Constitution, Bills, and Acts

1. Section 66A, 69A, 79- remember content, penalties

Section 66A of the IT Act:
Prescribes punishment for sending offensive messages through communication
services etc.
Touted as unconstitutional by some
In March, the act has been revoked by the SC for being unconstitutional, on two
grounds:
It violates Article 19(1) of the constitution, and doesnt come under the exception
to 19(1) specified in Article 19(2) (sovereignty and integrity of India, the security of
the state, public order, decency or morality, defamation, or incitement to an
offence)
The provisions for use of 66A were wide-ranging and arbitrary
69A: Allows the government to block content on the internet that threatens the
security of the state, the sovereignty, integrity, or defense of India, friendly
relations with foreign states, public order etc. This still stands

2. Composition of NJAC, tenure, which constitutional amendment

99th constitutional amendment
The NJAC replaced the collegium system for the appointment of judges as
mandated in the existing pre-amended constitution by a new system
Composition (6): CJI + 2 senior most SC judges + Union Minister of Law and Justice
+ 2 eminent persons (nominated by a committee involving PM, CJI, and LoP/
Leader of single largest opposition party in Lok Sabha)
One of the eminent person has to be an SC/ ST/ OBC, or a woman
Sidenote: With regards to this, it must be noted that in the Indian constitution,
short of impeachment, there is no mechanism for evaluating the performance of
judges. In some other countries, independent reviewers scrutinize judicial
proceedings at random; some countries encourage their law schools to come out
with law journals that regularly critique judicial decisions (In India, law schools are
headed by CJI/ CJs of HCs, so this is not an option)
3. Anti-defection law- Which schedule? (10th). Which amendment? (52nd) Is speakers
decision final, or can it be challenged in courts? (Kashyap and Basu are outdated here-
SC said final decision of presiding officer can be challenged in HC)
4. Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Amendment Bill
passed by Lok Sabha (only)
The Bill aims to prohibit the commission of certain offences against members of
the scheduled castes and scheduled tribes (SCs and STs) and establishes special
courts for the trial of such offences and rehabilitation of victims
Forcing an SC or ST individual to vote or not vote for a particular candidate in a
manner that is against the law is an offence
Wrongfully occupying land belonging to SCs or STs is an offence
Assaulting or sexually exploiting an SC or ST woman too is an offence
New offences added under the Bill include garlanding with footwear, compelling to
dispose or carry human or animal carcasses, or do manual scavenging, abusing SCs
or STs by caste name in public, attempting to promote feelings of ill-will against
SCs or STs or disrespecting any deceased person held in high esteem, and imposing
or threatening a social or economic boycott
Preventing SCs or STs from using common property resources or from entering any
 place of worship that is open to the public or from entering an education or health
institution will also be considered an offence
5. What is the procedure for impeachment of a state governor in India? No
impeachment; serves at the pleasure of the President (central government, in effect)
6. Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) (Amendment) Act (Discuss:
need, key features, criticisms)
Highlights of the Bill:

The bill seeks to bring transparency to the allocation of mining license process by
auctions
The bill contains a new license for prospecting-cum-mining, replacing a two-stage
process
Criticism: such licenses will be useless, because no one would want to spend
before firmly establishing that there are minerals

The licences will have a validity of 50 years, compared to the previous 30 years.
There will be no renewal of licences, only re-auction. However, all mining leases
granted for such minerals before the Ordinance shall be valid for 50 years
This severely dilutes the auction mechanism being trumpeted about

The central government shall prescribe the terms and conditions, and procedure
for auction, including parameters for the selection of bidders. For mining leases,
the central government may reserve particular mines for a specific end use and
allow only eligible end-users to participate in the auction, if found necessary.
While the State Governments will still grant mining lease licenses, and get the
royalty after, the act might be challenged on the ground of being
unconstitutional, because prior SC judgements show that mining is completely
a state subject, whereas here the union government is impinging on their
rights, e.g.:
Change the area of mining, by allowing the Central Government to extend the
area limits of mining, instead of providing multiple mining leases

A fixed percentage to the revenue of a mine will be allocated to development of

the area around it, and to pay compensation to the affected people; this will be
called a District Mineral Foundation (DMF). The state government will set the
rates and it will be in addition to the royalty, and the mining leaseholder will pay
an annual amount to the DMF for the benefit of affected persons. This will be
equal to 26 per cent of profits in case of coal, and royalty paid during the year
for other minerals

However, experience of such initiatives in other cases hasnt been promising

Might have been better to let local communities have a stake as cooperative
miners

The bill will make illegal mining, trespassing and violation of norms, cognisable
offences
A new concession instrument called a High Technology Reconnaissance-cum-
Exploration License has been introduced
 Key Issues and Analysis:
A huge majority of the mine blocks lie in areas covered under the 5th Schedule;
the Act permits allocation of mineral concession in tribal areas to a non-
tribal. There are two conflicting Supreme Court judgments on the legality of such
a provision
Royalty rates are set to achieve an optimum balance between attracting
investments while maximizing revenues for the state. Mandating additional
payments to the DMF could disturb this balance
The Bill mandates the issue of a non-transferable share to affected persons. The
Companies Act, 1956 does not permit the issuance of non-transferable shares
Any gap in the minimum compensation to be paid to affected families by the
DMF is to be covered by the state government. This could put pressure on state
government finances
The Bill does not clearly define some terms, such as High Technology
Reconnaissance-cum-Exploration License
The 2015 Bill neither mentions tribal cooperatives nor contains provisions for
consent, consultation or clearances, which might violate provision of the PESA
act of 1996

Business Standard Article:

The auction approach for granting licensing-cum-mining lease is problematic
because it is very tough to ascertain the value of a mine when its exploration is
yet to be undertaken- reliable estimates of how much quality mineral a mine
contains is essential to determining its commercial value, and this estimate is not
available ex-ante; it is for this reason that no major mining nation uses
competitive bidding or auction for allocating mineral resources
Via the DMF, the creation of secondary social assets for local communities in
mining areas will be the miners obligation, not the governments. It would be
more beneficial to legally require mining concerns to undertake such local
development work through partnership agreements with local communities in
the form of trusts, foundation, or consortiums, whose performance would be
subjected to social audits

UPDATE (June 2015): The central government has now said that the state
governments can change the eligibility criteria for the mining lease auction,
keeping in mind Article 244 and Schedules 5 and 6 of the constitution. This is to
ensure that concerns of tribal areas are taken into account. PESA Act, Scheduled
Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights Act),
2006, should also not be violated

