(1) Where an offence under this Act has been committed by a company, every person who at the time the offence was committed, was in-charge of and was responsible to, the company for the conduct of the business of the company, as well as the company, shall be deemed to be guilty of the offence and shall be liable to be proceeded against and punished accordingly:
Provided that nothing contained in this sub-section shall render any such person liable to any punishment provided in this Act, if he proves that the offence was committed without his knowledge and that he exercised all due diligence to prevent the commission of such offence.
(2) Notwithstanding anything contained in sub-section (1), where an offence under this Act has been committed by a company and it is proved that the offence has been committed with the consent or connivance of or is attributable to any neglect on the part of any director, manager, secretary, or other officer of the company, such director, manager, secretary, or other officer shall also be deemed to be guilty of that offence and shall be liable to be proceeded against and punished accordingly.
1. These words were substituted for the words “six months” by Guj. 13 of 2013, s.7(2).
2004 : GUJ. 4 ] The Gujarat Lifts and Escalators Act, 2000. 9
Explanation. - For the purpose of this section,-
(a) "company" means any body corporate and includes a firm or other association of individuals, and
(b) "director" in relation to a firm, means a partner in the firm.
20. No court shall take cognizance of any offence under this Act except with the previous sanction of the Chief Inspector or the State Government.
Cognizance of offences.