Class 8 Civics Chapter 1 The Indian Constitution Important Questions and Answers

CBSE Class 8 Civics Chapter 1 The Indian Constitution Important Questions cover the major concepts of the chapter. Solving answers of these important questions help students to revise the Chapter most competently. We prepared these questions as per the latest NCERT book and CBSE syllabus. Practising the questions before the exam will ensure excellent marks in the exam.

CBSE Class 8 Civics Chapter 1 The Indian Constitution Important Questions PDF

Very Short Answer Type Questions

1: In politics, what is a constitution?
Answer: In Politics a Constitution can be described as a document outlining the basic laws or principles by which a country is to be governed.

2: In Nepal, when did the Interim Constitution come into effect?
Answer: In Nepal, the Interim Constitution came into effect from January 15, 2007.

3: What are the negative points of a democratic society?
Answer: In a democratic society Power can be misused. Sometimes the Majority can undermine the minority. The citizens need certain rules to save themselves from folly.

4. What do you mean by federalism?
Answer: The term federalism refers to the existence of more than one level of government in the country.

5. What is Right to Equality? [V. Imp.]
Answer: Right to Equality means that all persons are equal before the law.

6. What is Right against Exploitation?
Answer: Under this Right the Constitution prohibits trafficking, forced labour and children working under 14 years of age.

7. How has the section on Fundamental Rights often been referred to?
Answer: It has often been referred to as the conscience of the Indian Constitution.

8. How are Fundamental Rights important? Give one point.
Answer: Fundamental Rights protect citizens against the arbitrary and absolute exercise of power by the state.

9. What does the word ‘State’ refer to? [Imp.]
Answer: The word ‘State’ refers to a political institution that represents a sovereign people who occupy a definite territory. For example, the Indian State.

10. What caused fear among the members of the Constituent Assembly?
Answer: They feared that the executive might become too strong and ignore its responsibility to the legislature.

11. What did the members of the Constituent Assembly do to come out of their fear?
Answer: They included several provisions in the Constitution to limit and control the actions taken by the executive branch of government as a whole.

12. What do you mean by a secular state? [V. Imp.]
Answer: A secular state does not officially promote any one religion as the state religion.

13. Why do the people of Nepal not want to adhere to their previous Constitution.
Answer: The previous Constitution does not reflect the ideals of the country that want Nepal to be, and that they have fought for.

14: What is secularism?
Answer: Secularism is the right of the citizens to practice any religion. A secular state is one in which the state does not officially promote any one religion as the state religion.

Short Answer Type Questions

1: How can a leader misuse power in a democratic country?

Answer: A leader misusing his power may send his security guards to beat up his neighbours for a personal reason or ask the police not to take action against a relative who has committed a crime.

2: Differentiate between a monarchy and a democracy? 

Answer: A country which is governed by a king or a queen is called a monarchy.  While Democracy is forms of government where people can vote to select their respective representative well govern the state on their behalf. 

3: How does the Indian Constitution safe guard the minorities of the country?

Answer: The Indian constitution ensures that the dominant group does not use its power against other, less powerful people or groups.
The Constitution contains rules that ensure that minorities are not excluded from anything that is routinely available to the majority. It also prevents the domination of the majority over the minority.

4: What will happen if there is no restriction to the powers of elected representatives? 

Answer: If there would have been no restrictions to powers of elected representatives, they may have misuse their powers. They could have used their powers in doing wrong deeds. They could even have supported a single religion. 

5: What is universal adult franchise?

Answer: Universal adult franchise is every adult citizen having a right to vote irrespective of sex, caste, creed, education and financial status.

6: What do you mean by the legislature, the executive and the judiciary?

Answer: The legislature refers to our elected representatives.
The executive is a smaller group of people who are responsible for implementing laws and running the government.
The judiciary refers to the system of courts in this country.

7: Mention the key features of the Indian Constitution.

