GN-2 General Meetings
GN-2 General Meetings
GN-2 General Meetings
ON
GENERAL MEETINGS
SS-2 prescribes a set of principles for convening and conducting General Meetings
and matters related thereto.
This Guidance Note sets out the explanations, procedures, interpretations and
practical aspects in respect of the provisions contained in SS-2 to facilitate the
compliance thereof by the stakeholders.
BACKGROUND
The Act mandates holding of Meetings at specified intervals and also prescribes
related procedural rules for the same. Such mandate is in recognition of the fact that
Meetings play a vital role in the functioning and governance of a company. The
primary purpose of a Meeting is to ensure that a company gives reasonable and fair
opportunity to those entitled to participate in the Meeting to take decisions as per
the prescribed procedures. A company, being an artificial person, can, in respect of
any item which is directed or required to be exercised or done by the company in
General Meeting, only express its will or take its decisions through its Members by
way of Resolutions passed at Meetings which are, or are deemed to be, validly held.
Meetings held for such purpose are known as General Meetings and determining
what constitutes such validly held Meeting is of utmost importance.
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General Meetings can be broadly categorised as follows:
(i) Annual General Meeting - Every company is required to hold, during every
Calendar Year, a Meeting of its Members called the Annual General Meeting. The
importance of the Annual General Meeting arises out of the nature of business
transacted at this Meeting. Broadly there are two types of business that are
transacted at an Annual General Meeting – Ordinary Business and Special Business.
At an Annual General Meeting, consideration of financial statements & consolidated
financial statements and reports of the Board of Directors and the auditors,
declaration of any dividend, appointment of Directors in place of those retiring and
approval or ratification of appointment of the Auditors and fixing their
remuneration are deemed to be Ordinary Business. Any other item of business is
referred to as Special Business and may also be transacted at an Annual General
Meeting.
(ii) Extra-Ordinary General Meeting - A company may also hold any other Meeting of
its Members called an Extra-Ordinary General Meeting, as and when required or at
requisition of the Members. An Extra-Ordinary General Meeting is convened for
transacting Special or Urgent business that may arise in between two Annual
General Meetings. All business transacted at an Extra-Ordinary General Meeting
shall be deemed to be Special Business.
(iii) Meeting of a Class of Members - Such Meetings are held to pass Resolutions which
only bind the Members of the concerned class. Only Members of that class can
attend such Meetings and speak as well as vote thereat, e.g. Meetings of holders of
preference shares. Such Meetings are required to be convened when it is proposed
to vary the rights of a particular class of shares, such as cancelling arrears of
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dividend on preference shares. Provisions which govern General Meetings are
mutatis mutandis applicable to such Meetings.
(iv) Meetings of Debenture holders, creditors etc. - Such Meetings are held to pass
Resolutions which bind the debenture holders or creditors, as the case may be, of the
company. The debenture holders or creditors, as the case may be, can attend such
Meetings and speak as well as vote thereat. Provisions which govern General
Meetings are mutatis mutandis applicable to such Meetings.
Members of a company can exercise their powers and can bind the company only
when they act as a body at a validly convened and held Meeting. They should act
collectively and not individually. A Member or shareholder, irrespective of his
shareholding, cannot bind a company by his individual act.
INTRODUCTION
The fundamental principles with respect to General Meetings are laid down in the
Act. SS-2 facilitates compliance with these principles by giving clarity where there is
ambiguity or by standardising the diverse practices prevalent. Complying with SS-2
ensures a robust procedures and systems which protects the interests of the
company and its stakeholders. Incidentally, it has been observed that litigations are
a direct consequence of not following proper procedures and the non-availability of
proper records, especially in the case of small and private companies. The objective
of SS-2 is to address such issues.
SS-2 requires the Company Secretary(ies) to over-see the vital process of recording
and facilitating the decision making process in a company besides maintaining
integrity of the Meetings. Where there is no Company Secretary or in the case of
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absence of the Company Secretary, any Director or other Key Managerial Personnel
(KMP) or any other person authorised by the Board for this purpose may perform all
the functions of the Company Secretary given in SS-2 and/ or this Guidance Note.
APPLICABILITY OF SS-2
In terms of sub-section (10) of Section 118 of the Act, SS-2 is applicable to the General
Meetings of all companies incorporated under the Act. This shall include private and
small companies, unless expressly exempted by the Central Government through
Notification.
However, it is needless and impractical for a One Person Company (OPC) to comply
with SS-2 and hence, SS-2 is not made applicable to such OPCs.
SS-2 is thus applicable to the General Meetings of all companies incorporated under
the Act except One Person Company (OPC) and class or classes of companies which
are exempted by the Central Government through notification.
The principles enunciated in this Standard for General Meetings of Members are
applicable mutatis mutandis to Meetings of debenture-holders and creditors.
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prescribed for and orders of, such courts, judicial forums and other authorities with
respect to the conduct of such Meetings.
SS-2 is in conformity with the provisions of the Act. However, if due to subsequent
changes in the Act, a particular Standard or any part thereof becomes inconsistent
with the Act, the provisions of the Act shall prevail over the Secretarial Standards.
MCA‘s Notification No. G.S.R. 466(E) dated 5th June, 2015 exempts companies with
charitable objects etc. and not for profit incorporated under Section 8 of the Act
(erstwhile Section 25 of the Companies Act, 1956) from the applicability of Section
118 of the Act as a whole except that minutes of Meetings of such a company may be
recorded within thirty days of the conclusion of every Meeting in case of companies
where the Articles of Association provide for confirmation of minutes by circulation.
Consequently, SS-2 is not applicable to such companies. However, the provisions
relating to holding of General Meeting as provided under the Act are still applicable
to such companies and therefore such companies may voluntarily observe SS-2.
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SCOPE OF THE GUIDANCE NOTE
This Guidance Note elucidates, wherever necessary, the basis for setting the
particular Standard, explains its ingredients and nuances and gives illustrative
examples. It also integrates the replies to various queries raised by the stakeholders
on the particular Standard after the issuance of SS-2.
(In this Guidance Note, the Secretarial Standards have been set in bold type, the
explanations forming part of the Secretarial Standard in normal type and analysis
in italics. However, Annexure in SS-2, is numbered in this Guidance Note to
integrate it with other Annexures herein and for better coherence.) This Guidance
Note is prepared on the basis of the relevant provisions of the Act as amended up to
31st August, 2015 and the rules, circulars, clarifications etc. issued by the MCA until
31st August, 2015.
DEFINITIONS
The following terms are used in this Guidance Note with the meaning specified:
―Act‖ means the Companies Act, 2013 (Act No. 18 of 2013) or any previous
enactment thereof, or any statutory modification thereto or re-enactment thereof and
includes any Rules and Regulations framed thereunder.
―Calendar Year‖ means calendar year as per Gregorian calendar i.e. a period of one
year which begins on January 1st and ends on 31st December.
―Chairman‖ means the Chairman of the Board or the Chairman appointed or elected
for a Meeting.
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―Maintenance‖ means keeping registers and records either in physical or electronic
form, as may be permitted under any law for the time being in force, and includes
the making of necessary entries therein, the authentication of such entries and the
preservation of such physical or electronic records.
―Minutes Book‖ means a Book maintained in physical or in electronic form for the
purpose of recording of Minutes.
―National Holiday‖ includes Republic Day, i.e. 26th January, Independence Day, i.e.
15th August, Gandhi Jayanti, i.e. 2nd October and such other day as may be declared
as National Holiday by the Central Government.
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casting vote, if any, of the Chairman) exceed the votes, if any, cast against the
Resolution by Members entitled to vote thereon either in person or, where proxies
are allowed, by Proxy.
―Special Business‖ means business other than the Ordinary Business to be transacted
at an Annual General Meeting and all business to be transacted at any other General
Meeting.
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cast against the Resolution by Members entitled to vote thereon either in person or,
where proxies are allowed, by Proxy.
―Voting by electronic means‖, includes ‗remote e-voting‘ and voting at the general
Meeting through an electronic voting system which may be the same as used for
remote e-voting.
―Voting Right‖ means the right of a Member to vote on any matter at a Meeting of
Members or by means of e-voting or postal or physical ballot.
Words and expressions used and not defined herein shall have the meaning
respectively assigned to them under the Act.
References herein to Sections and Regulations relate, respectively, to Sections of the Act and
Regulations of Table F of Schedule I to the Act, unless otherwise stated.
Words imparting the singular include the plural and words imparting any gender include
every gender.
Meanings of some of the terms used in this Guidance Note are placed at the end of this
Guidance Note under the heading ―Glossary‖.
1. Convening a Meeting
1.1 Authority
The authority to convene a General Meeting of the company shall either be with the Board
itself or with the Director, Company Secretary, Manager or any other officer of the company
under the authority of the Board.
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A Director, Company Secretary, Manager or any other officer of the company shall not have
the power to convene a General Meeting on his own.
In order to be a valid Meeting, the Notice of the Meeting shall be given by a person duly
authorised by the Board. A Meeting called by a person who is not authorised by the Board for
that purpose is bound to be declared invalid. [Akbarali A. Kalvert & Anr. v. Konkan
Chemicals Pvt. Ltd. 1997 (88) Comp Cas 245 CLB]
Notice of a General Meeting given by the Secretary without the sanction of the Directors or
other proper authority is invalid, but such a Notice may be ratified by the Directors before the
Meeting. [Hooper v. Kerr, Stuart & Co. (1900) 83 LT 729]
It may be noted that this proposition holds good as the approval of the Board is mandatory for
the issuance of the Notice including - the items of business to be transacted, text of
Resolutions and explanatory statement contained in the Notice.
If a Board, not properly constituted in accordance with law, convenes a Meeting, such
Meeting shall be irregular and the Resolutions passed thereat shall be invalid.
In the absence of a properly constituted Board, Board can convene a General Meeting only for
the purpose of increasing the Board strength. (Regulation 69 of Table F of Schedule I of the
Act)
The Board shall, every year, convene or authorise convening of a Meeting of its
Members called the Annual General Meeting to transact items of Ordinary Business
specifically required to be transacted at an Annual General Meeting as well as
Special Business, if any. If the Board fails to convene its Annual General Meeting in
any year, any Member of the company may approach the prescribed authority,
which may then direct the calling of the Annual General Meeting of the company.
Section 96 of the Act requires that the Annual General Meeting should be held in each year.
The term ―Year‖ is not defined in the Act. Thus, the definition has to be construed as per the
General Clauses Act, 1897. Accordingly, the ‗Year‘ should be considered as Calendar Year.
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In case of any default in holding the Annual General Meeting in any year, any Member of
the company may approach the CLB/Tribunal for suitable directions.
The Board may also, whenever it deems fit, call an Extra-ordinary General Meeting
of the company.
Every General Meeting other than an Annual General Meeting shall be called Extra-
ordinary General Meeting.
If at any time directors capable of acting who are sufficient in number to form a quorum are
not within India, any director or any two Members of the company may call an Extra-
ordinary General Meeting in the same manner, as nearly as possible, as that in which such a
Meeting may be called by the Board. (Regulation 43 of Table F of Schedule I to the Act)
The Board shall, on the requisition of Members who hold, as on the date of the
receipt of a valid requisition,
(a) in the case of company having a share capital, not less than one-tenth of the
paid-up share capital carrying Voting Rights or
(b) in the case of a company not having share capital, not less than one-tenth of
total voting power of the company,
The above provision applies only with respect to calling an Extra-ordinary General Meeting.
It may be noted that the phrase ‗one-tenth of such of the paid-up capital of the company‘,
implies that the total amount paid-up on shares held by requisitionists should be not less than
one-tenth of the total amount paid-up on all the shares of the company which carry the right
to vote.
A single shareholder may also file the requisition for convening the Meeting provided that he
has the requisite voting rights or voting power as per Section 100 of the Act.
In case a body corporate is a Member of another company, it can file the requisition for
convening a Meeting if it holds the required voting rights or voting power. Section 100 does
not distinguish between a requisitionist being a natural or an artificial person. Therefore, an
artificial person may also submit the requisition with the company.
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An insolvent Member can also sign the requisition if his name is appearing in the register of
Members. [Balkrishan Gupta vs. Swadeshi Polytex Ltd. (1985) 58 Comp Cas 563]
As the reference in Section 100 of the Act is to shares which carry voting rights, holders of
preference shares cannot join in requisitioning an Extra-Ordinary General Meeting, except
for those matters in respect of which they are entitled to vote.
The Board cannot reject a requisition as invalid unless the requisitionists do not fulfill the
eligibility criteria stipulated under Section 100 of the Act.
However, it has been held that the Board is within its rights to refuse to call and hold an
Extra-Ordinary General Meeting on the requisition of Members where an order of injunction
restraining the company from holding any Meeting is in force. [In A.D. Chaudhary v.
Mysore Paper Mills Ltd. (1976) 46 Comp. Cas. 548]
Where the requisitioned Meeting is in context of a suit already filed in the competent court,
the directors can reject such requisition and the stay can be granted by court in this behalf.
[Srivastava & Sons (Rampur) P. Ltd. V. Gwalior Sugar Co. Ltd. (2002) 4 Comp LJ 476:
(2002) 40 SCL 687 (CLB-ND)]
If, on receipt of a valid requisition having been made in this behalf, the Board, within
twenty-one days from the date of such receipt, fails to call a Meeting on any day
within forty-five days from the date of receipt of such requisition, the requisitionists
may themselves call and hold the Meeting within three months from the date of
requisition, in the same manner in which the Board should have called and held the
Meeting.
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The Board should, within twenty-one days from the date of receipt of a valid requisition, call
a Meeting on any day within forty-five days from the date of receipt of such requisition. In
case the Board fails to call the General Meeting requisitioned by the Members, it can be called
and convened by the requisitionists.
Rule 17(7) of the Companies (Management and Administration) Rules, 2014 provides that if
the Meeting is not convened, the requistionists shall have a right to receive list of members
together with their registered address and number of shares held and the company concerned
is bound to give a list of members together with their registered address made as on twenty
first day from the date of receipt of valid requisition together with such changes, if any, before
the expiry of the forty-five days from the date of receipt of a valid requisition.
Where the Board has failed to convene the requisitioned Extra-ordinary General Meeting and
the requisitionists are convening the Meeting, then it becomes the duty of the board of
directors to provide the requisitionists with all the relevant information viz. registered email
addresses of members, number of shares held by them etc. from the Register of Members.
There is however no bar on the addition of an Explanatory Note by the Board in order to
elucidate its position, in any manner, with respect to the proposals contained in the
requisition.
Such requisition shall not pertain to any item of business that is required to be
transacted mandatorily through postal ballot.
1.2 Notice
Notice for convening the Meeting should be given in writing to every person entitled to such
Notice.
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Form of Notice
The Act does not specify any particular form in which Notice should be given. However, it is
necessary that Notice should be in writing. An oral Notice, whether conveyed on telephone or
by word of mouth, is not a valid Notice.
In terms of sub-section (3) of Section 101 of the Act, Notice of every Meeting of the company
shall be given to—
a) every Member of the company, legal representative of any deceased Member or the
assignee of an insolvent Member;
Notice should be given to a Member, even if he has waived his right to receive the Notice.
In terms of sub-section (55) of Section 2 of the Act, the names of holders of both equity and
preference shares including depositories shall be entered in the Register of Members.
Accordingly, holders of equity shares as well as holders of preference shares are entitled to
receive Notices of General Meetings and to attend the Meetings. Further, Section 101 of the
Act does not qualify the term ―Member‖ by a restrictive expression ―entitled to vote‖.
Accordingly, preference shareholders are entitled to receive Notices of, and to attend, General
Meetings, even if they are not entitled to participate in the discussion or vote on any
Resolution placed before the Meeting.
Further, the term director includes all types of directors in the company at the time of
dispatching of notices i.e. whole time director, part time director, independent director,
nominee director, additional director, alternate director, woman director, resident director
etc.
In addition to the above, paragraph of SS-2 requires Notice to be given to the following:
In terms of para 4.3 of SS-2, the Secretarial Auditor or his authorised representative is
required to attend the AGM. In case of other General Meetings, Explanation to para 4.3
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states that the Chairman may invite the Secretarial Auditor or his authorised representative
to attend, if he considers it necessary.
Notice of the General Meetings should therefore be sent to the Secretarial Auditors, as an
invitation to attend or for information, as the case may be.
The expression ―Auditors‖ in this paragraph of SS-2 includes auditors appointed for
conducting cost audit pursuant to Section 148 of the Act.
Additionally, the Court may direct issuance of Notice to some other persons such as Court-
appointed Chairman or observers, etc.
It is also advisable to give notice to the Auditor(s) whose appointment is proposed at the
General Meeting.
In case of buyback/delisting etc., the notice of General Meeting should also be served on such
shareholders who have offered their shares to the company and whose shares are in escrow
account, till the same is accepted by the company.
(i) in the case of a listed company, the stock exchanges on which the shares or other securities
of the company are listed;
(ii) financial institutions, pursuant to a covenant in the agreement entered into with them for
availing financial assistance;
(iii)the foreign collaborator/s, if the agreement provides for sending of such Notices;
(v) any other recipient to whom the company has agreed to give Notice.
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In addition to giving Notice to persons specified above, Court may direct issuance of Notice
to some other persons such as Court-appointed Chairman or observers. In such case the
Notice should be given accordingly.
Any person who receives the notice of a General Meeting, ipso facto, is entitled to attend such
Meeting.
In the case of Members, Notice shall be given at the address registered with the
company or depository. In the case of shares or other securities held jointly by two
or more persons, the Notice shall be given to the person whose name appears first as
per records of the company or the depository, as the case may be. In the case of any
other person who is entitled to receive Notice, the same shall be given to such person
at the address provided by him.
Notice should be given to the Members at the address registered with the company or the
depository. In case of other persons entitled to receive Notice as explained above, Notice
should be given at the address provided by such person to the company.
Sub–section (1) of Section 20 of the Act provides that a document may be served on a
company at its registered office.
Notice may be served on a company by leaving it at the Registered Office of the Company or
sending it there by post. [Addis Ltd. v. Berkeley Supplies Ltd. (1964) 2 All ER 753; (1964)1
WLR 943]
Thus, Notice to a Member, which is a body corporate should be given at its Registered Office.
Where the company has received intimation of death of a Member, the Notice of
Meeting shall be sent as under:
a) where securities are held singly, to the Nominee of the single holder;
b) where securities are held by more than one person jointly and any joint holder
dies, to the surviving first joint holder;
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c) where securities are held by more than one person jointly and all the joint holders
die, to the Nominee appointed by all the joint holders.
In the case where the shares were held by the joint-holders and all the joint-holders have died
and they have selected a nominee, the notice shall be sent to that particular nominee.
In the absence of a Nominee, the Notice shall be sent to the legal representative of
the deceased Member.
Shares of a deceased shareholder come under the authority of the legal representative. When
the name of the person to whom shares of deceased gets transmitted or any transferee thereof
gets entered in the Register of Members, the membership of the deceased stands terminated.
Where the joint shareholders have not appointed a nominee and where the legal
representatives are different, the notice is to be forwarded to the legal representative of the
first named shareholder.
In case of insolvency of a Member, the Notice shall be sent to the assignee of the
insolvent Member.
In case the Member is a company or body corporate which is being wound up,
notice shall be sent to the liquidator.
When the Meeting is adjourned for thirty days or more, fresh Notice of the adjourned
Meeting should be given in the manner specified. (Discussed at length under the heading
―Adjournment of Meetings‖).
Adjournment by Court
Where the Meeting was adjourned by the court and it was further reconvened by the court,
then a fresh notice of the Meeting is not required to be given. The notice of original Meeting
will be considered and business items can be taken as it was mentioned in the previous
Meeting. [Re: S.P. Arora v. Roshanara Club, (1992) 8 Corpt LA 31 (Del)]
Irregular Notice
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Where irregular Notice has been given, Members may proceed to set aside the Meeting so
convened and compel the Directors to call a new Meeting after giving proper Notice. [Mayr
v. St. Lawrence Corp., (1950) Que. K.B. 635 (C.A.)]
1) When the Notice of General Meeting is issued without authorisation by the Board
2) When the Notice is issued by invalidly constituted Board
3) When the Appointment of Director who has signed the Notice is void and the Notice gets
issued even after discovery of invalidity
4) When the Notice is not in accordance with the Secretarial Standards.
