(1) Where an offence under this Act has been committed by an association, every person who at the time the offence was committed was in charge of, and was responsible to, the association for the conduct of the business of the association, as well as the association, 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, if he proves that the offence was committed without his knowledge or he has exercised all due diligence to prevent the commission of such offence.
(2) Notwithstanding anything contained in sub-section (1), where any such offence has been committed by an association 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 member of the executive or managing committee of the association or any manager, secretary or other officer of the association such member, manager, secretary or other officer shall be deemed to be guilty of that offence and shall be liable to be proceeded against and punished accordingly.
Explanation :- For the purpose of this section, "association" means any body of individuals whether incorporated or not.