UPSC Prelims Practice Questions — The need for political unity in Kashmir
Q1. As originally enacted, the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019 fixed the total number of seats in the Legislative Assembly of the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir — inclusive of the seats to remain vacant on account of the areas under the occupation of Pakistan — at:
Q2. The Presidential Order issued on 5 August 2019 rendered Article 370 inoperative principally through which one of the following devices?
- A. Repeal of Article 35A by a constitutional amendment enacted under Article 368 of the Constitution
- B. A declaration that the Instrument of Accession executed in 1947 had lapsed on the lapse of paramountcy
- C. Extension of the whole of the Constitution of India to the State by a law made by the State legislature
- D. Reading the expression 'Constituent Assembly of the State' in Article 370 as the 'Legislative Assembly of the State'
Q3. Before August 2019, under Article 35A, the authority competent to define the classes of persons who were 'permanent residents' of Jammu and Kashmir was:
- A. The Governor of the State, by notification published in the official Gazette
- B. The Legislature of the State of Jammu and Kashmir, by law
- C. The Parliament of India, by law made under the Union List
- D. The President of India, by order made under clause (1) of Article 370
Q4. With reference to the Supreme Court's judgment of 11 December 2023 on the abrogation of Article 370, consider the following:
1. It held that Article 370 was a temporary provision of the Constitution.
2. It directed the Election Commission to hold elections to the Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly by 30 September 2024.
3. It stated that the restoration of statehood to Jammu and Kashmir should take place as soon as possible.
4. It struck down as unconstitutional the carving out of the Union Territory of Ladakh from the erstwhile State.
Which of the above is/are correctly identified as part of the judgment?
- It held that Article 370 was a temporary provision of the Constitution.
- It directed the Election Commission to hold elections to the Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly by 30 September 2024.
- It stated that the restoration of statehood to Jammu and Kashmir should take place as soon as possible.
- It struck down as unconstitutional the carving out of the Union Territory of Ladakh from the erstwhile State.
- A. 1 and 4 only
- B. 2 and 3 only
- C. 1, 3 and 4
- D. 1, 2 and 3
Q5. The five-judge Constitution Bench that pronounced the December 2023 verdict upholding the abrogation of Article 370 was headed by:
- A. Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud
- B. Justice Sanjiv Khanna
- C. Justice Surya Kant
- D. Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul
Q6. Consider the following statements about the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly elections of October 2024 as compared with the previous Assembly election in the region:
1. They were the first Assembly elections held in Jammu and Kashmir after those of 2014.
2. The National Conference emerged as the single largest party with 42 seats, while its ally the Congress won six seats.
3. The National Conference crossed the majority mark entirely on its own strength, and every independent MLA elected in 2024 extended support to the People's Democratic Party.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
- They were the first Assembly elections held in Jammu and Kashmir after those of 2014.
- The National Conference emerged as the single largest party with 42 seats, while its ally the Congress won six seats.
- The National Conference crossed the majority mark entirely on its own strength, and every independent MLA elected in 2024 extended support to the People's Democratic Party.
- A. 1 only
- B. 1 and 2 only
- C. 2 and 3 only
- D. 1, 2 and 3
Q7. The organisation founded at Srinagar in October 1932 by Sheikh Muhammad Abdullah, out of which the present Jammu and Kashmir National Conference emerged in 1939, was known as:
- A. The Jammu and Kashmir Praja Parishad
- B. The Jammu and Kashmir Plebiscite Front
- C. The All Jammu and Kashmir Muslim Conference
- D. The All India Kashmir Committee
Q8. Permission for a political demonstration at a designated protest site in central Delhi, such as the one the National Conference sought in July 2026, is granted or refused by:
- A. The Government of the National Capital Territory of Delhi, through its Department of Home
- B. The Delhi Police, which functions under the Union Ministry of Home Affairs
- C. The New Delhi Municipal Council, under the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs
- D. The Lieutenant Governor's Secretariat, under the Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions
Q9. By the account of the National Conference leadership itself, the party's July 2026 statehood demonstration in Delhi was mounted by a contingent of approximately how many supporters?
- A. About 100
- B. About 250
- C. About 500
- D. About 1,000
Q10. Under the Government of India (Allocation of Business) Rules, 1961, matters of the Union Territories relating to legislation, finance and budget, services, and the appointment of Lieutenant Governors and Administrators are dealt with by:
- A. The Ministry of Law and Justice, through its Department of Legal Affairs
- B. The Ministry of Home Affairs
- C. The Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions, through the Department of Personnel and Training
- D. The Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, through its Delhi Division
Q11. Giving effect to the demand for restoration of full statehood to Jammu and Kashmir would, in the first instance, require action by which one of the following?
- A. The President, by a notification issued under Article 239 of the Constitution
- B. The Ministry of Home Affairs, by an order adapting central laws under the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019
- C. The Parliament, by enacting a law altering the status of the territory
- D. The Supreme Court, by executing its own December 2023 direction on statehood