SPL
(VIII)-LESSON-1
INDIAN
CONSTITUTION
(QUESTION ANSWERS)
(NCERT
EXERCISE)
Question 1. Why does a democratic country
need a Constitution?
Answers:- A democratic country needs a constitution
because:
A Constitution
serves as a set of rules and principles that all persons in a country
agree.(example story-Nepal)
Ø It also define the
nature of a country’s political system( example story-Nepal)
Ø The Constitution
also provides safeguards against the authority who have the power.(Ex-Class
room story)
Ø Constitution also
ensures that a dominant group does not use its power against less powerful
people.(example-Football Match Story)
Question 2. What is the difference in who
exercises Executive Power in the 1990 and Interim Constitutions of Nepal?
Keeping this in mind, why do you think Nepal needs a new Constitution today?
Answer- In the 1990 Nepal constitution, the Executive
powers of the Kingdom were entirely in the hands of the King. According to the
Interim constitution drafted in 2007, the executive powers of Nepal are in the
hands of the council of ministers headed by the Prime Minister.
There was a dire need for a new constitution as the ideals
of the people had changed as the country had moved from a monarchy to a
democracy. The old constitution was drafted when the country was under the rule
of the king. The people of Nepal fought for a democratic government for many
years. So the old constitution does not reflect the ideals of the people. The
new constitution will change the rules of the old constitution in order to
bring in a new society with new ideas.
Question 3. What would happen if there
were no restrictions on the power of elected representatives?
Solution: If there were no restrictions on the power
of elected representatives then:
• These
leaders (representatives) might misuse their authority.
• This
misuse of authority can result in gross injustice and mismanagement.
Question 4
In each of the following situations, identify the
minority. Write one reason why you think it is important to respect the views
of the minority in each of these situations.
(a) In a school with 30 teachers, 20 of them are male.
(b) In a city, 5 percent of the population are
Buddhists.
(c) In a factory mess for all employees, 80 percent
are vegetarians.
(d) In a class of 50 students, 40 belong to more
well-off families.
Answer:- (a) 10 female teachers are in minority.
It is important to respect the views of female
teachers so that male teachers do not use their power against them.
(b) 5 percent of Buddhists are in minority.
It is important to respect the views of Buddhists so
that they will not be dominated by the community in the majority.
(c) 20 percent of non-vegetarian employees are in
minority.
Their views should be respected as eating
non-vegetarian food is their personal choice.
(d) 10 students belong to poor families and are in
minority. Scholarships, special classes, and other welfare schemes like book bank,
free supply of books, stationary and free uniform are to be planned to keep in
view their requirements.
Question 5 Listed below are the key
features of the Indian Constitution. Write two sentences, in your own words, on
why you think this feature is an important key feature of
1. Federalism
2. Separation
of Powers
3. Fundamental
Rights
4. Parliamentary
Form of Government
Answer:-
1. Federalism:
It means more
than one level of government in the country. India has a 3 tier government.
India needs a 3 tier government because of the diverse religious and cultural
composition of its citizens. A government in the centre alone could not be
effective for everyone.
2. Separation
of Powers:
In order to prevent the misuse of power by the elected
representative the constitution advocate Separation of powers. Each branch of
the government has its powers fixed by the Constitution. The Constitution
ensures that a balance of power is maintained between the Legislature Executive
and the Judiciary.
3. Fundamental
Rights:
Fundamental Rights guarantees the rights of
individuals against the State as well as against other individuals. It protects
minority communities and guarantees rights against the majority.
4. Parliamentary
Form of Government:
In a Parliamentary form of government, the
constitution guarantees universal adult franchise for all citizens. That is,
all adults have a right to vote, irrespective of whether they are poor or rich,
educated or uneducated, a Hindu, Muslim or a Christian. The idea of a universal
adult franchise is based on equality.
OTHER
IMPORTANT QUESTIONS
1. What is a
constitution?
Answer: In Politics a Constitution can be described as
a document outlining the basic laws or principles by which a country is to be
governed
2. Write
a brief note on the making of the Indian Constitution.
Answer: The Indian Constitutional Assembly was convened
on 9 December 1946. The members of this Assembly were only Indians. This
Assembly started drafting the Constitution for Independent India. Dr. Ambedkar
was the Chairman of the Constitution drafting committee.
The constitution declares India to be a sovereign,
democratic republic and establishes the structure, procedures, powers and
duties, of the government and duties of citizens.
?The 308 members of the Assembly signed two
hand-written copies of the document (one each in Hindi and English) on the January
24, 1950. Two days later, on January 26, 1950, the Constitution of India became
the law of all the Indian lands.
Answer: In Nepal, the Interim Constitution came into
effect from January 15, 2007.
4. Write
a brief note on the struggle for freedom in Nepal.
Answer: In Nepal, there was a people’s struggle for
freedom in 1990. Democracy was established and it lasted for 12 years until
2002.
In October 2002, King Gyanendra began taking over the
government with the assistance of the army. In 2005 King Gyanendra took over as
the head of the government.
In 2006 people’s movement for democracy began gaining
immense force. In April 2006 the King restored the Third Parliament and asked
the political parties to form a government. In 2007, Nepal adopted an Interim
Constitution and Nepal gained political freedom.
5. What
are the negative points of a democratic society?
Answer: In a democratic society Power can be misused.
Sometimes the Majority can undermine minority. The citizens need certain rules
to save themselves from folly.
6. How
can a leader misuse power in a democratic country?
Answer: A leader misusing his power may send his
security guards to beat up his neighbours for a personal reason or ask the
police not to take action against a relative who has committed a crime.
7. How
does the Indian Constitution safe guard the minorities of the country?
