Imperial Legislative Council

Last updated
Imperial Legislative Council
Star of the Order of the Star of India (gold).svg
Type
Type
Unicameral (1861–1919)
Bicameral (1919–1947)
Houses Council of State (upper)
Central Legislative Assembly (lower)
Term limits
Council of State: 5 years
Central Legislative Assembly: 3 years
History
Founded1861 (1861)
Disbanded14 August 1947 (14 August 1947)
Preceded by Governor-General's Council
Succeeded by Constituent Assembly of India
Constituent Assembly of Pakistan
Seats145 seats in Central Legislative Assembly(Lower House) and 60 seats in Council of States(Upper House)
Meeting place
Council House, New Delhi, British India (from 1927)

The Imperial Legislative Council (ILC) was the legislature of British India from 1861 to 1947. It was established under the Charter Act of 1853 by providing for the addition of 6 additional members to the Governor General Council for legislative purposes. Thus, the act separated the legislative and executive functions of the council and it was this body within the Governor General's Council which came to known as the Indian/Central Legislative Council. In 1861 it was renamed as Imperial Legislative Council and the strength was increased.

Contents

It succeeded the Council of the Governor-General of India, and was succeeded by the Constituent Assembly of India and after 1950, was succeeded by Parliament of India.

During the rule of the East India Company, the council of the Governor-General of India had both executive and legislative responsibilities. The council had four members elected by the Court of Directors. The first three members were permitted to participate on all occasions, but the fourth member was only allowed to sit and vote when legislation was being debated. In 1858, the British Crown took over the administration from the East India Company. The council was transformed into the Imperial Legislative Council, and the Court of Directors of the Company, which had the power to elect members of the Governor-General's Council, ceased to have this power. Instead, the one member who had a vote only on legislative questions came to be appointed by the Sovereign, and the other three members by the Secretary of State for India.

Predecessors

The Regulating Act of 1773 limited the influence of the Governor-General of India and established the Council of Four, elected by the East India Company's Court of Directors. Pitt's India Act of 1784 reduced the membership to three, and also established the India Board.

1861 to 1892

The Indian Councils Act 1861 made several changes to the Council's composition. The council was now called the Governor-General's Legislative Council or the Imperial Legislative Council. Three members were to be appointed by the Secretary of State for India, and two by the Sovereign. (The power to appoint all five members passed to the Crown in 1869.) The viceroy was empowered to appoint an additional six to twelve members.[ citation needed ] The five individuals appointed by the Indian Secretary or Sovereign headed the executive departments, while those appointed by the Governor-General debated and voted on legislation.

Indians in the Council

There were 45 Indians nominated as additional non-official members from 1862 to 1892. Out of these 25 were zamindars and seven were rulers of princely states. The others were lawyers, magistrates, journalists and merchants. [1] [2] [3] The participation of the Indian members in the council meetings was negligible. [4] [5]

1892 to 1909

The Indian Councils Act 1892 increased the number of legislative members with a minimum of ten and maximum of sixteen members. The Council now had 6 officials, 5 nominated non-officials, 4 nominated by the provincial legislative councils of Bengal Presidency, Bombay Presidency, Madras Presidency and North-Western Provinces and 1 nominated by the chamber of commerce in Calcutta. The members were allowed to ask questions in the Council but not allowed to ask supplementaries or discuss the answer. They were however empowered to discuss the annual financial statement under certain restrictions but could not vote on it.

Indians in the Council

1909 to 1920

The Indian Councils Act 1909 increased the number of members of the Legislative Council to 60, of whom 27 were to be elected. For the first time, Indians were admitted to membership, and there were six Muslim representatives, the first time that such representation had been given to a religious group.

The composition of the Council was as follows: [8]

Indians in the Council (1909–20)

Nominated Officials

Nominated Non-Officials

Bengal

Bihar & Orissa

Bombay

Burma

Central Provinces

East Bengal & Assam

Madras

Punjab

United Provinces

1920 to 1947

Under the Government of India Act 1919, the Imperial Legislative Council was converted into a bicameral legislature with the Imperial Legislative Assembly (also known as the Central Legislative Assembly) as the lower house of a bicameral legislature and the Council of State as the upper house, reviewing legislation passed by the Assembly. The Governor-General nonetheless retained significant power over legislation. He could authorise the expenditure of money without the Legislature's consent for "ecclesiastical, political [and] defence" purposes, and for any purpose during "emergencies". He was permitted to veto, or even stop debate on, any bill. If he recommended the passage of a bill, but only one chamber co-operated, he could declare the bill passed over the objections of the other chamber. The Legislature had no authority over foreign affairs and defence. The President of the Council of State was appointed by the Governor-General; the Central Legislative Assembly elected its own President, apart from the first, but the election required the Governor-General's approval.

Under the Indian Independence Act 1947, the Imperial Legislative Council and its houses were dissolved on 14 August 1947 and was replaced by the Constituent Assembly of India and the Constituent Assembly of Pakistan.

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Order of the Indian Empire</span> Dormant British order of chivalry established 1878

The Most Eminent Order of the Indian Empire is an order of chivalry founded by Queen Victoria on 1 January 1878. The Order includes members of three classes:

  1. Knight Grand Commander (GCIE)
  2. Knight Commander (KCIE)
  3. Companion (CIE)

The All India Muhammadan Educational Conference was an organisation promoting modern, liberal education for the Muslim community in India. It was founded by Sir Syed Ahmed Khan, also the founder of the Aligarh Muslim University. All India Mumammadan Educational Conference was the origin of the All-India Muslim League. The Muslim League was born in the 20th session of All India Muhammadan Educational Conference, which was established by Syed Ahmed Khan in Aligarh in 1886. Muhammadan Educational Conference used to hold its annual meetings in various cities where, by the co-operation of local Muslims, steps were taken for the progress of education.

