INDIAN COUNCIL

ACT, 1892
BY- YASH GUPTA
 INTRODUCTION
 Act of 1892 increased the number of additional member in all the legislative council.
 For the central legislature the Governor-general could nominate not less than ten and not
more than sixteen additional members.
 The Governors of Bombay and Madras were authorised to nominate not less and not less
than twenty additional members
 Mode of nomination could be determined by the Governor-General with the approval of
secretary of state for India.
 The plan adopted for central legislature was that five of ten non official members were
chosen by the non official members of legislatures of Madras, Bombay, Bengal, North-West
Frontier Province (N.W.F.P) and Oudh.
 Principle of indirect election was introduced.
 Although the Act of 1892 was a step towards the participation of Government, it was too
small a measure to satisfy the growth and organised demand for self-government by the
congress, provoked by the writing of Tilak and some other radical elements within the
congress
 Background Behind Indian Council
Act, 1892
 The legislative council established by the Act of 1861 failed to satisfy the aspiration of
Indian masses.
 The legislatures constituted under this Act included only a few nominated non-officials and
their presence in the council was of little use to Indians though British Government elicited
a deal of useful information for them.
 Moreover Power of the legislative council under the Act of 1861 had been restricted with
the result the laws enacted by them were nothing but mere orders of the Government.
 There were many shortcomings of working of the legislative Council in India.
 As per Lord Ripon supreme council constituted under the Act of 1861 needed to be
recognised as it lacked representative character and served no useful purpose to the
Governor-General for ascertaining public opinion.
 He suggested that the Supreme Council should consist of not more than ten elected
members, of whom three were to be the representative from Municipalities of Madras,
Bombay and Calcutta while the other from the municipal committees of different towns
selected by the Governor General-in-council.
 Role of Indian National Congress
 The impact of enlightened liberalism and political idea of western coupled with the general
discontent and disappointment among the Indian masses against, the Indian National
Movement.
 An organised beginning in this direction was made when seventy two Indians from
different part of India met for the first time in Bombay on December 28, 29 and 30, 1885
to work out a common programme of political action. This marked the beginning of Indian
National Congress in India.
 The demand for the expansion of Council was reiterated and elaborated at second session
of Congress which was attended by 450 delegate ad presided by Dadabhai Naraoji
 elective element was an essential ingredient of the demand for the expansion of Council.
Same resolution was repeated by the third session of Indian National Council in 1888. It
was attended by 600 delegates and in fourth session held in 1889 in which 1200 members
participated.
 Thus in essence the enlargement of supreme as well as local council on the elective
principles was the main demand of the Indian National Congress during 1885-90.
 Provision of Indian Council Act,
 The Indian National Congress took up 1892
the issue of reform and reconstitution of the councils for the
Councils for consideration in its fifth session held at Bombay in 1889.
 Mr. Charles Bradlaugh, a member of British parliament and a staunch supporter of free institution
also attended this session and promised to introduce the bill to this effect in the British parliament
on his return to England.
 He, introduced a Bill in British house of Common in 1890 to amend the Indian Council Act of 1861
suggesting the introduction of elective principle through a system of electoral colleges and the
number of official member being restricted to not more than one fourth while those of elected
members not less than one-half in the central as well as provincial legislative Councils.
 The Bill however, did not receive the attention of the house as it was “crowded by other business” .
 Charles Bradlaugh re-introduced the Bill again in 1891 the House of Lords introduced a fresh Bill on
this issue which was passed by both the house and finally became the Indian Council Act of 1892.
 The main object was “to widen the basis and expand the function of the Government of India and to
provide further opportunities to the non-official and native element in Indian society to participate
in the work of government.
 the Act sought to confer three main concessions on the supreme and Provincial councils, namely,
the privilege of financial criticism to the councillors, the privilege of interpellation, and addition in
the number of members in both categories of Councils.
 Change in the Supreme
Legislative Council
 The Act provided for an increase in the number of ‘Additional Members’ in the supreme
legislative Council.
 The Governor-in-council was empowered with the approval of the secretary of state in
Council, to make regulations as to conditions under which the nomination of ‘Additional
Members’ was to be made.
