Seven people, Mayank, Nidhi, Palak, Rakesh, Surya, Tina and Vivek, are sitting in a row, facing north. Only two people sit to the…

Question

Seven people, Mayank, Nidhi, Palak, Rakesh, Surya, Tina and Vivek, are sitting in a row, facing north. Only two people sit to the right of Rakesh. Nidhi sits to the immediate left of Vivek and Vivek sits third to the left of Rakesh. Palak sits third to the right of Tina, but Palak does not sit at any extreme ends. Rakesh is not an immediate neighbour of Mayank. How many people sit between Tina and Vivek?

1. A. Three
2. B. One
3. C. None (Correct answer)
4. D. Two

Correct Answer

Option C — None

Detailed Solution & Explanation

The correct answer is None.

Key Points

• Number the seats 1 to 7 from the left, everyone facing north, so left and right match the reader's view.
  • *Only two people sit to the right of Rakesh* → Rakesh is at 5.
  • *Vivek sits third to the left of Rakesh* → Vivek at 2.
  • *Nidhi sits immediately left of Vivek* → Nidhi at 1.
  • *Palak sits third to the right of Tina, and not at an extreme end* → of the free seats 3, 4, 6, 7, only Tina 3 → Palak 6 works, since Tina 4 would put Palak at the extreme seat 7.
  • *Rakesh is not an immediate neighbour of Mayank* → Mayank cannot take seat 4, so Mayank at 7 and Surya at 4.
• Final order: Nidhi, Vivek, Tina, Surya, Rakesh, Palak, Mayank.
• Tina (3) and Vivek (2) are adjacent, so the number of people between them is none.

Additional Information

• Start with the clue that fixes an absolute position. "Only two people to the right" pins Rakesh immediately; beginning with a relative clue leaves too many branches open.
• For a row facing north, the observer's left is the arrangement's left. Had they faced south, every left and right would reverse — the commonest error in this question type.
• "Third to the left of" means a gap of two people, not three. Reading it as three places misplaces Vivek and unravels the whole arrangement.
• Always complete the full seating before answering; the question asks about two people whose positions were fixed early, but verifying the remaining constraints confirms no alternative arrangement exists.