Question 1

During President's Rule, state laws are directly made by the President via executive order or ordinance by default.

Accepted Answer

Under Article 356 and 357, the legislative power of the State Assembly is transferred to the Union Parliament, not the President. The President only issues ordinances for the state when Parliament is not in session (as seen in the Oct 7 Ordinance), which must later be replaced by an Act of Parliament.

Question 2

State taxation bills passed by Parliament for a state under President's Rule are treated as ordinary bills requiring passage by both houses.

Accepted Answer

The Rajya Sabha merely 'returned' the Manipur GST Bill to the Lok Sabha, indicating it was processed as a Money Bill. Under Article 109, Money Bills are exclusively voted on by the lower house.

Question 3

Consider the following statements regarding the enactment of the Manipur Goods and Services Tax (Second Amendment) Act, 2025:
1. The Act was passed by the Union Parliament exercising powers under Article 357 of the Constitution.
2. The Act mandates that the SGST revenue collected during President's Rule shall be permanently credited to the Consolidated Fund of India.
3. The Act introduced Section 148A, enabling a 'track-and-trace' unique identification marking system for specific goods.
How many of the statements given above are correct?

Accepted Answer

(b) Only two — Statement 1 is correct: Under Article 356, the President declares that state legislative powers are exercisable by Parliament. Article 357 explicitly provides for Parliament to exercise these powers. Statement 2 is incorrect: Even when Parliament legislates for a state under President's Rule, the SGST collected remains state revenue and accrues to the state's consolidated fund (administered by the Union during the rule, but not permanently absorbed into the CFI). Statement 3 is correct: The Act introduces Section 148A for a track-and-trace mechanism to curb tax evasion. Thus, exactly two statements are correct.

Question 4

Match the newly introduced/amended sections of the Manipur GST (Second Amendment) Act, 2025 (List I) with their respective provisions (List II):

List I
A. Section 74A
B. Section 107
C. Section 122B
D. Section 148A

List II
1. Imposes a 10% pre-deposit for appeals against penalty-only orders
2. Penalizes non-compliance with the track-and-trace mechanism
3. Mandates unique identification marking on specified goods
4. Sets a 42-month timeline for determining unpaid tax and wrongfully availed ITC

Accepted Answer

(a) A-4, B-1, C-2, D-3 — Section 74A deals with the common timeline (42 months) for issuing notices for tax shortfalls (A-4). Section 107 was amended to require a 10% pre-deposit for penalty-only appeals (B-1). Section 122B introduces a specific penalty (₹1 lakh or 10% of tax) for non-compliance with the track-and-trace mechanism (C-2). Section 148A introduces the track-and-trace mechanism itself (D-3). Therefore, (a) is the correct match.

Question 5

Assertion (A): The Rajya Sabha did not formally pass the Manipur GST (Second Amendment) Bill, 2025, but merely returned it to the Lok Sabha.
Reason (R): Under Article 356, the Rajya Sabha loses all its legislative powers regarding a state, and only the Lok Sabha can legislate on matters enumerated in the State List.
Select the correct answer from the codes given below:

Accepted Answer

(c) A is true, but R is false — Assertion (A) is true: The Rajya Sabha returned the Bill to the Lok Sabha on December 2, 2025, because taxation bills (like the GST amendment) are treated as Money Bills. Reason (R) is false: Under Article 356, the legislative power of the State is exercised by Parliament as a whole (both Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha), not just the Lok Sabha. The Rajya Sabha returned this specific bill because it was categorized as a Money Bill (which the RS can only return with or without recommendations within 14 days under Article 109), not because it is stripped of all legislative powers over a state during President's Rule. For ordinary state bills, the Rajya Sabha retains full voting power.

Parliament Passes Manipur GST Amendment Act 2025

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