Attorney General of India

Attorney General of India
Post	Attorney General
Body	India
Insigniacaption	Emblem of India
Department	Ministry of Law and Justice
Reports to	President of India
Appointer	President of India
Appointer qualified	on the advice of the Union Council of Ministers
Termlength	Pleasure of the President
Formation	28 January 1950
First	M. C. Setalvad
Salary	₹1,00,000 (per month)

Attorney General of India. The Attorney General for India is the chief legal advisor to the Government of India and its primary advocate in the Supreme Court of India. Appointed under Article 76 of the Constitution of India, the position is held by a distinguished jurist qualified to be a Judge of the Supreme Court. The officeholder provides critical legal counsel to the President of India and the Union Council of Ministers on complex constitutional and legal matters.

Appointment and tenure

The President of India appoints the Attorney General based on the advice of the Union Council of Ministers, particularly the Prime Minister of India. The appointee must possess the qualifications required for a Judge of the Supreme Court, as outlined in the Constitution of India. The tenure is not fixed and lasts at the pleasure of the President, meaning they serve concurrently with the government and typically resign upon a change in administration. Unlike other constitutional posts, there is no specified retirement age, and the remuneration is determined by the President as per Article 76.

Powers and duties

The Attorney General holds the right of audience in all courts across India, including the Supreme Court of India and every High courts of India. Their primary duty is to provide legal advice to the Government of India upon reference and to perform legal duties assigned by the President. They also represent the Union Government in significant cases before the Supreme Court of India, such as those involving the interpretation of the Constitution of India or disputes between the Government of India and various States and union territories of India. Furthermore, they undertake special tasks referred by the President of India or the Ministry of Law and Justice (India).

List of Attorneys General

The first Attorney General of independent India was M. C. Setalvad, who served from 1950 to 1963. Other notable holders of the office include Niren De, who served during the Indira Gandhi administration and the period of the Emergency (India), and Soli Sorabjee, who served two non-consecutive terms under Prime Ministers Chandra Shekhar and Atal Bihari Vajpayee. More recent appointees include Mukul Rohatgi, appointed during the first term of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and the incumbent, R. Venkataramani, appointed in 2022.

Relationship with the government

The Attorney General is not a member of the Union Council of Ministers and does not enjoy the right to vote in Parliament. However, they possess the right to speak and participate in proceedings in both the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha, akin to a minister. Their role is advisory, and while they represent the government's legal interests, they are also expected to uphold the Constitution of India impartially. The office maintains a close working relationship with the Ministry of Law and Justice (India) and the Solicitor General of India, who assists in representing the government.

Notable cases and opinions

Attorneys General have been involved in landmark constitutional cases. Niren De famously argued the government's position in the ADM Jabalpur v. Shivkant Shukla case during the Emergency (India). Soli Sorabjee provided crucial opinions on matters of freedom of speech and played a significant role in cases involving the Basic structure doctrine of the Constitution. More recently, K. K. Venugopal offered legal opinions on matters ranging from the Ayodhya dispute to the abrogation of Article 370 of the Constitution of India, representing the government before the Supreme Court of India.

Constitutional provisions

The office is established by Article 76 of the Constitution of India, which defines the appointment process, qualifications, duties, and rights. It specifies that the Attorney General must be qualified to be appointed as a Judge of the Supreme Court. Their rights in Parliament are derived from Article 88 of the Constitution of India. Unlike the Comptroller and Auditor General of India, the Attorney General is not an independent constitutional authority but a legal officer of the Government of India, serving at the pleasure of the executive.

Category:Government of India Category:Indian law Category:National legal systems