RAS question
Article 39A, which directs the State to provide free legal aid, was added by which Amendment?
Correct answer: (D) 42nd Amendment, 1976.
Article 39A, which directs the State to secure equal justice and provide free legal aid, was inserted by the Constitution (Forty-second Amendment) Act, 1976.
Explanation
Article 39A was added through the Constitution (Forty-second Amendment) Act, 1976. The official Act states that, after Article 39, a new Article 39A was to be inserted under the heading "Equal justice and free legal aid". Its purpose is to make the legal system promote justice on the basis of equal opportunity. It also directs the State to provide free legal aid through suitable legislation, schemes, or other means, so that a citizen is not denied the opportunity to secure justice because of economic or other disabilities. NALSA was later established in 1987 to give practical effect to this constitutional direction.
Why the other options are wrong
- (A) The official Act text identifies the 1976 Forty-second Amendment as the instrument that inserted Article 39A, so the 86th Amendment, 2002 does not match the source.
- (B) Article 39A cannot be tied to the 1st Amendment, 1951 because the cited Act expressly inserts it through the Constitution (Forty-second Amendment) Act, 1976.
- (C) The 44th Amendment, 1978 is ruled out because the official text places the insertion of Article 39A in the 1976 Forty-second Amendment Act.
Concept
This tests Directive Principles of State Policy, especially how equal justice and legal aid were constitutionalised. It recurs in RAS because amendments, DPSPs, and access-to-justice provisions are standard Constitution-and-governance themes.