Report No. 24
2. Genesis of the Act.-
The Commissions of Inquiry Act, 1952 was enacted after due consultation with State Governments to facilitate the setting up of commissions with requisite powers to inquire into and report on any matter of public importance. Government realised, on the basis of its previous experience that the expedient of promoting special legislation for setting up a commission of inquiry each time the need for it arose involved a tardy process which more often than not ended in the withdrawal of the proposals for inquiry.
On the other hand Government felt convinced of the utility of such inquiries as a means of arriving at a proper appraisal of matters of public importance and of infusing the confidence of the public in its administration and conduct. As the necessity for such inquiries was bound to be a recurring one, it was felt advantageous to have an enactment generalising the powers which commissions of inquiry may exercise and leaving it to the Government to constitute a commission as and when necessary. Such, in short, is the genesis of the Commissions of Inquiry Act, 1952.
Back
