Consider the following statements:

1. According to the Constitution of India, a person who is eligible to vote can be made a minister in a State for six months even if he/she is not a member of the Legislature of that State.

2. According to the Representation of People Act, 1951, a person convicted of a criminal offence and sentenced to imprisonment for five years is permanently disqualified from contesting an election even after his release from prison.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

The correct option is Neither 1 nor 2.

Explanation of Statement 1:
According to Article 164(4) of the Constitution of India, a minister who for any period of six consecutive months is not a member of the Legislature of the State shall at the expiration of that period cease to be a minister. This means a non-member can indeed be appointed as a minister for six months. However, the statement claims that any person who is eligible to vote (i.e., at least 18 years of age) can be made a minister. Under the Constitution, to be appointed as a minister, a person must meet the eligibility criteria to become a member of the State Legislature. According to Article 173 of the Constitution, the minimum age required to be a member of the State Legislative Assembly is 25 years (and 30 years for the Legislative Council). Therefore, a person who is merely eligible to vote (minimum age 18 years) but has not attained the age of 25 cannot be appointed as a minister. Thus, Statement 1 is incorrect.

Explanation of Statement 2:
Section 8 of the Representation of the People Act, 1951 deals with disqualification on conviction for certain offences. Under Section 8(3) of the Act, a person convicted of any offence and sentenced to imprisonment for not less than two years shall be disqualified from the date of such conviction and shall continue to be disqualified for a further period of six years since his release. The disqualification is not permanent. For a person sentenced to five years of imprisonment, the disqualification would last during the five-year prison term and for an additional six years after release (a total of 11 years), after which they are free to contest elections. Therefore, Statement 2 is incorrect.

Since both Statement 1 and Statement 2 are incorrect, the correct option is "Neither 1 nor 2".