THE PUNJAB REGULATION OF ACCOUNTS ACT, 1930

879 1930 : Pb. Act I.] PUNJAB REGULATION OF ACCOUNTS \ THE PUNJAB REGULATION OF ACCOUNTS ACT, 1930 TABLE OF CONTENTS. SECTIONS. Short title, extent and commencement. Definitions. Duty of the creditor to maintain and furnish accounts. Penalty for non-compliance with the provisions of sec- tion 3. 5, Savings. 6. Power of Central Government to make rules. B o w o n 1930 : Pb, Act 1) PUNJAB REGULATION Of 881 ACCOUNTS THE PUNJAB REGULATIIOQI:;I OF ACCOUNTS ACT, 0. ) PUNJAB ACT, I OF 1930 [ Rectehwelt; the assent of His Ezxcellency the Governor on V_e th January, 1930, and that of His Excellancy the nt;eroy and Govcrqor-General on the 9th March, 1930, and was first published in the Punjab Gaver';lmnt' Gazette of the 21st March, 1930.] 2 ~3 7 Year | No | Shomttitle | Whether repealed or otherwise affected by legislation 1930.. 1 |The Punjab Regula- | Amended in part Government of India tion of Accounts (,iqfida_,ptnion of Indian Laws) Order, Act, 1930 Amended by the Indian Ind?endenee (Adaptation of Bengal and Punjab A Acts) e((,)r';ier, 111948' (G-G.Q.40) men y the Adaptation ) C‘;‘dgr,bl?m dap! of Laws mends y the Adaptation of Laws (Third Amendment) Order, 1951 Extended to the reritorics, which immodatiately before the Ist November, 1956, Were com- piised in the Statc of Patiala an._East Punjab ' States Union by Punjab Act 44 of 1960°. Amended by the Punjab Reor- ganisation (Chandigarh) (Adapta- tion of Laws on State and ]C;ncurrcm Subj.cts) Order, 68. An Act to;regulate the keeping of accounts of certain transactions. WHEREAS it is expedient to make provisions for regu- Preamble. lating the keeping of accounts relating to certain transac- tions in °[Punjabl, and whereas the previous sanction of the Governor-General under section 80-A (3) of the Government of India Act has been obtained ; it is hereby enacted as follows— . 1. (1) This Act may be called the Punjab Regulation gnort titte, ex- tent and com, of Accounts Act, 1930. - - - Stat bjects end Reasons, see_Punjab Gazette, 1929, Mencement, Wox Biatement o je‘}rfi;eport of the Select Committee, see Punjab Part V, pages 43-44 and for 51—64, For Proceedings in Council, see Gazette, 1629, Ter ve Botne Volume XII, pages 42 end 149, ‘3::5#2""&:'%?}:';"?75‘5‘1‘.“ cs’a‘f-i%?'fr’élume XIV, pages 259, 288, 774, 81288, 785—05, 833—49, 851—84, 887—028, 930—63, 965—1002, 1002— = 2For Stetement of Objects and Reasons, see Punjab Government e i 900, PSS Iragjab”—which had been insert- ed for the words “the Pun;lab"oliyd ::elafiylfi?‘??g:gf:figdl tetion e and Punjab_Acts) rhira Amendment) Order, 161 882 PUNJAB REGULATION OF [1930 : Ph. Act I, ) ACCOUNTS .(2) .It:extends to '[Union territory of Chandigarh), (3) It shall come into force on such® date as " 3[State] Government may, by notification, appoint in this behalf : Provided that this date shall not be earlier than gy -months or later than one year after the date of final publ;. cation.of the rules made under section 6. Definition. 2. In this Act, unless there is anything repugnant i the subject or context— (1) “Bank” means a company carrying on the bygj. ness of banking and registered under any of the enactments relating to companies for the time being in force in the TTnited Kingdom or in any of the Colonies or Dependencies thereof or in ‘lany Part A State or Part C Statel or incor- porated by an Act of Parliament °[of the United Kingdom] or by Royal Charter or Letters Patent or by any Act of °[Parliament]. (2) “Company” means a company registered under any of the:enactments relating to companies for the time being in force in the United Kingdom or any of the Colo nies or Depondencies thereof or in *lany Part A State or Part C State] or incorporated by an Act of Parliament ®lof the United Kingdom] or by Royal Charter or Letters Patent and includes Life Assurance Compa- nies to which the Indian Life Assurance Companies Act, 1912, applies. ' . . nd (8) “Co-operative Society” means a society reglsteg- gt ed under the provisions of Co-operative Societies Act, 1912 1Substituted for the word “Punjab” by the Punjzb Reorganisation (Chandigarh) (Adaptation of Laws on State and Concurrent ‘Subjects) "Order, 1968. " ent 21t came into force on 1st July, 1931,—vide Punjab Govenrm b notificatoin No. 1871-Jud], dated 17th June, 1931, published in Punjo! Gazette, 1931, Part I, page 657. WS ‘3Substituteq for the word “Pravincial” by the Adaptation of La Order, 1950. o 4Substituted for the words “British India” by the Adlpug:“' Laws (Third Amendment) Order, 1951. 