PROVISIONS OF INDIAN COUNCIL ACT 1861

     The Indian Councils Act 1861 was passed by British Parliament on 1st August 1861 to make substantial changes in the composition of the Governor General‘s council for executive & legislative purposes. The most significant feature of this Act was the association of Indians with the legislation work. 

REASONS FOR ENACTMENT OF INDIAN COUNCILS ACT 

    The Government of India Act 1858 had introduced significant changes in the manner in which India was governed from England, however, it did not alter in any substantial way the system of government that prevailed in India. Further, in the aftermath of the Mutiny of 1857, there was a general perception in England that it would be very difficult to secure the government in India without the cooperation of Indians in administration. 

These were the main reasons behind enacting some legislation which could overhaul the system of administration in India. 

Some other reasons were as follows: 

· Centralized law making was defective 

    The Charter act of 1833 had centralized the legislative procedures and deprived the governments of Madras and Bombay of their power of legislation. The idea behind centralizing the law making was secure uniformity of laws in the whole territory of East India Company but this system proved to be defective. It had only one representative each of the four provinces and it failed to make laws suiting to local conditions. Thus, there was need to allow the provinces to make laws for themselves. 

· Governor General in Council was overburdened 

    The Governor General in Council was failing in its legislative functions and was not able to work satisfactorily die to cumbersome procedures leading to delay in enactments. 

· Absence of representation 

    It also had no representation of the people in it. There was a growing demand that some representative element should be introduced in legislative council. 

CRITICAL EXAMINATION OF THE INDIAN COUNCILS ACT 1861 

    The Act of 1861 was important in the constitutional history because it enabled the Governor-General to associate the people of the land with work of legislation. And by vesting legislative powers in the Governments of Bombay and Madras which ultimately culminated in grant of almost complete internal autonomy to the provinces in the 1937.