Create a custom practice set
Pick category, difficulty, number of questions, and time limit. Start instantly with your own quiz.
Generate QuizGK Question
Which statement best captures the constitutional philosophy behind Emergency provisions in India?
- Enable permanent centralization of power during crises
- Balance national unity and security with federal autonomy and rights protection through temporary, safeguarded powers
- Allow executive to bypass Parliament in all matters
- Transfer all State powers to Union indefinitely
Answer: Balance national unity and security with federal autonomy and rights protection through temporary, safeguarded powers
Emergency provisions constitutional philosophy: (a) Purpose: Enable strong Union response to existential threats (war, external aggression, armed rebellion, financial crisis) while preserving democratic federal structure, (b) Safeguards: (i) Defined grounds (higher threshold post-44th Amendment), (ii) Procedural checks (Cabinet advice, Parliamentary approval, time limits), (iii) Judicial review (SR Bommai, basic structure doctrine), (iv) Rights protections (non-suspendable Articles 20-21), (c) Temporariness: Emergency measures temporary; clear path to restore normal constitutional functioning, (d) Federal balance: Temporary unitary features for crisis coordination; federal normalcy restored post-crisis, (e) Democratic accountability: Legislature can revoke Emergency; citizens can challenge misuse through courts. Illustrates constitutional wisdom: flexibility for crisis management within rigid framework preserving democratic identity. Essential for UPSC Mains conceptual understanding.