Law is a continually evolving field and changes according to temporal and societal changes. Law making is an arduous task since it has to ensure the welfare of diverse people and in addition, not affect the rights and liberties of certain sections. The Law Commission of India is, by nature, an executive organization, established by an order of the Government of India. Performing the important functions of reforming laws, it consists of experts, jurists, judges assigned by the Government. The goal of Law Commission of India is to ensure peace, security, and justice by ensuring the laws are fair and just. Also, the Law Commission of India works as an advisory organ to the Ministerial Department of Law and Justice. Every Law Commission lasts for five years. Law commission of India works as think tank and performs the functions of reviewing laws and suggesting recommendations or reforms to be introduced in the existing laws.
Legal reforms, in the past, have been suggested by people like M.C Setalvad, Justice H.R Khanna, Justice Gajendradhakar who have headed the law commission. In India, the Law Commission was set up to examine laws and suggest reforms. It was given the task of legal reform. The formation of this commission ensured that the organs of the government could not pass laws arbitrarily. Laws passed by the Government are scrutinized and checked if it is really beneficial for people or not. It was constituted in the nineteenth century during the colonial government. In independent India, the first law commission was established in the year 1955. Its term was for three years. Twenty two commission have been established after independence.
Composition
The Law Commission of India acts as advisory body to the Government of India, and the Ministry of Law and Justice. The Law Commission of India has no statutory force and legal status. It is usually headed by the retired judge (Supreme Court) or by the Chief Justice of the High Court. It consists of four full time officers. This includes a member secretary and the Chairman. The ex officio members of the Commission are the legal and legislative secretaries of the Ministry of Law and Justice. The Law Commission following the order of the Government of India or by virtue of its own position examines law with regards to its applicability and drawbacks. Then, the commission suggests certain reforms or enactment of a legislation. It undertakes researches related to laws and suggests reforms in the judicial system.
Functions and Powers
The Law Commission of India consists of approximately twelve staffs, who are researchers, possessing adequate experience. The commission organizes meeting regularly to discuss the findings or for the purpose of presentation of reports. The initiation of several projects also takes place in the meetings. The committee then fixes on certain issues and starts working on them. The meeting also results in an outline or framework of research. The proceedings take place according to the framework. The members then unanimously agree on certain aspects and a smooth progress of work is ensured. After this process, the paper is prepared and presented before the members of the committee. The circulation of the prepared paper among the members takes place. The members then submit their opinions, views and comments regarding the paper. The overall view is also assessed through a questionnaire, which is circulated among the members asking their reaction and feedback. It aims to widen the area of feedback and reaction by sending it to certain professionals, academic institutions and other expert for the process of consultation. All this happens prior to submitting the proposals for legal reforms. As an addition, workshops, webinars, seminare are organized for the purpose of knowing the comments of critics and general view about the suggested reforms.
After the process of data collection, the staff members of the Commission involve in the process of evaluation and organization of data. The collected data is organized in a chronological order for the purpose of appropriate introduction in the report. The overall report is prepared by one of the Member Secretary or the Chairman of the Commission or any other members. After the completion of this process, the prepared report is presented for discussion before the meeting and is discussed by all the members of the committee. The findings and summary are analysed. Then, the report is confirmed and a summary is prepared. After the finalisation of the report and summary, the law commission has the option to start working on the preparation of a draft. The draft regarding reforms, amendments or a proposal for a new bill will be attached to the overall report. The finalised report then is sent to the Government of India for approval.
The role of the Law Commission of India is a significant one in the field of legal reform. In the past, it has been led by able personalities like M.C Setalvad, Justice H.R Khanna, and Nani Palkhivala. The commissions headed by these people have submitted suggestions and reforms of great importance. The system of fast track courts, commercial courts expansion, electoral reforms, the introduction of anti-defection law, reforms as to many legal provisions related to criminal and civil law are but a few examples of the achievements of the Law Commission of India in the past. More often than not, the post of the Chairman of the Law Commission is offered to the retired judge of the Supreme Court or the former Chief justice of High Court. The Government of India is responsible for making such decisions. In the past, the governments have been criticised for showing partiality by many people. The government also has been criticised for not implementing the reforms suggested by the law commission, for not granting the commission a statutory status, for not providing a back up research team. Some of these also have contributed in the decreasing quality and less implementation of the reports submitted by the Law Commission of India recently.
The society, over the years, has become more complex. In this complex society, the role and functions of a government have increased manifold. The government has become a positive character to ensure public welfare. This has led to increase in power and responsibility in the hands of the executive organ of the government. As a result of these changes, the relationship and interaction between people and executive organizations has increased and has become complex and complicated. These organizations or bodies have the ability to influence the rights of people. Therefore, there is a need to formulate processes and techniques to deal with the citizens and find appropriate solutions to new problems. Another major concern for administrative law is to monitor the usage of discretionary power by these bodies. These bodies are also more flexible than other organs and their functioning has to be monitored carefully. Time and again, the law commission reports too have talked about the growth and need for administrative law in the current society.
Drawbacks
The work carried out by the Law Commission of India is an important one. It was given a lot of importance by legal experts in the past. However, there are certain drawbacks in the working and the system of the Law Commission. One of a major drawback for the commission is, though it is a national body, it lacks proper composition. Issues like no defined set of eligibility criteria for the posts like chairman, secretary, and other staffs. The commission also has no defined functions, leaving all important appointments and decision to the discretion of the government. The Law Commission’s terms of reference are constituted every time during its appointment. While other commissions are regulated by the Indian Constitution, the Law Commission of India is subjected to casual treatment. Other commissions are regulated by a Charter. It is the central government that decides the appointment of position and generally judges from the Supreme Court and the High Courts are selected for the posts. It is subjected indifferent treatment by the central government. It lacks a statutory status, and needs strict regulations regarding appointment of members and functions of the body. Another problem that the commission faces is lack of finance. The part time staffs of the Law Commission are not paid any salary for their work. The remuneration of other staffs is generally low. The central governments allots the commission less budget, as a result which the commission faces financial issues. It struggles with management due to low funds as the running of the commission requires finance for meeting salary expenses, travel expenses, expenses for research anf other miscellaneous expenses. It requires adequate finance for proper functioning. Another major drawback for the Law Commission of India is the respect the Government pays for the reforms suggested by the body. There are issues regarding the implementation of reforms recommended by the committee. As discussed earlier, the rate of implementation is only forty five percent. The quality of research has increased a lot over the years. The research team of the commission is backed by certain legal centres and educational institutions. The Law Commission of India receives a lot direct and indirect support from these institutions. The commission is let down by the government as the implementation of reforms is poor. There is a strong need for strengthening the Law Commission of India for ensuring better legal reforms.
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