1 sinserted by Ada tation of Tuws (Third Amendment) Order, 199 tion oSubstituted for the words “the Central Legislative” by Adep®® I of Laws (Third Amendment) Order, 1081, 1830 : Pb. Act L. PUNJAB REGULATION OF 883 ACCOUNTS . (4) “Court” includes a court acting in the exercise of insolvency jurisdiction. (5) “Creditor” means a person who in the regular course of business advances a loan as defined in this Act and shall include subject to the provisions of section 3 the lega_xl representatives and the successor-in-interest whether by inheritance, assignment or otherwise of the person who advanced the loan. (6) “Interest” includes the return to be made over and above what was actually lent, whether the same is charged or sought to be recovered specifically by way of interest or otherwise. (7) “Loan” means an advance whether of money or in kind at interest and shall include any transaction which the court finds to be in substance a loan, but it shall not include— (i) a deposit of money or other property in a Government Post Office, Bank or any other Bank or in a company or with a co-operative society ; (ii) aloan to or by or a deposit with any society or association registered under the Societies Re- XXI ot gistration Act, 1860, or under any other 1me8. enactment ; (iii) aloan advanced by *[the Central or any *[State Government]] or by any local body authorised by [the Central or any *[State] Government]; (iv) a loan advanced by a bank, a co-operative society or a company whose accounts ares sub- ject to audit by a certificated auditor under the Companies Act ; (v) a loan advanced to a trader ; (vi) an advance made on the basis of a negotiable XXXVI instrument as defined in the Negotiable Instru- of 1881 ments Act, 1881, other than a promissory note; (vii) a transaction which is, in substance, a mort- gage or a sale of immoveable property. 1Substituted for lhed‘worid‘ "Goveol:'tdmertl';;;;:}re—v(}t;;ex;l;\ent' of dia (Adeptation of Indian Lzws) er, . Ao *S\(abstitputed for the word “Provincia\"'by the Adaptation of Laws Order, 1950, 884 PUNJAB REGULATION OF (1930 : Pb. Act I ACCOUNTS (8) “Preseribed” means prescribed by rules made under this Act. 4 ho in the regyly “T'rader” means a person w " couriog Z)f business buys and sells goods or ;)lt}}er] Property, whether moveable or immoveable, and shall include— a wholesale or a retail merchant, a commission agent, a broker, a manufacturer, a contractor, a factory owner, but shall not include a person who sells his own agricultural produce or cattle, or buys agricultural produce or cattle for his own use. Duty of ered- 3 (1) A creditor shall in order to comply with the gd t?m—;{“:.’.fim:g:provisions of this Act— ts. Souny (a) regularly record and maintain an account for each debtor separately, of all transactions relat- ing to any loan advanced to that debtor, in such manner as the [Central Government] may prescribe ; (b) furnish each debtor every six months with a legible statement of account signed by the creditor or his agent of any balance or amount that may be outstanding against such debtor on the 30th day of June, or 15th Har and the 31st day of December, or 15th Poh each year. This statement of account shall include all transactions relating to the loan entered into during the six months to which the statement relates, and shall be sent, in such manner and in such form and containing such details as the '[Central Government] may prescribe, on or before the 31st day of August or 15th Bhadon in the case of any balance outstanding on the 30th day of June, or 15th Har and on or before *Substituted for the words ‘'State Government” by the Punjab Reorganisation (Chandigarh) (Adaptetion of Laws on State and Con- current Subjects) Order, 1068, | 1930: Ph. Act 11 pypy,g REGULATION oF 885 ACCOUNTS the 28th day of February or 15th Phagan in the case of any balance outstanding on the 31st day of December or 15th Poh, Eg:planatmn.——(i) The '[Central Government] ghall Prescribe the forms and numerals in which the accounts required by this provision of this sub-section are to be maintained and furnished, and the creditor shall at his (ii) the prescribed accounts shall be so kept that items due by way of interest shall be shown as separate and principal and interest shall be maintained. The creditor shall not in the absence of agreement, include the interest or any portion of it in the principal sum ; and the principal and interest shall be separately shown in the opening balance of each new six-monthly account : Provided that— (i) if the loan has, since it was originally advanced, passed by inheritance or assignment to a widow or minor, such widow or minor shall not be bound to maintain and furnish the account pre- scribed by this section for a period of six months from the date of such passing ; (ii) nothing in this section shall be deemed to lay upon any person the duty of maintaining and furnishing the prescribed account in the case of a loan wherein the title to recover 1s sub- judice between two or more persons claiming as creditors adversely to each other unless and until the title has been finally decided by a court of competent jurisdiction. (2) Entries in the account prescribed under clause (u) to sub-section (1) shall be deemed to be regularly *Substituted for the words “State Government” by the Punjab Reorganisetion (Chandigarh) (Adaptation o® Laws on State and Con- current Subjects) Order, 1968. Penalty non-compliance with the provi- ions of section 3 N 886 PUNJAB REGULATION OF (1030 : Pb. Act I. ACCOUNTS . the course of business for the purposes of section ‘.