Political No. 20 of 1873, Communicating Observations with Regard to a Proposal Made by Colonel Pelly to Establish a Mixed Tribunal for the Adjudication of Cases in which British Subjects are Plaintiffs and Persians Defendants [‎179] (18/20)

, opounied by petty Chieftains, and where
4. Along the Arabian p P en etrated it may still be possible to
steam communication has a J disnose of civil disputes amicably by pei
T , „ Ko sonaiinfluence; and for the exercise of
Resolution of the Government of Bom ^ personal influence tllC lUOSt recent lU-
‘“SL of the Government of indm
^ er 187!. ^ } iaye provided.
n i bi- r wrifp poncernins: the 'Persian littoral where
5. But in my present lettei ^ have meet the requirements of
steamers are constantly calhn c ,, actions are liable to the supervision of
British merchants, and where 0 deferentially of opinion that, all
the Persian Central Government and ven t F ure beyond the
existing circumstances conside , j^oayenient reponsibility, and
without perhaps! in U the long run, impeding, where it was hoped to advance, the
interests « f ’ C(mncil is aware that British commercial interests in
Persia" are^protectedon^tlie basis of the Commercial Treaty entered into between
Persia and Russia at Turkomanchai. , , . .
7 The investigation and settlement of the claims and disputes ansing
'• 8 between Russian and Persian
Article 7.
“ The investigation and settlement of all claims and disputes be
tween Russian subjects are entirely confined to the Minister Repre
sentative, or Consul of His Majesty the Emperor, and they are to he
decided according to the law and practice of Russia. This is equally
the case in disputes between a Russian subject and a subject of another
Government in the event of both parties being satisfied (to abide by
the decision of the Russian Minister). Disputes occurring between
Russian and Persian subjects are to he represented and referred lO the
Court of Religions Law, or to the Court of Equity of the place, hut
they are not to be investigated or decided except in the presence of the
Interpreter of the Representative or Consul. When disputes have
been thus settled agreeably to rule, they cannot he brought forward
ao-ain, whenever the circumstances of the case are of such a nature as
to demand a second investigation the affair cannot he examined, unless
the Russian Minister, Representative or Consul be previously warned,
and in this case that subject cannot be investigated and decided upon
except at the Royal Grand Court of Justice at Tahreez, or Teheran,
and as stated before in the presence of an Interpreter of the Repre
sentative or Consul of Russia.”
subjects is provided for by the
7th (seventh) Article of that
Treaty, which for facility of re
ference I beg to quote mar-
ginally in extenso.
8. It is clear from tlie pro
visions of this Article that all
disputes arising between Rus
sian and Persian subjects, are
to be referred to the Courts of
Religious Law or Equity ; and
the only intervention permitted
on the part of the Russian
Representative is, that cases be
heard and decided in the presence of the Interpreter of the Russian Representative.
9. In like manner, therefore, all disputes arising between British and Per
sian subjects should be referred to the same Courts.
10. Accordingly in view to giving practical effect to treaty stipulation
and to what I understand to he the wishes of Government, and in view further
to relieving this Residency An office of the East India Company and, later, of the British Raj, established in the provinces and regions considered part of, or under the influence of, British India. of an anxious and irregular responsibility, I propose,
for the future, to he guided by the stipulations of the Commercial Treaty, thus
# I am under the impression that this practice ori- abandoning the old and irregular practice
ginated when Arab Chiefs were Governors of Bushire. of investigating at the Residency An office of the East India Company and, later, of the British Raj, established in the provinces and regions considered part of, or under the influence of, British India. * CaSCS
wherein British subjects or may he defendant, and of sending to the
Courts Residency An office of the East India Company and, later, of the British Raj, established in the provinces and regions considered part of, or under the influence of, British India. officials to watch and note the proceedings of cases wherein
British subjects or porteges may be parties to a suit. An Interpreter would
attend but his functions would he simply those of an Interpreter.
11. I think that, under the proposed modification, we should be enabled
to avoid further complications and irregularities until such time as the Eoreign
Jurisdiction Act may he introduced into Persia, and until sucb time as Govern
ment may succeed in inducing an alteration of the Commercial Treaty, as nro-
posed in the correspondence already marginally noted.
^ think that the suggestions now submitted are penned in the spirit of
^ e 4 ^ 0n o C ;i dm , g P ara § ra ph °f the letter of the Government of India, No. 1808P,,
ot the 2oth August 1871, received with the Resolution of the Bombay Govern
ment, No. 4679, of the 30th September 1871.
N.B. Copy will be sent to India Office The department of the British Government to which the Government of India reported between 1858 and 1947. The successor to the Court of Directors. .
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