Parliament and the Making of Laws Class 8 Worksheet Social Science

Multiple Choice Questions (MCQs)

Q1: What is the main benefit of democracy? 

A) It allows the government to control everything
B) It protects the interests of a small group of elites
C) It gives citizens the right to choose their representatives and have a say in government decisions
D) It only benefits people who have a lot of money and power 

Ans. C) It gives citizens the right to choose their representatives and have a say in government decisions

Q2: What is the significance of the Indian Parliament in the political framework? 

A) It has no authority in the political framework
B) It serves as a testament to the distrust that the Indian public has in democratic principles
C) It wields significant authority and the government is answerable to it for its actions
D) It has no power to question the government's choices or evaluate its performance 

Ans. C) It wields significant authority and the government is answerable to it for its actions

Q3: What does the Parliament do when a controversial law is widely criticized by the public? 

A) Ignores public opinion and maintains the law
B) There is pressure on Parliament to amend or repeal it
C) Parliament passes more laws to strengthen the controversial one
D) The law is automatically nullified 

Ans. B) There is pressure on Parliament to amend or repeal it

Q4: What was a direct outcome of Rosa Parks' act of protest? 

A) The establishment of the United Nations
B) The enactment of the Civil Rights Act of 1964
C) The start of World War II
D) None of the above 

Ans. B) The enactment of the Civil Rights Act of 1964

Q5: How are members of the Lok Sabha elected? 

A) By nomination from the President of India
B) Directly by the people of India through general elections
C) By appointment from the Prime Minister
D) Through selection by the state legislatures 

Ans. B) Directly by the people of India through general elections

Fill in the Blanks

Q1: The Indian Parliament was established after gaining independence in 1947.

Q2: Parliament has the power to make laws.

Q3: The Lok Sabha is the lower house of Parliament and is also known as the House of the People. 

Q4: Members of the Rajya Sabha are elected by the Legislative assemblies of different states.

Q5: The opposition in Parliament plays a crucial role in monitoring the functioning of the government.

True/False

Q1: The Government of India Act 1909 allowed all adults to vote. 

Ans. False (It allowed for some elected representation but did not grant voting rights to all adults.)

Q2: The Parliament cannot intervene in controversial laws once they are passed. 

Ans. False (Parliament can amend or repeal controversial laws.)

Q3: The Lok Sabha has more power than the Rajya Sabha in the law-making process. 

Ans. True (The Lok Sabha plays a more direct role in forming the government and its majority is essential for the survival of the government.)

Q4: The Constitution of India was established with the principle of universal adult franchise right at independence. 

Ans. True (It granted all adult citizens the right to vote.)

Q5: Rajya Sabha members are directly elected by the public. 

Ans. False (They are elected by the members of state legislative assemblies, and some are nominated by the President.)

Very Short Answer Questions

Q1: How does the Parliament session begins?

Ans. The Parliament, while in session, begins with a question hour.

Q2: What are the two Houses of Parliament?

Ans. The Rajya Sabha and the Lok Sabha

Q3: What is a constituency?

Ans. Constituency is an area whose voters elect a representative to a legislative body.

Q4: What is the purpose of parliament?

Ans. Parliament enables citizens of India to participate in decision making and control the government.

Q5: How many members does the President nominates in Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha?

Ans. The President nominates 2 members to the Lok Sabha and 12 members to the Rajya Sabha.

Q6: Parliament is the most important symbol of Indian Democracy. Explain.

Ans. Parliament enables citizens of India to participate in decision making and control the government, thus making it the most important symbol of Indian democracy and a key feature of the Constitution.

Q7: What are the basic ideals of democracy?

Ans. The basic ideals of democracy are:
(i) The ideas of participation in decision-making.
(ii) The need for all democratic governments to have the consent of their citizens.

Q8: Enlist the components of Indian Parliament.

Ans. The Parliament of India is the supreme legislative body of the Republic of India. It is a bicameral legislature composed of the President of India and the two houses: the Rajya Sabha (Council of States) and the Lok Sabha (House of the People).

Q9: Describe coalition government.

Ans. Often times in the recent past it has been difficult for a single political party to get the majority that is required to form the government. They then join together with different political parties who are interested in similar concerns to form what is known as a coalition government.

Q10: How is a national government selected?

Ans. After the Lok Sabha elections, a list is prepared showing how many MPs belong to each political party. For a political party to form the government, they must have a majority of elected MPs. Since there are 543 elected (plus 2 Anglo-Indian nominated) members in Lok Sabha, to have a majority a party should have at least half the number i.e. 272 members or more.

Q11: What is ‘Question Hour’ in Parliament?

Ans. The Parliament, while in session, begins with a question hour. The question hour is an important mechanism through which MPs can elicit information about the working of the government. This is a very important way through which the Parliament controls the executive. By asking questions the government is alerted to its shortcomings, and also comes to know the opinion of the people through their representatives in the Parliament, i.e. the MPs.

Q12: "With the coming of Independence we are going to be citizens of a free country". What did this mean for India?

Ans. With the coming of independence, we were going to be citizens of a free country. This did not mean that the government could do what it felt like, it meant that the government had to be sensitive to people’s needs and demands. The dreams and aspirations of the freedom struggle were made concrete in the Constitution of independent India that laid down the principle of universal adult franchise, i.e. that all adult citizens of the country have the right to vote.