With reference to the Attorney General of India, which of the following statement/s is/are correct? (1) A person is appointed as Attorney General, who is qualified to be appointed as a Judge of the Supreme Court. (2) The Attorney General can be removed through the same process as the Judges of the Supreme Court. Select the correct answer from the code given below –
- (a)Both 1 and 2
- (b)Only 2
- (c)Neither 1 nor 2
- (d)Only 1
Correct — D, Only 1. Under Article 76(1), the Attorney General must be a person qualified to be appointed a Judge of the Supreme Court — so statement 1 is correct. Statement 2 is wrong: the AG holds office during the pleasure of the President (Article 76(4)) and can be removed by the President at any time; there is NO fixed tenure and NO special removal procedure like the one for Supreme Court judges (removal by the President after an address by both Houses on grounds of proved misbehaviour or incapacity, Article 124(4)). Hence only statement 1 is correct.
- (a)Both 1 and 2 — Statement 2 is false — the AG is not removed by the Supreme-Court-judge process; he holds office during the pleasure of the President — so 'both' cannot be correct.
- (b)Only 2 — This inverts the truth: statement 2 is the false one, while statement 1 (qualifications of a SC judge) is the true statement.
- (c)Neither 1 nor 2 — Statement 1 is actually correct (Article 76 requires SC-judge qualifications), so 'neither' is wrong.
The Attorney General of India (Article 76) is the highest law officer of the Union. He is appointed by the President, must be qualified to be a Supreme Court judge, advises the Government on legal matters, and has the right of audience in all courts and the right to speak in Parliament (but not to vote). Crucially, he holds office during the pleasure of the President — there is no fixed term and no elaborate removal procedure.
The trap is to assume that a high constitutional office automatically enjoys the same security of tenure as a Supreme Court judge. It does not: the AG serves at the President's pleasure. Statement 1 restates the qualification requirement (true); statement 2 imports the judges' removal procedure onto the AG (false).
- Article 76 governs the office of the Attorney General of India.
- Qualification: must be qualified to be appointed a Judge of the Supreme Court.
- Appointed by the President; holds office during the pleasure of the President.
- Highest law officer; right of audience in all Indian courts; may speak in Parliament but has no vote and is not a Cabinet member.
Only statement 1 is correct, so the answer is (d) Only 1.
- Assuming the AG has a fixed tenure or judges'-style removal — he serves at the President's pleasure
- Confusing the AG (Union) with the Advocate General (State) under Article 165
UPSC/UPPSC test the AG through statement-based questions on his qualifications, appointing authority, tenure ('pleasure'), and his rights in Parliament and the courts.
Consider the following statements about the Attorney General of India: I. He is appointed by the President of India. II. He must have the same qualifications as are required for a Judge of the Supreme Court. III. He must be a member of either House of Parliament. IV. He can be removed by impeachment by Parliament. Which of these statements are correct?
- (a) I and II
- (b) I and III
- (c) II, III and IV
- (d) III and IV
Answer(a) I and II
Same office and the identical two points — the AG must have a Supreme Court judge's qualifications (true) but is NOT removed by any impeachment/judges'-style process (false).
- practice — not a real PYQ
The Attorney General of India holds office:
- (a)For a fixed term of five years
- (b)During the pleasure of the President
- (c)Until the age of 65 years
- (d)Until removed by a two-thirds majority of Parliament
Answer(b) During the pleasure of the President — there is no fixed tenure for the AG.
- practice — not a real PYQ
Which Article of the Constitution provides for the office of the Attorney General of India?
- (a)Article 74
- (b)Article 76
- (c)Article 148
- (d)Article 165
Answer(b) Article 76 — Article 165 provides for the Advocate General of a State.