7. Coal Mines (Special Provisions) Act, 2015 (Passed in both houses):

Background:
Under the 1973 Act, Coal mining was exclusively reserved for public sector
Subsequent amendments allowed selected end-user industries to engage in
captive coal mining (specified end-use, such as use in iron and steel production,
cement, power generation etc.; mined coal cant be sold on open market)
While this policy was considered essential for ensuring that coal needs of
strategically important industries were met, over time, given the rising demand
for coal and the relative inefficiency of this approach, clamor began for loosening
end-use restrictions (to allow greater private sector participation)
 Allocations made over the years didnt always fructify, and many allotted mines
werent operational
As a result, despite reserves of 301 billion tonnes, which is the fifth largest in
the world, India still suffers from coal shortage
To add to this, due to suspicions of arbitrariness and foul play, a September 24
(2014) verdict of the Supreme Court cancelled the allocation of 204 coal blocks of
the 218 that were made between 1993 and 2010, while giving breathing time
until March 31, 2015, for the mines that were in operation

The new act seeks to enable private companies to mine coal for sale in the open
market, thereby ending the exclusive control of government over coal extraction,
and hopefully leading to increased supply of coal
Open up the way for FDI in coal extraction (but need to develop infrastructure)
In response, when the ordinance was first introduced, Coal India workers went on a
strike in February:
This was because Coal India is the monopoly supplier; it caters to over 80% of the
domestic coal production, and has a workforce of 3 lakh people
However, Coal India has not been able to keep up production as per rising
demand for the fuel
Then the NDA introduced an ordinance that allowed for commercial mining for
sale of coal in the open market, not limited to end-use
Workers were worried that the entity will be nationalized, and merchant mines
would not pay minimum wages or ensure workers social welfare, and hence will
be able to sell coal cheaper and make Coal Indias output expensive in
comparison; this would lead to effective de-nationalization of Coal India; thus,
they called for the biggest industrial strike since 1970s
It halted 1.5 million tonnes of coal production per day for its two-day duration,
causing an estimated total loss of about Rs.400 crore

The coal act opens up the sector for commercial mining and aims to facilitate the
auction of over 200 coal blocks cancelled by the SC during UPAs tenure
The Act also removes the restrictions of end use from the eligibility to undertake
coal mining, except for a few specified blocks (Schedule II and III blocks), this paves
the way for commercial mining of coal
The bill has provisions for allocation of coalmines through a transparent bidding
process (e-auction)
The e-auction of coal blocks will ensure the continuity in coal mining operations
and promoting optimum utilization of coal resources
The bill also facilitate e-auction of coal blocks for private companies for captive
use and allot mines directly to state and central Public Sector Undertakings
(PSUs)
Compensation only for land and immovable mining infrastructure shall be paid to
the prior allottees after paying secured creditors
It has provisions that propose strong measures for rehabilitation and
compensation for displaced persons.
The bill also provides for vesting of the right, title and interest over the land and
mine infrastructure together with mining leases to successful bidders

8. PESA Act
 Enacted to cover the scheduled areas which are not covered under the 73rd
amendment
Enables Gram Sabhas to self-govern their natural resources
The Gram Sabhas have roles and responsibilities in approving all development
works in the village, identify beneficiaries, issue certificates of utilization of funds;
powers to control institutions and functionaries in all social sectors and local
plans
Gram Sabhas or Panchayats at appropriate level shall also have powers to
manage minor water bodies; power of mandatory consultation in matters of land
acquisition; resettlement and rehabilitation and prospecting licenses/mining
leases for minor minerals; power to prevent alienation of land and restore
alienated land; regulate and restrict sale/consumption of liquor; manage village
markets, control money lending to STs; and ownership of minor forest produce
9. George Baker and Richard Hay have been nominated as Anglo members to the Lok
Sabha. Maximum strength of Lok Sabha is 552 members (530 from states, 20 from
UTs, 2 nominated)
10. RTE:
Which constitutional amendment introduced the Right to Education? Which
article in the constitution does this refer to?
The RTE provides for prohibition of deployment of teachers for non-educational
work, other than decennial census, elections to local authority, state legislatures
and parliament, and disaster relief
Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan

11. SARFAESI Act:

Now NBFCs are also covered under this act; upon loan default, secured loans can
be recovered by banks by seizing securities (except agricultural land) without
the courts intervention (note, this is only valid for secured loans)
The supreme court recently upheld an amendment to the SARFESI act that lets
different financial institutions set their own time limits in declaring as to what
constitutes an NPA
12. What are Advance Rulings? (you ask beforehand whether something will be illegal or
not, if you do it; mostly applies to businesses, in terms of their taxation liability etc.)
13. SC has recently declared that the win of a candidate will be void if he doesnt disclose
prior criminal antecedents at the time of nomination
14. What is the composition of the Finance Commission? Who decides it? The commission
is appointed every five years and consists of a chairman and four other member

15. Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Bill (cleared in LS, pending in RS):

The bill brings e-carts and e-rickshaws under the ambit of the Motor Vehicles Act
of 1988, which originally catered to any mechanically propelled vehicle adapted for
use upon roads
The Bill adds a proviso to the Act to exempt e-rickshaw and e-cart drivers from
the requirement that a person shall be granted a learner's licence to drive (i)
public service vehicles, (ii) goods carriages, (iii) educational institution buses, or (iv)
private service vehicles, only if he has held a driving licence to drive a light motor
vehicle for at least one year
 The Bill states that the conditions for issuing of driver licences for e-cart or e-
rickshaw shall be prescribed

16. Juvenile Justice Act amendments:

The Cabinet has approved an amendment to bring in the transfer system, where
juveniles between the ages of 16 and 18 years can be tried as adults in case of
heinous crimes
The decision to transfer cases as such will be taken by the Juvenile Justice Board,
which will have psychologists and social experts
The cabinet has gone against the recommendation of the Parliamentary Standing
Committee that said that doing so will violate Indias constitutional mandate, as
also its obligation under the UN convention on Right of the Child
Protestors are saying that it is impossible to scientifically determine maturity; jail
terms do not reduce crime etc.
17. Goods and Services Tax:
Read: http://www.thehindu.com/opinion/op-ed/gst-good-for-business-snag-for-
federalism/article7279180.ece
Originally recommended by the task force of the 13th Finance Commission, which
pegged the uniform tax rate at 12% (answer why this rate)
Deliberation conducted by the Empowered Committee of State Finance Ministers
(who set up a Joint Working Group; members: Joint Secretaries of Dept. of
Revenue (Union FinMin) and all Finance Secretaries of the States, Convenors:
Advisor to the Union Finance Minister, Member-Secretary of the Empowered
Committee)
Why the single rate?: Eliminates production inefficiencies, ensures no single good
is taxed disproportionately
Consumption tax
Value-Added Tax => (Output tax Input tax) is paid to the government (tax paid
only on value added). VAT also follows the destination principle; hence, the GST
will not apply for export goods, but will apply to import goods. Also, at every step
of the production process, the producers get tax credits, while the end consumer
gets no tax credit
Dual system: Will be imposed both by the center and the state, and will replace all
existing indirect taxes such as excise, sales, service taxes

