The Common Law in India - College of Social Sciences and ...

22 The Common Law in IndiaHindus by the laws and usages of Hindus and whereonly one of the parties should be a Mahomedan orHindu by the laws and usages of the defendant.The effect of these statutes was to take away theapplication of the English law to Hindus and Mahomedansin the matter of contracts and other mattersenumerated in the statutes and to provide that theywere to be governed in these matters by their ownlaws and usages.The establishment of the Supreme Courts at Madrasand Bombay replacing the recorders' courts whichhad been created there in 1797 took place in the years1801 and 1823.We may now turn to the administration of justiceand law in the mofussil. The administration of civiljustice outside the Presidency Towns was associatedwith the management of revenue and the Companytook a considerable time to evolve a regular systemof administration of justice, after it had by the grantof Diwani of Bengal, Bihar and Orissa become virtuallythe sovereign of these territories. It establishedtwo superior courts: the Sadar Diwani Adalat, a finalcourt of appeal in civil matters, and the SadarNizamat Adalat, the final court of criminal appealwhich was empowered to revise arid confirm sentencesawarded by the criminal courts. Subordinate to thesesuperior courts were the district Diwani and FoujdariAdalats. The Act of Settlement of 1781 for the firsttime recognised provincial courts as independent ofthe Supreme Court in the Presidency Towns. TheGovernor-General in Council was made Supreme Courtof Appeal in civil matters from the mofussil and was