Law Student in Action: COMPTROLLER AND AUDITOR GENERAL OF INDIA

Sasi K.G., Roll No 87

01. INTRODUCTION

The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India is a Constitutional authority under Part V Chapter V/Sub-part 7B/Articles 148-151 etc of the Constitution of India. He audits all receipts and expenditure of the Government of India and the state governments, including those of bodies and authorities substantially financed by the government. The CAG is also the external auditor of Government-owned corporations and conducts supplementary audit of government companies, i.e., any non-banking/ non-insurance company in which Union Government has an equity share of at least 51 per cent or subsidiary companies of existing government companies. The CAG is also the head of the Indian Audit and Accounts Department, the affairs of which are managed by officers of Indian Audit and Accounts Service, and has over 58,000 employees across the country. CAG is ranked 9th in Indian order of precedence and enjoys the same status as a judge of Supreme Court of India.[i]

02. HISTORY OF THE EVOLUTION OF THE POST OF COMPTROLLER AND AUDITOR GENERAL OF INDIA

01. A Brief History:- The role of the CAG evolved in British India with Lord Canning initiating a major administrative drive before the Mutiny of 1857. In May 1858, for the first time, a separate department was set up with an Accountant General, who was responsible for accounting and auditing the financial transactions under the East India Company. After Mutiny, which was later called as the first Independence movement of India, the British Crown took over and passed the Government of India Act 1858. This laid the foundation stone of Imperial Audit.[ii] The post was re-designated as Comptroller General of Accounts in 1866 and the Comptroller and Auditor General in 1884. Under the Montagu-Chelmsford Reforms of 1919, and consequent Government of India Act, 1919 the post was renamed as the Auditor General of India and it became independent of the government. The Government of India Act 1935 strengthened the position of the Auditor General of India by providing for the audit of Government of India and eleven Provincial Governments with eleven Provincial Auditors General under him in a federal set-up.[iii] The Indian Independence Act, 1947 separating the British Empire into India and Pakistan made some modifications and adaptations to the post of Auditor General of India. Then existing Government of India (Audit and Accounts) Order 1936 was adapted by the Indian Provisional Constitution Order, 1947. On 1949 November 26 Constitution of India was passed and it came into existence on 1950 January 26. The post of the Auditor General of India was renamed as the Comptroller and Auditor General of India.

02. Etymology of the term Comptroller:- In the 15th century English, the word Controller developed the alternate spelling Comptroller as a result of an association between the first part of the word, cont, and an unrelated word count and its variant, compt. Many people pronounce comptroller like controller but both are acceptable. But the word Comptroller has a different meaning-someone who maintains and audits business. Comptrollers are controllers but controllers are not comptrollers.

03. Persons holding office of Auditor General / Comptroller and Auditor General etc.:- The first Auditor General of India, Hon. Sir Edmund Drummond took charge of his office on 16^th November 1860 and continued in office for sixteen months. However he has been the head of Audit Department from 1856.[iv] All the Auditor Generals of India before independence were British. Sir Mager Frederic Gauntlett who held office during 1912 and 1914 and between 6^th July 1918 and 16^th November 1929 is remembered for upholding the independence and control of the Auditor General is another man of merit. Sir Ernest Burdon held the office from 1929 to 1940. Sir Alexander Cameron Badenoch was auditor general of India from 1940 to 1945. The last British Auditor General was Sir Bertie Monro Staig who held office between 11^th April 1945 and 14^th August 1948. A list of sixteen British Auditors General of India are given in Appendix I.

Shri V. Narahari Rao, who joined I.A.A.S. on 5^th March 1917 became the first Indian Auditor General of the free dominions of India on 15^th August 1948. The present Comptroller and Auditor General of India is Shashi Kant Sharma who holds office since 2013. A list of twelve Comptroller and Auditors General of India are given in Appendix II.

03. AUDITOR GENERAL AND THE BRITISH CONSTITUTIONS OF INDIA

As far as the Comptroller and Auditor General of India / Auditor General of India is concerned, there are three stages of constitutional development. The Government of India Acts of 1833, 1858, 1912, 1915, 1919 and 1935 were called by the British as the Constitutions of India.[v]

01. The Government of India Act of 1833

This Act did not consider the appointment of an Auditor General of India. Hence it is irrelevant in this paper.

02. The Government of India Act of 1858

This Act, passed on August 2, 1858 was the real cause of the establishment of an audit authority in British India in tune with the English accounting system. This Act moved by Lord Stanley was termed as “An Act for the better Government of India.” The taking over of the Governance of India by the Queen and the appointment of Secretary of State of India who was responsible to the British Parliament and a Viceroy and Governor-General of India who had ample powers necessitated a Government audit mechanism similar to the British Audit System. However the appointment of an Auditor General was made only in 1960 and the man the British found for appointing to this post was Sir Edmund Drummond who had been a British barrister by profession. The post however, being not based on any Statutory provision existing then, but an only an extension of the British Auditing system, was renamed as Comptroller General of Accounts in 1866 and the Comptroller and Auditor General in 1884.

03. The Government of India Acts of 1912 and 1915

The Government of India Act, 1912 was an attempt to address the grievances of Indian leaders in respect of the inadequacies of The Indian Councils Act, 1892, and The Indian Councils Act, 1909. The 1909 Act is also called Minto-Morley Reforms. However these Acts did not bring much change to the post of Comptroller and Auditor General at all.

04. The Government of India Act of 1919

The Government of India Act, 1919 called Montagu-Chelmsford Reforms was the first Statute in India having a reference to the Auditor General of India. Some of the most relevant provisions of The Government of India Act, 1919 are reproduced below.

“Sec. 39. (1) An Auditor-General in India shall be appointed by the Secretary of State in Council, and shall hold office during His Majesty's pleasure. The Secretary of State in Council shall, by rules, make provision for his pay, powers, duties, and conditions of employment, or for the discharge of his duties in the case of a temporary vacancy or absence from duty.

(2) Subject to any rules made by the Secretary of State in Council, no office may be added to or withdrawn from the public service, and the emoluments of no post may be varied, except after consultation with such finance authority as may be designated in the rules, being an authority of the province or of the Government of India, according as the post is or is not under the control of a local Government.

Sec. 40. Rules made under this Part of this Act shall not be Rules under Part IV made except with the concurrence of the majority of votes at a meeting of the Council of India.”

Under Schedule I Part I Central Subjects of the Act, by the inclusion in Sl. No. 15 of Department of the Comptroller and Auditor General, Comptroller and Auditor General’s office came under the purview of Union Government. The Act also entrusted that the Controller and Auditor-General should exercise more definite authority over the audit staff of the Military Accounts Department. This Act also provided for some basic accounting and audit procedure. It also constituted a Public Accounts Committee constituted by the Legislature vide Rule 51 and 52 of the Indian Legislative Rules framed under Section 67 (1) read with Section 129-A of the Government of India Act,1919.[vi]

05. The Government of India Act of 1935

The Government of India Act of 1935 has contributed much to the supremacy and control of Auditor-General over all auditing matters. The Major provisions in respect of Auditor-General and his Subordinate Statutory staff are given below.

“Sn.166. Auditor-General of India.- (1) There shall be an Auditor-General of India, who shall he appointed by His Majesty and shall only be removed from office in like manner and on the like grounds as a judge of the Federal Court.

(2) The conditions of service of the Auditor-General shall be such as may be prescribed by His Majesty in Council, and he shall not be eligible for further office under the Crown in India afte.r he has ceased to hold his office.

Provided that neither the salary of an Auditor-General nor his rights in respect of leave of absence, pension or age of retirement shall be varied to his disadvantage after his appointment.

(3) The Auditor-General shall perform such duties and exercise such powers 'in relation to the accounts of the Federation and of the Provinces as may be prescribed by, or by rules made under, an Order of His Majesty in Council, or by any subsequent Act of the Federal Legislature varying or extending such any Order:

Provided that no Bill or amendment for the purpose aforesaid shall be introduced or moved without the previous sanction of the Governor-General in his discretion.

(4) The salary, allowances and pension payable to or in respect of an Auditor General shall be charged on the revenues of the Federation, and the salaries allowances and pensions' payable to or in respect of members of his staff shall be paid out of those revenues.

Sn.167. Provincial Auditor-General.- (1) If a Provincial Legislature after the expiration of two years from the commencement of Part III of this Act passes an Act charging the salary of an Auditor-General for that Province on the revenues of the Province, an Auditor-General of the Province may be appointed by His Majesty to perform the same duties and to exercise the same powers in relation to the audit of the accounts of the Province as would be performed and exercised by the Auditor-General of India, if an Auditor-General of the Province had not been appointed:

Provided that no appointment of an Auditor-General in a Province shall be made until the expiration of at least three years from the date of the Act of the Provincial Legislature by which provision is made for an Auditor-General of that Province.

(2) The provisions of the last preceding section shall apply in relation to the Auditor-General of a Province and his staff as they apply in relation to the Auditor-General of India and his staff, subject to the following modifications, that is to say -

(a) a person who is, or bas been, Auditor-General of a Province shall be eligible for appointment as Auditor-General of India;

(b) in subsection (3) of the said section, for the reference to the Federal Legislature there shall be substituted a reference to the Provincial Legislature, and for the reference to the Governor-General there shall be substituted a reference to the Governor; and

(c) in subsection (4) of the said section for the reference to the revenues of the Federation there shall he substituted a reference to the revenues of the Province:

Provided that nothing in this section shall derogate from the power of the Auditor-General of India to give such directions in respect to the accounts of Provinces as are mentioned in the next succeeding section.

Sn.168. Power of Auditor-General of India to give directions as to accounts:- The accounts of the Federation shall be kept in such form as the Auditor-General of India may, with the approval of the Governor-General, prescribe and, in so far as the Auditor-General of India may, with the like approval, give any directions with regard to the methods or principles in accordance with which any accounts of Provinces ought to be kept, it shall be the duty of every Provincial Government to cause accounts to be kept accordingly.

Sn.169. Audit Reports:- The reports of the Auditor-General of India relating to the accounts of the Federation shall be sub- reports submitted to the Governor-General, who shall cause them to be laid before the Federal Legislature, and the reports of the Auditor-General of India or of the Auditor-General of the Province, as the case may be, relating to the accounts of a Province shall be submitted to the Governor of the Province, who shall cause them to be laid before the Provincial Legislature.

Sn.170. Auditor of Indian Home Accounts: - (1) There shall be an Auditor of Indian Home Accounts who shall be appointed by the Governor-General in his discretion and shall only be removed from office in like manner and on the like grounds as a judge of the Federal Court.

