Indian Polity and Constitution Practice Flashcards

Vocabulary flashcards generated from the Indian Government and Constitution question bank covering state legislative systems, governance, constitutional amendments, and electoral processes.

Vidhan Sabha

The Legislative Assembly, which acts as the lower house of the State Legislature in India and whose members must be at least $25$ years old.

Vidhan Parishad

The Legislative Council, which serves as the upper house of the State Legislature, whose members are elected for a term of $6$ years.

Article 170

The article of the Indian Constitution that deals with the composition of the Legislative Assemblies (Vidhan Sabha).

Money Bill

A bill related primarily to financial matters like taxation and expenditure, which can only be introduced in the Vidhan Sabha in a State Legislature.

Governor

The constitutional head of a state in India, who is appointed by the President of India, must be at least $35$ years old, and holds office during the pleasure of the President.

Advocate General

The legal advisor to the State Government.

State Executive

The executive body at the state level consisting of the Governor, Chief Minister, and the Council of Ministers.

Concurrent List

A list of subjects in the Indian Constitution on which both the Central Government and State Governments can legislate.

Article 356

The article of the Indian Constitution that deals with the imposition of President's Rule in a State.

Cooperative Federalism

A framework where the Union and State governments collaborate to resolve common issues and govern effectively, as reflected in bodies like the GST Council and Inter-State Council.

Article 263

The constitutional provision that provides for the establishment of an Inter-State Council to facilitate coordination between the Centre and States.

101st Constitutional Amendment Act

The constitutional amendment that introduced the Goods and Services Tax (GST) in India to foster cooperative federalism.

Democratic Decentralisation

The delegation of decision-making authority and power to lower levels of government, inspired by Gandhian philosophy of village self-governance.

73rd Constitutional Amendment Act

The $1992$ constitutional amendment that mandated the establishment of Panchayati Raj Institutions under Part IX and added the Eleventh Schedule.

74th Constitutional Amendment Act

The $1992$ constitutional amendment focusing on Urban Local Bodies (Municipalities) that added the Twelfth Schedule to the Constitution.

Gram Sabha

A body comprising all registered voters in a village, serving as a primary example of direct democracy at the grassroots level.

State Election Commission

The constitutional body established under the $73\text{rd}$ and $74\text{th}$ Amendments responsible for conducting elections to local bodies (Panchayati Raj Institutions and Urban Local Bodies).

Article 368

The article of the Indian Constitution detailing the procedure for amending the Constitution.

Basic Structure Doctrine

A principle established in the Kesavananda Bharati v. State of Kerala case stating that the Judiciary does not allow Parliament to alter the basic structure of the Constitution under Article 368.

42nd Constitutional Amendment Act

Enacted in $1976$ and known as the "Mini Constitution", it added the words "Socialist", "Secular", and "Integrity" to the Preamble and shifted subjects like Forests and Education to the Concurrent List.

61st Constitutional Amendment Act

The constitutional amendment that reduced the voting age for Indian citizens from $21$ years to $18$ years.

44th Constitutional Amendment Act

A constitutional amendment enacted to restore Fundamental Rights, limit emergency powers, and relocate the Right to Property under Article 300A.

Election Commission of India

A permanent constitutional body established under Articles 324 to 329 that conducts elections for Parliament, State Legislatures, and the offices of the President and Vice President.

Universal Adult Franchise

The democratic principle under which the right to vote is granted to all adult citizens regardless of caste, creed, or gender.

By-election

An election held to fill a specific vacancy caused by the death, resignation, or disqualification of an elected member.

Direct Election

A voting system in which eligible voters directly choose their representatives through secret ballots without intermediary bodies, such as in elections to the Lok Sabha and Vidhan Sabha.

Indirect Election

An election method where voters elect an intermediary body or Electoral College to select representatives, as seen in Presidential and Rajya Sabha elections.

Model Code of Conduct (MCC)

A set of guidelines issued by the Election Commission of India to regulate the conduct of political parties and candidates during elections.

EPIC

Elector's Photo Identity Card, introduced in $1993$ by Chief Election Commissioner T.N. Seshan.

VVPAT

Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail, an independent verification system used with Electronic Voting Machines to allow voters to verify their vote.

Creamy Layer

An income-based system used to demarcate and exclude higher-income families within Other Backward Classes (OBCs) from reservation benefits.

Mandal Commission

A commission that recommended extending affirmative action reservation benefits to Other Backward Classes (OBCs).

106th Constitutional Amendment Act

The constitutional amendment through which the Women's Reservation Bill was passed to reserve seats for women in legislatures.