MPSC 2026 Prelims Q79: Which of the following statements about Veto power of

Q: What is the answer to MPSC 2026 Prelims Q79?

(4). Correct — option (4), '(a), (b), (c)'. All three statements are accurate, and each traces to a specific provision. Statement (a) reproduces Article 111: when a Bill passed by both Houses of Parliament is presented to the President, the President shall declare either that assent is given or that assent is WITHHELD. Withholding assent outright is what the textbooks call the absolute veto, and the option's printed wording 'can withholds' is a slip of the press, not a change of meaning. Statement (c) reproduces the proviso to the same Article: the President may, as soon as possible after the Bill is presented, return it — if it is not a Money Bill — to the Houses with a message requesting that they reconsider the Bill or any specified provisions of it, and consider any amendments recommended in that message. This is the suspensive veto, and it is suspensive rather than absolute because if the Houses pass the Bill again, with or without amendment, and present it once more, the President SHALL NOT withhold assent. Statement (b) moves to the States and reproduces Article 200: a Bill passed by a State legislature is presented to the Governor, who shall declare either that he assents, or that he withholds assent, or that he RESERVES THE BILL for the consideration of the President. That third course is open to the Governor generally, in a case he thinks fit, and it is separately made obligatory where a Bill would so derogate from the powers of the High Court as to endanger the position that Court is designed to fill. Three statements, three provisions, all correct — option (4).

MPSC 2026 Prelims Paper-I · Question 79 of 100

Maharashtra Civil Services Gazetted Group-A and Group-B Combined Preliminary Examination 2026, held 31 May 2026. Transcribed from the commission's own booklet (संच A); answer as per the official MPSC final answer key.

Which of the following statements about Veto power of President are correct ? (a) He/she can withholds his/her assent to the bill. (b) Governor may reserve a bill for consideration of the President in any case he/she thinks fit. (c) President can return bill to Parliament for reconsideration with message to both houses.

(1)Only (a) and (b)
(2)Only (b) and (c)
(3)Only (a) and (c)
(4)(a), (b), (c)

Answer

(4)

Why

Correct — option (4), '(a), (b), (c)'. All three statements are accurate, and each traces to a specific provision. Statement (a) reproduces Article 111: when a Bill passed by both Houses of Parliament is presented to the President, the President shall declare either that assent is given or that assent is WITHHELD. Withholding assent outright is what the textbooks call the absolute veto, and the option's printed wording 'can withholds' is a slip of the press, not a change of meaning. Statement (c) reproduces the proviso to the same Article: the President may, as soon as possible after the Bill is presented, return it — if it is not a Money Bill — to the Houses with a message requesting that they reconsider the Bill or any specified provisions of it, and consider any amendments recommended in that message. This is the suspensive veto, and it is suspensive rather than absolute because if the Houses pass the Bill again, with or without amendment, and present it once more, the President SHALL NOT withhold assent. Statement (b) moves to the States and reproduces Article 200: a Bill passed by a State legislature is presented to the Governor, who shall declare either that he assents, or that he withholds assent, or that he RESERVES THE BILL for the consideration of the President. That third course is open to the Governor generally, in a case he thinks fit, and it is separately made obligatory where a Bill would so derogate from the powers of the High Court as to endanger the position that Court is designed to fill. Three statements, three provisions, all correct — option (4).

