Cloze Test Questions In Reading Comprehensions

Given below are the cloze test questions in Reading Comprehensions form for CLAT and other law entrance examinations.

In 1989, as the Cold War was drawing to a close, the contours of a new “clash of civilisations” were being defined. Salman Rushdie’s The Satanic Verses, published a year earlier, had angered people across the world for its seemingly cavalier attack on Prophet Mohammad, and Ayatollah Khomeini, Iran’s supreme religious leader, issued the infamous fatwa against the writer, placing his life in danger. Many countries, including India, banned the book for fear of “hurting religious sentiments”. Rushdie became, and continues to be till today, a symbol of resistance against a perceived medieval mindset; a revanchist religiosity that pits itself against the idea of liberal democracy and __(1)__ speech. In some senses, the cleavages that were wrought by the Satanic Verses controversy have only widened. “Islamism”, “fundamentalism”, “Islamic extremism” are the great “Other”, like Sauron and the East in The Lord of the Rings, something the “Men of the West” must fight to ___(2)___ the virtues of their world.

The most recent threat-to-liberal-values call has come from the Emmanuel Macron government in France, in the aftermath of the unconscionable and unforgivable murder of a teacher, Samuel Paty, in October and the killing of three more people in Nice in the same month. Since 2015, beginning with the attack and killings at the offices of Charlie Hebdo in January that year (whose form of satire is in the same vein as Satanic Verses), over 250 people have been killed in terrorist attacks by religious ___(3)___. France — more egalitarian than Britain, more cultured than America — has arguably been at the frontline of the “clash of civilisations”. The latest move in this __(4)__ against what Macron has called “Islamic separatism” is a proposed law “to reinforce republican values”, which would allow the state to monitor Muslims, their religious gatherings and organisations, allow police greater freedom (which often, in practice, means acting with impunity), including while acting against hate speech when it ___(5)___ from Muslims.

The eight-phase district development council polls in Jammu & Kashmir have seen the People’s Alliance for Gupkar Declaration – a conglomerate of seven parties including NC and PDP – gain a majority. At the time of going to press, the alliance has won or is leading in 110 out of the 280 seats spread across 20 districts. This means the __(1)___will have control of nine councils, all in the Kashmir Valley. However, BJP has emerged as the single largest party by winning or leading in at least 75 seats. This gives the party control of six councils in the Jammu region. Plus, the party has won three seats in Kashmir in a symbolic crossing of the Pir Panjal range.

Additionally, the Congress and NC are likely to win control of four councils in Jammu, while independents are picking up 50 seats. The results ___(2)___ that the polls – the first since the nullification of Article 370 of the ___(3)___ last year that revoked J&K’s special status – were successful. The turnout was a substantial 51%. And no party has claimed widespread fraud or rigging. On the contrary, both the Gupkar alliance and BJP have claimed victory. And the fact that independents could play a key role in many of the councils means that the people of J&K could be tiring of the bipolar politics of BJP and Article 370-centric Kashmiri parties.

That said, the district development council polls should be seen as a ___(4)___stepping stone towards normalisation in J&K. The security deployment in the region since last year, though necessary given the undiminished threat of cross-border terrorism emanating from Pakistan as well as the new threat from China, cannot be a substitute for development and winning the hearts and minds of the people. In this regard, the district development councils are supposed to drive development through direct funding from the Centre. Therefore, __(5)__adequate resources should be devolved to the councils to meaningfully empower them.

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