Which of the following provision(s) of the Constitution of India became effective from 26th November 1949 ? 1. Elections 2. Citizenship 3. Emergency provisions 4. Appointment of the Judges Select the correct answer using the code given below :
- (a)1 only
- (b)1 and 2 only
- (c)1, 2 and 3
- (d)2 and 4
Correct — B, 1 and 2 only. The Constitution was adopted on 26 November 1949 but came into force on 26 January 1950, with one narrow exception written into Article 394. That article names the handful of provisions that came into force at once, on the day of adoption: this article and articles 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 60, 324, 366, 367, 379, 380, 388, 391, 392 and 393. Articles 5 to 9 are the citizenship articles, which is item 2, and Article 324 creates the Election Commission, which is item 1. Both had to be operative immediately, because who counted as a citizen had to be settled and an Election Commission had to exist and start preparing rolls before the first general election could be held. Everything else, including the emergency provisions and the articles on the appointment of judges, waited for 26 January 1950.
- (a)1 only — Article 324 did come into force at once, but so did articles 5 to 9 on citizenship. Leaving citizenship out ignores half of what Article 394 lists, and the two go together for the same practical reason — you cannot draw up an electoral roll without first knowing who is a citizen.
- (c)1, 2 and 3 — The emergency provisions of Part XVIII, Articles 352 to 360, are nowhere in the list in Article 394. They took effect on 26 January 1950 along with the bulk of the Constitution.
- (d)2 and 4 — Citizenship belongs, but the appointment of judges does not. Articles 124 and 217, which govern appointments to the Supreme Court and the High Courts, are not among those Article 394 brought into immediate force, and the Supreme Court itself came into being only on 28 January 1950.
Article 394 is the commencement clause. It provides that itself and articles 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 60, 324, 366, 367, 379, 380, 388, 391, 392 and 393 shall come into force at once, and that the remaining provisions shall come into force on 26 January 1950, which is the day the Constitution calls its commencement. The group brought forward is a working list rather than a statement of importance: citizenship (5-9), the President's oath (60), the Election Commission (324), definitions and interpretation (366-367), and the transitional provisions that kept a provisional Parliament, a provisional President and a provisional Council of Ministers in place until the new machinery was elected (379, 380, 388).
Two dates and one small list carry the whole topic. 26 November 1949 is the day the Constituent Assembly adopted, enacted and gave the Constitution to the people, and it is the date printed at the end of the Preamble; it is observed as Samvidhan Divas or Constitution Day, a practice begun in 2015. 26 January 1950 is the commencement, chosen to echo the Purna Swaraj declaration of 26 January 1930. Between the two dates a small set of articles was already live so that the transition could actually be managed. When this item is set, look for the two practical necessities — knowing who the citizens are, and having a body ready to prepare the rolls — and the answer follows without memorising fifteen article numbers.
- Article 394 lists the articles that came into force at once on 26 November 1949: itself and articles 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 60, 324, 366, 367, 379, 380, 388, 391, 392 and 393.
- Articles 5 to 9 deal with citizenship; Article 324 creates the Election Commission.
- The remaining provisions came into force on 26 January 1950, the date the Constitution calls its commencement.
- The emergency provisions (Articles 352-360) and the articles on appointment of judges (124, 217) were not among those brought into immediate force.
- 26 November has been observed as Constitution Day, or Samvidhan Divas, since 2015.
Only the first row answers this stem, and items 1 and 2 of the list sit inside it.
- Assuming the Constitution came into force on the day it was adopted; adoption and commencement are two months apart.
- Adding the emergency provisions because they feel urgent — they were not among the articles brought forward.
- Treating the whole of Part II as brought forward; Article 394 names articles 5 to 9, and Articles 10 and 11 are not in the list.
NDA asks which provisions took effect on the earlier date, or simply asks for the date of adoption against the date of commencement.
In the following quotation, “WE, THE PEOPLE OF INDIA, having solemnly resolved to constitute India into a Sovereign Socialist Secular Democratic Republic and to secure to all its citizens: JUSTICE, social, economic and political; LIBERTY of thought, expression, belief, faith and worship; EQUALITY of status and of opportunity; and to promote among them all; FRATERNITY assuring the dignity of the individual and the unity and integrity of the Nation; In our Constituent Assembly this ‘X’ ………. do hereby adopt, enact and give to ourselves this Constitution.” ‘X’ stands for
- (a) twenty-sixth day of January, 1950
- (b) twenty-sixth day of November, 1949
- (c) twenty-sixth day of January, 1949
- (d) None of the above
Answer(b) twenty-sixth day of November, 1949
Fixes the same date from the Preamble's own words, and separates adoption on 26 November 1949 from commencement on 26 January 1950 — the distinction this item is built on.
Which one among the following is not a Fundamental Right under the Constitution of India?
- (a) Right to equality
- (b) Right to freedom
- (c) Right to citizenship
- (d) Right against exploitation
Answer(c) Right to citizenship
The companion point about citizenship, six months later. It sits in Part II precisely because it had to be settled before the rest of the Constitution came into force.
- practice — not a real PYQ
The Constitution of India came into force on
- (a)26 November 1949
- (b)15 August 1947
- (c)26 January 1950
- (d)9 December 1946
Answer(c) 26 January 1950 — 26 November 1949 is the date of adoption, and 9 December 1946 the Constituent Assembly's first sitting.
- practice — not a real PYQ
Which one of the following articles brought the Election Commission into existence with immediate effect on 26 November 1949?
- (a)Article 324
- (b)Article 352
- (c)Article 148
- (d)Article 280
Answer(a) Article 324 — named in Article 394 among the provisions that came into force at once.