History of Indian Judiciary

LAST UPDATED ON OCTOBER 10, 2023 BY CLEARIAS TEAM

The history of the Indian judiciary is a rich and evolving one, spanning
centuries of legal developments, colonial influences, and post-independence
reforms. Read here to learn the key aspects of the judicial history of India as
well as the modernization steps taken.

The History of the Indian Judiciary has evolved from religious prescription to the
current constitutional and legal system we have today, traversing through secular
legal systems and the common law.

India has a recorded legal history starting from the Vedic ages and some sort of
civil law system may have been in place during the Bronze Age and the Indus
Valley civilization.

Law as a matter of religious prescriptions and philosophical discourse has an

illustrious history in India. Emanating from the Vedas, the Upanishads, and other
religious texts, it was a fertile field enriched by practitioners from different Hindu
philosophical schools and later by Jains and Buddhists.

Excellent secular court systems existed under the Mauryas (321-185 BCE) and the
Mughals (16th – 19th centuries) with the latter giving way to the current common
law system.
Also read: Judicial infrastructure in India

Table of Contents
UPSC CSE 2025: Study Plan ⇓

(1) ⇒ UPSC 2025: Prelims cum Mains

(2) ⇒ UPSC 2025: Prelims Test Series

(3) ⇒ UPSC 2025: Fight Back

 History of Indian Judiciary

o Ancient Period
o Medieval period
o Colonial Era (17th to 20th Century)
o Culmination of the history of Indian Judiciary: Independence and Formation
of the Supreme Court
 Modernization of Indian Judiciary
 Conclusion

History of Indian Judiciary

The history of the Indian Judiciary and India’s legal system has ancient roots, with
historical texts like the Manusmriti and Arthashastra containing legal principles
and codes.

During this period, local rulers and kingdoms had their systems of justice, with
local courts resolving disputes based on customary law.

Ancient Period
The concept of Dharma or law in ancient India was inspired by the Vedas which
contained rules of conduct and rites and compiled in Dharma Sutras, were
practiced in several branches of the Vedic schools.

During the first seven centuries of the Christian era, there evolved several Dharma
sastras that dealt extensively with Manu, Yajnavalkya, Narda, Parashara smritis,
etc.

In ancient India, the lowest court was the family court starting from the family
arbitrator and the judge at the highest pedestal was the king.
  One of the primary duties of the sovereign was the dispensation of
justice, and in this process, the King was aided by his counselors and
ministers.
 As civilization advanced and the duties of the King were delegated to
the judges who knew the Vedas.
 Justice was administered based on ‘dharma’ or a structure of rules
specifying the responsibilities that an individual must fulfill in his life.
Customs served as a source of law. This system continued till the
Mughal period.

Medieval period
In medieval India, the religious leaders endeavored to transform Islam into a
religion of law, but as custodians of justice, the rulers made the Sharia, a court
subservient to their sovereign power.

Theoretically, the rulers had to be obedient to the Sharia and history speaks about
certain cases where sovereigns unresistingly submitted to the Qazi’s decision.

 Every provincial capital and every large town had a Qazi.

 The Qazis held the trial in the presence of the parties and were
expected to write their legal documents very carefully.
 The King was the highest court of appeal. The rulers sat in a Court
known as Mazalim (complaints).
 According to Ibn Battuta, Muhammad bin Tughalaq, ruler of
the Tughalaq dynasty, heard complaints each Monday and Thursday.

From the 13th century onwards, an officer known as Amir-i- dad presided over the
secular Court in the sultan’s absence.

 He was also responsible for implementing Qazis’ decisions and for

drawing their attention to the cases which constituted a miscarriage of
justice.

The Muftis were the experts on Sharia law and gave Fatwas (formal legal rulings)
on disputes referred to them by members of the public or qazis.

 The Chief Judge of the sultanate was known as the qazi –i- mamalik
also known as the qazi- ul- quzat.

During the Mughals period, the secular judge was known as Mir- adl. He acted as a
judge on the emperor’s behalf.
  He was required to make impartial and personal inquiries. He was also
responsible for implementing Qazi’s decisions.
 Emperor Akbar also appointed two officers, called tui-begis, to
supervise the adherence to the law and fixed a nominal amount as their
fee.
 The same system was followed till the British took over the power of
India.

Colonial Era (17th to 20th Century)

The modern judicial system in India has its foundations in the colonial era. The
East India Company established courts with European judges applying English
law.

 The British introduced the common law system in India and

established the Sadar Diwani Adalat. They were later followed by the
establishment of high courts.
 The promulgation of Regulating Act of 1773 by the King of England
paved the way for the establishment of the Supreme Court of
Judicature at Calcutta.
 The Supreme Courts at Madras and Bombay were established by King
George III on 26 December 1800 and on 8 December 1823
respectively.
 The establishment of the Calcutta High Court in 1862 marked a
significant step in creating a formal legal framework and abolished
Supreme Courts at Calcutta, Madras, and Bombay and also the Sadar
Adalats in Presidency towns.

