Question

50. By a regulation in 1793, the District Collector was deprived of his judicial powers and made the collecting agent only. What was the reason for such a regulation ?

• A. (a) Lord Cornwallis felt that the District Collector's efficiency of revenue collection would enormously increase without the burden of additional work
• B. (b) Lord Cornwallis felt that judicial power should compulsorily be in the hands of Europeans while Indians can be given the job of revenue collection in the districts
• C. (c) Lord Cornwallis was alarmed at the extent of power concentrated in the District Collector and felt that such absolute power was undesirable in one person
• D. (d) The judicial work demanded a deep knowledge of India and a good training in law and Lord Cornwallis felt that District Collector should be only a revenue collector

Answer 1

The correct option is C

(c) Lord Cornwallis was alarmed at the extent of power concentrated in the District Collector and felt that such absolute power was undesirable in one person

(C)
The judicial reforms undertaken by Lord Cornwallis laid a strong foundation in the British Indian administrative system in the year 1793. The judicial reforms of Cornwallis were documented in the famous Cornwallis Code. However the new judicial reforms of Lord Cornwallis were based on the principle of Separation of Powers. Cornwallis at first sought to separate the revenue administration from the administration of justice. The collector used to be the head of the Revenue Department in a district and also enjoyed extensive judicial and magisterial powers. However Cornwallis wanted Separation of Power and the Cornwallis Code divested the collector of all the judicial and the magisterial powers. Thus the Collectors were given only the power of the revenue administration according to the Cornwallis Code. A new class of officer called the District Judge was created to preside over the district Civil Court. The district judge was also given the magisterial and the police function