UPSC Prelims Practice Questions — The right to protest and the limits of police power

Q1. Article 19(3) permits the State to impose reasonable restrictions on the freedom to assemble peaceably. Consider the following grounds: 1. In the interest of the sovereignty and integrity of India 2. In the interest of public order 3. In the interest of decency or morality 4. In the interest of friendly relations with foreign States Which of the above are correctly identified as grounds on which the freedom of assembly can be restricted under Article 19(3)?

  1. In the interest of the sovereignty and integrity of India
  2. In the interest of public order
  3. In the interest of decency or morality
  4. In the interest of friendly relations with foreign States
  • A. 1 and 2 only
  • B. 1, 2 and 3 only
  • C. 2 and 4 only
  • D. 1, 3 and 4 only

Q2. Consider the following statements regarding the right to assemble under the Constitution: 1. The right under Article 19(1)(b) is available to citizens of India and not to foreigners. 2. The assembly protected by Article 19(1)(b) must be peaceable and without arms. 3. The freedom of assembly is absolute and cannot be subjected to any statutory restriction whatsoever. 4. The ground 'sovereignty and integrity of India' was inserted into Article 19(3) by the Constitution (Sixteenth Amendment) Act, 1963. Which of the statements given above is NOT correct?

  1. The right under Article 19(1)(b) is available to citizens of India and not to foreigners.
  2. The assembly protected by Article 19(1)(b) must be peaceable and without arms.
  3. The freedom of assembly is absolute and cannot be subjected to any statutory restriction whatsoever.
  4. The ground 'sovereignty and integrity of India' was inserted into Article 19(3) by the Constitution (Sixteenth Amendment) Act, 1963.
  • A. 1 only
  • B. 3 only
  • C. 2 and 4 only
  • D. 4 only

Q3. Under Section 148 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, in the absence of an Executive Magistrate or an officer in charge of a police station, what is the LOWEST rank of police officer competent to command an unlawful assembly to disperse?

  • A. Head Constable in charge of a beat within the local police station limits
  • B. Assistant Sub-Inspector deputed to the location of the assembly
  • C. Sub-Inspector, being an officer not below that rank
  • D. Deputy Superintendent of Police holding subdivisional charge

Q4. In the Shaheen Bagh judgment (Amit Sahni, 2020), on whom did the Supreme Court place the primary responsibility for keeping public ways clear and acting against protesters occupying non-designated public spaces?

  • A. The concerned administration and police, who must act on their own authority without awaiting specific court directions
  • B. The Supreme Court alone, acting exclusively through its writ jurisdiction under Article 32
  • C. The Lieutenant Governor of the concerned territory, acting solely in his individual discretion
  • D. The National Human Rights Commission, which alone is empowered to order such removal

Q5. The judicial principle that dissent must be expressed only at designated protest sites and that public places cannot be occupied indefinitely was laid down by the Supreme Court in which one of the following cases?

  • A. Amit Sahni v. Commissioner of Police (2020)
  • B. Anuradha Bhasin v. Union of India (2020)
  • C. Ramlila Maidan Incident v. Home Secretary, Union of India (2012)
  • D. Himat Lal K. Shah v. Commissioner of Police, Ahmedabad (1973)

Q6. Under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, an unlawful assembly is said to have committed the offence of 'rioting' precisely at the point when—

  • A. force or violence is used by the assembly, or by any member of it, in prosecution of its common object
  • B. the assembly grows to ten or more persons at the site of gathering
  • C. the assembly refuses to disperse after a lawful command issued by a magistrate
  • D. any one member of the assembly is found to be carrying a deadly weapon

Q7. Under the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, when an unlawful assembly is to be dispersed with the help of the armed forces, the operation is required to be commanded by—

  • A. the Executive Magistrate of the highest rank who is present at the scene
  • B. the senior-most military officer present, acting independently of any Executive Magistrate
  • C. the District Superintendent of Police in every case, irrespective of magisterial presence
  • D. the Commissioner of Police of the concerned city, who alone can authorise it

Q8. The July 2026 'Chalo Sansad' march at Jantar Mantar was triggered by alleged irregularities in entrance examinations such as NEET-UG. Which one of the following bodies actually conducts the NEET-UG examination?

  • A. The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE)
  • B. The National Testing Agency (NTA)
  • C. The National Medical Commission (NMC)
  • D. The University Grants Commission (UGC)

Q9. Under the Temporary Suspension of Telecom Services (Public Emergency or Public Safety) Rules, 2017, an order suspending telecom/internet services by the Union Government must be issued by the competent authority, namely the—

  • A. Secretary to the Government of India in the Ministry of Home Affairs
  • B. Secretary, Department of Telecommunications, in the Ministry of Communications
  • C. Chairperson of the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI)
  • D. Secretary to the Government of India in the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology

Q10. The National Testing Agency (NTA), currently under scrutiny over exam irregularities, functions as an autonomous body under which one of the following?

  • A. The Department of Higher Education, Ministry of Education
  • B. The Department of School Education and Literacy, Ministry of Education
  • C. The Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship
  • D. The Department of Science and Technology, Ministry of Science and Technology

Q11. The Commissioner of Police, Delhi, who heads the Delhi Police, is administratively controlled by and reports to which one of the following?

  • A. The Union Home Minister, through the Ministry of Home Affairs
  • B. The Lieutenant Governor of Delhi, acting in his sole discretion
  • C. The Chief Minister of the Government of NCT of Delhi
  • D. The Delhi High Court, on its administrative side