Chapter 16: The Union Legislature
Answer Key
A. Fill in the blanks.
1. legislature, executive, judiciary
2. Union List, State List, Concurrent List
3. Lok Sabha, Rajya Sabha
4. bicameral
5. Rajya Sabha
B. Choose the correct answer.
1. the Council of Ministers
2. Concurrent List
3. Rajya Sabha
4. Lok Sabha
5. Legislative Assembly
C. State whether the following are true or false. Rewrite the false statements correctly.
1. False. Correct statement: The Union List includes subjects of national importance.
2. False. Correct statement: A member of the Lok Sabha should be at least 25 years of age.
3. True.
4. False. Correct statement: A money bill has to be introduced in the Lok Sabha.
5. True.
D. My mixed bag
1. (b) Law and order (Law and order is a State List subject; Railways, Banking and Foreign
affairs are all Union List subjects.)
2. (c) Should have a class 10 pass certificate from any regional or national Board (This is not a
real qualification for Lok Sabha membership — a candidate need only be a citizen of India, at
least 25 years of age, and a registered voter.)
3. (c) Both (A) and (B) are true and (B) is the correct explanation for (A).
E. Answer the following questions in one or two words/sentences.
1. The President.
2. The Parliament is the highest law-making body; it makes laws for the entire country, and
the Indian people enjoy supreme power through their elected representatives in the
Parliament.
3. The Judiciary.
4. 18 years.
5. The Speaker.
6. The members of the Rajya Sabha are elected by the elected members of the State
Legislative Assemblies.
7. Budget is the financial statement stating the estimated income and expenditure of the
country in the ensuing year.
8. The Council of Ministers has to resign.
9. Quorum refers to the minimum number of members required to be present to conduct a
meeting.
F. Give reasons for the following.
1. The Union Legislature is called a bicameral legislature because it consists of two Houses —
the Lok Sabha (Lower House) and the Rajya Sabha (Upper House).
2. The country is divided into electoral constituencies so that the population can be
represented equally and fairly, with each Lok Sabha member representing roughly the same
number of people.
G. Answer the following questions briefly.
1. In the context of the parliamentary form of government:
(a) Main features of a parliamentary form of government: There is a close relationship
between the legislature (Parliament) and the executive (Council of Ministers); the President
is only the nominal/constitutional head, while real executive power lies with the Prime
Minister and the Council of Ministers; and the Council of Ministers is collectively responsible
to the Lok Sabha.
(b) The three branches of government are: the Legislature, which makes laws; the Executive,
which enforces laws; and the Judiciary, which interprets laws.
(c) Powers are distributed between the central and the state governments to maintain a
balance of power, avoid concentration of authority in one body, and allow both levels of
government to function efficiently within their own areas — the Union, State and
Concurrent Lists.
2. The Lok Sabha:
(a) Composition: The maximum strength of the Lok Sabha is 550 members; 530 are elected
from territorial constituencies and 20 are elected from Union territories.
(b) Basic qualifications of its members: A member should be a citizen of India, should be a
registered voter, and should be at least 25 years of age.
(c) Term: The term of the Lok Sabha is 5 years, but the President can dissolve it before the
term expires if the ruling party loses the support of the majority.
3. The Rajya Sabha:
(a) Composition: Its maximum strength can be 250 members — 238 members from the
states and Union territories, and 12 members nominated by the President.
(b) Basic qualifications of its members: Members must be at least 30 years of age, should be
registered voters, and should be citizens of India.
(c) Term: The Rajya Sabha is a permanent House; each member is elected for 6 years, and
one-third of the members retire every 2 years.
4. Functions of the Parliament:
(a) Law-making functions: The Parliament can frame new laws and modify existing laws;
money bills are approved by the Parliament; it can also introduce a bill to amend the
Constitution.
(b) Control over the executive: The Parliament passes the budget (annual income and
expenditure) for every financial year, and has control over the Council of Ministers, who
have to resign if a no-confidence vote is passed against them by the Lok Sabha. It can also
discuss policies.
(c) Judicial functions: The Parliament can impeach or remove the President, the Vice-
President, and judges of the courts.
H. Source-based questions
Picture study: The building shown is the Parliament House (Sansad Bhavan), New Delhi.
1. The building is the Parliament House (Sansad Bhavan).
2. The Legislature (Parliament), comprising the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha, functions in
this building.
3. The members of this branch are the elected members of the Lok Sabha and the
elected/nominated members of the Rajya Sabha.
4. Lok Sabha members must be citizens of India, at least 25 years of age, and registered
voters. Rajya Sabha members must be citizens of India, at least 30 years of age, and
registered voters.
5. Their primary function is law-making. Two other important functions are exercising
control over the executive (Council of Ministers) and performing judicial functions such as
impeaching the President or removing judges.