President & VP — Set 6

Correct Answer: B. Third Schedule

• **Third Schedule** = contains forms of Oaths or Affirmations for Ministers, MPs (LS and RS), members of state legislatures, SC/HC judges — but NOT the President's oath. • **President's oath in Article 60** — uniquely, the President's oath is directly in the constitutional text (Art. 60), not in the Third Schedule; the VP's oath form is also in the text (Art. 69). • 💡 Option A (Fourth Schedule) allocates Rajya Sabha seats to States/UTs — not oaths. Option C (Second Schedule) covers emoluments and privileges — not oaths. Option D (First Schedule) lists the States and UTs — not oaths.

Correct Answer: B. Delhi and Puducherry

• **70th Constitutional Amendment (1992)** = extended the Presidential Electoral College to include elected MLAs of the National Capital Territory of Delhi and Puducherry. • **J&K position** — after the bifurcation of J&K into two UTs (J&K and Ladakh) in 2019, J&K's MLAs will join the Electoral College once its assembly is constituted; Ladakh has no assembly. • 💡 Option A (Delhi and Chandigarh) — Chandigarh has NO Legislative Assembly; it is a UT administered directly by a Lt. Governor — its residents do not vote in Presidential elections. Option C (Puducherry and Ladakh) — Ladakh has no Legislative Assembly after the 2019 bifurcation. Option D (All Union Territories) — most UTs have no legislature; only Delhi and Puducherry participate.

Correct Answer: C. Zakir Hussain

• **Dr. Zakir Hussain** = 3rd President of India (1967–1969); served barely 2 years before dying in office on May 3, 1969 — the shortest Presidential tenure. • **First Muslim President** — also the first person to die in office; was previously the Vice-President (1962–67) before becoming President. • 💡 Option A (V.V. Giri) served as the 4th President for a full term (1969–74) — not the shortest tenure. Option B (R. Venkataraman) served a full 5-year term (1987–92) — not the shortest. Option D (Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed) was the 5th President who also died in office (1974–77), but his tenure was longer than Zakir Hussain's ~2 years.

Correct Answer: B. Zakir Hussain

• **First to die in office** = Dr. Zakir Hussain (3rd President) died on May 3, 1969 — the first President to die while in office; VP V.V. Giri then acted as President. • **Two Presidents died in office** — Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed (5th President) died on February 11, 1977; in both cases the VP stepped in as acting President pending fresh election. • 💡 Option A (Giani Zail Singh) was the 7th President (1982–87) and completed his full term — he did not die in office. Option C (Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed) died in office second (1977), not first — Zakir Hussain was first in 1969. Option D (K.R. Narayanan) was the 10th President (1997–2002) and completed his term — he did not die in office.

Correct Answer: A. 6 months

• **Article 62** = requires that an election to fill a Presidential vacancy must be held as soon as possible and in no case later than 6 months from the date of occurrence of the vacancy. • **VP acts for max 6 months** — the VP discharges Presidential functions during this period; if the VP's own term expires during this gap, the CJI steps in. • 💡 Option B (3 months) — the Constitution specifies 6 months, not 3; there is no 3-month rule for Presidential vacancy. Option C (5 years) is the full Presidential term — not the VP's acting period limit. Option D (1 year) exceeds what the Constitution allows — the maximum acting period is 6 months.

Correct Answer: D. Speaker of Lok Sabha

• **VP notifies Speaker** = when the President resigns by writing to the VP (as per Article 56), the VP must immediately communicate this resignation to the Speaker of the Lok Sabha. • **Immediate notification duty** — there is no delay allowed; the VP must notify the Speaker at once so that necessary steps to fill the vacancy can begin without delay. • 💡 Option A (Election Commission) is not the immediate recipient of the notification — the EC is involved later in organising the election. Option B (Chief Justice) is not notified by the VP on Presidential resignation — the CJI administers oaths, not vacancy administration. Option C (Prime Minister) is informed through political channels but is not constitutionally the person the VP must 'immediately' notify.

Correct Answer: C. 14 days

• **14-day advance notice** = Article 61 requires that the impeachment resolution be preceded by a 14-day written notice signed by at least 1/4 of the total members of the House initiating the charges. • **Purpose of notice** — gives the President an opportunity to appear and defend themselves before the House investigates the charges; it is a quasi-judicial protection. • 💡 Option A (7 days) is insufficient — the Constitution mandates a 14-day notice, giving the President adequate preparation time. Option B (60 days) is far too long — no such 60-day notice requirement exists for Presidential impeachment. Option D (30 days) is also incorrect — only 14 days are required by the Constitution, not 30.

Correct Answer: D. Majority of 2/3rd of total membership

• **2/3rd of total membership** = the impeachment resolution must be passed by a majority of not less than two-thirds of the total membership of the House — this means 2/3 of all members, not just those present and voting. • **Toughest majority in India** — this is stricter than ordinary special majority (2/3 of members present and voting + absolute majority) used for Constitutional Amendments. • 💡 Option A (Simple majority) — a simple majority (more than 50% of members present and voting) is the easiest threshold and is completely insufficient for impeachment. Option B (Majority of 2/3rd present and voting) — this is the regular special majority used for Constitutional Amendments; impeachment requires an even stricter 2/3rd of total membership. Option C (Absolute majority) — an absolute majority is majority of total membership (50%+1 of all members); it is lower than the 2/3rd of total membership required for impeachment.

Correct Answer: A. Nominated MPs vote for VP but not President

• **Nominated MPs vote for VP not President** = this is the key Electoral College difference; the VP election includes nominated MPs while the Presidential election excludes them. • **MLAs vote for President not VP** = state MLAs represent the federal dimension of the Presidential election; they are absent from the VP election, which is purely a Parliamentary matter. • 💡 Option B (VP elected by Rajya Sabha only) — the VP is elected by all members of both Houses of Parliament (not just RS); Rajya Sabha alone does not elect the VP. Option C (VP elected by Lok Sabha only) — this is also wrong for the same reason — it is both Houses together. Option D (VP elected by Direct Vote) — the VP is elected indirectly by Parliament members, not through direct public vote.

Correct Answer: B. President

• **Article 148** = the CAG is appointed by the President; to ensure independence, the CAG can only be removed through an address of Parliament (same process as removing a Supreme Court judge). • **Guardian of public purse** — the CAG audits all expenditure of the Union and States and reports to the President (Union) or Governors (States); the reports are then laid before the respective legislatures. • 💡 Option A (Prime Minister) recommends the appointment but does not formally appoint the CAG — the President does under Art. 148. Option C (Finance Minister) heads the Finance Ministry and uses the CAG's reports but does not appoint the CAG. Option D (Parliament) cannot directly appoint the CAG — appointment is by the President; Parliament is involved only in removal.