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B.A. LL.B. (Five Years) Sem 3 Constitutional Law I 2025 Jan (100 marks) Question Paper with Solutions - KSLU

KSLU Solved Question Papers

Constitutional Law I

Previous Year Question Paper with Solution

B.A. LL.B. (Five Years) · Sem 3

2025 Jan (100 marks) Examination

munotes.in

Mumbai

First published on munotes.in on 21 October 2026.

Published by munotes.in, Mumbai.

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The Paper as Set

The questions in this volume are the questions asked at the 2025 Jan (100 marks) 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 100 · 13 questions answered

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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.

Read the original question paper

Q1Discuss the legal position and significance of the 'preamble' of the Indian Constitution with decided cases.[16]

Answer

For full marks, cover: what a preamble is and how ours was adopted; its contents in brief; its legal position (part of the Constitution or not: Berubari and Kesavananda); whether it can be amended (the 1976 amendment and the basic structure limit); whether it is enforceable and its use as an aid to interpretation; its significance in later cases (Indira Nehru Gandhi, Minerva Mills, S.R. Bommai); a summary table; a conclusion.

What the Preamble is

A preamble is the introductory statement at the start of a statute or constitution. It explains why the document was made and what it seeks to achieve. The Preamble to our Constitution was the last part the Constituent Assembly adopted, on 17 October 1949. It was left to the end so that it would match the text already settled. The Constitution as a whole was adopted on 26 November 1949.

Its contents in brief

Source of authority: "We, the People of India". The Constitution rests on the will of the people.

Nature of the State: a Sovereign, Socialist, Secular, Democratic Republic.
Objectives: justice, liberty and equality are to be secured to all citizens, and fraternity is to be promoted among them. The exact words are set out below.
Date of adoption: 26 November 1949.

The objectives, in the Preamble's own words, are "JUSTICE, social, economic and political; LIBERTY of thought, expression, belief, faith and worship; EQUALITY of status and of opportunity; and to promote among them all FRATERNITY assuring the dignity of the individual and the unity and integrity of the Nation".

The meaning of the key words

Sovereign means that India is free from any outside control in its internal and external affairs. Membership of the Commonwealth does not affect this.
Socialist means democratic socialism. The State aims to reduce inequality of income, status and opportunity, through articles such as 38 and 39, while keeping a mixed economy.
Secular means the State has no religion of its own. It treats all religions equally and does not discriminate on the ground of religion.

Democratic means that power rests with the people, who elect their representatives through universal adult franchise.
Republic means that the head of State is elected for a fixed term, not a hereditary monarch.
Fraternity means a spirit of common brotherhood. It is linked with the dignity of the individual and the unity and integrity of the Nation.

Legal position: is it part of the Constitution?

The first view. In re Berubari Union and Exchange of Enclaves, decided on 14 March 1960. India agreed with Pakistan in 1958 to divide Berubari Union No. 12 and exchange certain enclaves. The President asked the Supreme Court whether this needed a law and, if so, of what kind. The Court held that giving away Indian territory needed an amendment of the Constitution under article 368. A law under article 3 would not do.

On the Preamble, the Court said three things. It is "a key to open the mind of the makers". It is not a source of substantive power, nor a source of limitations on power. And it may be used only where an article is ambiguous. The Court also said that the Preamble is not part of the Constitution.

The settled view. Kesavananda Bharati v. State of Kerala, AIR 1973 SC 1461. A thirteen-judge Bench examined the history of the Constituent Assembly. The Preamble had been moved, debated and adopted in the same way as the other provisions. So the Court held that the Preamble is part of the Constitution. This part of Berubari was not followed. But Berubari's rule that the Preamble cannot create powers survives. So both cases remain useful: Kesavananda on the status of the Preamble, and Berubari on its limited use.

Can the Preamble be amended?

Since the Preamble is part of the Constitution, it can be amended under article 368, like any other part. This was done once, by the Forty-second Amendment 1976, which added "Socialist" and "Secular" and changed "unity of the Nation" to "unity and integrity of the Nation".

But the amending power is limited. Kesavananda held that Parliament cannot amend the Constitution so as to destroy its basic structure. Many of the features named in the Preamble, such as sovereignty, democracy, the republican form and secularism, are part of that basic structure. So the Preamble can be amended only in a way that does not damage these basic features.

Is the Preamble enforceable?

The Preamble does not by itself confer rights or powers. A citizen cannot go to court to enforce a word of the Preamble directly. Nor can the Government claim a power from it that the articles do not give.

But it has real legal force in three ways.

Aid to interpretation. Where an article is ambiguous, the court chooses the meaning that best fits the Preamble's objectives.
Guide to the basic structure. The Preamble helps the court identify the basic features that no amendment may destroy.
Content for rights. Its ideals of dignity, justice and equality have been used to widen rights such as article 21.

The Preamble in interpretation: how courts use it

The courts have used the Preamble in many ways while keeping within the Berubari rule.

To widen rights. The words "dignity of the individual" have been relied upon in giving article 21 its wide meaning of a life with dignity.

To support social justice. The words "justice, social, economic and political" have supported reservations for backward classes and laws on land reform as measures of social justice.
To support secular decisions. The word "secular" has guided the courts in deciding that the State must keep equal distance from all religions.
To test amendments. The values of the Preamble are used to decide whether an amendment destroys the basic structure.

But a court will not use the Preamble to defeat clear words of an article. Where the meaning of an article is plain, the Preamble cannot change it.

Significance shown by later cases

Indira Nehru Gandhi v. Raj Narain, AIR 1975 SC 2299. The Allahabad High Court had set aside the Prime Minister's election. While her appeal was pending, Parliament added article 329A(4), which declared her election valid and wiped out the High Court's judgment. The Supreme Court struck down that clause. Khanna J. held that free and fair elections are an essential postulate of democracy, which the Preamble promises. Democracy is part of the basic structure.

Minerva Mills Ltd v. Union of India, AIR 1980 SC 1789. The Forty-second Amendment had added clauses (4) and (5) to article 368, giving Parliament unlimited amending power. The Court struck them down. It said that unlimited power would demolish the pillars on which the Preamble rests. A limited amending power is itself a basic feature.

S.R. Bommai v. Union of India, (1994) 3 SCC 1. The Court reviewed the dismissal of State Governments after the events at Ayodhya. Nine judges held that secularism, a value declared in the Preamble, is a basic feature of the Constitution. A State Government that acts against it may be dismissed under article 356.

The Preamble's significance in summary

It records that sovereignty rests with the people.
It describes the kind of State India is.
It sets the goals that every organ of the State must pursue.
It is the key to interpreting the Constitution.
It points to the basic structure, which even Parliament cannot destroy.

Question	Answer	Case
Is it part of the Constitution?	Yes	Kesavananda (departing from Berubari)
Is it a source of power?	No	Berubari
Can it be amended?	Yes, but not to destroy the basic structure	Kesavananda; Forty-second Amendment
Is democracy protected?	Yes, free and fair elections are basic	Indira Nehru Gandhi
Is secularism protected?	Yes, a basic feature	S.R. Bommai

Conclusion. The Preamble is part of the Constitution, as Kesavananda held, though Berubari had thought otherwise. It cannot by itself give or take away power, and it is not directly enforceable. But it is the key to interpreting the Constitution and a guide to its basic structure. It may be amended, but not in a way that destroys the sovereign, socialist, secular and democratic republic it declares.

B.A. LL.B. (Five Years) Sem 3 Constitutional Law I 2025 Jan (100 marks) Question Paper with Solutions

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