Consider the following statements: 1) The Executive Power of the union of India is vested in the Prime Minister. 2) The Prime Minister is the ex officio Chairman of the Civil Services Board. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

Both statements are wrong, so D is correct. Statement 1 fails on Article 53: the executive power of the Union is vested in the President, who exercises it directly or through officers subordinate to him. The Prime Minister heads the Council of Ministers under Article 74, which aids and advises the President. The PM's power is real but derivative, not a constitutional vesting.

• Statement 2 is wrong. The Prime Minister does not chair any Civil Services Board. Postings of IAS officers at the state level are handled by a Civil Services Board chaired by the Chief Secretary. At the Centre, senior appointments go to the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet, which the PM heads, but that is a different body and not a CSB.

Core concept: the formal vesting of executive power in the President versus its actual exercise by the Council of Ministers led by the PM. This links to Mains GS2 on the parliamentary system and the Union-State structure.

Trap: aspirants see the PM and assume the PM holds executive power. The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet is also often confused with a Civil Services Board.