‘::pih:ginn Evidence Act, 1872, and copies of such entrieg certified in such manner as may be prescribed shall he admissible in evidence for any purpose in the same manaer and to the same extent as the original entries. Explanation.—A person to whom a statement of ac. count has been sent under clause (b) of sub-section (1) shall not be bound to acknowledge or deny its correctness and his failure to protest shall not, by itself, be deemed tq be an admission of correctness of the account. 4 Notwithstanding anything contained in any other enactment in force for the time being— (a) in any suit or proceeding relating to a loan the court shall, before deciding the claim on the merits, frame and decide the issue, whether the creditor has complied with the provisions of clauses (a) and (b) of sub-section (1) of section 3 ; (b) if the court finds that the provisions of clause (a) of sub-section (1) of section 3 have not been complied with by the creditor, the court shall, if the plaintiff’s claim is established in whole or in part, disallow the whole or a por- tion of the interest found due, as may seem reasonable to the court in the circumstances of the case and shall disallow costs ; (c) if the court finds that the provisions of clause (b) of sub-section (1) of section 3 have not been complied with by the creditor, the court shal in computing the amount of interest dpe upon the loan exclude every period for which the creditor omitted duly to furnish the account &; required by clause (b) of sub-section (1) © section 3 : provided that if the creditor has after the time prescribed in that clause furnish- ed the account and the plaintiff satisfies the court that he had sufficient cause for ot f“;: nishing it earlier, the court may, nothth§tanor ing such omission, include any such pgflOdthe periods for the purpose of computing interest. 1930 : Pb. Act 1.] PUNJAB REGULATION OF 887 ACCOUNTS Ezplanation.—A person who hag kept his account and sent his six-monthly statements of accounts in the form and manner prescribed in clauses (a) and (b) of sub-section (1) of section 3 shall be held to have com- plied with the provisions of these clauses, in spite of errors and omissions, if the court finds that the errors and omissions are accidental and not material and that accounts have been kept in good faith with the inten- tion of complying with the provisions of these clauses. 5. The provisions of this Act shall not apply to Sevings :Xxy loan advanced before the commencement of this ct: . Provided that if any fresh transaction relating to a loan advanced before the commencement of this Act is made after the commencement of this Act, such transaction shall be subject to the provisions of this Act. 6. (I) The '[Central Government] may make "”""G - rules not inconsistent with the Act for the purposes b S o of carrying out all or any of the provisions of this Act. rules. (2) In particular, and without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing power, the ![Central ‘ Government], may make rules— (i) prescribing the forms and numerals to be used in the accounts required. by sub- section (1) of section 3; (ii) prescribing the manner in which the acco- unts required by clause (b) of sub-section (1) of section 3 shall be furnished by the creditor to the debtor, the forms to be used, and the details to be incorporated therein and the scale of costs to be paid by such debtors as may demand that the account required by this clause should be furnished in one of the particular scripts mentioned in Explanation (i) of this clause : 1Subetituted for the words “State Government” by the Punjab Re- organisation (Chandigarh) Adaptation of Laws on State and Con- current Subjects) Order, 1668. ‘ 888 PUNJAS REGULATION OF (1930 : Pb. Act { - . ACCOUNTS™ "~ Provided that before making any rules undey th provisions of this section, the '[Central Governmeme shall, in addition to cbserving the procedyre laig down in section 21 of the Punjab General Clauseg Act 1898, publish by notification a draft of the Proposed rules for the information of persons likely to be affee. ed thereby, at least thirty days before a meeting ¢ the Punjab Legislative *[Assemblyl. The [Centra] Government] shall defer consideration of such Tuleg until after the meeting of the Puniab Legislative *[Assembly] next following the publication of the draft, in order to give member of the *[Assembly] ap opportunity to introduce a motion for discussing the draft. 1Substituted for the words “State Government” by the Punjab Reorganisation (Chandigarh) (Adaptation of Laws on State and Con. current Subjects) Order, 1968. 2Substituted for the word “council” by the Government of India (Adaptation of Indien Laws) Order, 1937.