(2) The conditions of service of the Auditor of Indian Home Accounts shall be such as may be prescribed by the Governor-General in his discretion:

Provided that neither the salary of an Auditor of Indian Home Accounts nor his rights in respect of leave of absence, pension or age of retirement shall be varied to his disadvantage after his appointment.

(3) The Auditor of Indian Home Accounts shall perform such duties and exercise such powers in relation to transactions in the United Kingdom affecting the revenues of the Federation, of the Federal Railway Authority, or of any Province, as may be prescribed by, or by rules made under, an Order of His Majesty in Council, or by any Act of the Federal Legislature varying or extending such an Order:

Provided that no Bill or amendment for the purpose aforesaid shall be introduced or moved without the prior sanction of the Governor-General in his discretion.

(4) The reports of the Auditor of Indian Home Accounts relating to such transactions as aforesaid shall be submitted to the Auditor-General of India, or, in the case of transactions affecting the revenues of a Province which has an Auditor-General, to the Auditor-General of the Province, and shall be included by any such Auditor-General in the reports which under this Part of this Act he is required to submit to the Governor-General or, as the case may be, to the Governor.

(5) The Auditor of Indian Home Accounts shall be subject to the general superintendence of the Auditor-General of India.

(6) The salary, allowances and pension payable to or in respect of the Auditor of Indian Home Accounts shall be charged on the revenues of the Federation, and the salaries, allowances and pensions payable to or in respect of members of his staff shall be paid out of those revenues.

(7) His Majesty in Council may require the Auditor of Indian Home Accounts to perform in relation to Burma all or any of the functions which he performs in relation to India, and may fix the payments to be made in respect of his services from the revenues of Burma to the revenues of the Federation, and may make such incidental and consequential provision as may appear to him to be proper.

Sn.171. Audit of accounts relating to the discharge of the functions of the Crown in relation to Indian states:- The accounts relating to the discharge of the functions of the Crown in its relations with Indian States shall be audited by the Auditor-General of India, or, in so far as those accounts concern transactions in the United Kingdom, by the Auditor of Indian Home Accounts acting on his behalf and under his general superintendence, and the Auditor-General of India shall make to the Secretary of State annual reports on the accounts so audited by him or on his behalf.”

On the audit of Railway Authority Government of India Act, 1935 provides that,

“Sn.190. Audit and Annual Reports:- (1) The accounts of the receipts and expenditure of the Authority shall be audited and certified by, or on behalf of, the Auditor-General of India.

(2) The Authority shall publish annually a report of their operations during the preceding year and a statement of accounts in a form approved by the Auditor-General.”

On the Special provisions as to staffs of the High Commissioner for India and the Auditor of Indian Home Accounts, Government of India Act, 1935 provides,

“Sn.251. Staff of High Commissioner and Auditor of Indian Home Accounts:- The provisions of this Part of this Act shall apply in relation to appointments to, and to persons serving on, the staffs of the High Commissioner for India and the Auditor of Indian Home Accounts as if the service of members of those staffs were service rendered in India:

Provided that-

(a) appointments to the staff of the Auditor of Indian Home Accounts shall be made by him subject, as respects numbers, salaries and qualifications, to the approval of the Governor-General in his discretion ; and

(b) in relation to that staff the functions of the Governor-General under this Part of this Act shall be exercised by him in his discretion.

Sn.252. Conditions of service of existing staff of High Commissioner and Auditor of Indian Home Accounts:- (1) All persons who immediately before the commencement of Part III of this Act were members of the staff of the High Commissioner for India, or members of the staff of the Auditor of the accounts of the Secretary of State in Council, shall continue to be, or shall become, members of the staff of the High Commissioner for India or, as the case may be, of the Auditor of Indian Home Accounts.

(2) All such persons as aforesaid shall hold their offices or posts subject to like conditions of service as to remuneration, pensions or otherwise, as theretofore, or not less favourable conditions, and shall be entitled to reckon for purposes of pension any service which they would have been entitled to reckon if this Act had not been passed.

(3) The salaries, allowances and pensions payable to, or in respect of, such of the persons aforesaid as were members of the staff of the Auditor of the accounts of the Secretary of State in Council shall be charged on the revenues of the Federation, and the salaries, allowances and pensions payable to, or in respect of, other such persons as aforesaid shall be so charged in so far as those salaries, allowances and pensions would, but for the passing of this Act, have been payable without being submitted to the vote of the Legislative Assembly of the Indian Legislature.”

On an overall vision, Government of India Act, 1935 has acted as the foundation for the provisions contained in the Constitution of India.

06. The Constitutional Assembly debates

As in the case of many important constitutional issues, the Constitutional Assembly did not give any attention to role the Comptroller and Auditor General. Nowhere in the thousands of pages of Constitutional Assembly debates, is the name ‘Comptroller and Auditor General’ mentioned. With a little adaptations, the drafting committee retained the basic provisions of the Government of India Act, 1935 in the draft of the Constitution and the same was passed silently.

04. COMPTROLLER AND AUDITOR GENERAL UNDER THE CONSTITUTIONS OF INDIA

The Constitutional Provisions in respect of the Comptroller and Auditor General of India are given under Articles 112 (2) (e), 148-151, 279, 312A, 313, 377, Second Schedule, Part E, Provisions as to the Comptroller and Auditor-General of India, Third Schedule, Part IV, Form of oath or affirmation to be made by the Judges of the Supreme Court and the Comptroller and Auditor-General of India, Sixth Schedule, Provisions as to the Administration of Tribal Areas in the States of Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and Mizoram, Seventh Schedule, List I—Union List, Item 75 and Appendix II Re-statement, with reference to the present text of the Constitution, of the exceptions and modifications subject to which the Constitution applies to the State of Jammu and Kashmir (j) Article 150. They are reproduced below.

“Art. 112. (1) The President shall in respect of every financial year cause to be laid before both the Houses of Parliament a statement of the estimated receipts and expenditure of the Government of India for that year, in this Part referred to as the “annual financial statement”.

(2) The estimates of expenditure embodied in the annual financial statement shall show separately—

(e) the salary, allowances and pension payable to or in respect of the Comptroller and Auditor-General of India;

CHAPTER V.—COMPTROLLER AND AUDITOR-GENERAL OF INDIA

Art. 148. (1) There shall be a Comptroller and Auditor-General of India who shall be appointed by the President by warrant under his hand and seal and shall only be removed from office in like manner and on the like grounds as a Judge of the Supreme Court.

(2) Every person appointed to be the Comptroller and Auditor-General of India shall, before he enters upon his office, make and subscribe before the President, or some person appointed in that behalf by him, an oath or affirmation according to the form set out for the purpose in the Third Schedule.

(3) The salary and other conditions of service of the Comptroller and Auditor-General shall be such as may be determined by Parliament by law and, until they are so determined, shall be as specified in the Second Schedule:

Provided that neither the salary of a Comptroller and Auditor-General nor his rights in respect of leave of absence, pension or age of retirement shall be varied to his disadvantage after his appointment.

(4) The Comptroller and Auditor-General shall not be eligible for further office either under the Government of India or under the Government of any State after he has ceased to hold his office.

(5) Subject to the provisions of this Constitution and of any law made by Parliament, the conditions of service of persons serving in the Indian Audit and Accounts Department and the administrative powers of the Comptroller and Auditor-General shall be such as may be prescribed by rules made by the President after consultation with the Comptroller and Auditor-General.

(6) The administrative expenses of the office of the Comptroller and Auditor-General, including all salaries, allowances and pensions payable to or in respect of the persons serving in that office, shall be charged upon the Consolidated Fund of India.
Procedure for appointment of Comptroller and Auditor General of India was discussed in N. Gopalaswami & Ors v. The Union of India & Anr. in WP(C) 4619/2013

The word 'misbehaviour' when employed in respect of holders of high offices has a well understood and well defined meaning according to the tradition and standards maintained by the members of a particular service or office.[vii]

The Comptroller and Auditor-General's Manual of the Standing Orders, Para 262-A and Fundamental Rule 25, have statutory force and crossing of efficiency bar must be decided after consideration of confidential reports and work of the employee. Deferring the order by authority without applying its mind to these aspects is liable to be quashed.[viii]

The Comptroller and Auditor General of India performs duties and exercises powers in relation to the accounts of the Union and the States; his is a single office and a single Department, the Indian Audit and Accounts Department. Consequently, the regulation of the recruitment and conditions of service of persons serving in his Department cannot be regarded as a matter falling within the domain of the President under the proviso to Art. 309. A special provision under Art. 148(5) necessary to entrust the President with that power, has been made. The two powers under Art. 148(5) and the proviso to Art. 309 are separate and distinct; they are not mutually complementary. The reference to the proviso to Art. 309 in the recital of the Notification publishing the Indian Audit and Accounts Department (Subordinate Accounts Service and Subordinate Railway Audit Service) Service Rules, 1974 is meaningless and must be ignored.[ix]

Art. 148(5) does not bar the Government to set up an expert-body like the Pay Commission to consider the revision of pay of the Indian Audit and Accounts Department employees, particularly, when the revised pay-scales for the Section Officers in the Department were enforced after consultation with the Comptroller and Auditor-General of India.[x]

Where a circular regarding reservation for the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes employed in the matter of promotion in the Audit and Accounts Department was issued not in the name of the President but by the Comptroller and Auditor-General after proper consultation with the Government, held, the infirmity of its not being issued in the name of the President related only to the form, not the substance. The circular affects the service conditions of the persons in the Audit and Accounts Department; it ought to have been issued in the name of the President. But having been approved by the Government and being in accord with the Government's declared policy, the Comptroller and Auditor-General could not be restrained from enforcing it.[xi]
Art. 148 (5) confers power on the President to frame rules operating prospectively only; the Indian Audit and Accounts Department (Subordinate Accounts Service and Railway Audit Service) Service Rules, 1974 have no retrospective operation. Rule (1) (2) thereof where by the Rules are deemed to have come into force on 27th July, 1956 is ultra vires.[xii]

Art. 149. The Comptroller and Auditor-General shall perform such duties and exercise such powers in relation to the accounts of the Union and of the States and of any other authority or body as may be prescribed by or under any law made by Parliament and, until provision in that behalf is so made, shall perform such duties and exercise such powers in relation to the accounts of the Union and of the States as were conferred on or exercisable by the Auditor-General of India immediately before the commencement of this Constitution in relation to the accounts of the Dominion of India and of the Provinces respectively.

The duties imposed on the Comptroller under the Audit Code which derives its authority under Art. 149 of the Constitution are obviously statutory and the powers given thereunder in regard to the payment of passage benefits have to be exercised as warranted. Where the officer acted arbitrarily, a writ of mandamus could be issued.[xiii]

The direction given by the Rules in the Account Code to a Government to put any amount demanded by them in its appropriate classification is not of a mandatory character. So even assuming that certain amounts ought to have been put under the head "discretionary grants" and not under "miscellaneous" the error or breach committed by the Government cannot result in contravention of Arts. 149 and 150. It is only an irregularity and it cannot render the whole or part of the grant void.[xiv]

Art. [[xv]150. The accounts of the Union and of the States shall be kept in such form as the President may, [[xvi]on the advice of] the Comptroller and Auditor-General of India, prescribe.]]

