The power to grant or refuse leave to the Comptroller and Auditor General shall vest in the

Question

UnlockIAS · Accepted Answer

Correct — B, President. The CAG is appointed by the President under Article 148 and can be removed only in the same manner as a Supreme Court judge, so that the country's top auditor stays independent of the political executive. Consistent with that insulation, personal service matters concerning the CAG — including granting or refusing leave — are kept with the President rather than with any single minister, so that no member of the government the CAG audits can informally pressure the CAG through leave approvals.

Why the other options are wrong — (a) The Finance Ministry is itself one of the bodies the CAG audits; giving it control over the CAG's leave would defeat the purpose of an independent audit.  (c) The Prime Minister has no formal role in the CAG's personal conditions of service; that role sits with the President.  (d) The CJI has no administrative authority over the CAG; the analogy to judicial protections covers the CAG's removal safeguard, not day-to-day leave administration.

Concept: Article 148 makes the CAG a constitutional watchdog over government finances, and — like the removal safeguard borrowed from Supreme Court judges — the Constitution keeps the CAG's personal service matters away from routine ministerial control. The power to grant or refuse the CAG's leave is vested in the President rather than in the Ministry of Finance, precisely because the CAG audits that very ministry.

State PCS 2021 Q60 — Indian Polity PYQ with Answer

State PCS 2021 Q60 — Indian Polity PYQ with Answer