UPSC Prelims 2024 Q62: Government of India Act 1935 — Explained
With reference to the Government of India Act, 1935, consider the following statements:
1. It provided for the establishment of an All India Federation based on the union of the British Indian Provinces and Princely States.
2. Defence and Foreign Affairs were kept under the control of the federal legislature.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
- 1 only
- 2 only
- Both 1 and 2
- Neither 1 nor 2
Answer: (a) 1 only
Statement-wise explanation
- 1: correct — The Government of India Act, 1935 provided for an 'All-India Federation'. Its units were the Governors' Provinces, the Chief Commissioners' Provinces and those Princely States that chose to join. A ruler joined by signing an Instrument of Accession. The federation never came into being, because too few princes acceded. The statement asks only what the Act provided for, and it did provide for this federation.
- 2: incorrect — The Act set up dyarchy at the Centre. Defence, external (foreign) affairs, ecclesiastical affairs and tribal areas were 'reserved' subjects. The Governor-General administered them in his discretion, helped by up to three counsellors he appointed. These counsellors were not responsible to the federal legislature. All other federal subjects were 'transferred' to ministers responsible to the legislature. So Defence and Foreign Affairs were kept away from the federal legislature's control.
How to eliminate
Statement 1 is a well-known feature of the 1935 Act. Most aspirants remember that the Act proposed a federation of provinces and princely states, which never took effect. Keep in mind that 'never operated' is not the same as 'not provided for'. That rules out the options that reject Statement 1. Statement 2 can be judged by reasoning. A colonial power that wanted to keep India under control in 1935 would not give its army and foreign policy to an Indian-elected legislature. That is the whole point of dyarchy at the Centre: some subjects are 'reserved' for the Governor-General. If you remember the fact 'Reserved subjects at the Centre: defence, external affairs, ecclesiastical affairs, tribal areas, under the Governor-General's discretion', the question takes a few seconds.
Know more
Government of India Act, 1935: the key features
It was the longest Act the British Parliament passed for India, with 321 sections and 10 schedules. It was based on the Simon Commission report, the three Round Table Conferences and the 1933 White Paper.
| Feature | What the Act did |
|---|---|
| All-India Federation | Provinces plus princely states that acceded. It never came into being because too few rulers joined. |
| Division of powers | Federal List (59 items), Provincial List (54), Concurrent List (36). Residuary powers went to the Governor-General. |
| Centre | Dyarchy: reserved subjects (defence, external affairs, ecclesiastical affairs, tribal areas) and transferred subjects. Not put into effect. |
| Provinces | Dyarchy abolished and provincial autonomy introduced. Took effect on 1 April 1937. |
| Bicameralism | Introduced in 6 of the 11 provinces, including Bengal, Bombay, Madras, Bihar, Assam and the United Provinces. |
| Institutions | Federal Court (set up in 1937), Federal and Provincial Public Service Commissions, Reserve Bank of India. |
| Franchise | Extended to about 10% of the population. Separate electorates extended to the depressed classes, women and labour. |
| Other | Burma separated from India. Council of India abolished. |
Why it matters for the Constitution. The 1935 Act is the largest single source of the Indian Constitution. From it came the federal scheme, the office of Governor, the judiciary, public service commissions, emergency provisions and administrative details. Its three-list division of powers survives as the Seventh Schedule. The Governor-General's strong powers, such as Section 93 (breakdown of provincial government), are an early form of Article 356. This explains the Constitution's 'centralising bias'.
Trap to remember: UPSC often mixes up the 1919 Act (dyarchy in the provinces) and the 1935 Act (dyarchy at the Centre, autonomy for the provinces).
NCERT Concepts to Revise
- Government of India Act 1935: Both statements test what this 1935 law actually provided at the federal level.
- Princely states: Statement 1 depends on whether these states were meant to be units of the proposed federation.
- Federal Court of India: The Federal Court was one of the federal institutions the 1935 Act created. It helps you recall the Act's federal design.
- Sources of the Indian Constitution: Shows why the 1935 Act, including its federal scheme, matters so much for the present Constitution.
- Quasi-federalism: Explains the 1935 design, in which the federal units existed but key powers stayed with the Centre.
- Section 93 of the Government of India Act 1935: Section 93 shows how much discretionary power the 1935 Act kept with British officials, which bears on Statement 2.