Central Government MCQ Quiz - Objective Question with Answer for Central Government - Download Free PDF

The correct answer is Estimates Committee.

Key Points

• The Estimates Committee was established in 1950 on the recommendation of the then Finance Minister John Mathai.
• It is often referred to as the "Continuous Economy Committee" due to its role in ensuring financial discipline and economy.
• The primary function of the committee is to examine the budget estimates presented by the government and suggest economies in public spending.
• The chairman of the Estimates Committee is always a member of the Ruling Party and is appointed by the Speaker of the Lok Sabha.
• This committee consists of 30 members, all of whom are drawn exclusively from the Lok Sabha.

Additional Information

• Parliamentary Committees:
  • These are committees formed by the Parliament to facilitate detailed scrutiny and discussion on various issues.
  • They are classified into two types: Standing Committees (permanent) and Ad Hoc Committees (temporary).
  • Standing Committees include Public Accounts Committee, Estimates Committee, Committee on Public Undertakings, and others.
• Functions of the Estimates Committee:
  • Examines whether the money is well spent within the allocated budget.
  • Suggests alternative policies to bring efficiency in administration.
  • Ensures that public funds are utilized for maximum benefit.
• Public Accounts Committee vs. Estimates Committee:
  • The Public Accounts Committee reviews the audit reports of the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG).
  • The Estimates Committee examines the budget estimates presented by the government.
• Chairmanship:
  • While the chairman of the Estimates Committee belongs to the ruling party, the Public Accounts Committee is chaired by a member of the opposition.
  • This ensures bipartisan scrutiny of government spending.
• Significance:
  • The Estimates Committee plays a vital role in ensuring financial accountability and transparency in government spending.
  • Its recommendations help in policy formulation for better resource utilization.

The correct answer is The Council of Ministers.

Key Points

• A no-confidence motion is a parliamentary motion that is moved in the Lok Sabha against the entire council of ministers, stating that they are no longer deemed fit to hold positions of responsibility due to their inadequacy in some respect or their failure to carry out their obligations.
• No prior reason needs to be stated for its adoption in the Lok Sabha.
• A motion of “No Confidence Motion” against the Government can be introduced only in the Lok Sabha under rule 198.

Additional Information

• Procedure to move a “No Confidence Motion”:
  1. A motion of No Confidence can be admitted when a minimum of 50 members, support the motion in the house.
  2. The Speaker then, once satisfied that the motion is in order, will ask the House if the motion can be adopted.
  3. If the motion is passed in the house, the Government is bound to vacate the office.
  4. A no-confidence motion needs a majority vote to pass the House.

The correct answer is a resolution of the Lok Sabha passed by a majority of all the then members of the Lok Sabha.

Key Points

• Parliament consists of Lok Sabha, Rajya Sabha and President.
• Lok Sabha has a preceding officer called the Speaker who controls the proceeding of the house.
• Lok Sabha also has a Deputy Speaker who chairs as a preceding officer when the Speaker of the house is absent.
• To remove the Speaker and Deputy speaker a resolution of the Lok Sabha was passed by a majority of all the then members of the Lok Sabha.

Additional Information

The correct answer is Option 4: Committees to Scrutinise and Control - Committee on Absence of Members from Sittings of the House.

Key Points

• The Committee on Absence of Members from Sittings of the House does not fall under the "Committees to Scrutinise and Control" category. Instead, it is categorized as a "Housekeeping Committee."
• "Committees to Scrutinise and Control" include committees like the Public Accounts Committee, Estimates Committee, and Committee on Public Undertakings, which focus on ensuring financial accountability and oversight.
• The Committee on Absence of Members primarily deals with granting leave of absence to members and does not have a scrutinizing or controlling mandate.
• The classification of parliamentary committees in India is based on their functions, such as financial control, inquiry, or day-to-day business management.
• Incorrect categorization of committees undermines their purpose, which is to ensure smooth legislative functioning and accountability in parliamentary proceedings.

Additional Information

• Categories of Standing Committees:
  • Financial Committees: Includes the Public Accounts Committee, Estimates Committee, and Committee on Public Undertakings.
  • Committees to Inquire: Includes the Ethics Committee and Committee on Privileges.
  • Committees Relating to Day-to-Day Business: Includes the Business Advisory Committee, Rules Committee, and Committee on Absence of Members from Sittings of the House.
  • Committees to Scrutinise and Control: Includes committees like Public Accounts and Estimates Committees.
• Sixth Schedule:
  • Applies to the administration of tribal areas in Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura, and Mizoram.
  • Empowers district and regional councils to make laws, but these require the Governor's assent.
• Role of the Governor:
  • The Governor has the authority to reorganize autonomous districts and regions in tribal areas under the Sixth Schedule.
  • The Governor plays a supervisory role to ensure that tribal governance aligns with constitutional provisions.
• Comparison with Fifth Schedule:
  • The Fifth Schedule deals with scheduled areas and tribes outside the northeastern states and does not include district councils.
  • It focuses on the administration and welfare of scheduled tribes through Tribes Advisory Councils.

