2 Constitution, Polity, Social Justice & International Relations · 2.1.1 Historical background
2.1.1.2 Crown rule: Government of India Act 1858 to Indian Councils Act 1909
After the Revolt of 1857 the British Crown took over India from the East India Company, and the Councils Acts of 1861, 1892 and 1909 slowly brought Indians into the legislative councils, first by nomination, then by indirect election.
- APPSC Group 1
- Advanced level
- 9 min read
- Free
Core facts
- Government of India Act, 1858 came after the Revolt of 1857. It is also called the Act for the Good Government of India.
- The Company's rule ended; India came directly under the British Crown.
- The Governor-General was also given the title Viceroy. The first Viceroy was Lord Canning.
- It abolished the Board of Control and the Court of Directors, ending double government.
- It created the post of Secretary of State for India, a member of the British Cabinet, answerable to the British Parliament.
- A 15-member Council of India was set up to advise him.
- Indian Councils Act, 1861: Indians were nominated to the Viceroy's legislative council as non-official members. In 1862 Canning nominated three Indians: the Raja of Benaras, the Maharaja of Patiala and Sir Dinkar Rao.
- Indian Councils Act, 1892: councils could discuss the budget and ask questions of the executive.
- Indian Councils Act, 1909 = Morley-Minto Reforms. Morley was Secretary of State; Lord Minto was Viceroy.
- It introduced separate electorates for Muslims.
- Lord Minto is called the Father of Communal Electorate.
- Satyendra Prasad Sinha became the first Indian member of the Viceroy's Executive Council, as Law Member.
Explained
Government of India Act, 1858
- The Secretary of State had full control over the Indian administration. The Viceroy was his agent in India.
- The Council of India (15 members) was only advisory. The Secretary of State was its chairman.
- The Secretary of State-in-Council was a body corporate. It could sue and be sued in India and in England.
- The Act's main aim was better administrative machinery for control from London. It did not change the system of government inside India much.
Indian Councils Act, 1861
- It began the practice of associating Indians with law-making, through nomination.
- It began decentralisation: it restored legislative powers to Bombay and Madras. This process ended in nearly full provincial autonomy in 1937.
- It provided for new legislative councils for other provinces: Bengal (1862), the North-Western Provinces (1886) and Punjab (1897).
- It gave statutory recognition to the portfolio system, which Canning had introduced in 1859. A council member headed one or more departments and could issue final orders for the council on its matters.
- The Viceroy could issue ordinances in an emergency without the council's consent. An ordinance lasted six months.
Indian Councils Act, 1892
- More non-official members in the central and provincial legislative councils, but an official majority stayed.
- Councils could discuss the budget and ask questions, but not vote on the budget.
- Non-official seats were filled by nomination on recommendation:
- Central council: the Viceroy nominated on the recommendation of the provincial legislative councils and the Bengal Chamber of Commerce.
- Provincial councils: the Governor nominated on the recommendation of district boards, municipalities, universities, trade associations, zamindars and chambers of commerce.
- The word "election" was not used, but this was in effect a limited, indirect election.
Indian Councils Act, 1909 (Morley-Minto)
| Provision | Detail |
|---|---|
| Size of Central Legislative Council | Raised from 16 to 60 |
| Majority | Official majority at the Centre; non-official majority allowed in provincial councils |
| Functions | Members could ask supplementary questions and move resolutions on the budget |
| Executive Councils | Indians associated for the first time; S.P. Sinha as Law Member |
| Electorate | Separate electorate for Muslims: Muslim members elected only by Muslim voters |
| Other special representation | Presidency corporations, chambers of commerce, universities and zamindars |
Deeper
What each Act added, in one table
| Act | Indians in councils | Powers of councils |
|---|---|---|
| 1861 | Nominated non-officials | Law-making only; no control over the executive |
| 1892 | Nominated on recommendation (indirect election) | Budget discussion; questions |
| 1909 | Elected, partly through separate electorates | Supplementary questions; budget resolutions; non-official majority in provinces |
Statement-level points
- The 1858 Act ended the Board of Control and Court of Directors, which Pitt's India Act (1784) had created.
