Making of the constitution

• Historical background

• Assembly and constitution formation

• Salient features of constitution ( written or unwritten and from where it was taken from)

POLITY AND CONSTITUTION

• Polity is a form of government, divided into federal and Unitary.

• Federal is further divided into centre, state and local. This is called decentralization of
power.

• Local is further divided into Panchayat and Municipality.

Indian democracy is a Parliamentary form of democracy where the executive is responsible to the
Parliament. The Parliament has two houses – Loksabha and Rajyasabha. Also, the type of
governance is Federal, i.e there is separate executive and legislature at Center and States. We also
have self-governance at local government levels. All these systems owe their legacy to the British
administration. Let us see the historical background of Indian Constitution and its development
through years.

Historical background is divided into two periods:

• Before 1857

• After 1857

Before 1857

Regulating Act of 1773

• The first step was taken by the British Parliament to control and regulate the affairs of the
East India Company in India, for which a committee was formed which was chaired by Prime
Minister NORTH.

• It designated the Governor of Bengal (Fort William) as the Governor-General (of Bengal).

• Warren Hastings became the first Governor-General of Bengal.

• Executive Council of the Governor-General was established (Four members). There was no
separate legislative council.

• It subordinated the Governors of Bombay and Madras to the Governor-General of Bengal.

• The Supreme Court was established at Fort William (Calcutta) as the Apex Court in 1774.

• It prohibited servants of the company from engaging in any private trade or accepting bribes
from the natives.
• Court of Directors (the governing body of the company) should report its revenue.

Pitt’s India Act of 1784

• Distinguished between commercial (Trade)and political functions of the company for better
discipline of the committee.

• Court of Directors for Commercial functions and Board of Control (6 members)for political
affairs.

• Reduced the strength of the Governor General’s council to three members.

• Placed the Indian affairs under the direct control of the British Government.

• The companies territories in India were called “the British possession in India”.

• Governor’s councils were established in Madras and Bombay.

Charter Act Of 1793

• Indian revenue was used for giving salary to the members of board of control.

Charter Act of 1813

• The Company’s monopoly over Indian trade terminated; Trade with India open only for Tea
to China.

• Rs 1 lakh should be spended over English language. Christians ministry was called for the
promotion of their religion.

Charter Act of 1833

• Governor-General (of Bengal) became as the Governor-General of India.

• First Governor-General of India was Lord William Bentick.

• A law member was deployed for temporary basis without any voting right, Lord Macauley.
He brought English language to India and which was introduced by Lord William Bentick.

• This was the final step towards centralization in the British India.

• Beginning of a Central legislature for India as the act also took away legislative powers of
Bombay and Madras provinces.

• The Act ended the activities of the East India Company as a commercial body and it became
a purely administrative body.

Charter Act of 1853

• The legislative and executive functions of the Governor-General’s Council were separated.
• 6 members in Central legislative council. Four out of six members were appointed by the
provisional governments of Madras, Bombay, Bengal and Agra.

• It introduced a system of open competition as the basis for the recruitment of civil servants
of the Company (Indian Civil Service opened for all).

• First only Governor General of India was Lord Dalhousie.

After 1857

Government of India Act of 1858

• Called Good Governance Act

• The rule of Company was replaced by the rule of the Crown in India.

• The powers of the British Crown were to be exercised by the Secretary of State for India,
office in London.

• He was assisted by the Council of India, having 15 members

• He was vested with complete authority and control over the Indian administration through
the Viceroy as his agent.

• The Governor-General was made the Viceroy of India.

• Lord Canning was the first Viceroy of India.

• Abolished Board of Control and Court of Directors.

Indian Councils Act of 1861

• It introduced for the first time Indian representation in the institutions like Viceroy’s
executive+legislative council (non-official). 3 Indians entered Legislative council and the
numbers of Indians increasesd to 12.

• Legislative councils were established in Center and provinces.

• It provided that the Viceroy’s Executive Council should have some Indians as the non-official
members while transacting the legislative businesses.

• It accorded statutory recognition to the portfolio system.

• Initiated the process of decentralisation by restoring the legislative powers to the Bombay
and the Madras Provinces. (first decentralization by british Government).
 India Council Act of 1892

• Member increases from 12 to 16.

• Introduced indirect elections (nomination without any voting power to citizens).

• Enlarged the size of the legislative councils.

• Enlarged the functions of the Legislative Councils and gave them the power of discussing the
Budget and addressing questions to the Executive.

Indian Councils Act of 1909

1. This Act is also known as the Morley- Minto Reforms.

2. Direct elections to legislative councils; first attempt at introducing a representative and

3. It changed the name of the Central Legislative Council to the Imperial Legislative Council.

4. The member of Central Legislative Council was increased to 60 from 16.

5. Introduced a system of communal representation for Muslims by accepting the concept of

6. Indians for the first time in Viceroys executive council. (Satyendra Prasad Sinha, as the first
law member in the governor general council).– 2nd person in the British house of common,
first was Dadabhai Naroji.

Government of India Act of 1919

• This Act is also known as the Montague-Chelmsford Reforms.

• The Central subjects were demarcated and separated from those of the Provincial subjects.

• The scheme of dual governance, ‘Dyarchy’, was introduced in the Provincial subjects.

• Under dyarchy system, the provincial subjects were divided into two parts – transferred and
reserved. On reserved subjects, Governor was not responsible to the Legislative council.

• The Act introduced, for the first time, bicameralism at center.

• Legislative Assembly with 140 members and Legislative council with 60 members.

• Direct elections.

• The Act also required that the three of the six members of the Viceroy’s Executive Council
(other than Commander-in-Chief) were to be Indians.

• Provided for the establishment of Public Service Commission.

• The Act provided for the establishment of an All-India Federation consisting of the Provinces
and the Princely States as units, though the envisaged federation never came into being.

• Three Lists: The Act divided the powers between the Centre and the units into items of three
lists, namely the Federal List, the Provincial List and the Concurrent List.

• The Federal List for the Centre consisted of 59 items, the Provincial List for the provinces
consisted of 54 items and the Concurrent List for both consisted of 36 items

• The residuary powers were vested with the Governor-General.

• The Act abolished the Dyarchy in the Provinces and introduced ‘Provincial Autonomy’.

• It provided for the adoption of Dyarchy at the Centre.

• Introduced bicameralism in 6 out of 11 Provinces.

• These six Provinces were Assam, Bengal, Bombay, Bihar, Madras and the United Province.

• Provided for the establishment of Federal Court.

• Abolished the Council of India