Benefits:
Reduction in the number of taxes at the Central and state levels
Cut in effective tax rate for many goods by removal of the current cascading effect
of taxes
Reduction of transaction costs for taxpayers through simplified tax compliance
Increased tax collections due to wider tax base and better compliance
Unification of India into a single market, eliminating the need for border check
posts to collect taxes on goods produced in one jurisdiction but sold in another
Good for consumer states

Controversies:
 Both center and the states want certain high tax-revenue generating goods (like
petroleum, alcohol etc.) removed from the ambit of GST => reduces tax base
Some calculations of the revenue-neutral tax rate (post removal of certain goods)
are as high as 27% => incentive for evasion => little improvement in compliance
In the currently proposed dual structure, the tax might just be reduced to a
renaming of the existing Central Excise Tax and States VAT/ sales tax
Transaction costs: government will need to make e-infrastructure (GST Network)
Attention-diversion cost: other reforms sidelined
Compromises Indias federal structure by not allowing states to set their own rates
=> restricts the ability of states to determine the level of spending on public goods
and services locally
Bad for states that produce a lot but dont consume much
Given that this is a Constitutional Amendment Bill, this cannot be passed via a
Joint Sitting
Read Pangarias article
In view of the impending changes with the introduction of GST, adequate
compensation to ULGs for their loss of income will need to be ensured. The past
experience has not been very good in this regard. Many state governments, on
abolition of octroi (a tax on entry of goods within the city limits) and in some cases
even property tax, had promised compensatory grants to ULGs with an annual
increase to maintain the buoyancy. However, compensation to local bodies has
remained static and is often not released in time

GST Council: This will be the decision making body that will bring any changes
required to the GST Act. It will be composed of the Center and all the states, with
the center holding 33% of the voting rights, and the states, 67%. To get any
changes approved in the operation of GST, 75% or more votes will need to affirm
it. That is, the center has a de-facto veto, whereas a minimum of 12 states will
need to come together to block any changes that they dont agree with
GST Council composition: The Council will consist of the Union Finance Minister
(as Chairman), the Union Minister of State in charge of Revenue or Finance, and
the Minister in charge of Finance or Taxation or any other, nominated by each
State government. The GST Council will be the body that decides which taxes
levied by the Centre, States and local bodies will go into the GST; which goods
and services will be subjected to GST; and the basis and the rates at which GST will
be applied
18. Under AFSPA, who can declare an area as disturbed? State or Centre? Can this
classification be challenged in a court of law? How many people can assemble
peacefully before AFSPA can be invoked?
Check: Either the states or the central government can declare an area disturbed; this
cannot be challenged in a court of law. 5 people only
In 2005, the Jeevan Reddy Committee recommended that AFSPA should be done
away with, and relevant provisions should be subsumed within the Unlawful Activities
(Prevention) Act.
19. Insurance Laws (Amendment) Act (Passed in both houses):
Increased FDI limit, strengthening of IRDA, consumer protection
Provides for enhancement of foreign investment cap in an Indian Insurance
Company from 26% to an explicitly composite limit of 49% with the safeguard of
Indian ownership and control
 Expected to lead to increase in distribution and reach of insurance products
(currently, only 17% of the entire population has any form of health insurance,
and health spending is one of the most widespread causes of poverty in India)
Will enable capital raising through new and innovative instruments under the
regulatory supervision of IRDAI
Will enable the interests of consumers to be better served through provisions like
those enabling penalties on intermediaries / insurance companies for misconduct
and disallowing multilevel marketing of insurance products in order to curtail the
practice of mis-selling; the time limit in which a consumer can repudiate a policy
will be increased
The appellate procedure will be made more robust
20. Attorney Generals office is covered under the RTI act
21. What is the function of a party whip? Different types?
22. Procedure for setting up of State Legislative Councils- Legislative Councils can only be
set up if first the state assembly passes a resolution with a special majority, and then
the Parliament passes a resolution (simple majority)
23. Undisclosed Foreign Income and Assets (Imposition of Tax) Bill, 2015
Also known as black money bill
Provides for separate taxation of any undisclosed foreign income and assets; such
income will now not be taxed under the Income Tax Act
It will apply to all residents of India
Tax rate will be a flat 30%
Proposes very stringent punishments; to the tune of 90% of the value of
undisclosed assets/ income, to three years of rigorous imprisonment

Details of the Notified Rules:

All deposits made in an undisclosed overseas bank account since opening will be
clubbed while assets like immovable property, shares and jewellery will be valued
at fair market price for levy of tax and penalty
The rules also say that in case the person disclosing foreign income does not have a
PAN, he or she would be required to apply for it
24. Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Bill:
The parliament has brought in several changes to the erstwhile bill
Commercial real estate has now been brought within the bills ambit
If a builder now wants to change the structure/ design of the building from what
was proposed earlier, he needs consent of at least 2/3rds of the existing buyers
However, it also brings down the % of the money raised from home buyers that
the builders need to deposit in an escrow account only for the current projects
purposes to 50% from 70%; it has been seen that builders sometimes use funds
from one project to finance other projects, which can be harmful for current
buyers
25. Under Section 197 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC), no court should take
cognisance of criminal charges against a public servant unless previous sanction to
prosecute him is received from a competent authority
26. Right of Transgenders Bill, 2014: Private Members Bill on transgender rights passed
in Rajya Sabha for the first time in over three decades. The bill recommends
reservation for the community in education, financial assistance, and social inclusion
 The RS has passed a Private Members Bill for the first time in 45 years
It guarantees reservation in education and jobs, financial aid, and social inclusion
to transgenders
Promises creation of a welfare board at the Centre and State level, 2% reservation
in government jobs, and prohibits discrimination in employment
Brought in by DMK member Tiruchi Siva
27. Road Transport and Safety Bill:
The Bill provides for more stringent penalties to traffic offenders. A graded penalty
point system would now act as a deterrent and improve traffic condition whereas
electronic detection and centralized information of offences would facilitate to
identify repeat-offenders
The Bill seeks to establish a unified driver licensing system in India which will be
transparent
28. Budget: Appropriation Bill covers expenditures by ministries; Finance Bill covers
taxation proposals
29. Assam Accord: signed in 1985 between GoI and leaders of Assam Movement; all
Bangladeshis who entered Assam between 1966 and 1971 were to be denied the right
to vote for a decade after the accord; also, international borders were to be sealed
and all Bangladeshis who entered Assam after 1971 were to be deported
30. Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Amendment Bill: Recent amendments
have introduced stricter punishments for offenders who employ children below the
age of 14 years, but have also allowed minors to work in non-hazardous family
enterprises
31. Who decides which states are granted the special category status? Used to be
planning commission, but this category has been eliminated now
32. NDC- composed of PM, Union Ministers, CMs, and members of NITI Aayog
33. A minister cannot be a part of the Public Accounts Committee
34. At present, under Indian law, in case divorce courts award a minors custody to one
parent or the other depending on who they think will ensure the childs welfare; Law
Commission recently recommended that the custody should be given to both parents
35. McMahon line was agreed to between Britain and Tibet as part of the Simla accord, a
treaty signed in 1914
36. Amendments to Companies Act: mainly deal with board resolutions, utilization of
unclaimed dividends and setting up of a firm etc.
For setting-up a private company, new Act has done away with the norms of Rs 1
lakh minimum capital requirement and Rs 5 lakh in case of a public sector unit
No company will declare dividend unless carried over previous losses and
depreciation not provided in previous year or years are set off against profit of the
company for the current year
37. Foreign Contribution Regulations Act (2010):
Regulates the foreign contribution (money donation) and foreign hospitality (e.g.
free airplane tickets and hotel lodging during foreign trips) given to various NGOs,
institutes, judges, journalists, public servants etc.
Managed by MHA
 Aimed at checking that foreigners are not affecting Indias electoral politics, public
servants, judges, journalists, NGOs etc. for wrong purposes
If someone violates the FCRA act, he can be sent to jail for up to 5 years.
Can accept foreign funding:
Organizations working for definite cultural, social, economic, educational or
religious programs.
But first, theyve get permission from the Ministry of Home Affairs AND
Second, they have to maintain separate account book listing the donation
received from foreigners and get it audited by a Chartered Accountant and
submit it to Home Ministry every year
Cant accept: MLAs, MPs, media, public servants

