(1)When an an accused is committed for trial on a charge of murder, the committing Magistrate shall at the time of passing order for his commitment enquire of the accused whether he will make arrangements for his own defence in the Court of Sessions or wishes to be defended at the expense of Government, and shall communicate the result of his enquiry to Sessions. Judge direct filing a copy of the letter with the commitment record. If the accused expresses a wish to be defended at Government expense, the committing Magistrate shall state in the letter whether in his opinion the accused can afford to engage a pleader in the Sessions Court, giving the grounds for his opinion. It shall be stated whether the accused was defended by a pleader in the Lower Court.(2)On receipt of intimation that a prisoner committed to the Court of Sessions on a charge of murder desires to be defended at the expense of Government, it has been arranged that the Sessions Judge shall, unless he sees reason to believe that the prisoner is in a position to pay for his own defence, appoint a pleader for the purpose. To this end the Sessions Judge shall maintain a list of barristers or pleaders of the district in which Sessions trials are ordinarily held who are willing to accept briefs for the defence of prisoners on their trial for murder ; and ordinarily one of the persons on such list should be engaged.The list should be revised once in every three years, but the Judge shall have a discretion to revise it more frequently if he considers it desirable.(a)The pleaders on the panel shall be engaged by rotation except where an accused chooses a pleader out of his turn, in which case the pleader thus chosen shall lose his ordinarily turn unless he is again chosen out of his turn.(b)The wishes of the accused shall be ascertained by the Sessions Judge through the District Magistrate who shall depute a Magistrate to interview the accused in jail with a list of pleaders on the panel.(c)The Sessions Judge shall keep the District Magistrate supplied with an up-to-date list of pleaders on the panel, not excluding those who have had their turn, whether by rotation or because they were chosen by an accused out of their turn(3)Notwithstanding these precautions if it appears at the commencement of the trial that an accused charged with murder is undefended, the Public Prosecutor shall bring the fact to the notice of the presiding Judge, and request him to appoint a pleader for the defence of the prisoner. The Judge may then appoint any barrister or pleader on the list referred to above, or any member of the Bar present in Court, to defend the prisoner.(4)Any person appointed under sub-rule (2) or (3) of this rule shall receive a fee not exceeding Rs. 32 a day to be fixed by the Judge; provided that in special cases, for reasons to be recorded, the Judge may, with the sanction of the Legal Remembrancer, allow a higher fee. When, however, the murder case for the defence of which such a person is engaged, is simply adjourned or when his appearance in a Court is for half a day or less, a fee amounting to only half that fixed under this sub-rule shall be allowed.
