CLAT 2024 Question Paper with Solutions PDF - Download Answer Key

The CLAT question paper 2024 is going to be a treasure to learn from for the aspirants sitting for the exam later on. The complete solution set with explanations, marking schemes, and set-wise answer keys is appreciated to segment the solution of every problem along with its approach. This year, the test is organized at 139 test centres in India in two hours starting from 2 p.m. on 3 December 2023, which is the latest pattern that the Consortium of National Law Universities (NLUs) adopted. The PDF containing the complete solution is downloadable and useful in understanding the perspective of the examiner, techniques of solving questions and common pitfalls to be avoided. This analysis has special value as this is the latest exam trend and usually improves scores in the range of 5 to 8%.

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1. CLAT 2024 Question Paper with Answer Key & Detailed Solutions PDF
2. CLAT Question Paper 2024 Analysis
3. CLAT 2024 Question Paper and Answer

CLAT 2024 Question Paper with Answer Key & Detailed Solutions PDF

You may also check the previous year's question paper with detailed solutions:

• CLAT 2023 Question Paper with Solutions

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• CLAT 2021 Question Paper with Solutions

CLAT Question Paper 2024 Analysis

According to the CLAT exam pattern, given below are the following 5 sections. Check out the table below to discover the overall difficulty level of the CLAT 2024 Question Paper.

CLAT 2024 Question Paper featured a modified exam pattern with 120 questions, and the changed paper pattern threw clouds of doubt; nonetheless, contrary to everyone's predictions, the CLAT Question Paper 2024 was easy to moderate. 105+ is a respectable number of tries, and 90+ is a decent mark for the top three national law schools.

CLAT 2024 Question Paper and Answer

Given below are a few questions that occur in the CLAT 2024 question paper with solutions PDF. The questions provided are from each section of the CLAT 2024 exam.

Section - English

Passage
The crisis of justice that is the subject matter of discussion in the media today is in fact the crisis of " justice for the middle class". The main difference between India and the OECD (Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development) countries is that whereas the middle class in these countries has reasonable access to justice, in India it does not. A vocal and powerful middle class has emerged in India since 1991. It is demanding reasonable access to justice. Much of the judicial reform effort will help meet this demand. The question of justice for the poor is, however, an altogether different challenge. No country in the world has been able to secure justice for the poor. Most of the jails of the richest countries are filled with the poorest. The "masses" are more often victims of the criminal justice system than of crime. In India as well, jails are almost exclusively filled with the poor. The civil justice system is hardly accessible to them. They are often victimized by lawyers, touts and court staff. They are docket-excluded, a new type of untouchability. The language the logic and the colonial and feudal culture of the judicial system are alien to them. It rarely takes cognizance of their needs and interests main concern, therefore, is to escape the attention of the justice system, criminal and civil. A landless Dalit person in the interior of Madhya Pradesh once gave me an insightful definition of a court from the perspective of the masses: " A court is a place where you are forcibly taken by the police to be punished; no one goes to a court." In contrast, many lawyers and judges colloquially define a court as "a temple of justice where rights are protected sharply divergent visions mean that justice for one section is often injustice for another. Protecting the livelihood of traditional taxi and auto drivers from predatory pricing by corporate app-based taxi providers by imaginatively using the available tools of law to delay their incursion would be seen by the rich and by sections of the middle class as a failure of the judicial system, and possibly as also resulting in a downgrading of the " ease of doing business" measure. However, the masses would see such a judicial intervention as strong evidence of a good justice system. Although the conflict over competing visions of the nation and conflicting demands from social and economic segments have confined judicial reform of judicial administration mainly to neutral areas such as process reform, procedural law, technology, planning and court and case management, judge strength, and the workload of judges, there has been considerable improvement in these areas, and the judicial system has improved its performance.[Extracted, with edits, from Justice and the Two Ideas of India", by G. Mohan Gopal, Frontline.

Question 1: Which of the following statements is the author most likely to agree with?
(A) The judicial system reflects the same power relationships as those that exist in society.
(B) Access to the judicial system is determined more by a person's economic status such as wealth and income, than by their social status, such as religion and caste.
(C) The judicial system was made by the rich, for the rich, of the rich.
(D) None of the above.