Indian High Courts Act of 1861: This act established high courts in Calcutta,
Bombay, and Madras. These high courts became the apex courts in their respective
regions, hearing appeals and original jurisdiction cases.

Government of India Act, 1919: This act introduced reforms in the judicial
system, including the separation of the judiciary from executive control. It also
introduced the concept of diarchy, giving limited self-governance to provinces.

Government of India Act, 1935: This act further expanded the powers and
responsibilities of the provincial and central legislatures. It established the Federal
Court of India as the highest court, with jurisdiction over constitutional matters.

Coding of law also began in earnest with the forming of the first Law Commission.
  Under the stewardship of its chairman, Thomas Babington Macaulay,
the Indian Penal Code was drafted, enacted, and brought into force by
1862.
 The Code of Criminal Procedure was also drafted by the same
commission along with a host of other statutes and codes like the
Evidence Act (1872) and the Contracts Act (1872).

Culmination of the history of Indian Judiciary: Independence and Formation

of the Supreme Court
After India gained independence in 1947, the Constitution of India was adopted in
1950.

The Supreme Court of India was established as the highest court in the country,
with the power of judicial review over legislative and executive actions.

In the 1980s, the judiciary expanded its role in social justice by allowing public
interest litigation, enabling individuals and organizations to approach the courts to
address issues affecting public interest.

Over the years, the Indian judiciary has played a crucial role in interpreting the
Constitution and protecting fundamental rights.

 Landmark cases like Kesavananda Bharati v. State of Kerala (1973)

established the doctrine of basic structure and upheld the supremacy of
the Constitution.

The Indian judiciary has undergone various reforms to improve efficiency,

accessibility, and accountability.

 The introduction of the National Judicial Appointments Commission

(NJAC) was an attempt to reform the process of judicial appointments,
though it was struck down by the Supreme Court in 2015.

Also read: Women in Judiciary

Modernization of Indian Judiciary

As a part of the National eGovernance Plan, the Government has launched the
eCourts Mission Mode Project which is under implementation for ICT
development of the District & Sub-ordinate courts in the country based on the
“National Policy and Action Plan for Implementation of Information and
Communication Technology in the Indian Judiciary”.
  It is being implemented by the Department of Justice in association
with the e-Committee Supreme Court of India.
 Phase I (2011-15) was aimed at the basic computerization of courts
and providing local network connectivity was done.
 Phase II of the project started in 2015 for the installation of video
conferencing infrastructure. 18,735 District and subordinate courts
have been computerized till Phase II.

In the eCourts Project, the Government has taken the following initiatives to make
justice accessible and available for all using technology:

 Under the Wide Area Network (WAN) Project connectivity has been
provided to 99.4% of total Court Complexes across India with 10
Mbps to 100 Mbps bandwidth speed.
 National Judicial Data Grid (NJDG) is a database of orders,
judgments, and cases, created as an online platform under the eCourts
Project.
 Case Information Software (CIS) based on customized Free and Open-
Source Software (FOSS) has been developed.
 Live Streaming of court proceedings has been started in the High
Courts of Gujarat, Gauhati, Orissa, Karnataka, Jharkhand, Patna,
Madhya Pradesh &Constitutional Bench of Hon’ble Supreme Court of
India thus allowing media and other interested persons to join the
proceedings.
 2 2 Virtual Courts in 18 States/UTs have been operationalized to
handle traffic challan cases.
 A new e-filing system (version 3.0) has been rolled out for the
electronic filing of legal papers with upgraded features.
 e-Filing of cases requires the option for electronic payment of fees
which includes court fees, fines, and penalties which are directly
payable to the Consolidated Fund.
 To bridge the digital divide, 819 eSewa Kendras have been rolled out
to facilitate the lawyer or litigant who needs any kind of assistance
ranging from information to facilitation and eFiling.
 In addition to eSewa Kendras, as part of the DISHA (Designing
Innovative Solutions for Holistic Access to Justice) scheme the
Government of India launched the Tele Law program in 2017, which
provides an effective and reliable e-interface platform connecting the
needy and disadvantaged sections seeking legal advice and
consultation with panel lawyers via video conferencing, telephone, and
 chat facilities available at the Common Service Centres (CSCs)
situated in Gram Panchayat and through Tele-Law mobile App.
 National Service and Tracking of Electronic Processes (NSTEP) has
been launched for technology-enabled process serving and issuing of
summons.

Also read: Indianisation of Judiciary

Conclusion
The Indian judiciary continues to face challenges such as a backlog of cases, delays
in justice delivery, and the need for judicial reforms.

Efforts are being made to address these issues through technological advancements
and systemic changes