Why the others are wrong

(1)Only (a) and (b) — This option drops statement (c), which is as clearly correct as the other two. The proviso to Article 111 expressly empowers the President to return a Bill, other than a Money Bill, to the Houses with a message asking them to reconsider it or any of its provisions. A candidate reaches this option by confusing the rule for ordinary Bills with the rule for Money Bills — a Money Bill cannot be returned for reconsideration, since it is introduced only on the President's own recommendation, and the President can only assent to it or withhold assent. The restriction is real, but it is a restriction on one class of Bill, not a denial of the power to return.
(2)Only (b) and (c) — This option rejects statement (a), the plainest of the three. Article 111 gives the President two courses on the face of the Article — to assent or to withhold assent — and the power to withhold is the absolute veto. It is not a dead letter: it is available in practice on private members' Bills, and on a government Bill where the ministry that piloted it has since resigned and the new Council of Ministers advises against assent. What is true is that the President exercises this power very rarely and on ministerial advice, but rarity of use is not absence of power, and the statement claims no more than the Article says.
(3)Only (a) and (c) — The two statements about the President are kept and the statement about the Governor is discarded — a natural move, since the stem announces itself as being about the veto power of the President and statement (b) speaks of the Governor. But statement (b) is nonetheless true, and it belongs to the same subject: reservation under Article 200 is the mechanism by which a State Bill reaches the President for a decision on assent at all, and the President's own powers over such a Bill are then governed by Article 201. Discarding a statement because it seems off-topic, rather than because it is false, is the error this option is built to catch.

Concept

The President's options on a Bill passed by Parliament are conventionally described as three vetoes. The ABSOLUTE VETO is the withholding of assent, so that the Bill simply does not become law; in practice it is used on private members' Bills and where a change of ministry leaves the new Council of Ministers advising against assent. The SUSPENSIVE VETO is the return of a Bill, other than a Money Bill, with a message requesting reconsideration; it is suspensive because if the Houses pass the Bill again, with or without amendment, the President must then assent. The POCKET VETO is not named in the Constitution but follows from its silence: no time limit is prescribed within which the President must act, so a Bill may simply be kept pending. Two limits complete the picture. A Money Bill cannot be returned for reconsideration, since it is introduced only on the President's recommendation in the first place. And a Constitution Amendment Bill leaves the President no choice at all — since the 24th Amendment Act of 1971 it has been obligatory to give assent.

Article 200 gives the Governor a wider set of options than the President has, because it adds a fourth course: reservation of the Bill for the consideration of the President. The Governor may take that course in a case he thinks fit, and must take it where in his opinion the Bill would so derogate from the powers of the High Court as to endanger the position which that Court is designed to fill. Once a Bill is reserved, Article 201 governs what follows: the President shall declare either that assent is given or that it is withheld, and may instead direct the Governor to return the Bill, if it is not a Money Bill, to the House or Houses with a message; the legislature must then reconsider it within six months, and if it is passed again the Bill is presented to the President once more — but the President is not obliged to assent even then. That last point is the sharpest difference between the two Articles: a Bill re-passed by Parliament binds the President, while a State Bill re-passed after reservation does not.

Key facts

Article 111 — a Bill passed by both Houses is presented to the President, who shall declare either that assent is given or that assent is withheld. Withholding assent is the absolute veto.
Proviso to Article 111 — the President may return a Bill, other than a Money Bill, to the Houses with a message seeking reconsideration of the Bill or of specified provisions. If the Houses pass it again, with or without amendment, the President SHALL NOT withhold assent. This is the suspensive veto.
A Money Bill cannot be returned for reconsideration; it is introduced only on the President's recommendation, so the President may assent or withhold assent but not send it back. A Constitution Amendment Bill must be assented to — the 24th Amendment Act, 1971 made assent obligatory.
The pocket veto is not a named power but follows from the Constitution prescribing no time limit for the President's decision, so a Bill may be kept pending indefinitely.
Article 200 — a Bill passed by a State legislature is presented to the Governor, who may assent, withhold assent, or RESERVE the Bill for the consideration of the President; reservation is obligatory where the Bill would so derogate from the powers of the High Court as to endanger its position. Article 201 then governs the President's decision on a reserved Bill, and the President is not bound to assent even after the State legislature has passed it again.

Match each statement to the Article it is quoting

(a) May withhold assent to a Bill→TRUE — Article 111: absolute veto

(b) Governor may reserve a Bill for the President→TRUE — Article 200, third course open to him

All three hold → option (4). (b) reads off-topic but is how a State Bill reaches the President at all.

