KSLU Solved Question Papers
Political Science (Organisation and Institutions)
Previous Year Question Paper with Solution
B.A. LL.B. (Five Years) · Sem 2
2023 Mar Examination
munotes.in
Mumbai
B.A. LL.B. (Five Years) Sem 2 Political Science (Organisation and Institutions) 2023 Mar Question Paper with Solutions
First published on munotes.in on 21 October 2026.
Published by munotes.in, Mumbai.
Model answers written and edited by the munotes.in editorial desk.
Passages from this volume may be quoted, in print, online or by an AI system, with credit: name munotes.in and link to this volume's page. The volume may not be reproduced as a whole. Full terms at munotes.in/content-license.
munotes.in is an independent study resource for students of Karnataka State Law University. It is not affiliated with Karnataka State Law University, and is not endorsed by it.
The University does not publish an official answer key for this paper. The answers in this volume are model answers, written to show how a full-mark answer is built. They are a study aid, not an authority on what an examiner marked.
The question paper reproduced here is the paper as set by Karnataka State Law University at the 2023 Mar examination.
Contents
The questions below are the paper as Karnataka State Law University set it at the 2023 Mar examination, in the order it was set.
MarksPage
MarksPage
The Paper as Set
The questions in this volume are the questions asked at the 2023 Mar examination, reproduced as Karnataka State Law University set them, in the order it set them. Long reading passages are shortened to their first and last lines and our summary; the original paper prints them in full. Only the answers are ours. See the original question paper.
Duration 3 hours · Total marks 80 · 20 questions answered
Instructions printed on the paper
- N.B. (1) Answer all five Units. (2) One essay type question and short note/problems is compulsory from each Unit. (3) Figures to the right indicate marks. (4) Answer should be written either in English or Kannada completely.
How to use this volume
Solve the paper first, under exam conditions and against the clock. Then read the answers here and mark your own. Reading a solution before attempting the question feels productive and teaches very little, because recognising an answer is not the same as being able to write one.
Q1
Unit I
(a)Define Constitution and explain its importance.[10]
Answer
For full marks, cover: the meaning of a constitution with three or four definitions (Garner, Story, Borgeaud, McClain); the importance of a constitution, each head explained (existence of the state, supreme law, organisation of government, limits on power, rights, federal balance, legitimacy, stability and peaceful change, national ideals, the rule of law); its importance in India; one case on supremacy (Marbury v. Madison); and a conclusion.
Meaning
Garner explains that the word came to mean "the body of fundamental law, either written or customary, which has to do with the organization of the state". It may be a single document, as in India and the United States, or a mass of statutes, judgments and conventions, as in Britain.
Definitions:
- Justice Story: "A constitution is a fundamental law or basis of government. It is established by the people in their original sovereign capacity to promote their own happiness and permanently to secure their rights".
- Borgeaud: "the fundamental law according to which the government of a state is organized and agreeably to which the relations of individuals or moral persons to the community are determined."
- McClain: "the body or collection of rules and principles in accordance with which the powers of that government are exercised".
In short, a constitution sets up the government, divides and limits its powers and fixes the rights of citizens.
Importance of a constitution
1. No state can exist without one. Garner, following Schulze, says every state must have "a collection of norms" regulating the exercise of state power. "The state, in short, is unthinkable without a constitution of some kind."
2. It is the supreme law. In a written constitution, ordinary laws must conform to it. A law that breaks it is void, so the people's basic choices bind even the legislature.
3. It organises the government. It creates the legislature, executive and judiciary, says how each is chosen and fixes their powers and relations. Garner calls this part "the constitution of government."
4. It limits power. By listing what each organ may and may not do, it prevents arbitrary rule. Borgeaud calls a written constitution "a law of guarantees, guaranteeing the people against the government and the minority against the majority."
5. It protects rights. A bill of rights puts certain freedoms beyond the reach of ordinary majorities. Garner calls this part "the constitution of liberty".
6. It balances the centre and the units. In a federation, only a constitution can divide power so that neither level can override the other.
7. It gives legitimacy. Story stresses that it is "established by the people in their original sovereign capacity". Government under it carries the people's authority.
8. It gives stability and allows peaceful change. Rulers come and go, but the constitution continues. Its amending clause, which Garner calls "the constitution of sovereignty", lets the nation change its government lawfully, without revolution.
9. It states national ideals. A preamble declares the goals of the nation. India's Preamble promises justice, liberty, equality and fraternity.
10. It establishes the rule of law. Rulers and ruled alike are bound by fixed rules, not by the will of a person.
11. It educates citizens. It tells citizens what their rights and duties are and how they are governed.
| Head | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Existence | No state without one |
| Supremacy | Binds even the legislature |
| Organisation | Creates the three organs |
| Limitation | Prevents arbitrary rule |
| Rights | Protects the individual |
| Federal balance | Divides power fairly |
| Legitimacy and stability | Popular authority, lawful change |
Importance in India
India's Constitution does all this for a vast and diverse nation. Part III guarantees fundamental rights, and article 13(2) makes laws that breach them void. It divides power between the Union and the States through three Lists. Its Preamble sets the nation's goals, and article 368 provides for lawful amendment.
A case: the constitution as supreme law
In Marbury v. Madison, 5 U.S. (1 Cranch) 137 (1803), William Marbury's commission as a justice of the peace was withheld by the new Secretary of State, James Madison. Marbury asked the Supreme Court directly for a writ of mandamus, relying on an Act of Congress. The Court held that his right had been violated. But the Act's grant of original jurisdiction to issue the writ was "not warranted by the constitution". Marshall CJ called the constitution "a superior, paramount law, unchangeable by ordinary means". He held that "an act of the legislature repugnant to the constitution is void". He added that "it is emphatically the province and duty of the judicial department to say what the law is." The case shows the importance of a constitution in practice: it stands above every other law.
Conclusion. A constitution is the fundamental law that organises the state, divides and limits its powers and secures citizens' rights. It is important because no state can exist without one and because it is supreme. It organises and limits government, protects rights, balances the federation, gives legitimacy and stability and states the nation's ideals. Marbury v. Madison shows that a law contrary to the constitution is void.
The rest of the answers
The first answer is free. The rest come with the KSLU B.A. LL.B. Semester 2 solved papers.
You have read the question paper and its first answer in full. Buy the solved papers once and you can read every answer of every solved paper in this semester.
Solved papers: ₹499 Already bought it? Sign in
The question paper itself stays free.
Found an error in this volume? Report it and we will check it against the paper.