Ethics · 5 Aug 2026

Olga Tellis case Article 21

Consider the following statements:

  1. The Olga Tellis case tied the right to shelter and livelihood to the protection guaranteed under Article 21 of the Constitution.
  2. In the Nasirnagar demolition case, all five suspended officers, including the Municipal Commissioner, were disciplined equally by the state government.
  3. "Plausible deniability" refers to a senior official's ability to deny responsibility for a subordinate's actions typically because no written evidence connects them to the decision.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

A1 and 2 only
B2 and 3 only
C1 and 3 only
D1, 2 and 3
This question is based on: The Surat Demolition: Five Officers Suspended, One Commissioner Untouched
Take this in full test mode → Instructions for 5 Aug 2026
About this question

Why in news

The Gujarat High Court has criticised the state government for shielding Municipal Commissioner M Nagarajan from action even as five subordinate officers were suspended over the Nasirnagar slum demolition.

Why for UPSC

This tests whether aspirants can separate the article's core accountability grievance (unequal disciplinary treatment) from the correctly recalled legal and conceptual framework surrounding it - a layered GS4 case-study skill.

Prelims summary

The Olga Tellis case linked shelter and livelihood rights to Article 21; "plausible deniability" describes how undocumented verbal orders let senior officials evade accountability while subordinates face disproportionate consequence.

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