Law Commission of India: how law reform was first institutionalised under the Charter Act
Background
The Charter Act enacted by the British Parliament vested legislative power for the first time in a single authority, the Governor-General in Council.
It created an office of Law Member and provided for the appointment of a Law Commission.
Section 53 is described as the legislative mainspring of law reform in India.
The First Law Commission, with Lord Thomas Babington Macaulay as First Law Member, produced a draft of the Penal Code.
Four Law Commissions were constituted in the British period; their labour produced the Indian Code of Civil Procedure, the Indian Contract Act, the Indian Evidence Act and the Transfer of Property Act.
First Law Member:
Lord Thomas Babington Macaulay
Legislative mainspring of law reform:
Section 53 of the Charter Act
Law Commissions in the British period:
Four
Draft by the First Law Commission:
Penal Code
Why it matters for exams: The origin of the Law Commission and the drafting of the Penal Code under Macaulay are staple modern-history and polity facts.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSC