Glossary
45 terms that come up again and again in Indian polity, each in one or two plain sentences, with links to the notes that explain them properly.
- Article 19
- Guarantees freedoms including speech and expression, peaceful assembly and association, subject to reasonable restrictions on listed grounds. Read: Note 036, Note 051, Note 061
- Article 21
- Protects life and personal liberty. Courts have read privacy, a clean environment and the right to water into it. Read: Note 037, Note 066
- Article 324
- Vests superintendence, direction and control of elections in the Election Commission. Read: Note 007, Note 011, Note 013
- Article 324(5)
- Protects the Chief Election Commissioner from removal except in the manner of a Supreme Court judge: proved misbehaviour or incapacity and a special majority in both Houses. Read: Note 018, Note 017
- Article 356
- Allows President's Rule in a state when its government cannot be carried on in line with the Constitution, often after a Governor's report. Read: Note 006
- Article 368
- Sets out how Parliament amends the Constitution, by special majority and, for some federal changes, state ratification. Read: Note 004
- Article 74
- Says the President acts on the advice of the Council of Ministers headed by the Prime Minister; advice is binding after one request to reconsider. Read: Note 005, Note 090
- Basic structure doctrine
- The rule from Kesavananda Bharati (1973) that Parliament cannot use its amending power to destroy the Constitution's essential features. Read: Note 004, Note 033, Note 002
- BRICS
- A grouping that began with Brazil, Russia, India and China, added South Africa in 2010 and expanded from 2024; India chairs it in 2026. Read: Note 085
- CBDR-RC
- Common But Differentiated Responsibilities and Respective Capabilities: the climate principle that all countries share responsibility, but richer, high-emitting countries should do more. Read: Note 089
- Chief of Defence Staff
- The post created in 2019 to head the Department of Military Affairs and advise the Defence Minister. It does not command the Service Chiefs. Read: Note 090
- Coalition government
- A government formed by two or more parties when no single party has a majority of 272 Lok Sabha seats. Read: Note 042
- Collegium
- The judge-led system for appointing and transferring higher court judges, built up through Supreme Court judgments. Read: Note 032, Note 031
- Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG)
- The constitutional auditor of public accounts, which reports to Parliament and state legislatures. Read: Note 008
- Delimitation
- Redrawing constituency boundaries so each representative serves a roughly equal population; seat allocation between states has been frozen on 1971 figures. Read: Note 028
- Directive Principles
- Part IV goals that guide the state towards welfare and social justice. Courts cannot enforce them directly. Read: Note 003, Note 071
- ECINET
- The Election Commission's single digital portal that merged over 40 earlier apps for registration, roll search, e-EPIC and grievances. Read: Note 016
- Electoral bonds
- Instruments that allowed anonymous political donations from 2018 until the Supreme Court struck the scheme down in 2024. Read: Note 046
- FCRA
- The Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act, which governs how organisations accept and use foreign donations. Read: Note 068
- Finance Commission
- A body set up every five years under Article 280 to recommend how tax revenue is shared between the Centre and states. Read: Note 026, Note 077
- Form 6, 7 and 8
- Voter registration forms: Form 6 to enrol, Form 7 to object to or delete an entry, and Form 8 to correct or shift an entry. Read: Note 012, Note 015, Note 019, Note 096
- Fundamental Rights
- The rights in Part III of the Constitution that people can enforce in court. Read: Note 001, Note 003
- Gram Sabha
- The assembly of all adult voters in a panchayat area, under Article 243(b). Read: Note 099, Note 067, Note 009
- GST Council
- The body under Article 279A, chaired by the Union Finance Minister with state finance ministers, that recommends GST rates and rules. Read: Note 026, Note 077
- Judicial review
- The power of courts to test laws and government action against the Constitution. Read: Note 033
- Leader of the Opposition
- A statutory post (1977) for the leader of the largest opposition party, conventionally recognised when it holds 10% of seats. Read: Note 024
- Lok Adalat
- A people's court that settles disputes by agreement, part of the legal aid system led by NALSA. Read: Note 039
- MGNREGA
- The 2005 rural jobs law that let households demand up to 100 days of paid work a year; replaced from July 2026 by VB–G RAM G. Read: Note 072
- Minimum Support Price (MSP)
- A price floor announced by the government for major crops, on the advice of the Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices. Read: Note 079, Note 062
- Model Code of Conduct
- Election Commission guidelines for parties and governments during election periods. Read: Note 007, Note 030
- Money Bill
- A bill dealing only with taxes or spending; the Lok Sabha has the final say on it. Read: Note 021, Note 023
- NFSA
- The National Food Security Act, 2013, which makes subsidised grain a legal entitlement for up to 75% of rural and 50% of urban people. Read: Note 073
- OCI
- Overseas Citizenship of India: lifelong visa-free travel and most economic rights for people of Indian origin, but no vote or constitutional office. Read: Note 087
- One Nation, One Election
- The proposal to hold Lok Sabha and state assembly elections together, as India did until 1967. Read: Note 030, Note 050
- PESA
- The Panchayats (Extension to Scheduled Areas) Act, 1996, which gives gram sabhas in Scheduled Areas a role in decisions affecting them. Read: Note 067
- Public Interest Litigation (PIL)
- A case filed in the public interest, often on behalf of people who cannot reach court themselves. Read: Note 034
- Purna Swaraj
- Complete independence: the goal adopted by the Congress at Lahore in December 1929, marked by a public pledge on 26 January 1930. Read: Lahore, 1929
- Quad
- The Quadrilateral Security Dialogue of Australia, India, Japan and the United States, focused on the Indo-Pacific. Read: Note 085
- Question Hour
- The first hour of a parliamentary sitting, when members question ministers. Read: Note 022
- Right to Information (RTI)
- The 2005 law that lets citizens request information from public authorities. Read: Note 070, Note 099
- SIR (Special Intensive Revision)
- A door-to-door re-verification of electoral rolls ending in a draft roll, claims and objections, and a final roll. Read: Note 013, Note 014, Note 015
- Strategic autonomy
- India's aim to decide foreign policy by its own interests without joining a binding alliance; now often called multi-alignment. Read: Note 081, Note 085
- TRP
- Television Rating Points: estimates of viewing from a sample of metered homes that drive TV advertising. Read: Note 052
- Undertrial
- A person held in custody who has been accused but not convicted. Read: Note 035
- Zero Hour
- The time after Question Hour when members raise urgent matters without prior notice. Read: Note 022