Along with Arts. 149 and 150 must be read Art. 202. The Budget and the Annual Financial Statement must give such particulars of the receipts and expenditure as would be necessary to satisfy the requirements of the Comptroller and Auditor-General for maintaining the accounts. The receipts and the expenditure must be classified in the Budget as indicated in the list of major Heads of Accounts. Failure to do so will amount to noncompliance with Arts. 149 and 150 which are as much binding on the State Government and the Legislature as any other provision in the Constitution bearing on the powers of the Government and the Legislature.[xvii]

Art. 151. (1) The reports of the Comptroller and Auditor-General of India relating to the accounts of the Union shall be submitted to the President, who shall cause them to be laid before each House of Parliament.

(2) The reports of the Comptroller and Auditor-General of India relating to the accounts of a State shall be submitted to the Governor ***[xviii] of the State, who shall cause them to be laid before the Legislature of the State.

In Arun Kumar Aggarval v. Union of India W.P.(Civil) 469 of 2012 Supreme Court held that CAG Audit Report is always subject to scrutiny by the Parliament and it is for the Parliament to decide whether after receiving the report to make its comments on the CAG’s report.

Art. 279. (1) In the foregoing provisions of this Chapter, “net proceeds” means in relation to any tax or duty the proceeds thereof reduced by the cost of collection, and for the purposes of those provisions the net proceeds of any tax or duty, or of any part of any tax or duty, in or attributable to any area shall be ascertained and certified by the Comptroller and Auditor-General of India, whose certificate shall be final.

(2) Subject as aforesaid, and to any other express provision of this Chapter, a law made by Parliament or an order of the President may, in any case where under this Part the proceeds of any duty or tax are, or may be, assigned to any State, provide for the manner in which the proceeds are to be calculated, for the time from or at which and the manner in which any payments are to be made, for the making of adjustments between one financial year and another, and for any other incidental or ancillary matters.

Art. [[xix]312A. (1) Parliament may by law—

(a) vary or revoke, whether prospectively or retrospectively, the conditions of services as respects remuneration, leave and pension and the rights as respects disciplinary matters of persons who, having been appointed by the Secretary of State or Secretary of State in Council to a civil service of the Crown in India before the commencement of this Constitution, continue on and after the commencement of the Constitution (Twenty-eighth Amendment) Act, 1972, to serve under the Government of India or of a State in any service or post;

(b) vary or revoke, whether prospectively or retrospectively, the conditions of service as respects pension of persons who, having been appointed by the Secretary of State or Secretary of State in Council to a civil service of the Crown in India before the commencement of this Constitution, retired or otherwise ceased to be in service at any time before the commencement of the Constitution (Twenty-eighth Amendment) Act, 1972:

Provided that in the case of any such person who is holding or has held the office of the Chief Justice or other Judge of the Supreme Court or a High Court, the Comptroller and Auditor-General of India, the Chairman or other member of the Union or a State Public Service Commission or the Chief Election Commissioner, nothing in sub-clause (a) or sub-clause (b) shall be construed as empowering Parliament to vary or revoke, after his appointment to such post, the conditions of his service to his disadvantage except in so far as such conditions of service are applicable to him by reason of his being a person appointed by the Secretary of State or Secretary of State in Council to a civil service of the Crown in India.

(2) Except to the extent provided for by Parliament by law under this article, nothing in this article shall affect the power of any Legislature or other authority under any other provision of this Constitution to regulate the conditions of service of persons referred to in clause (1).

(3) Neither the Supreme Court nor any other court shall have jurisdiction in—

(a) any dispute arising out of any provision of, or any endorsement on, any covenant, agreement or other similar instrument which was entered into or executed by any person referred to in clause (1), or arising out of any letter issued to such person, in relation to his appointment to any civil service of the Crown in India or his continuance in service under the Government of the Dominion of India or a Province thereof;

(b) any dispute in respect of any right, liability or obligation under article 314 as originally enacted.

(4) The provisions of this article shall have effect notwithstanding anything in article 314 as originally enacted or in any other provision of this Constitution.]

Art. 313. Until other provision is made in this behalf under this Constitution, all the laws in force immediately before the commencement of this Constitution and applicable to any public service or any post which continues to exist after the commencement of this Constitution, as an all-India service or as service or post under the Union or a State shall continue in force so far as consistent with the provisions of this Constitution.

Art. 377. The Auditor-General of India holding office immediately before the commencement of this Constitution shall, unless he has elected otherwise, become on such commencement the Comptroller and Auditor-General of India and shall thereupon be entitled to such salaries and to such rights in respect of leave of absence and pension as are provided for under clause (3) of article 148 in respect of the Comptroller and Auditor-General of India and be entitled to continue to hold office until the expiration of his term of office as determined under the provisions which were applicable to him immediately before such commencement.

(Second Schedule)

PART E

PROVISIONS AS TO THE COMPTROLLER AND AUDITOR-GENERAL OF INDIA

12. (1) There shall be paid to the Comptroller and Auditor-General of India a salary at the rate of [xx]four thousand rupees per mensem.

(2) The person who was holding office immediately before the commencement of this Constitution as Auditor-General of India and has become on such commencement the Comptroller and Auditor-General of India under article 377 shall in addition to the salary specified in subparagraph (1) of this paragraph be entitled to receive as special pay an amount equivalent to the difference between the salary so specified and the salary which he was drawing as Auditor-General of India immediately before such commencement.

(3) The rights in respect of leave of absence and pension and the other conditions of service of the Comptroller and Auditor-General of India shall be governed or shall continue to be governed, as the case may be, by the provisions which were applicable to the Auditor-General of India immediately before the commencement of this Constitution and all references in those provisions to the Governor-General shall be construed as references to the President.

(Third Schedule)

Form of oath or affirmation to be made by the Judges of the Supreme Court and the Comptroller and Auditor-General of India:—

“I, A.B., having been appointed Chief Justice (or a Judge) of the Supreme Court of India (or Comptroller and Auditor-General of India) do swear in the name of God solemnly affirm that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the Constitution of India as by law established, [[xxi]that I will uphold the sovereignty and integrity of India,] that I will duly and faithfully and to the best of my ability, knowledge and judgment perform the duties of my office without fear or favour, affection or ill-will and that I will uphold the Constitution and the laws.”

(Sixth Schedule)

Provisions as to the Administration of Tribal Areas in [[xxii]the States of Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and Mizoram]

7. District and Regional Funds.—

[[xxiii](3) The accounts of the District Council or, as the case may be, the Regional Council shall be kept in such form as the Comptroller and Auditor-General of India may, with the approval of the President, prescribe.

(4) The Comptroller and Auditor-General shall cause the accounts of the District and Regional Councils to be audited in such manner as he may think fit, and the reports of the Comptroller and Auditor-General relating to such accounts shall be submitted to the Governor who shall cause them to be laid before the Council.]

(Seventh Schedule)

List I—Union List

75. Emoluments, allowances, privileges, and rights in respect of leave of absence, of the President and Governors; salaries and allowances of the Ministers for the Union; the salaries, allowances, and rights in respect of leave of absence and other conditions of service of the Comptroller and Auditor-General.

Appendix II

Re-statement, with reference to the present text of the Constitution, of the exceptions and modifications subject to which the Constitution applies to the State of Jammu and Kashmir

(j) Article 150:- For “as the President may, on the advice of the Comptroller and Auditor-General of India, prescribe” substitute “as the Comptroller and Auditor-General of India may, with the approval of the President prescribe.”

In addition to the above Constitutional provisions, there has been statutes giving duties, functions, powers and responsibilities to the Comptroller and Auditor-General of India.

05. COMPTROLLER AND AUDITOR GENERAL UNDER VARIOUS STATUTES

The main Statutes giving power to the Comptroller and Auditor-General of India are The Government of India (Audit and Accounts) Order 1936, Comptroller and Auditor General (Conditions of Service) Act 1953, and Comptroller and Auditor General's (Duties, Powers, and Conditions of Service) Act, 1971. Let us consider them separately

01. The Government of India (Audit and Accounts) Order 1936

Under Section 168 of the Government of India Act, 1935, "The accounts of the Federation shall be kept in such form as the Auditor General of. India may, with the approval of the Governor General, prescribe and, in so far as the Auditor General of India may, with the like approval, give any directions with regard to the methods or principles in accordance with which any accounts of Provinces ought to be kept, it shall be the duty of every Provincial Government to cause accounts to be kept accordingly". The Government of India (Audit and Accounts) Order, 1936 spelt out specifically the accounting functions in paras 11 to 17, as under:

"11(1) Subject to the provisions of this paragraph, the Auditor General shall be responsible for the keeping of the accounts of the Dominion and of each Province) other than accounts of the Dominion relating to defence or railways and accounts relating to transactions in the United Kingdom.

(2) As respects accounts of the Dominion, the Governor General, and as respects accounts of a Province, the Governor, may after consultation with the Auditor General, make provision by rules for relieving the Auditor General from responsibility for the keeping of the accounts of any particular service or department.

(3) The Governor General may, after consultation with the Auditor General, make provision by rules relieving the Auditor General from responsibility for keeping accounts of any particular class or character.

(4) The Auditor General shall, from the accounts kept by him and by the other persons responsible for keeping public accounts, prepare in each year accounts (including in the case of accounts kept by him) appropriation accounts showing the annual receipts and disbursements for the purposes of the Dominion and each Province, distinguished under the respective heads thereof and shall submit those accounts to the Dominion Government or, as the case may be, to the Government of the Province on such dates as he may, with the concurrence of the Government concerned, determine.

(5) Notwithstanding anything in this paragraph, the Auditor General shall comply with any general or special orders of the Governor General or, as the case may be, a Governor as to the head of account under which any specified transaction or transactions of any specified class is, or are, to be included.

In issuing any such order as aforesaid the Governor General or Governor shall consult the Auditor General.

12. It shall be the duty of the Auditor General to prepare annually, in such form as he, with the concurrence of the Governor General, may determine, and to submit to the Governor General a General Financial Statement incorporating a summary of the accounts of the Dominion and of all the Provinces for the last preceding year and particulars of their balances and outstanding liabilities, and containing such other information as to their financial position as the Governor General may direct to be included in the statement.

