Explanation:

The doctrine of lapse was purportedly devised by Lord Dalhousie, who was the Governor General for the East India Company in India between 1848 and 1856.The doctrine of lapse was an annexation policy applied by the British East India Company (EIC) in India until 1848. According to the doctrine, any Indian princely state under the suzerainty of the British East India Company (the dominant imperial power in the subcontinent), as a vassal state under the British subsidiary system, would have its princely status abolished (and therefore annexed into British India) if the ruler was either "manifestly incompetent or died without a male heir". The latter supplanted the long-established right of an Indian sovereign without an heir to choose a successor.[citation needed] In addition, the British decided whether potential rulers were competent enough. The doctrine and its application were widely regarded by many Indians as illegitimate.