Constitutional Bodies MCQs for UPSC Prelims

Correct answer: D - None of the statements (a), (b) and (c) given above is correct in this context

The Finance Commission, a constitutional body under Article 280, is set up every five years mainly to recommend the distribution of tax revenues between the Centre and the States and the principles governing grants-in-aid to the States. It has nothing to do with attracting foreign capital, distributing finances among public sector undertakings, or directly ensuring transparency in financial administration. Since none of the three given statements describes its function, the correct answer is 'None of the above'.

Correct answer: A - Only one

Only the Inter-State Council is a constitutional body, set up in 1990 by a Presidential Order under Article 263, which empowers the President to establish such a council to coordinate Centre-State and inter-State matters. The Zonal Councils are statutory bodies created under the States Reorganisation Act, 1956, not under the Constitution. The National Security Council is an executive body constituted in 1998 by a Government decision with no constitutional or statutory backing. Therefore only one of the three was established as per constitutional provisions, making (a) correct.

Correct answer: C - 1, 3 and 4 only

The Constitution expressly makes it the President's duty to cause certain documents to be laid before Parliament: the recommendations of the Union Finance Commission along with an explanatory memorandum (Article 281), so statement 1 is correct; the reports of the Comptroller and Auditor General (Article 151), so statement 3 is correct; and the reports of the National Commission for Scheduled Castes (Article 338), so statement 4 is correct. The Public Accounts Committee, however, is a committee of Parliament itself; its report is presented to the House by the committee and is not laid by the President, so statement 2 is wrong. Hence the answer is 1, 3 and 4 only.

Correct answer: A - Only one

Only the National Commission for Backward Classes is a constitutional body, having been given constitutional status under Article 338B by the 102nd Constitutional Amendment Act, 2018. The National Human Rights Commission is a statutory body under the Protection of Human Rights Act, 1993, and the National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission is statutory under the Consumer Protection Act. The Law Commission of India is neither constitutional nor statutory; it is an executive body constituted periodically by a government order. Hence the answer is only one.

Correct answer: D - Neither 1 nor 2

Under Articles 76 and 88, it is the Attorney General alone who has the constitutional right to speak and take part in the proceedings of either House; the Solicitor General is a statutory law officer with no such constitutional right, so statement 1 is incorrect. The Attorney General holds office during the pleasure of the President, and the Constitution prescribes no rule that he must resign when the government that appointed him demits office; resigning with the outgoing government is only a convention, so statement 2 is also incorrect. Both statements being wrong, the answer is neither 1 nor 2.

Correct answer: D - Planning Commission

NITI Aayog was created by a Union Cabinet resolution on 1 January 2015 as a policy think tank to replace the Planning Commission, shifting the emphasis from centralised five-year planning to cooperative federalism and indicative policy advice. The National Human Rights Commission continues as a statutory body under the Protection of Human Rights Act, 1993. The Finance Commission is a constitutional body under Article 280 and is constituted every five years for tax devolution. The Law Commission remains an executive advisory body for legal reform. None of these three was replaced by NITI Aayog.

Correct answer: C - 2 and 3 only

The CAG audits accounts after expenditure and reports to Parliament; its reports on ministries' projects and programmes are examined in detail by the Public Accounts Committee, so statement 2 is correct. The findings of audit can be and have been used by investigating agencies as the basis for pressing charges in cases of financial wrongdoing, so statement 3 is correct. Statement 1 is wrong because the CAG does not exercise exchequer or pre-spending control even during an emergency; it is an auditor of accounts already incurred, not a controller of the exchequer. Statement 4 is wrong because the CAG has no judicial or prosecuting powers; it can only report. Therefore only statements 2 and 3 are correct.

Correct answer: D - None

None of the statements is correct, so the answer is (d). Statement 1 is wrong because Union Territories such as Delhi and Puducherry do have representation in the Rajya Sabha; Article 80 provides for representatives of Union Territories. Statement 2 is wrong because election disputes are adjudicated by the judiciary (High Courts for parliamentary and assembly elections, the Supreme Court for presidential elections), not by the Chief Election Commissioner. Statement 3 is wrong because under Article 79 the Parliament consists of the President together with the two Houses, not the two Houses alone.