Solution: The poor are not privileged to justice. Most of the imprisoned people are poor. Judicial justice is in harmony with the same social justice, reflecting a great disparity, injustice to the poor and justice to others. This makes the first option the apt answer. (paragraphs 1 and 2)

Question 2: Which of the following statements is the author most likely to disagree with?
(A) A truly representative democracy would ensure that the interests of the poor are also represented in the judicial system.
(B) The Law ensures equality both in text and in practice
(C) The poor suffer most at the hands of lawyers and touts, compared to judges who might still pronounce judgements in their favour from time to time.
(D) All of the above.

Solution: The central idea of the passage is that the rich are privileged in terms of justice whereas the poor are not. So, the author disagrees with the fact that law ensures equality both in text and in practice, as this statement opposes the central idea of the passage. This makes the second option the apt answer.

Question 3 What makes reform of judicial administration a neutral area?
(A) Persons across socio-economic strata agree on the need to reform judicial administration.
(B) There is consensus among political parties across the ideological and regional spectrum on reforms to judicial administration.
(C) Reforms to judicial administration do not favour one class of people over another.
(D) Reform of judicial administration is mandated by the Constitution and thus lies beyond political considerations.

Solution: When judicial administration reforms do not favour one class of people over another, they fall under a neutral area, hence making the third option the correct answer.

Question 4: What is the central thesis of the above extract?
(A) The practice of untouchability takes various forms in modern India.
(B) The imagination of justice for the rich and poor is vastly different.
(C) Addressing judge strength and case-load management does not affect the performance of the judicial system
(D) Protecting the livelihood of traditional taxi drivers is contrary to the goals of ease of doing business.

Solution: The question of justice for the poor is, however, an altogether different challenge. It is mentioned in the first line of the second paragraph. Subsequent lines explain it. And there is nothing in the entire passage refuting it.

Question 5: What does the author mean by docket excluded in the second paragraph?
(A) The poor do not have easy access to the justice system.
(B) Courts do not list bail petitions of poor undertrial prisoners who populate the country.
(C) The poor reject the judicial system as being alien to their language and logic.
(D) The rich are excluded from the country's prisons, which are mostly populated by the poor.

Solution: The judicial system is hardly accessible to the poor. They are victimized. Justice to them is not on the docket (=agenda) of the judicial system. It is mentioned in the second paragraph.

Section - Current Affairs including General Knowledge

Passage
On 7th October 2023, armed conflict broke out between forces and Hamas-led Palestinian militants from the Gaza Strip after the latter launched a multi-pronged invasion of southern Israel. After clearing Hamas militants, the foraeli military retaliated by conducting an extensive aerial bombardment campaign on Gazan targets and followed up with a large-scale ground invasion of Gaza. More than 1,400 Israelis, mostly Chilians, and more than 10,000 Palestinians have been killed in the fighting Over 240 Israelis and foreign nationals were taken hostage and brought into the Gaza Strip. The Hamas-led attack began in the morning of 7^thOctober, as Palestinian militants in Gaza launched a barrage of over 5,000 rockets against Israeli cities and kibbutzim while some 3,000 Palestinian militants breached the Gaza-Israel barrier, Over 1,000 taraeli civilians wore killed in more than a dozen massacres, including the Fe im music festival massacre. and military bases were attacked, Over 200 civilians and Israeli soldiers were captured or abducted and taken to the Gaza Strip. At least 44 countries, mostly from the Western world, characterized the massacres of civilians as terrorism. Hamas declared that the invasion was carried out in response to the " desecration of the Al-Aqsa Mosque; the Gaza Strip blockade, the construction of Israeli settlements, and Israel settler violence against Palestinians in the West Bank.Israel declared a state of war on 8 October, and its response to the attack has seen the most significant military escalation in the region since the Yom Kippur War. The current hostilities constitute the fifth war of the Gaza-Israel conflict, which is part of the broader Israeli-Palestinian conflict. In 2023, before the offensive started, an uptick in Israeli-Palestinian violence saw at least 247 Palestinians, 32 Israelis, and two foreigners killed. According to the Gaza Health Ministry, as of 6 November, over 10,000 Palestinians had been killed, including 79 UNAWA staff. Israel dropped a total of 6,000 bombs during the first six days of the conflict - nearly double the number of bombs dropped by the American-led CJTF-OIR in one month during the War against the Islamic State. There has been widespread killing of civilians, and human rights groups and a panel of United Nations special rapporteurs have accused both Israel and Hamas of war crimes.

