Prelims Revision Series | Polity | Making of Indian Constitution | 09

April 26, 2023

Consider the following facts about Constituent assembly which was established in India?
1. H.V.R. Iyengar was the chief draftsman of the constitution in the Constituent Assembly
2. Prem Behari Narain Raizada was the calligrapher of the Indian Constitution.
3. The calligraphy of the Hindi version of the original constitution was done by Vasant Krishan Vaidya.
Which of the pairs given above is are correct?

(A) 1 and 2 only
(B) 2 and 3 only
(C) 1 and 3 only
(D) 1, 2 and 3

Show Answer

Answer: (b)

H.V.R. Iyengar was the Secretary to the Constituent Assembly.
S.N. Mukerjee was the chief draftsman of the constitution in the Constituent Assembly.
Prem Behari Narain Raizada was the calligrapher of the Indian Constitution. The original constitution was handwritten by him in a flowing italic style.
The original version was beautified and decorated by artists from Shantiniketan including Nand Lal Bose and Beohar Rammanohar Sinha.
Beohar Rammanohar Sinha illuminated, beautified and ornamented the original Preamble calligraphed by Prem Behari Narain Raizada.
The calligraphy of the Hindi version of the original constitution was done by Vasant Krishan Vaidya and elegantly decorated and illuminated by Nand Lal Bose.

Who said that " Constituent Assembly was Congress and Congress was India "?

(A) Morris Jones
(B) Paul R. Brass
(C) Granville Austin
(D) Richard Sisson

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Answer: (c)

Which of the following statement is correct with reference to Drafting Committee of the Indian Constitution?

(A) It consisted of six members.
(B) Dr B.R. Ambedkar was appointed as the Constitutional Advisor to the Committee.
(C) The Drafting Committee was set up on August 28, 1947
(D) None of the above

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Answer: (d)

The Drafting Committee was set up on August 29, 1947 and was entrusted with the task of preparing a draft of the new Constitution. It consisted of seven members. They were:
Dr. B.R. Ambedkar (Chairman)
N. Gopalaswamy Ayyangar
Alladi Krishnaswamy Ayyar
Dr. K.M. Munshi
Syed Mohammad Saadullah
N. Madhava Rau (He replaced B.L. Mitter who resigned due to ill-health)
T.T. Krishnamachari (He replaced D.P. Khaitan who died in 1948).
In 1946, B N Rau was formally appointed as the Constitutional Advisor to the core Drafting Committee of seven experts headed by Dr B.R. Ambedkar.

Consider the following statements about the composition of the Constituent assembly:
1. Originally the total Strength of the Constitution was 299.
2. The representatives of Princely states were partially nominated by the heads of the princely states and partially elected by the people.
Which of the following is/are correct?

(A) 1 only
(B) 2 only
(C) Both 1 & 2
(D) Neither 1 nor 2

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Answer: (d)

Consider the following statements about the Constituent Assembly:
1 Roughly one seat of Constituent assembly was allotted to 1 lakh population.
2. Gobinath Bardoloi was head of the North-East Frontier Tribal areas committee.
Which of the following is/are correct?

(A) 1 only
(B) 2 only
(C) Both 1 & 2
(D) Neither 1 nor 2

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Answer: (b)

Roughly one seat of Constituent assembly was allotted to 10 lakh population.
Gobinath Bardoloi was head of the North-East Frontier Tribal areas committee.

Consider the following Statements:
1. On November 26, 1946, Jawaharlal Nehru moved the historic ‘Objective Resolution’ in Assembly.
2. This Resolution was unanimously adopted by the Assembly on January 22, 1948.
Which of the following is/are correct?

(A) 1 only
(B) 2 only
(C) Both 1 & 2
(D) Neither 1 nor 2

Show Answer

Answer: (d)

Jawaharlal Nehru moved the historic ‘Objectives Resolution’ in the Constituent Assembly on 13th December 1946.
This Resolution was unanimously adopted by the Assembly on January 22, 1947.

Which of the following statement is/are correct in context of federalism in India?
1. The Indian federal system is based on the Australian model of federation.
2. Federal character of the Constitution has been included in the basic structure of the constitution.
Code:

(A) 1 only
(B) 2 only
(C) Both 1 and 2
(D) None of the above

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Answer: (b)

The Indian federal system is based on the ‘Canadian model’ and not on the ‘American model’. The ‘Canadian model’ differs fundamentally from the ‘American model’ in so far as it establishes a very strong centre.
In Bommai case (1994), the Supreme Court laid down that the Constitution is federal and characterised federalism as its ‘basic feature’. Hence, statement 2 is correct.

Which of the following provisions in the Indian Constitution has/have been borrowed from the British Constitution?
1. Cabinet system
2. Joint-sitting of the two Houses of Parliament
3. First Past the Post form of election in the Lower House.
Select the correct answer using the code given below.

