New Delhi, July 18 (KNN) The Union Ministry of Corporate Affairs, or MCA, has constituted a 10-member committee, headed by the ministry’s secretary, to review the offences under the Companies Act, 2013, a step towards decriminalizing some of the offences under the act.

Aiming towards decriminalising some offences which no longer require criminal charges and could be settled with penal charges, the Committee will examine whether the penal provisions in the Companies Act, 2013, need reviewing.

The Committee will examine the nature of all ‘acts’ categorized as compoundable offences like offences punishable with fine only or punishable with fine or imprisonment or both under the CA-13 and recommend if any of such acts may be re-categorized as acts which attract civil liabilities wherein the company and its ‘officers in default’ are liable for penalty.

The Committee, according to the MCA Order, will review the provisions relating to non-compoundable offences and recommend whether such provisions need to be re-categorized as compoundable offences.

Further, the committee would also examine the existing mechanism of levy of penalty under the CA-13 and suggest any improvement thereon.

The panel has also been tasked with the role to lay down the broad contours of an in-house adjudicatory mechanism where penalty may be levied in a MCA-21 system driven manner so that discretion is minimized.

The committee will take necessary steps in formulation of draft changes in the law .

The other members of the Committee include – TK Vishwanathan, Ex-Secretary General, Lok Sabha; Joint Secretary (Policy); Uday Kotak, MD, Kotak Mahindra Bank and more.

The Order also said that the Committee may invite or co-opt subject matter experts relating to corporate law or any other subject matter, as well as experts from SEBI, RBI, C&AG as needed.

The Committee can also invite any other person or body in the interest of broad based consultation. (KNN Bureau)