English Questions: Fill in the Blanks 114

Direction (1-10): In each question below a sentence is given with two blanks in each. Each question is followed by four options with two words in each. You have to select that option as your answer which can fill both the blanks of the sentence.

1. The Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) held in London came with hopes of a “re-energised Commonwealth”. To begin with, the summit was being held in the U.K., the founder of the grouping of mostly former British colonies, after 32 years. Besides, Queen Elizabeth II, the head of CHOGM, _____________ the summit, which she has done infrequently in the last few years owing to her health. She opened her homes in Buckingham Palace and Windsor Castle for the event, in what was called a “_____________ offensive” by the hosts, who were looking to revive the 53-nation grouping as Commonwealth 2.0, amidst Britain’s rocky exit from the EU.
   watched, censure
   tended, reproval
   attended, charm
   joined, berating
   All are Correct
   Option C
   

    

2. These are extraordinary times for the judiciary. From signs of a confrontation with the executive over judicial appointments to an unpleasant rift among Supreme Court judges, it has seen much turmoil recently. The process initiated by major Opposition parties to _____________ the Chief Justice of India is an unprecedented crisis. The motion, details of which cannot be revealed under Rajya Sabha rules until it is admitted, draws its substance and arguments mainly from the points raised by the four senior-most judges, whose _____________ brought simmering differences to the fore.
   incriminate, concur
   impeach, dissent
   arraign, consent
   inculpate, acquiesce
   All are Correct
   Option B
   

    

3. The scale of the humanitarian crisis faced by Rohingya refugees was highlighted this month when Myanmar claimed it had _____________ a family of five. About 700,000 Rohingya have fled to Bangladesh from their homes in Myanmar’s Rakhine province since August 2017. Late last year, the two countries had struck an agreement for their return. Bangladesh, however, rejected the claim about the repatriation of the five family members, saying they had not travelled into its territory, so their so-called return did not qualify as _____________ .
   repatriated, repatriation
   opposed, restoration
   disputed, reversion
   dissidence, rendition
   All are Correct
   Option
   

    

4. The idea of holding simultaneous elections to the Lok Sabha and the State Assemblies appears to have _____________ the imagination of the Bharatiya Janata Party-led government at the Centre. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been talking about this for some time now. It is not too much of a leap to _____________ that he believes that voters are likely to back the same party in both elections, and that in the absence of a national alternative to his candidature at the Centre, such a voting pattern may help the BJP across States too.
   stuck, prudence
   grabbed, foresight
   taken, caution
   caught, surmise
   All are Correct
   Option D
   

    

5. There is little surprise in the Law Commission of India recommendation that the Board of Control for Cricket in India be brought under the _____________ of the Right to Information Act. Over the years, the popular expectation that India’s cash-rich and commercially successful apex cricket body will have to make itself more _____________ and accountable has been rising. While the BCCI is a private body that needs no financial help from the government, it is being increasingly recognised that it performs significant public functions.
   trail, transparent
   domain, transparent
   purview, transparent
   varnish, transparent
   All are Correct
   Option C
   

    

6. In its reaction to the rape and murder of an eight-year-old girl in Kathua, the BJP seems motivated by a need to strike a balance between protecting its political constituency in Jammu and addressing the public outrage countrywide. Two of its Ministers in the Mehbooba Mufti government — Lal Singh and Chander Prakash Ganga — had participated in a rally organised by the Hindu Ekta Manch in support of the _____________ in the case, but the BJP was slow to act against them. Under pressure from Ms. Mufti, they were asked to submit their resignations, but the BJP made it seem to be part of a larger exercise of a _____________ in the Cabinet.
   charged, arrange
   accused, shuffle
   blamed, array
   defendant, depart
   All are Correct
   Option B
   

    

7. Nearly 18 months after the government’s decision to scrap currency notes of ₹500 and ₹1,000, which accounted for over 86% of the currency in circulation at the time, large parts of India are in the throes of a severe cash _____________ again. The government started acting belatedly on Tuesday in response to reports of cash shortages from States including Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Madhya Pradesh over a fortnight. Terming the shortage a _____________ of an ‘unusual spurt in currency demand’ over three months, the Finance Ministry has emphasised that the first 13 days of April recorded an increase in currency supply of ₹45,000 crore.
   crunch, manifestation
   opulence, demonstration
   trivia, indication
   facile, expression
   All are Correct
   Option A
   

    

8. The acquittal of five suspects in the Mecca Masjid bomb blast case is likely to _____________ public cynicism in the country about the state of the criminal justice system. Regardless of whether the acquittal was owing to the innocence of Swami Aseemanand and four others belonging to a Hindu right-wing group, or because the prosecuting agency lacked the resolve and freedom to obtain their _____________ , the outcome is undoubtedly a substantial denial of justice for a crime that killed nine people and injured many others. It also shattered the lives of dozens of Muslims who were taken into custody by the Hyderabad police in the immediate aftermath of the blast in May 2007.
   enhance, exoneration
   buttress, hesitation
   strengthen, amnesty
   reinforce, conviction
   All are Correct
   Option D
   

    

9. Each time a horrific sexual crime hits the headlines, there is a _____________ for prescribing the death penalty for such offences. Given this, it is perhaps no surprise that the gang-rape and murder of an eight-year-old girl in Jammu and Kashmir has evoked a similar response. Union Minister for Women and Child Development Maneka Gandhi has said her ministry will seek an amendment to the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012, to provide for death as the maximum punishment for the rape of those below 12. The anger is understandable but legislation ought to be a well-considered _____________ and not a response based on a sense of outrage over particular incidents.
   racket, conserve
   uproar, repose
   clamour, exercise
   tumult, quiescence
   All are Correct
   Option C
   

    

10. The forecast of a normal monsoon has brought relief all around. For farmers, the India Meteorological Department’s estimate that rainfall during the summer, between June and September, will be 97% of the 50-year average of 89 cm, is bound to raise fresh expectations. This is the third year in a row that they can look forward to a high output for a variety of crops, although fiscal _____________ have come in the way of realising higher farm incomes. The Centre has been supportive of higher returns through the Minimum Support Price _____________ and additional bonuses have been announced by States such as Madhya Pradesh for procurement, but these have helped mainly rice and wheat.
    actualities, obliteration
    realities, mechanism
    veracities, failure
    authenticities, sloth
    All are Correct
    Option B