Question 1. What was the reason for Hamas-led Palestinian militants; attack on Israel?
(A) To retaliate against Israeli settler violence against Palestinians
(B) In response to the desecration of the Western Wall
(C) To protest against the construction of Palestinian settlements in the West Bank
(D) To seek an end to the Gaza Strip blockade

Solution: After clearing Hamas militants, the Israeli military retaliated by conducting an extensive aerial bombardment campaign on Gazan targets and followed up with a large-scale ground invasion of Gaza. Hamas officials said their attack was a response to the Israeli occupation, blockade of the Gaza Strip, Israeli settler violence against Palestinians, restrictions on the movement of Palestinians, and imprisonment of thousands of Palestinians

Question 2: What was the reaction of the international community to the killing of israeli civilians?
(A) Condemned as terrorism by 44 countries
(B) Ignored by most of the countries
(C) Supported by the UN
(D) Praised as a necessary measure by 10 countries

Solution: Over 44 countries, primarily representing the Western world, have collectively characterized the massacre of Israeli civilians as acts of terrorism. This unified stance from a diverse group of countries, predominantly from the Western world, emphasizes the global recognition of the importance of upholding principles of human rights, international law, and the protection of civilians in times of conflict.

Question 3: Which of the following is not true about the historical context of the fisasi Hamas Contliet?
(A) The Palestinian refugees started setting under Ottoman rule in the late 19th Century
(B) Hamas emerged during the first Intifada in the late 1980s
(C) Hamas was formally known as the Islamic Resistance Movement
(D) The First Intifada was a Palestinian uprising against Israeli rule.

Solution: Palestinian refugees primarily refer to those displaced as a result of the Arab-Israeli conflicts, particularly the 1948 Arab-Israeli War (Nakba) and the 1967 Six-Day War. These conflicts led to the displacement of a significant number of Palestinians, many of whom sought refuge in neighbouring countries.

Question 4: What has been the response of the Israeli military to the Hamas-led attack?
(A) Declared a state of war and launched a ground invasion
(B) Conducted an aerial bombardment campaign only
(C) Asked for international intervention
(D) Captured and imprisoned the militants responsible

Solution: In response to the attack, the Israeli military executed a robust counteroffensive, employing a comprehensive aerial bombardment campaign aimed at various targets in the Gaza Strip. This intensive airstrike operation was subsequently accompanied by a substantial ground invasion, reflecting a significant escalation in military engagement in the Gaza region.

Section - Legal Reasoning

Passage
In India, the legal landscape surrounding online defamation is a subject of significant interest and debate. With the rise of social media, and online platforms, cases of online defamation have become increasingly common. Defamation refers to making lalse statements about someone that harm their reputation. Online defamation includes defamatory statements made on the internet, including social media, blogs, forums, and other online platforms.

One critical aspect of online defamation is determining the liability of intermediaries, such as social media platforms or websites, for defamatory content posted by users. Section 79 of the Information Technology Act, 2000, provides a safe harbor for intermediaries, stating that they are not liable for third-party content if they act as intermediaries and follow due diligence in removing or disabling access to the content once notified.

However, determining whether an intermediary has fulfilled its due diligence obligations can be complex. The Indian judiciary has been actively interpreting this provision. One significant case is the Shreya Singhal v. Union of India, in which the Supreme Court clarified that intermediaries are required to act upon a valid court order or government directive for content removal, not upon private complaints.

The court also emphasized that the intermediaries should not take a proactive role in monitoring content, as this could potentially infringe on free speech. While the law provides a safe harbor, it does not absolve intermediaries from their responsibilities.

Online defamation cases often involve a balancing act between the right to freedom of expression and the right to reputation. The Indian legal system requires a careful examination of the content, context, and intent of the statements to determine whether they qualify as defamatory. Additionally, the plaintiff in an online defamation case must prove that the statement was false, damaging to their reputation, and made with a degree of fault, such as negligence or actual malice.

Question 1: What is the primary focus of the passage?

(A) The rise of social media in India.
(B) The legal aspects of online defamation in India.
(C) The role of intermediaries in online content.
(D) The importance of free speech on the internet.

Solution: The primary focus of the passage is to put an idea on online issues of defamation via various ways that create a chaos in society. Hence option b is correct.

Question 2: What is online defamation, as described in the passage?

(A) Making harmful statements about someone in person.
(B) False statements made on the internet that harm someone's reputation.
(C) Online harassment.
(D) A form of political activism.

Solution: When a person's reputation is degraded in the right mind of the society then it is defamation which is both a tort as well as an offence under IPC 1860 when such an act is done on internet it is called as an online defamation and passage focuses on it.

