In 1999 Sonia Ghandi was being groomed to become prime minister, why was Manmohan Singh confirmed instead?
a. Singh ran a year-long smear campaign to discredit the Ghandi dynasty.
b. Sonia Ghandi's Italian origin was considered too distracting.
c. The large Muslim population was reluctant to support a Roman Catholic.
d. Sonia Ghandi had no political experience to qualify her for the position.
Q. 2Why were Indians worried about the Nehru-Gandhi dynasty?
a. The assassination of Indira Ghandi showed how much the nation depended on institutions rather than individuals.
b. Inherited power was given to individuals who had shown themselves worthy of power.
c. It demonstrated that even a system of government designed to be democratic can lapse into authoritarianism.
d. It revealed that the elite class would practice corrupt policies at the expense of the emerging middle-class.
Q. 3Who technically appoints the prime minister and members of the Council of Ministers?
a. the president
b. the Lok Sabha
c. the Supreme Court
d. the Rajya Sabha
Q. 4The most controversial element of the Indian constitution is the power given to the
a. president to suspend freedoms during a grave emergency.
b. president to remove the prime minister for just cause.
c. states to reject an action taken by the national government.
d. Indian Supreme Court to impeach the president.
Q. 5Which of the following statements describes the gap between the theory of democracy and the manner in which it is practiced in India?
a. There are regular elections in India, but they are frequently accompanied by violence and fraud.
b. The rights of individuals are not constitutionally protected, by the national or state constitutions.
c. India is federal in theory, but the states are much more powerful than the national government.
d. The majority of India's population no longer live in poverty, but they still do not actively participate in elections.
Q. 6Which of the following statements regarding the caste system in India is true?
a. The Brahmin castes produced most of the menial laborers.
b. There were only two castes in India, the Brahmins and the Dalits.
c. The status of untouchable was formally abolished in the 1950 constitution.
d. There has never been an affirmative action policy for lower castes in India.
Q. 7Which of the following is a feature of India's political culture?
a. a rejection of the traditional local community values of the small villages
b. a dominant state system that has come to affect every sphere of Indian life
c. a rejection of extreme poverty and opposition to the oppression of women
d. a political system based solely on key social issues addressed during elections
Q. 8Which political party has presented the cause of Hindu nationalism?
a. United Front Coalition
b. Bharatiya Janata Party
c. Janata Dal
d. The Congress Party
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