76.71.157.66 at 06:10, 11 June 2021

2021-06-11T06:10:00Z

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{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2014}}
{{Use Indian English|date=June 2016}}
{{Infobox official post
| post = Attorney General for India
| flagcaption =
| insignia =
| insigniasize =
| insigniacaption =
| image = Kottayan Katankot Venugopal, K K Venugopal.jpg
| image_size =
| alt =
| incumbent = [[K. K. Venugopal]]
| type =
| status =
| department =
| style =
| member_of =
| reports_to =
| residence = [[New Delhi]], India
| seat = N-234-A, Greater Kailash-I, [[New Delhi]]<ref name="lawmin">{{cite web|title=LIST OF LAW OFFICERS|url=http://lawmin.nic.in/la/lawofficers.htm|website=Ministry of Law and Justice|access-date=2 January 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161227181547/http://www.lawmin.nic.in/la/lawofficers.htm|archive-date=27 December 2016|url-status=dead|df=dmy-all}}</ref>
| nominator =
| appointer = [[President of India]]
| appointer_qualified = on advice of the [[Union Council of Ministers|Union Cabinet]]
| termlength = Upto the pleasure of The President
| termlength_qualified =
| constituting_instrument = Article 76 of the [[Constitution of India|Constitution]]
| precursor =
| formation = 28 January 1950
| first = [[M. C. Setalvad]]
| last =
| abolished =
| succession =
| abbreviation = AG
| unofficial_names =
| deputy = [[Solicitor General of India]]<br/>Additional Solicitors General of India
| salary =
| website =
| body =
}}{{Short description|Indian government's chief legal officer}}
{{Courts of India}}

The '''Attorney General for India''' is the [[Government of India|Indian government]]'s chief legal advisor, and is its principal barrister in the [[Supreme Court of India]]. They are appointed by the [[President of India]] on the advice of the [[Union Council of Ministers|Union Cabinet]] under Article 76(1) of the [[Constitution of India|Constitution]] and hold office during the pleasure of the President. They must be a person qualified to be appointed as a Judge of the Supreme Court. Hence, they must have been a judge of some high court for five years or an advocate of some high court for ten years, or an eminent jurist in the opinion of the President.

The 15th and current Attorney General is [[K. K. Venugopal]]. He was reappointed by President [[Ram Nath Kovind]] in 2020. He began his service on 30 June 2017.<ref>{{cite web|title=List of Law Officers of Government of India|url=http://lawmin.nic.in/la/lawofficers.htm|access-date=12 June 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140609164022/http://lawmin.nic.in/la/lawofficers.htm|archive-date=9 June 2014|url-status=dead|df=dmy-all}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=Senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi is new Attorney General|url=http://zeenews.india.com/news/nation/senior-advocate-Mukul-Rohatgi-is-new-attorney-general_939078.html|access-date=2 June 2017|publisher=Zee News}}</ref>

== Powers, duties and functions==

Attorney General is necessary for advising the [[Government of India]] on legal matters referred to them. They also perform other legal duties assigned to them by the President. The Attorney General has the right of audience in all Courts in India as well as the right to participate in the proceedings of the [[Parliament of India|Parliament]], though not to vote.<ref name="Supreme Court of India _ CONSTITUTION">{{cite web|title=Supreme Court of India – CONSTITUTION|url=http://supremecourtofindia.nic.in/constitution.htm|publisher=Supreme Court of India|access-date=28 August 2012|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160830234213/http://supremecourtofindia.nic.in/constitution.htm|archive-date=30 August 2016|df=dmy-all}}</ref> The Attorney General appears on behalf of [[Government of India]] in all cases (including suits, appeals and other proceedings) in the [[Supreme Court of India|Supreme Court]] in which Government of India is concerned. They also represent the Government of India in any reference made by the President to the Supreme Court under Article 143 of the [[Constitution of India|Constitution]].

Unlike the [[United States Attorney General|Attorney General of the United States]], the Attorney General for India does not have any executive authority. Those functions are performed by the [[Ministry of Law and Justice (India)|Law Minister of India]]. Also the AG is not a government servant and is not debarred from private legal practice.

The Attorney General can accept briefs but cannot appear against the Government. They cannot defend an accused in the criminal proceedings and accept the directorship of a company without the permission of the Government.

The Attorney General is assisted by a [[Solicitor General of India|Solicitor General]] and four additional Solicitors General.<ref name="Supreme Court of India _ CONSTITUTION" /> The Attorney General is to be consulted only in legal matters of real importance and only after the [[Ministry of Law and Justice (India)|Ministry of Law]] has been consulted. All references to the Attorney General are made by the Law Ministry.

