§ 15. Mr. BROCKWAYasked the Secretary of State for India whether any of the accused in the Meerut conspiracy 12 case have taken advantage of the offer made by the Government of India to provide funds to assist the defence and, if so, how many; whether he will state the amount of the fund provided for this purpose; and whether the accused are free to select their own counsel, or in what way the selection of counsel for the defence is made?
§ Mr. BENNSome of the accused have accepted the offer of Government to contribute towards the fees of the Defence Counsel, who is accordingly now being partly paid by Government. I have no information as to the amount of Government's contribution or the number of the accused who have accepted the offer. The Counsel in question has been conducting the case on behalf of the accused from its inception.