The Hindu Business Line : A law site where you can loiter

INDIA Code TextBase is a gathering of `all the Central Legislations,' as the site http://indiacode.nic.in defines. "What is the fuss about?" you may ask but that's the catchy question showing up if you clicked `about us.'

The site justifies its existence from three "points of view": First, to handle the "painful task of identifying the amendments" when working on a "legislative drafting problem." Second, "all the concerned officials need to maintain the `cut and paste' versions of legislations relevant to their day-to-day operations which is always a time-taking job for concerned officials involved in this job." And third, "all the Acts are not available in up-to-date form as and when required by general people, lawyers, judges and all others interested in it. In fact, this is the most vital reason why we should make India Code TextBase available on Internet."

Compared to this, "traditional tools of the legislative drafting and searching appear to be of Stone Age technology," it adds, because the power, speed and simplicity of the India Code Act Retrieval System is stunning." That may have been true way back in 1996 when it came about.

India Code finds a pride of place, with a tricolour graphic accompanying, on the Law Ministry's Web site. The site is hosted by the National Informatics Centre, and the content "owned, maintained and updated" by the Legislative Department, Ministry of Law and Justice, consists of "all the Central Acts of Parliament" from 1834 onwards.

However, don't expect to see on the site the latest Bills that have been passed; it seems that updating took long ago, though it won the `Best Law Website Award' from links2go.com. A link takes one to http://lawmin.nic.in/whatsnew.htm where the latest is "The Patents (Amendment) Bill, 2003."

List of Acts added or modified in the database between 2000 and 2003 shows about 200-plus entries. Something of interest, in case you grow tired of searching for words such as `fiscal' and getting only `The Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management Bill, 2000.' In the three-year list are familiar names such as Trade Mark Act, Information Technology Act, Telecom Regulatory Authority of India Act, Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority Act, Foreign Exchange Management Act and so on.

Among the less recognisable may be ones such as Leaders of Chief whips of Recognised Parties and Groups in Parliament (Facilities) Act, Geographical Indications of Goods (Regulation and Protection) Act, Church of Scotland Krik Sessions Act, Hindu Gains of Learning Act, Countess of Dufferin's Fund (Repeal) Act, Suppression of Unlawful Acts Against Safety of Maritime Navigation and Fixed Platforms of Continental Shelf Act, and Indian Matrimonial Causes (War Marriages) Act.

Year-stamp of some of laws in the list can take you back a few centuries, as for instance, in the case of: Fatal Accidents Act, 1855; Indian Divorce Act, 1869; Unclaimed Deposits Act, 1870; Sheriff's Fees Act, 1852; and Converts' Marriage Dissolution Act, 1866.

Idly, I search for a list of Acts with year 1850 and lo, there's the Public Accountants' Default Act, "for avoiding loss by the default of Public Accountants." A search for the word `accountants' in the database yielded two more: Chartered Accountants Act, and Cost and Works Accountants Act.

A good site where one may loiter to know some law.

ExParte@TheHindu.co.in

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