== Fee and allowances payable ==
Fee and allowances payable to the law officers (including Attorney General for India, [[Solicitor General of India]] and the Additional Solicitors General) of the [[Government of India]] are as under:<ref>{{cite web|title=Fee and allowances payable to law officers|url=http://lawmin.nic.in/judicial/servicerules1.pdf|access-date=11 June 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150321205526/http://lawmin.nic.in/judicial/servicerules1.pdf|archive-date=21 March 2015|url-status=dead}}</ref>

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! S.No. !! Nomenclature of the item of work !! Rates of fees payable for appearance and other work.
|-
| (1) || Suits, writ petitions, appeals and references under article 143 || ₹16,000/- per case per day
|-
| (2) || Special leave petitions and other applications || ₹5,000/- per case per day
|-
| (3) || Settling pleadings (including affidavits) || ₹5,000/- per pleading
|-
| (4) || Settling Statement of Case || ₹6,000/- per case
|-
| (5) || For giving opinions in statements of cases sent by the Ministry of Law || ₹10,000/- per case
|-
| (6) || For written submission before the Supreme Court, High Court, and Commissions of Inquiry or Tribunals and the like || ₹10,000/- per case
|-
| (7) || Appearance in Courts outside Delhi || ₹40,000/- per day per case
|}

In addition to the above fee payable for cases, a retainer fee is paid to the Attorney General for India, [[Solicitor General of India]] and the Additional Solicitors General at the rate of ₹50,000, ₹40,000 and ₹30,000 per month, respectively. Moreover, the Attorney General for India is also paid a sumptuary allowance of Rs. 4,000 per month, except during the period of his leave.

== Politicisation of the Attorney General ==
{{POV section|date=March 2021}}

{{Further information|Indian Emergency (1975–77)|Bofors scandal|Taj corridor case|2G spectrum case|Indian coal mining controversy}}
It has become a tradition that the Attorney General resigns when a new government is formed. The Attorney General is selected by the Government and acts as its advocate, and hence is not a neutral person. Nevertheless, it is a constitutional authority, and his or her opinions are subject to public scrutiny. On several occasions however, the opinions pursued by the Attorney General appear to have been extremely politicised.<ref name="hindu. com">{{cite news| url=http://www.hindu.com/2009/04/30/stories/2009043060551000.htm | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090504062106/http://www.hindu.com/2009/04/30/stories/2009043060551000.htm | url-status=dead | archive-date=4 May 2009 | location=Chennai, India | work=[[The Hindu]] | title=Milon Banerjee has devalued his position: BJP | date=30 April 2009}}</ref>

During some of the AG tenures, it has been felt that the attorney general has gone too far. [[Niren De]] during [[Indira Gandhi]] replied to a question by [[Hans Raj Khanna]] stating that even the right to life can be suspended during emergency.{{citation-needed|date=March 2021}}

Similarly, in 2005, when the [[United Progressive Alliance|UPA]] government was planning a possible coalition with Mayawati, [[Milon K. Banerji|Milon K. Banerjee]]'s opinion absolving [[Mayawati]] in the [[Taj corridor case]] was ignored by the Supreme Court.<ref>http://www.rediff.com/news/2005/aug/26flip.htm</ref> In a direct condemnation of the government which asked the CBI to heed attorney general Milon Banerjee's opinion and close the case against [[Mayawati]], the Supreme Court told the agency not to go solely on the AG's opinion and place all evidence before it.<ref>http://www.asiantribune.com/oldsite/show_news.php?id=13395</ref>

In 2009, [[Milon K. Banerji|Milon K. Banerjee]]'s opinion absolving [[Ottavio Quattrocchi]] in the [[Bofors scandal]] has also been viewed as "devaluing and eroding the Attorney General's position".<ref name="hindu. com"/>

