Indian Independence Movement

Lord Cross served as Secretary of State for India (1886-1892) during the founding of the Indian National Congress in 1885. The Congress was formed during the Viceroyalty of Lord Dufferin. Cross was a Liberal politician in this period, not to be confused with later Secretaries like Morley (famous for Morley-Minto reforms 1909).

W.C. Bannerjee presided over the first session, while S.N. Banerjee (Surendranath) did not attend despite being a prominent Congress leader later. Badruddin Tyabji and K.T. Telang were present. S.N. Banerjee had differences with the early Congress approach and attended later sessions but not the founding one in Bombay 1885.

The Attorney-General of India is the first law officer of the Government of India, appointed under Article 76(1) of the Constitution. The Attorney-General advises the Government of India on legal matters and performs such other duties of a legal character as may be referred or assigned.

The first session of the Indian National Congress was held in Bombay from December 28-31, 1885, and was presided over by Womesh Chunder Bonnerjee (W.C. Banerjee), a prominent lawyer. While A.O. Hume founded the Congress, he was not its first president. Dadabhai Naoroji became president in 1886, and Annie Besant joined later.

Mahatma Gandhi presided over the session of the Indian National Congress held at Belgaum, Karnataka in 1924.

Dr. Rajendra Prasad was the first President of India, serving from 1950 to 1962. He was a key figure in India's independence movement and the Constituent Assembly.

Dr. B.R. Ambedkar, the chief architect of the Constitution, strongly believed that Directive Principles should guide all future legislation. He called them 'novel features' that would establish a welfare state. While Nehru supported socialist principles, Ambedkar specifically emphasized these as the foundation for legislative policy.

The Constituent Assembly was India's first legislature, formed in 1946 to draft the Constitution. It served as the country's legislative body from December 1946 until January 1950. The Assembly was not directly elected by the people but was nominated by provincial legislatures, making it indirectly elected.

Ganesh Vasudeo Mavalankar (G.V. Mavalankar) was the first Speaker of the Constituent Assembly (which functioned as free India's first legislature). He later became the first Speaker of the Lok Sabha in 1952. He was a prominent Congress leader from Gujarat and was known for his expertise in parliamentary procedures.

The provisional parliament had disproportionately high representation from lawyers - over 35% of members were from legal profession. This reflected the elite, educated class participating in independence movement and early governance.

K.T. Shah, a member of the Constituent Assembly, famously criticized Directive Principles as a 'cheque on a bank payable at the convenience of the bank' - meaning they were not legally enforceable. This critique highlighted the non-justiciable nature of DPSPs compared to justiciable Fundamental Rights.

The Muslim League boycotted the Constituent Assembly because they believed it did not adequately represent Muslim interests. They demanded separate electorates and guaranteed representation, which they felt the assembly would not provide.

Jawaharlal Nehru served as independent India's first Foreign Minister (External Affairs Minister) from 1947-1964, while also being the Prime Minister. The position of Foreign Minister was held by the Prime Minister in the early years. John Mathai was Finance Minister, while Nanda and Shastri became Prime Ministers later.

Sir Muhammad Yamin Khan served as the last Deputy President of the Central Legislative Assembly during the British colonial period before independence. This is a matter of historical record from the proceedings of the Central Legislative Assembly in the final years before 1947.

M. A. Ayyangar served as the Deputy Speaker of the first Lok Sabha (1952-1957). He was a senior Congress leader and later became the Speaker after the death of the first Speaker, G. V. Mavalankar. Sardar Hukam Singh became Deputy Speaker later in the second Lok Sabha.