Answer: The Indian constitution ensures that the
dominant group does not use its power against other, less powerful people or
groups.
The Constitution contains rules that ensure that
minorities are not excluded from anything that is routinely available to the
majority. It also prevents the domination of the majority over the minority.
8. Mention
the key features of the Indian Constitution.
Answer: The key features of the Indian constitution
are:-
Federalism
Parliamentary Form of Government
Separation of Powers
Fundamental Rights
Secularism
9. What are the factors the drafting committee
had to take into consideration while drafting the constitution?
Answer: The committee had to keep in mind that India
was a land of many communities, languages and many religions. India was a land
of diverse cultures and the Princely states in India had to be considered. The
partition of the country into India and Pakistan was about to happen and the
drafting committee had to bear this in mind. Finally the biggest consideration
was the socio-economic condition of a majority of Indians which was in a bad
state.
10. What were the highlights of the text prepared
by Dr. B.R. Ambedkar, who was the Chairman of the constitution drafting
committee?
Answer: Highlights of the Text prepared by Dr.
Ambedkar are:-
Constitutional guarantees and protections for
individual citizens
Freedom of religion
Abolition of untouchability
Outlawing of all forms of discrimination
Economic and social rights for women
Reservations of jobs in the civil services, schools
and colleges for members of scheduled castes and scheduled tribes.
11. What is universal adult franchise?
Answer: Universal adult franchise is every adult
citizen having a right to vote irrespective of sex, caste, creed, education and
financial status.
12.
What do you mean by the legislature, the executive and the judiciary?
Answer: The legislature refers to our elected
representatives.
The executive is a smaller group of people who are
responsible for implementing laws and running the government.
The judiciary refers to the system of courts in this
country.
13. What are the key components of
fundamental rights?
Answer: The key components of Fundamental rights are:-
Right to Equality
Right to Freedom
Right against Exploitation
Right to Freedom of Religion
Cultural and Educational Rights
Right to Constitutional Remedies
14.
What is secularism?
Answer: Secularism is the right of the citizens to
practice any religion. A secular state is one in which the state does not
officially promote any one religion as the state religion.
MCQS
QUESTIONS
|
Q1- In 1934, _____ demanded for
a Constituent Assembly for the first time. A) Indian National Congress B) Swarajya Party C) Forward Block D) Communist Party |
|
Q2- The Indian Constitution was
drafted by _____. A) Congress B) Constituent Assembly C) Judicial Assembly D) Hindu Mahasbha |
|
Q3- In Nepal, the struggle for
democracy started in _____. A) 1990 B) 1991 C) 1992 D) 1994 |
|
Q4- The father of Indian Constitution
is ____. A) B R Ambedkar B) Liaquat Ali Khan C) Rajendra Prasad D) S C Sinha |
|
Q5- To ensure greater economic
and social reforms, the Constitution introduced A) Directive Principles of
State Policy B) Fundamental Rights C) Judiciary Rights D) Executive Rights |
|
Q6- ______ is a group of people
who make laws and run the government. A) Congress B) Judiciary C) Government D) Executive |
|
Q7- Shri Jagjivan Ram was the
first _____ minister of India. A) labour B) health C) Parliamentary Affairs D) Home |
|
Q8- The existence of more than
one level of government in any country is called ____ A) Democracy B) Federalism C) Universal Adult Franchise D) Monarchy |
|
Q9- The Human trafficking and
forced labour are prohibited under ____. A) Culture and Educational
Rights B) Right against Exploitation C) Right to freedom of Religion D) Right to Property |
|
Q10- The Indian government is a
_____ form of government. A) Monarchy B) Military C) Parliamentary D) Dictatorship |
|
Q11- Right to Move Freely falls
under ____. A) Right against Exploitation B) Right to Property C) Right to freedom D) Culture and Educational
Rights |
|
Q12- The system of courts in
the country is collectively referred as ______. A) Judiciary B) Congress C) Ministers D) Executive |
|
Q13- ____ was the first Finance
minister of India. A) Atal Bihari Bajpai B) John Mathai C) Maulana Azad D) Liaquat Ali |
|
Q14- ____ were urged by B R
Ambedkar to join government and civil services. A) Hindus B) Pashtuns C) Scheduled Castes D) Muslims |
|
Q15- The first Health Minister
of Independent India was _____. A) Aruna Asaf Ali B) Indira Gandhi C) Rajkumari Amrit Kaur D) C Rajaji |
|
Q16- _____ was the first Prime
Minister of independent India. A) Sardar Patel B) Mahatma Gandhi C) Jawaharlal Nehru D) Maulana Azad |
|
Q17- The Indian Constitution
was finally completed in _____. A) November 1946 B) September 1949 C) November 1949 D) August 1950 |
|
Q18- _____ was the President of
the Constituent Assembly. A) Dr Rajendra Prasad B) S Radhakrishnan C) B R Ambedkar D) C Rajaji |
|
Q19- The elected
representatives in India are part of ____. A) Judiciary B) Legislature C) Executive D) Cabinet |
|
Q20- Everyone is equal before
law.’ This right falls under _______. A) Right to Education B) Right to Vote C) Right to Equality D) Right to Study |
Answers
|
Q. No. |
Answer |
Q. No. |
Answer |
|
1 |
A |
11 |
C |
|
2 |
B |
12 |
A |
|
3 |
A |
13 |
B |
|
4 |
A |
14 |
C |
|
5 |
A |
15 |
C |
|
6 |
D |
16 |
C |
|
7 |
A |
17 |
C |
|
8 |
B |
18 |
A |
|
9 |
B |
19 |
B |
|
10 |
C |
20 |
|
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