Consider the facts given below: 1. Sukumar Sen was the first Chief Election Commissioner of India. 2. Rama Devi was the first woman Chief Election Commissioner of India. Choose the correct answer from the codes given below.
- (a)Only 1 is correct
- (b)Only 2 is correct
- (c)Both 1 and 2 are correct
- (d)Both 1 and 2 are incorrect
Correct — C, Both 1 and 2 are correct. Statement 1 is true: Sukumar Sen (an ICS officer) was independent India's first Chief Election Commissioner, serving from 1950 to 1958, and conducted the first two general elections (1951-52 and 1957). Statement 2 is also true: V.S. Rama Devi (Velliyottil Saraswathi Ramadevi) was the first — and to date the only — woman to hold the office of Chief Election Commissioner of India, serving briefly from 26 November to 11 December 1990. As both statements are factually correct, the answer is 'Both 1 and 2 are correct'.
- (a)Only 1 is correct — Wrong — Statement 2 is also true; Rama Devi was indeed the first woman CEC, so restricting correctness to Statement 1 is incorrect.
- (b)Only 2 is correct — Wrong — Statement 1 is also true; Sukumar Sen was the first CEC of India, so excluding Statement 1 is incorrect.
- (d)Both 1 and 2 are incorrect — Wrong — both statements are accurate, so declaring both incorrect is the opposite of the truth.
The Election Commission of India is a constitutional body under Article 324, headed by the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC). Sukumar Sen was its first CEC (1950-58), setting up the machinery for India's first general elections. V.S. Rama Devi holds the distinction of being the only woman CEC so far (1990); she later served as Governor of Himachal Pradesh and of Karnataka. Both statements being true makes 'Both correct' the answer.
This is a both-statements-true item, so there is no hidden factual trap beyond mixing up the 'firsts'. Fix two facts in memory: first CEC = Sukumar Sen; first (and only) woman CEC = V.S. Rama Devi. Once both are confirmed true, option C follows directly.
- Sukumar Sen was India's first Chief Election Commissioner (1950-1958) and oversaw the first two Lok Sabha elections.
- V.S. Rama Devi was the first and only woman Chief Election Commissioner of India (26 Nov - 11 Dec 1990).
- The Election Commission of India is a constitutional body under Article 324.
- Rama Devi later served as Governor of Himachal Pradesh and of Karnataka.
Both listed facts are correct, so the answer is 'Both 1 and 2 are correct'.
- Assuming there has been more than one woman CEC — V.S. Rama Devi is the only one so far
- Confusing V.S. Rama Devi (CEC) with other 'first women' office-holders in Indian polity
UPPSC & UPSC test 'firsts' and two-statement true/false about constitutional office-holders — know Sukumar Sen (first CEC) and V.S. Rama Devi (first and only woman CEC).
No directly related past PYQ was found.
- practice — not a real PYQ
Who was the first Chief Election Commissioner of India?
- (a)T.N. Seshan
- (b)Sukumar Sen
- (c)K.V.K. Sundaram
- (d)S.P. Sen Verma
Answer(b) Sukumar Sen — India's first CEC (1950-58), who conducted the first two general elections.
- practice — not a real PYQ
Under which Article of the Constitution is the Election Commission of India established?
- (a)Article 280
- (b)Article 315
- (c)Article 324
- (d)Article 148
Answer(c) Article 324 — it vests the superintendence, direction and control of elections in the Election Commission.