Test: Indian Polity & Constitution - 2 - SSC CGL MCQ

The system of judicial review exists in India and U.S.A. Judicial review is the power of a court to review the constitutionality of a statute or treaty, or to review an administrative regulation for consistency with either a statute, a treaty, or the Constitution itself. In U.K. tribunal system is part of the administrative justice.

Zero Hour in Parliament starts at 12 noon during which members raise matters of importance, especially those that cannot be delayed. Zero Hour is the Indian innovation in the field of parliamentary procedures and has been in existence since 1962. However, it does not find mention in the rules of procedure. During zero hour, questions are asked about issues of public importance without prior permission. These questions are usually directed against individual ministers.

• Loksabha:
  • The maximum strength of the House is 552 members. Out of this:-
    • 530 members to represent the states, 20 members to represent the UT's.
    • At present, the strength of the House is 545.
• Rajyasabha
  • The maximum strength of the House is 250 members.
  • Out of 250, 238 are representatives of the states and of the two UT's and 12 are nominated by the president.
  • The present strength of Rajyasabha, however, is 245, out of which 233 are representatives of the states and UT's of Delhi and Puducherry and 12 are nominated by the president.

The period during which the House meets to conduct its business is called a session. The Constitution empowers the President to summon each House at such intervals that there should not be more than 6 month's gap between the two sessions. Hence the Parliament must meet at least twice a year.

Article 56 of the Indian Constitution states that (1) the President shall hold office for a term of five years from the date on which he enters upon his office: provided that-the President may, by writing under his hand addressed to the Vice-President, resign his office; the President may, for violation of the Constitution, be removed from office by impeachment in the manner provided in article 61; and the President shall, notwithstanding the expiration of his term, continue to hold office until his successor enters upon his office; (2) any resignation addressed to the Vice-President under clause (1) of the proviso to clause (1) shall forthwith be communicated by him to the Speaker of the House of the People.

The minimum age of voting in India was lowered from 21 to 18 years by the 61st Amendment Act in .1988 read with Act 21 of 1989. 

There are three lists detailing the powers, functions and sharing of these among the Union and the States in India. The List I or the Union List, List II or the State List and List III or the Concurrent List are included in the Seventh Schedule of the Constitution. 

Up to 525 members represent of the territorial constituencies in States, up to 20 members represent the Union Territories and no more than two members from Anglo-Indian community can be nominated by the President of India if he or she feels that the community is not adequately represented. 

The amenities provided to the members of parliament relate to salaries and allowances, travelling facilities, medical facilities, accommodation, telephones, etc. These are governed by the Salary, Allowances and Pension of Members of Parliament Act, 1954 and the rules made there under.
 Note : last time in 2010 the legislation was passed by voice vote to raise MPs' salaries from Rs. 16,000 to Rs. 50,000.

Dr Sarvepalli Radhalcrishnan was the Vice President of India for two consecutive terms from 13 May, 1952 to 12 May, 1962. He was the second President of India from 1962 to 1967.

Amendments to the Constitution of India has prescribed that the Council of Ministers shall not exceed 15 percent of total number of members of the House of the People or Legislative Assembly in the States.

Sikkim became a state of India via the Thirty-sixth Amendment Act, 1975 on 26th April, 1975. The Sikkim State day is observed on 16th May of every year because this was the day when the first Chief Minister of Sikkim assumed office.

Article 371B deals with special provision with respect to the State of Assam. The main objective of inserting Article 371B was to facilitate the creation of the sub-State 'Meghalaya'. Article 371C deals with special provisions with respect to Manipur which became a State in 1972.

Ad hoc committee is appointed for a specific purpose. standing Committees are elected or appointed every year or periodically and their work goes on, more or less, on a continuous basis.

'Planning' has been included in Concurrent List.

According to Article 56 of the Indian Constitution, the President may, by writing under his hand addressed to the VicePresident, resign his office. The same article also states that the President holds office for a term of five years from the date on which he enters upon his office. 

The Prime Minister is the chief channel of communication between the President and the Council of Ministers and keeps the former informed about all the decisions of the council. Article 74 of the Constitution lays down that there shall be a Council of Ministers with the Prime Minister at the head to aid and advice the President.

According to Section 154 of the Representation of the People Act 1951, a Member elected to the Rajya Sabha will hold office for a period of 6 years. A member chosen to fill a casual vacancy will serve for the remainder of his predecessor's term of office. One third of the members retire every two years. 

The first finance minister of independent India was R. K. Shanmukham Chetty, who served as the finance minister in Jawaharlal Nehru's Cabinet between 1947-49. On November 26, 1947 Chetty presented the first budget of independent India. Earlier, he had served as President of India's Central Legislative Assembly from 1933 to 1935.

Each House of Parliament has its own presiding officer. As per Article 93 of Indian Constitution, the Lok Sabha has a Speaker and a Deputy Speaker as its presiding officers. The Speaker is the head of the Lok Sabha and enjoys supreme authority within the House.