CONSTITUTION ESSAY TYPE QUESTIONS

Read the passage given below and answer the questions that follow-

Question 1-

Article 21 of the Constitution can be said to have the widest meaning. There has been the
innumerable interpretation by the Courts regarding this Article. Article 21 states that no
person shall be deprived of his life and liberty, except through the procedure laid down by the
law. This Article also includes under its wide range the right to privacy. Right to privacy can
also be termed as the ‘right to be left alone.” The Apex Court of our country has given
various judicial pronouncement regarding the issue. The phrase “right to be left alone’ was
coined in the landmark case of Kharak Singh v the State of UP. Although a minority
judgment with regards to the current issue, the Court emphasized on the need to recognize
such right as privacy is one of the essential elements of personal liberty,About a decade later,
the Court reinstated its view in the case of Govind v State of MP where Justice Mathews
through the Court stated that the right to privacy would have to go through the process of
case-to-case development.It has also given the following guidelines on the same.

Court cannot completely rely on a right which is not expressly granted by the Constitution. If
the Court did so then it would compel the citizens to question the judicial reliability.

Right to privacy cannot be an absolute right and it has to comply with the “state interest test”.

Surveillance cannot be said to be violating right to life and also right to privacy because only
those criminals who are suspected of committing a crime are put under surveillance. This step
is necessary to prevent the commission of further crimes.

The concept was further discussed and deliberated in the case of R Rajagopalan v State of
Tamil Nadu where the court stated that the right to privacy is an implicit right which has been
provided under Article 21 of the Constitution. It was also observed by the Court that an
individual has the right to protect his privacy, the privacy of his family marriage,
childbearing, procreation, education, among other things and no one has the right to publish
any details about these things without the consent of the person, regardless of the fact that
whether the information is true or false, and whether critical or laudatory in nature, until and
unless such information is the part of the public records.
Looking at the above judicial pronouncements, it becomes very clear that the Courts also
supports the right to privacy of a person. The importance of this right can also be ascertained
by the fact that the right falls under the purview of Article 21 (according to the interpretation
provided by the Courts), which is one of the most important Articles of our Constitution, and
which cannot be suspended even in time of grave emergencies.

[SOURCE- https://blog.ipleaders.in/the-right-to-privacy/#:~:text=Article%2021%20states
%20that%20no,range%20the%20right%20to%20privacy.&text=The%20phrase
%20%E2%80%9Cright%20to%20be,v%20the%20State%20of%20UP.]

Q1. What rights cannot be suspended during an Emergency?

a) Article 19
b) Article 21
c) Article 22
d) Article 23

Answer-b

Q2. What do you think the courts mean from the phrase “right to be left alone?”

a) To be left alone.
b) To not be interfered without consent.
c) To be interfered but then left alone.
d) To given a right to be left alone.
Answer-b

Q3. X goes to an Aadhar office to get his Aadhar Card but when he is asked to give his
fingerprints, he refuses and claims that he has right to privacy. Decide:-

a) He has no right to privacy.

b) He can have right to privacy but not in this case
c) There is no right to privacy guaranteed by the court
d) He has right to privacy
Answer-a

Q4. What do you think the courts mean from the phrase “state interest test”

a) Interest of the States Of India

b) General Interest of the State ie India cannot be compromised
 c) Interest of India
d) Interest of States of America

Answer-b

Q5. What do you think the article is trying to conclude from the passage?

a) Privacy should be protected under Article 21

b) Privacy is a very unnecessary right
c) We don’t need to further the discussion on Privacy
d) None of the above
Answer-a

Question 2

The Sabarimala Issue is a perfect example of a conflict between the sovereign and the sacred
in the Indian Context. This issue stems from the traditional practice of prohibiting women
with reproductive capabilities from entering the Sabarimala temple. On September 28th 2018,
a Constitutional bench of the Supreme Court opened the gates of the Sabarimala temple to all
women devotees. This was followed by a series of protests which made national news, The
reason women of reproductive age are not allowed inside Sabarimala is because the presiding
deity, Swamy Ayyappa (or Ayyappan), is a Naishtika Brahmachari, or eternal celibate being.
Therefore, he cannot touch or allow women who are capable of reproduction into his abode
since that would disturb his celibacy.