15. It shall be the duty of the Auditor General, so far as the accounts for the keeping of which he is responsible enable him so to do, to give to the Dominion Government and to the Government of every Province such information as they may from time to time require, and such assistance in the preparation of their annual financial statements as they may reasonably ask for.

16. The Dominion and every Province shall give to him such information as he may require for the preparation of any account or report, which it is his duty to prepare.

17. The Auditor General shall have authority to inspect any office of Accounts, which is under the control of the Dominion or of a Province, including Treasuries and such offices responsible for the keeping of initial or subsidiary accounts as submit accounts to him.[xxiv]

19. Anything which under this order is directed to be done by the Auditor- General may be done by an officer of his department authorised by him, either generally or specially:

Provided that except during the absence of the Auditor-General on leave or otherwise, an officer shall not be authorised to submit on his behalf any report which the Auditor-General is required by the Act[xxv] to submit to the Governor-General or the Governor of a Province."[xxvi]

There are many other functions also to be exercised by the Auditor General. However, it is no more mentioned here. The Initial and Subsidiary Account Rules 1937 made under The Government of India (Audit and Accounts) Order, 1936 are given in Appendix III.

02. The Comptroller and Auditor General (Conditions of Service) Act 1953

The Comptroller and Auditor General (Conditions of Service) Act, 1953 [Act No. 21 or 1953] came into force on 17th May, 1953. This Act had a Preamble and 4 Sections. Section 2 of the Act It provided for a term of six years from the date on which the Comptroller and Auditor General enters upon his office. His resignation shall be addressed to the President of India. Section 3 of the Act deals with the Pension payable to Comptroller and Auditor-General. Section 4 of the Act refers to the Second Schedule to the Constitution for the other service conditions of the Comptroller and Auditor General. These provisions were already mentioned earlier. The Comptroller and Auditor General (Conditions of Service) Act, 1953 is reproduced in Appendix IV.

03. The Comptroller and Auditor General's (Duties, Powers, and Conditions of Service) Act, 1971

Comptroller and Auditor General's (Duties, Powers, and Conditions of Service) Act, 1971 [Act No. 56 of 1971] came into force on 15.12.1971. This Act had four Chapters and 26 Sections. The first Chapter is Preliminary dealing with Short Title and Definitions. Chapter II ranging from Sections 3 to 9 focuses on the salary and other conditions of service of the Comptroller and Auditor General. Chapter II deals in detail with the duties and powers of the Comptroller and Auditor General in Sections 10 to 20. Chapter IV comprising of Sections 21 to 26 provides miscellaneous provisions such as delegation of power, power to make rules by Central Government and power to make regulations by the Comptroller and Auditor General, power to dispense with detailed audit, repeal and removal of doubts. This Act repeals The Comptroller and Auditor General (Conditions of Service) Act, 1953. It is also made clear that on the commencement of It shall be convenient to deal with the duties and powers of the Comptroller and Auditor General under a separate heading.

06. DUTIES FUNCTIONS POWERS AND RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE COMPTROLLER AND AUDITOR GENERAL

The duties, functions, powers and responsibilities of the Comptroller and Auditor General can be discussed under various headings.

01. Duties, functions, powers and responsibilities of the Comptroller and Auditor General under Constitution of India

The Constitutional Duties of the Comptroller and Auditor General are general but wide in nature. They can be summarized as under.

01. Duty of the Comptroller and Auditor General to perform duties and powers as may be prescribed by or under any law made by Parliament

Article 149, authorizes the Comptroller and Auditor-General to perform such duties and exercise such powers in relation to the accounts of the Union and of the States and of any other authority or body as may be prescribed by or under any law made by Parliament. Until provision is so made, the state immediately before the commencement of the Constitution in relation to the accounts of the Dominion of India and of the Provinces respectively would follow. This duty includes the Keeping of Accounts and Entitlements and Auditing of the Accounts, Performance etc of the Union Government, State Governments, Union Territories, Any Authorities or Bodies.

In Arvind Gupta v. Union of India 2013 SCC 293 Supreme Court has observed that, “CAG’s functions to carry out examination into economy, efficiency and effectiveness with which the Government has used its resources, is in-built in the 1971 Act. Performance Audit Reports prepared under the Regulations have to be viewed accordingly. There is no unconstitutionality in the Regulations.

However, in K. Satyanarayanan and Ors. v. Union Of India and Ors ILR 1996 Delhi 34, Delhi High Court has opined, “In our considered opinion, the question as to whether the accounts of the Reserve Bank of India, State Bank of India and other public sector banks and financial institution should be under the compulsory audit jurisdiction of Comptroller and Auditor General or not is a matter which is not to be considered by us but exclusively falls within the domain and jurisdiction of the Legislature. It is not a matter which is within our sphere and reach and that it would not be appropriate for us to exercise our extraordinary jurisdiction to assume to ourselves a supervisory role over matters falling exclusively within the purview of legislative wisdom of the Parliament.”

The Bombay High Court in Raghunath Shankar Kelkar v. Union of India PIL No. 40 of 2008, did not consider it appropriate to direct Comptroller and Auditor General to estimate the profit and loss to the country in the light of the depletion in the Currency and Gold Revaluation Account of the Reserve Bank and the interest paid on the Scheme over the years and to file a detailed report before this Court or to the President of India for laying before the House of Parliament, particularly in the context of a public interest petition.

In Shri. S. Subramaniam Balaji v. The Government of Tamil Nadu and Others Civil Appeal 5130 of 2013, Supreme Court of India observed that in addition to the Legislative control, the founding fathers of the Constitution have also thought it fit to keep a check on Government account and express through the agency outside the Legislature also. Article 148 has created a Constitutional functionary in the form of CAG of India. CAG examines the propriety, legality and validity of all expenses incurred by the Government and exercises effective control over the Government accounts.

02. Duty of the Comptroller and Auditor General to Advice the President to prescribe the form of the accounts of the Union and the States

Article 150 of the Constitution provides that it is the duty of the Comptroller and Auditor General to advice the President of the form of accounts to be maintained by the Union and the States. However as per Appendix II of the Constitution of India, dealing with Re-statement, with reference to the present text of the Constitution, of the exceptions and modifications subject to which the Constitution applies to the State of Jammu and Kashmir, vide para (j), a modification in Article 150 is made as far as Jammu and Kashmir State is concerned that ‘For “as the President may, on the advice of the Comptroller and Auditor-General of India, prescribe” substitute “as the Comptroller and Auditor-General of India may, with the approval of the President prescribe.”’ Thus in Jammu and Kashmir, changing of forms of accounts may be a little more difficult for the Comptroller and Auditor General.

03. Duty of the Comptroller and Auditor General to submit Reports to the President / Governor for laying before the Parliament or Legislature of the State

Article 151 (1) provides that the reports of the Comptroller and Auditor-General of India relating to the accounts of the Union shall be submitted to the President, who shall cause them to be laid before each House of Parliament. Article 151 (2) provides that the reports of the Comptroller and Auditor-General of India relating to the accounts of a State shall be submitted to the Governor of the State, who shall cause them to be laid before the Legislature of the State.

04. Duty of the Comptroller and Auditor General to certify ‘net proceeds’

Under Article 279 (1) the Comptroller and Auditor General has to certify net proceeds and his certificate shall be final in ascertaining any tax or duty.

05. Duty of the Comptroller and Auditor General to Advice the President to prescribe the form of the accounts of the Union and the States

In the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution of India dealing with the Provisions as to the Administration of Tribal Areas in the States of Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and Mizoram under Para 7. District and Regional Funds Sub para (3) the accounts of the District Council or, as the case may be, the Regional Council shall be kept in such form as the Comptroller and Auditor-General of India may, with the approval of the President, prescribe. Under Sub-para (4) The Comptroller and Auditor-General shall cause the accounts of the District and Regional Councils to be audited in such manner as he may think fit, and the reports of the Comptroller and Auditor-General relating to such accounts shall be submitted to the Governor who shall cause them to be laid before the Council.

02. Duties, functions, powers and responsibilities of the Comptroller and Auditor General under Comptroller and Auditor General's (Duties, Powers, and Conditions of Service) Act, 1971

Even though the duties, functions, powers and responsibilities of the Comptroller and Auditor-General as per Comptroller and Auditor General's (Duties, Powers, and Conditions of Service) Act, 1971 has its foundation in the duties, functions, powers and responsibilities mentioned in the Constitution of India, the 1971 Act defines them with much clarity. The concerned sections are found in Chapter III of the Act ranging from Section 10 to 20. They are detailed below.

01. Duty of the Comptroller and Auditor General to compile accounts of the Union and the States

Section 10 deals with this topic it runs,

“10. (1) The Comptroller and Auditor-General shall be responsible-

(a) for compiling the accounts of the Union and of each State from the initial and subsidiary accounts rendered to the audit and accounts offices under his control by treasuries, offices or departments responsible for keeping of such accounts; and

(b) for keeping such accounts in relation to any of the matters specified in clause (a) as may be necessary:

[[xxvii]Provided that the President may, after consultation with the Comptroller and Auditor-General, by order, relieve him from the responsibility for compiling-

(i) the said accounts of the Union (either at once or gradually by the issue of several orders); or

(ii) the accounts of any particular services or departments of the Union:

(i) the said accounts of the State (either at once or gradually by the issue of several orders); or

(ii) the accounts of any particular services or departments of the State:]

[[xxviii]Provided also] that the President may, after consultation with the Comptroller and Auditor-General, by order, relieve him from the responsibility for keeping the accounts of any particular class or character.

(2) Where, under any arrangement a person other than the Comptroller and Auditor-General has, before the commencement of this Act, been responsible-

(i) for compiling the accounts of any particular service or department of the Union or of a State, or

(ii) for keeping the accounts of any particular class or character, such arrangement shall, notwithstanding anything contained in subsection (1), continue to be in force unless, after consultation with the Comptroller and Auditor-General, it is revoked in the case referred to in clause (i), by an order of the President or the Governor of the State, as the case may be, and in the case referred to in clause (ii), by an order of the President.”

02. Duty of the Comptroller and Auditor General to prepare and submit accounts to the President, Governors of States and Administrators of Union territories having Legislative Assemblies

Section 11 deals with this topic it runs,

“11. The Comptroller and Auditor-General shall, from the accounts compiled by him or [[xxix]by the Government or any other person responsible on that behalf], prepare in each year accounts (including, in the case of accounts compiled by him, appropriation accounts) showing under the respective heads the annual receipts and disbursements for the purpose of the Union, of each State and of each Union territory having a Legislative Assembly, and shall submit those accounts to the President or the Governor of a State or Administrator of the Union territory having a Legislative Assembly, as the case may be, on or before such dates as he may, with the concurrence of the Government concerned, determine.