Nawab Syed Muhammad Bahadur was an Indian politician who served as the President of the Indian National Congress in 1913 at Karachi conference. He was the third Muslim to hold this position after Badruddin Tyabji and Rahimtulla M. Sayani.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Council of State (India)</span>

The Council of State was the upper house of the legislature for British India created by the Government of India Act 1919 from the old Imperial Legislative Council, implementing the Montagu–Chelmsford Reforms. The Central Legislative Assembly was the lower house.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1934 Indian general election</span>

General elections were held in British India in 1934. The Indian National Congress emerged as the largest party in the Central Legislative Assembly.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1920 Indian general election</span>

General elections were held in British India in 1920 to elect members to the Imperial Legislative Council and the Provincial Councils. They were the first elections in the country's modern history.

General elections were held in British India in November 1923 for both the Central Legislative Assembly and Provincial Assemblies. The Central Legislative Assembly had 145 seats, of which 105 were elected by the public.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1926 Indian general election</span>

General elections were held in British India between 28 October and late November 1926 to elect members of the Imperial Legislative Council and the Provincial Legislative Councils.

General elections were held in British India in September 1930. They were boycotted by the Indian National Congress and marked by public apathy. The newly elected Central Legislative Assembly met for the first time on 14 January 1931.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1945 Indian general election</span>

General elections were held in British India in December 1945 to elect members of the Central Legislative Assembly and the Council of State. The Indian National Congress emerged as the largest party, winning 57 of the 102 elected seats. The Muslim League won all Muslim constituencies, but failed to win any other seats. Of the 13 remaining seats, 8 went to Europeans, 3 to independents, and 2 to Akali candidates in the Sikh constituencies of Punjab. This election coupled with the provincial one in 1946 proved to be a strategic victory for Jinnah and the partitionists. Even though Congress won, the League had united the Muslim vote and as such it gained the negotiating power to seek a separate Muslim homeland as it became clear that a united India would prove highly unstable. The elected members later formed the Constituent Assembly of India.

The New Year Honours 1910 were appointments by King Edward VII to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by members of the British Empire. They were announced on 4 January 1910.

The New Year Honours 1909 were appointments by King Edward VII to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by members of the British Empire. They were announced on 5 January 1909.

The New Year Honours 1908 were appointments by King Edward VII to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by members of the British Empire. They were announced on 31 December 1907.

The New Year Honours 1921 were appointments by King George V to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by members of the British Empire. They were published on 31 December 1920.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Khan Bahadur</span> Award

Khan Bahadur – a compound of Khan "Leader" and Bahadur "Brave" – was a formal title of respect and honor, which was conferred exclusively on Muslim and other non-Hindu natives of British India. It was one degree higher than the title of Khan Sahib.

The 1921 Birthday Honours were appointments by King George V to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of the British Empire. The appointments were made to celebrate the official birthday of the King, and were published on 3 and 4 June 1921.

The New Year Honours 1903, announced at the time as the Durbar Honours, were appointments to various orders and honours of the United Kingdom and British India. The list was announced on the day of the 1903 Delhi Durbar held to celebrate the succession of King Edward VII and Queen Alexandra as Emperor and Empress of India. The membership of the two Indian Orders were expanded to allow for all the new appointments.

The 1866 Birthday Honours were appointments by Queen Victoria to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of the British Empire. The appointments were made to celebrate the official birthday of the Queen, and were published in The London Gazette on 25 May and 29 May 1866.

The 1911 Delhi Durbar was held in December 1911 following the coronation in London in June of that year of King George V and Queen Mary. The King and Queen travelled to Delhi for the Durbar. For the occasion, the statutory limits of the membership of the Order of the Star of India and the Order of the Indian Empire were increased and many appointments were made to these and other orders. These honours were published in a supplement to the London Gazette dated 8 December 1911.

References

  1. Banerjee, Anil Chandra (1984). English Law in India. p. 143. ISBN   9788170171836.
  2. Chandra, Bipan (9 August 2016). India's Struggle for Independence. ISBN   9788184751833.
  3. Buckland, Charles (1999). Dictionary of Indian Biography. ISBN   9788170208976.
  4. Bhattacharya, Sabyasachi (2005). The Financial Foundations of the British Raj. p. 57. ISBN   9788125029038.
  5. Kashyap, Subhash (1994). History of the Parliament of India. ISBN   9788185402345.
  6. "Maharashtra State Gazetteers – Greater Bombay District". Cultural.maharashtra.gov.in. Retrieved 2022-08-11.
  7. Abdul, Latif Sayyid (30 November 1924). Addresses Poems and Other Writings. The Government Central Press.
  8. Mukherji, P. (1915). Indian constitutional documents, 1773–1915. Calcutta, Spink.
  9. "Surendranath Banerji, freedom fighter, India".
  10. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 "Login".
  11. Wikisource:Page:The Indian Biographical Dictionary.djvu/239
  12. Wikisource:Page:The Indian Biographical Dictionary.djvu/375
  13. 1 2 3 Rao, C. Hayavando (1915). The Indian Biographical Dictionary. Madras : Pillar. p. 606.
  14. Brown, Judith M. (26 September 1974). Gandhi's Rise to Power: Indian Politics 1915–1922. p. 162. ISBN   9780521098731.
  15. Bakshi, S. R. Punjab Through the Ages. p. 22.
  16. 1 2 "Login".