Of all the institutions that we have studied in this chapter, ... - Democratic Politics

 If you are elected as the President of India which of the following decision can you take on your own?
  a   Select the person you like as Prime Minister.
  b   Dismiss a Prime Minister who has a majority in Lok Sabha.
  c   Ask for reconsideration of a bill passed by both the Houses.
  d   Nominate the leaders of your choice to the Council of Ministers.

Who among the following is a part of the political executive?
  a   District Collector
  b   Secretary of the Ministry of Home Affairs
  c   Home Minister
  d   Director General of Police

Which of the following statements about the judiciary is false?
  a   Every law passed by the Parliament needs approval of the Supreme Court
  b   Judiciary can strike down a law if it goes against the spirit of the Constitution
  c   Judiciary is independent of the Executive
  d   Any citizen can approach the courts if her rights are violated

Which of the following institutions can make changes to an existing law of the country?
  a   The Supreme Court
  b   The President
  c   The Prime Minister
  d   The Parliament

Match the ministry with the news that the ministry may have released:

Why is the Prime Minister in India not directly elected by the people? Choose the most appropriate answer and give reasons for your choice.

a In a Parliamentary democracy only the leader of the majority party in the Lok Sabha can become the Prime Minister.
b Lok Sabha can remove the Prime Minister and the Council of Ministers even before the expiry of their term.
c Since the Prime Minister is appointed by the President there is no need for it.
d Direct election of the Prime Minister will involve lot of expenditure on election.

A teacher was making preparations for a mock parliament. She called two students to act as leaders of two political parties. She gave them an option: Each one could choose to have a majority either in the mock Lok Sabha or in the mock Rajya Sabha. If this choice was given to you, which one would you choose and why?

After reading the example of the reservation order, three students had different reactions about the role of the judiciary. Which view, according to you, is a correct reading of the role of judiciary?
a Srinivas argues that since the Supreme Court agreed with the government, it is not independent.
b Anjaiah says that judiciary is independent because it could have given a verdict against the government order. The Supreme Court did direct the government to modify it.
c Vijaya thinks that the judiciary is neither independent nor conformist, but acts as a mediator between opposing parties. The court struck a good balance between those who supported and those who opposed the order.