ESTABLISHMENT OF LAW

The Indian Constituent Assembly passed the Abolition of Privy Council Jurisdiction Act in 1949 to abolish the jurisdiction of the Privy Council in respect of appeals from India and also to provide for pending appeals. The present day judicial system in India is quite complicated. It consists of a Supreme Court at its top, High Courts in the middle and the Subordinate Courts at the bottom. On January 26, 1950, the Federal Court gave way to the Supreme Court (inaugurated on January 28, 1950) under the new Constitution and thus began an exciting new era in Indian Legal History. The Supreme Court, highest court of the land enjoys a very wide jurisdiction. Under Article 131 of the Constitution the Supreme Court has an exclusive original jurisdiction in cases arise from the centre and the constituent States or between the States inter se. The Court even has appellate jurisdiction in case of appeals from its lower courts. Under article 32 of the Constitution the Court can issue directions, orders or writs for enforcement of the fundamental rights granted to the people. The President in case of matters related to public importance or treaties etc even seek the advice of the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court is a court of record and it has the power to review its decisions. It consists of the Chief Justice and twenty five other Judges appointed by the President of the country. The present Chief Justice is K.G. Balakrishanan. Second in the hierarchy come the High Courts. As mentioned above the first High Court in the country was formed under the Act of 1861. But after independence the High Courts have also become the courts of record with appellate and original jurisdiction. They have been conferred the power to issue writs. The High Courts have superintendence over all the courts within its territorial jurisdiction. The decisions of the High Courts become precedents and are followed by the courts subordinate to it. Each State has its own High Court and a common High Court for two or more States can also be made. With respect to Subordinate Courts, the Judges are appointed by the Governor and is controlled by the corresponding High Court.Nyaya Panchayats are the judicial component of the Panchayat system and are the lowest ring of our judiciary. Their composition and power differs from State to State. They have jurisdiction over petty civil and criminal cases. Our people did not have much say in the formation and reformation of our law during the British Period. But soon after independence Dr. Hari Singh Gaur moved a resolution in the Constituent Assembly recommending the establishment of a statutory law revision committee. But later the resolution was withdrawn on the assurance of the then Law Minister, Dr. B.R. Ambedkar that a more suitable machinery, would be devised for revising law. This concern was raised time and again and finally a non-official resolution in this regard was moved in the Lok Sabha on 19th

November, 1954. This resolution was also withdrawn after a statement by the then Prime Minister Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru which led to the then Law Minister Shri. C.C. Biswas announcing in the Lok Sabha the decision of the Government of India, to appoint a law commission, the membership and terms of reference. The commission, which was initially appointed up to 31st December 1956 and then extended from time to time up to 3oth September 1958, consisted of 7 members with Shri. M.C. Setalvad as its Chairman. The Commission submitted fourteen reports in all, thirteen on statutes revision, whereas the fourteenth one running into two volumes relates to reform in judicial administration. The report was the result of a long questionnaire and deliberations held in different parts of the country. One of the important recommendations of the Commission was of making Hindi as the common language throughout for all legal works and the regional languages for district and lower Courts.

ESTABLISHMENT OF HIGH COURTS

The full-fledged High Court of Judicature for the Jammu and Kashmir State was established in the year 1928. Prior to the establishment of High Court of Judicature. The Ruler of the State (Maharaja) was the final authority in the administration of justice. In the year 1889, the British Government asked the then Ruler of the State, Maharaja Partap Singh to appoint a Council and the Judicial member of the Council exercised all the appellate powers both on civil and criminal side. The State having two provinces Jammu and Kashmir, had chief judges exercising judicial authority but they acted under the superintendence and control of the Law member of the Council. Later the Council was abolished and a Minister designated as Judge of the High Court was appointed by the Ruler to decide judicial cases. In 1927 a new Constitution was sanctioned by the then Ruler of the State and instead of Law Member, a Ministry in the Judicial Department was created. Thereafter, in 1928, by virtue of Order No. 1 dated 26.3.1928, the High Court of Judicature was established and for the first times the High Court was to consist of The Chief Justice and two Judges. The usual places of sitting of the High Court uses to be Jammu and Srinagar. In 1939 the Ruler promulgated the Constitution Act of 1996 which incorporated the provisions of law relating to the High Court and conferred upon the High Court a substantial measure of Independence. The High Court was invested with powers of superintendence and control over the Courts / District judiciary. The 1996 (1939 A.D.) Act also constituted 3 members Board of Judicial Advisers akin to the Privy Council in British India. The Board was to advise the Ruler in the disposal of the civil and criminal appeals against the decisions of the High Court.

