Amending Act of 1781

 In a bid to rectify the defects of the Regulating Act of 1773, the British Parliament passed the Amending Act of 1781, also known as the Act of Settlement.

The features of this Act were as follows:

  1. It exempted the Governor-General and the Council from the jurisdiction of the Supreme Court for the acts done by them in their official capacity. Similarly, it also exempted the servants of the company from the jurisdiction of the Supreme Court for their official actions.
  2. It excluded the revenue matters and the matters arising in the collection of revenue from the jurisdiction of the Supreme Court.
  3. It provided that the Supreme Court was to have jurisdiction over all the inhabitants of Culcutta. It also required the court to administer the personal law of the defendants i.e., Hindus were to be tried according to the Hindu law and Muslims were to be tried according to the Mohammedan law.
  4. It laid down that the appeals from the Provincial Courts could be taken to the Governor-General-in-Council and not to the Supreme Court.
  5. It empowered the Governor-General-in Council to frame regulations for the Provincial Courts and Councils.

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