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3. The Advocates Act, 1961 was enacted to consolidate the law relating to legal practitioners, and provided for the constitution of Bar Councils, both at the all India as well as at the State levels, under Section 4 and Section 3 thereof, respectively.

4. Pursuant thereto, the Bar Council of India (BCI) as well as State bar Councils stood constituted and their respective Rules and Regulations framed. The http://www.judis.nic.in Rules of the BCI relevant for the purposes of this PIL are Rules 40, 41, 44A and 44B and read as follows:

5. In summary, the BCI Regulations provide for the collection of an amount from a member of the State Bar Council, and the deployment/crediting of the same in an Advocates welfare fund to be created by the Bar Council of India qua a specific State. Out of the amount so credited, 20% shall stand transferred to the account of the Bar Council of India every month, to form part of the corpus of the http://www.judis.nic.in Bar Council of India Advocates Welfare Fund. Rule 41(3) provides that the remaining 80% will be retained by the State Bar Council of India Advocates Welfare Fund, to be utilized for the welfare of Advocates, being members of the respective State Bar Councils. This fund is to be administered by the Advocates Welfare Committee for the respective State, which is to submit annual returns for due monitoring by the BCI. Rule 44A provides for the constitution of the BCI Advocates Welfare Committee as well as an Advocates Welfare Committee at the State level and the constituents thereof.

19. Sadly, the BCTNP is right. Though there are several situations enumerated for remittances to be effected, circumstances such as the present, warranting interim payments at the discretion of the Trustees has simply not been envisaged and thus not provided for. However, BCI regulation 41(3) permits 80% of the total sum collected by the Bar Council of India Advocates Welfare Fund Committee for the State to be utilised for the welfare of Advocates in respect of Welfare Schemes sponsored by respective State Bar Councils. Thus, though a specific and suitable amendment/provision must be made to the State Rules providing for the mechanism for payment, the BCI Regulations have envisaged a situation where the State can formulate and sponsor a welfare scheme for Advocates and utilize the amounts collected, after seeking and obtaining concurrence of the BCI in that regard.

20. Regulation 44A(6) also provides for the State Bar Council to implement such a scheme in tandem with the BCI and subject to mandatory monitoring by the BCI. The absence of a specific and enabling Rule in the State regulations, though an immediate barrier, can and, in our recommendation, must, be inserted by way of http://www.judis.nic.in an amendment at the earliest, to provide for interim pay-outs to needy advocates in these dark and difficult days. We are thus, unfortunately, not in a position to accede to the prayer of the petitioner in this regard straight away but issue a direction to the respondents to consider our recommendation as aforesaid in the proper spirit and take positive and necessary action in that regard, at the earliest.