Updated on: 2026-03-31 | Author: SSC Solutions Editorial Team

History and Civics Chapter 1 Working Constitution Solutions

Q1. Choose the correct option from the given options and complete the sentence. Which of the following laws created a favourable environment for women to secure freedom and self-development?

Dowry Prohibition Act

Q2. Explain the following concept. Right based approach

Answer

Since 2000, the approach towards democratic reform has evolved to be right based. Democratic reforms are necessitated as the ‘rights’ of the citizen, instead of approached as a part of the Directive principle of State policy. Citizens can take the government to the court in case their ‘rights’ are not met and thus, this change in approach has strengthened our democracy and made the govt.

more accountable to the public. People now have the Right to Information, Right to Food, Right to Education and thus are more participative in the democratic processes.

Q3. Explain the following with its reason . Foucault called his method ‘the archaeology of knowledge’.

Answer

According to Michel Foucault, the prevailing method of arranging historical events in chronological order was not right.

He threw light on the fact that archaeology does not strive for the ultimate historical truth.

It attempts to explain various transitions in the past.

Foucault gave more importance to explaining the transitions in history.

Q4. State whether the following statement is true or false. Give a reason for your answer: Secrecy in the working of Government has increased due to the Right to Information.

Answer

The statement is false.

Explanation:

For democracy to be stronger and for trust between citizens and government to increase, citizens need to know what the government is doing.

Transparency and accountability, the hallmarks of good governance, are realized through this right.

This right has helped to make government affairs more open; therefore, the right to information has reduced the secrecy in government affairs.

Q5. State whether the following statement is true or false. Give reasons for your answer. The nature of the Constitution is seen as a living document.

Answer

This statement is True.

Explanation:

Constitution is dynamic and is a living document.

Constitution has to change according to changing conditions, and Parliament has the power to make those changes.

The judiciary accepted this power of Parliament to make changes in the Constitution but at some point specified the limitations on this power.

Judiciary took a stand that Parliament, while amending the Constitution, cannot alter the basic structure of the Constitution.

Q6. The essence of democracy is ______.

The essence of democracy is the decentralization of power.

Explanation:

The essence of democracy is the federal structure or the decentralization of power. It is an important aspect of democracy where people are free to express their views and take decisions in an impeccable manner.

Q7. What are the effects of reducing the voting age from 21 years to 18 years?

The effects of reducing the voting age from 21 years to 18 years are:

Increased participation in the political processes. India has the largest number of voters compared to any other democratic country.

It encourages youth participation in public life, giving the younger generation an opportunity to be the change makers.

The change is not just quantitative but qualitative as well since new parties are emerging with the active support of the young voters.

It reflects the political maturity of India that it is empowering and actively working towards helping its citizens exercise their Right to vote.

Such provisions have made India the largest democracy in the world.

Q8. What are the four characteristics of modern historiography?

Introduction: The writing of historical narrative after critically examining the historical sources is known as ‘historiography.’ The four important characteristics of modern historiography are as follows:

The method of modern historiography is based on scientific principles and hence begins with the formation of relevant questions.

These questions are anthropocentric, i.e., about the deeds of the members of ancient human societies of a particular period. Also, history does not deal with any interrelation between the Divine and human deeds.

These questions are answered with the support of reliable evidence.

A graph of the journey of mankind is presented by history with the help of past human deeds.

In this way, scientific approach and logical reasoning can be seen in the modern historiography.

Q9. What is feminist historiography?

The restructuring of history from the perspective of women is known as ‘feminist historiography’. The fundamentals of feminism were established through the writings of French scholar Simone de Beauvoir.

It emphasised the inclusion of women in history as well as the rethinking of the male-dominated perspective of history.

Feminist historiography also led the historical research to focus in detail on several aspects of women’s lives, such as their employment, their role in trade unions, institutions working for their cause, their family life, etc. As a result, post-1990, women were portrayed as an independent social class in historical writings.

Q10. What is meant by the establishment of social justice?

Establishing social justice means removing those social conditions responsible for injustice and insisting on the equality of dignity for all individuals. The principles of justice and equality aim to end discrimination in social status, such as superiority or inferiority on the basis of caste, religion, language, gender, place of birth, race, and property, and to give every individual an equal opportunity for development.

The policy of Reservation of seats: Seats are reserved for the weaker section of society to enable them equal and fair opportunities for education and government services.

Scheduled Castes and Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act: prevents any act of injustice and atrocities committed against people belonging to Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, and any act of atrocity committed against them is liable for punishment.

Provisions for Minority: The Constitution contains a comprehensive provision protecting the fundamental rights of minorities to equality, freedom, education, the right against exploitation, and the right to preserve their culture.

Laws relating to women and provisions for representation: Taking into account the problems of women, various policies have been formulated to remove illiteracy among women and avail them of equal opportunities for their development. The right to have an equal share in the property of their father and husband, the Dowry Prohibition Act, the Domestic Violence Prohibition Act, etc., have been conceptualised to create a favourable environment for women.

Q11. Which decision of the Court has resulted in protection of honour and dignity of women?

The decision of the court in the cases of domestic violence, sexual harassment in the workplace, etc. has resulted in the protection of honour and dignity of women.

The most recent case in the news had been the matter of Triple Talaq, where the practice was declared as unconstitutional as per the decision of the Supreme Court. It was an unfair practice subjected against Muslim women where the divorce was pronounced with the mere utterance of the word ‘Talaq’ trice on most trivial of issues with no formal legal proceedings, thus undermining various fundamental rights of women. It violated their dignity and fundamental right against discrimination on the basis of religion and gender.

Supreme Court as the apex judicial body is responsible for ensuring the preservation of fundamental rights. Important judgments by the judiciary on various subjects have made the fundamental rights in the constitution more meaningful.

Q12. Write a short note on dialectic.

Answer

According to Hegel, grasping the meaning of any event happens in terms of two direct opposites.

The human mind cannot understand the true nature of that event, without understanding the opposites, for example, True-False, Good-Bad, etc.

In order to understand the true nature of a thing one needs to know both true and false, similarly good and bad.

This method of analysis which is based on opposites is known as ‘Dialectics’.

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