Which of the following statements CORRECTLY links constitutional provisions…
2026
Which of the following statements CORRECTLY links constitutional provisions regarding ministers with the appropriate schedules?
Answer: C. A disqualified MP under the Tenth Schedule cannot be appointed as a minister under Article 75(1B) for a specified period. — Concept: The Constitution is read on two levels that must both check out. The Articles set out the rules in the body of the text; the Schedules are equally…
- A.
Ministers hold office during the pleasure of the President, as outlined in the Ninth Schedule.
- B.
The form of oath for ministers is prescribed in the Second Schedule of the Constitution.
- C.
A disqualified MP under the Tenth Schedule cannot be appointed as a minister under Article 75(1B) for a specified period.
- D.
The collective responsibility of the Council of Ministers is enforced through provisions in the Fourth Schedule.
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Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: C
Concept: The Constitution is read on two levels that must both check out. The Articles set out the rules in the body of the text; the Schedules are equally part of the Constitution, each holding one defined body of matter — a table of emoluments, an allotment of seats, a set of forms of oath, a protected list of statutes, or, as with the anti-defection provisions, a self-contained code of operative rules. A statement that ties a rule about Ministers to a Schedule is therefore sound only when both halves hold: the Article cited must actually lay down that rule, and the Schedule named must actually be where that subject matter is kept.
Application: Set the two halves out side by side. First, what each Schedule named in the options actually carries:
Schedule | What it actually contains |
|---|---|
Second Schedule | Emoluments, allowances and privileges of the President, the Governors, the presiding officers of Parliament and of the State Legislatures, the judges of the Supreme Court and the High Courts, and the Comptroller and Auditor-General of India |
Third Schedule | Forms of oath or affirmation, including the oath of office and the oath of secrecy taken by a Union Minister |
Fourth Schedule | Allotment of seats in the Council of States (Rajya Sabha) to the States and the Union Territories |
Ninth Schedule | Enactments, mostly land-reform and land-ceiling laws, which Article 31B protects from challenge on the ground of violating fundamental rights; laws added to it after 24 April 1973 remain open to review for damage to the basic structure |
Tenth Schedule | The anti-defection provisions; paragraph 2 lays down the grounds on which a member is disqualified for defection |
Second, what Article 75 lays down about Ministers:
Article 75(1): the President appoints the Prime Minister, and appoints the other Ministers on the advice of the Prime Minister.
Article 75(1B), inserted by the Constitution (Ninety-first Amendment) Act, 2003: a member disqualified for defection under paragraph 2 of the Tenth Schedule is also disqualified for appointment as a Minister, from the date of the disqualification until the date on which the term of his office as such member would expire, or, where he contests an election to either House before that period expires, until the date on which he is declared elected — whichever is earlier.
Article 75(2): Ministers hold office during the pleasure of the President.
Article 75(3): The Council of Ministers is collectively responsible to the House of the People.
Applying the two-part test, one pairing alone survives it: the disqualification itself comes from paragraph 2 of the Tenth Schedule, and Article 75(1B) is the very provision that attaches the ministerial bar to that disqualification for the stated period. Both halves point to the same place, so the statement that a member disqualified under the Tenth Schedule cannot be appointed a Minister under Article 75(1B) for a specified period is the correct link.
Cross-check: Test the remaining three pairings against the table above:
Tenure during the pleasure of the President is Article 75(2); the Ninth Schedule is the Article 31B list of protected enactments and carries nothing on ministerial tenure.
The oath of office and of secrecy for a Minister sits in the Third Schedule; the Second Schedule deals with emoluments and privileges.
Collective responsibility is Article 75(3); the Fourth Schedule allots Rajya Sabha seats among the States and the Union Territories.