The correct answer is 4. The statement about the arrest of members during the session is incorrect. Members of Parliament cannot be arrested during the session and for 40 days before or after the session, but this privilege is available only in civil cases and not in criminal or preventive detention cases.

• Rule 193 (of the Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Business in Lok Sabha) does not involve a formal motion before the Parliament House, hence no voting can take place after the discussion on matters under this rule.
• Rule 184 allows voting but rule 193 doesn't.
• Lok Sabha is the lower house of the Parliament, while Rajya Sabha is the upper house.

The correct answer is Lal Bahadur Shastri.

Key Points

• Lal Bahadur Shastri was the second Prime minister in India.
  • He served as the Prime minister of India from 1964 to 1966.
  • He was the Prime Minister of India during the Indo-Pak war in 1965.
  • His birthday also falls on 2^nd October along with Mahatma Gandhi's birthday.
  • The famous slogan "Jai Jawan, Jai Kisan" was raised by Lal Bahadur Shastri.
  • He signed on Tashkent Declaration along with the then-President of Pakistan Muhammad Ayub Khan on 10^th January 1966.
  • He is the first prime minister to die abroad.
  • He was honoured with the Bharat Ratna in 1966.
  • He was the first person to receive Bharat Ratna posthumously.
  • The resting place of Lal Bahadur Shastri is called Vijayghat.

Additional Information

• Jawaharlal Nehru was the Prime Minister of India during the Indo-China war in 1962.
• Indira Gandhi was the Prime Minister of India during the Indo-Pak war in 1971.
• Rajiv Gandhi was the Prime Minister of India when the Bhopal gas tragedy took place in 1984.

The correct answer is the Quasi-Judicial Procedure.

Important Points

• The procedure of Impeachment of the President of India is the Quasi-Judicial Procedure.
• The procedure begins with the introduction of a bill in either house of Parliament.
• The only condition for the initiation of the impeachment of the Indian president is the ‘violation of the constitution.
• None of the presidents of India has faced impeachment so far.
• A quasi-judicial body is an organ of Government other than a Court or Legislature, which affects the rights of private parties either through adjudication or rulemaking”.
• It is not mandatory that a Quasi-Judicial Body has to necessarily be an organization resembling a Court of Law.
  • For example, the Election Commission of India is also a Quasi-Judicial Body but does not have its core functions as a Court of Law.
• Some examples of Quasi-Judicial Bodies in India are the Election Commission of India, the National Green Tribunal, and the Central Information Commission (CIC).

Key Points

• Process of Impeachment of the President of India:
  • When a President is to be impeached for violation of the Constitution, the charge shall be preferred by either House of Parliament.
  • For the motion to be valid, it must be signed by at least one-fourth of the total members of the house where it is introduced
  • In the case of the Lok Sabha, this means that the motion must be signed by at least one-fourth of the total Lok Sabha members.
  • A 14-day notice is given to the President of India.
  • Then, Lok Sabha passes the impeachment charges with a two-thirds majority and sends it to Rajya Sabha.
  • Then, the Rajya Sabha investigates the charges.
  • While Rajya Sabha is investigating the charges, the President has the right to sit in the proceedings.
  • Rajya Sabha agrees to the charges and passes it with a two-thirds majority and the President is removed.

The correct answer is a simple majority of its members.

• Parliament can Amend the provision on the official language of India under the Constitution by a simple majority of its members.

Key Points

• Eighth Schedule and related Constitutional Provisions​
• Part XVII of the Indian constitution deals with the official languages in Articles 343 to​​ 351.
• The Constitutional provisions related to the Eighth Schedule are:
  • Article 344: Article 344(1) provides for the constitution of a Commission by the President on the expiration of five years from the commencement of the Constitution.
  • Article 351: It provides for the spread of the Hindi language to develop it so that it may serve as a medium of expression for all the elements of the composite culture of India.
• Hence option 1 is correct.

Additional Information 22 Official Languages

• The Eighth Schedule to the Constitution consists of the following 22 languages:
• Assamese, Bengali, Gujarati, Hindi, Kannada,  Kashmiri,  Konkani, Malayalam, Manipuri,  Marathi,  Nepali,  Oriya,  Punjabi,  Sanskrit,  Sindhi, Tamil, Telugu, Urdu, Bodo, Santhali, Maithili, and  Dogri.
• Of these languages, 14 were initially included in the Constitution.
  • The Sindhi language was added by the 21st Amendment Act of 1967.
  • Konkani, Manipuri, and Nepali were included by the 71st Amendment Act of 1992.
  • Bodo, Dogri, Maithili, and Santhali were added by the 92nd Amendment Act of 2003.