[[xxx]Provided that the President may, after consultation with the Comptroller and Auditor-General, by order, relieve him from the responsibility for the preparation and submission of the accounts relating to annual receipts and disbursements for the purpose of the Union or of a Union territory having a Legislative Assembly;

Provided further that the Governor of a State may, with the previous approval of the President and after consultation with the Comptroller and Auditor-General, by order, relieve him from the responsibility for the preparation and submission of the accounts relating to annual receipts and disbursements for the purpose of the State.]”

03. Duty of the Comptroller and Auditor General to give information and render assistance to the Union and States

Section 12 deals with this topic it runs,

“12. The Comptroller and Auditor- General shall, in so far as the accounts, for the compilation or keeping of which he is responsible, enable him so to do, give to the Union Government, to the State Governments or to the Governments of Union territories having Legislative Assemblies, as the case may be, such information as they may, from time to time, require, and render such assistance in the preparation of their annual financial statements as they may reasonably ask for.”

04. Duty of the Comptroller and Auditor General in respect of General provisions relating to audit

Section 13 deals with this topic it runs,

“13. It shall be the duty of the Comptroller and Auditor-General-

(a) to audit all expenditure from the Consolidated Fund of India and of each State and of each Union territory having a Legislative Assembly and to ascertain whether the moneys shown in the accounts as having been disbursed were legally available for and applicable to the service or purpose to which they have been applied or charged and whether the expenditure conforms to the authority which governs it;

(b) to audit all transactions of the Union and of the States relating to Contingency Funds and Public Accounts;

(c) to audit all trading, manufacturing, profit and loss accounts and balance sheets and other subsidiary accounts kept in any department of the Union or of a State; and in each case to report on the expenditure, transactions or accounts so audited by him.”

05. Duty of the Comptroller and Auditor General in Audit of receipts and expenditure of bodies or authorities substantially financed from Union or State Revenues

Section 14 deals with this topic it runs,

“[[xxxi]14 (1) Where anybody or authority is substantially financed by grants or loans from the Consolidated Fund of India or of any State or of Union territory having a Legislative Assembly, the Comptroller and Auditor General shall, subject to the provisions of any law for the time being in force applicable to the body or authority, as the case may be, audit all receipts and expenditure of that body or authority and to report on the receipts and expenditure audited by him.

Explanation:- Where the grant or loan to a body or authority from the Consolidated Fund of India or of any State or of any Union territory having a Legislative Assembly in a financial year is not less than [[xxxii]rupees twenty five lakhs] and the amount of such grant or loan is not less than seventy five per cent of the total expenditure of that body or authority, such body or authority shall be deemed, for the purposes of [[xxxiii]this sub-section] to be substantially financed by such grants or loans as the case may be.]

[[xxxiv](2) Notwithstanding anything contained in sub-section the Comptroller and Auditor-General may, with the previous approval of the President or the Governor of a State or the Administrator of a Union territory having a Legislative Assembly, as the case may be, audit all receipts and expenditure of any body or authority where the grant or loan to such body or authority from the Consolidated Fund of India or of any State, or of any Union territory having a Legislative Assembly, as the case may be, in a financial year is not less than rupees one crore.

(3) Where the receipts and expenditure of any body or authority are, by virtue of the fulfillment of the conditions specified in sub-section (1) or sub-section (2) audited by the Comptroller and Auditor General in a financial year, he shall continue to audit the receipts and expenditure of that body or authority for a further period of two years notwithstanding that the conditions specified in subsection (1) or sub-section (2) are not fulfilled during any of the two subsequent years.]”

06. Duty of the Comptroller and Auditor General in the case of grants or loans given to other authorities or bodies

Section 15 deals with this topic it runs,

“15. (1) Where any grant or loan is given for any specific purpose from the Consolidated Fund of India or of any State or of any Union territory having a Legislative Assembly to any authority or body, not being a foreign State or international organisation, the Comptroller and Auditor-General shall scrutinize the procedures by which the sanctioning authority satisfies itself as to the fulfillment of the conditions subject to which such grants or loans were given and shall for this purpose have right of access, after giving reasonable previous notice, to the books and accounts of that authority or body:

Provided that the President, the Governor of a State or the Administrator of a Union territory having a Legislative Assembly, as the case may be, may, where he is of opinion that it is necessary so to do in the public interest, by order, relieve the Comptroller and Auditor General, after consultation with him, from making any such scrutiny in respect of any body or authority receiving such grant or loan.

(2) Except where he is authorised so to do by the President, the Governor of a State or the Administrator of a Union territory having legislative Assembly, as the case may be, the Comptroller and Auditor General shall not have, while exercising the powers conferred on him by sub-section (1), right of access to the books and accounts of an corporation to which any such grant or loan as is referred to in sub-section (1) is given if the law by or under which such corporation has been established provides for the audit of the accounts of such corporation by an agency other than the Comptroller and Auditor- General:

Provided that no such authorisation shall be made except after consultation with Comptroller and Auditor-General and except after giving the concerned corporation a reasonable opportunity of making representations with regard to the proposal to give to the Comptroller and Auditor-General right of access to its books and accounts.”

07. Duty of the Comptroller and Auditor General in Audit of receipts of Union or of States

Section 16 deals with this topic it runs,

“16. It shall be the duty of the Comptroller and Auditor-General to audit all receipts which are payable into the Consolidated Fund of India and of each State and of each Union territory having a Legislative Assembly and to satisfy himself that the rules and procedures in that behalf are designed to secure an effective check on the assessment, collection and proper allocation of revenue and are being duly observed and to make for this purpose such examination of the accounts as he thinks fit and report thereon.”

08. Duty of the Comptroller and Auditor General in Audit of accounts of stores and stock

Section 17 deals with this topic it runs,

“17. The Comptroller and Auditor-General shall have authority to audit and report on the accounts of stores and stock kept in any office or department of the Union or of a State.”

09. Duty of the Comptroller and Auditor General in connection with audit of accounts

Section 18 deals with this topic it runs,

“18. (1) The Comptroller and Auditor-General shall in connection with the performance of his duties under this Act, have authority-

(a) to inspect any office of accounts under the control of the Union or of a State, including treasuries and such offices responsible for the keeping of initial or subsidiary accounts, as submit accounts to him;

(b) to require that, any accounts, books, papers and other documents which deal with or form the basis of or are otherwise relevant to the transactions to which his duties in respect of audit extend, shall be sent to such place as he may appoint for his inspection;

(c) to put such questions or make such observations as he may consider necessary, to the person in charge of the office and to call for such information as he may require for the preparation of any account or report which it is his duty to prepare.

(2) The person in charge of any office or department, the accounts of which have to be inspected and audited by the Comptroller and Auditor-General, shall afford all facilities for such inspection and, comply with requests for information in as complete a form as possible and with all reasonable expedition.”

10. Duty of the Comptroller and Auditor General in Audit of Government companies and corporations

Section 19 deals with this topic it runs,

“19. (1) The duties and powers of the Comptroller and Auditor General in relation to the audit of the accounts of Government companies shall be performed and exercised by him in accordance with the provisions of the Companies Act, 1956 (1 of 1956).

(2) The duties and powers of the Comptroller and Auditor-General in relation to the audit of the accounts of corporations (not being companies) established by or under law made by Parliament shall be performed and exercised by him in accordance with the provisions of the respective legislations.

(3) The Governor of a State or the Administrator of a Union territory having a Legislative Assembly may, where he is of opinion that it is necessary in the public interest so to do, request the Comptroller and Auditor-General to audit the accounts of a corporation established by law made by the Legislature of the State or of the Union territory, as the case may be, and where such request has been made, the Comptroller and Auditor-General shall audit the accounts of such corporation and shall have, for the purposes of such audit, right of access to the books and accounts of such corporation:

Provided that no such request shall be made except after consultation with the Comptroller and Auditor-General and except after giving reasonable opportunity to the corporation to make representations with regard to the proposal for such audit.”
In the Judgment dated 27.01.2010, Delhi High Court in National Dairy Development Board v. Union of India & the Comptroller & Auditor General Writ Petition (Civil) No.2748 of 1998 has observed, “In a given case, audit by CAG may be permissible under Sections 14 or 19 of the CAG Act or scrutiny may be permissible under Section 15 of the CAG Act. If audit under Section 19(2) is to be done then of course resort to Section 14(2) or Section 15 may not be required. However, CAG has the right to conduct audit under Sections 14(2) and 15 even when it does not have authority to conduct audit under the statute by which the corporation has been established.”

Madras High Court in Society of Auditors v. Comptroller and Auditor General Of India 2000 111 TAXMAN 516 Mad has held on 1 October, 1999, “Similarly, the Comptroller and Auditor General of India ('C&AG;), the first respondent in W.P. Nos. 12630 and 12631 of 1999, a constitutional authority appointed by the President at India, by a warrant issued under article 148 of the Constitution of India, while discharging his duties under article 149 of the Constitution, read with section 619(3) of the Companies Act, is empowered to appoint auditors for auditing the accounts of the Government Companies and Public Sector Undertakings and also empowered to direct the manner in which the accounts of such Government Companies and Public Sector Undertakings shall be audited by the auditors so appointed by the C&AG.”

11. Duty of the Comptroller and Auditor General in Laying of reports in relation to accounts of Government companies and corporations

Section 19A deals with this topic it runs,

“[[xxxv]19 A (1) The reports of the Comptroller and Auditor-General, in relation to the accounts of a Government company or a corporation referred to in section 19, shall be submitted to the Government or Governments concerned.

(2) The Central Government shall cause every report received by it under subsection (1) to be laid, as soon as may be after it is received, before each House of Parliament. ,

(3) The State Government shall cause every report received by it under, subsection (1) to be laid as soon as may be after it is received, before the Legislature of the State.

Explanation:- For the purposes of this section, "Government" or "State Government", in relation to a Union territory having a Legislative Assembly, means the Administrator of the Union territory.]”

12. Duty of the Comptroller and Auditor General in Audit of accounts of certain authorities or bodies

Section 20 deals with this topic it runs,

“20. (1) Save as otherwise provided in section 19, where the audit of the accounts of any body or authority has not been entrusted to the Comptroller and Auditor-General by or under any law made by Parliament, he shall, if requested so to do by the President or the Governor of a State or the Administrator of a Union territory having a Legislative Assembly, as the case may be, undertake the audit of the accounts of such body or authority on such terms and conditions as may be agreed upon between him and the concerned Government and shall have, for the purposes of such audit, right of access to the books and accounts of that body or authority:

Provided that no such request shall be made except after consultation with the Comptroller and Auditor-General.