In 1991, the ban was challenged in the Kerala High Court in the case of S.Mahendran v. The
Secretary, Travancore. The Court upheld the ban and ruled that it was constitutional and
justified.In 2006, the Young Lawyers Association filed a PIL before the Supreme Court
challenging this exclusionary custom. They made a case that the custom violates the right to
equality under Article 14 and the freedom of worship under Article 25 of the women
worshippers.This matter was referred to a three-judge Bench on 7th March 2008 and it came
up form hearing only seven years later on 11th January, 2016. On 20th February 2017, the
Court expressed its inclination to refer the case to a Constitutional Bench. Finally, on 28th
September 2018, the Supreme Court overturned this ban and declared that the selective ban
on women was unconstitutional. Justice Indu Malhotra was the sole dissenting judge in the
Supreme Court.
The Travancore Dewaswom Board heavily relied on Article 26 of the Constitution, which
guarantees a religious denomination the right to manage its own internal religious affairs. The
custom is also protected by Section 3(b) of the Kerala Hindu Places of Public Worship
(Authorization of Entry) Rules, 1956, which allows the exclusion of women from public
places of worship, if the exclusion is based on custom.

In the Supreme Court, the majority ruled that the devotees of Swami Ayyappa do not form a
religious denomination and thus are not protected by Article 26 for excluding women
between the ages of 10 and 50 years. The Court also held that the exclusion of women from
the temple is not an essential religious practice. Therefore, the ban that prohibited women
within the age group of 10-50 years was struck down and was declared unconstitutional.

[SOURCE: https://clatgyan.com/clat-general-knowledge/the-sabarimala-issue/ ]

Q1.In this passage, the author has discussed the issue of?

a) Conflict of Rights
b) Conflict of Rights with sacred denomination
c) Conflict Of State’s interest with individual’s rights.
d) None of the above
Answer- b)

Q2. X, practices a religion called Yum wherein women are not allowed to enter the worship
places of this religion and if they do so they will be sinned, Y, a law student files a petition in
Court saying this is a violation of her rights under Article 21 and 26. Decide;-

a) Y will win as it violates her rights

b) Y will not win because Yum is a religion domination
c) Y will win because she is smart
d) None of the above
Answer-d)
Q3. What do you think among the following comes under essential practices?

a) Giving animal and human sacrifices

b) Banning a sect of people from entering religious places
c) Asking for a huge amount of money from the pilgrims
d) Giving sweets as prasad
Answer- b)

Q4. In this passage, the author has discussed the issue of?

a) Patriarchy
b) Individual Rights conflict with religious bodies
c) Human Rights and State Interest
d) None of the above
Answer-b)

Q5. What does the author mean by “perfect example of a conflict between the sovereign
and the sacred in the Indian Context”

a) A case where the laws of the land come in conflict with the ancient religious texts
b) Conflict of Indian government with religion.
c) Conflict of private with religion
d) None of the above
Answer-a)

PASSAGE- 3

Source: (https://www.lawteacher.net/free-law-essays/judicial-law/)

The two organs of both legislature and executive could be seen as a fusion of power.
Executive creates law through the power vested on them known as the delegated legislation
by the Parliament provided there is effective scrutiny of delegated legislation. The fusion
between Executive and Legislative power lies in the cabinet, which often consists of a prime
minister and cabinet (“government”), is drawn from the legislature (parliament). House of
Commons Disqualification Act 1975 preserves separation between executive and legislature.
S2 of the Act states that holders of judicial office, civil servants, members of armed force,
police and members of foreign legislature are disqualified from holding parliamentary office.
It also limits the number of Government Minister in the House of Commons to 95. On the
other hand, considering the 95 members with the Parliamentary Private Secretaries, the
government enjoys the support of some 120 members although limited under the 1975 Act.
Contrasting with the United States of America and France, the Executive and Legislature are
separate. Both the estates are often under control of different political parties. A total failure
of cooperation would result in a deadlock, though Senator Dole achieved this briefly in 1995
and was subjected to public censor for so doing. Nonetheless, cooperation can be poor,
adversely affecting the effectiveness of the Executive. Unlike our said “fusion of powers”,
close relationship between Executive and Parliament represented the efficient secret of
English Constitution. However, the relationship between Legislature and Executive is seen to
have massive dominating power which creates space for the both estates to abuse their
powers. Given the fact where members of the Legislature and Executive are almost similar,
the pair could apparently pass any law which benefits them. But this is unlikely to happen as
the government is threatened by the possibility of vote of no confidence in the future and due
to the convention of ministerial accountability towards the parliament. The Courts are the
Queens Court and the Queen in the head of Executive. However, Queen is no longer able to
act as a judge in her own court under Prohibitions Del Roy 1607 and cannot create laws
outside parliament under Bill of Right 1688. The Privy Council now exercises the executive
and judiciary role. Royal prerogative being the residue value of the crown is usually being
exercised by the Executive. In Council of Civil Service Unions v Minister of State for Civil
Service, House of Lords held that courts have jurisdiction to review exercise of the executive
power irrespective of whether source of power is statutory or under prerogative. By
convention, though, it is unlikely for Judiciary to question matters being referred to as
national security and “high policy”. This suggests that Judiciary actually has the right to
question the exercise of royal prerogative by the Executive.

