Class 12 Framing the Constitution: The Beginning of a New Era Mock Test (CBSE)

Topics in Framing the Constitution: The Beginning of a New Era

• A tumultuous time
• The making of the Constituent Assembly
• The dominant voices
• The vision of the Constitution
• Defining rights
• The powers of the state
• The language of the nation

Framing the Constitution: The Beginning of a New Era practice questions with answers

1. Q1Multiple choice·1 mark
   During the debates of the Constituent Assembly, which leader made a passionate plea that the framing of fundamental rights must go beyond individual liberties to include the protection of oppressed groups and the elimination of deep-seated social inequalities?

   1. (a)Jawaharlal Nehru
   2. (b)Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel
   3. (c)B. R. Ambedkar
   4. (d)Govind Ballabh Pant
   Show answer and step marks

   1. Correct option: (c) B. R. Ambedkar championed the inclusion of robust rights and safeguards for the oppressed classes, emphasizing that political democracy must be accompanied by social and economic democracy.+1

   Answer: (c)
2. Q2Multiple choice·1 mark
   In the context of the division of powers debated within the Constituent Assembly, what was the primary recommendation of the Union Powers Committee regarding the structure of governance?

   1. (a)A weak Centre with residuary powers vested in the States
   2. (b)Equal distribution of administrative powers without any Concurrent List
   3. (c)Complete provincial autonomy with a ceremonial central authority
   4. (d)A strong Centre with residuary powers vested in the Central government
   Show answer and step marks

   1. Correct option: (d) The Union Powers Committee advocated for a strong Centre, ensuring that residuary powers were vested in the Central government to maintain national unity and security.+1

   Answer: (d)
3. Q3Short answer·2 marks
   State the compromise that was finally reached in the Constituent Assembly on the language question, after the demand that Hindi be made the national language of India.
   Show answer and step marks

   1. Instead of a national language, Hindi in the Devanagari script was accepted as the official language of the Union, to accommodate the concerns of non-Hindi speakers.+1
   2. English would continue to be used for all official purposes for the first fifteen years, with a gradual shift to Hindi (each province could also choose a regional language for its own official work).+1

   Answer: Hindi in Devanagari script became the official language (not a national language), and English was to continue for all official purposes for 15 years.
4. Q4Short answer·3 marks
   Explain the tumultuous backdrop of partition and social upheaval against which the Indian Constitution was being framed in the late 1940s.
   Show answer and step marks

   1. Partition brought massive communal violence and a huge refugee crisis, as millions were uprooted and hundreds of thousands killed, creating deep fear and insecurity.+1
   2. The integration of the princely states into the Indian Union was unresolved and threatened the country's unity.+1
   3. The years before had seen mass upheaval, any one of: the Quit India movement of 1942; the INA under Subhas Chandra Bose; the Royal Indian Navy mutiny of 1946; strikes and protests by workers and peasants; Hindu-Muslim riots, e.g. in Calcutta and Noakhali; or any other valid upheaval.+1

   Answer: The Constitution was framed amid Partition's communal violence and refugee crisis, the unresolved integration of princely states, and the mass upheavals of the 1940s (Quit India, INA, the 1946 naval mutiny, workers' and peasants' protests, communal riots).

More Class 12 History mock tests