Rajasthan Jan Aadhar Authority Ordinance came into force on -

Correct — option (2), 18 December, 2019.

The Rajasthan Gazette of 18 December 2019 carries the authorised English translation of the Rajasthan Jan-Aadhaar Authority Ordinance, 2019 (Ordinance No. 4 of 2019), "Made and promulgated by the Governor on the 18th day of December, 2019".

Section 1(3) of the Ordinance reads: "It shall come into force at once." So it came into force on the day it was promulgated.

The Ordinance was later replaced by the Rajasthan Jan-Aadhaar Authority Act, 2020 (Act No. 3 of 2020). The Act received the Governor's assent on 27 February 2020 and, by its section 1(3), "shall be deemed to have come into force on and from 18th December, 2019."

The idea to remember: Ordinance promulgated and in force on 18 December 2019; the Act that replaced it is deemed in force from the same date.

Why the others are wrong

• (1)
  11 January, 2021 — 11 January 2021 is more than a year after the Ordinance took effect. By then the Ordinance had already been repealed and replaced by the Rajasthan Jan-Aadhaar Authority Act, 2020, which received assent on 27 February 2020.

  The Ordinance came into force "at once" on 18 December 2019.

• (3)
  11 January, 2020 — 11 January 2020 is not the date in the Gazette. The Ordinance was promulgated, and came into force "at once", on 18 December 2019.

  The next dated step was the Act that replaced it, which received the Governor's assent on 27 February 2020.

• (4)
  18 December, 2020 — This option has the right day and month but the wrong year. The Ordinance is dated 2019 in its own title, the Rajasthan Jan-Aadhaar Authority Ordinance, 2019, and was promulgated on 18 December 2019.

  By December 2020 the Ordinance had been repealed by section 45 of the Act of 2020.

Under Article 213(1) of the Constitution, a Governor may promulgate an Ordinance when the Legislative Assembly is not in session and he is satisfied that circumstances render immediate action necessary.

An Ordinance has the same force as an Act of the State Legislature. Under Article 213(2)(a) it must be laid before the Assembly and ceases to operate six weeks after the Legislature reassembles, unless disapproved earlier.

In this case the sequel was an Act that repealed the Ordinance, saved what was done under it, and was deemed in force from the Ordinance's date.

Key facts

• 18 December 2019: the Governor promulgated the Rajasthan Jan-Aadhaar Authority Ordinance, 2019 (Ordinance No. 4 of 2019); it came into force at once.
• 27 February 2020: the Rajasthan Jan-Aadhaar Authority Act, 2020 (Act No. 3 of 2020) received the Governor's assent.
• The Act is deemed to have come into force on and from 18 December 2019, and its section 45 repeals the Ordinance.
• Under the Act, the 'head of the family' is a woman member aged eighteen or above, with provisos for families without one.
• The Chief Secretary is the Chairperson of the Rajasthan Jan-Aadhaar Authority; its headquarters are at Jaipur.

Common traps

• Ordinance versus Act: the Ordinance came into force on 18 December 2019; the Act received assent on 27 February 2020 but is deemed in force from 18 December 2019.
• Same day and month, different year: 18 December 2020 is a year too late.
• The year in the title is a check, not proof: the instrument is the Ordinance, 2019, and its section 1(3) settles the date by bringing it into force at once on 18 December 2019.

• practice — not a real PYQ

  The Rajasthan Jan-Aadhaar Authority Act, 2020 received the assent of the Governor on

  • (a)27 February 2020
  • (b)18 December 2019
  • (c)5 May 2020
  • (d)28 February 2021
  Answer(1) — The Gazette text of the Act says it received the Governor's assent on 27 February 2020. Option (2) is the date of the Ordinance, option (3) the date of the notification constituting the Authority, and option (4) is not a date in the Act's history.
• practice — not a real PYQ

  Under the Rajasthan Jan-Aadhaar Authority Act, 2020, who is the Chairperson of the Rajasthan Jan-Aadhaar Authority?

  • (a)The Chief Minister
  • (b)The Chief Secretary of the State
  • (c)The Governor
  • (d)The Minister of Planning
  Answer(2) — Section 19(6) of the Act says the Chief Secretary of the State shall be the Chairperson of the Authority. The Act does not give that post to options (1), (3) or (4).