FCRA has been in the news because of the recent controversy surrounding foreign-
funded NGOs- an IB report in 2014 states that several foreign-funded
environmental NGOs, such as Avaaz, Bank Information Centre (BIC), Sierra Club
etc. are targeting development projects across the country, leading to a loss of 3-
4% of the GDP annually
The government directed the RBI to stop all foreign funding into the accounts of
NGOs that do not comply with the FCRA

38. In general, a recent report showed that there are about 20 lakh NGOs registered in
the country (including non foreign-funded ones). Of these, only about 10% file their
annual income and expenditure statements with the authorities that they are
registered with

39. FEMA amendments:

In March, the government proposed amendments to the FEMA and the Prevention
of Money Laundering Act (PMLA)
An important introduction is that of Section 37A, which empowers an authorised
officer to seize assets equivalent in value to the foreign exchange, foreign security
or immovable property held abroad in violation of the law
The amended Section 13 empowers the investigation agency to levy a penalty of
up to three times the sum involved in contravention of the law and confiscate
property equivalent to the assets created abroad
The guilty can be, in addition to the penalty, punished with imprisonment of up to
five years and a fine
40. Curative petitions are NOT mentioned in the constitution
41. Negotiable Instruments (Amendment) Ordinance modified Section 138 of the Act:
will enable filing of cheque bounce cases in the place where the cheque was
presented for clearance or payment and not the place of issue. The Supreme Court, in
2014, had passed a judgment that if a cheque was received from someone and it
bounces, then the jurisdiction for initiating action lies in the State where it was issued.
However, this judgment was not payee-friendly and hence the government had to
come out with this solution
42. IIM controversy: a draft bill by HRD ministry proposes to grant statutory status to 13
existing IIMs to enable them to grant degrees. The Bill also has a provision under
which government will form a coordination body. This may lead to the centralization
of power. Also, the proposed Bill takes away the powers of the institutes to determine
fees by making it subject to prior approval of the government
43. Essential Services Maintenance Act: Act of Parliament of India (not of Delhi
government)
Established to ensure the delivery of certain services, which if obstructed would
affect the normal life of the people. These include services like public transport
(bus services), health services (doctors and hospitals)
Each state has a variation of the central law as its act
44. The Chief Justice of a High Court is appointed by the President in consultation with
the Chief Justice of India and the Governor of the state
45. Joint Committee on Salaries and Allowances of MPs has 10 LS and 5 RS members,
nominated by Speaker; its a standing committee (annual reconstitution)
46. AP has alleged that Telangana government is tapping phones of its employees in
Hyderabad, and has asked union government to ask the Governor to use Rule 8 of the
state reorganization rules, that allow the Governor to use his personal discretion on
matters related to the common capital ( governor can, after consulting the council of
ministers of Telangana, use his personal judgment and take action in matters relating
to law and order, including police transfers in the shared capital
47. SC thinks political parties should be covered under the RTI because they have the
complete hold of their MPs under the 10th schedule of the constitution
48. The IPC under Section 499/500 criminalizes defamatory speech. This means that a
person can be imprisoned for a maximum period of 2 years, if found guilty. The Centre
has told the Supreme Court that defamation should remain a penal offence in India as
the defamer may be too poor to compensate the victim. It has denied that criminal
defamation had any chilling effect on free speech
49. West Bengal government has given a fillip to Centres mega-merger plan of all state-
owned hydro electric units with National Hydroelectric Power Corporation (NHPC)
50. National Renewable Energy BILL
Would enable a National Renewable Energy Policy
At present, the renewable energy sector is governed by the Electricity Act, 2003,
which is also undergoing amendments
The various segments which are the focus of the policy are: Renewable energy
resource assessment, technical and safety standards, monitoring and verification,
manufacturing and skill development and data management
Through a separate law, the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE)
would get freedom to execute projects and not depend on other ministries and
departments for necessary clearances, said officials
To financially support the sector and the projects, the central government will set
up National Renewable Energy Fund and also push states to set up their own
State Green Funds
51. Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act (1960): HCs have recently banned Jallikattu
(Tamil Nadu; played during Pongal), and also Himachal bull/ buffalo fights
52. A third of all HC posts in India are currently vacant
53. Gujarat Anti-Terror Bill (Gujarat Control of Organized Crime Bill) has been returned
by the central government => it will not go for Presidential Assent
Bills detractors point to provisions which they say will promote police tyranny
and the abuse of the law in order to settle political scores especially using ruling
party-driven law enforcement:
 Empowerment of an investigating agency to continue with the investigation for
180 days, as against the permitted 90 days
All offences under GCTOC would be being non-bailable (does not mean no bail at
all but that bail is not automatic)
Makes confessions made to senior police officers of the rank of Superintendent
of Police and above admissible in evidence
Authorizes interception of telephonic conversations and their admissibility in
evidence
Makes the government immune from any legal action for anything done under
this act