A Meeting called and held without adequate notice and Resolutions passed at such Meetings
will be invalid. [Parmeshwari Gupta v UOI 1973 AIR 2389]
In situations where the company is unable to send Notice to a Member whose registered
address is situated in enemy territory, on grounds of force majeure, there is no violation of
the requirement relating to Notice. Further, if the right of some Members to receive Notice is
suspended by operation of law, the company can carry on its business without serving Notice
on such Members. [Re. Anglo International Bank (1943) Ch. 233 CA; (1943) 2 All ER 88]
Great care should be taken to ensure that notice of the Meeting is served on all the persons
entitled to receive it. If non-receipt of notice by persons entitled to receive such notice is
proved and the same is due to some default of the company, the proceedings of such General
Meeting may be held invalid.
Those who seek to challenge the validity of a Notice should act promptly. However, the courts
will not interfere on the basis of minor irregularities.
In case of a private company, the Articles may contain a provision as to the persons to whom
the Notice shall be sent. In such a case, notwithstanding anything stated above, the Notice of
General Meetings should be sent to such persons as specified in the Articles. [In line with
MCA‘s Notification No. G.S.R. 464(E) dated June 5, 2015]
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In the case of a Nidhi, the document may be served only on Members who hold shares of more
than one thousand rupees in face value or more than one percent of the total paid-up share
capital of the Nidhi, whichever is less. For other shareholders, document may be served by a
public notice in a newspaper circulated in the district where the Registered Office of the
company is situated; and publication of the same on the notice board. [In line with MCA‘s
Notification No. G.S.R. 465(E) dated June 5, 2015]
Notice may be served by various modes, such as hand delivery, post, facsimile, e-mail or
any other electronic mode. Notice may even be sent through courier. However, if the
Articles of the company prescribe the method by which Notice has to be given, it should be
given accordingly. Similarly, if any agreement to which the company is a party requires
the company to deliver the Notice to any person including joint Venture Partner/Investor
in a specific manner, it should be given accordingly. However, the manner of providing
such Notice should not contradict with the provisions of the Act or the Standard.
Further, where Notice is sent through e-mail, the subject line in such e-mail should state the
name of the company, notice of the type of Meeting, place and the date on which the Meeting
is scheduled. [Rule 18(3)(ii) of the Companies (Management and Administration) Rules,
2014]
If notice is sent in the form of a non-editable attachment to e-mail, such attachment shall be in
the Portable Document Format or in a non-editable format together with a 'link or
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instructions' for recipient for downloading relevant version of the software. [Rule 18(3)(iii) of
the Companies (Management and Administration) Rules, 2014]
The company shall ensure that it uses a system which produces confirmation of the
total number of recipients e-mailed and a record of each recipient to whom the
Notice has been sent and copy of such record and any Notices of any failed
transmissions and subsequent re-sending shall be retained by or on behalf of the
company as ‗‗proof of sending‘‘.
In cases where the Notice is sent by e-mail or any other electronic means, the proof of sending
of the Notice is required to be maintained by the company.
In case of Members, the Notice is served or deemed to be served on the person to whom it is
addressed if the Notice is posted to him, by affixing postal stamps of the requisite value, at his
address registered with the company or depository. [Col. Kuldip Singh Dhillon and Others v.
Paragaon Utility Financiers P. Limited and Others [1986] 60 Comp. Cas. 1075 (P & H)]
Notice shall be sent to Members by registered post or speed post or courier or e-mail
and not by ordinary post in the following cases:
If a Member requests for delivery of Notice through a particular mode, other than
one of those listed above, he shall pay such fees as may be determined by the
company in its Annual General Meeting and the Notice shall be sent to him in such
mode.
Where a Member indicates to the company in advance that Notice shall be sent to him
through a particular mode other than that prescribed above and as permitted under the Act,
service of Notice would not be deemed to be effected unless the company serves the Notice in
the manner specified by the Member. However the Member should pay such fee as may be
determined by the company in its Annual General Meeting.
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Notice shall be sent to Members by registered post or speed post or e-mail if the
Meeting is called by the requisitionists themselves and where the Board had not
proceeded to call the Meeting.
In case the Notice and accompanying documents are given by e-mail, these shall be
sent at the Members‘ e-mail addresses, registered with the company or provided by
the depository, in the manner prescribed under the Act.
If a Member does not provide an updated e–mail address, the company shall not be in default
for non-receipt of such Notice by the Member.
However, as a measure of compliance, Notice of the General Meeting should contain a Note
in this regard.
In case of the Directors, Auditors, Secretarial Auditors and others, if any, the Notice
and accompanying documents shall be sent at the e-mail addresses provided by
them to the company, if being sent by electronic means.
In case of a private company, the Articles may contain a provision as to the mode of sending
notice of General Meetings. In such a case, notwithstanding anything stated above, the
Notice of General Meetings should be sent through such mode as specified in the Articles. [In
line with MCA‘s Notification No. G.S.R. 464(E) dated June 5, 2015]
1.2.3 In case of companies having a website, the Notice shall be hosted on the
website.
The Notice of the General Meeting of the company shall be simultaneously placed on the
website, if any, of the company and on the website as may be notified by the Central
Government. [Rule 18 of the Companies (Management and Administration) Rules, 2014]
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However, it is not mandatory for the companies to have a website. If a company has a website,
only then Notice is required to be hosted on the website.
1.2.4 Notice shall specify the day, date, time and full address of the venue
of the Meeting.
Day/date
The Notice should state explicitly the day and date of the Meeting. In the absence of any of
these particulars, the Meeting would be invalid. In a Notice where the day of the Meeting is
incorrectly stated, i.e. where the day of the week does not match the date and month given,
that Notice is bad in law. [Shackleton, at 44 (1997 edu.)]
Place
Every Notice of a Meeting should specify the place of the Meeting. The expression ‗place‘
means the exact location or full postal address where the Meeting is to be held, so as to enable
a person to locate the venue of the Meeting without any difficulty.
The company cannot fix a place for a Meeting which is prohibited by the Articles of the
company. [Re: Aidqua Holdings (Mauritius) Inc v. Tamil Nadu Water Investment Co.
Limited (2008) 142 com cases 497: (2008) 83 SCL 434 (CLB)]
Notice shall contain complete particulars of the venue of the Meeting including route
map and prominent land mark for easy location. In case of companies having a
website, the route map shall be hosted along with the Notice on the website.
This is a good practice benefitting the Members. Though e-voting is mandatory in case of
certain companies, many Members may still prefer to attend the Meeting physically. Most of
the times, it is observed that there is no fixed venue for General Meetings. The registered
office of companies is also sometimes located in remote areas.
Providing a route map and prominent landmark would enable easy location of the venue by
those who wish to attend the Meeting. The objective is to ensure that they are able to reach
the venue at the appointed time without much difficulty.
Since the spirit of the Standard is to enable easy location, the route-map and prominent
landmark may not be provided, if the venue of the Meeting is generally known to its
Members.
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Time
Meetings shall be called during business hours, i.e., between 9 a.m. and 6 p.m., on a
day that is not a National Holiday. A Meeting called by the requisitionists shall be
convened only on a working day.
Sub-section (2) of Section 96 of the Act requires the Annual General Meetings to be held
during business hours on a day that is not a National Holiday. Explanation to Rule 17(2) of
Companies (Management and Administration) Rules, 2014 prescribes that a Meeting called
by the requisitionists shall be convened only on a working day. Harmonising the two
provisions above and for the convenience of Members, the Standard requires that all General
Meetings, including Extra-ordinary General Meetings, shall be held during business hours
and on a day that is not a National Holiday.
A General Meeting can be held on a Public Holiday or on a Sunday, unless such day happens
to be a National Holiday.
The power to declare a day as a National Holiday is vested with the Central Government.
Every Notice of a Meeting should state a specific time at which the Meeting is to commence,
for example, 10:00 a.m.
Where the Notice of a General Meeting did not specify the hour of the Meeting, the Notice
was invalid and any Resolution passed at such Meeting was also invalid. [Prachi Insurance
Co. Ltd. v. Chaudhary Madhusudan Das, (1964) 2 Comp L J 157 (Orissa)]
The time mentioned in the Notice is the time for commencement of the Meeting. MCA has
clarified that ‗time‘ indicates only the hour of commencement of the Meeting. [Erstwhile
Department of Company Affairs Letter No.8/16(1)/61-PR dated 9-5-1961]
The company shall start its Meeting during the business hours but it is not necessary that
the Meeting ends in the business hours, the Meeting may end even after the business hours.
Annual General Meetings shall be held either at the registered office of the company
or at some other place within the city, town or village in which the registered office
of the company is situated, whereas other General Meetings may be held at any
place within India. A Meeting called by the requisitionists shall be held either at the
23
registered office of the company or at some other place within the city, town or
village in which the registered office of the company is situated.
Meetings can be held at any place within the postal limits or local limits of the city, town or
village in which the Registered Office of the company is situated and where these two limits
do not coincide, within the wider of the two limits. [Then Department of Company Affairs
Circular No.1/1/80-CL-V, dt. 16/02/81]
A government company may convene its Annual General Meeting at its registered office or
some other place within the city, town or village in which the registered office of the company
is situated or such other place as the Central Government may approve in this behalf. [In line
with MCA‘s Notification No. G.S.R. 463(E) dated June 5, 2015]
In case of Section 8 companies, the time, date and place of each Annual General Meeting may
be decided upon before-hand by the board of directors having regard to the directions, if any,
given in this regard by the company in its General Meeting. [In line with MCA‘s
Notification No. G.S.R. 466(E) dated June 5, 2015]
In case of a private company, the Articles may contain a provision as to matters which shall
be contained in the Notice of General Meetings. In such a case, notwithstanding anything
stated above, the Notice of General Meetings should contain matters in accordance with the
Articles. [In line with MCA‘s Notification No. G.S.R. 464(E) dated June 5, 2015]
Notice of a company which has a share capital or the Articles of which provide for
voting at a Meeting by Proxy, shall prominently contain a statement that a Member
entitled to attend and vote is entitled to appoint a Proxy, or where that is allowed,
one or more proxies, to attend and vote instead of himself and that a Proxy need not
24
be a Member. In case of companies where Proxy shall be a Member under the Act, a
statement to that effect shall appear in the Notice prominently.
Where a Member cannot attend the Meeting in person, he is entitled to appoint a Proxy to
attend on his behalf. Every Notice calling a Meeting shall state that any Member entitled to
attend and vote is entitled to appoint another person as a Proxy. [Sub-section (1) of Section
105 of the Act]
1.2.5 Notice shall clearly specify the nature of the Meeting and the business
to be transacted thereat. In respect of items of Special Business, each such item
shall be in the form of a Resolution and shall be accompanied by an explanatory
statement which shall set out all such facts as would enable a Member to
understand the meaning, scope and implications of the item of business and to
take a decision thereon. In respect of items of Ordinary Business, Resolutions are
not required to be stated in the Notice except where the Auditors or Directors to
be appointed are other than the retiring Auditors or Directors, as the case may be.
A Notice, in order to be valid, should clearly state the nature or type of Meeting i.e. Annual
General Meeting or Extra-ordinary General Meeting and the business to be transacted at
such Meeting, and should give all material information so as to enable such items of business
to be fully understood by the Members.
In the case of an Annual General Meeting which is convened within the extended period as
granted by the Registrar of Companies under the third proviso to sub-section (1) of Section
96 of the Act, the Notice convening such Annual General Meeting shall include the following
information:
(a) the fact that such an extension of time has been sought and the reasons therefor;
(b) whether the Meeting is being convened within the extended time;
In the case of Notice of an Annual General Meeting, the business to be transacted at the
Meeting should be divided into two parts – Ordinary Business and Special Business.
25
In the Annual General Meeting, all business other than ordinary business shall be special
business. However, in case of an Extra-ordinary General Meeting, all business shall be
special business.
Each item of special business shall be in the form of Resolution. The Resolutions are broadly
of two types: Ordinary Resolutions and Special Resolutions. Ordinary and Special
Resolutions have been defined under Section 114 of the Act. Broadly, Ordinary Resolutions
are required to be passed by simple majority, whereas Special Resolutions are required to be
passed by three–fourth (3/4th) majority. In case of a Special Resolution, the Notice of the
Meeting shall state that a particular Resolution is proposed to be passed as a Special
Resolution. [Clause (a) of sub-section (2) of Section 114 of the Act]
Other than the explicitly mentioned types of Resolutions, the Act also mandates, in some
areas, that there be a Unanimous Resolution, meaning a Resolution passed by the Members
of the Company where all of them cast their votes in favour of the Resolution. (Major Law
Lexicon, 4th Edition 2010)
Explanatory Statement
In respect of ordinary business, explanatory statement need not be given. The detailed
particulars in respect thereof shall be given in the Notice itself or may be given in the Report
of the Board. For example, the item of business in relation to dividend may be stated in the
Notice merely as ―To declare a dividend‖, in which case, in the Report of the Board, full
details shall be given regarding the rate/amount of dividend recommended by the Board of
Directors.
In respect of special business, an explanatory statement shall be annexed to the Notice of the
Meeting. [Sub-section (1) of Section 102 of the Act]
Such explanatory statement should be issued by the same person who has been authorised to
issue the Notice and in the same manner in which he has issued the Notice.
The underlying objective behind Section 173 of the Companies Act, 1956 (corresponding to
Section 102 of the Act) is that the shareholders may have before them all material facts so as
to enable them to form a judgment on the item of business before them. Any fact which would
influence their decision, one way or the other, would be a material fact under the Act and has
26
to be set out in the explanatory statement attached to the Notice of the Meeting. [Firestone
Tyre and Rubber Co. v. Synthetics and Chemicals Ltd. (1971) 41 Comp Cas 377 (Bom)]
Material facts generally include the present facts which are necessary for the shareholders to
know and which may affect the decision of the shareholders but do not include the reasons for
which the company entered into the contract with such party. [In Re. Laljibhai C. Kapadia v.
Llaji B. Desai [1973] 43 Comp Cas 17 (Bom)]
Material facts have to be given and not the detailed explanations. [East India Commercial Co.
Pvt. Ltd. V. Raymon Engineering Works Limited, AIR 1966 Cal 232]
In relation to a General Meeting called on the basis of a valid requisition, there is no duty on
the part of the Board of Directors to furnish an explanatory statement even though any item
of business proposed to be transacted at any such General Meeting will be deemed to be a
Special Business.
When the requisitionists are calling the Meeting, it is not necessary for them to annex the
explanatory statement along with the notice. It is not duty of the requisitionists to provide
the explanatory statement also. [LIC of India v. Escorts Ltd. (1966) 59 comp cases 548: AIR
1986 SC 1370]
A Notice issued and explanatory statement attached to it can be condemned as tricky, if the
same is likely to mislead shareholders or if there is an omission to state the facts which would
enable shareholders to decide if they would attend Meeting or not. [M.R.Goyal v. Usha
Internationals Ltd. [1998] 18 SCL 159 (Delhi))/ [1998] 93 Comp Cas 634 (Del)]
It is a duty cast on the management to disclose, in an explanatory note, all material facts
relating to the Resolution coming up before the General Meeting so as to enable the
shareholders to form a judgment on the business before them. [Life Insurance Corporation of
India v. Escorts Ltd. and others (1986) 59 Comp. Cas. 548 (SC)]
It is a good secretarial practice to mention in the notes to the Notice that the explanatory
statement as required under Section 102 of the Act is annexed to the Notice. The explanatory
statement accompanying the Notice is not to be read in isolation and has to be read along
with the item included in the agenda of business to be transacted at the Meeting. [Rajiv Nag
v. Quality Assurance Institute (India) Ltd. (2002) 37 SCL 25]
27
Where the notice is published in a newspaper by the company, such explanatory statement
need not be published in the newspaper. It shall be mentioned in the newspaper that the
notice along with explanatory statement has been sent to the Members.
The nature of the concern or interest (financial or otherwise), if any, of the following
persons, in any special item of business or in a proposed Resolution, shall be
disclosed in the explanatory statement:
What material facts, including the nature of interest or concern of a director, are questions of
facts, and therefore, while preparing the explanatory statement, not only the information
derived from records be stated but also sufficient enquiry should be made to understand the
nature of such interest or concern of any director and of any Key Managerial Personnel.
For this purpose, the shareholding includes preference shares and shares with differential
voting rights, if any.
28
business hours at the Registered Office of the company and copies thereof shall also
be made available for inspection in physical or electronic form at the Head Office as
well as Corporate Office of the company, if any, if such office is situated elsewhere,
and also at the Meeting.
This has been incorporated with the intent of wider coverage and for convenience of Members
who visit such offices, and would also enhance disclosures on the part of the company.
The document, contract or agreement, which has been referred to in the Notice/Explanatory
statement and the Memorandum of Association or Articles of Association, if referred to in the
Notice/Explanatory Statement should be made available, in original, for inspection by the
Members at the Registered Office of the company.
Sometimes, the company may have a separate Head Office or Corporate Office located
elsewhere other than the Registered Office. In such cases, copies of the aforesaid documents,
contracts, agreements, the Memorandum of Association or Articles of Association should also
be made available for inspection at the Head Office and Corporate Office for the benefit of
those Members who may find it more convenient to visit these offices.
In such a case, the time during which and the place at which Members can inspect such
documents should be mentioned in the explanatory statement. Such documents shall be so
made available for inspection for not less than two hours during business hours.
29
the company, the number of Meetings of the Board attended during the year and
other Directorships, Membership/ Chairmanship of Committees of other Boards
shall be given in the explanatory statement.
If a director, who retires by rotation, is not to be re-appointed or is not interested in being re-
appointed, such a fact shall be clearly stated in the Notice. Further, the Notice shall also
specify whether the company has decided to fill up the said vacancy or not. If the company has
decided to fill up the vacancy, the person who is proposed to be appointed as a director in the
said place shall also be specified in the Notice.
Schedule IV of the Act provides that, on the basis of the report of performance evaluation, it
shall be determined whether to extend or continue the term of appointment of the
Independent Director.
Re-appointment of the independent director would be recommended by the Board only when
there is a positive evaluation by the Board. Therefore, performance evaluation report of
Independent Director is important and the same or summary thereof, should be included in
the explanatory statement.
Further, in the case of listed companies- detailed resume and particulars of directors proposed
to be appointed /re-appointed at the General Meeting have to be given. The most appropriate
place for giving such information is the explanatory statement.
In case major amendments are proposed in the Articles, the details thereof shall be given in
the explanatory statement.
In case of amalgamation, the explanatory statement shall include all the required details like:
30
All Resolutions and the explanatory statement should be framed in simple and intelligible
language so as to enable Members to understand the meaning, scope and implications of the
proposed items of business.
Section 173 of the Companies Act, 1956 (corresponding to Section 102 of the Act) enacts a
provision that is mandatory in nature, and not directory. In the interest of shareholders, all
material facts concerning the transaction need to be placed before them so that they may, of
their own capacity, arrive at a judgment without the influence of the management and
therefore any contravention of these provisions should lead to a nullification of proceedings.
[Sheth Mohanlal Ganpatram v. Shri Sayaji Jubilee Cotton and Jute Mills Co. Ltd. [1974] 34
Comp Cas 777 (Guj)]
Wherever the Act requires certain specific items to be considered by the company and to
mention it in the explanatory statement, it shall be included, otherwise the notice shall be
invalid.
A minor defect arising out of absence of strict conformity with the provisions of Section 173
of the Companies Act, 1956 (corresponding to Section 102 of the Act) may, however, not
render the Resolution null and void. [Joseph Michael v. Travancore Rubber and Tea Co.
Limited (1986) 59 Comp. Cas. 898]
In case of a private company, the Articles may contain a provision as to the matters which
shall be contained in the Notice of General Meetings. In such a case, notwithstanding
anything stated above, the notice of General Meetings should contain such matters as
provided in the Articles. [In line with MCA‘s Notification No. G.S.R. 464(E) dated June 5,
2015]
31
A General Meeting should be called by giving at least twenty-one clear days‘ Notice of the
Meeting.
For the purpose of reckoning twenty-one days clear Notice, the day of sending the
Notice and the day of Meeting shall not be counted.
The expression ―twenty-one clear days‖, means that the date of service of Notice and the date
of the Meeting are to be excluded when calculating the period of twenty-one days. [N.V.R.
