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Section
630 of the Companies Act, 1956, provides for
penalty for wrongfully withholding the property
of a Company. The said section stipulates that
any officer or employee of a Company wrongfully
obtaining possession of any property of a
Company or after having obtained possession
wrongfully, withholds it or applies it for
purposes not meant to be applied, shall be
punishable with a fine, which may extend to
Rs.1,000/-.
Once a
complaint is filed under section 630 of the Act,
the Court trying such offence may also order
such officer or employee to deliver up or refund
any such property wrongfully obtained or
withheld or knowingly misapplied. If the order
of the Court is not obeyed, the penalty
prescribed is imprisonment for a term which may
extend to two years.
Therefore, Section 630 creates
two distinct offences. a)
Wrongfully withholding a Company's
property, which is punishable only with fine;
and b) Failure to surrender the
property inspite of a Court order to do so,
which is punishable with imprisonment, which may
extend to two years.
Section
630 applies to both movable and immovable
property of a Company. Further, the term
"officer or employee' applies not only to
existing officers or employees but also to the
past officers or employees.
Where
there is a dispute regarding the title of the
property, which is civil in nature, various High
Courts have held that the Magistrate should not
venture to determine the same in exercise of
their jurisdiction under section 630 of the
Companies Act.
One of
the most frequent instance where Section 630 of
the Act is set into motion by the company is
against an employee, who had been given the
Company's residential accommodation, and who,
after his dismissal or his retirement from
service, withholds possession of such
accommodation. The Madras High Court has further
held that Section 630 can be attracted against a
dismissed employee even when such employee has
challenged his dismissal before the competent
Industrial Court.
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