With reference to the Constitution of India, consider the following statements :
- 1.No High Court shall have the jurisdiction to declare any central law to be constitutionally invalid.
- 2.An amendment to the Constitution of India cannot be called into question by the Supreme Court of India.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
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Answer: D. Statement 1 is wrong: High Courts can declare central laws unconstitutional under Article 226; the 42nd Amendment's limit on this was removed by the 43rd Amendment (1977). Statement 2 is wrong: constitutional amendments can be reviewed by the Supreme Court under the basic structure doctrine (Kesavananda Bharati, 1973). So neither.
Watch for: Article 368(4), added by the 42nd Amendment, says amendments cannot be questioned, but the Court struck that clause down in Minerva Mills (1980).
Why the other options are wrong
- A. Wrong because High Courts can strike down central laws.
- B. Wrong because the Supreme Court can strike down amendments that violate the basic structure.
- C. Wrong because both statements are false.
Source to check: Constitution of India, Articles 13, 226 and 368; Kesavananda Bharati v. State of Kerala (1973); Minerva Mills v. Union of India (1980)
Answer from the official UPSC key. Written and fact-checked by AI against the official key. Spotted a mistake? Report it.