The CLAT PG 2020 question paper is available below with the answer resources on this page. The exam was held on 28 September 2020 as a two-hour online test. It had 120 multiple-choice questions based on 12 legal passages.
The final evaluation was not out of 120. After reviewing objections, the Consortium withdrew question 23 and calculated CLAT PG scores out of 119 marks. The answers to the other 119 questions did not change.
CLAT PG 2020 highlights
120 MCQs in 120 minutes
12 passages with 10 questions after each passage
One mark for a correct answer and a 0.25-mark deduction for a wrong answer
Final-key change: question 23 withdrawn, reducing the maximum score to 119
CLAT PG 2020 Paper Overview
CLAT PG 2020 was the first postgraduate paper under the new comprehension-based format. The Consortium's 2020 syllabus page originally referred to an objective part and a descriptive part, but it later confirmed that there would be no descriptive section. The final paper contained only passage-based MCQs.
Paper detail
CLAT PG 2020
Exam date
28 September 2020
Mode
Online test at examination centres
Questions printed
120 MCQs
Final maximum score
119 marks after question 23 was withdrawn
Duration
120 minutes
Marking rule
+1 for a correct answer, −0.25 for a wrong answer and 0 for an unanswered question
Each passage was followed by 10 questions. The questions did more than check reading. They asked for case names, constitutional provisions, legal tests and related rules that were not always stated fully in the passage.
CLAT PG 2020 Answer-Key Timeline
The question paper and provisional answers were released on the exam day. Candidates could raise objections until the next day. The final notice was issued after the objections were reviewed.
28 September 2020The exam was held. The paper and provisional answers were released later that day.
29 September 2020The objection window closed at midnight.
3 October 2020The final notice withdrew PG question 23 and reduced the maximum score to 119.
What changed in the final keyThe Consortium did not change an answer from one option to another in the PG paper. It removed question 23 from evaluation. The remaining answer key stayed the same.
CLAT PG 2020 Passage-Wise Topics
The table follows the question order in the available paper. It shows the main subject of each 10-question passage group.
Questions
Main passage topic
1–10
Reservation in promotion for persons with disabilities and university reservation
11–20
Criminal contempt, public criticism and freedom of speech
21–30
Right to privacy, personal liberty and sexual orientation
31–40
Proportionality, internet restrictions and Jammu and Kashmir
41–50
Legitimate expectation, natural justice and judicial review
51–60
Supreme Court benches, the Chief Justice's roster and judicial appointments
61–70
Labour law, migrant workers, retrenchment and industrial action
71–80
Hohfeld's legal relations: claims, duties, liberties, powers and immunities
81–90
Positive law, natural law and Habermas's theory of communicative action
91–100
Criminal liability, sentencing and the death penalty
101–110
Muslim personal law, triple talaq and matrimonial remedies
111–120
State responsibility, environmental law and the International Court of Justice
The paper moved across constitutional law, administrative law, labour law, jurisprudence, criminal law, family law and international law. A passage could also mix subjects. For example, questions 31–40 began with the proportionality test and internet access, then moved to the constitutional position of Jammu and Kashmir.
Important Questions in the CLAT PG 2020 Paper
Reservation in promotion for persons with disabilities
Questions 1–10 used the Supreme Court's reasoning in Siddaraju v. State of Karnataka. The questions separated reservation for persons with disabilities under Article 16(1) from reservation for backward classes under Article 16(4). The same group also asked about consequential seniority and the unit used for reservation in universities.
Contempt and criticism of the judiciary
Questions 11–20 drew from the 2020 contempt proceedings involving Prashant Bhushan. The group asked students to identify the case, read the contemnor's statement and connect criminal contempt with freedom of speech. It also referred to Justice Krishna Iyer's warning that judges should not be hypersensitive when criticism crosses a line.
Internet restrictions and proportionality
Questions 31–40 were built around Anuradha Bhasin v. Union of India. Question 34 linked internet access with Article 19, while questions 35 and 36 tested whether a restriction had a lawful purpose and went no further than necessary. Later questions in the same group asked who could suspend telecom services and how the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act changed the constitutional position.
Legal rights through everyday situations
Questions 71–80 applied Hohfeld's legal relations to a broken boundary wall, a student's capacity to marry, arrest under Article 21 and a private contract. This group required students to distinguish a claim from a liberty, and a power from an immunity, instead of recalling only definitions.
