BLS LLB - HISTORY OF COURTS - PART 2 - CHAPTER NO. 1

CHARTER OF 1600 –

ESTABLISHMENT OF EAST INDIA COMPANY, ORGANISATION AND MANAGEMENT

            All the members of the company constituted themselves as a general court. The general court was to elect annually the court of directors. The court of Directors consisted of a governor and 24 directors. The court of directors was to manage the entire business of the company. The governor and directors constituting the court of directors were to be elected by the general court for 1 year but any of them might be removed from his office, even before the expiry of his term of office by the general court.

Legislative Power –

            The charter of 1600 conferred on the company came some legislative power also. The charter authorized the general court to make by laws, ordinance etc. for the good governance of the company and its servants and also for the better advancement of trade and traffic. The charter authorized to punish the violation of these laws and punishment was to be reasonable and not contrary to the laws, statutes or customs of England. Thus the charter of 1600 conferred on the company the power of minor legislation with the object to enable the company to regulate its own business and maintain discipline amongst it’s confer on the company a power to legislate for and govern some territory. The charter did not empower the company to decide the case of capital offences and to prescribe death sentences. The laws made by the company in 1621 dealt with the management of its meetings and its officers in England and the administrative arrangements in east and thus they clearly indicate the limited and restricted charter of the legislative power conferred in the company by the charter of 1600 is of historic importance as it is the germ out of which the Anglo-Indian codes were ultimately developed.

            After incorporation the company very soon realized that its legislative power was not sufficient to maintain discipline amongst the servants if the company on the high seas. At the instance of the commission to the general in the command of the vessel for each voyage empowering him to conflict punishment for capital offences such as Murder and Mutiny and execute material law. In the case of capital offences the verdict was to be given by a jury. Thus these two Royal grants enabled the company to enforce discipline amongst its servants both on the high seas and on the Indian soil.

REGULATION LAW AND CHARTER ACT OF 1813 –

            The system of regulation law played important role in the development of the law in India. The Charter of 1726 empowered the Governor-in-Council of each presidency town. Before 1726 the legislative power was conferred in the company. The charter of 1726 empowere the Governor –in-Council of each presidency town to make by laws, rules and ordinance for the regulation of the corporation and inhabitance of the settlement concerned. These by – laws, rules and ordinance were to be agreeable to reason and not contrary to the laws and statues of England. They were not to be effective unless approved and confirmed by the court of Directors of the company in England. This legislative power of the Governor-In-Council was continued under the charter of 1753. The regulating Act 1773 also empowered the Governor-In-Council for make laws and rules.

            On 1^st May 1793 a code known as Cornwallis Code containing a set of 48 regulations was printed and published.

CHARTER OF 1813 –

            This act declared formally the sovereignty of the British Crown over the Company’s territorial acquisitions of India. However it allowed its possession with the company. Charter Act of 1813 renewed the Charter of the Company for a further period of 20 years. This Act threw open the Indian Trade to all Britishers except the tea trade which was continued under the company’s monopoly. The Act conferred jurisdiction on the justice of peace in cases of trespass or assault committed by the British subjects on natives of India and also in cases of small debts due to the natives from the British subjects. The British subjects residing trading or occupying immovable property more than 10 miles from presidency towns were placed under the jurisdiction of by the Diwani Adalat for Civil Cases. Special provision was made for the exercise of Criminal Cases. The Act made provisions for the training of Civil and Military servants of the company.