Government of India Act 1919

The Government of India Act 1919, officially titled the Montagu-Chelmsford Reforms, restructured the administration of British India. Named after Edwin Montagu, the Secretary of State for India, and Lord Chelmsford, the Viceroy, the legislation introduced responsible government in the provinces through a dual administration system called Dyarchy. The August 20, 1917 declaration by Edwin Montagu in the British House of Commons laid the groundwork for this Act. Montagu declared that British policy aimed at increasing the association of Indians in every branch of administration and developing self-governing institutions.

Division of Administrative Subjects

The Act introduced administrative devolution by classifying government functions into two distinct lists: Central subjects and Provincial subjects.

Central Subjects

• Topics of national importance were retained under the exclusive domain of the Central Government.
• Key entries included defense, foreign affairs, political relations, railways, posts and telegraphs, currency, civil and criminal law, and customs duties.

Provincial Subjects

• Topics related to regional administration were transferred to the provincial domain.
• Key entries included public health, sanitation, education, local self-government, agriculture, water supplies, land revenue, police, and prisons.

Dyarchy in the Provinces

Dyarchy, derived from the Greek word di-arche (meaning double rule), applied to the executive governance of the provinces. Provincial subjects were split into two operational categories: Reserved and Transferred.

Reserved Subjects

• Administered directly by the Governor and his Executive Council without accountability to the provincial legislature.
• Portfolios included land revenue, justice, police, prisons, finance, irrigation, and press control.
• Executive Council members were appointed by the Crown for a five-year term and operated independently of legislative votes.

Transferred Subjects

• Administered by the Governor acting on the advice of Indian Ministers appointed from among the elected members of the provincial legislative council.
• Portfolios included education, local self-government, public health, agriculture, public works, and excise.
• Ministers were accountable to the legislative council and faced removal if a no-confidence motion passed against them.

Reforms in the Central Executive and Legislature

Executive Setup

• The Governor-General remained the supreme executive authority accountable only to the British Parliament through the Secretary of State.
• The Act mandated that three out of the six members of the Viceroy’s Executive Council (excluding the Commander-in-Chief) had to be Indians.
• Sir Tej Bahadur Sapru joined as the Law Member, while other portfolios like Education and Commerce were assigned to Indian members.

Central Legislature

The Act replaced the Imperial Legislative Council with a bicameral legislature consisting of two houses: the Council of State and the Central Legislative Assembly.

• Council of State (Upper House): Consisted of 60 members, of which 34 were elected and 26 were nominated by the Governor-General. The house had a 5-year term. Women were barred from membership in the Upper House.
• Central Legislative Assembly (Lower House): Consisted of 145 members, of which 104 were elected and 41 were nominated (26 official and 15 non-official). The assembly had a 3-year term.
• Overriding Powers: The central legislature passed laws for British India, but the Governor-General held veto authority. He restored cut demands through his certification power, issued ordinances, and withheld assent to bills.

Franchise Expansion and Communal Representation

• Restricted Franchise: Voting rights were tied to property qualifications, land revenue payment, and income tax brackets. Only 3% of the adult population gained voting rights.
• Women’s Voting Rights: The Act allowed provincial legislatures to decide whether women could vote. Madras became the first province to grant voting rights to women in 1921.
• Separate Electorates: Communal electorates were extended beyond Muslims to include Sikhs in Punjab, Indian Christians, Anglo-Indians, and Europeans.

Structural Breakdown of Central Legislative Bodies

Financial and Institutional Changes

• Separation of Budgets: Provincial budgets were separated from the Central budget. Provincial legislatures received authority to pass their own budgets and levy local taxes.
• Public Service Commission: The Act provided for an independent civil service commission. Following the Lee Commission recommendations in 1924, the Central Public Service Commission was set up on October 1, 1926, with Sir Ross Barker as its first Chairman.
• High Commissioner for India: Created the office of the High Commissioner for India in London. Administrative duties previously performed by the Secretary of State shifted to this official, paid out of Indian revenues.
• Statutory Commission: Section 84A mandated the appointment of a statutory commission ten years after the Act to review the system. This provision led to the appointment of the Simon Commission in 1927.

Key Historical Facts

Lionel Curtis framed the administrative design of Dyarchy in his 1920 book Dyarchy. The Indian National Congress rejected the reform scheme at a special session in Bombay in August 1918, chaired by Syed Hasan Imam. Madras was the only major province where Dyarchy functioned continuously from 1921 to 1937 under the Justice Party administration. The Instrument of Instructions was issued to Governors outlining how to exercise discretionary powers over transferred subjects. Bhagat Singh and Batukeshwar Dutt threw smoke bombs in the Central Legislative Assembly in April 1929 to protest against the Trade Disputes Bill and Public Safety Bill. Non-voteable items accounted for nearly 75% of the central budget, leaving the central legislature without financial control over military and political expenditures.