Important Questions Class 8 Social Science Social and Political Life Chapter 2

Important Questions Class 8 Social Science and Political Life Chapter 2

The focus on power (defined as the capacity of one political actor to persuade another actor to do what is desired) at the global, national, and local levels, sets the subject of political science apart from the other social sciences subjects. The second Chapter of Class 8 Social Science and Political Life is Understanding Secularism. The fundamental right of religious freedom is covered in great detail in this chapter of Civics for Class 8. Every citizen has the right to practise the religion they choose in a secular nation, and no majority can restrict this freedom. In addition, the chapter discusses the need for religious freedom and how the misuse of power can prevent individuals from following their religions. This chapter also covers India’s status as a secular nation. India may be characterised as a secular nation since members of a single religion do not dominate it and because the government cannot compel individuals to practise a particular faith. Chapter 2 Class 8 Social Science and Political Life Important Questions helps students grasp the chapter’s roots. Students can easily access all this and more on the Extramarks website.

The Social Science experts of Extramarks have developed Social Science and Political Life Class 8 Chapter 2 Important Questions using the NCERT Textbook, other reference books, past exam papers, and other sources. To assist students in understanding each chapter, our Social Science experts have compiled a list of step-by-step solutions. Students can register with Extramarks and access Class 8 Social Science and Political Life Chapter 2 Important Questions. 

In addition to Important Questions Class 8 Social Science Our Pasts 3 Chapter 7, students can easily access materials like NCERT Solutions, CBSE revision notes, past year question papers, NCERT books, and more on the Extramarks website.

Important Questions Class 8 Social Science and Political Life Chapter 2- with Solutions

Social Science experts at Extramarks have curated an entire list of Important Questions Class 8 Social Science and Political Life Chapter 2 from different sources. These questions and solutions help students better comprehend the chapter Understanding Secularism.

Question 1. Enlist some examples of different views within the same religion.

Answer 1. Here are some examples of differing views held by members of the same religion:

• Hindus worship a variety of God and Goddess idols.
• Muslims are divided between Sunni and Shia groups.
• There are two groups of Buddhist followers: Mahayana and Hinayana.

Question 2. Why is it necessary to keep religions and the State separate? Share your opinions.

Answer 2. Secularism is a major aspect of state power. A democratically managed nation ought to run smoothly. Numerous faiths practise their civilisations and are present in almost every nation on Earth. There will undoubtedly be a majority within each of these religious groupings. The dominant religious group may easily use its influence in the government to discriminate against and punish adherents of other religions. Religious minorities may experience discrimination, repression, and even death due to the persecution of the majority. The majority may easily deny minorities the freedom to practise their religion. Any religious dominance violates every person’s rights, regardless of faith, in a democratic society.

Question 3. List the different types of religious practice that you find in your neighbourhood. This could be different forms of prayer, worship of different gods, sacred sites, different kinds of religious music and singing etc. Does this indicate freedom of religious practice?

Answer 3. The following are the many forms of religious practises that we can observe in our neighbourhood:

• A Sikh offers Guru Nanak’s Guru Granth Sahib in a place of devotion.
• Muslims pray in mosques and use the Quran as their holy text.
• A Christian person worships Jesus Christ in a church and reads the Holy Bible for religious guidance.
• In a temple, a Hindu offers prayers to idols of different gods and goddesses.

This demonstrates how Indians are allowed to practise whichever religion they choose while coexisting peacefully and harmoniously.

Question 4. What motivated the Hindu Succession Act’s movement?

Answer 4. Only the family’s son was entitled to inherit his father’s property before the Hindu succession rules were implemented. The courts heard several complaints of prejudice against families because of their parents’ land purchases. To address gender disparity, the government introduced the Hindu Succession (Amendment) Act in 2005. Sikhs, Jains, Buddhists, and Hindus were among those who endured this. The law allowed for the creation of an inclusive, non-discriminatory succession and inheritance system.

Question 5. Look up the annual calendar of holidays of your school. How many of them pertain to different religions? What does this indicate?

Answer 5. Our school’s annual calendar includes holidays like the Muslim festival of Eid. Diwali, a Hindu festival, Christmas, a Christian holiday, and Guru Nanak Jayanti, a Sikh holiday, are all celebrated. This demonstrates that India is a secular nation and that everyone has the right to practise their religion freely.

Question 6. Why are government laws so frequently confusing?

Answer. India is a varied nation, with distinct beliefs and ideals in each area. To determine how much power and control it has over faiths and religious beliefs, the Indian Constitution must make some challenging choices. The Constitution, therefore, includes several values. In India, laws use a range of explanations to clarify ideas that citizens interpret in several ways. India’s legal system is required to act differently in particular situations. For instance, the State permits individuals to practise their religion freely; nevertheless, laws prohibit discrimination based on caste or creed.

Question 7. Will the government intervene if some religious group says their religion allows them to practise infanticide? Give reasons for your answer. 

Answer 7. The government can step in if a religious organisation claims its faith permits infanticide. This is so that everyone knows that the government has the power to step in if social peace is in danger under the Indian Constitution. Additionally, it is unlawful to kill a newborn, and only the legal system has the power to execute offenders. No member of another faith or individual is permitted to kill another person.

Question 8. The Indian State both keeps away from religion as well as intervenes in religion. This idea can be quite confusing. Discuss this again in class using examples from the chapter and those you might have come up with.

Answer 8. Both avoiding religion and interfering in it are official policies in India. If someone from the dominant religious group gains control of the government, they may use it as an excuse to discriminate against and target followers of other faiths. Even the minority may not be allowed to practise their faith due to the majority. For instance, there is still untouchability in the Hindu community. If a member of the upper-caste Hindu majority is given control of the State, they may use it as a weapon against the state’s or society’s lower classes.

Question 9. Why is it necessary that the government respects everyone’s right to freedom of religion? Name any instance of it being violated.

Answer 9. The basic right to freedom of religion must not be violated by the State imposing a specific religion or restricting an individual’s ability to practise it. The destruction of the Babri Masjid deeply hurt Muslims since it went against their religious beliefs. India had a terrible carnage as a result. This is why every government must work to promote religious harmony on all levels.

Question 10. Complete the following table:

Answer 10. Answering the table:

Question 11. If the government learns that some religious organisations are killing female infants in the name of their religion, would it act?

Answer 11. The government will guarantee that there is no gender discrimination and that both female and male children have the same rights to life if a religious organisation argues that their faith permits them to commit female infanticide. As a result, the State has the power to interfere with any religious practice that violates the fundamental rights of a female child since every child has the right to exist on this planet.

Question 12. Describe everything that occurred in France in February 2004 and the girls expelled from school for wearing headscarves.

Answer 12. The wearing of obvious religious or political signs or symbols by students, such as the Jewish skullcap, the Islamic hijab, or huge Christian crosses, was outlawed in France in February 2004. Immigrants from the former French colonies of Algeria, Tunisia, and Morocco have opposed this regulation.

Due to a labour shortage in the 1960s, France granted these immigrants visas to enter and work there. These immigrants’ daughters frequently cover their heads while in school. However, since this new regulation was passed, they have been sent out of school for donning head scarves.

Question 13. How does the Indian Constitution mandate India to be a secular state?

Answer 13. The Indian State must be secular, according to the Indian Constitution. The Constitution states that only a secular State can accomplish its goals to guarantee the following:

• That different faith communities coexist peacefully.
• Some members of the same religious group do not rule over others.
• The State does not impose any specific religion or restrict people’s freedom of religion.

By the Indian Constitution:

• The Indian State employs several strategies to counter the dominance mentioned above.
• It started with a plan to distance itself from religion.
• Second, Indian secularism employs a non-interfering technique to combat dominance.
• The third method by which Indian secularism combats dominance is through an intervention strategy.

Question 14. Can the Indian states become involved in matters of religion?

Answer 14. The states of India do not interfere with religious issues, practices, or beliefs. However, the State intervenes when one religious group violates the rights of other religious communities to conduct their religious practices and affairs and tries to upset the peace in society.

Question 15. How does the government create laws?

Answer 15. The government creates a law and gets it approved by both houses of parliament when it decides that something has to be enacted inside the nation for the benefit of its citizens. Finally, for this bill to become law, the President must sign it.

Question 16. What will happen when the majority of religious groups have access to state power?

Answer 16. When majoritarian religious movements have access to state power, they abuse it against other faiths. The majority may easily impose dictatorship and violate fundamental rights by excluding the minority from practising their religions.

Question 17. By separating itself from religion, how does the Indian State prevent religious dominance?

Answer 17. The Indian State employs many strategies to prevent dominance, one of which is to distance itself from religion. The Indian State neither supports nor is governed by any one religion.

Government buildings in India, including courts, police stations, the government, schools, and offices, do not forbid the exhibition or promotion of any religion.

Question 18. What is prohibited under the US Constitution’s first amendment?

Answer 18. The US Constitution’s first amendment forbids lawmakers from passing legislation “respecting an establishment of religion” or “prohibiting the free practice of religion.” The definition of “establishment” is that no religion may be designated as the official religion by the government, nor may it be preferred.

Question 19. What concrete measures has the Indian State taken to guard against religious dominance, and how is it a secular State?

Answer 19. India is a secular state that employs various measures to prevent religious dominance. The Fundamental Rights guaranteed by the Indian Constitution are founded on secular ideals. Untouchability was abolished by the Indian Constitution, which interfered with Hindu religious rituals.

Although the State does not maintain a legal separation from religion in Indian secularism, it does keep a moral distance from it. This prevents religious dominance in society.

Question 20. What is secularism?

Answer 20. The Indian Constitution gives the people of India the right to practise their religion and perform their rites as they deem proper. In line with the idea of religious freedom for everyone, India also decided on a policy of dividing the power of religion and the authority of the State. Separating religion from the State is referred to as “secularism.”

The section given above of Important Questions Class 8 Social Science and Political Life Chapter 2 covers all the chapter’s important concepts.

Benefits of Solving Important Questions Class 8 Social Science and Political Life Chapter 2

Students who study political science learn about how their governments operate. The amount of information in this subject can be overwhelming for some students to remember. Students are encouraged to read Extramarks to help them Important Questions Class 8 Social Science and Political Life Chapter 2. Students gather confidence by answering the important questions and going over their solutions.

Mentioning below are some benefits of solving important Questions Class 8 Social Science and Political Life Chapter 2:

• Students can entirely rely upon these important questions as they are made following all the guidelines laid by CBSE.
• These solutions help students save time while preparing for the upcoming examination and cover the entire chapter.
• Important Questions Class 8 Social Science and Political Life Chapter 2 covers the concepts of the entire chapter- The Indian Constitution.

Extramarks provides comprehensive learning solutions for students from Class 1 to Class 12. Our website has abundant resources, along with important questions and solutions. Students can easily click on the links given below to access some of these resources:

• NCERT books
• CBSE Revision Notes
• CBSE syllabus
• CBSE sample papers
• CBSE previous year question papers
• Important formulas 
• CBSE extra questions