(A) 1 only
(B) 1 and 2 only
(C) 1 and 3 only
(D) 3 only

Show Answer

Answer: (c)

British Constitution

Parliamentary government, Institution of the Speaker and her/his role, First Past the Post System of elections, Rule of Law, legislative procedure, single citizenship, cabinet system, prerogative writs, parliamentary privileges and bicameralism.

Which of the following provision of the Indian Constitution is the true reflection of Constitutionalism?

(A) Division of power between the Centre and the states.
(B) Integrated Judiciary.
(C) Provision of Fundamental Right.
(D) Power of President.

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Answer: (c)

Constitutionalism’ means limited government or limitation on government. It is the antithesis of arbitrary powers.

Constitutionalism could be seen as constituting the following elements:

Government according to the constitution.
Separation of power.
Sovereignty of the people and democratic government.
Constitutional review.
Independent judiciary.
Fundamental Rights.

As a member of the Constituent Assembly, Sardar Patel did not lead which of the following committees?
1. Advisory Committee on Tribal and Excluded Areas
2. Advisory Committee on Minority Affairs
3. Advisory Committee on Fundamental Rights
4. Committee on Devolution of Power to the Union

(A) 1,2 and 3
(B) 2,3 and 4
(C) 4 only
(D) 2 and 4 only

Show Answer

ANSWER: C

Consider the following pairs:
1. K.C Wheare Quasi-Federal
2. Morris Jones Cooperative Federalism
3. Granville Austin Bargaining Federalism
4. Iyor Jennings Federation with a centralizing tendency
How many pairs given above are correctly matched?

(A) Only one pair
(B) Only two pairs
(C) Only three pairs
(D) All four pairs.

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ANSWER: B

KC Wheare: Quasi Federalism
Granville Austin: Cooperative Federalism
Morris Jones: Bargaining Federalism
Ivor Jenning: Federalism with centralised tendency

Consider the following the statements:
1. The Drafting Committee was set-up in 1946.
2. N Gopalaswamy Ayyangar and Syed Mohammad Saadullah were the members of Drafting Committee.
3. The Drafting Committee took less than six months to prepare its draft.
Which of the following is / are correct?

(A) 1 Only
(B) 2 & 3 Only
(C) 1 & 2 only
(D) 1, 2 and 3

Show Answer

ANSWER: B

The drafting committee was the most important committee compared to the other committees of the Constituent Assembly. It was set up on 29th August 1947, by the constituent assembly to scrutinize the draft of the text of the Constitution of India prepared by the Constitutional Adviser in order to give effect to the decision taken by the Constituent Assembly and to submit to the assembly for consideration.
The Drafting Committee had seven members that included, Alladi Krishnaswami Ayyar, N. Gopalaswami; B.R. Ambedkar, K.M Munshi, Mohammad Saadulla, B.L. Mitter and D.P. Khaitan. At the first meeting that took place on 30th August 1947, B.R Ambedkar was elected as the Chairman of the Drafting Committee. The Drafting Committee took less than six months to prepare its draft.

Who gave the statement that the constituent assembly is “a body of Hindus”

(A) Naziruddin Ahmed
(B) Granville Austin
(C) Lord Viscount Simon
(D) Winston Churchill

Show Answer

ANSWER: C

Which of the following statement is correct ?
1. Elephant was the symbol of Constituent Assembly.
2. The representatives were to be elected from the four constituents – Hindu, Muslim, Sikh & Christian.
Code:

(A) 1 only
(B) 2 only
(C) Both 1 and 2
(D) Neither 1 nor 2

Show Answer

ANSWER: A

Elephant was the symbol of Constituent Assembly.
The representatives were to be elected from –Muslim, Sikh & General.

Consider the following statements regarding the Indian Constitution:
1. The constitution of India establishes a federal system of Government which includes independent judiciary, supremacy of the Constitution.
2. The Indian constitution contains unitary features like a strong centre, all India services, integrated judiciary etc.
3. Term Federation have been used in Article 1 of Indian constitution.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

(A) 1 and 3 only
(B) 2 and 3 only
(C) 1 and 2 only
(D) 1, 2 and 3

Show Answer

ANSWER: C

Statements 1 & 2 are Correct: Article 1 describes India as a ‘Union of States’ which implies two things: one, Indian Federation is not the result of an agreement by the states; and two, no state has the right to secede from the federation.
The Constitution of India establishes a federal system of government. It contains all the usual features of a federation, viz., two governments, division of powers, written Constitution, supremacy of Constitution, rigidity of Constitution, independent judiciary and bicameralism. However, the Indian Constitution also contains a large number of unitary or non-federal features, viz., a strong Centre, single Constitution, single citizenship, flexibility of Constitution, integrated judiciary, appointment of state governor by the Centre, all India services, emergency provisions, and so on.
Statement 3 is incorrect: The term ‘Federation’ has nowhere been used in the Constitution. Article 1, on the other hand, describes India as a ‘Union of States’ which implies two things: one, Indian Federation is not the result of an agreement by the states; and two, no state has the right to secede from the federation.