54. Censure Motion:

This motion can be moved only in the Lok Sabha and by the Opposition of the
House
It can be moved against the Council of Ministers or an individual Minister or a
group of Ministers
The Motion should be specific and self-explanatory so as to record the reasons for
the censure, precisely and briefly
No leave of the House is required to move a Censure Motion.
If the Censure Motion is passed, the Council of Ministers is bound to seek the
confidence of the Lok Sabha as early as possible
This motion is mentioned under the Rule 184 of the Rules and Procedures of the
Lok Sabha
55. Suo Moto means of its own motion; example: if NGT asks an industry to stop
polluting without anyone approaching the NGT to evaluate such an industry
56. Official Secrets Act (1923)
The Official Secrets Act (1923) is India's anti espionage (Spy and Secret agent) act
held over from British colonization
It states clearly that any action that involves helping an enemy state against India
will be treated as treason
It also states that one cannot approach, inspect, or even pass over a prohibited
government site or area
The disclosure of any information that is likely to affect the sovereignty and
integrity of India, the security of the State, or friendly relations with foreign States,
is punishable by this act
A person prosecuted under this Act can be charged with the crime even if the
action was unintentional and not intended to endanger the security of the state
Members of the public may be excluded from court proceedings if the prosecution
feels that any information that is going to be passed on during the proceedings is
sensitive. This also includes media; so the journalists will not be allowed to cover
that particular case
The Delhi high court greatly reduced the powers of the act by ruling publication of
a document merely labelled secret shall not render the journalist liable under the
law
Criticism: conflicts with RTI Act; overrides it in case of conflict
The Second Administrative Reforms Commission (ARC) had recommended that the
Official Secrets Act should be repealed, and substituted by a chapter in the
National Security Act, containing provisions relating to official secrets
 The ARC had made this recommendation ostensibly on the ground that the Law
Commission had recommended in 1971 that an 'umbrella Act' should be passed to
bring together all Acts/Laws relating to national security. However, in 1980, the
National Security Act (NSA) was enacted only to provide for preventive powers to
deal with likely threats to maintenance of public order and security of the country
etc., besides maintenance of essential services. In such a situation, the
Government decided not to repeal the OSA as the other enactments relating to
national security such as the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967, the
Criminal Law Amendment Act, Chapters 6 and 7 of the Indian Penal Code etc. have
also not been merged in the NSA

57. Land Boundary Agreement

100th constitutional amendment:
Relates to the Land Border Agreement (LBA) with Bangladesh regarding swapping
of enclaves by the two countries
Would confer rights of getting Indian citizenship to people living in Bangladeshi
territory on India, and vice-versa. Currently, people living in enclaves on either side
of the border are effectively stateless, and hence live in miserable conditions
As soon as the LBA was discussed, it was ratified by the Bangladeshi parliament,
whereas it is stuck in the Indian parliament because of opposition from some
groups who are saying that India will lose about ten times the amount of land that
it will gain
May 7 2015: The bill has been passed in the Rajya Sabha, and includes Assam. The
government also says that it will make arrangements for people willing to migrate
out of the enclaves in Bangladesh and into India

58. Land Acquisition (Amendment) Bill

Removes the condition of getting approval from 70% of landholders in PPP projects
and 80% in private projects
Eliminates Social Impact Assessment
Increases the amount of time that a company can keep the land un-utilized
(despite cases where the land was being leased out to third parties/ used for a
purpose other than the one for which land was procured)
Proponents say that under UPAs LARR Act, the transaction and opportunity costs
for land acquirers were immense, in the form of conducting SIAs, referenda etc.
59. Whistleblowers Protection Act (Amendment)
The amendments would address concerns relating to national security, and
strengthen the safeguards against disclosures which may prejudicially affect the
sovereignty and integrity of the country, security, strategic, scientific or economic
interest of the State, relations with a foreign State or leads to incitement of an
offence
However, Anti-corruption activists have argued that the new provisions could
weaken the fight against corruption in key sectors like defence. In the past, several
dubious deals like the Bofors, Scorpene, Tatra truck and AgustaWestland scams
have been exposed by whistle blowers

Whistle Blowers Protection Act, 2011:

Seeks to protect whistle blowers, i.e. persons making a public interest disclosure
related to an act of corruption, misuse of power, or criminal offense by a public
servant
 Any public servant or any other person including a non-governmental organization
may make such a disclosure to the Central or State Vigilance Commission
Every complaint has to include the identity of the complainant
The Vigilance Commission shall not disclose the identity of the complainant except
to the head of the department if he deems it necessary. The Act penalizes any
person who has disclosed the identity of the complainant
The Act prescribes penalties for knowingly making false complaints
This Act aims to balance the need to protect honest officials from undue
harassment with protecting persons making a public interest disclosure

60. Congress MPs suspended under Rule 374A of the Parliament

61. Companies Act- CSR provisions, recent changes in them; do CSR activities conducted
abroad count?
Regulates incorporation of a company, responsibilities of a company, directors,
dissolution of a company
Administered by the Ministry of Corporate Affairs
The original act was passed in 1956; the 2013 act introduced new concepts such
as:
One Person Companies
Women Directors
Corporate Social Responsibility
Registered Valuers
Rotation of Auditors
Class Action
Dormant Company
Fast Track Mergers
Serious Fraud Investigation Office
16 amendments have been made in 2015 by NDA; Jaitley says onerous provisions
were dissuading entrepreneurs to incorporate companies and prompting them to
set up Limited Liability Partnership (LLP) firms for carrying out business
Amendments were made relating to winding up of companies, board resolutions,
bail provisions and utilisation of unclaimed dividends to bring the law in tune with
the global standards. It also does away with the need to secure certificate of
commencement before starting operations
Now, except in various issues of serious frauds, normal CrPC (code of criminal
procedure) provisions would apply

62. Medical Termination of Pregnancy (MTP) Amendment Bill: India has an embarrassing
maternal mortality record. Every two hours a woman dies in an abortion performed
unsafely or unscientifically. Medical infrastructure and sanitization of operation rooms
is also poor

Recent amendments:
The Indian Medical Association and the Union Health and Family Welfare Ministry
are headed for a face off over the governments proposal to allow AYUSH
practitioners and paramedical staff to perform abortions on pregnant women
under the Medical Termination of Pregnancy (MTP) Amendment Bill. The IMA has
already expressed reservations about the proposal
The government is of the view that expanding the provider base with strict
conditionalities would enhance access and availability of safe abortion services
 without compromising on quality of service
The government has planned to provide requisite training and certification,
which would be specified in the rules, to the AYUSH practitioners for allowing them
to perform the procedure

Also, Medical termination of Pregnancy Act (1971) allows abortions upto 20

weeks of gestation
This draft abortion law also speaks about another amendment and that is raising
the ceiling of the abortion from 20 to 24 weeks of pregnancy. This is amendment
is considered more progressive, acceptable and there is a larger consensus on this

63. When does the Model Code of Conduct come into force?
The Model Code of Conduct comes into force the moment an election is
announced and remains in force till the results are declared
Ministers, including Prime Minister, cannot combine their official visits with
electioneering work. They also cannot use official/government machinery or
personnel for electioneering work. Public places for holding election rallies and
helipads for flights in connection with elections are to be made available to all
parties on the same terms and conditions on which they are used by the party in
power

64. Presidents Address- article, provisions etc.

The President inaugurates the Parliament by addressing it after the general
elections and also at the beginning of the first session each year
This is mentioned in Article 87(1)
The Presidential address on these occasions is generally meant to outline the new
policies of the government