 The Act also enlarged the functions of the Supreme Legislative Council. It could discuss
annual financial statement under certain conditions.
 Changes in the Provincial Legislative
Councils
 Like the Supreme Legislative council, the number of the ‘Additional Members’ in the
provincial Legislative council was also increased.
 The function of the provincial legislative councils were also enlarged. They could interpret
on matters of public interest and had right to discuss policies of the Government of India.
 The most striking feature of the Council Act of 1892 was that it cautiously introduced
elective element in the Councils.
 the system of indirect election was introduced by the Act of 1892 for the inclusion non-
official members in the Legislative Councils of India.
 the Act was a step forward as compared with the earlier Council Act of 1861 which
introduced the system of nomination without any elective element in it.
 Critical Appreciation of the Indian
Council Act, 1892
 The Act of 1892 was an attempt to improve the Legislative councils constituted under the
Indian Council Act, 1861.
 The right of interpellation and discussion of the Budget were granted but the living forces of
elective principle, which alone could properly work them, were not breathed into the
organisation of the enlarged Council.
 The main changes introduced by the Indian councils Act, 1892 were a small increase in the
membership of the councils and indirect adoption of the principle of election under regulations.
 The members were granted the concession to discuss the Budget and the privilege to ask
questions. The Indian National Congress, in its 1892 session expressed dissatisfaction at the
Indian council Act, 1892 for it did not concede to the people the right of electing their own
representatives to the councils.
 The Act only marked a curious extension of the experiment which had been started under the
Indian Council Act, 1861.
 The aims of both these Acts were the same, that is to associate Indians with the administration
so that their misconceptions about British policy were removed and to provide an avenue for
the Indian public opinion
 The size of the council was deliberately kept small as not to turn them into “mini-
parliament”.
 The remarkable contribution of the Indian council Act, 1892 to the constitutional history of
India was that it introduced the system of “indirect election” in the legislative councils.
 It also emphasized the need for giving re-organisation to the communal representation,
though in a disguised form.
 The Act of 1892 provided an opportunity for Indians to participate in the Legislative
function of the Government and thus it was a pacifying measure initiated by the British
Government to appease the Indian masses.
 Though they could not override the official majority of the councils, but they had the right
to express their view freely and criticize the administrative policies of the Government
which were against the interest of the people in general.
 Defect of the Indian Council Act of
1892
 The Indian council Act, 1892 though an advance upon the previous measure, suffered from
certain grave defects:
 The working of the legislative councils afforded no satisfaction from the Government, much
less to the people, of India.
 The increase in number of the non-official members of the councils was also unsatisfactory and
Schwann called it as “a very paltry and miserable addition”.
 the representation given to various group and territories by the Act was neither fair nor
satisfactory, some classes were over represented while others had no representation
whatsoever.
 the representation given to the general public in the provinces was negligible and deplorable.
 The powers of the legislative council were also hedged in by several restrictions.
 the member could not ask supplementary questions nor could they move any resolution.
 They could not even question the executive without serving a six day’s notice. The president
could disallow any question without serving six day’s notice.
 CONCLUSION
 The Indian Council Act of 1892 was an Act of the Parliament of United Kingdom that empowered
Legislative council in British India by increase their which laid the foundation of parliamentary
system in India.
 Before this Act, the Indian National Congress put forth with some during its session of 1885-90.
 The major demands placed were as:
• A simultaneous examination of ICS to be held in England and India, Reforms of the legislative council
and adoption of the principle of the election in place of nomination, opposition to the annexation of
upper Burma, reduction of military expenditure, these demands of INC (Indian National Congress)
make way for formulation of this Act.
• The number of non-official members was increased, both in central and provincial legislatures.
• The universities, Zamindars, municipalities etc. were authorized to recommend members to
provincial councils. This way the introduction of the principle of Representation
• The Act allowed the councils to discuss each year’s annual financial statement.
• The number of the additional members of the Governor General Executive council was raised up to
16.
• Under this act two-fifth of the members of the council was to be non-official.
• Indian Act of 1892 laid the foundation of Parliamentary system in India and also was the landmark in
the constitutional development of India. It was the first time the election principles was accepted and
THANKYOU