Previous Year Question
Under the Constitution of India which of the following is NOT a Fundamental Duty?
To vote in General Election
To develop the scientific temper
To safeguard public property
To abide by the Constitution and respect its ideas
Correct Answer: A
Detailed Solution
Article 51A in Part IVA of the Constitution lists the Fundamental Duties of citizens. Voting in a General Election is not included in this list as a Fundamental Duty.
Option (b) is a Fundamental Duty. Under Article 51A(h), every citizen has the duty to develop scientific temper, humanism and the spirit of inquiry and reform.
Option (c) is also a Fundamental Duty. Article 51A(i) requires citizens to safeguard public property and abjure violence.
Option (d) is also a Fundamental Duty. Under Article 51A(a), citizens must abide by the Constitution and respect its ideals and institutions, the National Flag and the National Anthem.
Fundamental Duties were not part of the original Constitution. They were inserted as Part IVA and Article 51A by the 42nd Constitutional Amendment Act, 1976. An additional, eleventh duty concerning parents or guardians was later inserted by the 86th Constitutional Amendment Act, 2002.
Voting is nevertheless a central feature of India's democratic system, with Article 326 providing the constitutional basis for adult suffrage, but voting itself is not listed as a Fundamental Duty under Article 51A.