PYQ Vault · Paper 1 · Statutory & Constitutional Bodies
Examine the role and functioning of the election commission of India and the comptroller and Auditor General in last two decades.
How the answer moves
The flow snapshot — the routes in, the body, the counter-view and the routes out.
Flow snapshot — how the answer moves
Intro routes
R1 two constitutional guardians, Art 324 / Arts 148-151 → one guards the vote, the other guards funds R2 last two decades = institutional deepening + rising partisan Strain → stake both at once
Body flow
ECI modernisation (EVM nationwide 2004 → EPIC, VVPAT, NOTA 2014, SVEEP, expenditure monitoring) → malpractice cut, trust raised → deSouza → but functioning still contested (Model Code, money power, criminalisation) → appointment crisis, Anoop Baranwal 2023 → Ambedkar's "thumb of the Executive" → CAG shifts accounting → performance audit → 2G / coal / CWG, Vinod Rai → accountability widened → Durga Das Basu: post- facto, watchdog not comptroller → non-binding findings, PPP gaps, policy-paralysis charge
Counter-view
the very assertiveness that deepened accountability also invited the charge of overreach/paralysis → both ultimately rest on perceived neutrality
Conclusion routes
R1 deepened in capacity, vulnerable in autonomy → credibility hinges on neutrality R2 their reports and decisions matter only with serious legislative follow-up
Model answer
Handwritten, in the form it would be written in the examination hall.