Answer: The key features of the Indian constitution are:

• Federalism
• Parliamentary Form of Government
• Separation of Powers
• Fundamental Rights
• Secularism

8: What are the factors the drafting committee had to take into consideration while drafting the constitution?

Answer: The committee had to keep in mind that India was a land of many communities, languages and many religions. India was a land of diverse cultures and the Princely states in India had to be considered. The partition of the country into India and Pakistan was about to happen and the drafting committee had to bear this in mind. Finally, the biggest consideration was the socio-economic condition of a majority of Indians which was in a bad state.

9: What are the key components of fundamental rights?

Answer: The key components of Fundamental rights are:

• Right to Equality
• Right to Freedom
• Right against Exploitation
• Right to Freedom of Religion
• Cultural and Educational Rights
• Right to Constitutional Remedies

10: Explain the functions of organs of government. 

Answer: According to the constitution, there are three organs of the state. These are the legislature, the executive and the judiciary. 

• The legislature refers to our elected representatives. 
• The executive is a smaller group of people who are responsible for implementing laws and running the government. 
• The judiciary, refer to the system of courts in this country. 

11: What do you mean by tyranny of majority? 

Answer: Every society is prone to the tyranny of the majority. The constitution usually contains rules that ensure that minorities are not excluded from anything that is routinely available to the majority. The constitution is precise to prevent this tyranny or domination by the majority of a minority.  

Long Answer Type Questions

1. What is a Constitution? What purposes does it serve? [Imp.]

Answer: A Constitution is a written document containing certain rules. It serves several purposes. It tells us what the fundamental nature of our society is. A country is usually made up of different communities of people who share certain beliefs but they may not necessarily agree on all issues. A Constitution helps serve as a set of rules and principles that all persons in a country can agree upon as the basis of the way in which they want the country to be governed.
The second important purpose of a Constitution is to define the nature of a country’s political system. In countries that have adopted a democratic form of government, the Constitution lays out certain important guidelines that govern decision-making within these societies.

2. Why did Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar urge Scheduled Castes to join the government as well as the civil services? [V. Imp.]

Answer: Dr. Ambedkar was an important member of the Constituent Assembly. He believed that his participation in the Assembly helped the Scheduled Castes get some safeguards in the draft Constitution. But he also stated that although the laws might exist, scheduled castes still had reason to fear because the administration of these laws were in the hands of upper caste Hindu officers. Therefore, he urged scheduled castes to join the government as well as the civil services. It would give them a chance to play their role in law-making.

3. What were the challenges before the members of the Constituent Assembly?

Answer: The following were the challenges before the members of the Constituent Assembly: (a) The country was made up of several different communities who spoke different languages, practised different religions and had distinct cultures. (b) At the time the Constitution was being written, the country was going through considerable turmoil. The partition of the country was imminent, some of the Princely States remained undivided about their future.(c) The socio-economic condition of the vast mass of people appeared dismal. (d) Poverty was another major challenge.

4. Who do you mean by federal form of government? Why is it important?

Answer: Our Constitution provides for a federal form of government. This means that the responsibility of governing our country has been divided into the central government and the state governments. Panchayati Raj is the third tier of government.
India is a vast country. Different communities of people live here. Hence, a system of government needed to be devised that did not involve only persons silting in the capital city of New Delhi and making decisions for everyone. Instead, it was necessary to have another level of government in the states so that decisions could be made for that particular area. In this way, it will be easier to make positive efforts for the development of the country as well as the states.

5. Explain Right to Equality in detail.

Answer: Our Constitution states that all persons are equal before the law. This means that all persons shall be equally protected by the laws of the country. The Constitution also states that no citizen can be discriminated against on the basis of their religion, caste or sex. Every person has an access to all public places such as hotels, playgrounds, shops, etc. The state cannot discriminate against anyone in matters of employment.

6: Write a brief note on the making of the Indian Constitution.

