Companies Act, 2013
Chapter
XXIX
Miscellaneous
447.
Punishment
for fraud.
Without
prejudice to any liability including repayment of any debt under this Act or
any other law for the time being in force, any person who is found to be guilty
of fraud, shall be punishable with imprisonment for a term which shall not be
less than six months but which may extend to ten years and shall also be liable
to fine which shall not be less than the amount involved in the fraud, but
which may extend to three times the amount involved in the fraud:
Provided
that where the fraud in question involves public interest, the term of
imprisonment shall not be less than three years.
Explanation .—For the purposes of
this section—
i.
“fraud”
in relation to affairs of a company or any body corporate, includes any act,
omission, concealment of any fact or abuse of position committed by any person
or any other person with the connivance in any manner, with intent to deceive,
to gain undue advantage from, or to injure the interests of, the company or its
shareholders or its creditors or any other person, whether or not there is any
wrongful gain or wrongful loss;
ii.
“wrongful
gain” means the gain by unlawful means of property to which the person gaining
is not legally entitled;
iii.
“wrongful
loss” means the loss by unlawful means of property to which the person losing
is legally entitled.