Naggappa Chettair v. Madras Race Club [1949] 19 Comp Cas 175 (Mad)]
Further, fractions of days are not to be taken into account, i.e. part of the day, after the hour
at which the Notice is posted cannot be combined with the part of the day before the Meeting
commences, to form one day. In actual practice, the Notice period will amount to twenty-
three days Notice. Each of these days should be a full or calendar day. [Bharat Kumar Dilwali
v. Bharat Carbon & Ribbon Mfg. Co. Ltd. [1973] 43 Comp. Cas. 197 Delhi]
Illustration:
If a Meeting is to be held on the 25th of a month, Notice should be given on or before 3rd of the
same month i.e. at least twenty three days before the date of the Meeting.
Further in case the company sends the Notice by post or courier, an additional two
days shall be provided for the service of Notice.
Addition of two days in case the company sends the Notice by post or courier is in line with
Rule 35(6) of the Companies (Incorporation) Rules, 2014 which provides that in case of
delivery by post, such service shall be deemed to have been effected in the case of a notice of a
Meeting, at the expiration of forty eight hours after the letter containing the same is posted.
Illustration:
If a Meeting is to be held on the 25th of a month, Notice should be posted on or before 1st of the
same month i.e. at least twenty five days before the date of the Meeting.
32
―Posted‖ is taken to mean the delivery of the envelope to an authorised official of a post office
or a courier agency, which need not necessarily be the post box or the post office or the courier
agency office situated within the city where the Registered Office of the company is situated.
When mail is posted in bulk for franking by the post office or the courier agency, a certificate
should be obtained and it is not sufficient to rely merely on the date indicated on the seal
impressed on the envelope.
Where Notices are posted on time, the fact that some Members received them late will not
affect the validity of the Notice or the Meeting. [Calcutta Chemicals Co. Ltd. v. Dhiresh
Chandra Roy (1985) 58 Com. Case 275 (Cal) and Maharaja Exports and Another v. Apparels
Exports Promotion Council (1986) 60 Comp. Cas. 353]
The fact that Notice of a Meeting of shareholders to be held under directions of the Court for
consideration of a scheme of amalgamation was delivered late to a shareholder owing to postal
delay or omissions on the part of postal authorities would not invalidate the Meeting.
[Maknam Investments Ltd., In Re. (1996) 87 Comp. Cas. 689 (Cal.)], nor would the
company be responsible for a necessary dependence on a third party agency for due services of
notice. [Somalingappa Shiva Putrappa Mugabasav v. Shree Renuka Sugars Limited [(2002)
110 Comp. Cas. 371]
Though a Notice shall deemed to be given at the expiry of forty-eight hours after the envelope
containing the Notice was posted, in some circumstances (such as strikes, civil disturbance,
curfew), where the senders of the Notice know that the envelope has not been ―received‖ by
the post, this deeming provision is inoperative and not to be relied upon. [Re. Thundercrest
Ltd. (1995) 1 BCLC 117 (Ch D) and Bradman v. Trinity Estate Plc (1989) BCLC 33]
Where the Notice is also published in a newspaper, twenty-one clear days should be reckoned
from the date on which such advertisement appears.
Such advertisement may also contain information regarding the days during which the
Register of Members would remain closed or the date fixed as the record date, which is the
last date by which changes in the status of Members are recorded by the company for the
purpose of determining entitlement of Members to attend and vote at General Meetings.
33
Notice Period in the Articles
The Articles of the company may provide for a longer notice period in which case the Articles
should be complied with. A longer notice period will be beneficial for the shareholders as they
will get sufficient time to take the decisions regarding the General Meeting of the company.
A Section 8 company may call its General Meeting by giving not less than fourteen clear
days‘ notice. [In line with MCA‘s Notification No. G.S.R. 466(E) dated June 5, 2015]
In case of a private company, the Articles may contain a provision as to the Notice period of
General Meetings. In such a case, notwithstanding anything stated above, the notice of
General Meetings should be issued in accordance with the Articles. [In line with MCA‘s
Notification No. G.S.R. 464(E) dated June 5, 2015]
In case of Nidhis, in respect of Members who do not individually or jointly hold shares of
more than one thousand rupees in face value or more than one percent of the total paid-up
share capital whichever is less, it shall be sufficient compliance with the provisions of Section
136, if an intimation is sent by public notice in newspaper circulated in the district in which
the Registered Office of the Nidhi is situated stating the date, time and venue of Annual
General Meeting and the financial statement with its enclosures can be inspected at the
registered office of the company, and the financial statement with enclosures are affixed in the
Notice Board of the company and a Member is entitled to vote either in person or through
Proxy. [In line with MCA‘s Notification No. G.S.R. 465(E) dated June 5, 2015]
Special Notice
In case a valid special notice under the Act has been received from Member(s), the
company shall give Notice of the Resolution to all its Members at least seven days
before the Meeting, exclusive of the day of dispatch of Notice and day of the
Meeting, in the same manner as a Notice of any General Meeting is to be given.
A Special Notice may be received by the company, signed, either individually or collectively,
by such number of Members holding not less than one percent of total voting power or
holding shares on which aggregate sum of not less than five lakh rupees has been paid up on
the date of the notice (Rule 23(1) of the Companies (Management and Administration) Rules,
34
2014). In such a case, the item proposed by a Member should be transacted at the Meeting,
although such item does not form part of the Notice of the Meeting.
Notice for such item received, if any, should be given by the company to its Members
individually at least seven clear days before the Meeting.
The request for consenting to shorter Notice and accompanying documents shall be
sent together with the Notice and the Meeting shall be held only if the consent is
received prior to the date fixed for the Meeting from not less than ninety five per
cent of the Members entitled to vote at such Meeting.
Paragraph 1.2.7 of SS-2 and the explanation thereto should be read in conjunction. The
consent, in writing, for shorter Notice and for sending the accompanying documents need
not be taken from the Members prior to the sending of such Notice.
However, request for such consent should be sent together with such Notice and the requisite
consent from the Members should be received before the date of the Meeting. Receiving the
requisite consent from the Members before the date of the Meeting is a good secretarial
practice. Only if such consent from the requisite majority is received, the General Meeting
can be held at a shorter Notice.
A person holding a specific power of attorney may sign the consent of a Member entitled to
receive notices, and such consent shall be deemed as the consent of Member concerned.
35
Consent for shorter Notice cannot be implied from non – objection by Members.
Consent means ‗consent of Members entitled to attend and vote‘ and not ‗of Members
entitled to vote and present‘ – it is not enough that the Members present at the Meeting
indicated either expressly or impliedly that they consented to or acquiesced in shortening the
period of Notice. [N.V.R Nagappa Chettiar v. Madras Race Club [1949] 19 Comp. Cas.
175(Mad)]
The requirement is of consent by not less than 95% of the Members and not of the Members
holding 95% of the share capital. i.e. If a company has 100 Members, consent should be
obtained from 95 Members, irrespective of the shareholding of these Members.
In case of a private company, the Articles may contain a provision as to the calling of General
Meetings at a shorter Notice. In such a case, notwithstanding anything stated above, the
shorter Notice of General Meetings should be issued in accordance with the Articles. [In line
with MCA‘s Notification No. G.S.R. 464(E) dated June 5, 2015]
Where the Members assemble for a Meeting but the Notice of such Meeting does not comply
with the requirements prescribed in the Standard, no business shall be transacted at such
Meeting.
However, any accidental omission to give Notice to, or the non-receipt of such
Notice by any Member or other person who is entitled to such Notice for any
Meeting shall not invalidate the proceedings of the Meeting.
―Accidental omission‖ means omission which is neither designed nor deliberate and implies
absence of intention. [Maharaja Exports and Another v. Apparels Exports Promotion
Council (1986) 60 Comp. Cas. 353]
In the absence of malafide intention or negligence, the non-receipt of Notice by any Member
will not affect the validity of the Meeting.
36
The onus is on the company to prove that the omission to give notice to the shareholder was
accidental.
An omission which arises from an error as to legal position cannot be classified as accidental.
Notice of a General Meeting was not given to the unpaid vendors of shares who remained on
the Register of Members because the directors erroneously believed that the vendors were no
longer Members. The court held that the view taken by the directors was wrong in law and
the resulting failure to give Notice was not ―accidental‖. [Musselwhite v. C.H. Musselwhite
& Sons Limited [1962] 32 Comp. Cas. 804]
Where large blocks of shareholders were inadvertently omitted to be notified about the
General Meeting, the advantage of the provisions of Section 172 of the Companies Act, 1956
(Corresponding to Section 101 of the Act) could not be taken. The onus of proof lies on those
who claim the omission was accidental. [POW Services Ltd. v. Clare (1995) 2 BCLC 435 at
450].
If a Meeting is held without service of Notice to majority shareholders, the Meeting would be
invalid. [Martin Castelino v. Alpha Omega Shipmanagement (P) Ltd. (2001) 33 SCL 210]
1.2.9 No items of business other than those specified in the Notice and those
specifically permitted under the Act shall be taken up at the Meeting.
Notice of the Meeting should contain a list of items of business to be transacted thereat
together with Resolutions relating to Special Business so as to ensure that Members get
proper time to form their judgment on whether to vote for or against the proposed Resolution.
The transaction of an item of business which has not been properly notified or which is
substantially different from that notified is invalid. [Cf. Henderson v. Bank of Australasia
(1890) 45 Ch D 330]
However, this will not invalidate the transaction of other items of business for which proper
Notice has been given.
37
Apart from the items of business contained in the Notice convening the Meeting, there are
specific items permitted under the Act, which may be taken up for consideration at the
Meeting.
Items specifically permitted under the Act which may be taken up for consideration
at the Meeting are:
38
When the Meeting is being called by the requisitionists and the agenda for such Meeting is
made by the Members themselves, the directors may, if they deem fit, add to the items of
agenda, any business to be discussed at such Meeting. The consent for inclusion of such
additional item at a shorter notice should be obtained in the manner as specified in paragraph
1.2.7.
1.2.10 Notice shall be accompanied, by an attendance slip and a Proxy form with
clear instructions for filling, stamping, signing and/or depositing the Proxy form.
The Notice of the Meeting should be accompanied by an attendance slip. A specimen of the
Attendance Slip is placed at Annexure I. In case, a company has the practice of maintaining
an attendance register containing signatures of Members attending the General Meeting, the
same would be sufficient compliance for the purpose of sending ―attendance slip‖ in
accordance with this paragraph.
The Notice of the General Meeting shall also be accompanied by a Proxy form, so as to enable
the Member to appoint a Proxy. The Proxy form shall indicate the time limit within which
proxies are to be deposited, the procedural requirement of stamping and signing of proxies
and shall also specify clearly the instructions for filling up the Proxy form.
In case of companies incorporated under Section 8 of the Act, where Proxy shall be a
Member, a statement to that effect shall appear in the Notice prominently.
Notes to Notice
Notes are an integral part of the Notice of General Meetings. Notes to the Notice should be
given immediately after the information pertaining to the business to be transacted under the
heads of Ordinary Business and Special Business. They may inter-alia contain the following
information:
(a) Information to Members about their right to appoint Proxy and informing them to
lodge proxies not less than forty-eight hours before the time fixed for the Meeting.
(b) Intimation that an explanatory statement pursuant to sub–section (1) of Section 102
of the Act is annexed to the Notice.
39
(e) Intimation that dividend, if declared, shall be paid within thirty days from the date of
declaration to Members whose names appear as beneficial owners with depositories or
in the Register of Members as on the date specified for the purpose.
(f) Request to Members to claim any dividend due to them but remaining unclaimed or
unpaid.
(g) Request to Members to furnish details such as Bank Account No., name of the Bank,
Branch, IFSC Code and Place with PIN Code No. where the account is maintained to
prevent fraudulent encashment of dividend warrant.
(i) Address of share transfer agents whom Members may contact in case of any change of
address or queries relating to their shares.
(j) Request to Members holding multiple folios to get their holdings consolidated.
(l) Request to Members to bring to the Meeting the admission slip along with their copy
of the Annual Report.
(m) Request to Members holding shares in dematerialised form to bring their Client ID
and DP ID numbers for easy identification for attendance at the Meeting.
(n) Instructions for Remote e-voting, period for Remote e-voting, the manner in which
the company would provide voting facility at the Meeting etc.
(o) In case of any Resolution to be passed through postal ballot, the details of procedure of
such postal ballot and the fact that the company is providing the e-voting facility to
the shareholders, shall also be stated in the notes.
(p) Request to Members to register/ update their e-mail IDs with the Company/
Depository, so that the notice and related documents be served to Members on their e-
mail IDs.
40
Illustrative list of documents to be sent along with the Notice of General Meeting is
as follows:
3. Attendance Slip.
5. Supporting documents (like Articles of Association) in connection with the agenda items
in the Notice.
6. In case of postal ballot Resolution, ballot paper with pre-stamped self addressed business
envelope.
Specimen Notices of Annual General Meeting and Extra-Ordinary General Meeting are
placed at Annexures II and III respectively.
Once a General Meeting has been convened upon due Notice, it should not be postponed or
cancelled.
In construing the above stipulation, it is necessary to keep in mind the maxim Ex Non Cogit
Impossibilia. In other words, law does not require anything which is impossible to be done.
Much would depend upon the facts and circumstances of each case.
If, for reasons beyond the control of the Board, a Meeting cannot be held on the date
originally fixed, the Board may reconvene the Meeting, to transact the same business
as specified in the original Notice, after giving not less than three days intimation to
the Members. The intimation shall be either sent individually in the manner stated in
this Standard or published in a vernacular newspaper in the principal vernacular
language of the district in which the registered office of the company is situated, and
41
in an English newspaper in English language, both having a wide circulation in that
district.
No Meeting should be postponed merely for the reason that it would be inconvenient to hold
the Meeting at the stated time and place. Postponement should be resorted to only if it is
impossible to hold the Meeting, e.g. there is a strike in the city or there is a threat to life and
property. To cover such eventualities, the Board has the power to postpone the Meeting.
Further, there should be someone at the venue, if possible, to inform the Members of the
postponement, in case some Members turn up at the venue without knowledge of its
postponement.
Force majeure would also include the destruction of the proposed venue. In such situations,
the company may choose an alternative venue for the Meeting and inform Members as early
as possible, in writing and by newspaper advertisement. If any such event takes place on the
day of the Meeting, the company may, with the consent of the Members who come to the
venue, change the venue and time of the Meeting and enable them to reach the changed venue
of the Meeting.
If, for any reason a General Meeting is postponed, it is not necessary to postpone the period
for Remote e-voting. However, the result of Remote e-voting cannot be announced until such
Meeting is actually held.
2. Frequency of Meetings
Every company shall, in each Calendar Year, hold a General Meeting called the
Annual General Meeting.
42
Section 96 of the Act requires every company to hold in each year a General Meeting as its
Annual General Meeting. The word ―year‖ is not defined in the Act. According to Sub –
section (66) of Section 3 of the General Clauses Act, 1897, ―year‖ shall mean a year reckoned
according to the British calendar. Thus, year means a calendar year which commences on the
1st day of January. Hence, it would be sufficient if an Annual General Meeting is held on or
before 31st December in any year.
The fact that the company was not functioning [Madan Gopal De v. State of West Bengal,
(1969) 39 Comp. Cas. 119: AIR 1968 Cal 790] or that the management of the Company was
taken over by the Government [Hindustan Co-operative Insurance Society Ltd., Re, (1961)
31 Com Cases 193: AIR 1961 Cal 443] is no excuse for not holding the Annual General
Meeting.
Every company shall hold its first Annual General Meeting within nine months from
the date of closing of the first financial year of the company and thereafter in each
Calendar Year within six months of the close of the financial year, with an interval of
not more than fifteen months between two successive Annual General Meetings. The
aforesaid period of six months or interval of fifteen months may be extended by a
period not exceeding three months with the prior approval of the Registrar of
Companies, in case of any Annual General Meeting other than the first Annual
General Meeting.
Sub-section (1) of Section 96 of the Act requires that the subsequent Annual General
Meeting shall be held on the earliest of the following dates:
(a) fifteen months from the date of the last Annual General Meeting; or
If a statute enjoins that the Meeting is to be held within a specified period, it follows by
necessary implication that it must be completed within the said period. If financial statements
are not ready to be laid at the concerned Annual General Meeting, it shall be open to the
company to adjourn the Annual General Meeting to a subsequent date when the financial
statements would be ready for consideration. The adjourned Meeting must be held within the
43
maximum time limit allowed under the Act. [Bejoy Kumar Karnani and Another v. Assistant
Registrar of Companies and Another (1985) 58 Comp. Cas. 293 (Cal)]
Hence, the company has to convene and hold a Meeting in each calendar year and also
maintain the maximum gap of fifteen months between two Annual General Meetings.
If a company holds its first Annual General Meeting, as aforesaid, it shall not be
necessary for the company to hold any Annual General Meeting in the Calendar
Year of its incorporation.
Illustration:
Say, a company was incorporated on 10th December 2014, ―financial year‖ of that company
would end on 31st March 2015 in view of sub-section (41) of Section 2 of the Act and
therefore the last date for holding the first Annual General Meeting would be 31st December
2015 (9 months from 31st March 2015).
On the other hand, if a company was incorporated on 10th April 2015, its first financial year
would end on 31st March 2016 only and therefore, the last date for holding the first Annual
General Meeting will be 31st December 2016. In this manner, almost 21 months elapse
between the date of incorporation and date of first Annual General Meeting. In this case, the
company need not hold any Annual General Meeting in the year of its incorporation i.e.
2015.
The Notice of an Annual General Meeting should state that the Meeting is an ‗Annual
General Meeting‘. An Annual General Meeting is held apart from and in addition to any
other General Meeting that a company may hold.
Where a Meeting called on 30th December was adjourned to 31st March in the next year, and
the next Meeting was held on 28th January of the following year, Section 166 of the
Companies Act, 1956 was not complied with, i.e. an Annual General Meeting was not held
44
in ‗each year‘ and the company was convicted of an offence. [Sree Meenakshi Mills Co. Ltd. v.
Assistant Registrar, Madurai (1938) 8 Comp. Cas. 175, 176 : AIR 1938 Mad 640]
Power of the Registrar to extend time for holding Annual General Meeting
Registrar of Companies may extend time for holding an Annual General Meeting, other than
first Annual General Meeting, ―for any special reason‖ by a period not exceeding three
months, if it cannot be held within the prescribed time limit [Third proviso of sub-section (1)
of Section 96 of the Act]. Therefore, if in any year a company cannot hold its Annual General
Meeting within the period stipulated in Subsection (1) of Section 96 of the Act, it may hold
the Meeting within the next three months with the permission of the Registrar of Companies.
In such a case, the gap between two Annual General Meetings may be more than the period
of fifteen months stipulated under sub-section (1) of Section 96 of the Act. However, in such
a case it should be ensured that the Annual General Meeting concerned is actually held on or
before the extended time limit in which case the notice should specify the fact of extension of
Annual General Meeting.
Delay in completion of audit of the financial statements of the company does not ordinarily
constitute a ―special reason‖ justifying the extension of time for holding the Annual General
Meeting.
If a company defaults in holding an Annual General Meeting, any Member may apply to the
CLB/Tribunal which may notwithstanding anything contained in the Act, call or direct the
calling of the Meeting and give such ancillary or consequential directions as it may consider
expedient in relation to the calling, holding and conduct of the Meeting. The CLB/Tribunal
may direct the convening of the Annual General Meeting only if it is convinced that the
management has been unwilling to convene such a Meeting or it was not practicable for the
management to do so. [Section 97 of the Act]
The power of the CLB/Tribunal cannot be invoked unless there is, in the first place, a default
on the part of the Board of Directors to call and hold the Annual General Meeting. In order
for such power to be invoked, the last date by which the Notice should have been given by the
45
Board ought to have expired. This right is available only to a Member of the company and the
Company, by itself, cannot make such an application to the CLB/Tribunal.
In such cases, the CLB/Tribunal may direct that one Member present in person or by Proxy
shall be deemed to constitute the Meeting. A Meeting held in pursuance of this order will be
deemed to be an Annual General Meeting under section 167 of the Companies Act, 1956
[corresponding to Section 97 of the Act]. However, the CLB/Tribunal cannot issue directions
or instructions in regard to an Annual General Meeting duly convened by a company. It can
do so only in respect of Meetings convened on its orders. [Cf. Bhankar Sundaram v.
