Context: Senior advocate R Venkataramani has been appointed as the new Attorney General of India appointed by the President for a period of three years from the 1st of October.

Key Facts

• Article 76: Attorney-General of India

• Article 88: Rights of Attorney-General as respects the Houses of Parliament and its Committee

• Article 105: Powers, privileges, and immunities of Attorney-General

Appointment and Term

• The Attorney General is appointed by the President of India, who must be a person qualified to be appointed a judge of the Supreme Court.

• That is, he/she must be a citizen of India and must have been a judge of some high court for five years or an advocate of some high court for ten years, or an eminent jurist, in the opinion of the president.

• The Attorney General's term of office is not set by the Constitution. Furthermore, the mechanism and grounds for his or her dismissal are not specified in the Constitution.

• Thus, he/she holds office during the pleasure of the president which means that he may be removed by the president at any time.

• He/she may also quit his office by submitting his resignation to the president.

• The remuneration of the Attorney General is not fixed by the Constitution and receives such remuneration as the President may determine.

Duties and Functions

• To advise the Government of India upon such legal matters, which are referred by the President.

• To carry out any other legal responsibilities that the President delegates to him.

• To discharge the functions conferred by the Constitution or any other law.

Apart from these, the president has assigned the following duties to the Attorney General

• To represent the Government of India in all Supreme Court cases in which the Government of India is involved.

• To represent the Indian government in any Supreme Court referral made by the president under Article 143 of the Constitution. To represent the Government of India in any reference made by the president to the Supreme Court under Article 143 of the Constitution.

• To appear (when the Government of India so requests) in any high court in any issue involving the Government of India.

Rights of Attorney General

• The Attorney General enjoys the right of audience in all courts throughout India while doing his official duties.

• He/she also has the right to speak and participate in the proceedings of both Houses of Parliament or their joint sitting, as well as any Parliamentary committee to which he/she may be named a member, but not to vote.?

Limitations

• He/she should not give advice or file a lawsuit against the Indian Government.

• He/she should not advise or hold a brief in cases in which he is called upon to advise or appear for the Government of India.

• Without the approval of the Indian Government, he/she should not defend accused persons in criminal trials.

• He/she should not accept an appointment as a director in any company or corporation without the permission of the Government of India.

• He/she should not advise any ministry or department of Government of India or any statutory organization or any public sector undertaking unless the proposal or a reference in this regard is received through the Ministry of Law and Justice, Department of Legal Affairs.

• However, the Attorney General is not a full-time counsel for the Government and does not fall in the category of government servants.

• Further, he/she is not debarred from private legal practice.

• The Attorney General is not a member of the Central cabinet. In the Central cabinet, there is a distinct law minister who is in charge of legal concerns at the federal level.

• According to the Delhi High Court, the Attorney General of India (AGI) does not fall under the ambit of the Right to Information (RTI) Act since it is not a public authority.

Additional Facts

Solicitor General of India

• In addition to the Attorney General, there are other law officers of the Government of India.

• They are the solicitor general of India and the additional solicitor general of India who assists the Attorney General in the fulfillment of his/her official responsibilities.

• Article 76 does not mention the solicitor general and additional solicitor general.