Which one of the following **best** defines the term 'State'?

Answer: A. The BEST DEFINITION of a STATE is: 'A community of persons permanently occupying a definite territory independent of external control and possessing an organized government'. Political theory identifies FOUR ESSENTIAL ELEMENTS of a STATE (drawn from Aristotle, Bodin, Hobbes, Locke, Garner, and codified in modern international law via the MONTEVIDEO CONVENTION ON THE RIGHTS AND DUTIES OF STATES, 1933): 1. POPULATION — a permanent COMMUNITY OF PERSONS (no defined minimum, but must be more than a transient group). 2. TERRITORY — a DEFINITE TERRITORY with recognised borders (land, internal waters, territorial sea, airspace). 3. GOVERNMENT — an ORGANISED GOVERNMENT exercising authority (legislative, executive, judicial structures). 4. SOVEREIGNTY — INDEPENDENCE FROM EXTERNAL CONTROL — supreme internal authority and external independence. Option A captures ALL FOUR elements crisply: - 'community of persons' = POPULATION - 'permanently occupying a definite territory' = TERRITORY - 'independent of external control' = SOVEREIGNTY - 'possessing an organized government' = GOVERNMENT Hence option A is the best textbook definition. Why other options fall short: (B) Mentions territory, people and authority to govern but also adds extra elements (natural rights protection, means of sustenance) that are NORMATIVE PURPOSES of a good state, not constitutive elements. Confuses essence with function. (C) Includes culture and tradition — these are characteristics of a NATION (cultural community), not a STATE (political-legal entity). The STATE-NATION distinction is fundamental in political theory. (D) Truncated; missing essential elements. Source: NCERT Class 11 'Political Theory' Chapter 2 'Freedom' / 'Indian Constitution at Work' / Montevideo Convention 1933.