Amalgamations Private Limited (2002) CLC 701]. If, at the time an Annual General
Meeting is due to be held, there is only one Member [the other(s) having died], no offence is
committed if the Annual General Meeting is not held because of the insufficiency of number
of Members. [State of Kerala v. West Coast Planter‘s Agencies Ltd. (1958) 28 Comp. Cas. 13]
General Meetings, other than an Annual General Meeting, are called Extra-Ordinary
General Meetings. The company may provide for such Meetings in their Articles in order to
deal with matters of urgent nature which have to be decided before the next Annual General
Meeting.
The Board of Directors, if they deem fit, may pass any Resolution through postal ballot,
instead of convening an Extra-ordinary General Meeting, in accordance with the
requirement of the Act.
As already explained under paragraph 1.1, the Board should, within twenty-one days from
the date of the receipt of a valid Requisition in regard to any matter, proceed to call a Meeting
for the consideration of those matters on a day not later than forty-five days from the date of
receipt of such requisition. If the Board fails to do so, the Meeting may be called and held by
the requisitionists themselves within three months from the date of deposit of such
requisition.
46
A specimen of Notice by requisitionists convening an Extra-Ordinary General Meeting is
placed at Annexure VII and a specimen of the Notice to be given by a company to its
Members on receipt of a requisition for a Meeting is placed at Annexure VIII. A specimen of
board Resolution calling the Extra-Ordinary General Meeting as per the requisition is placed
at Annexure IX.
If, for any reason, it is impracticable to call a Meeting of the company other than an Annual
General Meeting, the CLB/Tribunal may direct the calling of the Meeting on its own motion
or on an application of any director or on an application of any Member entitled to vote at the
Meeting (Section 98 of the Act). For this purpose, the CLB/Tribunal may give directions in
respect of the place, date and manner in which the Meeting is to be held and conducted.
The term practicability is not defined in the Act, thus, the same shall vary in each case.
However, it is construed that a case can be termed as impracticable only in the event that it is
impossible to convene the Meeting by the company due to reasons which are beyond the
control of the management.
3. Quorum
In order that a Meeting may be properly constituted and the business be validly transacted, a
Quorum of Members should be present.
Presence of a Quorum is very important for the purpose of conducting, convening and
holding the Meeting in a proper manner. It should be a ―Quorum of effective Members i.e.
Members should be qualified to take part in the Meeting and to also decide upon the questions
brought before the Meeting‖.
Quorum shall be present not only at the time of commencement of the Meeting but
also while transacting business.
A Quorum should be present when the questions brought before the Meeting are being
decided. The mere presence of Quorum at the beginning of the Meeting is not sufficient.
Unless the Articles provide for a larger number, the Quorum for a General Meeting
shall be:
47
a. in case of a public company,—
ii) fifteen Members personally present if the number of Members as on the date of
Meeting is more than one thousand but up to five thousand;
iii) thirty Members personally present if the number of Members as on the date of
the Meeting exceeds five thousand;
Where the Quorum provided in the Articles is higher than that provided under the
Act, the Quorum shall conform to such higher requirement.
This is evident from the expression ―unless the Articles of the company provide for a larger
number‖ used in the above para. However, the Articles cannot provide for a smaller number
than that specified above and, if they so provide, such a provision will be void.
The Articles of a private company can provide for a higher Quorum but it cannot reduce the
number of Members required to constitute the Quorum to one.
Only those Members who are present in person should be reckoned for ascertaining the
Quorum.
A Proxy cannot be considered as a Member personally present and hence excluded for
determining Quorum. However, the following persons attending a Meeting would be
considered as Members personally present; and hence included to constitute Quorum:
(a) a representative appointed under Section 113 of the Act to attend a Meeting on behalf
of a body corporate;
(b) a representative appointed under Section 112 of the Act to attend a Meeting on behalf
of the President of India or Governor of a State.
48
(c) a donee of a Power-of-Attorney could be presumed to be personally present if the
power-of-attorney authorises such donee to attend and vote at General Meetings of
companies of which the donor of the power-of-attorney is a Member.
If any Member of a company has given a general power-of-attorney in favour of some other
person to make investments on his behalf and to attend to all matters incidental and
consequential thereto including attending General Meetings of companies in which
investments are so made and if at General Meetings of such companies, the donee is present,
then it would be deemed, by virtue of the provisions of Section 3 of the Powers-of-Attorney
Act, that the donor is personally present and the donee will not be deemed to be a Proxy of the
donor. [Cf. Tata Iron & Steel Co. Ltd., In Re., AIR 1928 Bom. 80].
If any business to be transacted at a General Meeting does not include any item or Resolution
which directly affects the rights of the preference shareholders, their presence should not be
taken into account for the purpose of determining the Quorum. Where a Resolution is put to
vote at the General Meeting by which the rights of preference shareholders are directly
affected, their presence should be taken into account for the purpose of the Quorum and
voting on the Resolution. [Company News & Notes, dated 16-6-1964]
All joint shareholders are entitled to attend the General Meetings. However, for the purpose
of ascertaining Quorum and for voting purposes, joint holders will be counted only as one
Member since only one of them is entitled to vote.
A General Meeting at which less than the number of Members prescribed for a Quorum is
present, is not a Meeting at all for want of the required Quorum.
Any Resolution passed in the absence of the Quorum would be invalid. A Resolution was
passed in a Meeting where the Quorum was not present, which fixed the remuneration of a
director. The directors of that company were jointly and severally liable to repay the
remuneration. [Re. Franklin & Son (1937) 157 LT 188]
49
The absence of a Quorum cannot be waived, and any business transacted at a Meeting where
a Quorum is absent is deemed void.
However, if all the Members of the company are present in person, the proceedings will be
valid even if the Quorum required by the Articles is more than the total number of Members.
Illustration:
Where the number of Members of a company was originally large, say 500, and the Quorum
fixed by the Articles was 100 Members present. Subsequently, 450 Members sold their shares
which were acquired by some of the remaining 50 Members. Here, proceedings will be valid if
all Members are present in person.
If the Quorum is not present at the Meeting and a decision involving any third party is
considered then such third party shall not be affected by the irregularity of the company in
this respect as per the Doctrine of Indoor Management.
If within half an hour from the time fixed for holding the Meeting a Quorum is not present,
the Meeting shall stand adjourned to the same day in the next week at the same time and
place or to such other day and at such other time and place as the Board may determine. If at
the adjourned Meeting within half an hour from the time appointed for the Meeting the
Quorum is not present, the Members present shall form a Quorum. From the use of the
words ‗Members present‘, and the fact that there cannot be a Meeting unless at least two
persons are present, it follows that at least two Members should be present even at the
adjourned Meeting. If a Meeting has been called on the requisition of Members and there is
no Quorum for half an hour, the Meeting shall stand dissolved [Sub–section (2) and (3) of
Section 103 of the Act]. (These aspects of Quorum have been further dealt with under the
heading ‗Adjournment of Meetings‘).
The Act provides that the Quorum shall be present at the Meeting within half an hour. If the
Members want to wait for the Quorum for more than half an hour, they can do so, as it is not
prohibited in the Act. Waiting for a longer time does not destroy the essence of law. The time
of half an hour is recommendatory in nature and not mandatory. [Janki Printers Pvt. Ltd. vs.
Nadar Press Limited (2001) 103 Comp Cas 546 CLB]
The requisite Quorum at the Meeting shall be required even if some Members have already
cast their votes through e-voting facility.
50
One-Man Meeting
It has been clarified by the Department of Company Affairs [now Ministry of Corporate
Affairs] that a single Member present cannot, by himself, constitute a Quorum. [Circulars
and Clarifications Co. Law & SEBI, P1 198 vide File No.8/16/(1)/61-PR ]. Such general rule
against a one–man Meeting has also been settled through judicial decisions.
There are, however, some exceptions to this general rule which permit a Meeting to be
constituted of only one Member. These are:
o Where a person holds all the shares of a class, that person may constitute a class Meeting.
o Where default is made in holding an Annual General Meeting in accordance with Section
96 of the Act, the Tribunal while ordering the convening of the Meeting, may direct that
one Member present in person or by proxy will constitute the Quorum. [Explanation to
sub-section (1) of Section 97 of the Act]
o Where it is impracticable to call a Meeting in the manner prescribed by the Act or the
Articles, the Tribunal may order a Meeting to be held and direct that one Member present
in person or by Proxy shall be deemed to constitute a Meeting. [Proviso to Sub–section
(1) of Section 98 of the Act]
One person can be an authorised representative of more than one body corporate. In
such a case, he is treated as more than one Member for the purpose of Quorum.
A person who represents two different bodies is supposed to act in accordance with the
instructions of his principals. Therefore, such representative theoretically carries with him
two sets of opinions on the Resolutions.
If two or more bodies corporate, who are Members of a company, are represented by a single
individual, each of the bodies corporate shall be treated as personally present through that
individual representing such bodies corporate. For instance, if a representative represents
three bodies corporate, his presence shall be counted as three Members being present in
51
person for purpose of Quorum. [Maclead (Neil) & Sons Ltd., Petitioners, 1967 Scottish Law
Times 46]
Say, in case of a company, where the Quorum requirement is five Members, a single
authorised representative of five bodies corporate cannot form Quorum by himself if no other
individual is personally present at the Meeting. However, he can form a Quorum if at least
one more Member is personally present at the Meeting.
This is so because a single Member present cannot by himself constitute a Meeting. There are
a number of decisions by which it is now firmly settled that as a general rule a single person
cannot constitute a Meeting.
Members who have voted by Remote e-voting have the right to attend the General
Meeting and accordingly their presence shall be, counted for the purpose of
Quorum.
A Member who is not entitled to vote on any particular item of business being a
related party, if present, shall be counted for the purpose of Quorum.
The stipulation regarding the presence of a Quorum does not apply with respect to
items of business transacted through postal ballot.
4.1 Directors
4.1.1 If any Director is unable to attend the Meeting, the Chairman shall explain
such absence at the Meeting.
The Directors of the company act on behalf of the Members and therefore have fiduciary
responsibilities towards them. They are individually as well as collectively responsible for the
over-all management of the company. General Meetings provide a forum to the Members to
review the manner in which the Directors manage the company while also giving the
52
Directors an opportunity to apprise the Members about the affairs of the company and to
listen to their views and suggestions.
All the Directors are therefore, expected to attend the General Meetings of the company. In
case any Director is unable to attend the Meeting, the Chairman should explain the absence
of such Director at the Meeting.
While all Directors are expected to attend the General Meetings of the company, the
Chairmen of the Audit Committee, Nomination and Remuneration Committee and the
Stakeholders Relationship Committee are specifically required by this paragraph of SS-2, to
attend the General Meeting of the company. Flexibility has however been given to the
Chairman of these Committees to authorise any other Member of the Committee to attend the
General Meeting on his behalf, in case he is unable to be present at the Meeting.
This Standard has been introduced as a good governance practice to ensure that at least one
Member of the above mentioned Committees is present at the General Meeting in order to
address the Members‘ queries, if any, concerning their respective Committees.
4.1.2 Directors who attend the General Meetings of the company and the
Company Secretary shall be seated with the Chairman.
The Company Secretary shall assist the Chairman in conducting the Meeting.
53
―Seated with the Chairman‖ should not be literally construed to mean ―seated next to the
Chairman‖.
The following are some of the illustrative situations under which assistance can be rendered
by the Company Secretary:
To enable the Chairman to identify that requisite Quorum is present at the Meeting
To enable the Chairman to ascertain the votes cast on each Resolution put to vote by
show of hands
To help the Chairman in co-ordinating with the Members present at the Meeting and
answering their queries
4.2 Auditors
Unless exempted by the company, it is mandatory for the Auditors to attend the General
Meetings of the company either by themselves or through their authorised representative.
Furthermore, they shall have the right to be heard at such Meetings on that part of the
business which concerns them as Auditors.
Auditors or their authorised representative should attend the General Meetings to reply to
any query that may be raised or provide any explanation that may be sought by the Members
in relation to any part of the business which concerns them or to any reservations,
qualifications or adverse remarks made by them in the Auditor‘s Report.
The authorised representative who attends the General Meeting of the company
shall also be qualified to be an Auditor.
54
The authorised representative of the Auditor attending the General Meeting on behalf of the
Auditor should be a person who is a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of
India (ICAI) and should hold a certificate of practice and be eligible for appointment as an
auditor of the company.
The Secretarial Auditor, unless exempted by the company shall, either by himself
or through his authorised representative, attend the Annual General Meeting and
shall have the right to be heard at such Meeting on that part of the business which
concerns him as Secretarial Auditor.
Unless exempted by the company, the Secretarial Auditor for the last financial year whose
Secretarial Audit Report has been annexed to the Board Report, is required to attend, either
by himself or through his authorised representative, the Annual General Meeting. The
Secretarial Auditor shall have the right to be heard at such Meetings on that part of the
business which concerns them as Secretarial Auditors.
Secretarial Auditors or their authorised representative should attend the Annual General
Meeting to reply to any query that may be raised or provide any explanation that may be
sought by the Members in relation to any part of the business which concerns them or to any
reservations, qualifications or adverse remarks made by them in the Secretarial Audit Report
or to the compliance and governance aspects of the company.
It is also advisable that the Secretarial Auditor appointed for the current financial year in
which Annual General Meeting is being held also attends such Annual General Meeting.
The authorised representative who attends the General Meeting of the company
shall also be qualified to be a Secretarial Auditor.
The authorised representative of the Secretarial Auditor attending the Annual General
Meeting on behalf of the Secretarial Auditor should be a person who is a member of the
Institute of Company Secretaries of India (ICSI) and should hold a certificate of practice and
be eligible for appointment as a Secretarial Auditor of the Company.
The Chairman may invite the Secretarial Auditor or his authorised representative to
attend any other General Meeting, if he considers it necessary.
55
5. Chairman
5.1 Appointment
The Chairman of the Board shall take the chair and conduct the Meeting. If the
Chairman is not present within fifteen Minutes after the time appointed for
holding the Meeting, or if he is unwilling to act as Chairman of the Meeting, or if
no Director has been so designated, the Directors present at the Meeting shall
elect one of themselves to be the Chairman of the Meeting. If no Director is
present within fifteen Minutes after the time appointed for holding the Meeting,
or if no Director is willing to take the chair, the Members present shall elect, on a
show of hands, one of themselves to be the Chairman of the Meeting, unless
otherwise provided in the Articles.
If a company or Board elects one of its Directors, whether Executive or Non-executive, as the
Chairman, such director shall be the Chairman of the Board. It is not necessary to pass a
Resolution, either at a Board Meeting or a General Meeting, in order to authorise the
Chairman of the Board to preside over all General Meetings. Unless otherwise provided in the
Articles, the provisions below should be complied with:
The Chairman of the Board so elected should preside over the General Meetings, and
therefore the Chairman of the Board, if present, should take the chair.
If there is no Chairman of the Board so elected or if such Chairman of the Board is not
present within fifteen minutes after the time appointed for holding the Meeting or if he
declines to take the chair, the directors present should elect any one among themselves to
chair such Meeting.
If there is only one director present at a Meeting and he is willing to act as Chairman, he
may chair the Meeting with the consent of the Members present.
If no director is present within fifteen minutes or if none of the Directors is willing to take
the chair, the Members present should elect any one among themselves to chair the
Meeting.
The election of the Chairman, as aforesaid, should in the first instance be made by a show of
hands. The person elected as Chairman on a show of hands should preside over the Meeting
and commence the proceedings of the Meeting.
56
Articles to be complied with
If the Articles contain a provision as to who should be the Chairman of the Meeting and the
procedure for the election of the Chairman, the same should be complied with.
In case of a private company, the Articles may contain a provision as to the election of the
Chairman of General Meetings. In such a case, notwithstanding anything stated above, the
election of the Chairman should be done as provided in the Articles. [In line with MCA‘s
Notification No. G.S.R. 464(E) dated June 5, 2015]
Since an adjourned Meeting is a continuation of the original Meeting, the Chairman of the
original Meeting should be the Chairman of the adjourned Meeting unless he is unable or
unwilling to act as such or is validly removed as Chairman at the Meeting. In such case, the
procedure of election of Chairman should be repeated and a new Chairman should be elected
to preside at the Meeting. If the Chairman of the Board was not present to chair the original
Meeting but is present at the adjourned Meeting, then he should take the chair at the
adjourned Meeting.
The Chairman shall ensure that the Meeting is duly constituted in accordance with
the Act and the Articles or any other applicable laws, before it proceeds to transact
business. The Chairman shall then conduct the Meeting in a fair and impartial
manner and ensure that only such business as has been set out in the Notice is
57
transacted. The Chairman shall regulate the manner in which voting is conducted at
the Meeting keeping in view the provisions of the Act.
It is the duty of the Chairman to preserve order at the Meeting, to conduct the proceedings in
a proper manner and to ensure that the purport of the Meeting is properly ascertained with
respect to the questions properly raised at the Meeting.
5.2 The Chairman shall explain the objective and implications of the
Resolutions before they are put to vote at the Meeting.
The Chairman shall provide a fair opportunity to Members who are entitled to vote
to seek clarifications and/or offer comments related to any item of business and
address the same, as warranted.
The Chairman should provide an opportunity to Members to raise questions relating to the
agenda items and ensure that Members who have sought any clarifications, information or
explanations, are given an effective and timely response.
The Chairman should act fairly and allow all Members who wish to speak on a motion to
have a reasonable opportunity to do so, even if there appears to be clear majority who have
already made up their mind on the agenda item. The Chairman has no right to prevent
discussion upon a matter which is included in the Notice convening a Meeting. [Narayanan
Chettiar (S.R.M.S.T.) v. Kaleeswarar Mills Ltd. (1951) 21 Comp. Cas. 351]
The Chairman can however restrict repetitive questions and limit the amount of debate
permitted on each Resolution. For this purpose, the company may invite Members to submit
questions in advance. The company may select the common questions and provide a
comprehensive answer for each of these at the Annual General Meeting.
For the purpose of answering any question, the Chairman may consult the Key Managerial
Personnel or other officers of the company or the Auditors, Secretarial Auditors, etc.
58
The Chairman should decide the questions raised at the Meeting on the validity or otherwise
of permitted amendments, if any, moved upon any Resolution, the right to vote thereon, and
the right of persons to attend. The decision of Chairman in this regard shall be final.
5.3 In case of public companies, the Chairman shall not propose any
Resolution in which he is deemed to be concerned or interested nor shall he
conduct the proceedings for that item of business.
The Chairman is expected to act in good faith and in an impartial manner and not to put his
own interests ahead of or in conflict with those of the company. In line with this principle, in
case of public companies, the Chairman should neither propose, any Resolution in which he is
deemed to be concerned or interested nor conduct the proceedings for such item of business.
If the Chairman is interested in any item of business, without prejudice to his Voting
Rights on Resolutions, he shall entrust the conduct of the proceedings in respect of
such item to any Dis-Interested Director or to a Member, with the consent of the
Members present, and resume the Chair after that item of business has been
transacted.
The term ‗interest‘ above should be interpreted as per the provisions of clause (a) of sub-
section (1) of Section 102 of the Act.
6. Proxies
In case of a private company, the Articles may contain provisions as to various aspects of
Proxies. In such a case, notwithstanding anything stated below, the Articles should be
complied with. [In line with MCA‘s Notification No. G.S.R. 464(E) dated June 5, 2015]
A Member entitled to attend and vote is entitled to appoint a Proxy, or where that
is allowed, one or more proxies, to attend and vote instead of himself and a Proxy
need not be a Member.
A Proxy may be described as the agent appointed by a Member to act on his behalf at the
Meeting. [Lord Hansworth in Cousins v. International Brick Co. Ltd. (1931) 2 Ch 90/ (1932)
2 Comp. Cas. 108 (CA)]
59
Every Member has a right to appoint any person as a Proxy to attend and vote at a General
Meeting. [Sub–section (1) of Section 105 of the Act]
However, a Proxy shall be a Member in case of companies with charitable objects etc.
and not for profit registered under the specified provisions of the Act.
