Companies (Amendment) Bill, 2020: Step to Decriminalise Minor Procedural Lapses introduced in Lok Sabha [Read Bill]

procedural lapses - Companies Act - Taxscan

The Government of India has introduced the Companies (Amendment) Bill, 2020 in Lok Sabha with the motive to decriminalise the procedural lapses.

The Government of India with the objective to ease the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) introduced a bill in Lok Sabha wherein the minor procedural and technical lapses are decriminalised. The subject matter of the Companies (Amendment) Bill, 2020 seeks to amend the various provisions of the Companies Act 2013.

The bill was introduced by the Minister of State for Finance Anurag Thakur who tried to convince the members who opposed the Companies (Amendment) Bill, 2020 by stating that there will be no decriminalisation of non-compoundable offences, which basically deals with fraud cases.

The significant reason to introduce Companies (Amendment) Bill, 2020 in Lok Sabha was to reduce the burden from the shoulders of National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT).

In arguments raised in opposition of the bill was that this initiative of the Minister of State for Finance is introduced with the sole motive to favour the corporate and principle of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is neglected as a whole.

Rebuffing all the allegations of opposition, the Minister of State for Finance said that the proposed bill will only make the process of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) obligation easy and there is no plan to dilute it. He further reiterated that the allegations of decriminalizing the corporates are not true and the bill will only decriminalize those minor offences which do not harm the public and are only becoming a burden on the legal framework. And so as to reduce the number of pending suits in the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) it is very essential to eradicate the minor procedural and technical lapses.

The minister also manifested that this step to decriminalise the minor procedural and technical lapses so as to promote ethical business and to strive hard to make India a $ 5 Trillion Economy.

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