Which one of the following is not a Constitutional Commission of India?
- (a)The National Commission for Scheduled Castes
- (b)The National Commission for Scheduled Tribes
- (c)The National Commission for Backward Classes
- (d)The National Commission for Women
Correct — D, The National Commission for Women. The Commissions for Scheduled Castes (Article 338), Scheduled Tribes (Article 338A) and Backward Classes (Article 338B, inserted by the 102nd Constitutional Amendment in 2018) are constitutional bodies. The National Commission for Women, by contrast, is a statutory body set up under the National Commission for Women Act, 1990 — so it is not a constitutional commission.
- (a)The National Commission for Scheduled Castes — This is a constitutional body under Article 338, so it is not the answer to a 'which is NOT constitutional' question.
- (b)The National Commission for Scheduled Tribes — This is constitutional under Article 338A (created by the 89th Amendment, 2003), so it does not fit the 'not constitutional' description.
- (c)The National Commission for Backward Classes — Since the 102nd Amendment (2018) inserted Article 338B, this commission is a constitutional body, not a statutory one — so it is not the exception.
A constitutional body is one directly created or given status by the Constitution itself; a statutory body is created by an ordinary Act of Parliament. The three commissions safeguarding Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Backward Classes are named in the Constitution, whereas the women's commission rests on a 1990 statute.
The trap is that all four are national commissions with similar names and social-justice mandates, so they feel alike. The distinction is legal: the SC, ST and BC commissions have articles in the Constitution (338, 338A, 338B), while the NCW does not — it is statutory.
- National Commission for Scheduled Castes — constitutional, Article 338.
- National Commission for Scheduled Tribes — constitutional, Article 338A (89th Amendment, 2003).
- National Commission for Backward Classes — constitutional, Article 338B (102nd Amendment, 2018).
- National Commission for Women — statutory, under the NCW Act, 1990 (not constitutional).
The women's commission is statutory, while the SC, ST and BC commissions are constitutional.
- Assuming all national commissions are constitutional because their names look alike.
- Forgetting that the Backward Classes commission became constitutional only in 2018.
An 'odd-one-out' test of constitutional versus statutory status among national commissions.
Consider the following organizations/bodies in India: 1. The National Commission for Backward Classes 2. The National Human Rights Commission 3. The National Law Commission 4. The National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission. How many of the above are constitutional bodies?
- (a) Only one
- (b) Only two
- (c) Only three
- (d) All four
Answer(a) Only one
Same concept — telling constitutional bodies from statutory ones. That UPSC item hinges on the National Commission for Backward Classes being the only constitutional body (Article 338B); this one asks which national commission is NOT constitutional (the NCW).
- practice — not a real PYQ
The National Commission for Backward Classes was accorded constitutional status by which amendment?
- (a)42nd Amendment
- (b)73rd Amendment
- (c)102nd Amendment
- (d)103rd Amendment
Answer(c) 102nd Amendment — it inserted Article 338B in 2018.
- practice — not a real PYQ
Which one of the following is a statutory (not constitutional) body?
- (a)Election Commission of India
- (b)National Commission for Women
- (c)Comptroller and Auditor General
- (d)Union Public Service Commission
Answer(b) National Commission for Women — created by the NCW Act, 1990.