UPSC Prelims Practice Questions — Same-sex partner can be made nominee for medical decisions, Centre tells HC
Q1. With reference to the 'nominated representative' and the 'advance directive' under the Mental Healthcare Act, 2017, consider the following statements:
1. A nominated representative under the Act can only be a blood relative or the spouse of the person concerned.
2. An advance directive may state both the manner in which the person wishes to be treated and who the nominated representative shall be, and it must be certified by a medical practitioner or registered with the Mental Health Review Board.
3. Where the person concerned is a minor, the Board shall appoint the Director in the Department of Social Welfare of the State in which the Board is located, or his nominee, as the nominated representative.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
- A nominated representative under the Act can only be a blood relative or the spouse of the person concerned.
- An advance directive may state both the manner in which the person wishes to be treated and who the nominated representative shall be, and it must be certified by a medical practitioner or registered with the Mental Health Review Board.
- Where the person concerned is a minor, the Board shall appoint the Director in the Department of Social Welfare of the State in which the Board is located, or his nominee, as the nominated representative.
- A. 1 and 2 only
- B. 1 and 3 only
- C. 2 and 3 only
- D. 1, 2 and 3
Q2. Consider the following powers in relation to the Mental Health Review Boards constituted under the Mental Healthcare Act, 2017:
1. To register, review, alter or cancel an advance directive.
2. To appoint a nominated representative.
3. To adjudicate complaints regarding deficiencies in the provision of care, treatment and services in a mental health establishment.
4. To lay down the curriculum and minimum standards of postgraduate medical education in psychiatry.
Which of the above is/are NOT correctly attributed to the Mental Health Review Boards?
- To register, review, alter or cancel an advance directive.
- To appoint a nominated representative.
- To adjudicate complaints regarding deficiencies in the provision of care, treatment and services in a mental health establishment.
- To lay down the curriculum and minimum standards of postgraduate medical education in psychiatry.
- A. 1 and 3
- B. 2 and 4
- C. 4 only
- D. 3 and 4
Q3. The Union Government's position before the Delhi High Court in 2026 — that a competent adult may nominate a partner in a non-heterosexual relationship to take medical decisions on his or her behalf during incapacity — was presented as an extension of the statutory concept of the 'nominated representative' contained in which one of the following?
- A. The Mental Healthcare Act, 2017, under which a person may appoint such a representative by a written declaration
- B. The Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016, under which a person may seek a limited guardian for support in decisions
- C. The Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act, 2019, under which a person may obtain a certificate of identity from the District Magistrate
- D. The National Medical Commission Act, 2019, under which the Ethics and Medical Registration Board regulates professional conduct
Q4. With reference to the position taken by the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare and the National Medical Commission before the Delhi High Court in 2026 on nomination of a partner for medical decisions, consider the following:
1. A competent adult may nominate a partner, including one in a same-sex relationship, to take medical decisions on his or her behalf in the event of incapacity.
2. The expression 'spouse' under Indian matrimonial law continues to mean the husband or wife of a legally recognised marriage.
3. Giving effect to such a nomination requires a prior amendment of the governing statute before hospitals may act upon it.
4. The position extends recognition to same-sex marriages and civil unions for the purpose of obtaining consent in hospitals.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
- A competent adult may nominate a partner, including one in a same-sex relationship, to take medical decisions on his or her behalf in the event of incapacity.
- The expression 'spouse' under Indian matrimonial law continues to mean the husband or wife of a legally recognised marriage.
- Giving effect to such a nomination requires a prior amendment of the governing statute before hospitals may act upon it.
- The position extends recognition to same-sex marriages and civil unions for the purpose of obtaining consent in hospitals.
- A. 1 and 2
- B. 2 and 3
- C. 1, 3 and 4
- D. 4 only
Q5. Consider the following statements regarding the outcome of Supriyo v. Union of India (2023):
1. The Court declined to read the Special Marriage Act, 1954 as covering same-sex couples, holding that any such change is for Parliament to make.
2. The Court declined to recognise a right to enter into a civil union for queer couples.
3. The Centre was directed to proceed with a committee headed by the Union Home Secretary to examine entitlements such as ration cards, joint bank accounts, pension and gratuity for same-sex couples.
4. Review petitions against the verdict were dismissed by a five-judge bench in January 2025 on the ground that no error was apparent on the face of the record.
