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    Establishment of Mayor's Court - 1726

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    Kritika Pandey
    1. The Charter of 1726 established Mayor's Courts in Madras, Bombay, and Calcutta to provide a uniform justice system across British India's settlements. 2. The Mayor's Courts consisted of a Mayor and 9 aldermen, with jurisdiction over civil cases in their respective presidencies. Appeals were heard by the Governor and Council or in England. 3. Justices of the peace, who were senior members of the Governor's Council, could hear petty crimes and make local ordinances according to English law. This helped formalize the legal system in British India.

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    Establishment of Mayor's Court - 1726

    Uploaded by

    Kritika Pandey
    225 views6 pages
    1. The Charter of 1726 established Mayor's Courts in Madras, Bombay, and Calcutta to provide a uniform justice system across British India's settlements. 2. The Mayor's Courts consisted of a Mayor and 9 aldermen, with jurisdiction over civil cases in their respective presidencies. Appeals were heard by the Governor and Council or in England. 3. Justices of the peace, who were senior members of the Governor's Council, could hear petty crimes and make local ordinances according to English law. This helped formalize the legal system in British India.

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    Establishment of Mayor’s Court – 1726

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    1. The Charter of 1726 established Mayor's Courts in Madras, Bombay, and Calcutta to provide a uniform justice system across British India's settlements. 2. The Mayor's Courts consisted of a Mayor and 9 aldermen, with jurisdiction over civil cases in their respective presidencies. Appeals were heard by the Governor and Council or in England. 3. Justices of the peace, who were senior members of the Governor's Council, could hear petty crimes and make local ordinances according to English law. This helped formalize the legal system in British India.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    225 views6 pages

    Establishment of Mayor's Court - 1726

    Uploaded by

    Kritika Pandey
    1. The Charter of 1726 established Mayor's Courts in Madras, Bombay, and Calcutta to provide a uniform justice system across British India's settlements. 2. The Mayor's Courts consisted of a Mayor and 9 aldermen, with jurisdiction over civil cases in their respective presidencies. Appeals were heard by the Governor and Council or in England. 3. Justices of the peace, who were senior members of the Governor's Council, could hear petty crimes and make local ordinances according to English law. This helped formalize the legal system in British India.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    of 6

    Establishment of Mayor’s Court – 1726

    Introducon:

    The Mayor’s Court was established in India in by The Charter of 1726 at

    Madras, Calcua and Bombay which were East India Company’s Highest

    Courts in Brish India. The East India Company ll 1726 had no power to

    manage Capital Oences and Capital Punishments, to all the Presidencies with

    only Civil Jurisdicon being applicable. The Charter was issued by King George

    on Twenty Fourth September (1726) to the Company. Mayors Court was

    specially empowered to hear cases against The Company.

    The requirement of Establishing Mayor’s Court

    : The need for establishing a

    Mayor’s Court was felt as before 1726 dierent judicial systems were working

    in Brish India. Since there were dierent Judicial Systems the servants of The

    East India Company at dierent selements were governed by a dierent set

    of rules. Thus, there was a lack of uniformity in The Jusce System and the

    same oence would carry a dierent punishment at dierent selements.

    There was an absence of a Competent Court in India which could Supersede all

    the other courts.

    Mayor courts under charter of 1726

    1-

    The Charter of 1726 established Mayor’s Court at Madras, Bombay and

    Calcua consisted of a Mayor and 9 Aldermen.


    2-

    Mayor and 7 Aldermen were to be English and the rest were subjects of

    princely Indian States friendly with Britain.

    3-

    The Mayor holds oce for one year. The Aldermen hold oce for lifelong.

    Every year the outgoing Mayor and Aldermen elected a new Mayor out of the

    Aldermen.

    4-

    The Mayor and Aldermen lled up the vacancy of Aldermen from among the

    inhabitants of the Presidency Town.

    5-

    The Governor in Council could dismiss the Aldermen on reasonable ground.

    6-

    The Mayor Court was to be the Court of record.

    7-

    Under the Charter of 1726, the Mayor Court could hear all civil cases arising

    in the Presidency Town and its subordinate factories.