Accordingly, in case of companies with charitable objects etc. and not for profit registered
under Section 8 of the Act (erstwhile Section 25 of Companies Act, 1956), the Member is not
entitled to appoint any other person as his Proxy unless such other person is also a Member
of such company. [Rule 19(1) of the Companies (Management and Administration) Rules,
2014]
Thus, a Proxy need not be a Member of the company, except in the case of Section 8
companies.
Number of Proxies
A Member may name one or more ―alternate‖ individuals to be appointed as his Proxy to act
as substitutes when the first named Proxy holder cannot attend the Meeting.
A Proxy can act on behalf of Members not exceeding fifty and holding in the
aggregate not more than ten percent of the total share capital of the company
carrying Voting Rights.
ii) Members holding more than ten percent of total share capital of the company caring
voting rights.
60
Illustration:-
If 32 members are holding not more than ten percent of the total share capital and by the
addition of the 33rd member, the holding will exceed the said threshold, the Proxy can act
only for the 32 members.
However, a Member holding more than ten percent of the total share capital of the
company carrying Voting Rights may appoint a single person as Proxy for his entire
shareholding and such person shall not act as a Proxy for another person or
shareholder.
If a Proxy is appointed for more than fifty Members, he shall choose any fifty
Members and confirm the same to the company before the commencement of
specified period for inspection. In case, the Proxy fails to do so, the company shall
consider only the first fifty proxies received as valid.
A Proxy may be appointed by both natural and artificial persons competent in law to act as
principals.
The Proxy holder should have the legal capacity to act as an agent. A Proxy, when it refers to
the person appointed as a Proxy, should always be a natural person. The words ―to attend‖
and ―to vote‖ implicitly make it clear that such acts can be done only by a natural person.
Section 113 of the Act makes it clear that a body corporate can appoint an authorised
representative to attend and vote including the right to vote by Proxy and the words ―as that
body could exercise if it were an individual Member, creditor or holder of debentures of that
company‖ makes it clear that the act of attending and voting at General Meetings have to be
done only by individuals who are natural persons.
On any Resolution where a preference shareholder has a right to vote, he has the right to
appoint a Proxy. Further, the same person may be appointed as Proxy by more than one
preference shareholder and, in such a case, if one Preference shareholder instructs the Proxy
61
to vote in one way while another Preference shareholder instructs the Proxy to vote in a
different way, the Proxy shall act in accordance with such instructions.
Appointment of Proxy by a Member who has already voted through Remote e-voting
A Member who has already cast his vote through Remote e-voting may appoint a Proxy to
attend the Meeting instead of himself, but such Proxy will not be able to cast his vote at the
Meeting.
Unless otherwise provided in the Articles, sub-section (1) of the Section 105 of the Act shall
not apply in case of a company not having a share capital. [Second proviso to Sub–section (1)
of Section 105 of the Act]
In the case of a company not having share capital, the Articles may contain a provision
stating that a Proxy has no right to speak and that a Proxy need not be a Member and also
that a Proxy cannot vote, except on a poll.
While the provisions for appointment of Proxy apply in relation to companies that have share
capital, even companies that do not have share capital may make such provision through their
Articles.
Right of a Proxy
First proviso under Sub–section (1) of Section 105 of the Act says that a Proxy has no right
to speak and is not entitled to vote except on a poll.
The instrument of Proxy shall be signed by the appointer or his attorney duly
authorised in writing, or if the appointer is a body corporate, be under its seal or be
signed by an officer or an attorney duly authorised by it.
The Proxy form should be in writing. [Clause (a) of sub-section (6) of Section 105 of the Act].
An instrument appointing a Proxy shall be in Form No. MGT-11. [Rule 19 of the Companies
(Management and Administration) Rules, 2014]
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If an instrument appointing a Proxy, is in the Form No. MGT-11, it shall not be questioned
on the ground that it fails to comply with any special requirements specified for such
instrument by the Articles of a company. [Sub-section (7) of Section 105 of the Act]. It means
that the company may prescribe any other requirement or format for the ―Proxy form‖ and
advise the Member to submit the Proxy on such form. However, if any Member uses the
Form No. MGT-11 and the same is deposited with the company, it should be accepted by the
company.
6.2.2 An instrument of Proxy duly filled, stamped and signed, is valid only for
the Meeting to which it relates including any adjournment thereof.
A Proxy given for the original Meeting is also valid for the adjourned Meeting.
Section 52 of the Indian Stamp Act, 1899 requires certain instruments to be stamped. If the
instrument is not stamped in accordance with the Indian Stamp Act, 1899, the
corresponding penalty, as mandated by the Act, would be levied.
An instrument of proxy is invalid, if it is not properly stamped as per the relevant law related
to stamping of various instruments. The Proxy should be stamped before it is acted upon. A
Proxy cannot be said to have been duly stamped and executed if the stamp has been affixed
over the signature of the Member.
Stamp duty on Proxies is uniform throughout the country [Article 246(1) of the Constitution
of India, read with Entry 91 of List I of Schedule VII], and hence it is immaterial whether or
not the stamp affixed on the Proxy form bears the name of a State. Similarly, a Proxy
executed by a Member in one State, though having the stamp of another State affixed on it, is
valid. [Firestone Tyre & Rubber Co. v. Synthetics and Chemicals (1971) 41 Comp. Cas. 377]
Though under Section 18 of the Indian Stamp Act, 1899, an instrument other than bills and
notes executed outside India can be stamped in accordance with the duty payable under the
Indian Stamp Act, 1899 within three months from the date of its receipt in India, a Proxy
63
executed outside India or within India must be stamped prior to depositing the same with the
company.
A vote cast on an unstamped Proxy is invalid. [In Re. Tata Iron and Steel Co. Ltd. AIR 1928
Bom 80]
6.4.1 The Proxy-holder shall prove his identity at the time of attending the
Meeting.
Proper details of name and folio number of the Member should be entered on the Proxy form
in order to facilitate related identification.
The Proxy-holder should also sign the Proxy form so as to enable the company to verify that
only such person as has been appointed by the Member, is attending the Meeting and
exercising rights on behalf of the Member. In addition, photo-identification of such Proxy–
holder may also be done by the company.
A Member of a company, who is the President of India or the Governor of the State, may
appoint any person to act as his representative at any Meeting of a company. [Sub-section (1)
of Section 112 of the Act]. Such a person appointed for this purpose shall be deemed to be a
Member of such company and is entitled to exercise the same rights and powers as a Member
including right to vote by Proxy.
In case there is any objection to the validity of a Proxy, the Chairman is entitled to take a
decision on that question.
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Authority of Chairman on validity of Proxy
Without prejudice to the above statutory requirements, the Chairman shall be the final
authority to decide on the validity of the Proxy.
It is for the Chairman to decide the validity of the proxies and his decision in this regard will
stand unless the contrary is proved. [Dawson v. Hormasji AIR 1932 Rang 154]. The validity
of the Proxies cannot be decided by scrutinisers. [T. M. Shanmugan v. Mylapore Hindu
Permanent Fund Ltd. 1990 TLNJ 52, 63 (Mad)]
6.5.1 A Proxy form which does not state the name of the Proxy shall not be
considered valid.
The executor of the Proxy should state the name of the Proxy in the form. A Proxy form,
though duly signed, should not be acted upon unless it bears the name of the Proxy and is
signed by such Proxy-holder.
A space should be provided in the Proxy form for dating such form and, if the date is not
inserted, the Proxy should be deemed to be invalid, even if it is otherwise complete in all
aspects and has been received within the prescribed time.
6.5.3 If a Company receives multiple Proxies for the same holdings of a Member,
the Proxy which is dated last shall be considered valid; if they are not dated or
bear the same date without specific mention of time, all such multiple Proxies
shall be treated as invalid.
If two or more proxies are given by the same Member in respect of the same shares, the Proxy
bearing the later date will be the valid one. If both are undated or both bear the same date,
both shall be treated as invalid. [Swadeshi Polytex Ltd. v. V.K. Goel (1988) 63 Comp. Cas.
709 (Delhi)]
6.6.1 Proxies shall be deposited with the Company either in person or through
post not later than forty-eight hours before the commencement of the Meeting in
relation to which they are deposited and a Proxy shall be accepted even on a
holiday if the last date by which it could be accepted is a holiday.
65
The above time limit of forty-eight hours affords the company an opportunity to scrutinise
proxies and for the Chairman to be advised on the validity thereof. It also facilitates the taking
of a poll, if any, as the company would be able to compile the list of proxies lodged in favor of
the various appointees with the total number of votes which they represent, which in turn
would facilitate the several processes of checking of proxies, polling, counting of votes, etc.
There is nothing in law to exclude Sundays in the computation of the forty-eight hours and a
Proxy delivered on a Sunday for a Meeting to be held forty-eight hours later, on Tuesday,
would be valid provided the receipt of the Proxy at the time stated could be determined. [K.P.
Chackochan v. Federal Bank, (1989) 66 Comp. Cas. 953, 975 (Ker)]
The actual time of receipt of Proxy should be considered for determining its validity
irrespective of when the form was posted.
Thus, the Articles can provide a shorter period for submission of Proxy, but the Articles
cannot provide for a period of more than forty-eight hours.
6.6.2 If the Articles so provide, a Member who has not appointed a Proxy to
attend and vote on his behalf at a Meeting may appoint a Proxy for any adjourned
Meeting, not later than forty-eight hours before the time of such adjourned
Meeting.
A Proxy may be appointed for an adjourned Meeting though the Member had himself
attended the original Meeting.
A Proxy is in the same position as an agent and his authority to act may be revoked in the
same manner as that of an agent. Such authority continues unless it is revoked.
The relationship between a shareholder and his Proxy is similar to that of principal and
agent. A Proxy can, any time, be revoked by the shareholder. [Narayanan Chettiar (S. Rm.
S.T.) v. Kaleeswara Mills Ltd, AIR 1952 Mad 515]
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The revocation of Proxy can be divided into two categories:
(i) Implied revocation - when the Proxy is revoked by operation of law, it is termed as
implied revocation. In this case it is not necessary for a Member to give an express notice
of revocation to the company.
When the Member has appointed a Proxy and he comes to attend the Meeting himself,
such Proxy stands revoked impliedly.
If the Member appoints another Proxy, the previous Proxy shall be revoked. A Proxy later
in date revokes any Proxy/Proxies dated prior to such Proxy [Paragraph 6.7.2 of SS-2].
If a Proxy had been appointed for the original Meeting and such Meeting is adjourned,
any Proxy given for the adjourned Meeting revokes the Proxy given for the original
Meeting [Paragraph 6.7.1 of SS-2].
(ii) Express revocation- when the Member expressly gives the notice to the Proxy and the
company about his revocation.
6.7.1 If a Proxy had been appointed for the original Meeting and such Meeting is
adjourned, any Proxy given for the adjourned Meeting revokes the Proxy given
for the original Meeting.
6.7.2 A Proxy later in date revokes any Proxy/Proxies dated prior to such Proxy.
If a Member has given a Proxy and then, at a later date, gives another Proxy which is valid in
all respects, the Proxy given earlier is automatically revoked. However, where one Proxy was
lodged before and the other after the expiry of the date fixed for lodging proxies, the former
will be accepted.
6.7.3 A Proxy is valid until written Notice of revocation has been received by the
Company before the commencement of the Meeting or adjourned Meeting, as the
case may be.
Except in case of implied revocation, a Proxy is not revoked unless the intimation to that
effect is received by the company before the commencement of the Meeting or the adjourned or
postponed Meeting, as the case may be.
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Revocation of Proxies cannot be assumed and written notice of revocation is necessary.
[Swadeshi Polytex Ltd. v. V.K. Goel (1988) 63 Com Cases 688 (Del)]
The vote given by a Proxy is valid notwithstanding its revocation provided no intimation in
writing of the revocation is received by the company or by the Chairman of the Meeting
before the vote is casted. [K.P. Chackochan v. Federal Bank (1989) 66 Comp. Cas. 953, 975
(Ker)]
A vote given in accordance with the terms of an instrument of Proxy shall be valid,
notwithstanding the previous death or insanity of the principal or the revocation of the Proxy
or of the authority under which the Proxy was executed or the transfer of the shares in respect
of which the Proxy is given. Provided that no intimation in writing of such death, insanity,
revocation or transfer should have been received by the Company at its office before the
commencement of the Meeting or adjourned Meeting at which the Proxy is used. However, if
intimation of the death or insanity of the Member has been given to the Company, a Proxy
appointed by such Member will be revoked. [Regulation 59 of Table F to Schedule-I to the
Act]
A Proxy need not be informed of the revocation of the Proxy issued by the Member.
6.7.4 When a Member appoints a Proxy and both the Member and Proxy attend
the Meeting, the Proxy stands automatically revoked.
The right of a Member to vote in person supersedes rights conferred by the grant of a Proxy
to a Proxy-holder. Mere presence of the Member will revoke the Proxy.
It may be noted that the Member concerned should sign the attendance register or deliver the
attendance slip.
Before keeping open the proxies for inspection by Members, the Chairman should decide on
the validity or otherwise of the proxies lodged. If any objection is raised after inspection by a
Member, the Chairman may revise his decision.
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6.8.1 Requisitions, if any, for inspection of Proxies shall be received in writing
from a Member entitled to vote on any Resolution at least three days before the
commencement of the Meeting.
Once a Proxy form has been deposited, it should be open to the inspection of all persons
entitled to vote. The right of inspection is a necessary corollary to the right to challenge the
vote of any other Member. The object of inspection is to enable Members to scrutinise the
proxies filed and raise objections to the validity of any of them.
The timing and manner of inspection may be subject to restrictions. The Articles may provide
for a period shorter than three days. However, the Articles cannot provide for a longer period.
6.8.2 Proxies shall be made available for inspection during the period beginning
twenty-four hours before the time fixed for the commencement of the Meeting
and ending with the conclusion of the Meeting.
Every Member entitled to vote on any Resolution at a General Meeting is entitled to inspect
the proxies lodged with the company. The inspection should be allowed during the period
starting twenty-four hours before the time fixed for the commencement of the Meeting and
ending with the conclusion of the Meeting.
Inspection shall be allowed between 9 a.m. and 6 p.m. during such period.
As deposit of proxies is allowed even before the adjourned Meeting, a fresh requisition for
inspection of proxies should be filed in case the original Meeting is adjourned.
All proxies received by the company, irrespective of whether they are valid or not, should be
recorded.
As a good secretarial practice, the time of receipt may also be mentioned in the register and on
the Proxy itself.
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6.9.2 In case any Proxy entered in the register is rejected, the reasons therefor
shall be entered in the remarks column.
If for any reason, a Proxy is rejected, the fact of and the reasons for such rejection should be
recorded on the Proxy itself and in the Register of Proxies.
7. Voting
Voting is a method by which the Meeting decides whether it approves or disapproves the
Resolution. It is a procedure which enables the Chairman to ascertain the true sense of the
Meeting on any Resolution put before it.
Only those Members who are entitled to vote either in person or, where permissible, through
Proxy, can participate in the voting process. The voting process may be through show of
hands, ballot process, e-voting or voting by post in a postal ballot. In order to be entitled to
vote, the Member concerned should be holding shares entitled to voting rights as on the cut-
off date or record date or any other such date as the company would have specified in the
Notice of General Meeting. In certain cases, for instance, where Regulation 55 of Table F of
Schedule I to the Act applies, a Member will not be entitled to vote at any General Meeting
unless all calls or other sums presently payable by him in respect of shares in the company
have been paid.
This Standard is relevant for a company which has not provided e-voting facility to its
Members and takes up the Resolution for consideration at the Meeting directly.
In the case of a company which has provided e-voting facility, voting commences much before
a physically convened General Meeting is held. In such cases, the Chairman shall have the
discretion in requiring proposing or seconding of the Resolution, while considering the same
at the Meeting.
70
A Proxy cannot speak and therefore he cannot propose or second a Resolution. However, the
position of an authorised representative of a body corporate is different as discussed above and
such a person is entitled to propose and second a Resolution.
7.2 E-voting
7.2.1 Every company having its equity shares listed on a recognized stock
exchange other than companies whose equity shares are listed on SME Exchange
or on the Institutional Trading Platform and other companies as prescribed shall
provide e-voting facility to their Members to exercise their Voting Rights.
Every company having its equity shares listed on a recognised stock exchange should provide
e-voting facility to their Members to exercise their voting rights. However, pursuant to
amended Rule 20 of Companies (Management and Administration) Rules, 2014, the
companies referred to in Chapter XB (companies listed on SME Exchange) or Chapter XC
(Companies listed on Institutional trading platform) of the Securities and Exchange Board of
India (Issue of Capital and Disclosure Requirements) Regulations, 2009 having its equity
shares listed on a recognised stock exchange are exempt from providing e-voting facility.
Other companies presently prescribed are companies having not less than one
thousand Members.
The facility of Remote e-voting does not dispense with the requirement of holding a
General Meeting by the company.
It is mandatory to have a physical General Meeting in view of the fact that e-voting is only a
facility and it is not mandatory for the Members to use the same. Members may still prefer to
attend the Meeting and exercise their voting rights at such Meeting.
Therefore, a Meeting should be called and held in the normal way with the presence of all
attendant factors such as a Quorum. In case the Quorum is not present at the Meeting, such
Meeting shall stand adjourned as per the applicable provisions for want of Quorum and the
fate of the Resolutions put before such a Meeting would be decided at the adjourned Meeting.
71
If at adjourned Meeting also a Quorum is not present, the Members present shall be the
Quorum. [Sub–section (3) of Section 103 of the Act]. It means even if two Members are
present, the Meeting will be valid.
At an adjourned General Meeting, if only one Member is present, such adjourned General
Meeting shall stand cancelled for want of a minimum of two members to constitute a
Meeting and the Resolution will fail.
Every Company, which has provided e-voting facility to its Members, shall also
put every Resolution to vote through a ballot process at the Meeting.
Voting at the Meeting should be made available for Members through a ballot process, which
may be carried out by distributing ballot papers/poll slips or by making arrangement for
voting through computer or secure electronic systems.
Voting through a ballot process at the Meeting is different from Demand for poll under
Section 109 of the Act and paragraph 9 of SS-2.
The company may provide the same electronic voting system for the ballot process as used
during Remote e-voting. In such cases, the said facility should be in operation till all the
Resolutions are considered and voted upon in the Meeting and may be used for voting only
by the Members attending the Meeting and who have not exercised their right to vote
through Remote e-voting. [Proviso to clause (viii) of sub-rule (4) of Rule 20 of Companies
(Management and Administration) Amendment Rules, 2015]
It is not necessary for a Quorum to be present while the ballot process is being conducted or
when the scrutiniser is doing his job or when the result is announced; however, such a
Quorum shall be present at the time of announcement of ballot by the Chairman.
Any Member, who has already exercised his votes through Remote e-voting, may
attend the Meeting but is prohibited to vote at the Meeting and his vote, if any, cast
at the Meeting shall be treated as invalid.
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7.3 Show of Hands
Every company shall, at the Meeting, put every Resolution, except a Resolution
which has been put to Remote e-voting, to vote on a show of hands at the first
instance, unless a poll is validly demanded.
A Resolution, in the first instance, should be put to vote on a show of hands. In such case,
each Member present in person has only one vote regardless of the number of shares held by
him.
A Resolution put to vote at the General Meeting shall be decided on show of hands provided
no poll is demanded under Section 109 of the Act, or no facility of Remote e-voting is
provided. [Sub-section (1) of Section 107 of the Act]
In view of provisions of Section 107 of the Act, voting by show of hands is not permitted in
cases where Rule 20 of Companies (Management and Administration) Rules, 2014 as
amended by the Companies (Management and Administration) Amendment Rules, 2015 is
applicable.
In Remote e-voting, the voting rights of a Member are determined on the basis of his share in
the paid up equity share capital or as the case may be on the basis of their share in the paid up
preference share capital and he need not necessarily use all his votes in favour or against and
may use some votes in favour and some against for the same Resolution. However, in a
voting by show of hands, every Member shall have only one vote. Therefore, the practice of
voting by show of hands is incompatible with Remote e-voting. [vide MCA Circular No.
20/2014 dated 17th June, 2014]
Proxies are not entitled to vote when a Resolution is put to vote on a show of hands.
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Procedure for voting on show of hands
When the Chairman puts a Resolution to vote on a show of hands, he should first request
those Members who are in favour of the Resolution to raise their hands. He should then
ascertain the numbers who have voted for the Resolution. Thereafter, he should request those
Members who are against the Resolution to raise their hands and also ascertain such number.
