Amendment & Basic Structure

The story behind it

The drafters wanted a Constitution that was neither as rigid as the American one nor as easy to change as an ordinary British law. The US Constitution has 27 amendments in over two centuries. India’s has more than a hundred in under eight decades. The three-level design, explained in the next section, is how the Assembly balanced change with protection of the federal bargain.

How UPSC asks it

1. UPSC 2024 As per Article 368 of the Constitution of India, the Parliament may amend any provision of the Constitution by way of:
   1. Addition
   2. Variation
   3. Repeal
   1. 1 and 2 only
   2. 2 and 3 only
   3. 1 and 3 only
   4. 1, 2 and 3
   Show answer

   (d) 1, 2 and 3. Article 368(1): “by way of addition, variation or repeal”.
2. UPSC 2022 Consider the following statements:
   1. A bill amending the Constitution requires a prior recommendation of the President of India.
   2. When a Constitution Amendment Bill is presented to the President of India, it is obligatory for the President of India to give his/her assent.
   3. A Constitution Amendment Bill must be passed by both the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha by a special majority and there is no provision for joint sitting.
   1. 1 and 2 only
   2. 2 and 3 only
   3. 1 and 3 only
   4. 1, 2 and 3
   Show answer

   (b) 2 and 3 only. No prior recommendation is needed. Assent is obligatory, and there is no joint sitting.
3. UPSC 2013 Consider the following statements:
   1. An amendment to the Constitution of India can be initiated by an introduction of a bill in the Lok Sabha only.
   2. If such an amendment seeks to make changes in the federal character of the Constitution, the amendment also requires to be ratified by the legislature of all the States of India.
   1. 1 only
   2. 2 only
   3. Both 1 and 2
   4. Neither 1 nor 2
   Show answer

   (d) Neither 1 nor 2. A bill can start in either House, and ratification is by half the States, not all.
4. UPSC 2003 Which one of the following Bills must be passed by each House of the Indian Parliament separately by special majority?
   1. Ordinary Bill
   2. Money Bill
   3. Finance Bill
   4. Constitution Amendment Bill
   Show answer

   (d) Constitution Amendment Bill. Article 368: each House separately, by a majority of total membership and two-thirds of members present and voting.
5. UPSC 1999 An amendment to the Constitution of India can be initiated by the:
   1. Lok Sabha
   2. Rajya Sabha
   3. State Legislature
   4. President
   1. Only 1
   2. 1, 2 and 3
   3. 2, 3 and 4
   4. 1 and 2
   Show answer

   (d) 1 and 2. Only by a bill in either House of Parliament.

The story behind it

The ratification list in Article 368’s proviso protects the federal bargain: the election of the President, the reach of Union and State executive power, the courts, the Lists, and State representation in Parliament. When an amendment touches these without State ratification, it can fall. The 97th Amendment’s Part IXB on co-operatives fell for State co-operatives in Rajendra N. Shah (2021) for exactly this reason.

How UPSC asks it

1. UPSC 2025 Consider the following subjects under the Constitution of India:
   1. List I – Union List, in the Seventh Schedule
   2. Extent of the executive power of a State
   3. Conditions of the Governor's office. For a constitutional amendment with respect to which of the above, ratification by the Legislatures of not less than one-half of the States is required before presenting the bill to the President of India for assent?
   1. 1 and 2 only
   2. 2 and 3 only
   3. 1 and 3 only
   4. 1, 2 and 3
   Show answer

   (a) 1 and 2 only. Article 368(2) proviso covers the Lists and Article 162 (extent of State executive power). The Governor’s conditions of office (Article 158) are not on the list.

The story behind it

The basic structure doctrine is not written anywhere in the Constitution. It was built by judges over a decade of conflict with Parliament.

• The seed (1965): in Sajjan Singh, Justice Mudholkar asked whether some features of the Constitution might be beyond amendment. The same year, the German scholar Dietrich Conrad lectured in India on implied limits to amending power, drawing on Germany’s experience under Hitler. Lawyers such as N.A. Palkhivala later used the idea in court.
• The decision (24 April 1973): in Kesavananda Bharati, 13 judges, the largest bench ever, held 7:6 that Parliament can amend any part of the Constitution but cannot destroy its basic structure. Justice H.R. Khanna’s opinion made the majority.
• The reaction: the next day three senior judges who had been in the majority were superseded, and Justice A.N. Ray, from the minority, was made Chief Justice.
• The test (1975–80): the doctrine was first used to strike down part of the 39th Amendment, on the election of the Prime Minister, in Indira Nehru Gandhi (1975). It was later used against the 42nd Amendment’s attempt to end judicial review (Minerva Mills, 1980).

