SSC CGL 2025 Tier-I · 17 September 2025, Shift 1 · General Awareness · Question 13 of 100

We transcribed this text from the pictures on a candidate's response sheet for this shift; the answer is the key SSC colour-marked on that sheet. Solution last reviewed 13 September 2026.

Where this paper and its answers come from

SSC does not publish CGL question papers or a public answer key. From 2025 the candidate response sheet prints every question and option as a picture, so the text here is transcribed from those pictures for this shift and checked against them independently; where the layout carries meaning, the picture is shown as well. Each answer is the key SSC colour-marked on that sheet. SSC released a tentative key for challenge and later its final one, both only to candidates behind a login, and the sheet does not say which of the two it carries. The solutions are written by UnlockIAS.

What is the minimum age required to contest the Presidential election in India?

(a)35
(b)30
(c)25
(d)40

Answer

Why

Correct — A. Article 58(1) lists three conditions for election as President: the candidate must be a citizen of India, must have completed the age of 35 years, and must be qualified for election as a member of the Lok Sabha.

So the minimum age is 35: option (a). Clause (2) adds a bar on anyone holding an office of profit under a government.

Why the others are wrong

(b)
30 — 30 is the minimum age for the Rajya Sabha under Article 84. The President's threshold in Article 58 is higher, at 35.
(c)
25 — 25 is the minimum age for the Lok Sabha and the state Legislative Assemblies. Article 58 asks the President to be Lok Sabha-qualified and also 35.
(d)
40 — 40 appears nowhere in Article 58. The President and the Vice-President share the same threshold, 35 years.

Concept

The Constitution sets age floors by office. Article 84 fixes 25 for the Lok Sabha and 30 for the Rajya Sabha.

The President (Article 58) and the Vice-President (Article 66) must be 35, and so must a Governor (Article 157).

The President is chosen by an electoral college of the elected members of both Houses of Parliament and of the state Legislative Assemblies, including Delhi and Puducherry.

Article 58 folds in the Lok Sabha qualification, which is why 25 looks tempting. The Article's own age requirement is higher, and it is the one that binds.

Key facts

Article 58: the President must be a citizen, at least 35, and qualified for election to the Lok Sabha.
Article 84: minimum age 25 for the Lok Sabha and 30 for the Rajya Sabha.
Article 66 sets 35 for the Vice-President, and Article 157 sets 35 for a Governor.
Article 54: the President is elected by the elected members of Parliament and of the state Legislative Assemblies.

Study next

Articles 52–62: election, term and removal of the PresidentVice-President's electoral college compared with the President'sOffice of profit and disqualification from elected office

Common traps

Carrying the Lok Sabha age of 25 over to the President because Article 58 requires Lok Sabha qualification: the Article also demands 35.
Mixing up 30 (Rajya Sabha) with 35 (President and Vice-President).

Here a single eligibility number from Article 58 is asked directly. The President's Articles also appear at 11 Sep 2024, 12:30, GA Q.15 (re-election, Article 57) and 24 Sep 2024, 09:00, GA Q.15 (election, Article 54).

Related PYQs

No directly related past PYQ was found.

Topic: General Policy — all 308 SSC CGL questions on it, every solved shift.