UPSC Prelims Practice Questions — SC stays Mukul Roy’s disqualification from Bengal Assembly
Q1. The Tenth Schedule of the Constitution of India, invoked in the recent Supreme Court stay of the Calcutta High Court order against Mukul Roy, was inserted by which one of the following Constitutional Amendment Acts?
- A. The Constitution (Forty-second Amendment) Act, 1976
- B. The Constitution (Forty-fourth Amendment) Act, 1978
- C. The Constitution (Fifty-second Amendment) Act, 1985
- D. The Constitution (Sixty-first Amendment) Act, 1989
Q2. With reference to the Tenth Schedule as originally enacted in 1985 and as amended by the Constitution (Ninety-first Amendment) Act, 2003, consider the following statements:
1. The 91st Amendment deleted the provision that had exempted a 'split' of one-third of a legislature party from disqualification.
2. The 91st Amendment retained the merger exception, which requires the consent of not less than two-thirds of the members of the legislature party.
3. The 91st Amendment, for the first time, made the Speaker's decision on disqualification subject to judicial review.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
- The 91st Amendment deleted the provision that had exempted a 'split' of one-third of a legislature party from disqualification.
- The 91st Amendment retained the merger exception, which requires the consent of not less than two-thirds of the members of the legislature party.
- The 91st Amendment, for the first time, made the Speaker's decision on disqualification subject to judicial review.
- A. 1 and 2 only
- B. 2 and 3 only
- C. 1 and 3 only
- D. 1, 2 and 3
Q3. Under the Tenth Schedule of the Constitution, who is the sole adjudicating authority of first instance for deciding the disqualification of a Member of a State Legislative Assembly on grounds of defection?
- A. The Governor of the State, acting on the aid and advice of the Council of Ministers
- B. The Speaker of the State Legislative Assembly
- C. The Election Commission of India
- D. The Chief Justice of the concerned High Court
Q4. With reference to the Tenth Schedule of the Constitution, consider the following circumstances involving a member of a State Legislative Assembly:
1. Voluntarily giving up the membership of the political party on whose ticket the member was elected.
2. Voting, or abstaining from voting, contrary to a direction issued by the political party without prior permission and without condonation within fifteen days.
3. Publicly criticising the leadership of one's own political party in a media interview.
4. Joining a political party after having been elected to the House as an independent candidate.
Which of the above is/are correctly identified as grounds for disqualification under the Tenth Schedule?
- Voluntarily giving up the membership of the political party on whose ticket the member was elected.
- Voting, or abstaining from voting, contrary to a direction issued by the political party without prior permission and without condonation within fifteen days.
- Publicly criticising the leadership of one's own political party in a media interview.
- Joining a political party after having been elected to the House as an independent candidate.
- A. 1 and 2 only
- B. 1, 2 and 4 only
- C. 2 and 4 only
- D. 1, 2, 3 and 4
Q5. In how many Articles of the Constitution of India is express provision made for disqualification of a member of a legislature 'under the Tenth Schedule', thereby anchoring the anti-defection law invoked in the Mukul Roy case?
- A. One
- B. Two
- C. Three
- D. Four