What was the role of the India Council established by the Government of India Act, 1858?
To advise the Secretary of State
The Government of India Act, 1858 abolished the East India Company's rule and transferred the government of India to the British Crown. It created a new office, the Secretary of State for India (a British Cabinet minister), to exercise the powers formerly held by the Company and the Board of Control.
To assist this minister, the Act set up a 15-member India Council (Council of India). Its role was purely advisory: it advised and assisted the Secretary of State in the administration of Indian affairs.
Why the others are wrong: controlling trade with India was a function of the old East India Company, abolished by this very Act. Representing Indian opinion in Britain was not its purpose; the Council members were largely retired British officials, not Indian representatives. Reviewing court judgments was a judicial function (handled by bodies like the Privy Council), not by the India Council.
Hence, the answer is to advise the Secretary of State.
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