The United Service Institution of India was founded in 1870 by a soldier scholar, Colonel (later Major General) Sir Charles MacGregor. The story of its growth is the story of the growth of the Indian Armed Forces. It was founded for ‘furtherance of interest and knowledge in the art, science and literature of the Defence Services.’
About the Occasional Paper
This paper surveys the structure, sources and practice of China’s military legal system, framing the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) as the Communist Party’s army rather than a national, apolitical force. It describes China’s mixed conscription–volunteer system, the range of PLA and paramilitary forces, and the constitutional and statutory bases of military law, notably the National Defence Law, Military Service Law and Criminal Law. A key distinction is drawn between “military crimes” and lesser “violations of military discipline,” handled through criminal courts or internal discipline respectively. The paper explains the organisation and jurisdiction of military courts, their role in criminal and selected civil cases, and the heavy party control that undermines judicial independence. It also examines legal aid, punishment regimes, military lawyers, and problems of corruption and political interference, concluding that despite reforms, the PLA’s legal system remains opaque, party-dominated and only partially aligned with international fair-trial standards.