Study next

The three vetoes of the President set against the four courses open to a Governor under Article 200, and the different consequences of re-passage under Articles 111 and 201Money Bills — the definition in Article 110, the Speaker's certificate, the limited role of the Rajya Sabha, and why the President cannot return oneThe legislative process for an ordinary Bill through both Houses, including the joint sitting under Article 108 and the Bills for which it is not availableThe ordinance-making power under Article 123 and Article 213 — scope, duration, and the limits the courts have placed on re-promulgationThe President's position generally: the extent of discretion, the effect of the 42nd and 44th Amendments on ministerial advice, and the distinction between powers held and powers exercised

Common traps

Discarding a statement because it mentions the Governor in a question headed 'veto power of President'. Reservation under Article 200 is how a State Bill reaches the President at all, and the statement is true.
Applying the Money Bill restriction to Bills generally. Ordinary Bills can be returned for reconsideration; Money Bills cannot, and Constitution Amendment Bills must be assented to.
Assuming a power that is rarely used does not exist. The absolute veto is seldom exercised, but Article 111 states it in terms, and the question asks what the President can do, not what the President usually does.

This topic is set in three shapes. The enumeration question asks how many vetoes the President has, or which of a named list of vetoes is available, with the pocket veto as the recurring catch since it is not in the constitutional text. The exception question asks about the classes of Bill that behave differently — Money Bills, which cannot be returned, and Constitution Amendment Bills, which must be assented to, and UPSC has set the second of those directly. The comparison question runs the President's powers against the Governor's, focusing on reservation under Article 200 and on the asymmetry created by Article 201, under which the President is not bound to assent to a re-passed State Bill. All three are answered by reading Articles 111, 200 and 201 in the bare text, which between them run to a page.

Related PYQs

UPSC_2022_GS1_Q132022Open & attempt →

Consider the following statements: 1. A bill amending the Constitution requires a prior recommendation of the President of India. 2. When a Constitution Amendment Bill is presented to the President of India, it is obligatory for the President of India to give his/her assent. 3. A Constitution Amendment Bill must be passed by both the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha by a special majority and there is no provision for joint sitting. Which of the statements given above are correct?

(a) 1 and 2 only
(b) 2 and 3 only
(c) 1 and 3 only
(d) 1, 2 and 3

Answer(b) 2 and 3 only

The boundary of the same power. MPSC asks what the President's veto can do on an ordinary Bill; UPSC's statement 2 marks the one class of Bill on which it can do nothing — assent to a Constitution Amendment Bill has been obligatory since the 24th Amendment Act, 1971.

Practice

practice — not a real PYQ
In respect of which one of the following categories of Bills does the President of India have no power to withhold assent?
- (a)A Money Bill
- (b)A private member's Bill
- (c)A Constitution Amendment Bill
- (d)A Bill reserved by a Governor for the President's consideration
Answer(c) A Constitution Amendment Bill — the 24th Amendment Act, 1971 made it obligatory for the President to give assent to such a Bill, leaving no veto of any kind. A Money Bill cannot be RETURNED for reconsideration, but assent to it may still be withheld; and on a Bill reserved by a Governor the President may withhold assent even after the State legislature has passed it a second time.
practice — not a real PYQ
Under Article 200 of the Constitution, in which case is a Governor obliged to reserve a Bill passed by the State legislature for the consideration of the President?
- (a)Where the Bill imposes a new tax
- (b)Where the Bill would so derogate from the powers of the High Court as to endanger the position that Court is designed to fill
- (c)Where the Bill has been passed by only one House of a bicameral legislature
- (d)Where the Bill relates to a subject in the Concurrent List
Answer(b) Where the Bill would so derogate from the powers of the High Court as to endanger the position that Court is designed to fill — this is the one case in which Article 200 makes reservation obligatory rather than discretionary. In other cases the Governor may reserve a Bill if he thinks fit, but is not required to.