There is no closed list of basic features. Courts identify them case by case, which critics call a judicial veto over the people’s representatives. Defenders point to the Emergency: without the doctrine, a Parliament with a two-thirds majority could have rewritten the Constitution without limit.

How UPSC asks it

1. UPSC 2020 Consider the following statements:
   1. The Constitution of India defines its basic structure in terms of federalism, secularism, fundamental rights and democracy.
   2. The Constitution of India provides for 'judicial review' to safeguard the citizens' liberties and to preserve the ideals on which the Constitution is based.
   Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
   1. 1 only
   2. 2 only
   3. Both 1 and 2
   4. Neither 1 nor 2
   Show answer

   (b) 2 only. Statement 1 is wrong: the Constitution nowhere defines the basic structure; the Supreme Court evolved it in 1973. Statement 2 is right: Articles 13, 32 and 226 provide for judicial review.
2. UPSC 2019 Consider the following statements:
   1. The 44th Amendment to the Constitution of India introduced an Article placing the election of the Prime Minister beyond judicial review.
   2. The Supreme Court of India struck down the 99th Amendment to the Constitution of India as being violative of the independence of judiciary.
   1. 1 only
   2. 2 only
   3. Both 1 and 2
   4. Neither 1 nor 2
   Show answer

   (b) 2 only. It was the 39th Amendment (1975), not the 44th. The NJAC (99th) was struck down in 2015.
3. UPSC 2019 With reference to the Constitution of India, consider the following statements:
   1. No High Court shall have the jurisdiction to declare any central law to be constitutionally invalid.
   2. An amendment to the Constitution of India cannot be called into question by the Supreme Court of India.
   1. 1 only
   2. 2 only
   3. Both 1 and 2
   4. Neither 1 nor 2
   Show answer

   (d) Neither 1 nor 2. The 43rd Amendment (1977) restored High Courts’ power over central laws. Amendments can be tested against the basic structure.

The story behind it: amendments as a dialogue with the courts

Many major amendments were Parliament’s reply to a court ruling. Reading them as pairs makes the dates and purposes easy to recall. UPSC’s 2023 question asked which amendment was enacted to overcome the courts’ reading of Fundamental Rights.

The dialogue also runs the other way: the 99th Amendment (NJAC) was struck down by the Court in 2015, and Parliament did not reply.

How UPSC asks it

1. UPSC 2024 The Constitution (71st Amendment) Act, 1992 amends the Eighth Schedule to the Constitution to include which of the following languages?
   1. Konkani
   2. Manipuri
   3. Nepali
   4. Maithili
   1. 1, 2 and 3
   2. 1, 2 and 4
   3. 1, 3 and 4
   4. 2, 3 and 4
   Show answer

   (a) 1, 2 and 3. The 71st added Konkani, Manipuri and Nepali. Maithili came with the 92nd (2003).
2. UPSC 2023 In India, which one of the following Constitutional Amendments was widely believed to be enacted to overcome the judicial interpretations of the Fundamental Rights?
   1. 1st Amendment
   2. 42nd Amendment
   3. 44th Amendment
   4. 86th Amendment
   Show answer

   (a) 1st Amendment. The 1st Amendment (1951) responded to rulings like Romesh Thapar and Champakam Dorairajan by adding restrictions to Article 19 and Article 15(4).
3. UPSC 2009 Which one of the following Constitutional Amendments states that the total number of Ministers, including the Prime Minister, in the Council of Ministers shall not exceed fifteen percent of the total number of members of the House of the People?
   1. 90th
   2. 91st
   3. 92nd
   4. 93rd
   Show answer

   (b) 91st. 91st Amendment, 2003 (Article 75(1A)).
4. UPSC 2008 Under which one of the following Constitution Amendment Acts, four languages were added to the list of languages under the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution of India, thereby raising their number to 22?
   1. Constitution (Ninetieth Amendment) Act
   2. Constitution (Ninety-first Amendment) Act
   3. Constitution (Ninety-second Amendment) Act
   4. Constitution (Ninety-third Amendment) Act
   Show answer