The correct answer is Article 85.

Key Points

• Article 79 to Article 122 in Part V of the constitution deals with the procedures, and powers, of the Parliament.
• Article 85 deals with sessions of Parliament, its prorogation, and dissolution.
• Sessions of the Parliament:
  • ​Summoning: President summons both houses and usually there are three sessions in a year though not compulsory
    • Budget session: February to May
    • Monsoon session: July to September
    • Winter session: November to December
    • The maximum gap between two sessions should not be more than 6 months.
  • Adjournment: Suspends the work for a specific time in a sitting which may be for hours, days or weeks.
  • Adjournment Sine Die: Terminates the sitting of Parliament for an indefinite period.
  • Prorogation: President may not only terminates a session but also a session of the House. It does not affect the bills or any other business pending before the house.
  • Dissolution: Irrevocable process and only Lok Sabha is subjected to it. President decides to dissolve the house.

Additional Information

The Correct Answer is Article 56.

Key Points

• Article 52 to 78 in Part V of the Constitution deal with the Union Executive. The union executive consists of the president, the vice president, the prime minister, the council of ministers, and the Attorney General of India.
• The president (article 52) is the head of the Indian state. He is head of all  Supreme Commander of all the armed forces.
• He is the first citizen of the country and acts as the symbol of the integrity and solidarity of the nation.
• Article 38-State to secure a social order for the promotion of the welfare of the people.
• Article 36- Definition of State which is given in Article 12
• Article 56 -Term of office of President. (5 Years)

Important Points 

• Articles Related to President of India:

The correct answer is Vice President of India.

• The Vice President of India is the second-highest position in India.
  • Article 63 of the Indian Constitution states that there shall be a Vice President of India.
  • The Vice President is elected by an Electoral College of India.
  • The term of Vice President is 5 years.
  • The powers and functions of the Vice President of India are similar to that of the Vice President of America.
  • The Vice President of India is the Ex-Office Chairman of Rajya Sabha.
  • Current Vice President of India: Jagdeep Dhankhar
• Current Opposition Leader in Rajya Sabha: Mallikarjun Kharge
• Current Speaker of Lok Sabha: Om Birla (As of Mar. 2024)
• Current Prime Minister of India: Narendra Damodardas Modi (As of Mar. 2024)

The Correct Answer is Article 61.

Key Points

• Procedure for impeachment of the President: 
  • When a President is impeached for violating the Constitution, either House of Parliament must support the charge. No such charge shall be preferred until it is accepted by not less than two-thirds of the total membership of the House.
  • When either House of Parliament prefers an accusation, the other House investigates or causes the charge to be investigated, with the President having the right to appear and be served during the investigation.
  • If a resolution is passed as a result of the investigation, with not less than two-thirds of the total membership of the House from which the charge was investigated or caused to be investigated, declaring that the charge preferred against the President has been sustained, such resolution would have the effect of excluding the President from office as of the date on which the resolution is passed.

Additional Information

• On December 28, 1948, the Constituent Assembly debated Draft Article 50 (Article 61 of the Indian Constitution).
• The process for removing the President of India from office was outlined in the Draft Article.

Important Points

The correct answer is Article 60.​Key Points

• Article 60: Oath or affirmation by the president.
• The Oath or affirmation is given to the President by the Chief Justice of India and in his absence by the Senior-most judge of the Supreme Court.
• Oath or Affirmation by the President:- Before entering his office, the President has to make and subscribe to an oath or affirmation. In his oath, the President swears:
  • To faithfully execute the office.
  • To preserve, protect and defend the Constitution and law.
  • To devote himself to the service and well-being of the people of India.

Additional Information

• Important articles related to President:

The correct answer is Article 72. 

• Article 72 of the Indian Constitution gives the President the power of pardoning.

Key Points

• Pardon: means completely absolving the person of the crime and letting him go free.
• Under Article 72, the President of India can grant a pardon or reduce the sentence of a convicted person, particularly in cases involving capital punishment.
• There are five different types of pardoning that are mandated by law: Pardon, Commutation, Reprieve, Respite, and Remission.

Additional Information

• Article 73: The extent of the executive power of the Union.
• Article 74: This article provides for a Council of Ministers which shall aid the President in the exercise of his functions. 
• Article 76: Article 76 deals with the Attorney General of India.
• Article 77: Conduct of business of the Government of India.