    8-

    The appeals of the Mayor Court would be heard by the Governor and Council

    in cases for less than 1000 pagodas and the appeals from the Governor and
    Council were heard by the King in Council (The Crown’s Privy Council) in

    England for cases over the value of 1000 or more Pagodas.

    9-

    The Mayor’s Court was also given further powers to provide Probates of wills

    of the deceased and to punish any person guilty of contempt.

    10

    -As the Charter no law was menoned in the Charter the English law was

    used to govern both the naves and Englishmen and the Mayor’s Court was to

    funcon on the same procedure as followed in England.

    **The Governor and Council were to appoint a Sheri who was the ocer of

    the Mayor’s Court. His tenure was for a period of one year. On the wrien

    complaint provided by the plain, the court issues the summons by direcng

    the sheri to order the defendant to appear in court on a set date and me

    xed by the court. If the defendant doesn’t comply with the orders of the

    court, the court would issue a warrant direcng the sheri to arrest the

    defendant and present him before the court. The court could grant release to

    the defendant on bail or security. Warrants of execuon were issued by the

    Court to the implementaon of judgments. On receiving the warrant the

    sheri was to implement its judgment. (Learn in chronological order)

    Jusce of peace and administraon of jusce (Important…must menon in

    answer)

    -
    Under the Charter of 1726, the jusce of peace were the Governor

    and the ve senior members of the Council. The jusce of peace could hear

    pey criminal oences and punish and arrest oenders. Three jusces of

    peace were to form a Court of Record. Working of Mayors court - For the

    beer governance of the presidency towns the Governor and Council of each

    presidency town were given powers to make their own bylaws, rules, and

    ordinance. Punishment could be provided for the breach of any bylaw, rules,

    and ordinances. Any punishment prescribed and bylaws, rules, and ordinance

    made were to be agreeable to reason and the English law.

    Dierences bw Mayor court of 1687 and 1726

    1-

    The Mayor’s Court under The Charter of 1687 drew the powers from The

    East India Company while The Mayor’s Court under The Charter of 1726 drew

    its power from The Crown.

    2-

    The Mayor’s Court under The Charter of 1687 was a Company Court while

    The Mayor’s Court under The Charter of 1726 was a Crown Court.

    3-

    The Charter of 1687 established a Mayor’s Court only at Madras while under

    The Charter of 1726 established Mayor’s Court at all The Presidency Towns at

    Madras, Chennai and Bombay.


    4-

    The Mayor’s Court under The Charter of 1687 was a Court of Equity while

    The Mayor’s Court under The Charter of 1726 was a Court of English Law.

    5-

    The Mayor’s Court built up under The Charter of 1687 arranged the portrayal

    of the locals on the court. The Crown’s Mayors Courts did not have any such

    portrayal, however, there was no arrangement for the same under The Charter

    of 1726

    Changes introduced to the Charter of 1753

    Organisaon of mayor’s courts

    Changes introduced to the Charter of 1753 Organisaon of mayor’s courts

    Under the Charter of 1726 the Mayor was appointed by the Aldermen. The

    Mayor lled the vacancy among the Alderman and the remaining Aldermen

    were lled by the members of the town. This system of appointments was

    changed in the Charter of 1753. Under this Charter, the Governor and Council

    had the power to appoint the Aldermen and the Mayor. While appoinng the

    Mayor a panel of names of two Aldermen was to be submied to the Governor

    and Council. Among the two names sent the Governor and Council would

    select one name for the oce of the Mayor.

    Jurisdicon of the mayor’s court

    Under the Charter of 1726 the jurisdicon of the charter was uncertain which

    became one of the important causes for the conict between the Mayor’s
    Court and the Governor and Council. In the Chart of 1753 aempts were made

    to bring about certainty in the jurisdicon of the Mayor’s Court. Under the

    Charter of 1753, the Mayor’s Court was given expressive rights to hear cases

    against the Mayor and aldermen, but under such a situaon the pares of the

    dispute were not allowed to sit as Judges of the Court. Similarly, they were also

    to hear suits against the East India Company. The Charter of 1753 also clearly

    instructed that the Mayor’s Court had no jurisdicon in cases concerning

    nave cizens unless both the pares agree to submit the case in front of the

    Mayor’s Court

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