Question 3: What is the significance of Section 79 of the Information Technology Act, 2000, as mentioned in the passage?

(A) It defines defamation laws in India.
(B) It provides safe harbor for intermediaries in cases of online defamation.
(C) It regulates the content on social media platforms.
(D) It allows private complaints against online defamation.
Solution: Section 79 of the IT Act signifies that it provides a safe harbour for intermediaries in cases of online defamation. Section 79 plays a major role of protection and is hence mentioned in the passage directly.

Question 4: According to the Supreme Court in the Shreya Singhal v. Union of India case, under what circumstances should intermediaries act in response to content removal?

(A) Upon receiving a private complaint.
(B) Upon a valid court order or government directive.
(C) Proactively to monitor content.
(D) Only if the content is found to be defamatory.
Solution: It is expressly mentioned in the passage that in the case of Shreya Singhal vs. UOI, intermediaries will work only on valid court orders or government directives. Hence option b is correct.

Question 5: How does the Indian legal system balance the Right to Freedom of Expression and the Right to Reputation in online defamation cases?

(A) By favouring freedom of expression over reputation.
(B) By favouring reputation over freedom of expression.
(C) By carefully examining the content, context, and intent of statements.
(D) By absolving intermediaries of their responsibilities.
Solution: In the passage it is mentioned that right to freedom of speech and expression is not utmost and the balancing of ideas is mandatory here it balances by content, context and the intent of the statements. Hence option c is correct.

Question 6: In an online defamation case, what must the plaintiff prove about the defamatory statement?

(A) That it was political activism.
(B) That it was made with good intentions.
(C) That it was true and intended to inform the public.
(D) That it was false, damaging to their reputation, and made with a degree of fault.
Solution: The very core idea of defamation is to be proven by the plaintiff that the statements were defamatory if the statement is false, damaging to their reputation and made with a degree of fault. Hence option d is correct.

Question 7: What is the role of intermediaries in the context of online defamation cases?

(A) To actively monitor and censor content.

(B) To act upon private complaints for content removal.

(C) To completely absolve themselves of liability.

(D) To encourage online defamation.

Solution: As per the passage the role of intermediaries in terms of online defamation as per the court order is to completely absolve the liability. Hence option c is correct.

Section - Logical Reasoning

Passage

Directions: Students have been abuzz over how artificial intelligence tools can do their homework and programmers over how these can increase their productivity or take away their jobs. As much as digitization has transformed the country in recent years, there is a widespread feeling that at some point around the horizon, AIshall rejigs everything in even more fundamental, fantastic, and frightening ways. This is why deciding how the coming changes should be regulated is very important. TRAI has made a strong case for an independent statutory authority to ensure the responsible development and use of Al in the country, a global agency along similar lines shall likely be pitched at the G20 leaders, and interestingly even American MNC Microsoft has floated a blueprint for Al governance in India. The great size and diversity of its data points make India of great interest to all developers of Al technologies. But India is only at their receiving end, nowhere close to the US and China advances. Although lately, it is becoming obvious how much state censorship is encumbering China's Large Language Modeling, the country is still very much in the game with PhDs in fields related to Al, investments in Al chip hardware design, and domestic generative models like Wu Dao. The scientific accomplishments of India's Chandrayaan mission have seen it being wooed for various international space collaborations. This promises spinoff technological benefits across Indian industry and is also geo-strategically useful. Likewise, it is only with sufficient Al prowess that India shall get to play at the high table of global rulemaking for Al. Knowing how much Indians shall be shaped by generative Al needs matching efforts to create indigenous models. In this and at this stage, a proactive government role is key, rather than just waiting on some large corporation to do the needful. Missing this bus will after all be even more costly than missing the chip research one. Plus, GOI alone can push academia-industry collaborations with the necessary weight and urgency. This does not let other institutions off the hook. A US judge has rejected the copyright for an Al-generated artwork. Indian courts should start engaging with the broader issue of non-human agency rather than wait for precedence to be set elsewhere. Indian schools need to think beyond the ban-ChatGPT mindset. Let us lead instead of only being led.[Extracted from First, get the tech: Unless India develops domestic Al heft, it wouldn't play any meaningful part in global regulatory efforts Times of India]

Question 1 If the information in the passage above is correct, which of the following must necessarily be true?
(A) Al regulation is the responsibility of the legislature alone.
(B) Al regulation is the responsibility of courts and can't be addressed through standalone statutory rules.
(C) Al regulation is a collaborative effort involving all the institutions of the State.
(D) Al regulation is the domain of private industry.