ESTABLISHMENT OF SUPREME COURTS

The Supreme Court of India is the highest judicial forum and final court of appeal as established by Part V, Chapter IV of the Constitution of India. According to the Constitution of India, the role of the Supreme Court is that of a federal court and guardian of the Constitution. Articles 124 to 147 of the Constitution of India lay down the composition and jurisdiction of the Supreme Court of India. The Supreme Court is meant to be the last resort and highest appellate court which takes up appeals against judgments of the High Courts of the states and territories. Also, disputes between states or petitions involving a serious infringement of fundamental and human rights are usually brought directly to the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court of India held its inaugural sitting on 28 January 1950 and since then has delivered more than 24,000 reported judgments. On 28 January 1950, two days after India became a sovereign democratic republic, the Supreme Court came into being. The inauguration took place in the Chamber of Princes in the Parliament building. The Chamber of Princes had earlier been the seat of the Federal Court of India for 12 years, between 1937 and 1950, and was the seat of the Supreme Court until the Supreme Court acquired its present premises in 1958. The Supreme Court of India replaced both the Federal Court of India and the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council at the apex of the Indian court system. After its inauguration on 28 January 1950, the Supreme Court commenced its sittings in the Chamber of Princes in the Parliament House. The Court moved into the present building in 1958. The Supreme Court Bar Association is the bar of the highest court. The current president of the SCBA is Mr. Pravin Parekh. Mr. Sanjay Bansal is the present Honorary Secretary of SCBA.

INDIAN INDEPENDENCE ACT-1947

The Indian Independence Act 1947 (10 & 11 Geo 6 c. 30) was as an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that partitioned British India into the two new independent dominions of India and Pakistan. The Act received the royal assent on 18 July 1947, and the two new countries came into being on 15 August. The legislation was formulated by the government of Prime Minister Clement Attlee, after representatives of the Indian National Congress, the Muslim League, and the Sikh community came to an agreement with the Viceroy of India, Lord Mountbatten of Burma, on what has come to be known as the 3 June Plan or Mountbatten Plan. The Act enabled the representatives of India and Pakistan to frame their own Constitutions and to provide for the "exceedingly difficult period of transition". In another sense, the Act was a mere formal reflection of the promises made under the Mountbatten Plan. Under the Act:

Two Independent dominions (India and Pakistan) were to be set up on 15 August, 1947. Pakistan will comprise of Sindh, Baluchistan, N.W.F.P., West Punjab and East Bengal.

The legislatures of each dominion shall have full power to make laws for that dominion (legislative supremacy). Pending the adoption of a new constitution for each dominion, the existing Constituent Assembly would be Dominion Legislature, and both Dominion and every Province would be governed by the provisions of the Government of India Act, 1935. Each Dominion was empowered to modify this Act, through its Governor-General up to March 31, 1948 and thereafter by its Constituent Assembly. The King's Power to veto laws or to reserve them for His Majesty's pleasure was given up and each new Governor-General was given the right to assent in His Majesty's name to any Bill passed by the Dominion Legislature of his country. Suzerainty and paramountcy of the British Crown over the Indian States was terminated through the Act with all treaties, agreements, etc., between the two to lapse on August 15. The existing arrangements between the States and the Government of India were to continue pending detailed negotiations between these states and the new Dominions. The office of the Secretary of State for India was abolished. The Secretary for Commonwealth Affairs was to take on his work. The words "Emperor of India" and "India Imperator" were to be dropped from the Royalstyle and titles. Both the dominions had the right to go out of the British Commonwealth as and when they desire. Thus, the Act converted India from a dependency of the crown into two separate dominions. India was free from the control of the British Parliament and Whitehall. The Act according to Mr. Attlee was "a culminating point" in a long course of events- the Act of 1935, the Cripps Mission, etc. The Act was acclaimed as "the noblest and the greatest law ever enacted by the British Parliament."

