Target Exam

CUET

Subject

History

Chapter

Modern India: Framing the Constitution

Question:

Read the passage and answer the questions:

Constitution: Real Minorities are the Masses of this Country

Welcoming the Objectives Resolution introduced by Jawaharlal Nehru, N.G. Ranga said: Sir, there is a lot of talk about minorities. Who are the real minorities? Not the Hindus in the so-called Pakistan provinces, not the Sikhs, not even the Muslims. No, the real minorities are the masses of this country. These people are so depressed and oppressed and suppressed till now that they are not able to take advantage of the ordinary civil rights. What is the position? You go to the tribal areas. According to law, their own traditional law, their tribal law, their lands cannot be alienated. Yet our merchants go there, and in the so-called free market they are able to snatch their lands. Thus, even though the law goes against this snatching away of their lands, still the merchants are able to turn the tribal people into veritable slaves by various kinds of bonds, and make them hereditary bond- slaves. Let us go to the ordinary villagers. There goes the money-lender with his money and he is able to get the villagers in his pocket. There is the landlord himself, the zamindar, and the malguzar and there are the various other people who are able to exploit these poor villagers. There is no elementary education even among these people. These are the real minorities that need protection and assurances of protection. In order to give them the necessary protection, we will need much more than this Resolution.

Why was the speaker not satisfied with the text of the resolution? Because:

Options:

It protects the rights of the caste minorities only

It is limited to urban areas only

It provides insufficient safety for the tribes from economic exploitation of non-state actors

It is for the religious minorities only

Correct Answer:

It provides insufficient safety for the tribes from economic exploitation of non-state actors

Explanation:

The correct answer is Option (3) → It provides insufficient safety for the tribes from economic exploitation of non-state actors

N.G. Ranga argued that the real minorities were not religious groups like Hindus, Sikhs, or Muslims, but the masses of poor, oppressed, and tribal people who faced exploitation from moneylenders, zamindars, and merchants. He pointed out that although laws existed to protect tribal lands, merchants still managed to exploit and enslave them economically.

Thus, he was dissatisfied because the Objectives Resolution did not give enough protection to these economically vulnerable groups, focusing instead on religious and caste minorities.