(a) in the case of an Ordinary Resolution, if the number of hands raised in favour of the
Resolution exceeds the number of hands raised against, the Resolution can be said to
have been passed.
(b) in the case of a Special Resolution, if the number of hands raised in favour of the
Resolution is at least three times the number of hands raised against the Resolution,
the Special Resolution can be said to have been passed.
The Chairman should ascertain if the Resolution has been carried through with the requisite
majority of votes in favour of the Resolution. In case of any doubt, he should order a poll to
ascertain the same.
On completion of voting on a show of hands, the Chairman should declare the result by
announcing that the Resolution has been passed by the requisite majority or that such
Resolution has not been passed.
The result of voting so declared by the Chairman should subsequently be recorded in the
Minutes of the Meeting and such record shall be conclusive evidence of the fact that the
Resolution has been passed or not, and no further proof of the number of votes cast for or
against the Resolution should be necessary.
When voting takes place by show of hands, declaration by the Chairman as to the result of
voting is conclusive evidence that the Resolution was passed or not passed as the case may be.
[E.D. Sasoon United Mills, Re AIR 1929 Bom 38]
74
(b) when the declaration is without taking a count of the number or proportion of the
votes recorded in favour or against the Resolution. [Calcutta High Court in
Dhakeshwari Cotton Mills v. Nil Kamal Chakravarthy (1937) 7 Com Cases 417]
Any objection as to the result declared on show of hands, shall be made at once, i.e. the
Chairman‘s ruling that a Resolution has been carried on show of hands should be challenged
at that very time. It cannot be challenged subsequently. [Arnot v. United African Lands Ltd.
(1901) 1 Ch 518 (CA)]
In case of a private company, the Articles may contain a provision as to the voting by show of
hands at the General Meetings. In such a case, notwithstanding anything stated above, the
Articles should be complied with. [In line with MCA‘s Notification No. G.S.R. 464(E) dated
June 5, 2015]
7.4 Poll
The Chairman shall order a poll upon receipt of a valid demand for poll either
before or on the declaration of the result of the voting on any Resolution on show
of hands.
Before or on the declaration of the result of the voting on any Resolution put to vote on a
show of hands, a poll should be ordered to be taken by the Chairman on a demand made in
that behalf,—
(a) in the case a company having a share capital, by the Members present in person or by
Proxy, where allowed, and having not less than one-tenth of the total voting power or
holding shares on which an aggregate sum of not less than rupees five lakh has been
paid up; and
(b) in the case of any other company, by any Member or Members present in person or by
Proxy, where allowed, and having not less than one-tenth of the total voting power.
75
A poll demanded should be taken within forty eight hours from the time when demand was
made, except on the question of adjournment of the Meeting or appointment of Chairman
which should be taken forthwith. [Sub-sections (3) and (4) of Section 109 of the Act]
In case of demand for poll, the Chairman should act bona fide and ascertain the wishes of the
Members. [Second Consolidated Trust Ltd. v. Ceylon Amalgamated Tea Estates Ltd (1943)
All ER 567]
The poll may be taken by the Chairman, on his own motion also.
The Chairman may, on his own motion, order a poll before or on the declaration of the result
of voting on a show of hands. [Sub-section (1) of Section 109 of the Act]
A poll can be demanded even before declaration of result of voting on a show of hands. A
specimen of a demand for a poll is placed at Annexure X.
Further, upon completion of voting by a show of hands, the Chairman may, order a poll suo
motu, without receiving any demand for poll. Such order for a poll may be made by the
Chairman before or upon the declaration of the result even when there is no doubt about the
result.
It is not necessary that a Quorum be present while the poll is being conducted or when the
scrutiniser is doing his job or when the result is announced; however, such a Quorum should
be present at the time of demand for poll.
While a Proxy cannot speak at the Meeting, he has the right to demand or join in the
demand for a poll.
In case of a private company, the Articles may contain a provision as to the demand for poll
at the General Meetings. In such a case, notwithstanding anything stated above, the poll
should be conducted as provided in the Articles. [In line with MCA‘s Notification No. G.S.R.
464(E) dated June 5, 2015]
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7.5 Voting Rights
7.5.1 Every Member holding equity shares and, in certain cases as prescribed in
the Act, every Member holding preference shares, shall be entitled to vote on a
Resolution.
In e-voting or ballot process at the General Meeting, the number of votes cast in favour or
against should be reckoned on the basis of the Member‘s share in the paid-up capital of the
company, and the Chairman of the Meeting should regulate the Meeting accordingly.
A Member of the company limited by shares shall not be entitled to any voting rights in
respect of the amount paid by him towards unpaid amount on any shares held by him until
that amount has been called up. [Sub–section (2) of Section 50 of the Act]
Entitlement to vote:
Equity Shareholders
One of the basic rights of a Member is to attend and vote at General Meetings of the company
and normally anyone whose name is borne on the Register of Members of the Company on
the date of the General Meeting is entitled to attend the Meeting and vote, irrespective of
when he became a Member.
Thus, every Member whose name appears on the Register of Members on the day of the
General Meeting has the right to attend and vote at the General Meeting.
However, this position will not hold good in cases where Remote e-voting facility has been
provided.
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In cases where facility of Remote e-voting has been provided, only those Members whose
names are recorded in the Register of Members of the company as on the cut-off date will be
entitled to vote at the Meeting.
Cut-off date means a date not earlier than seven days before the date of General Meeting for
determining the eligibility to vote by electronic means or in the General Meeting. [Rule 20 of
the Companies (Management and Administration) Amendment Rules, 2015]
If conversion of debenture into shares has taken place prior to cut off date, such shareholders
are entitled to attend and vote on the Resolution placed before a General Meeting. However,
if conversion has taken place after the cutoff date but before the General Meeting, such
shareholders may attend the Meeting with the right to speak but without any voting rights in
case of e-voting.
Preference Shareholders
1. On Resolutions placed before the company which directly affect the rights attached to his
preference shares;
2. On any Resolution for the winding up of the company or for the repayment or reduction
of its equity or preference share capital.
3. On all Resolutions if dividend on the preference shares has not been paid for a period of
two years or more. [Second proviso to sub-section (2) of Section 47 of the Act]. If dividend
default as aforesaid pertains only to a class of preference shares, it is only the holders of
such class of preference shares who will have voting shares as aforesaid on all Resolutions
placed before the company.
While under the Companies Act, 1956 there was a difference between cumulative preference
shares and non-cumulative preference shares with respect to voting rights, there is no such
distinction between those two types of preference shares under the Act.
78
The voting rights of a preference shareholder on a poll shall be in proportion to his shares in
the paid-up preference share capital of the company.
Where the preference shareholders are entitled to vote, the proportion of the voting rights of
equity shareholders to the voting rights of the preference shareholders shall be in the same
proportion as the paid-up capital in respect of the equity shares bears to the paid-up capital in
respect of the preference shares. [First Proviso to the Section 47 (2) of the Act]
Joint-holders
Unless otherwise provided in the Articles, any one of two or more joint holders may vote at a
Meeting either personally or by attorney or by Proxy in respect of such shares as if he were
solely entitled thereto and if more than one of such joint holders be present personally or by
Proxy or by attorney, then that one of such persons so present whose name stands first or
higher on the Register of Members in respect of such shares shall alone be entitled to vote in
respect thereof. However, any other joint holder shall be entitled to be present at the Meeting.
In the case of joint shareholding, vote of the senior, whether in person or by Proxy, should be
accepted to the exclusion of the votes of the other joint holders. For this purpose seniority will
be determined by the order in which the names stand in the Register of Members. [Regulation
52 of Table F of Schedule I to the Act]
Calls in arrears
The Articles of the company may provide that no Member shall exercise voting rights in
respect of any shares registered in his name on which any calls or other sums presently
payable by him have not been paid or in regard to which the company has exercised any right
of lien. [Sub-section (1) of Section 106 of the Act]
Subject to the provisions in the Articles, a Member of unsound mind, or in respect of whom
an order has been made by any Court having jurisdiction in lunacy, may vote, whether on a
show of hands or on a poll, by his committee or other legal guardian, and any such committee
or guardian may, on a poll, vote by Proxy. [Clause 53 of Table F of Schedule I of the Act]
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Minors
Minors are entitled to vote at Meetings, both on a show of hands and on a poll, provided the
shares held by them are fully paid. However, such voting rights should only be exercised
through their guardians.
Insolvent Member
An insolvent Member is entitled to exercise his voting rights, which are attributed to his
status as a Member, so long as his name remains on the Register of Members of the company
as a Member.
A Hindu Undivided Family [HUF], in respect of shares held by it, can participate in the
voting process through its Karta or any other adult Member of the HUF duly authorised by
the Karta.
Bodies corporate or the President of India and Governors of States can participate in the
voting process by representatives appointed by them or through the proxies of such
representatives. [Section(s) 112 and 113 of the Act]
Private companies are exempted from Section 43 and Section 47 of the Act, where the
Memorandum or Articles so provide. [vide MCA‘s Notification No. 464(E) dated June 5,
2015]. Therefore private companies may make different provision in the Articles as far as
kinds of share capital and voting rights are concerned. In such cases, notwithstanding
anything stated above, the voting rights shall be in accordance with the Articles.
In case of Nidhi companies, no member shall exercise voting rights on poll in excess of five
per cent. of total voting rights of equity shareholders. [vide MCA‘s Notification No. 465(E)
dated June 5, 2015]
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Specific related party transactions provided in Section 188 of the Act read with the Rule
15(3) of the Companies (Meetings of the Board and its Powers) Rules, 2014, which are not in
the ordinary course of business or not on an arm‘s length basis, would need specific approval
of Members at a General Meeting. Further, in the case of listed companies, material related
party transactions require approval of the Members in terms of the SEBI (Listing Obligations
and Disclosure Requirements) Regulations, 2015. Consequently, the above paragraph of SS-2
would be applicable only in such cases.
Where any Member is a related party, such a Member is not be entitled to vote on the
Resolution relating to such contract or arrangement provided such Member is a related party
in the context of the contract or arrangement that is being specifically approved at the
General Meeting.
Listed companies, however, have to follow the requirements of the SEBI (Listing Obligations
and Disclosure Requirements) Regulations, 2015 and such requirements are in addition to
and not in subrogation of the above provisions.
Exemptions
Wholly Owned Subsidiary has been exempted from the requirement of passing the said
Resolution at its General Meeting in case of a transaction entered into with its holding
company. [vide Companies (Meetings of Board and its Powers) Second Amendment Rules,
2014 dated 14th August 2014]
Such transactions therefore will not attract the requirements of this paragraph of SS-2.
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Effect of MCA‘s Exemption Notification
This para of SS-2 shall not apply to a private company. Accordingly, a Member who is a
related party may vote on a Resolution relating to approval of any contract or arrangement
in which such Member is a related party. Further, in case of a private company, the
transaction between a holding, subsidiary or an associate company or transaction with a
subsidiary of a holding company to which it is also a subsidiary will not be treated as Related
Party Transaction. [In line with MCA‘s Notification No. G.S.R. 464(E) dated June 5, 2015]
The requirement of obtaining prior approval of the Members by a special Resolution in case of
related party transactions and the restriction on the right of related parties to vote on such
special Resolution shall not apply to:
[Vide with MCA‘s Notification No. G.S.R. 463(E) dated June 5, 2015]
Accordingly this para of SS-2 will not be applicable in the above cases.
A second or casting vote is a deciding vote. Second or Casting vote is the vote of a Chairman
of a Meeting which he can use in the event of a tie in voting, i.e. equality of votes in favour of
or against a Resolution.
Second or casting vote to the Chairman is allowed by the Model Articles under the Act.
[Article 68 (ii) and 73 (ii) of Table F]
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In the event of equality of votes on a particular matter at a Meeting, the Chairman may cast a
second or casting vote on such matter subject to any provision to the contrary in the Articles.
Thus, the Articles of the company may expressly prohibit exercise of second or casting vote by
the Chairman, in which case, the Chairman shall not have a second or casting vote. In case
the Articles are silent, the Chairman shall use his discretion to have a second or casting vote.
The discretion to use or not to use his casting vote vests entirely with the Chairman. Where
the Chairman chooses to exercise his vote, as a Director, he should do so before the voting is
concluded. If the Chairman declines to exercise his second or casting vote and there is then an
equality of votes, the Resolution is lost.
Where the Chairman has entrusted the conduct of proceedings in respect of an item
in which he is interested to any Dis-interested Director or to a Member, a person
who so takes the chair shall have a second or casting vote.
8. Conduct of e-voting
This paragraph of SS-2 would be applicable to those companies which have to provide the
facility of Remote e-voting to their Members and to all those companies that may provide
such facility voluntarily.
8.1 Every Company that is required or opts to provide e-voting facility to its
Members shall comply with the provisions in this regard.
Every company other than a company referred to in Chapter XB (companies listed on SME
Exchange) or Chapter XC (Companies listed on Institutional trading platform) of the
Securities and Exchange Board of India (Issue of Capital and Disclosure Requirements)
Regulations, 2009 having its equity shares listed on a recognised stock exchange or a
company having not less than one thousand Members, shall provide to its Members facility to
exercise their right to vote on Resolutions proposed to be considered at General Meetings by
electronic means. [Rule 20(2) of the Companies (Management and Administration)
Amendment Rules, 2015]
Once a company voluntarily opts for e-voting, it should comply with the e-voting rules under
the Act and this Standard.
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8.2 Every Company providing e-voting facility shall offer such facility to all
Members, irrespective of whether they hold shares in physical form or in
dematerialised form.
8.3. The facility for Remote e-voting shall remain open for not less than three
days.
The voting period shall close at 5 p.m. on the day preceding the date of the General
Meeting.
Once the vote on a Resolution is cast by the Member, he should not be allowed to change it
subsequently or cast the vote again.
(a) appoint one or more scrutinisers for e-voting or the ballot process;
The scrutiniser (s) so appointed may take assistance of a person who is not in
employment of the company and who is well-versed with the e-voting system.
Prior consent to act as a scrutiniser(s) shall be obtained from the scrutiniser(s) and
placed before the Board for noting.
The scrutiniser should be willing to be appointed and be available for the purpose of
ascertaining the requisite majority. [Rule 20(4)(x) of the Companies (Management and
Administration) Amendment Rules, 2015]
An Agency should be appointed for providing and supervising the electronic platform for e-
voting.
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(c) decide the cut-off date for the purpose of reckoning the names of Members
who are entitled to Voting Rights;
The cut-off date for determining the Members who are entitled to vote through
Remote e-voting or voting at the Meeting shall be a date not earlier than seven days
prior to the date fixed for the Meeting.
Only Members as on the cut-off date, who have not exercised their Voting Rights
through Remote e-voting, shall be entitled to vote at the Meeting.
(d) authorise the Chairman or in his absence, any other Director to receive the
scrutiniser’s register, report on e-voting and other related papers with requisite
details.
The scrutiniser(s) is required to submit his report within a period of three days from
the date of the Meeting.
The Chairman or any other director so authorized shall countersign the scrutiniser‘s
report so received.
Since the scrutiniser‘s report and related papers are important documents, authority to
receive and countersign the same has been given to the Chairman or any other Director
authorised by the Board. The idea is also to bring in uniformity between the provisions of e-
voting, poll and postal ballot in the Act as far as receiving and countersigning of the
scrutiniser‘s report are concerned.
8.5 Notice
8.5.1 Notice of the Meeting, wherein the facility of e-voting is provided, shall be
sent either by registered post or speed post or by courier or by e-mail or by any
other electronic means.
The Notice in case of e-voting should not be served though hand delivery or ordinary post.
The provisions of sending Notice covered in paragraph 1.2.2 of SS-2 shall be mutatis-
mutandis applicable for the purpose of sending Notice, wherein the facility of e-voting is
provided.
85
date of the General Meeting, at least once in a vernacular newspaper in the principal
vernacular language of the district in which the registered office of the company is
situated and having a wide circulation in that district and at least once in English
language in an English newspaper, having country-wide circulation, and specifying
therein, inter-alia the following matters, namely:-
d) The cut-off date as on which the right of voting of the Members shall be
reckoned;
e) The manner in which persons who have acquired shares and become
Members after the dispatch of Notice may obtain the login ID and password;
f) The manner in which company shall provide for voting by Members present
at the Meeting;
i) Remote e-voting shall not be allowed beyond the said date and time;
ii) a Member may participate in the General Meeting even after exercising his
right to vote through Remote e-voting but shall not be entitled to vote again;
and
iii) a Member as on the cut-off date shall only be entitled for availing the
Remote e-voting facility or vote, as the case may be, in the General Meeting;
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The advertisement on Remote e-voting should remain on the website of the company and of
the Agency, till the date of the General Meeting.
Effect of MCA‘s Exemption Notification
In the case of a Nidhi company, the Notice may be served only on Members who hold shares
of more than one thousand rupees in face value or more than one percent of the total paid-up
share capital of the company, whichever is less. For other shareholders, notice may be served
by a public notice in newspaper circulated in the district where the Registered Office of the
Nidhi company is situated; and also be placed on the notice board of the company. [In line
with MCA‘s Notification No. G.S.R. 465(E) dated June 5, 2015]
8.5.2 Notice shall also be placed on the website of the Company, in case of
companies having a website, and of the Agency.
Such Notice shall remain on the website till the date of General Meeting.
8.5.3 Notice shall inform the Members about procedure of Remote e-voting,
availability of such facility and provide necessary information thereof to enable
them to access such facility.
Notice shall clearly state that the company is providing e-voting facility and that the
business may be transacted through such voting.
Notice shall describe clearly the Remote e-voting procedure and the procedure of
voting at the General Meeting by Members who do not vote by Remote e-voting.
The Notice of the Meeting should clearly state that the facility for voting, either through
electronic voting system or ballot or polling paper, is being made available at the Meeting and
that Members attending the Meeting, who have not already cast their vote by Remote e-
voting, shall only be able to exercise their voting right at the Meeting.
Notice shall also clearly specify the date and time of commencement and end of
Remote e-voting and contain a statement that at the end of Remote e-voting period,
the facility shall forthwith be blocked.
Notice shall also contain contact details of the official responsible to address the
grievances connected with voting by electronic means.
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Notice shall clearly specify that any Member, who has voted by Remote e-voting,
cannot vote at the Meeting.
Notice shall also specify the mode of declaration of the results of e-voting.
Notice shall also clearly mention the cut-off date as on which the right of voting of
the Members shall be reckoned and state that a person who is not a Member as on
the cut-off date should treat this Notice for information purposes only.
Notice shall provide the details about the login ID and the process and manner for
generating or receiving the password and for casting of vote in a secure manner.
8.6.1 Based on the scrutiniser’s report received on Remote e-voting and voting at
the Meeting, the Chairman or any other Director so authorised shall countersign
the scrutiniser’s report and declare the result of the voting forthwith with details
of the number of votes cast for and against the Resolution, invalid votes and
whether the Resolution has been carried or not.
The manner in which Members have cast their votes, that is, affirming or negating the
Resolution or otherwise, should not be available to the Chairman, scrutiniser or any other
person till the votes are cast in the Meeting or voting at the Meeting ends. The purpose of the
requirement to maintain such confidentiality is to ensure that no one is influenced by the
manner in which votes have been cast by those who have voted already.
8.6.2 The result of the voting, with details of the number of votes cast for and
against the Resolution, invalid votes and whether the Resolution has been carried
or not shall be displayed on the Notice Board of the company at its Registered
Office and its Head Office as well as Corporate Office, if any, if such office is
situated elsewhere. Further, the results of voting alongwith the scrutiniser’s report
shall also be placed on the website of the company, in case of companies having a
website and of the Agency, immediately after the results are declared.
Results of the voting should be displayed at the Registered Office of the company. Such
results should also be displayed at the Head Office as well as Corporate Office, if such offices
are situated elsewhere i.e. other than the Registered Office.
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Placing of voting result on the website as well as on the Notice Boards at the Registered
Office/ Head Office/ Corporate Office of the company is being required for wider coverage and
for convenience of the Members who may visit such offices.
