Important Legal News: April 2019.

• Unregulated Deposit Schemes Ordinance 2019.

• Objective: To ban Unregulated Deposit Schemes and to protect the interest of the depositors.
• It aims to prevent such unregulated deposit schemes (not registered with any government regulators like RBI or SEBI) or arrangements at their inception.
• It also makes soliciting, inviting or accepting deposits pursuant to an unregulated deposited scheme as a punishable offence.

• Wildlife First & Ors. Vs. Ministry of Environment & Forests & Ors. 


• SC ordered eviction of nearly one million persons from forest lands across states, who failed to establish their claims as forest-dwellers under the Scheduled Tribes and Other Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act 2006(Forests Rights Act).

International Financial Services Centres Authority Bill, 2019.

• Objective: to set up a unified authority to regulate all financial services in IFSCs in the country.
• An IFSC caters to customers outside the jurisdiction of the domestic economy. Such centres deal with flows of finance, financial products and services across borders. 
• The authority will exercise powers and perform functions of RBI, SEBI, IRDAI And PFRDA.

Govt of NCT of Delhi v. Union of India.

• The SC held following: 
1. Control of services: bench differed. Hence decided to refer it to a larger bench.
2. Power of Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB): ACB is under exclusive authority of LG & Delhi government has no power in this regard.
3. Appointment of Special Public Prosecutor: LG is bound by aid and advise of Council of Ministers.

Journey to our Constitution: Indian Councils Act 1861.

This Act undone effect of the 1833 Act inasmuch as it restored the power of legislation to the Governments of Madras and Bombay. Also it made notable changes in the composition of the Governor General's council for executive & legislative purposes.

Changes brought:

Executive purposes.

Council of the Governor General was expanded and a fifth ordinary member was added. Now it included total 7 members (other two members being the Governor General and the commander in Chief).

Legislative purposes.

For the legislative purposes, not less than 6 and not more than 12 members were additionally to be nominated (comprising of both official and non-official members) by the Governor General and they were to hold the office for two years. Out of these, not less than half were required to be Non-Official. 

Similar provisions were enacted for the Governor's Council in provinces of British India.

Portfolio system:

With the Indian Councils Act for the first time Portfolio system started. Each member of the Council of the Governor General was allocated portfolio of a particular department. Lord Canning (1856-1858 as Governor general, 1858-1862 as Viceroy) was the First to start a Portfolio system.

Before the adoption of the portfolio system in the Government of India, the whole business of the Indian governmental business was carried out by the Governor-General-in Council (earlier name of Cabinet Secretariat), As the amount and complexity of business of the Government increased, the work of the various departments was distributed amongst the members of the Council: only the more important cases were dealt with by the Governor-General or the Council collectively.

Criticism:

1. Though the non-official members were added, the councils were neither a deliberative nor a representative body as these members could only consider the proposals kept before them by the Governor-General. But they could not criticise it.
2. The Governor -General was given overriding powers inasmuch as it enjoyed the powers of prior sanction, without which a bill could not be introduced in the assembly. Also, it enjoyed the ordinance making power in situation of emergency, having the force of Act of the Council. He could also veto a bill after it was passed.

Journey to our Constitution: Charter Act 1833

Impact on trade.

The Charter Act of 1833 was the 20 years renewal of the charter in 1813. As per this Charter, the company was asked to close its commercial business. 

• Thus, this time the charter was renewed on the condition that Company should abandon its trade entirely, alike with India and China, and permit Europeans to settle freely in India. 
• The company lost its monopoly in China and also the trade of tea, granted by Charter act of 1813.

Legislative journey of India.

• This act made the Governor General of Bengal the Governor General of British India and all financial and administrative powers were centralized in the hands of Governor General-in-Council. Thus with Charter Act of 1833, Lord William Bentinck became the “First Governor General of British India”. 

• The number of the members of the Governor General's council was again fixed to 4, which had been reduced by the Pitt's India act. However, certain limits were imposed on the functioning of the 4th member. The 4th member was NOT entitled to act as a member of the council except for legislative purposes. 

• First fourth person to be appointed as the member of the Council was Lord Macaulay.

• It deprived the Governor of Bombay and Madras of their legislative powers. The Governor-General was given exclusive legislative powers for the whole of British India.

Enhanced power of Governor-General of India.

He could repeal, amend or alter any laws or regulations including all persons (whether British or native or foreigners), all places and things in every part of British territory in India, for all servants of the company, and articles of war. 
However, the Court of Directors acting under the Board of control could veto any laws made by the Governor-General-in-Council.

Governor-General's Government was referred to as the Government of India for the first time.

Codification of laws.

The charter act of 1833 is considered to be an attempt to codify all the Indian Laws.

• The British parliament as a supreme body, retained the right to legislate for the British territories in India and repeal the acts. 

• The act of 1833 provided that all laws made in India were to be laid before the parliament and were to be known as Acts. 

• In a step towards codifying the laws, the Governor-General-in-Council was directed under the Charter act of 1833, to set up an Indian law Commission.

First Indian Law Commission. 

The first law commission was set up by the Charter act of 1833 and Lord Macaulay was its most important member and Chairman. 

• The other members of this commission were English barrister Cameron, Macleod of Madras service, William Anderson of Bombay Service and Sir William McNaughton of the Calcutta Service. Sir William McNaughton did not accept the appointment. 
• The objectives of the law commission was to inquire into the Jurisdiction, powers and rules of the courts of justice police establishments, existing forms of judicial procedure, nature and operation of all kinds of laws. 
• It was directed that the law Commission shall submit its report to the Governor General-in-council and this report was to be placed in the British parliament.

Indians in the Government service.

The Charter act of 1833 was the first act which provisioned to freely admit the natives of India to share an administration in the country. 

Mitigation of Slavery.

This act also directed the Governor General-in-Council to adopt measures to mitigate the state of slavery, persisting in India since sultanate Era. The Governor General-in-Council was also directed to pay attention to laws of marriage, rights and authorities of the heads of the families, while drafting any laws.

More Bishops.

The number of British residents was increasing in India. The charter act of 1833 laid down regulation of establishment of Christian establishments in India and the number of Bishops was made 3. (Bishop is an ordained or consecrated member of the Christian clergy who is generally entrusted with a position of authority and oversight).

NEXT: Charter Act 1853.