Consider the following statements: 1) The Consititution of India defines its ‘basic structure’ in terms of federalism, secularism, fundamental rights and democracy. 2) The Constitution of India provides for ‘judical review to safeguard the citizens’ liberties and to preserve the ideals on which the Constitution is based. Which of the Statement given above is/are correct?

The correct answer is B (2 only).

Statement 1 is wrong. The Constitution never defines the basic structure. The doctrine was evolved by the Supreme Court in Kesavananda Bharati (1973), which held that Parliament's amending power under Article 368 cannot alter the basic structure. The list the question gives (federalism, secularism, fundamental rights, democracy) is only illustrative. Courts have added to it in later cases such as Indira Nehru Gandhi (1975), Minerva Mills (1980) and S.R. Bommai (1994). Since the list is judge-made and open-ended, it cannot be called a constitutional definition.

Statement 2 is correct. Judicial review is textually provided for in Articles 13, 32, 226 and 246. It protects individual liberties and keeps the Constitution's ideals intact. It is also itself treated as part of the basic structure.

Core concept: the balance between Parliament's amending power and the judiciary's power to strike down amendments. This is central to Polity and to Mains questions on parliamentary sovereignty versus judicial supremacy. The NJAC judgment (2015) is the recent example.

Trap: Treating the basic structure as a fixed, written list. Aspirants often pick C because both statements sound like constitutional principles, but the first confuses a judicial doctrine with constitutional text.