Which of the following is/are the principal feature(s) of the Government of India Act, 1919?

Correct Option (c)

Statements 1 and 3 are correct.

• The Government of India Act, 1919, also known as the Montagu-Chelmsford Reforms, introduced the system of dyarchy in the executive government of the provinces. Under this system, provincial subjects were divided into two categories: 'Reserved' (administered by the Governor and his Executive Council without responsibility to the legislative council) and 'Transferred' (administered by ministers responsible to the provincial legislative council). This marked a significant constitutional change at the provincial level.
• The Act also provided for the devolution of legislative authority from the central government to the provinces. This meant that provincial legislatures were empowered to make laws on certain subjects, thereby taking a step towards provincial autonomy and decentralization of power.

Incorrect Options

• Statement 2 is incorrect. The introduction of separate communal electorates for Muslims was a feature of the Indian Councils Act, 1909 (Morley-Minto Reforms), not the Government of India Act, 1919. The 1919 Act, however, extended separate electorates to Sikhs, Indian Christians, Anglo-Indians, and Europeans.
• Option (a) is incorrect because statement 3 is also a principal feature of the Act.
• Option (b) is incorrect because statement 2 is factually inaccurate regarding the 1919 Act.
• Option (d) is incorrect because statement 2 is incorrect.