3. Fraudulent default by Financial Establishment. Any Financial Establishment, which fraudulently defaults any repayment of deposit on maturity alongwith any benefit in the form of interest, bonus, profit or in any other form as promised or fraudulently fails to render service as assured against the deposit, every person including the promoter, partner, director, manager or any other person or an employee responsible for the management of or conducting of the business or affairs of such Financial Establishment shall, on conviction, be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to six years and with fine which may extend to one lac of rupees and such Financial Establishment also shall be liable for a fine which may extend to one lac of rupees.
4. Attachment of properties on default of return of deposits.
5. Appointment of Competent Authority.—(1) The Government may while issuing the order under sub-section (1) of Section 4, appoint any of its officers not below the rank of the Deputy Collector, as the Competent Authority, to exercise control over the monies and the properties attached by the Government under Section 4, of a Financial Establishment.
(2) The Competent Authority shall have such other powers as may be necessary for carrying out the purposes of this Act.
(3) The Competent Authority shall, within thirty days from the date of the publication of the said order, apply to the Designated Court, accompanied by one or more affidavits stating the grounds on which the Government has issued the said order under Section 4 and the amount of money or other property believed to have been acquired out of the deposits and the details, if any, of persons in whose name such property is believed to have been invested or acquired or any other property attached under Section 4, for such further orders as found necessary.
6. Designated Court.—(1) For the purposes of this Act, the Government may, with the concurrence of the Chief Justice of the Bombay High Court by notification in the Official Gazette, constitute one or more Designated Court in the cadre of a District and Sessions Judge for such area or areas or for such case or class or group of cases, as may be specified in the notification.
(2) No court including the court constituted under the Presidency Towns Insolvency Act, 1909 (3 of 1909) and the Provincial Insolvency Act, 1920 (5 of 1920), other than the Designated Court shall have jurisdiction in respect of any matter to which the provisions of this Act apply.
(3) Any pending case in any other court to which the provisions of this Act apply shall, on the date of coming into force of this Act, stand transferred to the Designated Court.
7. Powers of Designated Court regarding attachment.—(1) Upon receipt of an application under Section 5, the Designated Court shall issue to the Financial Establishment or to any other person whose property is attached and vested in the Competent Authority by the Government under Section 4, a notice accompanied by the application and affidavits and of the evidence, if any, recorded, calling upon the said Establishment or the said person to show cause on a date to be specified in the notice, why the order of attachment should not be made absolute.
(2) The Designated Court shall also issue such notice, to all other persons represented to it as having or being likely to claim, any interest or title in the property of the Financial Establishment or the person to whom the notice is issued under sub-section (1), calling upon all such persons to appear on the same date as that specified in the notice and make objection if they so desire to the attachment of the property or any portion thereof, on the ground that they have interest in such property or portion thereof.
(3) Any person claiming an interest in the property attached or any portion thereof may, notwithstanding that no notice has been served upon him under this section, make an objection as aforesaid to the Designated Court at any time before an order is passed under sub-section (4) or sub-section (6).
(4) The Designated Court shall, if no cause is shown and no objections are made under sub-section (3), on or before the specified date, forthwith pass an order making the order of attachment absolute, and issue such direction as may be necessary for realisation of the assets attached and for the equitable distribution among the depositors of the money realised from out of the property attached.
(5) If cause is shown or any objection is made as aforesaid, the Designated Court shall proceed to investigate the same and in so doing, as regards the examination of the parties and in all other respects, the Designated Court shall, subject to the provisions of this Act, follow the summary procedure as contemplated under Order 37 of the Civil Procedure Code, 1908 (5 of 1908) and exercise all the powers of a court in hearing a suit under the said Code and any person making an objection shall be required to adduce evidence to show that on the date of the attachment he had some interest in the property attached.
(6) After investigation under sub-section (5), the Designated Court shall pass an order either making the order of attachment passed under sub-section (1) of Section 4 absolute or varying it by releasing a portion of the property from attachment or cancelling the order of attachment:
8. Attachment of property of malafide transferees.—(1) Where the assets available for attachment of a Financial Establishement or other person referred to in Section 4 are found to be less than the amount or value which such Financial Establishment is required to re-pay to the depositors and where the Designated Court is satisfied, by affidavit or otherwise, that there is reasonable cause for believing that the said Financial Establishment has transferred (whether before or after the commencement of this Act) any of the property otherwise than in good faith and for consideration, the Designated Court may, by notice, required any transferee of such property (whether or not he received the property directly from the said Financial Establishment) to appear on a date to be specified in the notice and show cause why so much of the transferee's property as is equivalent to the proper value of the property transferred should not be attached.
(2) Where the said transferee does not appear and show cause on the specified date, or where after investigation in the manner provided in sub-section (5) of Section 7, the Designated Court is satisfied that the transfer of the property to the said transferee was not in good faith and for consideration, the Designated Court shall order the attachment of so much of the said transferee's property as is in the opinion of the Designated Court equivalent to the proper value of the property tranferred.
9. Security in lieu of attachment.—Any Financial Establishment or person whose property has been or is about to be attached under this Act may, at any time, apply to the Designated Court for permission to give security in lieu of such attachment and where the security offered and given is, in the opinion of the Designated Court, satisfactory and sufficient, it may cancel, the order of attachment or, as the case may be, refrain from passing the order of attachment.
10. Administration of property attached.—The Designated Court may, on the application of any person interested in any property attached and vested in the Competent Authority under this Act and after giving the Competent Authority an opportunity of being heard, make such order as the Designated Court considers just and reasonable for—
(a) providing from such of the property attached and vested in the Competent Authority as the applicant claims an interest in, such sums as may be reasonably necessary for the maintenance of the applicant and of his family, and for expanses connected with the defence of the applicant where criminal proceedings have been instituted against him in the Designated Court under Section 3;
(b) safeguarding, so far as may be practicable, the interest of any business affected by the attachment and in particular, the interest of any partners in such business.
11. Appeal.—Any person including the Competent Authority, if aggrieved by an order of the Designated Court, may appeal to the High Court within sixty days from the date of the order.
12. Special Public Prosecutor.
13. Procedure and powers of Designated Court regarding offences.—(1) The Designated Court may take congnizance of the offence without the accused being committed to it for trial and, in trying the accused person, shall follow the procedure prescribed in the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (2 of 1974), for the trial of warrant cases by Magistrates.
(2) The provision of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (2 of 1974), shall so far as may be, apply to the proceedings before a Designated Court and for the purposes of the said provisions a Designated Court shall be deemed to be a Magistrate.
14. Act to override other laws.—Save as otherwise provided in this Act, the provisions of this Act shall have effect notwithstanding anything inconsistent therewith contained in any other law for the time being in force or any custom or usage or any instrument having effect by virtue of any such law.
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