RAS question
Under Article 352, a National Emergency can be proclaimed on the grounds of:
Correct answer: (B) War, external aggression, or armed rebellion.
Under Article 352 of the Constitution of India, a National Emergency may be proclaimed when India’s security, or the security of any part of its territory, is threatened by war, external aggression, or armed rebellion.
Explanation
Article 352 sits in Part XVIII on Emergency Provisions and authorises a Proclamation of Emergency when the President is satisfied that a grave emergency exists threatening the security of India or any part of its territory. The live constitutional grounds are war, external aggression, and armed rebellion. The official text also notes that “armed rebellion” was substituted for the earlier phrase “internal disturbance” by the Constitution (Forty-fourth Amendment) Act, 1978, with effect from 20 June 1979. That substitution is the key exam point: after the 44th Amendment, a vague internal disturbance is not enough for a National Emergency under Article 352. The change is understood in the standard explanation as a safeguard after the misuse associated with the 1975 Emergency.
Why the other options are wrong
- (A) War and external aggression are valid grounds, but the option wrongly omits armed rebellion, which Article 352 expressly includes after the 44th Amendment.
- (C) Internal disturbance was the earlier wording; the official constitutional text records that the 44th Amendment substituted armed rebellion for that phrase.
- (D) Article 352 mentions war, external aggression, and armed rebellion, not economic crisis or natural disaster, as grounds for a National Emergency.
Concept
This tests the Emergency Provisions in Part XVIII, especially the post-44th Amendment wording of Article 352. It recurs in RAS because emergency powers link constitutional text, amendment history, and safeguards against misuse.