- The 1858 Council of India lasted until the Government of India Act, 1935, which abolished it and gave the Secretary of State a body of advisers instead.
- The 1861 Act reversed the centralising trend of the 1833 Act by restoring law-making to Bombay and Madras.
- The 1861 Act's ordinance power is an early ancestor of the ordinance power under Articles 123 and 213.
- Indirect election was introduced in 1892, not 1861. Separate electorate was introduced in 1909, not 1919.
- The 1909 Act kept the official majority at the Centre; the non-official majority was only in the provinces.
- Even the 1909 Act gave no responsible government. The executive stayed answerable to London, not to the councils.
Why separate electorates matter
- The 1909 Act accepted the demand of the Simla deputation of Muslim leaders to Lord Minto (1906).
- Separate electorates treated communities as separate political units. Later Acts extended them to more groups (1919, 1935). Nationalists saw this as "divide and rule".
Common traps
- ✗ "The first Viceroy of India was Lord Dalhousie." ✓ It was Lord Canning (1858). He was already Governor-General and took the added title of Viceroy under the 1858 Act.
- ✗ "The Council of India under the 1858 Act could overrule the Secretary of State." ✓ It was only advisory, with the Secretary of State as chairman.
- ✗ "The Indian Councils Act, 1861 introduced indirect election." ✓ Indirect election ("nomination on recommendation") came with the 1892 Act.
- ✗ "Dadabhai Naoroji was one of the three Indians nominated in 1862." ✓ The three were the Raja of Benaras, the Maharaja of Patiala and Sir Dinkar Rao.
- ✗ "The 1909 Act gave a non-official majority in the Central Legislative Council." ✓ The Centre kept an official majority; non-official majorities were only in the provinces.
- ✗ "Lord Morley is the Father of Communal Electorate." ✓ It is Lord Minto, the Viceroy.
Quick revision
- 1858: Crown rule; Viceroy (Canning); Board of Control and Court of Directors abolished.
- 1858: Secretary of State + 15-member advisory Council of India; SoS-in-Council a body corporate.
- 1861: three Indians nominated (1862): Raja of Benaras, Maharaja of Patiala, Dinkar Rao.
- 1861: decentralisation; portfolio system recognised; ordinances for six months.
- New councils: Bengal 1862, NWP 1886, Punjab 1897.
- 1892: budget discussion; questions; nomination on recommendation.
- 1909 Morley-Minto: council 16 to 60; separate electorate for Muslims.
- First Indian on the Viceroy's Executive Council: S.P. Sinha, Law Member (1909).
Go deeper: Mains writing (beyond what APPSC Group 1 usually asks)
Mains writing Mains writing
- Frame: Crown rule began with tighter control from London (1858) and then made small, controlled openings for Indian participation (1861, 1892, 1909). Each step gave representation without responsibility.
- Analysis points:
- Control, not democracy. The Secretary of State system made India's government answerable to the British Parliament, not to Indians.
- Gradual Indian entry. Nomination (1861) led to indirect election (1892) and then direct but restricted election (1909). This built political experience and demands for more.
- Decentralisation. Restoring provincial law-making in 1861 began the long road to provincial autonomy (1937) and, later, a federal structure.
- Communal representation. The 1909 separate electorate is often seen as a step towards Partition.
- Executive tools. Ordinances and the portfolio system passed into the Constitution in modified form (Articles 123 and 213; allocation of business among ministers).
- Way forward / linkage: connect to the 1919 Act's dyarchy and the Montagu Declaration (1917), which first promised responsible government.
- Example: Article 123 still limits an ordinance's life, now to six weeks from the reassembly of Parliament, an echo of the six-month limit of 1861.
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