The Madhya Pradesh High Court has issued notices to the State Government, the State Bar Council, and the Bar Council of India in response to a Public Interest Litigation filed by Advocate Rajendra Shrivastava seeking the enactment of a welfare scheme for advocates who have practised for between thirty-five to forty years. The petitioner contends that while advocates contribute substantially to legal practice throughout their careers, many find it difficult to sustain themselves financially in their later years, particularly when income declines. The PIL invokes the example of the Bihar State Bar Council Advocates’ Welfare Scheme (Pension and Family Pension) Rules, 2012, which provides for pension and family pension for advocates who are members of that scheme and who have retired from active practice on the ground of old age, subject to certain eligibility conditions.
Under the Bihar scheme, pension is payable to advocates who are at least sixty-five years of age and have completed at least thirty years of active practice; those who enrolled later post retirement from other professions are excluded. Membership in the scheme for at least ten years (though with an exemption for advocates who reach seventy years) is another eligibility condition. The petitioner has relied on this scheme to argue that Madhya Pradesh should adopt a similar welfare policy for its advocates.
The bench for this matter consists of Chief Justice Sanjeev Sachdeva and Justice Vinay Saraf at the Indore bench. The Court directed the State Bar Council to consider whether a scheme similar to Bihar’s may be framed for advocates in Madhya Pradesh, and to submit a report on its feasibility. The Court has also taken the copy of the Bihar scheme on record. Further, because the principal office of the State Bar Council lies in Jabalpur, the High Court has transferred the petition to the Jabalpur bench to ensure proper jurisdictional handling.
The case has been listed for further hearing on November 12, 2025.
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