembly, unless sooner dissolved, would continue for six years from the date appointed for its first meeting. Because the Chief Minister is the head of the government and remains in power based on the majority support of this House, the standard tenure for the Chief Minister of the state was six years. This duration was unique to Jammu and Kashmir, as the term for Legislative Assemblies in all other Indian states is five years as per the Constitution of India.

Explanation

Shiromani Akali Dal is a state political party in India with its primary electoral base and political influence concentrated in the state of Punjab. Founded in 1920, the party was established to represent the interests of the Sikh community and has consistently focused on regional issues and state-level governance. According to the Election Commission of India guidelines under the Election Symbols (Reservation and Allotment) Order, 1968, a party is classified as a regional or state party if it meets specific seat or vote percentage thresholds within a particular state but does not fulfill the broader criteria required to be recognized as a national party across four or more states. In 2008, Akali Dal functioned as a significant regional entity within the Indian political landscape.

Explanation

The Anti-Defection Law was enacted through the 52nd Constitutional Amendment Act, 1985, which inserted the Tenth Schedule into the Indian Constitution. This legislative measure was introduced to provide a legal mechanism for disqualifying members of Parliament and State Legislatures who defect from one political party to another. The Bill was passed by the Lok Sabha on January 30, 1985, and by the Rajya Sabha on January 31, 1985. It subsequently received the formal assent of the President of India on February 15, 1985, marking the date it officially became part of the statutes of India.

Explanation

In 2008, the administrative landscape of Uttar Pradesh underwent significant changes with the addition of the Aligarh division as the 18th administrative division or mandal of the state. This division was formally created in June 2008 by reorganizing the Agra division and originally comprised the districts of Aligarh, Etah, Mahamaya Nagar, and Kanshi Ram Nagar. At the time of this administrative update in the mid-2008 period, the state was recognized as having 18 divisions and a total of 70 districts in its official administrative hierarchy as represented in various contemporary government records and statistical handbooks.

Explanation

As of 2008, Uttar Pradesh had four Central Universities. The oldest of these are the Banaras Hindu University (BHU) in Varanasi, which was established in 1916, and the Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) in Aligarh, established in 1920. The Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar University (BBAU) was later established in Lucknow in 1996. The fourth institution, the University of Allahabad, was formally granted Central University status through the University of Allahabad Act in 2005. During the 2008 period, these were the only institutions in the state recognized as Central Universities by the University Grants Commission.