24 March 2011
One private Limited Company filed its annual return /annual accounts belatedly by paying normal as well as additional filing fee. Whether payment of such additional fee under section 611(2) of the Companies Act,1956 will absolve from criminal liability leviable on the said defaulting company.
25 March 2011
See the wordings of Section 611(2). It allows late filing with additional fees however "without prejudice to any other liability".
So late filing with additional fee would not absolve the defaulting company from any liability that may be imposed under relevant sections of the Companies Act, 1956.
However keeping in view the huge number of continuing defaulters, there is a possibility that these companies may skip the attention of ROC Officials in the normal course.
So keep your fingers crossed. Your client may be lucky!
25 March 2011
ROC officials has started to issue notices regarding late filling of returns (obivously with late fees). At present they are issuing notices to only Public Limited companies, in near future they will issue notices to PVt. Ltd. Co. also.