Laxmikanth Test: Making of the Constitution- 1 for UPSC Indian Polity

Sir B.N. Rau and Surendra Nath Mukherjee

Sir B. N. Rau (Benegal Narsing Rau) served as the Constitutional Adviser to the Constituent Assembly; he prepared the preliminary constitutional draft and comparative notes that formed the basis for subsequent drafting work.

The Drafting Committee was appointed on 29 August 1947 with Dr. B.R. Ambedkar as its Chairman, and Surendra Nath Mukherjee (S. N. Mukherjee) served as the Chief Draftsman, responsible for preparing the final text under the Committee's supervision.

B: Separate electorate practice was not followed in its election.

This statement is incorrect. Under the Cabinet Mission Plan (16 May 1946) members of the Constituent Assembly were chosen by the provincial legislative assemblies; seats were allocated by province and by community and the elections were held by the provincial legislators using the single transferable vote (proportional representation). Because seats were distributed and filled on a communal basis (Muslims, Sikhs, Anglo-Indians, Indian Christians, Depressed Classes, etc.), communal or separate-electorate arrangements were effectively followed for those communities.

Statement A is correct: Mahatma Gandhi was not a member of the Constituent Assembly.

Statement C is correct: After the Constitution came into force on 26 January 1950, the Constituent Assembly functioned as the Provisional Parliament of independent India until the first general elections in 1952.

Statement D is correct: the Constituent Assembly used an elephant as its official seal/symbol on assembly stationery and documents.

In short, the given statement about the non-use of separate electorates is wrong because communal representation (separate community allotments and voting by community members in provincial assemblies) was part of the Assembly's electoral arrangement.

J.B. Kripalani - He was not a member of the Constituent Assembly's Drafting Committee.

The Drafting Committee was appointed on 29 August 1947 and consisted of seven members: Dr. B.R. Ambedkar (Chairman), N. Gopalaswamy Ayyangar, Alladi Krishnaswamy Ayyar, K.M. Munshi, Syed Mohammad Saadullah, N. Madhava Rau, and T.T. Krishnamachari.

The committee prepared the draft constitution; its first draft was published in February 1948.

PART I: The name India, that is Bharat appears in Article 1, which is located in Part I of the Constitution of India.

Part I comprises Articles 1-4 and deals with the Union and its territory. Article 1 defines the country as a union of units and specifies the composition of the territory (States, Union territories, and territories that may be acquired).

As explained by Dr. B.R. Ambedkar in the Constituent Assembly, the phrase "Union of States" signifies that the States do not have a right to secede; this distinguishes the Constitution's scheme from a confederation.

Jawaharlal Nehru - he chaired the States Committee, the body entrusted with negotiating with the princely states on accession and related constitutional arrangements.

For context, other principal committees and their chairs included the Drafting Committee (chaired by B.R. Ambedkar), the Steering Committee and the Rules of Procedure Committee (chaired by Rajendra Prasad), and the Provincial Constitution Committee (chaired by Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel).

1, 3, 4 and 5 only

Statement 1 is correct. The Constitution's transitional provisions allowed the Constituent Assembly to function as the Provisional Parliament; these transitional arrangements came into effect on 26 November 1949 when the Constitution was adopted.

Statement 2 is incorrect. Fundamental Duties were not part of the original Constitution; they were introduced later by the 42nd Amendment (1976).

Statement 3 is correct. The prohibition on holding Indian citizenship after voluntarily acquiring foreign citizenship is provided by Article 9 and is part of the citizenship provisions (Articles 5-11), which came into force on 26 November 1949.

Statement 4 is correct. The provision establishing the Election Commission (Article 324) was operative from the date of adoption to provide for the administration of elections.

Statement 5 is correct. The provision for the Oath or Affirmation by the President (Article 60) was also in force from the date the Constitution was adopted.

1, 2 and 3

Article 12 of the Constitution defines the expression State for the purposes of Part III (Fundamental Rights). Its scope includes the following categories.

It expressly includes the Government and Parliament of India and the Government and Legislature of each State, thereby covering both legislative and executive organs of the Union and the States.

It also covers all local authorities and other authorities within the territory of India or under the control of the Government of India; this phrase brings in statutory/local bodies and other instrumentalities of the State.

Article 36 uses the same expression of State for the purposes of Part IV (Directive Principles), confirming that the meaning in Article 12 applies across these Parts.

The judiciary is not generally treated as State when performing purely judicial functions, though judicial bodies may be regarded as State if they exercise administrative or rule-making powers or other non-judicial functions.

Accordingly, all three numbered statements are correct.

Neither 1 nor 2

Statement 1 is incorrect. The Constituent Assembly of India was constituted in November 1946 under the framework of the Cabinet Mission Plan; the Mountbatten Plan (June 1947) came later and dealt with partition and the arrangements for separate constituent assemblies for India and Pakistan, but it did not establish the original Constituent Assembly.

Statement 2 is incorrect. The Constituent Assembly included members from all major communities - Hindus, Muslims, Sikhs, Parsis, Christians, Anglo-Indians, Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and women - nominated or elected from provinces and princely states, so Anglo-Indian representation was present.

Therefore, both statements are false.

A: 1 only

Statement 1 is correct. Article 345 allows a State Legislature to adopt "any one or more of the languages in use in the State or Hindi" as the official language(s) of the State. There is no constitutional requirement that the State must choose only from the languages listed in the Eighth Schedule.

Statement 2 is incorrect. The same provision in Article 345 expressly permits the State Legislature to designate one or more languages as official languages of the State, so a State is not limited to a single official language.

Further notes: Article 345(2) provides that until a State Legislature makes a law otherwise, English may continue to be used for official purposes as previously provided by law. Also, Article 347 contains special provisions for recognising a language in any area where a substantial proportion of the population uses it.

1 and 2 only

Statement 1: Correct. The President is the elected head of state of India (indirectly elected by an electoral college under Article 54 of the Constitution), which is a characteristic feature of a republic (head of state is not a hereditary monarch).

Statement 2: Correct. There is no hereditary monarch in India; princely titles and privy purses were abolished by the 26th Amendment (1971). The absence of a hereditary ruler is a fundamental attribute of a republic.

Statement 3: Factually correct as a statement - Fundamental Duties are contained in Article 51A (introduced by the 42nd Amendment, 1976) - but this provision does not by itself define a state as a republic. It is a constitutional morality provision, not a criterion of republican form of government.

Statement 4: Factually correct - periodic elections are held - but periodic elections are a feature of democracy, not specifically of a republic. Many constitutional monarchies also hold periodic elections, so this does not by itself make a state a republic.

Therefore, only the first two statements are the features that signify a republic.