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.
What protection is given to the tribes by law?
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 1
The correct answer is Option (1) → Tribal lands cannot be purchased by outsiders on any pretext
“According to law, their own traditional law, their tribal law, their lands cannot be alienated.” Land that cannot be alienated cannot be sold or transferred away from the tribe, so outsiders cannot buy it.
Option (1) Tribal lands cannot be purchased by outsiders on any pretext — Correct. This is the protection the tribal law gives.
Option (2) Tribal laws does not operate for outsiders in jungles — Incorrect. Ranga says nothing of this kind. The tribal law he cites protects the tribal people’s land; it is not a rule exempting outsiders.
Option (3) Merchants can snatch tribal lands in tribal areas — Incorrect. Merchants do snatch the lands, but against the law (“the law goes against this snatching away”). It is the exploitation, not a protection.
Option (4) There is no law on veritable slavery by various kinds of bonds — Incorrect. The bonds that make tribal people “veritable slaves” are the merchants’ doing; a statement that some law is missing gives the tribes no protection.
NCERT: Themes in Indian History Part III — Chapter 12: Framing the Constitution (2026-27)
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