Question:medium

Affirmative action connotes:
I. Measures taken by the state to help the socially disadvantaged groups
II. Positive discrimination
III. Strict quotas for the socially and educationally backward class in school/college admissions and jobs.
Which of the above mentioned is true?

Show Hint

Two statements define the idea, one confuses a single tool with the whole concept. Ask whether affirmative action means only strict quotas or a wider range of measures.
Updated On: Jul 17, 2026
  • I and II only
  • II only
  • I, II and III
  • II and III only
Show Solution

The Correct Option is C

Solution and Explanation

Treat this as a definition question with one deliberately overstated item. Two of the three statements describe affirmative action as it is generally understood. The third mistakes a single instrument for the whole idea.

  1. I and II only: Correct.
  2. II only: Wrong. It throws out statement I, which is the textbook definition.
  3. I, II and III: Wrong. It swallows statement III whole.
  4. II and III only: Wrong on both counts, discarding a true statement and keeping a flawed one.

Statement I is the definition itself. Affirmative action is what the State does to raise groups that centuries of exclusion held down. The constitutional hooks are Articles 15(4), 15(5) and 16(4), which permit special provision and reservation for backward classes and for the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes.

Statement II is a synonym. Positive discrimination is the same policy under a different name, common in British usage. The label captures the paradox at its centre: formal equality would treat everyone alike, but treating unequals alike freezes the inequality in place, so the State discriminates deliberately in favour of those behind.

Statement III is the odd one out. Quotas are one method, not the definition, and the word "strict" pushes it further from the truth. Affirmative action in India also runs through scholarships, fee concessions, hostel facilities, relaxation in age and qualifying marks, free coaching and special training. Reservation is the loudest instrument, not the only one. Indian doctrine also refuses to make quotas strict. Indra Sawhney v. Union of India capped reservations at about fifty per cent in ordinary circumstances and excluded the creamy layer from the benefit, which is the opposite of a rigid quota rule.

Let's summarize:

  • I is true: it defines affirmative action.
  • II is true: positive discrimination is another name for it.
  • III is not true: quotas are a tool, and "strict" quotas are not the law.

So the answer is option (A), I and II only.

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