NDA (II) 2018 General Ability Test · Question 123 of 146

Correct — C, Right to citizenship. Citizenship is dealt with in Part II of the Constitution, Articles 5 to 11, which is a separate Part standing before the chapter on rights. It settles who counts as a citizen at the commencement of the Constitution and leaves Parliament free to legislate on acquisition and termination, which it did through the Citizenship Act of 1955. Because Parliament can alter it by an ordinary law, it is not entrenched as a Fundamental Right at all. The Fundamental Rights live in Part III, Articles 12 to 35, and are grouped under six heads — equality, freedom, against exploitation, freedom of religion, cultural and educational rights, and constitutional remedies. Three of those six heads are printed here as the distractors.

• (a)Right to equality — This is the first of the six Fundamental Rights, covering Articles 14 to 18 — equality before law, prohibition of discrimination, equality of opportunity in public employment, abolition of untouchability and abolition of titles.
• (b)Right to freedom — This is the second head, Articles 19 to 22, which guarantees the six freedoms of speech, assembly, association, movement, residence and profession, along with protection in respect of conviction and personal liberty.
• (d)Right against exploitation — This is the third head, Articles 23 and 24, which prohibits traffic in human beings and forced labour and bars the employment of children below fourteen in factories, mines and other hazardous work.

Part III of the Constitution guarantees Fundamental Rights, which are enforceable against the State through the courts under Article 32 — the provision Dr Ambedkar called the heart and soul of the Constitution. Citizenship, by contrast, is the gateway question of who belongs to the political community, and the framers placed it in Part II so that the legislature could adapt the rules over time. Some Fundamental Rights are available to citizens alone, notably those under Articles 15, 16, 19, 29 and 30, while others such as Articles 14 and 21 are available to any person.

The item is decided by knowing the layout of the Constitution rather than any point of law. Run through the six heads of Part III; whatever is not on that list is the answer. It is worth adding the one genuine historical change here: the Right to Property was a Fundamental Right under Article 19(1)(f) and Article 31 until the Forty-fourth Amendment of 1978 removed it, and it now sits in Article 300A as a constitutional or legal right available to any person. So an aspirant who has learnt the six heads should also know why property is missing from them. A related caution is that citizenship being outside Part III does not make it unimportant — several Fundamental Rights are open only to those who hold it.

• Citizenship is governed by Part II, Articles 5 to 11, and by the Citizenship Act of 1955, which Parliament may amend by ordinary law.
• The Fundamental Rights are in Part III, Articles 12 to 35, and fall under six heads.
• The Right to Property ceased to be a Fundamental Right through the Forty-fourth Amendment of 1978 and now stands in Article 300A as a legal right available to any person.
• The citizenship provisions of the Constitution came into force on 26 November 1949, ahead of the rest of the document on 26 January 1950.

• Assuming anything described as a right in the Constitution must be a Fundamental Right; citizenship, property and the right to vote are all outside Part III.
• Forgetting that Fundamental Rights are not a single undifferentiated list — some are for citizens only and others for any person.
• Placing the abolition of untouchability under the Right against Exploitation; it belongs to the Right to Equality, under Article 17.

Asked as a negative one-from-four where three options are heads of Part III and the fourth belongs to a different Part of the Constitution.

• practice — not a real PYQ

  Which Part of the Constitution of India deals with citizenship?

  • (a)Part I
  • (b)Part II
  • (c)Part III
  • (d)Part IV

  Answer(b) Part II — Articles 5 to 11; Part III contains the Fundamental Rights and Part IV the Directive Principles.

• practice — not a real PYQ

  The prohibition of traffic in human beings and forced labour falls under which Fundamental Right?

  • (a)Right to equality
  • (b)Right to freedom
  • (c)Right against exploitation
  • (d)Right to constitutional remedies

  Answer(c) Right against exploitation — Article 23, with Article 24 barring the employment of children below fourteen in hazardous work.