When a prosecution is instituted by a private person against a Public Officer for acts done in the discharge of his public duty, the following course shall be followed:(a)In regard to prosecutions against officers, referred to in Section 197, Criminal Procedure Code, 1898, there will always be ample time to obtain the orders of Government for undertaking the defence of the officer and these shall be obtained. In the case of prosecutions against other public servants when it is impossible to obtain the orders of Government before the commencement of the proceedings, it must rest with the local officer to decide, subject to the control of the Government, whether the defence shall be undertaken by Government or not. When, however, it is probable that the orders of Government can be obtained in time, a full report shall be at once submitted to Government through the Legal Remembrancer.(b)If such orders are received before the commencement of the proceedings, they shall be acted on. If not, the local officer shall themselves decide upon the course to be taken.(c)In petty cases which, in the opinion of the Deputy Commissioner, do not present any difficulty of law or evidence, the prosecuted officer shall make his own defence, and the Deputy Commissioner shall see that in such cases no pleader is engaged. In the same way request for the payment of counsel will be entertained only under very exceptional circumstances.(d)When the prosecuted officer is discharged or acquitted, the case will be dealt with as provided under Rule 23, allowance being made for the expenses, if any, realizable under the order of the Court.(e)An incriminated officer, who is left to arrange for his own defence, shall, before engaging a lawyer, report in writing the name of the person selected and his proposed remuneration to the Deputy Commissioner through the head of the office; and it will then be for the Deputy Commissioner to say whether in the event of his being acquitted, he will advise Government to pay the whole or only part of the fees proposed.(f)Charges, the payment of which may be applied for under these Rules, shall be moderate, and Government do not undertake to pay unnecessary expenses which an officer concerned may choose to incur.