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA ACT-1935

The Government of India Act 1935 was originally passed in August 1935 (25 & 26 Geo. 5 c. 42), and is said to have been the longest (British) Act of Parliament ever enacted by that time. Because of its length, the Act was retroactively split by the Government of India (Reprinting) Act 1935 (26 Geo. 5 & 1 Edw. 8 c. 1) into two separate Acts: 1. The Government of India Act 1935 (26 Geo. 5 & 1 Edw. 8 c. 2) 2. The Government of Burma Act 1935 (26 Geo. 5 & 1 Edw. 8 c. 3) The most significant aspects of the Act were:

the grant of a large measure of autonomy to the provinces of British India (ending the system of dyarchy introduced by the Government of India Act 1919) provision for the establishment of a "Federation of India", to be made up of both British India and some or all of the "princely states" the introduction of direct elections, thus increasing the franchise from seven million to thirty-five million people a partial reorganization of the provinces: o Sind was separated from Bombay o Bihar and Orissa was split into the separate provinces of Bihar and Orissa

Burma was completely separated from India Aden was also detached from India, and established as a separate colony membership of the provincial assemblies was altered so as to include more elected Indian representatives, who were now able to form majorities and be appointed to form governments the establishment of a Federal Court

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However, the degree of autonomy introduced at the provincial level was subject to important limitations: the provincial Governors retained important reserve powers, and the British authorities also retained a right to suspend responsible government. The parts of the Act intended to establish the Federation of India never came into operation, due to opposition from rulers of the princely states. The remaining parts of the Act came into force in 1937, when the first elections under the Act were also held.

MODERN THINKER Dr.B.R.Ambedkar

Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar (14 April 1891 6 December 1956), popularly also known as Babasaheb, was an Indian jurist, political leader, philosopher, anthropologist, historian, orator, economist, editor. He was also the Chairman of the Drafting Committee of Indian Constitution. Born into a poor Mahar (considered an Untouchable caste) family, Ambedkar spent his whole life fighting against social discrimination, the system of Chaturvarna the categorization of Hindu society into four varnas and the Hindu caste system. He converted to Buddhism and is also credited with providing a spark for the conversion of hundreds of thousands of untouchables to Theravada Buddhism. Ambedkar was posthumously awarded the Bharat Ratna, India's highest civilian award, in 1990.

Role in drafting India's Constitution

Upon India's independence on 15 August 1947, the new Congress-led government invited Ambedkar to serve as the nation's first law minister, which he accepted. On 29 August, Ambedkar was appointed Chairman of the Constitution Drafting Committee, charged by the Assembly to write India's new Constitution. Granville Austin has described the Indian Constitution drafted by Ambedkar as 'first and foremost a social document'. ... 'The majority of India's constitutional provisions are either directly arrived at furthering the aim of social revolution or attempt to foster this revolution by establishing conditions necessary for its achievement.' The text prepared by Ambedkar provided constitutional guarantees and protections for a wide range of civil liberties for individual citizens, including freedom of religion, the abolition of untouchability and the outlawing of all forms of discrimination. Ambedkar argued for extensive economic and social rights for women, and also won the Assembly's support for introducing a

system of reservations of jobs in the civil services, schools and colleges for members of scheduled castes and scheduled tribes, a system akin to affirmative action. India's lawmakers hoped to eradicate the socio-economic inequalities and lack of opportunities for India's depressed classes through these measures. The Constitution was adopted on 26 November 1949 by the Constituent Assembly. Ambedkar resigned from the cabinet in 1951 following the stalling in parliament of his draft of the Hindu Code Bill, which sought to expound gender equality in the laws of inheritance, marriage and the economy. Although supported by Prime Minister Nehru, the cabinet and many other Congress leaders, it received criticism from a large number of members of parliament. Ambedkar independently contested an election in 1952 to the lower house of parliament, the Lok Sabha, but was defeated. He was appointed to the upper house, of parliament, the Rajya Sabha in March 1952 and would remain as member till death.