65. Compensatory Afforestation Fund Bill

The Bill seeks to establish funds at the national and state level to receive money
collected for compensatory afforestation
Compensatory afforestation is defined as afforestation done in lieu of the diversion
of forest land for non forest use
Bill seeks to establish a permanent National Compensatory Afforestation Fund
under the public account of India. It also allows states to establish State
Compensatory Afforestation Funds
The National Fund will be under the central government, and managed by a
National Compensatory Afforestation Fund Management and Planning Authority
(CAMPA). The central government will appoint a State CAMPA in each state
Sources of funds: At present, an ad hoc National CAMPA and ad hoc State
CAMPAs, established by government orders, receive money collected for
compensatory afforestation. Once the National Fund is created, money collected
by state governments which has been placed with the existing National CAMPA will
be transferred to the National Fund

66. Benami Transactions (Prohibition) Bill (pending in Rajya Sabha)

Provides for attachment and confiscation of benami properties and imposes fine
with imprisonment
Aims to act as a major avenue for blocking generation and holding of black
money in the form of benami property, especially in real estate
 The Bill defines benami transaction as an arrangement where a property is held
by a person (other than in fiduciary capacity) on behalf of another person who
has paid for it; or the transaction is made for a property in a fictitious name; or the
owner of the property is not aware of or denies knowledge of such ownership. A
benamidar is a person or fictitious person in whose name the property is held or
transferred
The Bill restricts the right of any person who is claiming to be the real owner to
recover such property. In addition, no person shall be able to re-transfer such
property to the beneficial owner
The Bill provides that the Adjudicating Authority and the Appellate Tribunal
established under the Prevention of Money laundering Act, 2002, shall also be the
same for the purposes of this Act

67. Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition, and Redressal)

Act, 2013
Seeks to cover all women, irrespective of their age or employment status and
protect them against sexual harassment at all workplaces both in public and
private sector, whether organized or unorganized
Building on the Vishakha guidelines, the Act calls for the formation of an internal
complaints committee and a local complaints committee at the district level
The Act defines sexual harassment at the work place and creates a mechanism for
redressal of complaints. It also provides safeguards against false or malicious
charges
The definition of aggrieved woman, who will get protection under the Act is
extremely wide to cover all women, irrespective of her age or employment status,
whether in the organized or unorganized sectors, public or private and covers
clients, customers and domestic workers as well
While the workplace in the Vishaka Guidelines is confined to the traditional
office set-up where there is a clear employer-employee relationship, the Act goes
much further to include organisations, department, office, branch unit etc. in the
public and private sector, organized and unorganized, hospitals, nursing homes,
educational institutions, sports institutes, stadiums, sports complex and any place
visited by the employee during the course of employment including the
transportation
Every employer is required to constitute an Internal Complaints Committee at each
office or branch with 10 or more employees
The Committee is required to complete the inquiry within a time period of 90 days
The Complaints Committees have the powers of civil courts for gathering
evidence
The Complaints Committees are required to provide for conciliation before
initiating an inquiry, if requested by the complainant.

68. Street Vendors Act, 2014

The Act aims at ensuring a uniform legal framework to protect the livelihood of
street vendors. However, it leaves major areas of regulation to the street vending
scheme to be formulated by the state governments and implemented by the local
authorities.
Formation of the Town Vending Committee with at least 40% representation of
street vendors, one third of whom are women is a good step. However, in the
creation of the street vending plan or in dispute redressal mechanism, the TVC has
no role whatsoever. The national policy on Urban Street Vending, 2009 required
 that TVCs be consulted while deciding the vending zones
The role of TVCs has been reduced to specifying time limits for issue and renewal
of registration and vending certificate. And to store data regarding street vendors
like category of vending, stall allotted etc. Since this law supercedes the laws
enacted by states like Rajasthan and Gujarat which provided significant powers to
the TVCs, it is actually a step backwards.
The act specifies that no vendor can be evicted without a 7 day notice by the local
authority. Also the vendor will be entitled to a separate vending location. This
provision has however been observed only in its breach with vendors being evicted
at will based on the whims and fancies of police and local authorities

69. Qualifications for Attorney General: Attorney General must be qualified to be a judge
of the Supreme Court
70. Private Members Bills
Every member of Parliament, who is not a Minister, is called a Private Member
(doesnt matter if you belong to the ruling party!)
A member who wants to introduce a Bill has to give prior notice thereof. The
period of notice for introduction of a Bill is one month unless the Speaker allows
introduction at a shorter notice
Constitutional Amendment Bills can be proposed: Bills seeking to amend the
Constitution, apart from being subject to the normal rules applicable to Private
Members Bills, have also to be examined by the Committee on Private Members
Bills and Resolutions

71. COTPA (Amendment) Bill

Proposes to do away with on-site advertising of tobacco products. Kiosks and
shops selling cigarettes and other tobacco products will no longer be able to display
the brand names
To prevent exposure of non-smokers to harmful emissions, the Health Ministry has
proposed scrapping designated smoking areas from hotels, restaurants and
airports; making an exception only for international airports
Tobacco products and cigarettes in approved packaging (which have pictorial
warnings across the designated area of the pack) will now be sold only to those
above 21 years of age. The proposed age limit will be revised to 23 and 25 in two
phases after evaluating the impact of raising the minimum age

About COTPA Act:

It is an Act of Parliament of India enacted in 2003 to prohibit advertisement and
regulation of tobacco business in India. The Act put restriction on tobacco products
including cigarettes, gutka, panmasala (containing tobacco), cigar, cheerot, Beedi,
Snuff, chewing tobacco, hookah, tooth powder containing tobacco

It was enacted mainly to discourage the consumption of Cigarettes and other

Tobacco products through imposing progressive restrictions and to protect non-
smokers from second hand smoke

The Key provisions under the Act include:

Prohibition of smoking in public places
Prohibition on all forms of direct / indirect advertisement, promotion and
sponsorship of tobacco products
 Prohibition and sale of tobacco products to minors (any person who is under
eighteen years of age)
Prohibition and sale of tobacco products in an area within a radius of one hundred
yards of any educational institution
Mandatory depiction of specified health warnings on all tobacco products

72. Merchant Shipping (Amendment) Bill

Approved the Ministry of Shipping's proposal for India's accession to the
International Convention on Civil Liability for Bunker Oil Pollution Damage
The proposed amendments to the Merchant Shipping Act 1958, if enacted, shall
also give effect to the Nairobi Wreck Removal Convention and the Salvage
Convention of IMO to which India is already a party. It will facilitate more
purposeful approach towards removal of wrecks and salvage, protect Indian
waters from the wreck hazards and introduce internationally recognized and
approved rules for removal of wrecks
73. Labour Law Amendments:
The labour ministry has been fleshing out a plan to merge the Industrial Disputes
Act, Industrial Employment (Standing Orders) Act and the Trade Unions Act into a
single code for industrial relations

