PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES 13
which the States are bound to the Indian Union are the Instruments of Accession. Now there is a fundamental difference between the two links. The standstill agreements are purely contractual. They preserve such agreements as existed between the old Government of India and the Indian States under paramountcy before the 15th of August 1947. As I said they are purely contractual. They do not confer any jurisdiction upon the Government of India to legislate either by way of altering those arrangements or making them the foundation of any law which would bind the Indian States. Therefore, so far as we are concerned, in the matter of making any law by this legislature which is intended to be applicable to the Indian States, it is quite clear to my mind that we cannot take our stand on the standstill agreement. We must therefore, rely upon the Instruments of Accession which is the only foundation which gives us legal jurisdiction to pass any law. My submission is this, that if you take the Instruments of Accession, the Instruments of Accession, as they stand now—and I shall presently explain to the House why I emphasize ‘as they stand now’—this House has no jurisdiction. In the first place this legislation relates to entry No. 16 in the Concurrent field. It does not relate, so far as the matter under legislation is concerned, to the Federal List or to the Provincial List. It relates only to the Concurrent List. Now, as everybody is aware, the Instruments of Accession, whatever power they give to the Central Legislature to legislate, definitely exclude all items which are included in the Concurrent List. I should have thought that by that very proposition, that the Concurrent Lists are not covered by the Instruments of Accession, the jurisdiction of this House is completely ousted. The only thing therefore that we have to find out is whether the Instruments of Accession which have been passed by the different States in favour of the Union of India cover anything which relates or which is equivalent to entry No. 16 in the Concurrent List. Now, Sir, these Instruments of Accession were placed on the Table of the house, and anybody who has had the time to scrutinize them would have found that the States have acceded only in respect of three subjects, and none of the subjects can be so interpreted