Which of the statements given above is/are NOT correct?
- The Court declined to read the Special Marriage Act, 1954 as covering same-sex couples, holding that any such change is for Parliament to make.
- The Court declined to recognise a right to enter into a civil union for queer couples.
- The Centre was directed to proceed with a committee headed by the Union Home Secretary to examine entitlements such as ration cards, joint bank accounts, pension and gratuity for same-sex couples.
- Review petitions against the verdict were dismissed by a five-judge bench in January 2025 on the ground that no error was apparent on the face of the record.
- A. 1 and 2
- B. 2 and 4
- C. 1 and 3
- D. 3 only
Q6. The five-judge Constitution Bench that delivered the 3:2 verdict of October 2023 on the pleas seeking legal recognition of same-sex marriage was presided over by which one of the following?
- A. Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul, who was part of the Constitution Bench that heard the pleas
- B. Justice Dipak Misra, who headed the bench that read down Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code
- C. Justice D Y Chandrachud, who held that it is for Parliament to alter the Special Marriage Act
- D. Justice S Ravindra Bhat, who authored one of the opinions delivered in the case
Q7. Consider the following statements comparing the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955 and the Special Marriage Act, 1954:
1. Under the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955, the minimum age of marriage is 21 years in the case of the bridegroom and 18 years in the case of the bride.
2. Under the Special Marriage Act, 1954, any person may object to an intended marriage before the expiry of thirty days from the date of publication of the notice, on the ground that it contravenes a condition for solemnization.
3. The conditions for solemnization are set out in Section 4 of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955, whereas Section 5 of the Special Marriage Act, 1954 provides the period for objections.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
- Under the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955, the minimum age of marriage is 21 years in the case of the bridegroom and 18 years in the case of the bride.
- Under the Special Marriage Act, 1954, any person may object to an intended marriage before the expiry of thirty days from the date of publication of the notice, on the ground that it contravenes a condition for solemnization.
- The conditions for solemnization are set out in Section 4 of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955, whereas Section 5 of the Special Marriage Act, 1954 provides the period for objections.
- A. 1 and 2 only
- B. 2 and 3 only
- C. 1 and 3 only
- D. 1, 2 and 3
Q8. Which one of the following is the principal central statute under which two persons may acquire the legal status of husband and wife without either of them having to profess or renounce any particular religion?
- A. The Hindu Marriage Act, 1955, which applies to Hindus, Buddhists, Jains and Sikhs by religion
- B. The Special Marriage Act, 1954, under which marriages are solemnized by a Marriage Officer after notice
- C. The Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006, which governs the validity of marriages of minors
- D. The Indian Divorce Act, 1869, which governs matrimonial causes among Indian Christians
Q9. The National Medical Commission, which subsumed the Medical Council of India, consists of how many members appointed by the Central Government?
Q10. In the procedure laid down by the Supreme Court for giving effect to an advance medical directive, the expression 'secondary medical board' denotes which one of the following?
- A. A board of three experts nominated by the district chief medical officer, required to convey its decision within forty-eight hours
- B. A board of the treating physicians along with two experts of more than five years' standing, constituted by the hospital concerned
- C. A panel constituted by the Judicial Magistrate of the First Class to countersign the document and preserve a copy in the district record room
- D. A panel of a notary and a gazetted officer before whom the executor signs the document in the presence of two attesting witnesses
Q11. The National Council for Transgender Persons, a statutory body constituted under the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act, 2019, is chaired ex officio by the Union Minister in charge of which one of the following Ministries?
- A. The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, which is solely responsible for gender-identity certification in the country
- B. The Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, whose Secretary is also a member of the Council
- C. The Ministry of Women and Child Development, which necessarily handles all gender-related statutory councils
- D. The Ministry of Home Affairs, which alone determines the legal identity documents of all citizens
Q12. In the Delhi High Court proceedings on recognising a same-sex partner as an authorised medical decision-maker, the position of the Union Government was placed on record jointly with which one of the following bodies?
- A. The Indian Council of Medical Research, the apex body for biomedical research under the Health Ministry
- B. The Medical Council of India, which continues to be the sole registering authority for all practitioners
- C. The National Health Authority, which alone administers every hospital consent protocol in the country
- D. The National Medical Commission, the statutory regulator of medical education and professional conduct