Panchayati Raj Institution for CLAT - Practice Questions & MCQ

Read the passage and answer the questions that follow.

Two years after the 73rd Amendment Act, the Union Government had appointed a Committee of Members of Parliament (MPs) and experts under the Chairmanship of Sh. Dilip Singh Bhuria to undertake a detailed study and make recommendations about whether the Panchayati raj system should be extended to the Schedules Areas, as contemplated by Article 243-M(4)(b) of the Constitution. The Committee submitted its report on 17.1.1995 and favoured democratic decentralization in scheduled areas. At the outset, we are of the view that the principles of reservation which are applicable for public employment and admission to educational institutions cannot be readily applied in respect of a reservation policy made by the legislature to protect the interests of the Scheduled Tribes by assuring them of majority reservation as well as the occupancy of Chairperson positions in Panchayats located in Scheduled Areas. This policy broadly corresponds with the past practice wherein the Scheduled Areas were administered as per the provisions of the Fifth Schedule to the Constitution and the same was expected to adhere to the advice of the Tribes Advisory Councils, which were predominantly controlled by Scheduled Tribes. By extending the Panchayati Raj system to these areas, Scheduled Tribes should not be put in a relatively disadvantageous position. In the Panchayati Raj system contemplated by Part IX, the Scheduled Tribes should have an effective say in the administration. That is why the Bhuria Committee recommended that all Chairperson positions should be reserved in favour of Scheduled Tribes. As a result, the appeals filed by the Union of India are allowed and the proviso to Section 4(g) of PESA Act and Sections 21(B), 40(B), and 55(B) of Jharkhand Panchayat Raj Act, 2001 are held to be constitutionally valid. We also hold that Sections 17(B)(2), 36(B)(2), and 51(B)(2) of the Jharkhand Panchayat Raj Act, 2001 are constitutionally valid provisions. The other appeals are also disposed of accordingly and the State Election Commission of the State of Jharkhand is directed to conduct elections for the Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs) as early as possible.

Question: The system of gram panchayats has been in existence since ancient times, however, the system of the panchayat was later on changed and added to the Constitution of India. Which Committee recommended the Panchayati Raj system in India?

Read the passage and answer the questions that follow.

Defamation is an injury to the reputation of a person. Rightly, law gives protection to man’s reputation as it gives protection to his life and property. “Defamation” has been recognised as a civil wrong in the Law of Torts. “Defamation” has been recognised as a criminal wrong in the Law of Crimes. The pain it causes, if nothing else may be enough to keep one man apart from another. It may provoke a breach of the peace and disturb public tranquillity. The law cannot, therefore allow it. All systems of jurisprudence have recognised reputation as one of the four cardinal rights of man, the other three being rights relating to person, property and liberty. Artificial persons also have reputation. Section 44 defines an injury as harm illegally caused to any person in body, mind, reputation or property. Harm which can be legally caused is not punishable. A man may suffer from the disclosure of the fact that he has been convicted of theft and public good may require such disclosure.

In the Criminal Law, the wrong-doer is punished with imprisonment or with fine or with both. In Indian Penal Code, the Section 499 defines-“Defamation”, and also gives ten exceptions for it, along with fifteen illustrations. Section 500 imposes punishment for defamation. Sections 501 and 502 also deal with printed defamatory matter. According to Section 500, whoever defames another shall be punished with simple imprisonment for a term which may extend to two years, or with fine, or with both Nature of offence:

The offence under Section 500 in case of public servant is non-cognizable, bailable, compoundable with permission of the Court before which any prosecution of such offence is pending and triable by Court of Session and in any other case, non-cognizable, bailable, compoundable, and triable by Magistrate of the first class. According to Section 501, whoever prints or engraves any matter, knowing or having good reason to believe that such matter is defamatory of any person, shall be punished with simple imprisonment for a term which lay extend to two years, or with fine, or with both. According to Section 502, whoever sells or offers for sale any printed or engraved substance containing defamatory matter, knowing that it contains such matter, shall be punished with simple imprisonment for a term which may extend to two years, or with fine, or with both.

Question: X wrote a letter to his old friend Y accusing him of multiple things, that involved cheating, bad character, etc. Y felt it was unfair to accuse him of something which wasn’t true. What is the liability of X?

What is the purpose of reserving seats for Scheduled Castes (SCs), Scheduled Tribes (STs), and women in PRIs?

What is one of the functions of the National Commission for Scheduled Tribes (NCST)?

What is one specific project that PRIs can undertake using funds like the Panchayat Gram Fund?