Q. To the Constitution of India, it is the duty of the President of India to cause to be laid before the Parliament which of the following?
1. The Recommendations of the Union Finance Commission
2. The Report of the Public Accounts Committee
3. The Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General
4. The Report of the National Commission for Scheduled Castes
Select the correct answer using the codes given below:
Answer: C
Notes:
Explanation
The President acts as the constitutional conduit through which various reports of high-level bodies reach the Parliament. However, not all reports follow this path.
- Statement 1 is Correct: Under Article 281, the President is constitutionally mandated to cause the recommendations made by the Finance Commission to be laid before each House of Parliament, along with an explanatory memorandum on action taken.
- Statement 2 is Incorrect: The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) is a Parliamentary Committee. Its report is submitted directly to the Speaker of the Lok Sabha (or Chairman of the Rajya Sabha), not to the President. Therefore, the President is not involved in laying this report before Parliament.
- Statement 3 is Correct: Under Article 151, the reports of the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) relating to the accounts of the Union are submitted to the President, who then causes them to be laid before each House of Parliament.
- Statement 4 is Correct: Under Article 338(6), the National Commission for Scheduled Castes submits its annual report to the President, who is then duty-bound to cause it to be laid before each House of Parliament.
