CDS (I) 2023 General Knowledge · Question 110 of 120

Correct — C, Use of UN peacekeeping force for resolution of international disputes. Article 51 of the Constitution, one of the Directive Principles in Part IV, has exactly four clauses, and the State's endeavour under them is to promote international peace and security; to maintain just and honourable relations between nations; to foster respect for international law and treaty obligations in the dealings of organised peoples with one another; and to encourage settlement of international disputes by arbitration. Options (a), (b) and (d) are those clauses almost verbatim. There is no mention of the United Nations anywhere in the Article, and no reference to peacekeeping forces — the method the Article names for settling disputes is arbitration, not the deployment of an international force. The option that is not part of Article 51 is therefore (c).

• (a)Promote international peace and security — This is clause (a) of Article 51, reproduced in the Article's own words.
• (b)Maintain just and honourable relations between nations — This is clause (b), again almost word for word from the text of the Article.
• (d)Encourage settlement of international disputes by arbitration — This is clause (d), the closing provision of the Article — and the one the UN-peacekeeping option is built to be confused with.

Article 51 is the foreign-policy Directive Principle. Like the rest of Part IV it is not enforceable in a court, but it has been read by the courts as the constitutional basis for India's engagement with international law and for using treaties and international instruments to interpret domestic law. The clause on fostering respect for international law and treaty obligations is the one most often cited in that context, and it sits alongside Article 253, which gives Parliament the power to legislate to give effect to international agreements.

The Article is short enough to be memorised clause by clause, and this question rewards exactly that. The way the item is built is instructive: three options are quotations and the fourth is a plausible modern-sounding addition. It sounds right because India is a major troop contributor to United Nations peacekeeping and the sentiment fits the Article's spirit — but the Constituent Assembly wrote arbitration, and the text has not changed. Two related distinctions save marks elsewhere: Article 51 is the Directive Principle on international peace, while Article 51A, inserted much later, is the list of Fundamental Duties; and the fourth clause names arbitration specifically, not negotiation, mediation or adjudication in general.

• Article 51 falls in Part IV of the Constitution, among the Directive Principles of State Policy, and is not enforceable by a court.
• It has four clauses: promote international peace and security; maintain just and honourable relations between nations; foster respect for international law and treaty obligations; encourage settlement of international disputes by arbitration.
• The Article makes no reference to the United Nations or to peacekeeping forces.
• Article 51A is a different provision altogether — the Fundamental Duties, added by the Constitution (42nd Amendment) Act.
• Article 253 empowers Parliament to make law for implementing international treaties and agreements.

• Confusing Article 51 with Article 51A — Directive Principle against Fundamental Duties.
• Assuming the Article endorses collective security or UN action because India supports both in practice.
• Reading clause (d) loosely; it names arbitration, not negotiation or judicial settlement generally.

As an odd-one-out on the clauses of Article 51, or as a match between a Directive Principle and its article number.

• practice — not a real PYQ

  Article 51 of the Constitution of India directs the State to encourage the settlement of international disputes by

  • (a)Judicial adjudication
  • (b)Arbitration
  • (c)Collective security arrangements
  • (d)Referral to the Security Council

  Answer(b) Arbitration — clause (d) of Article 51 names arbitration specifically.

• practice — not a real PYQ

  Article 51 of the Constitution of India is placed in which Part?

  • (a)Part III, Fundamental Rights
  • (b)Part IV, Directive Principles of State Policy
  • (c)Part IVA, Fundamental Duties
  • (d)Part V, The Union

  Answer(b) Part IV, Directive Principles of State Policy — Part IVA holds Article 51A, the Fundamental Duties, which is a different provision.