a. A community of persons permanently occupying a definite territory independent of external control and possessing an organised government.

b. A politically organised people of a definite territory and possessing an authority to govern them, maintain law and order, protect their natural rights and safeguard their means of sustenance.

c. A number of persons who have been living in a definite territory for a very long time with their own culture, tradition and government.

d. A society permanently living in a definite territory with a central authority, an executive responsible to the central authority and an independent judiciary.

Answer- a  

Explanation:

According to Dr. Garner, “State as a concept of political science and public law, is a community of persons more or less numerous, permanently occupying a definite portion of territory, independent or nearly so, of external control and possessing an organised government to which the great body of inhabitants render habitual obedience”.                                                                                                                                                                             Thus, according to Dr Garner, the essential elements of a modern state are population, territory, government and sovereignty. 

Population: A state cannot exist without a population. When considering a state’s population, we have to study not only the number but also the quality of the people inhabiting the state. 

Territory: The territory of the state includes not only land but also rivers, lakes, and the sea up to the limits of its territorial waters and the air space above it. The domain of the state is terrestrial, fluvial, maritime, and aerial.

Government:  is the agency or machinery through which common policies are determined, common affairs are regulated, and common interests are promoted. The authority of the state is exercised by the government.

Sovereignty: another essential element, without sovereignty there can be no state in the legal sense. Without sovereignty, there is every possibility of the forces of lawlessness sweeping away the whole of society. Only the sovereign can keep all the sections of society in their proper places. It is the final authority in the state. 

Hence, option a is correct. 

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