21 March 2024

Daily practice questions for CLAT - (21 March 2024)



Signs of a confrontation between Raj Bhavan and the elected government in a State are not infrequent in the country. The onus often appears to be on the Chief Ministers to avert a constitutional crisis, as evidenced by trying to buy peace with a miffed Governor, rather than pursue a confrontational course, over several issues in recent times. One way of seeing these developments is to attribute them to the appointment of those who have been politically active in the recent past as Governors and the partisan role they play as agents of the Centre. Constrained by the ‘aid and advice’ clause in their routine functioning, some Governors seem to be using the discretionary space available to them to keep regimes on tenterhooks.

While as the ‘lynchpin’ of the constitutional apparatus, Governors indeed have a duty to defend the Constitution and encourage or caution the elected regime, the impression that Governors are not obliged to heed Cabinet advice persists in some areas. At a time when regional political forces are actively seeking to be heard by the Centre, it may be time that the provisions relating to the Governor’s role are amended. Identifying areas of discretion, fixing a time-frame for them to act, and making it explicit that they are obliged to go by Cabinet advice on dealing with Bills can be considered. Regarding Bills, it is clear that the Constituent Assembly passed the provision for Governors to return Bills for reconsideration only on the express assurance that they have no discretion at all.

Question1:- Choose the option that describes the tone of the author in the lines given below:
Identifying areas of discretion, fixing a time frame for them to act, and making it explicit that they are obliged to go by Cabinet’s advice on dealing with Bills can be considered.
  • A. Analytical
  • B. Hypercritical
  • C. Scathing
  • D. Pragmatic
Answer is D is correct. The analytical tone should be used by the author when the author supports his points with a lot of data and information about what is being discussed. This is not the case here.
Hypercritical means inclined to look for and point out faults and defects. This line is not doing so.
Scathing is used when the author uses a harsh and bitterly severe tone to write something and is generally seen being used while describing heinous crimes. So, this doesn’t suit the given sentence as well.
Pragmatic means an approach or a way of dealing with something based on practical considerations, rather than theoretical ones. Exactly this is the way in which the line is suggesting an action should be taken. So, option (d) is the correct answer.
Question2:- Citing which of the following contentions is the author accusing the Governors?
  • (i)These days the governors are found misusing their authority censuring the state government
  • (ii)They have a clear loyalty towards the Central government which disturbs the coordination between them and the State
  • (iii)The Governors are supposed to be the secondary authority of the state in maintaining peace and harmony
  • A. Only (i)
  • B. Only (ii)
  • C. Both (i) and (ii)
  • D. Neither (ii) nor (iii)
Answer is C is correct. Both the (i) and the (ii) statements can be found being discussed in the first paragraph but the third statement doesn’t find a mention.
The first statement is correct and can be understood from the line à some Governors seem to be using the discretionary space available to them to keep regimes on tenterhooks
The second statement can be found in à One way of seeing these developments is to attribute them to the appointment of those who have been politically active in the recent past as Governors and the partisan role they play as agents of the Centre.
The two statements together can be marked as the answer is option (c).
Question3:- Choose the option that gives the synonyms of the highlighted words that fit the context respectively:
Signs of a confrontation between Raj Bhavan and the elected government in a State are not infrequent in the country.
  • A. Duel, ubiquitous
  • B. Conflict, uncommon
  • C. Encounter, frequent
  • D. Harmony, sporadic
Answer is B is correct. Duel, Conflict and Encounter are correct synonyms of the first word ie; confrontation but we need such a synonym that can fit in the sentence without changing its meaning. Only the word ‘conflict’ would fit the context of the sentence.
Ubiquitous means omnipresent and frequent will make the sentence incorrect as the word proceeds ‘not’. Sporadic means irregular but it can’t be taken as the answer as the first word in the option doesn’t fit.
The correct pair of words that fit in the sentence, therefore, is in (b).
Question4:- Which issue from the options can be taken as the central theme of the passage?
  • A. The time may have come for clarifying the role and functions of Governors
  • B. The increasing audacity of the Governors being bolstered by the Centre
  • C. The Chief Ministers not understanding the realm of their authority
  • D. None of the above
Answer is A is correct. The second option conveys that the centre is supporting the governors’ behaviour which is wrong and it is not the only thing that is being discussed which makes this option incorrect.
Option (c) is also superfluous.
The correct theme is being evinced in the first option as the entire passage discusses the conflicts and the resolutions thereof, with respect to the roles of the governors.
Therefore, the correct answer would be option (a).
Question5:- In what context has the phrase ‘to buy peace’ been used in the passage?
  • A. To maintain harmony with the Central government
  • B. To choose the way of mediation rather than confrontation
  • C. To intervene in the duties of the Governor to maintain peace
  • D. To allude to the Constitutional Rights of the Governor
Answer is B is correct. In the first paragraph, it has been mentioned that the CM has been amongst those who are trying to resolve the issues with the Governor and this is not exactly what all state governments are doing. They are busy aggravating the issue.
In this discussion has the above phrase been used. It simply means to make peace or to adjust or try to pacify the situation.
The central government is not in the picture as per the passage which cancels the first option. The third option is contradictory as if the duties are intervened, there can’t be peace. To allude to is to indicate at as given in the fourth option. This is also not true as per the context of the usage of the phrase.
Therefore, the correct answer can be found in option (b).