"Constitution, Preamble & Schedules" — Practice

Question 1

Who was the Chairman of the Drafting Committee of the Constituent Assembly?
(a) Dr. B.R. Ambedkar (b) Dr. Rajendra Prasad (c) Jawaharlal Nehru (d) Sachchidananda Sinha

Accepted Answer

(a) Dr. B.R. Ambedkar.

Dr. Rajendra Prasad was the permanent President of the Constituent Assembly; Dr. Ambedkar chaired the 7-member Drafting Committee that prepared the draft Constitution.

Question 2

Consider the following pairs:
1. Directive Principles of State Policy — Ireland
2. Fundamental Duties — USSR
3. Concurrent List — Australia
How many of the above pairs are correctly matched?
(a) All three (b) Only two (c) Only one (d) None

Accepted Answer

(a) All three.

DPSPs were borrowed from Ireland's constitution, Fundamental Duties from the erstwhile USSR, and the Concurrent List concept from Australia's constitution — all three pairs are correct.

Question 3

Which words were added to the Preamble by the 42nd Constitutional Amendment Act, 1976?
(a) Socialist, Secular, Integrity (b) Sovereign, Democratic, Republic (c) Justice, Liberty, Equality (d) Fraternity, Dignity, Unity

Accepted Answer

(a) Socialist, Secular, Integrity.

The original Preamble already had Sovereign, Democratic, Republic and the four objectives (Justice, Liberty, Equality, Fraternity); the 42nd Amendment added Socialist and Secular to the description of the state, and 'Integrity' after the existing word 'Unity.'

Question 4

Which case held that the Preamble IS a part of the Constitution, overruling an earlier view to the contrary?
(a) Kesavananda Bharati v. State of Kerala, 1973 (b) Berubari Union case, 1960 (c) Maneka Gandhi v. Union of India, 1978 (d) Golaknath v. State of Punjab, 1967

Accepted Answer

(a) Kesavananda Bharati v. State of Kerala, 1973.

The Berubari Union case (1960) had earlier held the Preamble was NOT part of the Constitution; Kesavananda Bharati (1973) overruled this and held it IS a part, though not directly enforceable in court.

Question 5

The Basic Structure Doctrine, limiting Parliament's amending power under Article 368, was propounded in which case?
(a) Kesavananda Bharati v. State of Kerala, 1973 (b) A.K. Gopalan v. State of Madras, 1950 (c) I.R. Coelho v. State of Tamil Nadu, 2007 (d) S.R. Bommai v. Union of India, 1994

Accepted Answer

(a) Kesavananda Bharati v. State of Kerala, 1973.

This landmark 13-judge bench decision held that Parliament cannot amend the Constitution's basic structure, even by following the full Article 368 procedure — a judicially evolved limitation, not a textual one.

Question 6

An amendment affecting the distribution of legislative powers between the Union and the States (the Seventh Schedule) requires:
(a) special majority of Parliament plus ratification by at least half the state legislatures (b) a simple majority of Parliament only (c) unanimous consent of all state legislatures (d) a national referendum

Accepted Answer

(a) special majority of Parliament plus ratification by at least half the state legislatures.

Amendments touching the federal structure — including the Seventh Schedule, election of the President, and Article 368 itself — require this most stringent procedure.

Question 7

Which amendment gave constitutional status to Panchayati Raj institutions?
(a) 73rd Amendment, 1992 (b) 42nd Amendment, 1976 (c) 44th Amendment, 1978 (d) 86th Amendment, 2002

Accepted Answer

(a) 73rd Amendment, 1992.

The 73rd Amendment added Part IX (Panchayats) and the Eleventh Schedule; the 74th Amendment (the same year) did the same for Municipalities via Part IXA and the Twelfth Schedule.

Question 8

Which of the following subjects falls under the Concurrent List?
(a) Education (b) Police (c) Defence (d) Public Health

Accepted Answer

(a) Education.

Education was moved from the State List to the Concurrent List by the 42nd Amendment, 1976. Police and Public Health are State List subjects; Defence is a Union List subject.

Question 9

Of the three Lists in the Seventh Schedule, which currently has the fewest subjects?
(a) Concurrent List (b) Union List (c) State List (d) All three have an equal number

Accepted Answer

(a) Concurrent List.

The Union List currently has about 100 subjects, the State List about 61, and the Concurrent List about 52 — making the Concurrent List the smallest of the three.

Question 10

Laws placed in the Ninth Schedule after which date can still be tested against the basic structure doctrine, per I.R. Coelho v. State of Tamil Nadu (2007)?
(a) 24 April 1973 (b) 26 January 1950 (c) 26 November 1949 (d) 1 January 1976

Accepted Answer

(a) 24 April 1973.

This is the date of the Kesavananda Bharati judgment. Laws added to the Ninth Schedule after this date lost the earlier absolute immunity from judicial review that the Schedule originally provided.

Question 11

How many languages are currently listed in the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution?
(a) 22 (b) 14 (c) 18 (d) 25

Accepted Answer

(a) 22.

The Eighth Schedule originally listed 14 languages; successive amendments (21st, 71st and 92nd) expanded it to the current 22, including additions like Sindhi, Konkani, Manipuri, Nepali, Bodo, Dogri, Maithili and Santhali.

Question 12

Tribal areas in Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and Mizoram, administered through Autonomous District Councils, fall under which Schedule?
(a) Sixth Schedule (b) Fifth Schedule (c) Ninth Schedule (d) Tenth Schedule

Accepted Answer

(a) Sixth Schedule.

The Sixth Schedule provides for Autonomous District Councils with legislative, judicial and executive powers in these four northeastern states — a materially stronger form of self-governance than the Fifth Schedule mechanism (Governor + Tribes Advisory Councils) used elsewhere.

Question 13

The Right to Property was removed from the list of Fundamental Rights and made an ordinary legal right under Article 300A by which amendment?
(a) 44th Amendment, 1978 (b) 42nd Amendment, 1976 (c) 1st Amendment, 1951 (d) 86th Amendment, 2002

Accepted Answer

(a) 44th Amendment, 1978.

The 44th Amendment reversed several 42nd Amendment provisions and downgraded the Right to Property from a Fundamental Right (formerly Article 19(1)(f) and Article 31) to a constitutional/legal right under the newly inserted Article 300A.

Question 14

The Tenth Schedule, dealing with disqualification of members on grounds of defection, was added by which amendment?
(a) 52nd Amendment, 1985 (b) 44th Amendment, 1978 (c) 61st Amendment, 1988 (d) 91st Amendment, 2003

Accepted Answer

(a) 52nd Amendment, 1985.

The 52nd Amendment introduced the Tenth Schedule, popularly known as the Anti-Defection Law, which lays down the process for disqualifying legislators who defect from their party.

Question 15

According to Article 343, Hindi in the Devanagari script is:
(a) the official language of the Union (b) the sole national language of India (c) the official language of all states (d) not recognised in any constitutional provision

Accepted Answer

(a) the official language of the Union.

Article 343 designates Hindi as the official language of the Union (alongside English for specified purposes), but India has no constitutionally declared 'national language' — a commonly tested distinction.

Practice — "Constitution, Preamble & Schedules"

Sign in to save attempts to your dashboard and track your accuracy over time

Find a verified tutor

Join a live course

Browse coaching centres

About

Categories

Support

Documentation

Get Study Tips & Updates

Download Our App

Download for iOS

Download for Android

Popular Cities