Census Act, 1948
11.Penalties:-
(1) (a) Any census-officer or any person
lawfully required to give assistance towards the taking of a census who refuses
or neglects to use reasonable diligence in performing any duty imposed upon him
or in obeying any order issued to him in accordance with this Act or any rule
made thereunder , or any person who hinders or
obstructs another person in performing any such duty or in obeying any such
order, or
(b) any census-officer who intentionally puts any offensive or improper
question or knowingly makes any false return or, without the previous sanction
of the Central Government or the State Government, discloses any information
which he has received by means of, or for the purposes of, a census return, or
(c) any sorter, compiler or other member of the census staff who removes,
secretes, damages or destroys any census document or deals with any census
document in a manner likely to falsify or impair the tabulations of census
results, or
(d) any person who intentionally gives a false answer to, or refuses to answer
to the best of his knowledge or belief, any question asked of him by a
census-officer which he is legally bound by section 8 to answer, or
(e) any person occupying any house, enclosure, vessel or other place who
refuses to allow a census-officer such reasonable access thereto as he is
required by section 9 to allow, or
(f) any person who removes, obliterates, alters, or damages any letters, marks
or numbers which have been painted or affixed for the purposes of the census,
or
(g) any person who, having been required under section 10 to fill up a
schedule, knowingly and without sufficient cause fails to comply with the
provisions of that section, or makes any false return thereunder ,
or
(h) any person who trespasses into a census office, shall be punishable with
fine which may extend to one thousand rupees and in case of a conviction under
part (b) or (c) shall also be punishable with imprisonment which may extend to
six months.
(2) Whoever abets any offence under sub-section (1) shall be punishable with
fine which may extend to one thousand rupees.