Consider the following statements : 1. According to the Constitution of India, the Central Government has a duty to protect States from internal disturbances. 2. The Constitution of India exempts the States from providing legal counsel to a person being held for preventive detention. 3. According to the Prevention of Terrorism Act, 2002, confession of the accused before the police cannot be used as evidence. How many of the above statements are correct?
A
Only one
B
Only two
Correct answer
C
All three
D
None
Explanation
Statement 1 is correct: Article 355 makes it the Union's duty to protect every State against external aggression and internal disturbance. Statement 2 is correct: Article 22(3)(b) excludes persons held under preventive detention from the rights in Article 22(1) and (2), including the right to consult and be defended by a lawyer of their choice. Statement 3 is wrong: Section 32 of the Prevention of Terrorism Act, 2002 made a confession recorded by a police officer of Superintendent rank or above admissible as evidence, a departure from ordinary criminal law. So two statements are correct.
Centre-State Relations & Criminal LawInternal disturbances, preventive detention, anti-terrorism lawsConstitution of IndiaCentral Governmentduty to protect Statesinternal disturbanceslegal counselpreventive detentionPrevention of Terrorism Act 2002 (POTA)confessionpoliceevidence