Indian Councils Act of 1909

  • This act is also known as the Morley-Minto Reforms.
  • It considerably increased the size of the legislative councils, both Central and provincial.
  • It enlarged the deliberative functions of the legislative councils at both levels where members were allowed to ask supplementary questions and move resolutions on the budget.
  • It provided for the association of Indians with the executive councils of the Viceroy and Governors and Satyendra Prasad Sinha became the first Indian to join the Viceroy’s executive council.
  • It introduced a system of communal representation for Muslims by accepting the concept of a ‘separate electorate’.
  • Lord Minto was hence known as the father of the communal electorate in India.
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