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(Paper) Previous Year Question Paper (BA LLB) - 2012

Section - I : English Comprehension

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Instructions (1 to 10): Read the given passage carefully and attempt the questions that follow.

The work which Gandhiji had taken up was not only regarding the achievement of political freedom but also the establishment of a new social order based on truth and non-violence, unity and peace, equality and universal brotherhood and maximum freedom for all. This unfinished part of his experiment was perhaps even more difficult to achieve than the achievement of political freedom. In the political struggle, the fight was against a foreign power and all one could do was either join it or wish it success and give it his/her moral support. In establishing a social order on this pattern, there was a strong possibility of a conflict arising between diverse groups and classes of our own people. Experience shows that man values his possessions even more than his life because in the former he sees the means for perpetuation and survival of his descendants even after his body is reduced to ashes. A new order cannot be established without radically changing the mind and attitude of men towards property and, at some stage or the other, the ‘haves’ have to yield place to the ‘have-nots’. We have seen, in our time, attempts to achieve a kind of egalitarian society and the picture of it after it was achieved. But this was done, by and large, through the use of physical force.

In the ultimate analysis it is difficult, if not impossible, to say that the instinct to possess has been rooted out or that it will not reappear in an even worse form under a different guise. It may even be that, like a gas kept confined within containers under great pressure, or water held back by a big dam, once the barrier breaks, the reaction will one day sweep back with a violence equal in extent and intensity to what was used to establish and maintain the outward egalitarian form. This enforced egalitarianism contains, in its bosom, the seed of its own destruction.

The root cause of class conflict is possessiveness or the acquisitive instinct. So long as the ideal that is to be achieved is one of securing the maximum material satisfaction, possessiveness is neither suppressed nor eliminated but grows on what it feeds. Nor does it cease to be possessiveness, whether it is confined to only a few or is shared by many.

If egalitarianism is to endure, it has to be based not on the possession of the maximum material goods by a few or by all but on voluntary, enlightened renunciation of those goods which cannot be shared by others or can be enjoyed only at the expense of others. This calls for substitution of material values by purely spiritual ones. The paradise of material satisfaction, which is sometimes equated with progress these days, neither spells peace nor progress. Mahatma Gandhi has shown us how the acquisitive instinct inherent in man can be transmuted by the adoption of the ideal of trusteeship by those who ‘have’ for the benefit of all those who ‘have not’ so that, instead of leading to exploitation and conflict, it would become a means and incentive for the amelioration and progress of society respectively.

1. According to the passage, egalitarianism will not survive if

(A) It is based on voluntary renunciation
(B) It is achieved by resorting to physical force
(C) Underprivileged people are not involved in its establishment.
(D) People’s outlook towards it is not radically changed.

2. According to the passage, why does man value his possessions more than his life?

(A) He has inherent desire to share his possession with others.
(B) He is endowed with the possessive instinct.
(C) Only his possession helps him earn love and respect from his descendants.
(D) Through his possessions he can preserve his name even after his death.

3. According to the passage, which was the unfinished part of Gandhi’s experiment?

(A) Educating people to avoid class conflict.
(B) Achieving total political freedom for the country
(C) Establishment of an egalitarian society
(D) Radically changing the mind and attitude of men towards truth and nonviolence.

4. Which of the following statements is ‘not true’ in the context of the passage?

(A) True egalitarianism can be achieved by giving up one’s possessions under compulsion.
(B) Man values his life more than his possessions.
(C) Possessive instinct is a natural desire of human beings
(D) In the political struggle, the fight was against alien rule.

5. According to the passage, true egalitarianism will last only if

(A) It is thrust upon people.
(B) It is based on truth and non-violence.
(C) People inculcate spiritual values instead of material values.
(D) ‘Haves’ and ‘have-nots’ live together peacefully

6. According to the passage, people ultimately overturn a social order ——-

(A) which is based on coercion and oppression.
(B) which does not satisfy their basic needs
(C) which is based upon conciliation and rapprochement.
(D) which is not congenital to the spiritual values of the people

7. According to the passage, the root cause of class conflict is

(A) The paradise of material satisfaction.
(B) Dominant inherent acquisitive instinct in man.
(C) Exploitation of the ‘have-nots’ by the ‘haves’.
(D) A Social order where the unprivileged are not a part of the establishment.

8. Which of the following statements is ‘not true’ in the context of the passage?

(A) A new order can be established by radically changing the outlook of people towards it.
(B) Adoption of the ideal of trusteeship can minimize possessive instinct.
(C) Enforced egalitarianism can be the cause of its own destruction
(D) Ideal of new order is to secure maximum material satisfaction

9. Which of the following conclusions can be deduced from the passage?

(A) A social order based on truth and non-violence alone can help the achievement of political freedom.
(B) After establishing the social order of Gandhiji’s pattern, the possibility of a conflict between different classes of society will hardly exist.
(C) It is difficult to change the mind and attitude of men towards property.
(D) In an egalitarian society, material satisfaction can be enjoyed only at the expense of others.

10. According to the passage, what does “adoption of the ideal of trusteeship” mean?

(A) Equating peace and progress with material satisfaction.
(B) Adoption of the ideal by the ‘haves’ for the benefit of ‘have-nots’.
(C) Voluntary enlightened remuneration of the possessive instinct by the privileged class.
(D) Substitution of spiritual values by material ones by those who live in the paradise of material satisfaction.

Instructions (11 to 15): Choose the correct synonym out of the four choices given.