Answer: The Indian Constitutional Assembly was convened in December 1946. The members of this Assembly were only Indians. This Assembly started drafting the Constitution for Independent India. Dr. Ambedkar was the Chairman of the Constitution drafting committee.
The constitution declares India to be a sovereign, democratic republic and establishes the structure, procedures, powers and duties, of the government and duties of citizens.
The 308 members of the Assembly signed two hand-written copies of the document (one each in Hindi and English) on the January 24, 1950. Two days later, on January 26, 1950, the Constitution of India became the law of all the Indian lands.

7: Write a brief note on the struggle for freedom in Nepal.

Answer: In Nepal, there was a people’s struggle for freedom in 1990. Democracy was established and it lasted for 12 years until 2002.
In October 2002, King Gyanendra began taking over the government with the assistance of the army. In 2005 King Gyanendra took over as the head of the government.
In 2006, people’s movement for democracy began gaining immense force. In April 2006 the King restored the Third Parliament and asked the political parties to form a government. In 2007, Nepal adopted an Interim Constitution and Nepal gained political freedom.

8: What is a constitutional monarchy? Give an example.

Answer: In constitutional monarchy, a country is ruled by a king or a queen but the country has a constitution which the king follows. 

Example: – Until quite recently, Nepal was monarchy. The previous constitution of Nepal, which had been adopted in 1990, reflected the fact that the final authority rested with the king. A people’s movement in Nepal fought for several decades to establish democracy and in 2006 they finally succeeded in putting an end to the powers of the king. Now the people have to write a new constitution to establish Nepal as a democracy. The reason that they do not want to continue with the previous constitution is because it does not reflect the ideals of the country that they want Nepal to be, and that they have fought for.

9: Explain how the constitution of India gets made? 

Answer: The long experience of authoritarian rule under the colonial state convinced Indians that free India should be a democracy in which everyone should be treated equally and be allowed to participate in government.  This was not done by one person but by a group of around 300 people who become members of the constituent assembly had a huge task before them.

The country was made up of several different communities who spoke different languages, belonged to different religions, and had district culture. Also, when the constitution was being written, India was going through considerable turmoil. 

10: What is the importance of constitution? 

Answer: The constitution plays an important role in laying out certain guidelines that govern decision making within the society. 
1. It lays down rules that guard against the misuse of power by our political leaders. 
2. It also contains rules to prevent tyranny. 
3. It also helps to protect us against certain adverse effect on the larger principal that the country believes in. 

11. Describe the key features of the Indian Constitution.

Answer: The key features of the Indian Constitution are given below:

(a) Federalism. Our Constitution has provided for a federal form of government. This means that we have government at the state level and at the centre. Panchayati Raj is the third tier of government. India is a large  country with a vast number of communities living together in it. Hence, a system needed to be devised that did not involve only persons sitting in the capital city of New Delhi and making decisions for everyone. Instead, it was important to have another level of government in states so that decisions could be made for that particular area. While each state in India enjoys autonomy in exercising powers on certain issues, subjects on national concern require that all of these states follow the laws of the central government. Under federalism, the states are agents of the federal government and they draw their authority from the Constitution.

(b) Parliamentary form of Government. The different tiers of government consists of representatives who are elected by the people. The Constitution of India guarantees universal adult franchise for all citizens. This means that people of India have a direct role in electing their representatives. At the same time, every citizen of the country, irrespective of his/ her social background, can also contest in elections. These representatives are accountable to the people.

(c) Separation of Powers. There are three organs of the state— the legislature, the executive and the judiciary. In order to prevent the misuse of power by any one branch of the state, the Constitution says that each of these organs should exercise different powers. In this way, each organ acts as a check on the other organs of the state and this establishes a balance of power between the three.

(d) Fundamental Rights. Fundamental Rights are called the conscience of the Indian Constitution. These Rights protect against the absolute exercise of power by the state. The Constitution thus guarantees the rights of individuals against the state as well as against other individuals.

(e) Secularism. It is an important feature of our Constitution. A secular state is one in which the state does not officially promote any one religion as the state religion.