In case of companies whose equity shares are listed on a recognised stock exchange, the
company should, simultaneously, forward the results to the concerned stock exchange or
exchanges where its equity shares are listed. [Rule 20(4)(xvi) of the Companies (Management
and Administration) Amendment Rules, 2015]
For the purpose of this paragraph, the requisite number of votes should be the votes required
to pass the Resolution as the ‗Ordinary Resolution' or the 'Special Resolution', as the case
may be, under Section 114 of the Act.
Such majority would be determined after the voting at the relevant General Meeting.
The register and all other papers relating to voting by electronic means should remain in the
safe custody of the scrutiniser until the Chairman considers, approves and signs the Minutes
and thereafter, the scrutiniser should hand over the register and other related papers to the
company. [Rule 20(4)(xv) of the Companies (Management and Administration) Amendment
Rules, 2015]
The scrutinisers’ register, report and other related papers received from the
scrutiniser(s) shall be kept in the custody of the Company Secretary or any other
person authorised by the Board for this purpose.
9. Conduct of Poll
9.1 When a poll is demanded on any Resolution, the Chairman shall get the
validity of the demand verified and, if the demand is valid, shall order the poll
forthwith if it is demanded on the question of appointment of the Chairman or
adjournment of the Meeting and, in any other case, within forty-eight hours of the
demand for poll.
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A poll when validly demanded shall be taken, even if the Chairman had refused to grant the
poll. Consequently, if a valid demand for poll is refused by the Chairman, the Meeting shall
either be re-convened or a new Meeting should be convened to hold the poll or to consider the
item in respect of which the valid demand for poll was not granted, as the case may be. [M.K.
Srinivasan and Others v. W. S. Subrahmanya Ayyar and Others (1932) 2 Comp. Cas. 147]
Where the Chairman refused to order a poll even after a valid demand for poll had been made,
the business on the agenda for which the poll was demanded and which was carried through
by show of hands becomes invalid. [Namita Gupta v. Cachar Native Joint Stock Co. Ltd.
(1999) 98, Comp. Cas. 655]
The result of the poll is deemed to be the decision of the Meeting on the Resolution on which
the poll was taken. [Sub-section (7) of Section 109 of the Act]
Once a valid demand for a poll has been received, those who have presented the demand may
withdraw it at any time; however, such withdrawal should be made before the declaration of
the results of the poll. [Sub-section (2) of Section 109 of the Act]
Any business, other than that upon which a poll is demanded, can be proceeded with, pending
the taking of the poll.
Where Resolutions are put to vote through Remote e-voting, poll cannot be demanded on any
Resolutions, other than for adjournment of the Meeting or election of Chairman of the
Meeting.
9.2 In the case of a poll, which is not taken forthwith, the Chairman shall
announce the date, venue and time of taking the poll to enable Members to have
adequate and convenient opportunity to exercise their vote. The Chairman may
permit any Member who so desires to be present at the time of counting of votes.
The Chairman has the power to fix and announce the date, time and place of taking the poll
and should exercise this power impartially and reasonably so as to ensure that all the
Members of the company who wish to exercise their vote have the opportunity to do so. The
Chairman should, while deciding the time and place of the poll, take into account the specific
circumstances, the nature and importance of the items of business to be put to vote and the
reasons for the demand for a poll.
However, the date on which poll will take place should not be a National Holiday.
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The Meeting will be deemed to conclude when voting by way of poll is completed.
If the date, venue and time of taking the poll cannot be announced at the Meeting,
the Chairman shall inform the Members, the modes and the time of such
communication, which shall in any case be within twenty four hours of closure of
the Meeting.
Any mode of communication viz. public notice, advertisement through newspaper, website of
the company, e-mail etc. may be used for informing the Members regarding the poll.
A Member who did not attend the Meeting can participate and vote in the poll in
such cases.
9.3 Each Resolution put to vote by poll shall be put to vote separately.
Each Resolution on which a poll is demanded should be put to vote separately and the result
announced should specify the number of votes that are casted in favor of and against each
Resolution. All the Resolutions may, however, be included on one sheet of paper, to be
separately marked by the voters.
One ballot paper may be used for more than one item.
Each Resolution should deal with a single item of business. Form No. MGT-12 prescribed by
MCA contains the form in which the polling paper should be prepared.
Scrutiny of votes cast on a poll envisages detailed examination of the relevant records and
calls for comprehensive knowledge and competence to deal with the intricacies and
technicalities involved. These matters require professional knowledge, efficiency, fairness and
transparency.
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There is no bar on appointing any number of scrutinisers if the volume of work involved
warrants such appointments. The Chairman should use his discretion in this regard and
appoint such number of scrutinisers, as he deems necessary.
At least one of the scrutinisers shall be a Member who is present at the Meeting,
provided such a Member is available and willing to be appointed.
In case more than one Scrutiniser is appointed, atleast one of them should be a Member,
provided such a Member is available and willing to be appointed.
At any time before the result of the poll is declared, the Chairman has the power, if
circumstances warrant, to remove the scrutiniser from office. However, the Chairman should
not exercise such power capriciously. The Chairman also has the power to fill the vacancy in
the office of scrutiniser arising from such removal or from any other cause.
9.5.1 Based on the scrutiniser’s report, the Chairman shall declare the result of
the poll within two days of the submission of report by the scrutiniser, with
details of the number of votes cast for and against the Resolution, invalid votes
and whether the Resolution has been carried or not.
The Scrutiniser shall submit his Report to the Chairman who shall counter-sign the
same. In case Chairman is not available, for such purpose, the report by the
scrutiniser shall be submitted to any Director who is authorised by the Board to
receive such report, who shall countersign the scrutiniser‘s report on behalf of the
Chairman.
Since the scrutiniser‘s report and related papers are important documents, authority to
receive and countersign the same has been given to the Chairman or any other Director
authorised by the Board. The idea is also to bring in uniformity between the provisions of e-
voting, poll and postal ballot in the Act as far as receiving and countersigning of the
scrutiniser‘s report are concerned.
The scrutiniser should submit the report on the poll in Form No. MGT.13 within seven days
from the date the poll is taken. The report should be signed by the scrutiniser and, in case
there is more than one scrutiniser by all the scrutinisers.
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The result shall be announced by the Chairman or any other person authorised by
the Chairman in writing for this purpose.
Where the poll has been conducted forthwith, the Chairman may declare the result orally at
the Meeting.
The Chairman of the Meeting shall have the power to regulate the manner in which
the poll shall be taken and shall ensure that the poll is scrutinised in the manner
prescribed under the Act.
9.5.2 The result of the poll with details of the number of votes cast for and
against the Resolution, invalid votes and whether the Resolution has been carried
or not shall be displayed on the Notice Board of the company at its Registered
Office and its Head Office as well as Corporate Office, if any, if such office is
situated elsewhere, and in case of public companies having a website, shall also
be placed on the website.
Results of the voting should be displayed in the Registered Office of the company. Such
results should also be displayed at the Head Office as well as Corporate Office, if such offices
are situated elsewhere i.e. other than where the Registered Office is situated.
Placing of voting result on the website as well as on the Notice Boards at the Registered
Office/ Head Office/ Corporate Office of the company is required with the intent of wider
coverage and for convenience of the Members who may visit such offices.
9.5.3 The result of the poll shall be deemed to be the decision of the Meeting on
the Resolution on which the poll was taken.
A Member has no right to question the decision of the Chairman or to inspect the poll papers
and other related records. The result of poll once declared shall be final. The decision as
declared by the Chairman should be recorded in the Minutes of the Meeting.
Specimens of the polling record and the announcement of the result of poll are placed at
Annexures XIII and XIV respectively.
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10. Prohibition on Withdrawal of Resolutions
Resolutions for items of business which are likely to affect the market price of the
securities of the company shall not be withdrawn. However, any Resolution
proposed for consideration through e-voting shall not be withdrawn.
A proposed Resolution likely to affect the market price of the securities of the company should
not be withdrawn once Notice has been issued. This is because the subsequent withdrawal of
such Resolutions may result in the sharp movements in the market price of the securities of
the company and some insiders may use it for their unfair gains. For example, Resolutions for
issue of bonus shares or rights shares or for buy-back of securities may have an impact on the
share price and the subsequent withdrawal of any such Resolution would adversely affect
those who may have taken any investment decisions based on such information.
Companies offering the facility of Remote e-voting should not withdraw any Resolution once
Notice has been issued. [Rule 20(4)(xviii) of the Companies (Management and
Administration) Rules, 2015]
Similarly, any company which has issued notices for postal ballot process should not
withdraw the proposed Resolutions.
A Resolution rescinding the earlier Resolution should be passed in the same manner in which
the Resolution in question was passed, e.g. a Resolution passed as a Special Resolution
should be rescinded only by a Special Resolution and a Resolution passed by voting through
postal ballot should be rescinded only by a Resolution passed by voting through postal ballot.
Notice of such subsequent Meeting where the rescinding of a Resolution passed earlier is
proposed should specify the intention to rescind such Resolution.
Similarly, the Board should recommend to the General Meeting, rescinding of the Resolution
prior to such subsequent Meeting.
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12. Modifications to Resolutions
The Chairman has no right to refuse to put before the Meeting an amendment arising on an
Ordinary Resolution which is contained in the Notice. If the Chairman improperly refuses to
submit an amendment to the Meeting, the Ordinary Resolution actually carried will be
invalidated. [Henderson v. Bank of Australasia (1890) 45 Ch D 330 (CA)]
No modification shall be made to any Resolution which has already been put to vote
by Remote e-voting before the Meeting.
Resolutions other than if proposed through postal ballot or Remote e- voting may be modified
by the majority of the Members present at the Meeting. However, shareholders do not have
powers to increase the proposed dividend at the Meeting.
Procedure
The modification to a Resolution may be moved at any time after discussion on the original
Resolution has been called up, or during such discussion, but before the original Resolution is
voted upon.
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In case two or more amendments are moved to a Resolution, the amendments should be put
to vote in the same order in which they were moved. Where the amendments are accepted,
they should be incorporated in the substantive or main Resolution which then should be put
to vote.
A modified special Resolution for alteration of Articles was held to be valid, as in original
proposal there was no clause giving power to the board to decline to register transfer without
assigning any reasons in its absolute discretion. [Mathrubhumi Printing and Publishing Co.
Ltd. v Vardhaman Publishers Ltd. and Ors. [1992] 73 Comp Cas 80 (Ker)]
The Chairman has to ensure that at the Meeting, before any voting takes place, the
qualifications, observations or comments or other remarks given in the Auditors‘ report are
read out. Simultaneously, he has to ensure that the explanations or comments given by the
Board in its report are also read at the Meeting.
It is not necessary that the auditors themselves read out the Auditor‘s Report.
The Chairman has to ensure that before any voting takes place at the Annual General
Meeting, the qualifications, observations or comments or other remarks given in the
Secretarial Auditors‘ Report are read out. Simultaneously, he has to ensure that the
explanations or comments given by the Board in its report on such qualifications,
96
observations or comments or other remarks of the Secretarial Auditor are also read at the
Annual General Meeting.
This would enable the Members to know about the compliance and governance aspects in the
company. Such practice would enhance transparency.
It is not necessary that the Secretarial Auditors themselves read out the Secretarial Auditor‘s
Report.
No gifts, gift coupons, food coupons etc. or cash in lieu of gifts should be distributed to the
Members at the Meeting or in connection with the Meeting. This is because such practice is
discriminatory and favours only those Members who attend the Meeting.
Further, any item or offer distributed with the intent to influence the decision of the Members
shall tantamount to distribution of gifts and should not be practiced.
However, offering, as a matter of courtesy, any food, snacks and beverages at the venue of the
Meeting in the form of refreshments to Members or Proxies who attend the Meeting
physically would not amount to offering of gifts.
Further, discount coupons or gift coupons which may be given by the company with respect
to its products or services, to all the Members, whether attending the Meeting or not, would
not amount to gift/coupon under this paragraph.
The Chairman may also adjourn a Meeting in the event of disorder or other like
causes, when it becomes impossible to conduct the Meeting and complete its
business.
97
Adjournment means to defer or suspend the Meeting to a future time, either at an appointed
date or indefinitely or as decided by the Members present at the scheduled Meeting.
A Meeting shall stand automatically adjourned for want of requisite Quorum as per the
applicable provisions of the Act. The Chairman may adjourn a Meeting, at which a Quorum
is present in the following circumstances:
The Chairman of a Meeting has an inherent power to adjourn it in the event of disorder if he
acts bona fide with the purpose of forwarding and facilitating the Meeting and if the
adjournment was necessary for restoration of order.
The Chairman has the right to make a bona fide adjournment whilst a poll or other business
is proceeding, if circumstances of violent interruption make it unsafe or seriously difficult for
the Members to tender their votes. The question will turn upon the intention and effect of the
adjournment; if the intention and effect were to interrupt or delay the business, such an
adjournment would be illegal; if, on the contrary, the intention and effect were to forward or
facilitate it and no injurious effects would result, such an adjournment would generally be
supported. [United Bank of India Ltd. v. United India Credit and Development Corporation
Ltd. (1977) 47 Comp. Cas. 689]
A poll may be demanded for adjournment of a Meeting. [Sub-section (3) of Section 109 of the
Act]
For a valid adjournment of a General Meeting, the holding of the Meeting at its scheduled
time is necessary. The Meeting may, however, be adjourned at any time. It may be adjourned
after some items of business have been transacted and the remaining items can be transacted
at the adjourned Meeting.
The Resolutions passed at the adjourned Meeting shall have prospective effect.
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15.2 If a Meeting is adjourned sine-die or for a period of thirty days or more,
a Notice of the adjourned Meeting shall be given in accordance with the
provisions contained hereinabove relating to Notice.
An adjourned Meeting is merely the continuation of the original Meeting and, instead of
sending a fresh Notice for the Meeting adjourned sine-die or for a period of thirty days or
more, the Notice of the original Meeting may be sent, under cover of an intimation specifying
the day, date, time and place of the adjourned Meeting. The intimation should clarify that
certain items of business had been transacted at the original Meeting, state the reasons for
adjournment and list the remaining items of business to be transacted at the adjourned
Meeting. The relevant explanatory statement in respect of such remaining items of business
should also be given.
The Notice of adjourned Meeting should also be hosted at the website of the company, if any.
15.3 If a Meeting is adjourned for a period of less than thirty days, the company
shall give not less than three days’ Notice specifying the day, date, time and venue
of the Meeting, to the Members either individually or by publishing an
advertisement in a vernacular newspaper in the principal vernacular language of
the district in which the registered office of the company is situated, and in an
English newspaper in English language, both having a wide circulation in that
district.
An adjourned Meeting is merely the continuation of the original Meeting and, unless the
Articles provide otherwise, a fresh Notice of the Meeting adjourned for a period of less than
thirty days is not necessary to be sent individually. However, as a good corporate practice, an
announcement in the newspapers as stated in this paragraph regarding the adjournment of
the Meeting, giving details of the day, date, time and place and the business to be transacted
at the adjourned Meeting should be given. Such announcement should also be placed on the
website, if any, of the company.
15.4 If a Meeting, other than a requisitioned Meeting, stands adjourned for want
of Quorum, the adjourned Meeting shall be held on the same day, in the next
week at the same time and place or on such other day, not being a National
Holiday, or at such other time and place as may be determined by the Board.
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If a Meeting is adjourned for want of a Quorum to the same day on the next week, at
the same time and place or with a change of day, time or place, the company shall
give not less than three days‘ Notice specifying the day, date, time and venue of the
Meeting, to the Members either individually or by publishing an advertisement in a
vernacular newspaper in the principal vernacular language of the district in which
the registered office of the company is situated, and in an English newspaper in
English language, both having a wide circulation in that district.
If, at an adjourned Meeting, Quorum is not present within half an hour from the
time appointed, the Members present, being not less than two in number, will
constitute the Quorum.
The provisions with respect to National Holiday explained under paragraph 1.2.4 of this
Guidance Note shall mutatis-mutandis be applicable in this regard.
15.5 If, within half an hour from the time appointed for holding a Meeting
called by requisitionists, a Quorum is not present, the Meeting shall stand
cancelled.
Since, a Meeting by requisitionists had been called by Members themselves, it will not be
adjourned for want of Quorum but shall stand cancelled.
If any new business has to be transacted, a fresh Meeting should be duly convened for the
purpose of transacting such new business.
16.1 Every company, except a company having less than or equal to two hundred
Members, shall transact items of business as prescribed, only by means of postal
ballot instead of transacting such business at a General Meeting.
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The list of items of businesses requiring to be transacted only by means of a postal
ballot is given at Annexure XV.
The Board may however opt to transact any other item of special business, not being
any business in respect of which Directors or auditors have a right to be heard at the
Meeting, by means of postal ballot.
Ordinary business shall not be transacted by means of a postal ballot.
Postal ballot cannot be conducted in respect of ordinary business and/or matters where the
directors, auditors, etc. have a right of being heard at the Meeting.
This is because, if such Resolution is passed by the Members through postal ballot, it will be
unjust to the concerned person who will be deprived of the opportunity to give his views or
clarifications regarding the Resolutions.
16.2 Every company having its equity shares listed on a recognized stock
exchange other than companies whose equity shares are listed on SME Exchange
or on the Institutional Trading Platform and other companies which are required
to provide e-voting facility shall provide such facility to its Members in respect of
those items, which are required to be transacted through postal ballot.
Other companies presently prescribed are companies having not less than one
thousand Members.
Where the item of business is one for which the company concerned should provide a postal
ballot process for passing Resolutions, the question of calling and holding a General Meeting
does not arise. The difference between e-voting facility and postal ballot facility lies in the
items of business to be transacted at a General Meeting requiring the passing of Resolutions
by Members of a company and in respect of certain matters where companies have to offer
postal ballot facility to its Members as a mandatory requirement of the Act. In respect of such
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matters, even though companies should offer e-voting facility, the requirement to provide
postal ballot facility is mandatory and cannot be done away with.
Prior Consent to act as a scrutiniser shall be obtained from the scrutiniser and placed
before the Board for noting.
The scrutiniser should be willing to be appointed and be available for the purpose of
ascertaining the requisite majority.
An Agency should be appointed by the Board which can handle the whole process of postal
ballot through e-voting.
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(f) decide the record date for reckoning Voting Rights and ascertaining those
Members to whom the Notice and postal ballot forms shall be sent.
Only Members as of the record date shall be entitled to vote on the proposed
Resolution by postal ballot.
(h) authorise the Chairman or in his absence, any other Director to receive the
scrutiniser’s register, report on postal ballot and other related papers with
requisite details.
Since the scrutiniser‘s report and related papers are important documents, authority to
receive the same has been given to the Chairman or any other Director authorised by the
Board.
The idea is also to bring in uniformity between the provisions of e-voting, poll and postal
ballot in the Act as far as receiving of the scrutiniser‘s report are concerned.
The scrutiniser is required to submit his report within seven days from the last date
of receipt of postal ballot forms.
16.4 Notice
16.4.1 Notice of the postal ballot shall be given in writing to every Member of the
company. Such Notice shall be sent either by registered post or speed post, or by
courier or by e-mail or by any other electronic means at the address registered
with the company.
The Notice shall be accompanied by the postal ballot form with the necessary
instructions for filling, signing and returning the same.
In case the Notice and accompanying documents are sent to Members by e-mail,
these shall be sent to the Members‘ e-mail addresses, registered with the company or
provided by the depository, in the manner prescribed under the Act.
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Such Notice shall also be given to the Directors and Auditors of the company, to the
Secretarial Auditor, to Debenture Trustees, if any, and, wherever applicable or so
required, to other specified recipients.
The provisions with respect to sending of Notice explained in paragraph 1.2.1 and paragraph
1.2.2 above shall mutatis-mutandis be applicable in this regard.
In cases where e-voting facility is provided, the Notice should be published in an English
newspaper having country-wide circulation; whereas in other cases, such Notice should be
published in the English newspaper having a wide circulation in the district in which the
registered office of the company is situated.
If the company accidentally omits to send the Notice to a Member or if a Member does not
receive the Notice sent to him, this will not invalidate the Resolution passed or the result of
the postal ballot.
16.4.2 In case of companies having a website, Notice of the postal ballot shall also
be placed on the website.
Such Notice shall remain on the website till the last date for receipt of the postal
ballot forms from the Members.
16.4.3 Notice shall specify the day, date, time and venue where the results of the
voting by postal ballot will be announced and the link of the website where such
results will be displayed.
