Answer: C

Explanation:

Statement 1 is incorrect: The Collegium system has no statutory or constitutional basis in the original text of the Constitution or via any parliamentary statute. It is an innovation evolved through a series of Supreme Court judgments (known as the Judges Cases—specifically the Second Judges Case, 1993, and Third Judges Case, 1998). An attempt to give it a statutory status through the 99th Constitutional Amendment Act and the National Judicial Appointments Commission (NJAC) Act was struck down by the Supreme Court in 2015 as unconstitutional and violative of the basic structure.

Statement 2 is correct: The Supreme Court Collegium is indeed a five-member body comprising the incumbent Chief Justice of India (CJI) as its head and the four senior-most puisne judges of the Supreme Court.

Statement 3 is correct: According to the legal precedents established by the Supreme Court, if the Collegium resubmits/reiterates a recommended name unanimously to the government/President after it is sent back for reconsideration, the executive is bound to make the appointment.

Answer: A

Explanation:

Statement 1 is correct: Under Article 124(3) of the Constitution of India, a person must be a citizen of India and fulfill at least one of the three criteria: (i) have been for at least 5 years a Judge of a High Court or of two or more such Courts in succession; or (ii) have been for at least 10 years an advocate of a High Court or of two or more such Courts in succession; or (iii) be a distinguished jurist in the opinion of the President.

Statement 2 is correct: The Supreme Court Collegium's resolution recommended Justice Sunita Agarwal (Chief Justice of Gujarat HC), Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya (Chief Justice of Delhi HC), and Justice Aparesh Kumar Singh (Chief Justice of Telangana HC) for elevation to the apex court.

Statement 3 is incorrect: The Constitution of India does not prescribe any minimum age limit for appointment as a judge of the Supreme Court (though there is a retirement age of 65 years stipulated under Article 124(2)).

Answer: A

Explanation:

Statement 1 is correct: Released by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), PRAHAAR serves as India’s comprehensive national counter-terrorism policy and strategy framework, emphasizing a unified whole-of-government and whole-of-society approach.

Statement 2 is correct: The framework explicitly outlines seven key pillars, which formally elevate and integrate Human Rights & Rule of Law, alongside Prevention, Response, Aggregating Internal Capacities, Attenuating Conditions, Aligning International Efforts, and Recovery & Resilience.

Statement 3 is incorrect: Recent policy reviews and conferences emphasize decentralizing and ensuring the implementation of PRAHAAR down to the police-station level, positioning local police as crucial front-line actors rather than excluding them.

Answer: A

Explanation:

Statement 1 is correct: With the enactment of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023, which replaced the colonial-era Indian Penal Code (IPC), terrorism has been explicitly defined and penalized under Section 113 for the very first time in India's primary general criminal code.

Statement 2 is correct: Under Section 113 of the BNS, 2023, a terrorist act encompasses any violent, destructive, or coercive act intended to threaten India's unity, integrity, sovereignty, security, or economic security (stability), or to strike terror using firearms, explosives, or hazardous substances.

Statement 3 is incorrect: Terrorism and insurgency are distinct concepts. An insurgency generally involves an organized armed challenge to state authority with explicit political or territorial control objectives. In contrast, terrorism primarily relies on systematic violence, intimidation, and coercion targeting civilians or infrastructure to create widespread fear and achieve ideological, political, or religious goals, without necessarily seeking direct territorial governance like an insurgent movement.

Answer: B

Explanation:

Statement 1 is correct: The UN Convention against Cybercrime is recognized as the first universal legally binding framework dedicated entirely to combating cyber-dependent and cyber-enabled crimes. It was adopted by the UN General Assembly on 24 December 2024 through Resolution 79/243.

Statement 2 is incorrect: The treaty has not yet entered into force. According to its provisions, it requires ratification, acceptance, approval, or accession by at least 40 member states. It will formally enter into force 90 days after the 40th instrument of ratification is deposited with the UN Secretary-General.

Statement 3 is correct: The operational framework and secretariat support for implementing and facilitating international cooperation under this convention are managed by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC).

Answer: B

Explanation:

Statement 1 is incorrect: External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar signed the convention on 25 September 2026 at the UN Headquarters. By signing, India is currently a signatory and not yet a fully ratified "State Party". Ratification requires separate internal legislative/executive procedures and formal deposition of the ratification instrument.

Statement 2 is correct: A core pillar of the convention is streamlining cross-border law enforcement. It builds mechanisms for sharing electronic evidence for serious ICT crimes and sets up a continuous 24/7 network to boost international cooperation against rapid digital threats.