74. Citizenship (Amendment) Act

Merges the Person of Indian Origin (PIO) and Overseas Citizenship of India (OCI)
schemes
All existing PIO card holders will be deemed to be OCI card holders
One year continuous stay in India used to be mandatory for Indian Citizenship
which has been relaxed, stating that if the Central Government is satisfied that
special circumstances exist, it may, after recording such circumstances in writing,
relax the period of twelve months specified upto a maximum of thirty days which
may be in different breaks
Empowers the Union Government to cancel the OCI card obtained by the spouse
of an Indian citizen if the marriage is dissolved by a court or the spouse enters into
another marriage even while the first marriage has not been dissolved
75. Differentiate between Parts, Schedules: The Constitution is divided
into Parts wherein each Part deals with a broad (but specific) topic. For example, Part
III deals with Fundamental Rights, Part IV deals with Directive Principles of State
Policy, Part XV deals with Elections and so on.
The Schedules are like appendices to the Constitution. They contain some minute
details pertaining to the basic framework established in the Articleswithin the Parts of
the Constitution. For example, Schedule 1 lists the states and the UTs that constitute
the Union of India and describes their extent, Schedule 2 lists the salaries and the
emoluments that the President, Vice President and other Constitutional authorities
are entitled to, Schedule 3 details the oath that each Constitutional authority must
take before entering office and so on. If these were added into the Articles (or
as Articles within theParts) of the Constitution, the already bulky Constitution of India
would have become much more complex and voluminous. Thus, for the sake of
simplicity they were added as appendages in the form of schedules to the Constitution
76. Constitutions 69th amendment: Gave Delhi an elected Legislative Assembly; also has
the provision that the President can appoint an LG
77. Consumer Protection Act- structure of forums, eligibility to sit on boards
78. Which all writs can the Jammu and Kashmir HC issue?
79. The Maharashtra bill that bans beef allows slaughter of water buffalos
80. Ordinances in the Parliament:
Under Article 123, these are temporary laws that can be issued by the President
when the Parliament is not in session
Need to be approved by Parliament within six weeks of reconvening, otherwise
stop being laws
http://indianexpress.com/article/opinion/columns/when-not-to-use-power/99/

81. Section 309:

Prescribes punishment for attempted suicide
Has on occasion been found in contradiction of Article 21 (Right to Life and Liberty)
Set to be limited in effect by the Mental Health Care Bill (2013) which, in case of
attempted suicide, presumes mental illness/ severe mental stress

82. Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996

New ordinance brought in by the NDA government in December 2014
Aimed at making it mandatory for commercial disputes to be settled within
nine months and also putting a cap on fee of arbitrators
FICCI hopes this will make India a more investor-friendly destination and help
promote institutional arbitration

83. Vote on Account:

Its March 25, and the AAP government in Delhi has presented, instead of a
budget, a Vote on Account
A vote on account is usually used only by interim governments, as a placeholder
tool to get money for expenditures before a full budget is presented
Unlike a full or even interim budget, a vote on account is a statement only of
expenditure, and doesnt contain revenue details
Taxes cannot be modified in a vote on account; they can be in interim and full
budgets

84. Hate Speech Laws in India:

India prohibits hate speech by several sections of the Indian Penal Code, the
Code of Criminal Procedure, and by other laws which put limitations on the
freedom of expression
153A: Spreading disharmony based on religion, race, birth of place, residence,
language, case, or community
295A:Spreading communal disharmony
124A: Sedition

85. Criteria for Special Category Status

Hilly and difficult terrain
Strategic location around international borders
Non-viable state finances
Economic Backwardness
Low population density
86. Commercial Divisions Bills Act (proposed):
This act introduces a commercial division in every high court having original
jurisdiction (i.e. Madras, Delhi, Bombay, Calcutta and Himachal Pradesh) and
commercial courts in such districts, as the Central government, in consultation
with the concerned State government and Chief Justice of the concerned High
Court, may establish
These specialised courts will resolve all commercial disputes of value of over
Rs. 1 crore. Simultaneously, the jurisdictional limits of all high courts, which have
original side jurisdiction, would be increased to Rs. 1 crore across the country
These disputes will be heard by judges who not only have a background in
commercial laws but will also receive special training in this area
The court will have to deliver its judgement in 90 days
Cost follow the event regime will be followed, whereby, as a general rule, the
party against whom the order/judgment is passed bears the entire cost of
litigation, subject to exceptions where delaying parties, even if successful, have
to bear part of the cost

87. NRIs voting from abroad (proposed amendment of Representation of People Act):
The government has informed the Supreme Court of its decision to accept the
Election Commissions recommendation to allow Non-Resident Indians to vote
from overseas through e-postal ballots or proxy voting

Impact:
The governments decision to allow NRIs to vote could set the stage for
expatriates to emerge as a decisive force in the countrys electoral politics
This decision also, historically, removes an unreasonable restriction posed by
Section 20(A) of the Representation of the People (Amendment) Act of 2010,
requiring overseas electors to be physically present in their constituencies to cast
their votes
There are 10 million Indian citizens staying abroad, and with 543 Lok Sabha
constituencies, this means an astonishing average of 18,000 votes per
constituency may get polled from abroad. These additional votes, if polled, will
obviously play a crucial role in state and general elections

Current situation:
According to the provisions of the Representation of People Act, a person who is
a citizen of India and who has not acquired the citizenship of any other country
and is otherwise eligible to be registered as a voter and who is absent from his
place of ordinary residence in India owing to employment, education or
otherwise, is eligible to be registered as a voter in the constituency in which his
place of residence in India, as mentioned in his passport, is located
However the person will be able to exercise the franchise only if he or she is
physically present in their constituency on the polling day at the polling station
along with the original passport. This had created a problem
However, Section 20(8) (d) of the Representation of the People Act 1950 read
with Section 60(b) of the Representation of the People Act 1951 allows
government servants and certain other class of persons to vote via postal ballot
following the Election Commissions consent
88. Under Article 72 of the Constitution, the President can grant pardon, and suspend,
remit or commute a sentence of death. However, the President does not exercise
this power on this own he has to act on the advice of the Council of Ministers.
This too has been made clear by the Constitution.Under the existing rules of
procedure governing mercy petitions, the view of the Union Ministry of Home
Affairs (MHA), conveyed to the President in writing, is taken as the view of the
Cabinet, and the President decides a mercy petition accordingly

89. Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act aims at effective prevention of unlawful

activities associations in India. Its main objective is to make powers available for
dealing with activities directed against the integrity and sovereignty of India. The Act
makes it a crime to support any secessionist movement, or to support claims by a
foreign power to what India claims as its territory. In 2005, Jeevan Reddy
committee recommended that AFSPA should be repealed and relevant provisions
should be subsumed within the UA(P) Act.