Questions

Q1. Which of the following persons are disqualified from holding parliamentary positions?
 a) Judges and police
b) Army members and ministers
c) Ministers and judges
d) Police and doctors

Ans. a

Q2. House of Commons could have maximum members to what number?

a) 94
b) 95
c) 110
d) 120

Ans. b

Q3.Executive and legislature works in fusion which of the following states?

a) USA
b) UK
c) France
d) India

Ans. B

Q4.Under which of the following landmark judgements of India judicial review was held as
an integral part of the Constitution?

a) Kesavananda Bharti v. State of Kerala

b) Minerva Mills v. Union of India
c) Raj Narain v. State of UP
d) L. Chandra Kumar v Union of India

Ans. d

Q5.What are the disadvantages of having Legislative and Executive powers in the same
person?

a) Any person can be detained arbitrarily

b) A monopoly of power will be created
 c) Any law can be passed which benefits them
d) Hereditary rule in obtaining power will be followed

Ans. c

Passage4-

Source: (https://www.lawteacher.net/free-law-essays/judicial-law/)

Delegated legislation is not without its criticisms. Firstly, it has been suggested that by having
delegated legislation to make and/or amend laws etc it lacks democracy as too much
delegated legislation is made by unelected people. Secondly, delegated legislation is subject
to less Parliamentary scrutiny than primary legislation. Parliament therefore has a lack of
control over delegated legislation and this can lead to inconsistencies in laws. In addition,
delegated legislation therefore has the potential to be used in ways which Parliament had not
anticipated when it conferred the power through the Act of Parliament. One further criticism
of delegated legislation is the lack of publicity surrounding it. When law is made by statutory
instrument the public are not normally notified of it whereas with Acts of Parliament, on the
other hand, they are widely publicised. One reason for the lack of publicity surrounding
delegated legislation is because of the volume of delegated legislation made and this results
in the public not being informed of the changes to law. There has also been concern
expressed that too much law is made through delegated legislation. There are controls in
place in relation to delegated legislation to ensure that those who make law under it are doing
it in an appropriate manner. Parliament exercises control over delegated legislation in that
when the Act of Parliament is created, Parliament stipulate in the Act of Parliament the
parameters with regard to delegated legislation. Further, there are scrutiny committees which
consider delegated legislation within a Bill as it passes through the Houses of Parliament.
Delegated legislation is also subject to control through the Court. A piece of delegated
legislation can be deemed by the Court to be ultra vires. This means that the body that created
the delegated legislation acted beyond the powers conferred to them by statute. An example
where a body would have acted ultra vires would be if the delegated legislation goes beyond
what Parliament intended or where the procedural rules to be followed in relation to the
delegated legislation have not been followed. Any Court action which is brought challenging
delegated legislation is done through the means of Judicial Review. If the Court finds that a
piece of delegated legislation is ultra vires then that legislation can be declared void. The
following are the three main types of delegated legislation:

By Laws: They are made by Local Authorities to deal with matters within their particular
locality.

Statutory Instruments: These are made by Government Ministers and they insert the detail to
Acts of Parliament. Statutory Instruments make up the majority of delegated legislation that
is made. Around 3,000 Statutory Instruments are issued each year

Orders in Council: They are made by the Queen on the advice of the Government and are
usually made when Parliament is not sitting. They can be used by the Government in
emergency situations.

