Advocate General of State (Article 165): Indian Polity Notes for UPSC
Advocate General of State
The office of the advocate general for the state is mentioned in the constitution under Article 165. He is the senior law officer for the State Executive. Thus, he is equivalent to the Attorney General of India in the state.
Who is the Advocate General of the State?
In India’s federal setup, the state is one of the constituents of the national polity. The state, in many cases, is litigant in the court of law. It is represented by a group of law officers headed by the Advocate General, who is the Supreme law officer of the state. Various law officers in a State consist of Additional Advocate Generals, Government Counsel, Additional Government Counsel and Deputy Government Counsel.
The Advocate General and his Law Officers are generally engaged to deal with court cases in the High Court in which state is a party. Thus, the relationship between the Government and Law Officers is that of a client and counsel. The Advocate General and his office defend and protect the interest of the State Government and give invaluable legal guidance to the State Government in the formulation of policy and execution of its decisions.
Terms of Service of the Advocate General of States
- Appointment: The advocate general of the state is appointed by the governor.
- Qualification:
- He must be qualified to be appointed as judge of a High court. In other words,
- He must be a citizen of India and
- He must have held judicial office for 10 years or been an advocate of a high court for 10 years.
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