Item 1 - Printed copy of a letter from Edwin Montagu to Lord Chelmsford

India Office, London.—[1] Has considered in Council Chelmsford’s correspondence with him regarding the use of whipping under martial law. While it may be justifiable for violent crimes, he cannot approve the threat of its use for such conduct as refusal to open shops.

(2) Under Act IV of 1909 whipping is still lawful as a jail punishment and as a punish-ment for certain non-violent and, in the case of juvenile offenders, petty offences. Its use varies remarkably in several provinces.

(3) Asks the Government of India, in consultation with Local Governments, to re-examine the question of whipping as a judicial punishment and as a jail penalty under the Prisons Act, and give him their views on the desirability of confining its use on adults to crimes of violence.