Questions

Q1.What are the checks ensured on delegated legislation?

a) Parliament stipulate in the Act of Parliament the parameters with regard to delegated
legislation
b) Scrutiny committees consider delegated legislation within a Bill as it passes through
the Houses of Parliament.
c) It is subject to control through the Court
d) All the above

Ans. d

Q2.Under which powers can court adjudicate on delegated legislation?

a) Judicial review
b) Habeas corpus writ
c) Epistolary power
d) None of the above

Ans. a
Q3.What do you understand by the term ‘ultra vires’?

a) Within the powers

b) Beyond the powers
c) Both a and b
d) None of the above

Ans. b

Q4.What is the difference between delegated legislations through by laws and statutory
instruments?

a) By laws and Statutory Instruments both are made by Government Ministers

b) By laws are made by Government Ministers and Statutory Instruments are made by
Local Authorities
c) By laws deal with whole country and Statutory Instruments deal with a particular
community
d) By laws are made by Local Authorities and Statutory Instruments are made by
Government Ministers

Ans. d

Q5.Statutory Instruments: These are made by Government Ministers and they insert the detail
to Acts of Parliament.

Parliament passed an order notifying that local authorities can give subsidy to indigent
persons up to maximum Rs 2, 00,000 but the local authorities of Raipur District gave subsidy
of Rs 2.5 Lac witnessing the urgent need of the same. Decide

a) Local authorities can do so as it is not beyond the procedural rules established by the
Parliament
b) Local authorities cannot do so as it is beyond the procedural rules established by the
Parliament
c) Local authorities can do so as it is within its powers during the urgent need
d) Local authorities cannot do so as it can only be done by the Parliament
Ans. b

The past month has witnessed several protests across the nation against the central government’s
controversial Citizenship Amendment Act. While the protests are a positive sign — indicative of
the nation’s united resistance against any attempt which threatens to destroy our secular fabric —
the response of the government to quell the protests in any manner whatsoever is deeply
worrisome. We have witnessed police brutality against students, labelling of protesters/dissenters
as ‘anti-nationals’ and excessive surveillance over areas of protest.

In what appears to be another attempt towards creating an ‘Orwellian State’, the police forces
have started using drones to monitor the areas of protest, with the Uttar Pradesh Police going a
step further by conducting an aerial survey of houses in several areas of protest in the state. The
UP Police’s justification for the survey is that drones help them ‘track and record’ movements of
alleged ‘anti-social’ elements, and capture images of houses where bricks and stones are kept on
the terraces.

The government can only monitor individuals against whom reasonable grounds of suspicion
exist, that is, people with criminal antecedents. Therefore, the State’s monitoring of individuals
whom they suspect to be an anti-social elements sans evidence of their past criminal records is a
blatant disregard of the law. Sadly, the government is monitoring the movements of protesters
who have committed no crime but have only exercised their fundamental right to free speech.

If the last month is any indication, there are chances that footage from the drones may be misused
to harass and deter protesters from expressing their dissent.

As per law, the liberty of an individual can never be taken away; it can only be reasonably
restricted. However, it seems of late that there has been no restrictions but rather the snatching
away of fundamental rights.

Extracted with edits from: https://www.thequint.com/voices/opinion/uttar-pradesh-police-

drone-surveillance-of-houses-right-to-privacy-security-law-constitution  by the Quint, 3
January 2020    

1. The phrase "quell the protests in any manner whatsoever" used in the above passage indicates
that the government is-  

(a) using legal measures to quell protests 

(b) using illegal measures to quell protests    

(c) using legal but morally wrong measures to quell protests 

(d) None of the above

Answer c)

2. Assuming that surveillance of public places is legal, the above passage suggests that-        
(a) terrace of a house is a public place 

(b) terrace of a house is not a public place 

(c) terrace of a house is a public place as it is freely visible from above 

(d) None of the above 

Answer-b)

3. The above passage relates to-     

(a) right to privacy 

(b) right to free speech 

(c) Both (a) and (b) 

(d) None of the above

Answer c)

4.Which articles of the Constitution guarantee freedom of speech?

a) 14
b) 19
c) 21
d) 20
Answer- b)

5. The Indian Judiciary is headed by

a) The president
b) The prime minister
c) The supreme court
d) The parliament
Answer c)