Question

What was the illbert bill and what did the Indian learn from it

Answer 1

The 'Ilbert Bill' was a bill introduced in 1883 under the reign of the Viceriy Lord Ripon (who earned the epithet Ripon-The good) which was written by Sir C.P Ilbert ( The law member of the Viceroy's Council). According to the said Act, Indian judges could try a European accused.

Answer 2

Ilbert Bill, in the history of India, a controversial measure proposed in 1883 that sought to allow senior Indian magistrates to preside over cases involving British subjects in India. The bill, severely weakened by compromise, was enacted by the Indian Legislative Council on Jan. 25, 1884. The bitter controversy surrounding the measure deepened antagonism between British and Indians and was a prelude to the formation of the Indian National Congress the following year.

British subjects in 1873 had been exempted from trial by Indian magistrates, and in cases involving death or transportation they could only be tried by a high court. But by 1883 the viceroy, Lord Ripon, proposed to make British subjects amenable to sessions courts, over which Indians were now senior enough in the civil service to preside. This proposal as embodied in the Ilbert Bill provoked furious protests, especially among the Calcutta (Kolkata) European business community and the Bengalindigo planters, and there was covert sympathy from many officials. A compromise was reached by which a British subject could claim a jury, half of which would be Europeans. The new Westernized Indian middle class felt itself slighted by this arrangement, and the incident did much to give Indian national feeling a political form.