JGU Id. No.

______________

O.P. Jindal Global University

Jindal Global Law School
Re-sit Examinations – Semester B

Course Name : Constitutional Law I

Course Code : L-CT-0023
Programme : B.A., LL.B. (Hons.) – Year II
Session : 2014 - 2015
Time Allowed : 3 Hours
Maximum Marks : 100

This question paper has three (3) printed pages (including this page).

Instructions to students:
1. DO NOT write your Name and Student Id. No. anywhere on the answer book except on the space
provided.
2. DO NOT write anything on the question paper except Student Id. No. on the space provided.
3. Start each question on a new page.
4. Use of mobile phone or any electronic storage and access system is prohibited.
5. Students undertaking the examination are requested to adhere to the University norms related to
examinations.

__________________________________________________________________________________________
This is a Closed Book examination. However, students are allowed to bring unannotated Bare Acts in the
Examination Hall.

Warning: Plagiarism in any form is prohibited. Anyone found using unfair means will be penalized
severely.

JGLS [Re-sit Examinations of Semester B, June’2016] Page 1

 Section A

Attempt any two (2) questions. (2 X 12.5 = 25 Marks)

1. The Rajags are a sect consisting of roughly 2000 followers of the spiritual leader Sri Rajagiri, the sect’s
founder and High Priest. All the followers are resident in the NCR region, and each of them makes regular
visits to the Sri Rajagiri Temple in New Delhi to participate in a ceremony where offerings are made to Sri
Rajagiri along with prayers for his health and longevity. Sri Rajagiri has stated that followers of the sect
should attempt to make the visit daily, but if they are exceptionally unable to make it they may carry out a
private prayer ceremony at home instead; however, he has in the past expressed his displeasure at a devotee
who had been absent from the Temple on certain days. Karan is a follower of Sri Rajagiri who avidly reads
and listens to his speeches and visits the Temple every single day on his way to work. He is distraught when
the Delhi Government introduces an ‘odd-even’ scheme that would only allow him to use his car on alternate
days, as taking public transport would not allow him enough time to visit the Temple and also go to work. He
wishes to challenge the constitutional validity of the scheme on the grounds that it violates not just his
freedeom of movement but also his freedom to practise his religion. Can the challenge be sustained?

2. In April 2015, the Ice Hockey Association of India (IHAI) carried out a “crowdfunding” exercise to raise
money from individual donors to fund the national ice hockey team’s participation in both the men’s and
women’s divisions of an international tournament. This had become necessary as the Government did not
provide funding and the IHAI had no corporate sponsors. Despite its lack of public and private support, over
the past few years the IHAI has established itself as the sole Indian body coordinating with international ice
hockey associations, and every domestic ice hockey club or association is affiliated to it or aspires to be.
Among its various policies for the development of the sport in India, the IHAI has a detailed set of rules
governing the conduct of players and officials, one of which (in the section on the national team) states:
“Players’ spouses may not accompany them to international events.” When asked for a clarification, the IHAI
spokesperson specified that this only applied to the national men’s ice hockey team, not to the national
women’s team.

A member of the mens’ team wishes to challenge the constitutionality of this rule. Advise him of the possible
grounds of challenge and the possible legal obstacles he might face.

3. In early 2016, the Bhatts, a caste community in a State in northern India carried out violent protests in a
demand to be classified as “Other Backward Classes” (OBCs) and thus get access to the reserved seats in
government jobs. The protestors claimed that they were “socially and educationally backward”, whereas those
opposing the protest asserted that the Bhatts had been a dominant landholding community for centuries, with
considerable social and political power and influence. A lawyer for the Bhatts argued in a newspaper article
that while the community might have been powerful in the past and there may be some individuals who were
well-off today, the large majority of those belonging to the Bhatt caste were “educationally backward” and
thus found it hard to succeed in their search for new employment opportunities. He concluded that the caste
itself should therefore be classified as an OBC. He also recommended that other OBC members opposing the

JGLS [Re-sit Examinations of Semester B, June’2016] Page 2

 Bhatts should have nothing to fear as the new reservation could be done over and above all existing
reservations, thus not affecting the percentage of seats reserved for others.

Discuss the validity of these arguments in the light of relevant constitutional provisions and case-law.

Section B

Attempt any one (1) question. (1 X 10 = 10 Marks)

1. What exactly does “equality” mean in the context of Article 14 of the Constitution? Critically discuss how
the Supreme Court has evolved its understanding of this provision.

2. “The power to amend the Constitution is like the power to create the Constitution – it is not subject to the
same legal constraints as ordinary legislation, only political ones.” Do you agree with this statement? Illustrate
you answer with any relevant case-law.

Section C

Write short notes on any three (3) topics. (3 X 5 = 15 Marks)

1. “Procedure established by law”

2. Right against self-incrimination
3. Preventive detention
4. Definition of “minority”
5. Doctrine of eclipse

JGLS [Re-sit Examinations of Semester B, June’2016] Page 3