Historical Background of Constitution of India
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Introduction
British Crown assumed the sovereignty over India, Parliament passed the first statute Government of India Act in 1858, and it marked the beginning of the evolution of Indian Constitution from 1858-1947.
Today’s Indian polity has the features
- Separation of Powers
- Representative Form of Government
- Responsible form of Government
- Bicameral Legislature at Centre and States
- Distribution of Powers
- Federal Government
Each of these provisions slowly evolved one after another from a unitary and centralized government ruled from the British Parliament appointed Secy of State.
Overview
Govt. of India Act, 1858:
- Rule of company in India ended and that of the Crown began;
- Secretary of State for India was created as a British cabinet member. He was assisted by a 15-member Council with exclusively people from England and was called Council of India. He was to exercise the powers of the Crown;
- Secretary of State governed India through the Governor General;
- Governor-General was to be called the Viceroy and was the direct representative of the Crown in India; and
- A unitary and highly-centralised administrative structure was created, though territory was divided into provinces with Governors, but all governors were subordinate to the Governor General with an executive council.
Indian Councils Act, 1861:
- Introduced a grain of popular element with a policy of Association of Indians in legislation as non-official members;
- o Executive Council of Viceroy was enlarged by 6 to 12 members composed of half non-official members for legislation
- o They couldn’t criticize the acts of administration.
- o Governor general would have veto for all the bills
- Portfolio system was introduced;
- Viceroy could issue ordinances in case of emergency.
- Similar Provisions for legislative council in the provinces, but they would have to take prior sanction of Governor General on many matters.
Indian Councils Act, 1892:
- The non-official members of the Central Legislative Council (CLC) were henceforth to be nominated by the Bengal Chamber of Commerce and the Provincial Legislative Councils (PLC).
- The non-official members of the Provincial Council were to be nominated be certain local bodies such as universities, district boards, municipalities.
- Council to have the power to discuss budget and of addressing questions to the Executive.
Indian Councils Act, 1909 (Morley-Minto Reforms)
- This was the first attempt at introducing the representative and popular element.
- The number of members in the CLC was raised from 16 to 60. The number of members in the PLCs was not uniform.
- It introduced elections at CLC but retained official majority while, allowed the PLCs to have non-official majority.
- It provided (for the first time) for the inclusion of Indians with the executive Councils of the Viceroy and Governors. Satyendra Prasad Sinha became the first Indian to join the Viceroy’s Executive Council as a law member.
- It introduced a system concept of ‘separate electorate’. Under this, the Muslim members were to be elected only by Muslim voters.
Govt. of India Act, 1919: (Montague- Chelmsford Reforms)
- Dyarchy in the Provinces: System of administration was divided into Central and Provinces. The central and provincial legislatures were authorised to make laws on their respective list of subjects. It further divided the provincial subjects into two parts-transferred and reserved.
- The transferred subjects were to be administered by the governor with the aid of ministers responsible to the legislative Council.
- The reserved subjects, on the other hand, were to be administered by the governor and his executive council without being responsible to the legislative Council.
- It introduced, for the first time, bicameralism and direct elections in the country. Thus, the Indian Legislative Council was divided into an Upper House (Council of State) and a Lower House (Legislative Assembly). The majority of members of both the Houses were chosen by direct election. But No responsible government at the centre yet.
- Three of the six members of the Viceroy’s executive Council were to be Indian.
- It extended the principle separate electorates for Sikhs, Indian Christians, Anglo-Indians and Europeans.
- It created a new office of the High Commissioner for India in London and transferred to him some of the functions of the Secretary of State for India.
- It provided for the establishment of a public service commission. Hence, a Central Public Service Commission was set up in 1926 for recruiting civil servants
- It separatedprovincial budgets from the Central budget.
- It provided for the appointment of a statutory commission to inquire into and report on its working after, ten years of its coming into force.
