UPSC Prelims Practice Questions — MP moves SC over mass surveillance at protest

Question 1

The judgment in K.S. Puttaswamy v. Union of India, which declared privacy to be a fundamental right, was delivered by a Bench comprising how many judges of the Supreme Court?

Accepted Answer

Nine judges, constituted as a Bench of the Supreme Court of India

Answer

Five judges, the minimum strength prescribed for deciding a substantial question of constitutional interpretation

Answer

Seven judges, the strength constituted to reconsider earlier Bench decisions on the point

Answer

Eleven judges, the largest Bench assembled by the Court in a fundamental rights matter

Question 2

Consider the following statements comparing the Automated Facial Recognition System (AFRS) with the National Automated Fingerprint Identification System (NAFIS):
1. AFRS is designed to identify persons from facial images and is intended to help identify criminals, unidentified dead bodies and missing or found persons, whereas NAFIS is a searchable national repository of criminal fingerprint records.
2. Both AFRS and NAFIS are projects of the National Crime Records Bureau, which functions under the Ministry of Home Affairs.
3. Unlike AFRS, NAFIS has been confined to the Central Finger Print Bureau and has not been extended to State fingerprint bureaux or district-level units.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

Accepted Answer

1 and 2 only

Answer

1 only

Answer

2 and 3 only

Answer

1, 2 and 3

Question 3

The petition moved in the Supreme Court in July 2026 against Delhi Police's facial-recognition-based surveillance of protesters rests principally on the three-part test of legality, legitimate aim and proportionality laid down in which one of the following judgments?

Accepted Answer

K.S. Puttaswamy v. Union of India, concerning the constitutional status of privacy

Answer

Kharak Singh v. State of Uttar Pradesh, concerning police surveillance and domiciliary visits

Answer

People's Union for Civil Liberties v. Union of India, concerning interception of telephone communications

Answer

Anuradha Bhasin v. Union of India, concerning restrictions on internet and movement

Question 4

Consider the following statements regarding the digital initiatives of the National Crime Records Bureau:
1. The Crime and Criminal Tracking Network and Systems (CCTNS) networks police stations with higher police offices, and by early 2020 had networked over 15,000 police stations.
2. The Crime Multi Agency Centre (Cri-MAC) was launched for sharing information on heinous crime and inter-State coordination, while the National Cybercrime Training Centre was launched to provide large-scale eLearning on cybercrime investigation to police officers, judges and prosecutors.
3. Cri-MAC and the National Cybercrime Training Centre were both launched by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology rather than by the National Crime Records Bureau.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

Accepted Answer

1 and 2 only

Answer

2 only

Answer

2 and 3 only

Answer

1 and 3 only

Question 5

Consider the following statements comparing Article 19 with Article 21 of the Constitution of India:
1. The freedoms under Article 19(1) are guaranteed to citizens, whereas the protection of life and personal liberty under Article 21 is available to all persons.
2. Article 19(2) enumerates specified grounds — such as public order, decency or morality, contempt of court and incitement to an offence — on which the freedom of speech and expression may be restricted.
3. Article 21 likewise enumerates the specified grounds on which personal liberty may be curtailed by the State.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

Accepted Answer

1 and 2 only

Answer

1 only

Answer

2 and 3 only

Answer

1, 2 and 3

Question 6

Consider the following statements comparing the Personal Data Protection Bill, 2019 with the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023:
1. Unlike the 2019 Bill, the 2023 Act does not create a distinct category of sensitive personal data attracting stricter obligations.
2. The right to data portability and the right to be forgotten, which figured in the 2019 Bill, were not retained in the 2023 Act.
3. Unlike the 2019 Bill, the 2023 Act extends its coverage to non-personal and anonymised data as well.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

Accepted Answer

1 and 2 only

Answer

1 and 3 only

Answer

2 only

Answer

1, 2 and 3

Question 7

The election of representatives of a State to the Rajya Sabha, by the elected members of that State's Legislative Assembly, is conducted under the superintendence, direction and control of which one of the following?

Accepted Answer

The Election Commission of India, which oversees the electoral process for both Houses of Parliament

Answer

The Rajya Sabha Secretariat, acting solely under the direction of the Chairman of the Council of States

Answer

The Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs, which exclusively coordinates all parliamentary elections for the Union

Answer

The State Election Commission concerned, which alone conducts every election held within the territory of that State

UPSC Prelims Practice Questions — MP moves SC over mass surveillance at protest

Q1. The judgment in K.S. Puttaswamy v. Union of India, which declared privacy to be a fundamental right, was delivered by a Bench comprising how many judges of the Supreme Court?

Q3. The petition moved in the Supreme Court in July 2026 against Delhi Police's facial-recognition-based surveillance of protesters rests principally on the three-part test of legality, legitimate aim and proportionality laid down in which one of the following judgments?

Q7. The election of representatives of a State to the Rajya Sabha, by the elected members of that State's Legislative Assembly, is conducted under the superintendence, direction and control of which one of the following?