(2) The Comptroller and Auditor-General may propose to the President or the Governor of a State or the Administrator of a Union territory having a Legislative Assembly, as the case may be, that he may be authorised to undertake the audit of the accounts of any body or authority, the audit of the accounts of which has not been entrusted to him by law, if he is of opinion that such audit is necessary because a substantial amount has been invested in, or advanced to, such body or authority by the Central or State Government or by the Government of a Union territory having a Legislative Assembly, and on such request being made, the President or the Governor or the Administrator, as the case may be, may empower the Comptroller and Auditor-General to undertake the audit of the accounts of such body or authority.

(3) The audit referred to in sub-section (1) or sub-section (2) shall not be entrusted to the Comptroller and Auditor-General except where the President or the Governor of a State or the Administrator of a Union territory having a Legislative Assembly, as the case may be, is satisfied that it is expedient so to do in the public interest and except after giving a reasonable opportunity to the concerned body or authority to make representations with regard to the proposal for such audit.”

03. Miscellaneous Duties, functions, powers and responsibilities of the Comptroller and Auditor General

Chapter IV comprising of Sections 21 to 26 of the Comptroller and Auditor General's (Duties, Powers, and Conditions of Service) Act, 1971 deals with the Miscellaneous Powers of the Comptroller and Auditor General. They are reproduced below.

01. Delegation of Power of Comptroller and Auditor-General

As per Section 21 (1) of the Comptroller and Auditor General's (Duties, Powers, and Conditions of Service) Act, 1971, “any power exercisable by the Comptroller and Auditor-General under the provisions of that Act, or any other law may be exercised by such officer of his department as may be authorised by him in this behalf by general or special order. Section 21 (2) provides that except during the absence of the Comptroller and Auditor-General on leave or otherwise, no officer shall be authorised to submit on behalf of the Comptroller and Auditor-General any report which the Comptroller and Auditor-General is required by the Constitution or the Government of Union Territories Act, 1963 (20 of 1963) to submit to the President or the Governor of a State or the Administrator of a Union territory having a Legislative Assembly, as the case may be.

02. Power to make regulations

As per Section 23 of the Comptroller and Auditor General's (Duties, Powers, and Conditions of Service) Act, 1971, the Comptroller and Auditor-General is authorized to make regulations for carrying into effect the provisions of that Act in so far as they relate to the scope and extent of audit, including laying down for the guidance of the Government Departments the general principles of Government accounting and the broad principles in regard to audit of receipts and expenditure. Comptroller and Auditor General have issued many regulations on different aspects of Audit and Accounts. An example is Regulations on Audit and Accounts, 2007.

03. Power to dispense with detailed audit

As per Section 24 of the Comptroller and Auditor General's (Duties, Powers, and Conditions of Service) Act, 1971, the Comptroller and Auditor-General is authorized to dispense with, when circumstances so warrant, any part of detailed audit of any accounts or class of transactions and to apply such limited check in relation to such accounts or transactions as he may determine.

04. Duties, functions, powers and responsibilities of the Comptroller and Auditor General as the head of Indian Audit and Accounts Department

The Indian Audits and Accounts Department was formed in 1860 and Government Accounting and Auditing functions were placed under the Auditor General of India. Indian Audits and Accounts Service (IAAS) is one of the Group A Central Civil Service of India. The cadre controlling authority for IAAS is the Comptroller and Auditor General of India. He is also the head of Indian Audits and Accounts Department. The selected candidates' training ground is at National Academy of Audit and Accounts, Shimla (NAAA). NAAA also conducts Continuing Professional Education Programmes for Serving Officers.

The Functions of the CAG and IAAS Officers are primarily the following

1. Conducts both regularity audit and efficiency-cum-performance audit of all units and formations of the Union and State Governments, Government Companies, Autonomous Bodies and such other organizations that are substantially financed by the Union and State Governments.

2. Compilation of accounts of the State Governments and in many states, regulation and authorization of entitlements such as provident fund and pensionary benefits of State Government employees.

3. Scrutiny of intricate contracts, understanding of tax and revenue laws, assessing the financial health of commercial corporations.

4. Industry knowledge may be required for implementation of different country-wise schemes for rural development, health services, education etc.

National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission in The Comptroller & Auditor General v. Shivkant Shankar Naik and Bhuwan Revision Petition Nos. 961 of 1997, 933 of 2001, 1115 of 2001, 1319 of 2001 and 1775 of 2001 has observed on 13^th December, 2002 as, “The decision of the Supreme Court in the case of Regional Provident Fund Commissioner vs. Shiv Kumar Joshi - (2000) 1 SCC 98 is clearly distinguishable as that was rendered on the interpretation of the provisions of the Employees Provident Funds and Miscellaneous Provisions Act, 1952 and the Scheme framed thereunder. Shiv Kumar Joshi was not a government employee. Here in this batch of revisions petitions all the complainants were State Government employees and as such governed by the statutory rules applicable to their respective service and for the purpose of raising service dispute to go the State Administrative Tribunal wherever established or to any authority except to the Forum under the Consumer Protection Act, 1986 also wherever established.

We hold that dispute raised by the complainants-respondents is not 'consumer dispute' and they are not 'consumers' and Accountant Generals are not running any service within the meaning of the Consumer Protection Act, 1986.”

05. International Role of the Comptroller and Auditor General of India

Comptroller and Auditor General of India has many international assignments, a few among which are mentioned hereunder.

01. The International Organization of Supreme Audit Institutions (INTOSAI)

The International Organization of Supreme Audit Institutions (INTOSAI) operates as an umbrella organization for the external government audit community. INTOSAI is an autonomous, independent and non-political organization.

INTOSAI has four main Committees which are the vehicles for the achievement of its four strategic goals. These Committees are;

1. Professional Standards Committee (PSC)

2. Capacity Building Committee (CBC)

3. Knowledge Sharing and Knowledge Services Committee (KSC)

4. Finance and Administrative Committee (FAC)

The Comptroller and Auditor General of India is chair of INTOSAI Committee on Knowledge Sharing and Knowledge Services – (KSC) and its Steering Committee. He is also chair of the INTOSAI Working Group on IT Audit (WGITA). The Working Group on IT Audit (WGITA) was created in 1989 to address interests of SAIs (Supreme Audit Institutions) in the area of IT Audit.[xxxvi]

02. The Asian Organization of Supreme Audit Institutions (ASOSAI)

The Asian Organization of Supreme Audit Institutions (ASOSAI) (www.asosai.org) established in 1978, is one of the seven regional working groups of INTOSAI. India is a charter member of ASOSAI. The Comptroller and Auditor General of India was the Chairman of ASOSAI from 2012-2015. Comptroller and Auditor General of India is on the Governing Board of ASOSAI till 2018. The Comptroller and Auditor General of India has played a vital role in all the ten research projects undertaken so far by ASOSAI.[xxxvii]

03. Bilateral Relationships of Comptroller and Auditor General of India with the Supreme Audit Institutions of other Countries

Comptroller and Auditor General of India has bilateral relationships with the Supreme Audit Institutions of Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Brazil, Cambodia, China, Iran, Kuwait, Maldives, Mongolia, Oman, Poland, Russia, South Africa, Ukraine, Venezuela and Vietnam.[xxxviii]

04. Global Audit Leadership Forum (GALF)

The Comptroller & Auditor General of India is a member of the Global Audit Leadership Forum (GALF), formerly known as Global Working Group (GWG). The GALF is a forum which provides a select group of nineteen Auditors General to meet for organized yet informal discussions on current and emerging issues of concern to their governments and offices and to explore opportunities to share information and work closely together. The next GALF meeting would be held at Copenhagen, Denmark from 17-19 May 2017.[xxxix]

05. Commonwealth Auditors General Conference

The Comptroller and Auditor General of India has been participating actively in the triennial Conferences of Commonwealth Auditors' General. The XXII Conference of Commonwealth Auditors' General was held at Malta from 24 to 27 March 2014 on the theme "Securing Independence of Supreme Audit Institutions to Improve the Effectiveness of Reporting and Communication of Audit Findings". The next Commonwealth Auditors General Conference will be held at New Delhi, India from 21-23 March, 2017.[xl]

06. United Nations Panel of External Auditors

The United Nations General Assembly in 1959 established the Panel of External Auditors, comprising the individual external auditors of the United Nations system, who are also Heads of Supreme Audit Institutions. The findings and recommendations of Panel Members are taken seriously, and the status of recommendations is closely monitored to ensure timely and effective implementation. In this way, Panel Members contribute significantly to the fulfillment of the Charter of the United Nations. Comptroller and Auditor General of India has been the Chairman of the Panel of External Auditors during the period December 2011 to December 2013.[xli]

07. United Nations Board of Auditors

By Resolution 74 (I) of 7 December 1946, the General Assembly established the United Nations Board of Auditors to audit the accounts of the United Nations organization and its funds and programmes and to report its findings and recommendations to the Assembly through the Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Questions. For this, the General Assembly appoints three members, each of whom must be the Auditor-General (or officer holding the equivalent title) of a Member State. The members of the Board have joint responsibility for the audits. The Comptroller and Auditor General of India has been appointed as a Member of the UN Board of Auditors for the terms 1 July 2014 to 30 June 2020. 27 United Nations Organizations is audited by the office of Comptroller and Auditor General of India w.e.f. 1st July, 2016.[xlii]

08. World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO)

Established in 1967, World Intellectual Property Organization is dedicated to promote innovation and creativity for the economic, social and cultural development of all countries, through a balanced and effective international intellectual property syst. It has 185 member states. It is the United Nations’ agency dedicated to the use of intellectual property (patents, copyright, trademarks, designs, etc.) as a means of stimulating innovation and creativity. The Comptroller and Auditor General of India is the External Auditor of World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), Geneva till June 2018.[xliii]

09. Past International Audits

The Comptroller and Auditor General of India has been the external auditor of the following UN Bodies / Agencies in the past:

Sl. No.	Organization	Period
1	World Health Organization (WHO)	2004 to 2012
2	International Maritime Organization (IMO)	2000 to 2012
3	International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (ICGEB)	1996 to 2004
4	Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)	2002 to 2008
5	Organization for Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW)	1997 to 2003
6	UN World Tourism Organization (UNWTO)	2000 to 2015
7	World Food Programme (WFP)	2010 to 2016
8	International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)	2010 to 2016
9	International Organization for Migration (IOM)	2010 to 2016
10	United Nations Board of Auditors	1993 to 1999

07. SOME FAMOUS AUDIT REPORTS OF COMPTROLLER AND AUDITOR GENERAL OF INDIA

Some prominent audit reports of Comptroller and Auditor General of India are mentioned below.