Simon Commission
- Two years before the mandate, British Government announced the appointment a seven-member statutory commission under the chairmanship of John Simon.
- All the members of the commission were British and hence, all the parties boycotted the commission with slogans “GO BACK SIMON”
- The commission submitted its report in 1930 and recommended the abolition of Dyarchy, extension of responsible government in the provinces, establishment of a federation of British India and princely states, continuation of communal electorate and so on.
- To consider the proposals of the commission, the British Government convened three round table conferences of the representatives of the British Government, British India and Indian princely states.
- Some of the recommendations of this committee were incorporated inGovernment of India Act of 1935
- The report of the commission published in May 1930 was rejected by all political parties. The Indian National Congress presided over Jawaharlal Nehru at its Lahore session in 1929 had already declared complete independence or Purna Swaraj as its aim.
Govt. of India Act, 1935:
- Dyarchy at the Centre:It provided for the adoption of Dyarchy at the Centre. Consequently, the federal subjects were divided into reserved subjects (Defence, External Affairs and administration of tribal areas administered by governor general) and transferred subjects for which governor general was to act on advice of Council of Ministers. However, this provision of the Act did not come into operation at all.
- Federation: This Act prescribed for a federation taking Provinces and Princely states as units. But it was optional for the Princely states to join it thus Federation never came into existence.As a result the Constitution of Central government in India remained the same as it was under the Act of 1919 with such modifications as were necessitated by the introduction of autonomy in the provinces.
- Provincial Autonomy: The act divided the legislative powers divided the legislative powers between PLC and CLC and within the defined sphere, provinces were no longer delegates of Central government but were autonomous units. Executive authority of province was exercised by Governor on behalf of crown and not as subordinate of governor general. And the governor was required to act with advice of ministers and was responsible to legislature. But none of CoM came to be appointed and old executive council continued to advice till Indian Independence Act, 1947.
- Bicameral Legislature:At centre and in six out of eleven provinces. Thus, the legislatures of Bengal, Bombay, Madras, Bihar, Assam and the United Provinces were made bicameral consisting of a legislative council (upper house) and a legislative assembly (lower house). However, many restrictions were placed on them.
- Gov-Gen and Crown would still have to Veto Power.
- Gov-Gen could suspend proceedings in regard to any Bill if he was satisfied it would affect his special responsibilities.
- Ordinance Power as well as concurrent power to make permanent Acts was provided.
- No bill could be introduced without prior sanction on several matters.
- It abolished the Council of India, established by the Government of India Act of 1858. The secretary of state for India was provided with a team of advisors.
- It provided for the establishment of a Reserve Bank of India to control the currency and credit of the country.
- Along with a Central Public Service Commission but also provided for aProvincial Public Service Commission and Joint Public Service Commission for two or more provinces.
- The act set up a Federal Court in 1937.
Indian Independence Act, 1947:
- End of British rule in India and declared India as an independent and sovereign state from August 15, 1947.
- Creation of two independent dominions of India and Pakistan with the right to secede from the British Commonwealth.
- It abolished theoffice of viceroy&the office of the secretary of state for Indiaand provided, for each dominion, a governor-general, who was to be appointed by the British King on the advice of the dominion cabinet.
- Constituent Assemblies of the two dominions were given unlimited power to frame and adopt any constitution for their respective nations and to repeal any act of the British Parliament, including the Independence act itself.
- Constituent Assemblies also had the power to legislate for their respective territories till the new constitutions were drafted and enforced.
- It granted freedom to the Indian princely states either to join the Dominion of India or Dominion of Pakistan or to remain independent.
- It provided for the governance of each of the dominions and the provinces by the Government of India Act of 1935, till the new Constitutions were framed.
- Crown Veto was revoked but, this right was reserved for the Governor-General.
- Governor-General of India and the provincial governors as constitutional (nominal) heads of the states. They were made to act on the advice of the respective council of ministers in all matters.
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