What is the 77th amendment Act?

Asked by: Wyman Donnelly  |  Last update: April 8, 2026
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The 77th Amendment Act of the Indian Constitution (1995) allowed for continued reservation in promotions for Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs) in government jobs, adding Article 16(4A) to overcome a Supreme Court ruling (Indra Sawhney case) that limited reservations to initial appointments, ensuring their representation in higher services. It affirmed the state's power to implement affirmative action for these groups in promotions if they are underrepresented.

What is the 77th Constitutional Amendment Act?

The 77th Constitution amendment was made to protect reservation to SC/ST Employees in promotions by inserting a new clause (4A) in Article 16. The 81st Constitution amendment was made by inserting Article 16 (4B) to treat backlog vacancies as a separate class.

What is the Seventh Amendment in simple terms?

The 7th Amendment guarantees the right to a jury trial in certain federal civil cases (lawsuits between people/businesses, not criminal) where the dispute is over a certain value (originally $20), and stops judges from overturning a jury's factual decisions in those cases, preserving this common law right. It ensures that in federal civil matters, ordinary citizens get to decide the facts of the case, preventing the government from taking that right away. 

Is Amendment 7 still 20 dollars?

Yes, the Seventh Amendment's "$20" threshold for federal civil jury trials technically still exists in the Constitution, but it's functionally ignored due to inflation, meaning it doesn't really apply to modern cases; it applies to federal civil cases, not state ones, and the real minimum for federal court jurisdiction is now much higher (often $75,000). The $20 back in 1791 was significant, but today it's tiny, so courts focus on larger disputes, effectively making the $20 clause obsolete in practice, though it hasn't been formally removed. 

Why is part 7 removed?

Part VII of the Indian Constitution was repealed by the Seventh Amendment Act of 1956 because it dealt with Part B States (former princely states) that became redundant after India reorganized its states on a linguistic basis, making the old classification of Part A, B, C states obsolete and establishing the modern system of States and Union Territories, as explained in sources like IAS Origin and Testbook.
 

The 77th Constitutional Amendment Act, 1995 | Polity Primer | Drishti IAS English

28 related questions found

What is article number 7?

Article 7 of Indian Constitution deals with the complex migration issues that followed Partition . It aims to set clear criteria for determining who retains Indian citizenship . Key Provisions: No Citizenship: Post-March 1 migrants to Pakistan are not Indian citizens.

Is part 7 of the constitution deleted?

The Seventh part of the Indian Constitution is known as “The States in Part B of the First Schedule”. It has only one article – that is, Article 238. It was repealed by the Constitution (Seventh Amendment) Act, 1956.

Is the 25th Amendment real?

Amdt25. 1 Overview of Twenty-Fifth Amendment, Presidential Vacancy and Disability. Section 1: In case of the removal of the President from office or of his death or resignation, the Vice President shall become President.

Is there a 27th amendment?

Amendment Twenty-seven to the Constitution was ratified on May 7, 1992. It forbids any changes to the salary of Congress members from taking effect until the next election concludes.

Has the US ever gotten rid of an amendment?

But Prohibition failed after 14 years, and in 1933, the 21st Amendment repealed the 18th. This is the only instance of the successful repeal of an amendment. Five years after the end of Prohibition, some people could not let it go.

What is the Sixth Amendment?

The Sixth Amendment guarantees the rights of criminal defendants, including the right to a public trial without unnecessary delay, the right to a lawyer, the right to an impartial jury, and the right to know who your accusers are and the nature of the charges and evidence against you.

What happens if the Sixth Amendment is violated?

In Strunk v. United States, 412 U.S. 434 (1973), the Supreme Court ruled that if the reviewing court finds that a defendant's right to a speedy trial was violated, then the indictment must be dismissed and any conviction overturned.

Why did the founding fathers add the 7th Amendment?

In spite of the relatively few court trials that involve a jury, the Seventh Amendment was crafted with the purpose of protecting the right to have one, not just for the parties involved, but also for the jury's purpose in protecting the legal rights of the citizen.

What does Article 77 deal with?

Article 77 of the Constitution of India deals with the Conduct of business of the Government of India. It mentions the following provisions: All executive action of the Government of India shall be expressed to be taken in the name of the President.

What is the 81st amendment Act?

81st amendment states that the number of vacancies to be filled up on the basis of reservations in a year including carried forward reservations should not exceed the limit of fifty percent. 101st amendment introduced a national Goods and Services Tax (GST).

What is the 55 amendment?

Amendment: Chapter 5, Part J is amended in the title of the Part by deleting "PERTAINING TO CERTAIN EMPLOYMENT" immediately following "DISABILITY". Reason for Amendment: The purpose of this amendment is to eliminate the possible inference that this part covers only employment for compensation.

Who can remove the President from office?

The Constitution gives Congress the power to impeach federal officials. An official can be impeached for treason, bribery, and “other high crimes and misdemeanors.” The House of Representatives brings articles (charges) of impeachment against an official. Learn more about the House's role in impeachment.

Did the founding fathers put God in the Constitution?

No, the Founding Fathers did not put God in the U.S. Constitution; the document is notably silent on God and religion, a deliberate choice reflecting a consensus on separating church and state, though the Declaration of Independence did mention a Creator and the Articles of Confederation used "Great Governor of the World," while the Constitution includes a "Year of our Lord" in its date and bars religious tests for office in Article VI and the First Amendment protects religious freedom.
 

What are the two rejected amendments?

The two rejected amendments from the original 1789 proposal, which became the Bill of Rights, were the Congressional Apportionment Amendment (setting a formula for House size) and the Congressional Pay Amendment (requiring intervening elections for pay raises). While the first remains unratified, the second eventually passed in 1992 as the 27th Amendment.
 

Who can declare the president incompetent?

The Vice President and a majority of the Cabinet (or another body Congress designates) can declare a President incompetent under Section 4 of the 25th Amendment, immediately making the VP acting President, but Congress can overrule this with a two-thirds vote of both Houses if the President contests it. This process, designed for involuntary removal of power, has never been fully invoked, though Section 3 (voluntary transfer) has been used for temporary incapacitation, like during surgery. 

Which president did not use the Bible to take the oath of office?

Several U.S. Presidents did not use a Bible for their oath, including John Quincy Adams (used a law book), Theodore Roosevelt (used no book at his first swearing-in), and Lyndon B. Johnson (used a Catholic missal), with Calvin Coolidge also noting he didn't use one, adhering to Vermont tradition. The Constitution doesn't require a Bible, allowing for these variations, often signifying a belief in secularism or responding to unique circumstances. 

Can a president remove a vice president?

The Constitution of the United States gives Congress the authority to remove the vice president of the United States from office in two separate proceedings. The first one takes place in the House of Representatives, which impeaches the vice president by approving articles of impeachment through a simple majority vote.

Can the president remove things from the Constitution?

But the president cannot repeal part of the Constitution by executive order. And Congress cannot repeal it by simply passing a new bill. Amending the Constitution would require a two-thirds vote in both the House and Senate, and also ratification by three-quarters of the states.

Which state has been removed?

Change of status of Jammu and Kashmir

On 5 August 2019, the Home Minister Amit Shah introduced the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Bill, 2019 in the Rajya Sabha to convert Jammu and Kashmir's status of a state to two separate union territories, namely Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir and Union Territory of Ladakh.

Why is the Article 7 important?

The Article imposed a strict supermajority rule of nine of the thirteen states for ratification. This requirement was important, because there are strong reasons to believe that strict supermajority rules for a constitution's enactment and amendment are likely to produce a desirable constitution.