Multiple choice general knowledge math & puzzles

News Reporter: There are rumours that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will reshuffle his cabinet in the next few days. But, all the previous reshuffles took place only after a high level meeting between Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and UPA Chairperson Mrs. Sonia Gandhi. No such meeting has occurred or is planned. Therefore, the rumours are false. Which of the following most clearly states the logical flaw in the argument?

  1. The news reporter has mistakenly considered the mandatory condition as a sufficient condition and has based his/her conclusion on that.

  2. The news reporter, instead of providing adequate support to his conclusion, concludes on the basis of popular perception.

  3. The news reporter assumes if one event leads to another, then if the first does not take place it would mean that the second event would also not happen.

  4. The news reporter takes for granted that a high level meeting between the PM and the UPA chairperson is a desirable precursor of any cabinet reshuffle
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
C Correct answer
Explanation

The reporter's reasoning: All previous reshuffles happened after PM-UPA chairperson meetings. No such meeting occurred/planned. Therefore, no reshuffle will happen. This treats the meeting as a necessary condition (reshuffle → meeting) and then incorrectly concludes that if the condition isn't met (no meeting), the consequence won't happen (no reshuffle). This is the fallacy of denying the antecedent - treating a necessary condition as sufficient and its absence as guaranteeing the opposite.

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