90. Gujarat Local Authorities (Amendment) ordinance: Gujarat government had

recently issued a notification on the Gujarat Local Authorities (Amendment) Act
2009, which makes voting in the local polls mandatory and those who fail to exercise
their franchise would face a penalty of Rs 100.The Gujarat High Court, however,
court noted that the right to vote provided in the Constitution also provided the
right to refrain from voting and it could not be made a duty to vote for the
citizens

91. The Homeland Security Presidential Directive (HSPD -6) is a model text agreement
proposed by the U.S. for exchange of terrorist screening information between the
Terrorist Screening Centre (TSC) of the U.S. and an Indian agency.As part of the
agreement, India could share details on red corner notices as well as details on
criminals or terrorists wanted across the country with the US

92. The Tribes Advisory Councils have been constituted in the Scheduled Areas States
i.e. Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Jharkhand, Himachal Pradesh, Madhya
Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha and Rajasthan and non Scheduled Areas States of
Tamil Nadu and West Bengal.

TACs are mandated as per the Fifth schedule of the constitution, to advice on
matters pertaining to the welfare and advancement of the STs in respective States
as may be referred to them by the Governor

The decisions taken in the TACs do not need Cabinets approval and the council
enjoys a say in crucial matter related to tribal issues

The government has to nominate tribal MLAs and MPs for the TAC of which the
Chief Minister is the chairperson

93. Road Transport and Safety Bill:

It is a Bill which aims to provide a framework for safer, faster, cost effective
and inclusive movement of passengers and freight in the country thus
enabling the mission of Make in India
 The new Bill makes significant departures from the 1988 Motor Vehicle Act
as it includes safety in construction, design, maintenance and use of motor
vehicles and roads as a major component.
The Bill provides for more stringent penalties to offenders. A graded penalty
point system would now act as a deterrent and improve traffic condition
whereas electronic detection and centralized information of offences would
facilitate to identify repeat-offenders
National Road Safety Authority of Indiaproposed, which will be an
independent, legally empowered and accountable expert lead agency. It
shall be accountable to the Parliament and Central Government (and will
have State Level counterparts)
Establish a unified driver licensing system in India which will be transparent.
Such a system shall facilitate any time anywhere licence application
mechanism in the country and mitigate duplication of licences from various
regional transport offices
94. Ministers are not allowed to be a part of the Public Advisory Committee; Chairman is
appointed by the Speaker of the Lok Sabha, and has traditionally been a member of
the opposition

95. Gold Monetisation scheme:

Through this scheme, gold in any form can be deposited with banks for a period of 1
to 15 years. This gold will earn interest and redemption will be at the prevailing
market value at the end of the tenure of deposit
The scheme also provides for incentives to the banks. Individuals and institutions
can deposit as low as 30 gm of gold, while the interest earned on it would be
exempt from income tax as well as capital gains tax

96. Sovereign Gold Bond Scheme:aimed at customers looking to buy gold as an

investment. Under the Scheme, there will be no need to buy actual gold as
customers can buy gold bonds which will be relatable to the weight of gold
The bonds will be issued in denominations of 5 grams, 10 grams, 50 grams and 100
grams for a term of five years to seven years with a rate of interest to be calculated
on the value of the metal at the time of investment
However, there would be a cap of 500 grams that a person can purchase in a year.
Such bonds would be offered to only Indian citizens and institutions
97. Supreme Court has stayed the operation of the Haryana Panchayati Raj
(amendment) Act 2015. The new law prescribes minimum educational qualifications
for contesting in local bodies elections

98. The Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2000, lays down that
even if a child under the age of 18 is found guilty under the Act, it does not render
the youngster ineligible for education

99. Land Pooling v/s Land Acquisition: Under land pooling systems, landowners
voluntarily sign ownership rights over to a single agency or government body. This
agency develops the land by building roads and laying sewage lines and electricity
 connections. Once this is done, it returns a smaller portion of the land to the original
owners. But since the plot now has more amenities, its price has probably risen to
match the market value of the owners original landholding

In pooling, land, not money, is the primary medium of exchange. When acquiring
land, the authorities sometimes have to compensate owners with up to four times
the value of their plots. But instead of paying four times the market rate of their
land, authorities often pay them four times the registered value. This amount is
usually significantly lower and does not factor in inflation over the years. This makes
it difficult to obtain the consent of the majority of plot owners. As a result, land is
often acquired by force
1. The government has decided to amend the Income Tax Act with retrospective effect
to exempt from minimum alternate tax (MAT) the overseas companies that are
covered under double taxation avoidance agreements (DTAAs). DTAA provides that
business profits will be taxable in the source country if the activities of an enterprise
constitute a permanent establishment (PE)
2. Gujarat Control of Terrorism and Organised Crime (GCTOC) Bill, 2015:
The anti-terror Bill, passed by the Gujarat Assembly and twice rejected by the
previous UPA government, has been cleared by the union government and sent
to the President for his assent
Citing past terror attacks in Gujarat, the state government had raised concerns
over Pakistans attempts at cross-border terrorism, Gujarats vulnerable coastline
and the proliferation of criminal gangs, while underscoring the need for a strong
law
The Bill provides for admissibility of evidence collected through interception of
mobile calls of an accused
Makes confessions before police officers admissible in court
Non-bailable convictions
Immunity to the State government from legal action
3. Anti-defacement Bills: Several states in India, like Haryana and West Bengal, have
such bills to check defacement by indiscreetly putting up posters, bills and painting
graffiti in government buildings, heritage structures and other public places during
campaigning and also for commercial purposes
4. Lok Adalats are in vogue to ensure speedy resolution of civil cases, and reduce
pendency in courts.These are a non-adversarial system, whereby mock courts are
held by the State Authority, District Authority, Supreme Court Legal Services
Committee, High Court Legal Services Committee, or Taluk Legal Services
Committee.These are usually presided over by retired judges, social activists, or
other members of the legal profession.
The focus in Lok Adalats is on compromise. When no compromise is reached, the
matter goes back to the court. However, if a compromise is reached, an award is
made and is binding on the parties.The disputing parties plead their case themselves
in Lok Adalats. No advocate or pleader is allowed, even witnesses are not examined.
These adalats have statutory recognition
5. Human DNA Profiling Bill is ready for introduction in the next session of
Parliament.The bill proposes to allow collection of samples from private parts of
human body for DNA profiling and data preservation with the approval of a
regulatory body. The bill mandates that the DNA profiles or samples be kept
 confidential, and they should be used only for establishing identity of a person and
nothing else
6. Article 44 of the Constitution says that there should be a Uniform Civil Code (just as
DPSP). Uniform civil Code is a proposal to have a generic set of governing laws for
every citizen without taking into consideration the religion.Currently, there are
personal laws based on the scriptures and customs of each major religious
community. They are separate from the public law and are applied on issues like
marriage, divorce, inheritance, adoption, and maintenance