12. Describe all the Fundamental Rights mentioned in the Constitution. [V.Imp.]

Answer: The Constitution of India guarantees certain basic rights to all its citizens. These rights are called Fundamental Rights. There are altogether six Fundamental Rights:

(a) Right to Equality. All persons are equal before the law. It means that all persons shall be equally protected by the laws of the country. It also states that no citzen can be discriminated against on the basics of their religion, caste or sex. Every person has access to all public places such as restaurants, parks, etc. The state cannot discriminate against anyone on matters of employment.

(b) Right to Freedom. Everyone has the right to freedom of speech and expressions, the right to move freely and reside in any part of the country and the right to practise any profession, occupation or business.

(c) Right against Exploitation. The Indian Constitution prohibits trafficking, child labour and children working under 14 years of age.

(d) Right to Freedom of Religion. Everyone has the right to enjoy religious freedom. It means that everyone has the right to practise, profess and propagate the religion of their choice.

(e) Cultural and Educational Rights. Our Constitution states that all minorities, religious or linguistic, can set up their own educational institutions in order to preserve and develop their own culture.

(f) Right to Constitutional Remedies. A person has the right to go to the court for justice if he/she feels that his/her Fundamental Rights are being violated.

12: Describe in detail the various features of Indian constitution. 

Answer: FEDERALISM: This refers to the existence of more than one level of government in the country. In India, we have governments at the state level and at the center. Panchayati Raj is the third tier of government. 

The vast number of communities in India meant that a system of government needed to be devised that did not involve only persons sitting in the capital city of New Delhi and making decisions for everyone. Instead, it was important to have another level of government in the states so that   decision could be made for that particular area. While each state in India enjoys autonomy in exercising powers on certain issues, subjects of national concern require that all of these states follow the laws of the central government. 

The constitution contains lists that detail the issues that each tier of government can make laws on. In addition, the constitution also specifies where each tier of government can get the money from for work that it does. Under federalism, the states are not merely agents of the federal government but draw their authority from the constitution as well. All persons in India are governed by laws and policies made by each of these levels of government. 

PARLIAMENTARY FORM OF GOVERNMENT: The different tiers of government consist of representative who are elected by the people. The constitution of Indian guarantees universal adult   suffrage for all citizens. When they were making the constitution, the members of the constituent assembly felt that the freedom struggle had prepared the masses for universal adult suffrage and that this would help encourage a democratic mindset and break the clutches of traditional caste, class and gender hierarchies. This means that the people of India have a direct role in electing their representatives. Also, every citizen of the country, irrespective of his/ her social background, can also contest in elections. These representatives are accountable to the people. 

SEPARATION OF POWERS: According to the Constitution, there are three organs of the state. These are the legislature, the executive and the judiciary. The legislature refers to our elected representatives. The executive is a smaller group of people who are responsible for implementing laws and running the government. The judiciary refers to the system of courts in this country. In order to prevent the misuse of power by any one branch of the state, the constitution says that each of these organs should exercise different powers. 

Through this, each organ acts as a check on the other organs of the state and this ensures the balance of power between all three. 

• Central government
• State government
• Panchayati raj

FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS: The section on Fundamental Right has often been referred to as the ‘conscience’ of the Indian Constitution. Colonial rule had created a certain suspicion of the state in the minds of the nationalists and they wanted to ensure that a set of written rights would guard against the misuse of state powers in independent India. Fundamental Right, therefore protects citizens against the arbitrary and absolute exercise of power by the state. The constitution, thus, guarantees the rights of individuals against the state as well as against other individuals.

In addition to fundamental right, the constitution also has a section called directive principles of state policy. This section was designed by the members of the constituent assembly to ensure greater social and economic reform and to serve as a guide to the independent Indian. State to institute laws and policies that help to reduce the poverty of the masses. 

SECULARISM: A secular state is one in which the state does not officially promote any one religion as the state religion.