01. 2G Spectrum Allocation Scam

A CAG report on issue of Licences and Allocation of 2G Spectrum estimated that there was a presumptive loss of ₹1,766 billion by the Government. In a charge sheet filed on 2 April 2011 by Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), the agency pegged the loss at ₹310 billion. On 2 February 2012 when the Supreme Court of India on a public interest litigation (PIL) declared allotment of spectrum as "unconstitutional and arbitrary" and quashed all the 122 licenses issued in 2008 during tenure of A. Raja, then minister for communications & IT in the UPA government and the main accused. The court found that A. Raja "wanted to favour some companies at the cost of the public exchequer" and "virtually gifted away important national asset" Revenue loss calculation was further established on 3 August 2012 when according to the directions of the Supreme Court, Government of India revised the reserve price for 2G spectrum to ₹140 billion.

02. Coal Mine Allocation Scam

A 2012 Comptroller and Auditor General of India report on Coal Mine Allocation criticized the Government by saying it had the authority to allocate coal blocks by a process of competitive bidding, but chose not to. As a result, both public sector enterprises (PSEs) and private firms paid less than they might have otherwise. In its draft report in March the Comptroller and Auditor General of India estimated that the "windfall gain" to the allocatees was ₹10,673 billion. The CAG Final Report tabled in Parliament put the figure at ₹1,856 billion. While the initial CAG report suggested that coal blocks could have been allocated more efficiently, resulting in more revenue to the government, at no point did it suggest that corruption was involved in the allocation of coal. However, Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) directed the CBI to investigate the matter. The CBI named a dozen Indian firms in a First Information Report (FIR), the first step in a criminal investigation. These FIRs accuse them of overstating their net worth, failing to disclose prior coal allocations, and hoarding rather than developing coal allocations. The CBI officials investigating the case have speculated that bribery may be involved.

03. Fodder scam

Fodder Scam was first exposed due to the CAG report in the matter in December 1995 which alleged of fraudulent withdrawal of government funds worth ₹9.5 billion in the Bihar animal husbandry department against non-existent supplies of fodder and medicines. Subsequently, based on Patna High Court's orders, CBI investigated the case and registered as many as 63 cases. Many accused have been convicted while many cases are still under trial.

04. Krishna-Godavari (KG) D6 Gas Block

The oil ministry imposed a fine of Rs. 7000 crores on Mukesh Ambani's company for the sharp drop in production of gas and violations mentioned in CAG's 2011 report. Oil ministry did not approve company's US$7.2 billion stake in deal with BP. So Jaipal Reddy known for his honesty was shifted from oil ministry to the Science and Technology ministry owing to pressure from Reliance group of Industries. In KG D-6, most of the cost had been recovered by the private player and the increase in price would only go as profit. About 90% of receipts from K-G D-6 were so far booked as expenditure and in the remaining 10%, only 1% was paid to the government and rest 9% went to the operator as profit.

However, in Patel Vipulkumar RamjiBhai v. State of Gujarat and Others Writ Petition (PIL) No.3 of 2011 High Court of Gujarat has held that, “we are not inclined to issue direction for investigation of a case by the Central Bureau of Investigation or any other agency on the strength of the various shortcomings, as reflected in the report of the CAG, since the Public Accounts Committee of the State as well as the Special Committee, constituted by the State Government, is in seisin of the report of the CAG.”

08. CONCLUSION

Comptroller and Auditor General of India, by reason of his high office and the nature of critical scrutiny for the purpose of fair and transparent audit should be kept outside the purview of possible threats and influences of the persons holding high office. That is why he is constitutionally equated to a Supreme Court Judge. He is also barred from holding any subsequent office under the Government of India. Comptroller and Auditor General of India is both an agency to function on behalf of the Legislature to ensure that the executive complies with the various laws passed by the Legislature in letter and spirit and on behalf of the Executive to ensure compliance by subordinate authorities with the rules and orders issued by it. The Comptroller and Auditor General of India, the head of the Indian Audit and Accounts Department, is independent of the Legislature and the Executive but he is an officer created by the Constitution to see that diverse authorities act in regard to all financial matters in accordance with the Constitution and the laws and rules framed there under. The various scams brought out by the Comptroller and Auditor General of India recently shows how inefficiently and corruptly our Government machinery is functioning. The recurring nature of such scams also points towards the ineffectiveness of the moral effect of an efficient audit system in India. Thus the praiseworthy efforts of Comptroller and Auditor General of India to bring into light more and more scams only reveals how inefficient is the Indian Audit Department functioning now. Former Comptroller and Auditor General of India Vinod Rai has known this dilemma and suggested some reforms. But these suggestions only addressed the defects in the Governmental machinery and no self- retrospect was ever attempted by him or his successors.

APPENDICISES

APPENDIX I List of Auditors General of India[xliv]

No.	Name of Auditor General of India	Year tenure began	Year tenure ended
1	Hon. Edmund Drummond	1860	1862
2	R.P. Harrison	1862	1867
3	E.F. Harrison	1867	1879
4	W. Waterfield	1879	1881
5	James Westland	1881	1889
6	E. Gay	1889	1891
7	S. Jacob	1891	1898
8	A.F. Cox	1898	1906
9	O.J. Barrow	1906	1910
10	R.W.Gillan	1910	1912
11	Sir Frederic Gauntlett	1912	1914
12	Sir R.A.Gamble	1914	1918
13	Sir Frederic Gauntlett	1918	1929
14	Sir Ernest Burdon	1929	1940
15	Sir Alexander Cameron Bandenoch	1940	1945
16	Sir Bertie Monro Staig	1945	1948

APPENDIX II List of Comptroller and Auditors General of India[xlv]

No.	Comptroller and Auditor General of India	Year tenure began	Year tenure ended
1	V. Narahari Rao	1949	1954
2	A. K. Chanda	1954	1960
3	A. K. Roy	1960	1966
4	S. Ranganathan	1966	1972
5	A. Bakshi	1972	1978
6	Gian Prakash	1978	1984
7	T. N. Chaturvedi	1984	1990
8	C. G. Somiah	1990	1996
9	V. K. Shunglu	1996	2002
10	VN Kaul	2002	2008
11	Vinod Rai	2008	2013
12	Shashi Kant Sharma	2013	As on date

APPENDIX III The Initial and Subsidiary Accounts Rules, 1937

In exercise of the powers conferred by sub-paragraph (3) of paragraph 11 of the Government of India (Audit and Accounts) Order, 1936, the Governor-General is pleased, after consultation with the Auditor-General of India, to make the following rules—

1. (1) These rules may be called the Initial and Subsidiary Accounts Rules.

(2) They shall come into force on the 1st April 1937.

2. In these rules—

(1) ‘Initial Accounts’ means a primary record of all money transactions affecting the revenues of the Federation or of any Province as they occur;

(2) The ‘Order’ means the Government of India (Audit and Accounts) Order, 1936;

(3) ‘Treasuries’ includes all treasuries whether under the control of the Federation or of a Province; and other terms and expressions have the same meanings as have been assigned to them in the Order.

3. The Auditor-General of India from the date these rules come into force shall be relieved from the responsibility for keeping accounts of the under mentioned class or character:—

(a) Initial accounts required to be kept in treasuries.

(b) Initial and subsidiary accounts that may be required to be kept in any Office or Department of the Federation, or as the case may be, of any Province;

(c) Accounts of stores and stock that may be required to be kept in any Office or Department of the Federation or of a Province by order of the Governor-General or of the Governor of the Province; and

(d) Trading, Manufacturing and Profit and Loss Accounts and Balance Sheets and any other subsidiary accounts that may be required to be kept by order of the Governor-General or of the Governor of a Province in any Department of the Federation or of the Province.

4. Nothing contained in Rule 3 shall be construed as derogating from the authority of the Auditor-General of India—

(a) to require any treasury, office or department keeping initial or subsidiary accounts to render accounts of such transaction as are included in them to the audit and accounts offices under his control on such dates as he may determine; or

(b) to prescribe the form in which such accounts shall be rendered and in which the initial accounts, from which the accounts so rendered are compiled or on which they are based, shall be kept.

APPENDIX IV The Comptroller and Auditor-General (Conditions of Service) Act, 1953

[Act No. 21 or 1953] [17th May, 1953]

PREAMBLE
An Act to regulate certain conditions of service of the Comptroller and Auditor General of India.
Be it enacted by Parliament as follows:-

Section -1 Short title

This Act may be called the Comptroller and Auditor-General (Conditions of Service) Act, 1953.
Section -2 Term of office of Comptroller and Auditor-General

A Comptroller and Auditor-General of India shall hold office for a term of six years from the date on which he enters upon his office:

Provided that he may at any time by writing under his hand addressed to the President resign his office.

Explanation.-For the purposes of this section, the term of six years in respect of the Comptroller and Auditor-General holding office immediately before the commencement of this Act shall be computed from the 15th day of August, 1948.

Section -3 Pension payable to Comptroller and Auditor-General

A Comptroller and Auditor-General of India shall, on his retirement, be eligible-

(a)(i) In the case of the Comptroller and Auditor-General holding office immediately before the commencement of this Act, to such pension as may be admissible to him under the rules for the time being applicable to the service to which he belonged at the date on which he became the Comptroller and Auditor-General; or

(ii) In the case of any other Comptroller and Auditor-General who was in the service of the Government at the date of his appointment, to such pension as may be admissible to him under the rules for the time being applicable to the service to which he belonged at the date of his appointment; the service as Comptroller and Auditor-General, in either case, being reckoned for the purposes of the relevant rules as service for pension; and

(b) To an additional pension of six hundred rupees per annum in respect of each completed year of service as Comptroller and Auditor-General, such service in respect of the Comptroller and Auditor-General holding office, immediately before the commencement of this Act, being computed from the 15th day of August, 1948;

Provided that the aggregate of all pensions payable to the Comptroller and Auditor-General shall not,--

(i) In the case of a member of the Indian Civil Service, exceed one thousand pounds sterling per annum; or

(ii) In the case of a member of any other service, exceed twelve thousand rupees per annum.