   (c) Constitution (Ninety-second Amendment) Act. The 92nd (2003) added Bodo, Dogri, Maithili and Santhali.
5. UPSC 2006 What does the 104th Constitution Amendment Bill relate to?
   1. Abolition of Legislative Councils in certain states
   2. Introduction of dual citizenship for persons of Indian origin living outside India
   3. Providing quota to socially and educationally backward classes in private educational institutions
   4. Providing quota for religious minorities in the services under the Central Government
   Show answer

   (c) Providing quota to socially and educationally backward classes in private educational institutions. The 104th Bill became the 93rd Amendment Act, 2005 (Article 15(5)).
6. UPSC 2005 The Constitution (98th Amendment) Bill is related to:
   1. empowering the centre to levy and appropriate service tax
   2. the constitution of the National Judicial Commission
   3. readjustment of electoral constituencies on the basis of the population census 2001
   4. the demarcation of new boundaries between States
   Show answer

   (b) the constitution of the National Judicial Commission. The 98th Amendment Bill (2003) proposed a National Judicial Commission; it lapsed.
7. UPSC 2003 Which of the following Constitutional Amendments are related to raising the number of Members of Lok Sabha to be elected from the States?
   1. 6th and 22nd
   2. 13th and 38th
   3. 7th and 31st
   4. 11th and 42nd
   Show answer

   (c) 7th and 31st. The 7th (1956) and 31st (1973) Amendments raised Lok Sabha seats.
8. UPSC 2003 The Ninth Schedule to the Indian Constitution was added by:
   1. First Amendment
   2. Eighth Amendment
   3. Ninth Amendment
   4. Forty Second Amendment
   Show answer

   (a) First Amendment. The First Amendment, 1951.
9. UPSC 2002 Which one of the following amendments to the Indian Constitution empowers the President to send back any matter for reconsideration by the Council of Ministers?
   1. 39th
   2. 40th
   3. 42nd
   4. 44th
   Show answer

   (d) 44th. The 44th Amendment (1978) let the President return advice once; he must act on the advice given after reconsideration.
10. UPSC 2002 The 93rd Constitution Amendment Bill deals with the:
    1. continuation of reservation for backward classes in government employment
    2. free and compulsory education for all children between the age of 6 and 14 years
    3. reservation of 30 percent posts for women in government recruitments
    4. allocation of more number of parliamentary seats for recently created States
    Show answer

    (b) free and compulsory education for all children between the age of 6 and 14 years. The 93rd Bill became the 86th Amendment Act, 2002 (Article 21A).
11. UPSC 2001 Match the Amendments with their subjects: A. 69th Amendment, 1991 B. 75th Amendment, 1994 C. 80th Amendment, 2000 D. 83rd Amendment, 2000 —
    1. Establishment of State-level Rent Tribunals
    2. No reservation for SCs in Panchayats in Arunachal Pradesh
    3. Constitution of Panchayats in villages or at other local level
    4. Accepting the recommendations of the Tenth Finance Commission
    5. According the status of National Capital Territory to Delhi
    1. A-5, B-1, C-4, D-2
    2. A-1, B-5, C-3, D-4
    3. A-5, B-1, C-3, D-4
    4. A-1, B-5, C-4, D-2
    Show answer

    (a) A-5, B-1, C-4, D-2. 69th: NCT Delhi; 75th: rent tribunals; 80th: Tenth Finance Commission’s devolution scheme; 83rd: Arunachal panchayats.
12. UPSC 2000 The 73rd Constitution Amendment Act, 1992 refers to the:
    1. generation of gainful employment for the unemployed and the underemployed men and women in rural areas
    2. generation of employment for the able bodied adults who are in need and desirous of work during the lean agricultural season
    3. laying the foundation for strong and vibrant Panchayati Raj institutions in the country
    4. guarantee of right to life, liberty and security of person, equality before law and equal protection without discrimination
    Show answer

    (c) laying the foundation for strong and vibrant Panchayati Raj institutions in the country. It gave constitutional status to Panchayati Raj institutions.