Q1. [1] medium exam-ready
**Assertion (A):** The Indian Constitution gives the status of 'national language' to Hindi.
**Reason (R):** Hindi is the mother tongue of only about 40 per cent of Indians, so safeguards were provided for other languages.
((A)) Both A and R are true, and R is the correct explanation of A.
((B)) Both A and R are true, but R is NOT the correct explanation of A.
((C)) A is false but R is true.
((D)) Both A and R are false.
- A Both A and R are true, and R is the correct explanation of A.
- B Both A and R are true, but R is NOT the correct explanation of A.
- C A is false but R is true.
- D Both A and R are false.
Generated by claude-sonnet-4-6 · 2026-06-26 13:16 · grounding rag
Model Answer
(C) A is false but R is true.
The Constitution gave Hindi the status of official language, not 'national language'. No language was given the status of national language. The Reason is correct — Hindi is the mother tongue of only about 40% of Indians, hence safeguards were provided for other languages.
Explanation
- The Assertion is false: The Constitution explicitly did not give any language the status of 'national language'. Hindi was made the official language of the Union — a crucial distinction.
- The Reason is true: The textbook states "Hindi is the mother tongue of only about 40 per cent of Indians. Therefore, there were many safeguards to protect other languages" (22 Scheduled Languages).
- Since A is false but R is true, the answer is (C). Students often confuse 'official language' with 'national language' — avoid this error in board exams.