The Indian Legal System : An Enquiry

The proposed book is an attempt to understand the existence of multiple non-state legal traditions despite the presence of a uniform legal system in India. There is a significant gap that exists between the state-legal system and the practices and preferences of people belonging to different communities. In order to understand this structure, the book goes back to the history of legal system in India and tries to identify the reason behind the prevalence of these alternative modes. It studies some prominent legal systems of pre-colonial India like the Mughals, and further explores the way Indian legality was transformed during the British rule. The study maps the evolution and growth of the common law system in India and takes into account the factors that contributed to the strengthening and acceptance of this system.

Legal, anthropological, and historical literature acknowledges the undisputed presence of multiple legal traditions in India. However, the existence of uniform laws applicable to all citizens, questions plurality at some levels. The existence of multiple non-state legal traditions alongside a proclaimed formal state legal system certainly poses a challenge to the common law identity of the Indian legal system. It is historically acknowledged that colonialism and law share a reciprocal relationship, where law was used for the expansion of colonial rule, and was not an accurate reflection of the needs of society. When common law was introduced in India by the British to better integrate the Indian legal system, they did not refer to the prevailing legal practices of the time. Neither was it an exact appropriation of common law as understood in England. The book argues that this is the underlying cause for the gap between the state legal system and traditional community practices. This is arguably the reason behind preference for non-state legal practices among several communities in India, despite the existence of a formal state legal system. The central theme of the book is that legal systems cannot be seen or studied in isolation of the cultures of groups whose affairs they regulate.