Daily Static Quiz Prelims Practice 2027
Option (b) is correct — under the Presidential and Vice-Presidential Elections Act, 1952, each MP's vote value equals the total value of all State Assembly votes divided by total elected MPs (Lok Sabha + Rajya Sabha), equalising parliamentary and State representation weight (currently 708 per MP, based on 2022 election figures and 1971 census population). Option (a) is wrong — it skips the crucial role of State Assembly vote values as the calculation's starting point. Option (c) is wrong — it misplaces where the multiplication by 1000 occurs (that's within the MLA vote value formula, not this one). Option (d) is wrong — MP vote values aren't fixed at 1000; that figure is only a divisor within the MLA formula and varies across elections.
- The President can promulgate an ordinance only when both Houses of Parliament are not in session.
- An ordinance has the same force and effect as an Act of Parliament while in operation.
- An ordinance must be laid before both Houses of Parliament when they reassemble and ceases to operate six weeks after the reassembly of Parliament, unless approved earlier.
- The President can re-promulgate an ordinance immediately upon its expiry to extend its operation indefinitely, as upheld in D.C. Wadhwa v. State of Bihar.
Statements 1, 2 and 3 are correct. Ordinances can only be promulgated when both Houses are not in session, carry the same legal force as an Act of Parliament, and must be laid before both Houses upon reassembly, ceasing to operate six weeks after reassembly unless approved earlier (or disapproved sooner). Statement 4 is incorrect — in D.C. Wadhwa v. State of Bihar (1987), the Supreme Court held the opposite: re-promulgating ordinances to bypass Parliamentary scrutiny is a fraud on the Constitution and unconstitutional, condemning Bihar's practice of repeated re-promulgation.
Option (a) is correct — appointing the Prime Minister after a hung Parliament is genuine Presidential discretion, requiring personal judgment since no functional Cabinet exists at that point to offer advice. Option (b) is wrong — a National Emergency under Article 352 requires the Cabinet's written recommendation post-44th Amendment. Option (c) is wrong — Lok Sabha dissolution happens on the Prime Minister's advice, not independent Presidential action. Option (d) is wrong — Supreme Court appointments involve the collegium recommendation processed through the Law Ministry, not Presidential discretion.
Option (b) is correct — Article 111 specifies no time limit for Presidential action on a bill, unlike the US Constitution's 10-day window, creating a "pocket veto" possibility. President Zail Singh effectively used this on the Indian Post Office (Amendment) Bill, 1986, which lapsed with the Lok Sabha's dissolution. Option (a) is wrong — there is no separate 14-day window for Money Bills under Article 109. Option (c) is wrong — Constitutional Amendment Bills under Article 368 must receive Presidential assent, with no provision to retain or return them with objections. Option (d) describes the Governor's Article 200 reservation power, a distinct provision, not the pocket veto.
- The President's pardon power under Article 72 extends to cases tried by court-martial, which the Governor's power under Article 161 does not.
- The Supreme Court in Epuru Sudhakar v. Government of Andhra Pradesh held that the exercise of the pardoning power is entirely immune from judicial review.
- The President is bound to act on the advice of the Council of Ministers when exercising the pardon power and cannot act independently.
- The pardoning power includes the authority to grant pardon, reprieve, respite, remission of punishment, and commutation of sentence.
Statements 1, 3 and 4 are correct. Article 72 uniquely extends to cases tried by court-martial and offences against Union laws, unlike the Governor's Article 161 power. In Maru Ram v. Union of India (1981), the Supreme Court held the President must act on Council of Ministers' advice when exercising pardon power, consistent with Article 74(1). Article 72 covers five forms of clemency: pardon, reprieve, respite, remission, and commutation. Statement 2 is incorrect — in Epuru Sudhakar (2006), the Court held pardon power is subject to limited judicial review, not entirely immune, intervenable if exercised on irrelevant grounds, mala fide, or with complete non-application of mind.
