INDIAN POLITY BY M.
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ü The 1781 act of Settlement – passed by the British parliament to rectify the defects of 1773 Act.
PITTS INDIA ACT OF 1784:
ü The Pitts India act distinguished between commercial and political functions of the company.
ü The Court of Directors entrusted with the responsibility to manage commercial affairs of the company.
ü The Board of control was entrusted with the responsibility of political affairs.
ü Thus the Pitts India act established the dual (double) government.
ü The company territories in India were for the first time called British possessions in India.
CHARTER ACT OF 1833
ü This is the final step towards centralization of power in India.
· What is centralization?
· This is the concentration of power in single authority.
ü The Governor-General of Bengal was made the Governor-General of India.
ü The first Governor-General of India was Lord William Bentinck.
ü The laws that were made prior to 1833 were called regulation.
ü The laws that were made under 1833 charter were called Acts.
ü The East India Company purely became the administrative body.
ü Commercial body …….> Administrative body.
ü This act provided for the company‘s territories in India were held by it in trust for His Majesty, his heirs
and successors.
ü The superintendence, direction and control of whole civil and military government of all the British
territories and revenues in India was expressly vested in ‗The Governor General of India in Council‖.
ü For the first time the Governor-General‘s government was known as the Government of India.
ü The council was known as ‗Indian Council‖.
ü The council was enlarged for legislative work by the addition of a Law member in addition to the
existing three.
ü This act attempted to introduce a system of open competition for selection of civil servants. (This is an
attempt only; open competition system was introduced later).
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ü Indians were not debarred from holding any place, office and employment under the company, but
negated because of the opposition from the court of directors.
CHARTER ACT OF 1853:
ü This was the last charter act passed by the British Parliament between 1793 and 1853.
ü This act created the Legislative council.
ü The legislative council functioned as a mini Parliament.
ü The Charter Act of 1853 introduced Open competition system of selection and recruitment of
civil servants.
ü This was also open to Indians. (Indians were permitted to take part in the competitive examination).
ü Accordingly Macaulay Committee (Committee on the Indian civil services) was appointed in the
year 1854.
ü Satyendra Nath Tagore was the first Indian to join the civil services.
THE CROWN RULE (1858 – 1947)
THE GOVERNMENT OF INDIA ACT 1858
This came into being after the Sepoy Mutiny of 1857.
· Regarding the Sepoy Mutiny we learn more during Indian History discussion.
ü This act is also known as the Act for good government in India.
ü This is the first statute enacted by the Parliament for the governance of India under the direct rule of the
British government.
ü The GOI Act abolished the East India Company.
ü The British crown assumed sovereignty over India from the East India Company.
ü The designation of Governor-General of India was changed to the Viceroy of India.
ü The last Governor-General of India was Lord Canning.
ü The first Viceroy of India was Lord Canning.
ü The GOI act abolished the Board of Control and Court of Directors.
ü A new position called Secretary of State for India was created and the powers of the crown were
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exercised by the Secretary of State for India.
ü The Secretary of state for India is a member of Cabinet and is responsible to the British Parliament.
ü The Secretary of state for India was assisted by a council called ‗Council of India‘ that contained 15
members.
ü The Council of India was composed of exclusively of people from England.
ü The secretary of state of India who was responsible to the British Parliament governed India through the
Governor-General, assisted by an executive council which consisted of higher officials of the
government.
ü The administration of the country was unitary and rigidly centralized through 1858 Act.
ü The provincial governments though existing headed by a Governor were mere the agents of the
Government of India and functioned under the direct control of the Governor-General.
ü There was no separation of functions. The legislative, executive, civil and military authority was vested
in Governor-General in council of India who was responsible to the secretary of state for India.
ü The control of the secretary of state of India over the Indian administration was absolute (complete,
total).
ü The machinery of the administration was totally unconcerned about the public opinion.
INDIAN COUNCILS ACT OF 1861:
ü This act introduced a grain of popular element by including some non-official members in the executive
council while transacting legislative business like legislative council.
ü The Viceroy of India would nominate Indians to the legislative council.
ü The functions of nominated members were confined exclusively to the consideration of the legislative
proposals placed before it by the Governor-General (Viceroy).
ü Even in the provinces for initiating legislations the prior sanction of the Governor-General (Viceroy)
was necessary.
ü In the year 1862 Lord Canning (first Viceroy of India) nominated Raja of Benaras, the Maharaja of
Patiala and Sir Dinakar Rao to the legislative council.
ü This act restored the powers of Bombay and Bengal presidencies.
ü The Legislative Council for Bengal was created in the year 1862.
ü The Legislative council for NWFP (North West Frontier Province) was created in the year 1866.
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