During the [[United Progressive Alliance|UPA-II]] government (2009–2014), the conduct of Attorney General [[Goolam Essaji Vahanvati|Goolam Vahanvati]] was criticised in a number of cases. In [[2G spectrum case]], he became the first Attorney General in India's history who had to [[Testimony|testify]] as a [[witness]] in a corruption case in a trial court.<ref name=cover>{{cite news|last=Kaushik|first=Krishn|title=Inside Man – The convenient opinions of Attorney General Goolam Vahanvati|url=http://caravanmagazine.in/reportage/inside-man|access-date=5 August 2013|newspaper=The Caravan|date=1 May 2013}}</ref><ref name="AG deposes in 2G case, Raja calls him liar">{{cite news|title=AG deposes in 2G case, Raja calls him liar |url=http://www.hindustantimes.com/India-news/NewDelhi/AG-deposes-in-2G-case-Raja-calls-him-liar/Article1-1018670.aspx |access-date=23 September 2013 |date=28 February 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130930031208/http://www.hindustantimes.com/India-news/NewDelhi/AG-deposes-in-2G-case-Raja-calls-him-liar/Article1-1018670.aspx |archive-date=30 September 2013 |df=dmy }}</ref> In late April 2013, in [[Indian coal allocation scam|coal-gate]] scandal, Vahanvati was accused of misrepresenting facts in the [[Supreme Court of India|top-most court of India]].<ref name="GE">[http://www.ndtv.com/article/india/coal-gate-attorney-general-misrepresented-facts-to-supreme-court-says-letter-bomb-360750], coal-gate-attorney-general-misrepresented-facts-to-supreme-court-says-letter-bomb NDTV news report.</ref> Again in the same case, Vahanvati's role came under scrutiny after allegations of impropriety and coercion emerged from his junior law officer, [[Harin P. Raval]], who resigned from the post of Additional Solicitor General as a result.<ref>{{cite news|last=Bhatt|first=Abhinav|title=Harin Raval resigns as Additional Solicitor General after Coal-Gate letter bomb|url=http://www.ndtv.com/article/india/harin-raval-resigns-as-additional-solicitor-general-after-coal-gate-letter-bomb-360860|access-date=14 May 2013|newspaper=NDTV|date=30 April 2013}}</ref>

== List of attorneys general for India ==
The attorneys general for India since independence are listed below:'''<ref>[http://www.vakilno1.com/luminaries/AttorneyGen.html Attorney General for Independent India] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120625191613/http://www.vakilno1.com/luminaries/AttorneyGen.html |date=25 June 2012 }}</ref>

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Attorney General
! Term
! Incumbent Prime Minister
|-
| [[M. C. Setalvad]] || 28 January 1950 – 1 March 1963 || [[Jawaharlal Nehru]]
|-
| [[C. K. Daphtary]] || 2 March 1963 – 30 October 1968 || [[Jawaharlal Nehru]]; [[Lal Bahadur Shastri]]
|-
| [[Niren De]] || 1 November 1968 – 31 March 1977 || [[Indira Gandhi]]
|-
| [[S. V. Gupte]] || 1 April 1977 – 8 August 1979 || [[Morarji Desai]]
|-
| [[L. N. Sinha]] || 9 August 1979 – 8 August 1983 || [[Indira Gandhi]]
|-
| [[K. Parasaran]] || 9 August 1983 – 8 December 1989 || [[Indira Gandhi]]; [[Rajiv Gandhi]]
|-
| [[Soli Sorabjee]] || 9 December 1989 – 2 December 1990 || [[V. P. Singh]]; [[Chandra Shekhar]]
|-

| [[G. Ramaswamy (Attorney General)|G. Ramaswamy]] || 3 December 1990 – 23 November 1992 || [[Chandra Shekhar]]; [[P. V. Narasimha Rao]]
|-
| [[Milon K. Banerji]] || 21 November 1992 – 8 July 1996 || [[P. V. Narasimha Rao]]
|-
| [[Ashok Desai]] || 9 July 1996 – 6 April 1998 || [[H. D. Deve Gowda|H. D. Devegowda]]; [[I. K. Gujral|Inder Kumar Gujral]]
|-
| [[Soli Sorabjee]] || 7 April 1998 – 4 June 2004 || [[Atal Bihari Vajpayee]]
|-
| [[Milon K. Banerji]] || 5 June 2004 – 7 June 2009 || [[Manmohan Singh]]
|-
| [[Goolam Essaji Vahanvati]] || 8 June 2009 – 11 June 2014 || [[Manmohan Singh]]
|-
| [[Mukul Rohatgi]] || 19 June 2014 – 18 June 2017<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://lawmin.nic.in/la/lawofficers.htm |title=Archived copy |access-date=12 June 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140609164022/http://lawmin.nic.in/la/lawofficers.htm |archive-date=9 June 2014 |url-status=dead |df=dmy-all }}</ref> || [[Narendra Modi]]
|-
| [[K. K. Venugopal]] || 1 July 2017 – (incumbent) || [[Narendra Modi]]
|}

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Attorney General for India}}
[[Category:Attorneys General of India| ]]
[[Category:Supreme Court of India]]

Attorney-General for India - Revision history

76.71.157.66 at 06:10, 11 June 2021