11. Lethargy

(A) Serenity
(B) listlessness
(C) impassivity
(D) laxity

12. Emaciated

(A) tall
(B) languid
(C) very thin
(D) wise

13. Latent

(A) concealed
(B) apparent
(C) lethargic
(D) prompt

14. Sporadic

(A) epidemic
(B) whirling
(C) occasional
(D) stagnant

15. Compendium

(A) summary
(B) index
(C) reference
(D) collection

Instructions (16 to 25): Choose the correct option out of the four choices given.

16. Give an example pertinent ______________ the case.

(A) with
(B) on
(C) for
(D) to

17. My voice reverberated _____________ the walls of the castle.

(A) with
(B) from
(C) in
(D) on

18. The reward was not commensurate _________ the work done by us.

(A) for
(B) on
(C) with
(D) order

19. Our tragic experience in the recent past provides an index _______ the state of lawlessness in this region.

(A) of
(B) in
(C) at
(D) by

20. Your conduct smacks ___________recklessness.

(A) of
(B) with
(C) from
(D) in

21. A good judge never gropes ____________the conclusion.

(A) to
(B) at
(C) on
(D) for

22. Nobody in our group is a genius _________winning friends and in convincing people.

(A) for
(B) in
(C) of
(D) at

23. If you are averse _________recommending my name, you should not hesitate to admit it.

(A) about
(B) for
(C) to
(D) against

24. Religious leaders should not delve ________ politics.

(A) in
(B) with
(C) at
(D) into

25. What you say has hardly any bearing ________ the lives of tribals.

(A) about
(B) for
(C) on
(D) with

  

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Instruction (26 to 30): Select the correct meaning of the italicized idioms and phrases out of the four choices given.

26. He burnt his fingers by interfering in his neighbor’s affair.

(A) got himself into trouble
(B) burnt himself
(C) got himself insulted
(D) got rebuked

27. Mr. Gupta, who is one of the trustees of a big charity, is suspected of feathering his own nest.

(A) being lazy in doing his work
(B) being too generous
(C) neglecting his job
(D) making money unfairly

28. Mrs. Hashmi has been in the blues for the last several weeks.

(A) abroad
(B) unwell
(C) depressed
(D) penniless

29. For the first week, the apprentice felt like a fish out of water.

(A) frustrated
(B) homeless
(C) disappointed
(D) uncomfortable

30. His friends failed to see why he should ride the high horse just because he had won an election.

(A) become abnormal
(B) appear arrogant
(C) indulge in dreams
(D) hate others

Instructions (31 to 35): Given below are the jumbled sentences of a paragraph. The first and the last sentence of the jumbled paragraph are given in correct order. Arrange the middle sentences in the correct sequence.

31.

i. On one hand we are proud of being Indians,
ii. on the other hand we behave as if we were still at the dawn of our civilization
iii. murders of our own brothers and sisters is not the way to please Ram or Rahim
iv. the citizens of the land where Buddha and Gandhi taught
v. the principles of love and non-violence,
vi. nor does it fetch us any prosperity.

(A) ii, iii, iv, v
(B) iii, iv, v, ii
(C) iv, v, iii, ii
(D) iv, v, ii, iii

32.

i. On the basis of experiments with rats
ii. health experts here say that
iii. exercise more and consume vitamins,
iv. they will live up to 100 years or more
v. if humans eat less,
vi. and be vigorous in their eighties and nineties.

(A) ii, iii, v, iv
(B) ii, v, iii, iv
(C) ii, v, iv, iii
(D) v, ii, iii, iv

33.

i. The release of atomic energy is the greatest achievement which science has yet attained
ii. but the first invention to which their discoveries were applied was a bomb
iii. the atom was split by physicists whose minds were set on the search for knowledge
iv. it was more deadly than any other weapon invented so far
v. it is with dread that scientists regard the first use to which their greatest discovery was put
vi. however, they are gratified by the numerous applications of atomic energy for peaceful and constructive population.

(A) ii, iii, iv, v
(B) v, iii, ii, iv
(C) iii, ii, iv, v
(D) iv, v, iii, ii

34.

i. The problem of food is intimately connected with population
ii. wages will seldom rise in proportion to the rising prices
iii. the market is governed by demand and supply
iv. without enough food, such people lack health, strength of efficiency
v. if too many people demand goods to go round, prices will rise and poor classes will starve
vi. they fall an easy prey to all sorts of diseases.

(A) iii, v, ii, iv
(B) ii, iii, iv, v
(C) iv, ii, v, iii
(D) v, iii, iv, ii

35.

i. India’s message has always been one of love and peace.
ii. our Buddha was the light of Asia
iii. it has been a source of light and wisdom to the rest of the world
iv. Ashoka, moved by the horrors of Kalinga War, adopted the message of nonviolence
v. the greatest apostle of non-violence in recent years was Mahatma Gandhi
vi. he shook the foundation of the British rule in India through non-violence.

(A) ii, v, iii, iv
(B) iv, ii, iii, v
(C) v, iv, iii, ii
(D) iii, ii, iv, v

Instructions (36 to 40): Given below are a few commonly used foreign language phrases, select the correct answer from the four options given below.

36. Mala fide

(A) generous
(B) bad intention
(C) trustworthy
(D) genuine

37. Tabula rasa

(A) clean slate
(B) agitated
(C) deprived
(D) creative

38. Carte blanche

(A) slavery
(B) complete discretion
(C) anarchy
(D) dependent

39. De jure

(A) illegal
(B) heir
(C) concerning law
(D) forbidden

40. Raison d’etre

(A) logical conclusion
(B) reason for existence
(C) free choice
(D) dubious argument

  

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