Section -4 Other conditions of service of Comptroller and Auditor-General

Save as otherwise expressly provided in this Act, the other conditions of service of the Comptroller and Auditor-General of India shall be as specified in the Second Schedule to the Constitution.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

1. The Constitution of India Volume 2, by Jaswant Singh and Deepak Arora, Published by Madras Law Journal Office, Madras, 1992

2. Auditing Standards, by Indian Audit and Accounts Department, Published by the Comptroller and Auditor General of India, Second Edition, 2002

3. Standing Order on Role of Audit in Relation to Cases of Fraud and Corruption, by and published by Office of the Comptroller and Auditor General of India, 2006

4. The Comptroller and Auditor General of India, Analytical history, 1947-1989, Vol 1, by R.K. Ckandrasekharan, Published by Ashish Publishing House, New Delhi, 1990

5. The Comptroller and Auditor General of India, Analytical history, 1947-1989, Vol 2, by R.K. Ckandrasekharan, Published by Ashish Publishing House, New Delhi, 1990

6. The Constitution of India, Published by Government of India, Ministry of Law and Justice, (Legislative Department), As on 9th November, 2015

7. Compliance Auditing Guidelines, Published by Comptroller and Auditor General of India, February 2016

8. Brochure on Comptroller and Auditor General’s (Duties, Powers and Conditions of Service) Act, 1971, Published by Comptroller and Auditor General of India, January 2014

9. Environment and Climate Change Auditing Guidelines, Published by Comptroller and Auditor General of India, August 2010

10. Financial Attest Auditing Guidelines for Audit of Accounts of State Governments, Published by Comptroller and Auditor General of India, March 2015

11. Financial Attest Auditing Manual, Published by Office of the Comptroller and Auditor General of India, June 2009

12. The Government of India Act, 1935, Published by the Manager of Publications, Delhi, 1943

13. The Indian Constitution, by V.R. Subrahmanya Aiyar, Published by the Author, January, 1937

14. Kerala Account Code Volume 1, Published by Finance Department, Government of Kerala, 2013

15. Performance Auditing Guidelines 2014, Published by Comptroller and Auditor General of India, 2014

16. Public Private Partnerships (PPP) in Infrastructure Projects Public Auditing Guidelines, Published by Comptroller and Auditor General of India, 2009

17. Regulations on Audit and Accounts, Published by Comptroller and Auditor General of India, 2007

18. Implementation of Value Added Tax in India – Lessons for transition to Goods and Service Tax – A Study report Published by Comptroller and Auditor General of India, June 2010

19. Style Guide, Published by Office of the Comptroller and Auditor General of India, 2^nd Edition Reprint, June 2013

NOTES

[i] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comptroller_and_Auditor_General_of_India

[ii] ibid

[iii] The Comptroller and Auditor General of India, Analytical history, 1947-1989, Vol 1, Page 1

[iv] http://thepeerage.com/p3061.htm#i30608

[v] The Indian Constitution, by V.R. Subrahmanya Aiyar

[vi] The Comptroller and Auditor General of India, Analytical history, 1947-1989, Vol 2, Page 290

[vii] S. Partap Singh Kairon 63 Punj.L.R.780

[viii] 1968 Lab.I.C. 1551 (Del.)

[ix] The Accountant General and another v. S. Doraiswamy and others A.I.R. 1981 S.C. 783: (1981) 2 S.C.R. 185; (1981) 4 S.C.C. 93; 1981 U.J. 89 (S.C.)

[x] K. Vasudevan Nair and Others Etc. v. Union Of India and Others A.I.R. 1990 S.C. 2295

[xi] Comptroller and Auditor General v. Mohan Lal Mehrotra and Ors A.I.R. 1991 S.C. 2288; (1992) 1 S.C.C. 20; 1991 SCR Supl. (1) 482; JT 1991 (4) 138; 1991 SCALE (2)789

[xii] The Accountant General and another v. S. Doraiswamy and others A.I. R. 1981 S.C. 783; (1981) 2 S.C.R. 155; (1981) 4 S.C.C. 93; 1981 U.J. (S.C.) 89

[xiii] N. Baksi v. Accountant General and Anr A.I.R. 1957 Pat. 515; I.L.R. 36 Pat. 357 1957 (5) BLJR 299

[xiv] I.L.R. (1954) Nag. 764; A.I.R. 1955 Nag. 11

[xv] Substituted by the Constitution (Forty-second Amendment) Act, 1976, s. 27, for art. 150 (w.e.f. 1-4-1977).

[xvi] Substituted by the Constitution (Forty-fourth Amendment) Act, 1978, s. 22, for “after consultation with” (w.e.f. 20-6-1979).

[xvii] A.I.R. 1955 Nag. 11

[xviii] The words “or Rajpramukh” omitted by the Constitution (Seventh Amendment) Act, 1956, s. 29 and Schedule

[xix] Inserted by the Constitution (Twenty-eighth Amendment) Act, 1972, s. 2 (w.e.f. 29-8-1972).

[xx] The Comptroller and Auditor-General of India shall be paid a salary equal to the salary of the Judges of the Supreme Court vide s. 3 of the Comptroller and Auditor-General’s (Duties, Powers and Conditions of Service) Act, 1971 (56 of 1971). The salary of Judges of the Supreme Court has been raised to Rs. 90,000 per mensem by the High Court and Supreme Court Judges (Salaries and Conditions of Service) Amendment Act, 2009 (23 of 2009), s. 8 (w.e.f. 1-1-2006). This has already been raised in 2016 also.

[xxi] Inserted by the Constitution (Sixteenth Amendment) Act, 1963, s. 5

[xxii] Substituted by the State of Mizoram Act, 1986 (34 of 1986), s. 39, for certain words (w.e.f. 20-2-1987)

[xxiii] Subs. by the Assam Reorganisation (Meghalaya) Act, 1969 (55 of 1969), s. 74 and Fourth Sch., for sub-paragraph (2) (w.e.f. 2-4-1970)

[xxiv] The Comptroller and Auditor General of India, Analytical history, 1947-1989, Vol 1, Pages 4-5

[xxv] ‘The Act’ means the Government of India Act, 1935, as adapted by the India (Provisional Constitution) Order, 1947

[xxvi] Kerala Account Code Volume 1, Published by Finance Department, Government of Kerala, Chapter I, Article 1, Page 5

[xxvii] Comptroller and Auditor General's (Duties, Powers, and Conditions of Service) Amendment Act, 1976 [No. 45-F of 1976] sec.2(a)

[xxviii] Comptroller and Auditor General's (Duties, Powers, and Conditions of Service) Amendment Act, 1976 [No. 45-F of 1976] sec.2(b)

[xxix] Comptroller and Auditor General's (Duties, Powers, and Conditions of Service) Amendment Act, 1976 [No. 45-F of 1976] sec.3(a)

[xxx] Comptroller and Auditor General's (Duties, Powers, and Conditions of Service) Amendment Act, 1976 [No. 45-F of 1976] sec.3(b)

[xxxi] Comptroller and Auditor General's (Duties, Powers, and Conditions of Service) Amendment Act, 1984 [No. 2 of 1984] sec.3 [w.e.f. 16.03.1984]

[xxxii] Comptroller and Auditor General's (Duties, Powers, and Conditions of Service) Amendment Act, 1984 [No. 2 of 1984] sec.3(a)(i) [w.e.f. 16.03.1984]

[xxxiii] Comptroller and Auditor General's (Duties, Powers, and Conditions of Service) Amendment Act, 1984 [No. 2 of 1984] sec.3(a)(ii) [w.e.f. 16.03.1984]

[xxxiv] Comptroller and Auditor General's (Duties, Powers, and Conditions of Service) Amendment Act, 1984 [No. 2 of 1984] sec.3(b) [w.e.f. 16.03.1984]

[xxxv] Comptroller and Auditor General's (Duties, Powers, and Conditions of Service) Amendment Act, 1984 [No. 2 of 1984] sec.4 [w.e.f. 16.03.1984]

[xxxvi] http://www.cag.gov.in/content/involvement-intosai

[xxxvii] http://www.cag.gov.in/content/involvement-asosai

[xxxviii] http://www.cag.gov.in/content/bilateral-relations-sai-india

[xxxix] http://www.cag.gov.in/content/global-audit-leadership-forum-and-other-multilateral-bodies

[xl] ibid

[xli] http://www.cag.gov.in/content/un-panel-external-auditors

[xlii] http://www.cag.gov.in/content/un-panel-external-auditors

[xliii] http://www.cag.gov.in/content/world-intellectual-property-organization-wipo

[xliv] http://164.100.176.130/hindi/home/about_us/former.html

[xlv] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comptroller_and_Auditor_General_of_India

TABLE OF CASE LAWS

Arun Kumar Aggarval v. Union of India W.P.(Civil) 469 of 2012

Arvind Gupta v. Union of India 2013 SCC 293

Comptroller and Auditor General v. Mohan Lal Mehrotra and Ors A.I.R. 1991 S.C. 2288; (1992) 1 S.C.C. 20; 1991 SCR Supl. (1) 482; JT 1991 (4) 138; 1991 SCALE (2)789

K. Satyanarayanan and Ors. v. Union of India and Ors ILR 1996 Delhi 34

K. Vasudevan Nair and Others Etc. v. Union Of India and Others A.I.R. 1990 S.C. 2295

N. Baksi v. Accountant General and Anr A.I.R. 1957 Pat. 515; I.L.R. 36 Pat. 357 1957 (5) BLJR 299

N. Gopalaswami & Ors v. The Union of India & Anr. in WP(C) 4619/2013

National Dairy Development Board v. Union of India & The Comptroller & Auditor General Writ Petition (Civil) No.2748 of 1998

Patel Vipulkumar RamjiBhai v. State of Gujarat and Others Writ Petition (PIL) No. 3 of 2011

Raghunath Shankar Kelkar v. Union of India PIL No. 40 of 2008

S. Partap Singh Kairon 63 Punj.L.R.780

Shri. S. Subramaniam Balaji v. The Government of Tamil Nadu and Others Civil Appeal 5130 of 2013

Society of Auditors v. Comptroller and Auditor General Of India 2000 111 TAXMAN 516 Mad

The Accountant General and another v. S. Doraiswamy and others A.I.R. 1981 S.C. 783: (1981) 2 S.C.R. 185; (1981) 4 S.C.C. 93; 1981 U.J. 89 (S.C.)

The Comptroller & Auditor General v. Shivkant Shankar Naik and Bhuwan Revision Petition Nos. 961 of 1997, 933 of 2001, 1115 of 2001, 1319 of 2001 and 1775 of 2001

LIST OF ENACTMENTS AND RULES MENTIONED

Comptroller and Auditor General (Conditions of Service) Act 1953

Comptroller and Auditor General's (Duties, Powers, and Conditions of Service) Act, 1971

Constitution of India

Government Accounting Rules, 1990

Government of India (Audit and Accounts) Order 1936

Government of India Act 1833

Government of India Act 1858

Government of India Act 1912

Government of India Act 1915

Government of India Act 1935

Government of India Act, 1919

Government of Union Territories Act, 1963 (20 of 1963)

Indian Audit and Accounts Department (Subordinate Accounts Service and Railway Audit Service) Service Rules, 1974

Indian Provisional Constitution Order, 1947

Regulations on Audit and Accounts, 2007

The Indian Councils Act, 1892

The Indian Councils Act, 1909

The Indian Independence Act, 1947

The Initial and Subsidiary Account Rules 1937

Friday, September 16, 2016

COMPTROLLER AND AUDITOR GENERAL OF INDIA

01. Duty of the Comptroller and Auditor General to perform duties and powers as may be prescribed by or under any law made by Parliament

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