Labour law during the 2020 lockdown
Questions 61–70 followed an opinion on the suspension of labour protections during the lockdown. The questions then moved into specific law: protection of inter-state migrant workers, benefits under the Employees' State Insurance Act, prior permission for retrenchment and the difference between lawful collective bargaining and an illegal gherao. The passage therefore linked a current policy debate with statutory labour law.
Sentencing and the death penalty
Questions 91–100 covered culpable homicide, murder and changes in criminal law before turning to capital sentencing. Questions 94–97 asked about “collective conscience”, aggravating and mitigating factors, and the difference between the tests in Bachan Singh and Machhi Singh. This was not a single case-identification passage; it checked how sentencing principles fit together.
State responsibility and the International Court of Justice
The last 10 questions dealt with breaches of international law, cross-border environmental harm and the work of the International Court of Justice. They asked about leading cases, the polluter-pays principle, binding judgments and advisory opinions. The group made students separate the Court's power to decide disputes between states from its power to give an advisory opinion.
What the paper testedThe passages gave the legal setting, but many questions expected knowledge beyond the extract. Case names, Article numbers, statutes and legal terms were part of the paper throughout.
Why CLAT PG 2020 Question 23 Was Not Counted
Question 23 appeared in the privacy passage. It asked who stated the phrase “every man's house is his castle” in Semayne's Case. The provisional answer material showed option B. The Consortium's final notification did not replace B with another option; it withdrew the question.
A withdrawn question does not earn a bonus mark. It is removed from every candidate's calculation. That is why the final maximum fell from 120 to 119.
Response to question 23
Provisional calculation
Final change
Option B
+1
−1 mark
Any other option
−0.25
+0.25 mark
Unanswered
0
No change
How to Calculate the CLAT PG 2020 Score
Leave question 23 out. Among the remaining 119 questions, add one mark for every correct answer and subtract 0.25 for every wrong answer. Unanswered questions add or remove nothing.
Score formulaCorrect answers − (wrong answers × 0.25), after excluding question 23. For example, 80 correct, 24 wrong and 15 unanswered questions give 74 marks out of 119.
Things to Remember About the CLAT PG 2020 Paper
Do not count question 23 even if an older answer table shows option B.
Use 119 as the maximum score for the final CLAT PG 2020 calculation.
The 2020 test was online and had no descriptive section.
Original practice: three questions on a fictional university rule.
Choose your answers, then submit the set.
Read the passage
A fictional university rule requires written reasons before a research grant is withdrawn. In an urgent safety case, payment may be suspended immediately, but written reasons must be sent within 7 days. An appeal may be filed within ten days after those reasons are received. The appeal body may examine whether the rule was followed; it cannot replace the grant policy with a policy it prefers.
Topics You Can Practise
−
Area
Question focus
Constitutional Law
Disability reservation and promotion
Public International Law
ICJ jurisdiction and advisory opinions
Environmental Law
Polluter-pays principle
Before Scoring Your Attempt
−
Check
Use
Year
Keep historical paper rules with the paper
Booklet
Match the code and question text, not just the number
Key
Use the final applicable revision, not an earlier appended table
Short-set maximum
Include every question in the set, including unanswered questions
Example: 18 correct and six wrong in a thirty-question set = 16.5/30 under +1/-0.25 marking.
CLAT PG Question Paper FAQs
Downloads and Format
Are Sets A, B, C and D four different mock tests? +
They are booklet versions of the same examination. Questions can appear at different numbers, so use the matching set when checking answers. A second set may repeat questions you have already attempted.
How should I review a correct answer that I guessed? +
Keep the mark, but check the sentence or legal principle supporting the answer. If you were choosing between two options, identify the word or exception that rules out the other one.
Should I change an old question to match a newer law? +
Keep the original wording and legal context when solving a previous-year question. Changing the statute or facts can change the answer. Revise later legal developments separately for the upcoming exam.
Practice and Scoring
Are the practice questions taken from CLAT PG 2020? +
No. They are original questions based on a fictional university rule. The passage supplies the rule, exception, appeal deadline and limits on the reviewing body.
Can the practice result predict my CLAT PG rank? +
No. It shows your accuracy on three questions. Rank depends on performance in the full examination and other candidates' scores.
What happens when I retry mistakes? +
Retry mistakes includes only incorrect and unanswered questions. Restart set brings back all three. Changing an answer clears the previous result.
*The article might have information for the previous academic years, please refer the official website of the exam.
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