Solution: The passage emphasizes the need for regulation and responsible development of AI. It mentions the TRAI case for an independent statutory authority, the potential pitch for a global agency at the G20 leaders summit, and Microsoft's blueprint for AI governance in India. It also stresses the importance of a proactive government role, academia-industry collaborations, and the involvement of Indian courts in addressing legal issues related to AI. Therefore, the passage supports the idea that AI regulation is a collaborative effort involving multiple institutions of the state. Hence, the third option is correct.

Question 2 Based on the author's arguments, which of the following would result in weakening rather than strengthening India's position at the forefront of generative Al?
(A) Investing in Indigenous Al chip hardware design and domestic generative models.
(B) Exploring spinoff technological benefits with other scientific advancements like the Chandrayaan mission.
(C) Introducing generative models like Wu Dao which have demonstrated success in other jurisdictions.
(D) Locally developing technologies such as indigenous AI models.

Solution: The passage suggests the importance of India developing its own indigenous generative AI models. It also suggests thatby introducing a successful model from another jurisdiction (Wu Dao), the author seems to emphasize the need for India to focus on creating its models rather than relying solely on technologies developed elsewhere. Therefore, introducing a foreign generative model may not align with the author's argument for building indigenous capabilities.Hence, thethird optionis correct.

Question 3 The author states, Missing this bus will after all be even more costly than missing the chip research one. For this statement to be true, with which of the following statements about chip research must the author most likely agree?
(A) India leads chip research from its frontiers.
(B) India was right to leave regulation of the chip industry and research to MNCs.
(C) India should have proactively played a role in responding to new research in chip technology.
(D) The failure to respond to new developments in chip technology was a bigger loss than the potential failure to regulate generative AI.

Solution The author is suggesting that just as missing the bus in chip research was costly, missing the bus in generative AI could be even more costly. This does not necessarily imply that India led chip research or that leaving the regulation of the chip industry to MNCs was the right approach. The focus is on the potential cost of missing opportunities in generative AI compared to the missed opportunities in chip research. Indian government should have proactively played a role in responding to new research in chip technology rather than just waiting. Hence, the third option is correct.

Question 4:Which of the following is the author most likely to agree with?
(A) The best way to deal with the advancement of AI is to leave its regulation to market forces.
(B) Government-driven control of AI is inefficient and shall promote red-tapism.
(C) Private companies with their large capital and infrastructure design the most efficient Al governance models.
(D) Government-led initiatives of Al regulation and development lead to efficient outcomes.

Solution It is mentioned in the passage that TRAI advocates for an independent statutory authority, a potential global agency for AI governance, and the role of the Government of India (GOI) in pushing academia-industry collaborations. The author suggests that a proactive government role is key, rather than solely relying on large corporations or leaving regulation to market forces. So, briefly, the author most likely agrees with is that the initiatives led by the government for AI regulation and development will lead to efficient outcomes.Hence, thefourth optionis correct.

Question 5: Which of the following, if true, would most strengthen the main argument of the passage?
(A) Governments that lead the initiative on regulating and responding to the advancement of Al tools benefit the most from them.
(B) Governments that don't engage with generative AI and remain at its receiving end stay risk-averse with nothing to lose.
(C) Governments that actively incentivise MNCs to participate in Al governance make the most out of the advancements in the field.
(D) Governments that explore models of public-private partnership strike the right balance in regulating generative AI.

Solution The passage emphasises the need for a proactive government role and suggests an effective approach to achieve the right balance in regulating generative AI. It implies that combining the strengths of every sector leads to efficient outcomes in developing and regulating AI technologies. Hence, the first option is correct.

Question 6 Based only on the author's statement that Indian courts should start engaging with the broader issue of non-human agency rather than wait for precedence to be set elsewhere which of the following would the author be most likely to agree with?
(A) Courts should take the initiative by being innovative and laying down rules where no precedents exist.
(B) Courts should wait for precedents and in the meantime refrain from engaging with the challenges presented by generative Al.
(C) Courts should stop relying on precedents and decide cases based on judicial wisdom.
(D) Precedents are the best possible safeguard against arbitrary decision-making.

Solution The author is advocating for proactive engagement by the courts in addressing the challenges presented by non-human agencies in the context of generative AI. Option (A) aligns with this perspective, suggesting that the courts should take the initiative, be innovative, and establish rules even in the absence of existing precedents. Hence, the correct option is A.

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