President & VP — Set 3

Correct Answer: D. All members of Parliament (Elected + Nominated)

• **VP Electoral College** = all members of Parliament — elected AND nominated — from both Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha; no state MLAs participate. • **Key difference from President** — President's Electoral College excludes nominated MPs but includes elected MLAs; VP Electoral College includes nominated MPs but excludes all MLAs. • 💡 Option A (Only Rajya Sabha members) is incomplete — all MPs from both Houses vote, not just Rajya Sabha. Option B (MPs and MLAs) is wrong — MLAs do NOT participate in VP election; that is the President's election. Option C (Only Elected MPs) misses the nominated MPs who also vote for VP.

Correct Answer: B. President

• **Article 67** = the Vice-President holds office for 5 years and must address their resignation to the President. • **Reciprocal arrangement** — just as the VP is the resignation recipient for the President (Art. 56), the President is the resignation recipient for the VP (Art. 67) — neat constitutional symmetry. • 💡 Option A (Prime Minister) is not the recipient of the VP's resignation; the PM is accountable to the Lok Sabha, not the VP. Option C (Chief Justice) administers judicial oaths but has no role in VP's resignation. Option D (Speaker) is informed by the President when the VP resigns, but is not the direct resignation recipient.

Correct Answer: D. Rajya Sabha

• **Rajya Sabha initiates VP removal** = unlike Presidential impeachment (which can start in either House), the resolution to remove the VP can only be introduced in the Rajya Sabha. • **Effective majority in RS, simple majority in LS** — Rajya Sabha passes the removal resolution by effective majority (majority of then-total members); Lok Sabha then agrees with a simple majority. • 💡 Option A (Any House) is incorrect — for President impeachment any House can initiate, but for VP removal it must start in Rajya Sabha only. Option B (Lok Sabha) cannot initiate VP removal; the motion must originate in Rajya Sabha. Option C (Joint Sitting) does not apply to VP removal — joint sittings are only for legislative deadlocks under Article 108.

Correct Answer: D. Vice-President

• **VP acts as President** = under Article 65, the VP discharges Presidential functions when a vacancy arises due to death, resignation, removal, or inability of the President. • **6-month maximum** — Article 62 requires that an election to fill the vacancy must be held within 6 months; the VP acts only until the new President is elected. • 💡 Option A (Speaker) presides over Lok Sabha but has no constitutional role in Presidential succession — it is always the VP first. Option B (Chief Justice) can be called only if both President AND VP are unavailable simultaneously (Article 70). Option C (Prime Minister) heads the executive but has no role in Presidential succession under the Constitution.

Correct Answer: C. Chief Justice of India

• **CJI as President** = under Article 70 read with Article 65, the CJI discharges Presidential functions when both the President and Vice-President are unavailable simultaneously. • **Only instance** — Justice M. Hidayatullah acted as President (July 20–24, 1969) after President Zakir Hussain died in office and VP V.V. Giri resigned to contest the Presidential election. • 💡 Option A (Attorney General) is the government's chief legal adviser but holds no succession role in the Presidential office. Option B (Senior-most Governor) — Governors are state-level officials; there is no provision making any Governor a successor to the President. Option D (Speaker of Lok Sabha) has no constitutional role in Presidential succession — succession follows: President → VP → CJI → Senior-most SC judge.

Correct Answer: A. President

• **Article 75** = the Prime Minister is appointed by the President; other ministers are appointed by the President on the advice of the Prime Minister. • **Convention governs** — the President appoints the leader commanding majority support in Lok Sabha; the appointment is conventionally obligatory, not discretionary (except in a hung Parliament). • 💡 Option B (Chief Justice) appoints no one in the executive chain — the CJI administers the Presidential oath and heads the judiciary. Option C (Lok Sabha) elects its Speaker but does not formally appoint the PM — the President does so based on majority support. Option D (Rajya Sabha) has no role in the appointment of the PM; the PM must command majority only in Lok Sabha.

Correct Answer: D. President

• **Article 76** = the President appoints the Attorney General of India, who must be qualified to be appointed as a judge of the Supreme Court. • **Pleasure of the President** — the AG holds office during the pleasure of the President and is the government's highest law officer; the AG has right of audience in all courts in India. • 💡 Option A (Prime Minister) recommends the appointment but the formal appointment is made by the President under Article 76. Option B (Chief Justice) appoints no executive officials — the CJI heads the judiciary only. Option C (Law Minister) heads the Ministry of Law but does not appoint the AG — that authority rests with the President.

Correct Answer: C. Governor of a State

• **Governor holds office at President's pleasure** = Article 156 states the Governor holds office during the pleasure of the President and can be removed at any time without any formal process. • **No impeachment for Governor** — unlike the President (impeached by Parliament) or SC judges (removed by Parliament), a Governor can be removed by the President without giving reasons. • 💡 Option A (Election Commissioner) is removed only through a process similar to that of a Supreme Court judge — not during the President's pleasure, hence much stronger security of tenure. Option B (Speaker of Lok Sabha) is removed by a resolution of the Lok Sabha — the President has no role. Option D (CAG) is also removed by the President but only through an address of Parliament, just like SC judges — not at mere Presidential pleasure.

Correct Answer: D. Population of the State

• **MLA vote value formula** = State Population ÷ (Number of elected MLAs × 1000); the 1971 census figures are used (frozen by the 84th Amendment until 2026). • **Population-based proportionality** — larger states have higher MLA vote values; this ensures that the President's election reflects the population-weighted will of the states. • 💡 Option A (Number of districts) has no bearing on MLA vote value — districts vary in size and are administrative divisions, not constitutional units for this formula. Option B (Literacy rate) is completely irrelevant to vote value calculation. Option C (Area of the State) is not used in the formula — India uses population, not geographical area, to calculate vote values.

Correct Answer: B. Proportional Representation by Single Transferable Vote

• **Proportional Representation by STV** = voters rank candidates in order of preference (1, 2, 3.); a quota is calculated and votes are transferred until a candidate reaches the quota. • **Article 55** — specifies the 'manner of election' of the President; the STV system ensures that the elected President has majority support among the Electoral College. • 💡 Option A (List System) is used in some proportional representation systems abroad but NOT in India's Presidential election. Option C (First Past the Post) is used for Lok Sabha and state assembly elections — not the Presidential election. Option D (Direct Election) means citizens vote directly; the President is elected indirectly by the Electoral College, not by direct public vote.