Consider the following statements:
1. The Parliament (Prevention of Disqualification) Act, 1959 exempts several posts from disqualification on the grounds of ‘Office of Profit’.
2. The above-mentioned Act was amended five times.
3. The term ‘Office of Profit’ is well-defined in the Constitution of India.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
Explanation
Statement 1 is correct: Enacted under Article 102(1)(a), the Parliament (Prevention of Disqualification) Act, 1959 explicitly exempts designated executive offices, statutory positions, consultative committees, and advisory bodies from disqualifying their holders from being Members of Parliament.
Statement 2 is correct: The Parliament (Prevention of Disqualification) Act, 1959 has been amended five times (in 1993, 1999, 2006, 2013, and earlier in 1960) to expand the list of exempt positions.
Statement 3 is incorrect: The expression ’Office of Profit’ is not defined anywhere in the Constitution of India or in the Representation of the People Act, 1951. Its meaning and tests have been evolved jurisprudentially through judgments of the Supreme Court (e.g., the Pradyut Bordoloi and Jaya Bachchan cases).
Therefore, statements 1 and 2 are correct — Option A.