Notice shall also specify the mode of declaration of the results of the voting by postal
ballot.
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It is a general practice to give the information about the date, time and venue of declaration of
result of postal ballot.
A company may even declare the result at its registered office and corporate office and put it
on the company website.
16.4.4 Notice of the postal ballot shall inform the Members about availability of e-
voting facility, if any, and provide necessary information thereof to enable them
to access such facility.
In case the facility of e-voting has been made available, the provisions relating to
conduct of e-voting shall apply, mutatis mutandis, as far as applicable.
Notice shall describe clearly the e-voting procedure.
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(f) a statement to the effect that Member who has not received postal ballot form
may apply to the company and obtain a duplicate thereof;
(g) contact details of the person responsible to address the queries/grievances
connected with the voting by postal ballot including voting by electronic means,
if any; and
(h) day, date, time and venue of declaration of results and the link of the website
where such results will be displayed.
Notice and the advertisement shall clearly mention the record date as on which the
right of voting of the Members shall be reckoned and state that a person who is not a
Member as on the record date should treat this Notice for information purposes
only.
16.4.5 Each item proposed to be passed through postal ballot shall be in the form
of a Resolution and shall be accompanied by an explanatory statement which
shall set out all such facts as would enable a Member to understand the meaning,
scope and implications of the item of business and to take a decision thereon.
The Resolution and the explanatory statement should be framed in simple and intelligible
language so as to enable Members to understand the meaning, scope and implications of the
proposed items of business. The nature of interest and the extent of shareholding, if any, of
Directors and KMP in the proposed Resolution should be disclosed in the explanatory
statement. Where reference is made to any document, contract, agreement or the
Memorandum and Articles of Association, the relevant explanatory statement should state
that such documents are available for inspection as per the provisions of the Act.
16.5.1 The postal ballot form shall be accompanied by a postage prepaid reply
envelope addressed to the scrutiniser.
A single postal ballot Form may provide for multiple items of business to be
transacted.
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16.5.2 The postal ballot form shall contain instructions as to the manner in which
the form is to be completed, assent or dissent is to be recorded and its return to the
scrutiniser.
The postal ballot form may specify instances in which such Form shall be treated as
invalid or rejected and procedure for issue of duplicate postal ballot Forms.
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vote exercised by him, should not be considered for determining the validity of the
postal ballot form.
In case any Member votes both by post and e-voting, his vote by post should be treated as
invalid.
A postal ballot form which is otherwise complete in all respects and is lodged within
the prescribed time limit but is undated shall be considered valid.
Postal ballot forms received by fax or any other electronic mode should also be considered
valid.
In case there are two items of business to be transacted by Resolutions to be passed through
postal ballot, if a Member has given assent or dissent for one item and not for the other, the
postal ballot form should be treated as valid for the item for which the decision has been
conveyed and invalid for the item for which no decision is indicated.
16.6.1 Based on the scrutiniser’s report, the Chairman or any other Director
authorised by him shall declare the result of the postal ballot on the date, time and
venue specified in the Notice, with details of the number of votes cast for and
against the Resolution, invalid votes and the final result as to whether the
Resolution has been carried or not.
The scrutiniser shall submit his report to the Chairman who shall countersign the
same. In case Chairman is not available, for such purpose, the report by the
scrutiniser shall be submitted to any other Director who is authorised by the Board
to receive such report, who shall countersign the scrutiniser‘s report on behalf of the
Chairman.
The result should be announced by the Chairman or any other person authorised by the Board
for this purpose.
16.6.2 The result of the voting with details of the number of votes cast for and
against the Resolution, invalid votes and whether the Resolution has been carried
or not, along with the scrutiniser’s report shall be displayed on the Notice Board
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of the company at its Registered Office and its Head Office as well as Corporate
Office, if any, if such office is situated elsewhere, and also be placed on the
website of the company, in case of companies having a website.
Results of the voting should be displayed in the Registered Office of the company. Such
results should also be displayed at the Head Office as well as Corporate Office, if such offices
are situated elsewhere i.e. other than where the Registered Office is situated.
Placing of voting result on the website as well as on the Notice Boards at the Registered
Office/ Head Office/ Corporate Office of the company is required with the intent of wider
coverage and for convenience of the Members who may visit such offices..
The postal ballot forms, other related papers, register and scrutiniser’s report
received from the scrutiniser shall be kept in the custody of the Company
Secretary or any other person authorised by the Board for this purpose.
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16.8 Rescinding the Resolution
A Resolution passed by postal ballot shall not be rescinded otherwise than by a
Resolution passed subsequently through postal ballot.
A Resolution passed by postal ballot can be rescinded only by a Resolution passed
subsequently through postal ballot.
Similarly, a Resolution rescinding the earlier Resolution should be passed in the same
manner in which the Resolution in question was passed, e.g. a Resolution passed as a Special
Resolution should be rescinded only by a Special Resolution.
Notice of such subsequent postal ballot where the rescinding of a Resolution passed earlier
through postal ballot is proposed should specify the intention to rescind such Resolution.
17. Minutes
‗Minutes‘ are the official recording of the proceedings of the Meeting and the business
transacted at the Meeting.
Every company shall keep Minutes of all Meetings. Minutes kept in accordance with
the provisions of the Act evidence the proceedings recorded therein.
The burden of proof is on the person who questions the correctness of the proceedings of a
Meeting as recorded in the Minutes. If the Minutes of the Meeting are not recorded or signed
within the period prescribed under the statute, it would be presumed that the Minutes have
not been properly kept and hence such Minutes cannot be produced as evidence. [B
Sivaraman and Others v. Egmore Benefit Society Ltd. (1992) 2 Comp L J 218 (Mad)]
Accordingly, when Minutes are duly drawn and signed, the contents of Minutes are
presumed to be true and the burden of proof lies on those who allege the contents to be not
true, to prove the fact.
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Minutes help in understanding the deliberations and decisions taken at the Meeting.
Minutes kept in accordance with the provisions of this section shall be evidence of the
proceedings recorded therein. [Sub-section (7) of Section 118 of the Act]
If the Minutes are kept in the prescribed manner, until the contrary is proved, the Meeting
shall be deemed to have been duly called and held, and all proceedings thereat to have duly
taken place.
Minutes of Meetings constitute a very important statutory record and serves as evidence of
various matters, until the contrary is proved.
The Minutes should be recorded in such a way that it enables any reader to understand what
had transpired in the Meeting.
The only way to prove that the Resolution was passed at the Board Meeting of the company is
that the Minutes Book in which the particular Resolution was recorded should be produced
before the court, as that alone can form evidence of the fact that the Resolution was passed in
the Board Meeting. [Escorts Ltd. v. Sai Auto (1991) 72 Com. Cases 483 (Del)]
Minutes of Meeting were rejected as evidence for not being maintained as per the
requirements of the Act. [Marble City Hospitals and Research Centre (P.) ltd. V. Sarabjeet
Singh Mokha [2010] 99 SCL 303 (MP)]
The Minutes of proceedings of each Meeting should be entered in the books maintained for
that purpose. [Rule 25(1)(b) of the Companies (Management and Administration) Rules,
2014]
Where Minutes are recorded in some book which is not a Minutes Book as per law, the
statutory presumption under Section 195 of the Companies Act, 1956 [corresponding to
Section 118 of the Act] does not take effect. In such a case no such Meeting could be regarded
as having been held. [Balasundaram (V.G.) v. New Theatres Carnatic Talkies Pvt. Ltd.
(1993) 77 Com. Cases 324 Mad]
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17.1.2 A distinct Minutes Book shall be maintained for Meetings of the Members
of the Company, creditors and others as may be required under the Act.
A distinct Minute book should be maintained for each type of Meeting namely:-
i. General Meetings of the Members;
ii. Meetings of the Creditors;
iii. Meetings of the Debenture-holders; and
iv. Meetings of class of Members.
Resolutions passed by postal ballot shall be recorded in the Minutes book of General
Meetings.
Every listed company or a company having not less than one thousand shareholders,
debenture holders and other security holders, may maintain its records in electronic form.
[Rule 27 of the Companies (Management and Administration) Rules, 2014]. An explanation
to the said rule states that the term "records‖ means any register, index, agreement,
memorandum, minutes or any other document required by the Act or the rules made there
under to be kept by a company.
SS-2 clearly states that Minutes of Meetings may be maintained in electronic form. However
SS-2 imposes a condition that when a company decides to keep the minutes of its Meetings in
electronic form, it should be maintained with time stamp. The expression ―time stamp‖ is a
defined expression and it should be construed accordingly.
Every company shall, however, follow a uniform and consistent form of maintaining
the Minutes. Any deviation in such form of maintenance shall be authorised by the
Board.
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Companies should maintain the Minutes of all Meetings either in physical form or in
electronic form. In other words, the companies should not maintain Minutes of few Meetings
in physical form and few in electronic form. Companies should follow a uniform and
consistent form of maintaining the Minutes.
Where Minutes are maintained in electronic form, following requirements should be satisfied
—
b. the electronic record is retained in the format in which it was originally generated, or
in a format which can be demonstrated to represent accurately the information
originally generated;
c. the details which will facilitate the identification of the origin, destination, date and
time of generation of such electronic record are available in the electronic record.
The Managing Director, Company Secretary or any other Director or officer of the company
as the Board may authorise should be responsible for the Maintenance and security of
Minutes in electronic form. [Rule 28(1) of Companies (Management and Administration)
Rules, 2014] The Board may authorise any one of the above to maintain the Minutes Book
whose duty and responsibility would be to maintain it securely.
The person who is responsible for the Maintenance of Minutes in electronic form should -
b. ensure against loss of the Minutes as a result of damage to, or failure of the media on
which the Minutes are maintained;
c. ensure that the signatory of electronic form does not repudiate the signed Minutes as
not genuine;
d. ensure that computer systems, software and hardware are adequately secured and
validated to ensure their accuracy, reliability and consistent intended performance;
e. ensure that the computer systems can discern invalid and altered Minutes;
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f. ensure that Minutes are accurate, accessible, and capable of being reproduced for
reference later;
g. ensure that the Minutes are at all times capable of being retrieved to a readable and
printable form;
h. ensure that Minutes are kept in a non-rewriteable and non-erasable format like pdf.
version or some other version which cannot be altered or tampered;
i. ensure that a backup is kept of the updated Minutes maintained in electronic form;
such backup is authenticated and dated and is securely kept at such place as may be
decided by the Board;
j. limit the access to the Minutes to the Managing Director, Company Secretary or any
other Director or officer or the Auditor(s) or other persons performing work of the
company as may be authorised by the Board in this behalf or other persons in terms of
SS-2;
l. arrange and index the Minutes in a way that permits easy location, access and
retrieval of any particular record; and
Timestamp
Time stamps should be created by the computer with its system integrated time to mark the
creation or modification of a file. When a file is created, the system itself should note the time
at which the file is created or modified. When digital signature is affixed, automatically the
date and time of signing should get recorded. When an e-mail is received or sent, there should
be a recording in the Secured Computer System. All these are time stamps and are in the
chain of custody. Audit trails should always be left in secured computer environment to
indicate the server, system, time and date of all actions that has been taken electronically.
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17.1.4 The pages of the Minutes Books shall be consecutively numbered.
This shall be followed irrespective of a break in the Book arising out of periodical
binding in case the Minutes are maintained in physical form. This shall be equally
applicable for maintenance of Minutes Book in electronic form with Timestamp.
In the event any page or part thereof in the Minutes Book is left blank, it shall be
scored out and initialled by the Chairman who signs the Minutes.
17.1.5 Minutes shall not be pasted or attached to the Minutes Book, or tampered
with in any manner.
The law essentially prohibits pasting of Minutes in the Minute Book and hence Minutes
cannot be type-written and then pasted in bound Minute Book or in loose leaves. Minutes
should also not be printed on a piece of paper, whether on letterhead or other paper, and
pasted in Minutes book.
Pasting of Minutes in the Minutes Book could not be regarded as evidence of what transpired
at the Meeting. Such practices followed by the company could not cure the defect in the
recording of the Minutes nor override the statutory provision. [In Re Gluco Series P. Ltd.
(1987) 61 Comp Cas 227 (Cal)]
It is with a view to maintain its integrity and evidentiary value, lot of safeguards have been
introduced in the Standard so that it is kept, maintained and preserved with requisite care
and caution.
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17.1.6 Minutes of Meetings, if maintained in loose-leaf form, shall be bound
periodically depending on the size and volume.
Maintenance of Minutes in loose-leaf form is not specifically provided under the Act.
However, MCA has issued clarifications supporting the contention that Minutes kept in a
loose-leaf form can be said to be in accordance with the provisions of the Act.
If Minutes are maintained in loose-leaf form, these should be bound in one or more than one
year on financial year basis. This will facilitate proper Maintenance and preservation of
Minutes.
The Resolutions passed at the Board or Committee Meeting which are typed in loose sheets
and kept with various other documents are not considered as evidence. [Sathappa Textiles
(P.) Ltd. V. CIT [2003] 126 Taxman 491]
There shall be a proper locking device to ensure security and proper control to
prevent removal or manipulation of the loose leaves.
1. take adequate precautions, appropriate to the means used, for guarding against the risk of
falsifying the information recorded; and
2. provide means for making the information available in an accurate and intelligible form
within a reasonable time to any person lawfully entitled to examine the records.
17.1.7 Minutes Books shall be kept at the Registered Office of the company or at
such other place, as may be approved by the Board.
Minutes of General Meetings should be kept separately from Minutes of Board and
Committee Meetings at the Registered Office of the company or such other place as may be
approved by the Board. [In line with Rule 25 (1) (e) of the Companies (Management and
Administration) Rules, 2014]
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17.2 Contents of Minutes
Companies follow diverse practices with respect to recording of Minutes. Some companies
record only the decisions while some companies record only the Resolutions that capture the
decisions taken and some companies record the entire proceedings in the form of almost an
exact transcript of what had transpired at the Meeting. The Guidance Note seeks to
harmonise such divergent practices.
17.2.1.1 Minutes shall state, at the beginning the Meeting, name of the Company,
day, date, venue and time of commencement and conclusion of the Meeting.
Minutes should state at the beginning the following:
1. The name of the company
2. The type of Meeting (Annual General Meeting, Extra-Ordinary General Meeting,
etc.)
3. The serial number, day, date and venue of the Meeting
4. The time of commencement as well as the time of conclusion of the Meeting
In Form No. MGT 15, being the form for reporting by the listed companies about the Annual
General Meeting, there is a requirement to mention the time of conclusion of the Meeting.
However, since SS-2 promotes good corporate practices, this requirement has been extended
to other companies and other General Meetings as well. Recording the time of conclusion of
the Meeting would also help the Minutes to be complete in all aspects.
Adjourned Meetings
In case a Meeting is adjourned, the Minutes shall be entered in respect of the original
Meeting as well as the adjourned Meeting.
In respect of a Meeting convened but adjourned for want of quorum a statement to
that effect shall be recorded by the Chairman or any Director present at the Meeting
in the Minutes.
The Minutes of the Meeting adjourned for want of Quorum or otherwise should be prepared
separately and in the same manner as the Minutes of the original Meeting, and the fact that
the Meeting is an adjourned one should be specified in such Minutes by the Chairman or any
Director present at the Meeting.
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For the purpose of recording the time of conclusion of a Meeting which has been adjourned,
the time at which the Meeting was adjourned should be recorded.
17.2.1.2 Minutes shall record the names of the Directors and the Company
Secretary present at the Meeting.
Minutes should record the names of the following:
1. the Directors present,
The names of the Directors shall be listed in alphabetical order or in any other logical
manner, but in either case starting with the name of the person in the Chair.
The term ―any other logical manner‖ should be liberally construed as the manner in which
company deems it appropriate to record the names of Directors present with some logic
behind e.g. designation, seniority etc. of the Directors.
2. the Company Secretary present.
Besides the above, Minutes should also record the following:
1. The name of the Director who took the Chair.
2. Vote of thanks.
17.2.2 Specific Contents
The election, if any, of the Chairman of the Meeting as provided in paragraph 5 of SS-2,
should be recorded in the Minutes.
(b) The fact that certain registers, documents, the Auditor’s Report and Secretarial
Audit Report, as prescribed under the Act were available for inspection.
As required by the Standard, the Quorum should be present for each item of business. If at
the commencement of the Meeting, the Quorum is present but subsequently if some Members
leave before the close of the Meeting, due to which the Quorum requirement is not met for
businesses taken up thereafter, the Meeting should be adjourned and a statement to that effect
should be recorded in the Minutes.
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The Minutes should record the number of Members who attended the Meeting in person
including authorised representatives.
(e) The number of proxies and the number of shares represented by them.
(f) The presence of the Chairmen of the Audit Committee, Nomination and
Remuneration Committee and Stakeholders Relationship Committee or their
authorised representatives.
(g) The presence if any, of the Secretarial Auditor, the Auditors, or their
authorised representatives, the Court/Tribunal appointed observers or
scrutinisers.
(l) In respect of each Resolution, the type of the Resolution, the names of the
persons who proposed and seconded and the majority with which such
Resolution was passed.
(n) If the Chairman vacates the Chair in respect of any specific item, the fact that
he did so and in his place some other Director or Member took the Chair.
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17.2.2.2 In respect of Resolutions passed by e-voting or postal ballot, a brief
report on the e-voting or postal ballot conducted including the Resolution
proposed, the result of the voting thereon and the summary of the scrutiniser’s
report shall be recorded in the Minutes Book and signed by the Chairman or in
the event of death or inability of the Chairman, by any Director duly authorised
by the Board for the purpose, within thirty days from the date of passing of
Resolution by e-voting or postal ballot.
In case of every Resolution passed by postal ballot, a brief report on the postal ballot
conducted including the Resolution proposed, the result of the voting thereon and the
summary of the scrutiniser‘s report should be entered in the Minutes Book of General
Meetings along with the date of such entry within thirty days from the date of passing of
Resolution. [Rule 25(1)(b)(ii) of the Companies (Management and Administration) Rules,
2014]
Where the Minutes have been kept in accordance with the Act then, until the contrary is
proved, the Resolutions passed by postal ballot shall be deemed to have been duly passed.
17.3.1 Minutes shall contain a fair and correct summary of the proceedings of the
Meeting.
Minutes are not an exhaustive record of everything said at a Meeting. They should not
attempt to record all reasons for decisions taken, i.e. all arguments put forth for and against a
particular Resolution.
The Company Secretary shall record the proceedings of the Meetings. Where there is
no Company Secretary, any other person authorised by the Board or by the
Chairman in this behalf shall record the proceedings.
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In case a Company Secretary is unable to attend a Meeting or in the absence of the Company
Secretary, any other person may be duly authorised by the Board or by the Chairman to
attend and record the proceedings of the Meeting.
The Chairman shall ensure that the proceedings of the Meeting are correctly
recorded.
Chairman‘s discretion
The Chairman has absolute discretion to exclude from the Minutes, matters which in
his opinion are or could reasonably be regarded as defamatory of any person,
irrelevant or immaterial to the proceedings or which are detrimental to the interests
of the company.
The Chairman settles the draft of the Minutes and has the responsibility to ensure that the
Minutes contain a fair and accurate summary of the proceedings at the Meeting. The word
―fair‖ signifies the need to record matters as transpired at the Meeting without any bias.
While doing so, he has absolute discretion to exclude matters of the types specified above.
Minutes should be written in simple language and should contain a brief synopsis of the
discussions along with the decisions taken at the Meeting.
Minutes should record the essential elements of the Meeting i.e., narration which is
fundamental to understand the proceedings at the Meeting and the complete text of all the
Resolutions.
Minutes shall be written in third person and past tense. Resolutions shall however
be written in present tense.
While numbering, the company may choose to follow any system of numbering.
Illustrations:
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(i) Serially numbering irrespective of the number of the Meeting
Items to be discussed in first Meeting of XYZ Company would be numbered as 1.1, 1.2, 1.3,
1.4 etc…Items to be discussed in the 2nd Meeting would be numbered as 2.1, 2.2, 2.3 and so
on and so forth.
Suppose there are 8 items to be discussed in the first Meeting and 10 items in second
Meeting. In such a case, the items of 1st Meeting will be numbered as item numbers 1-8 and
the items in the second Meeting would be numbered from 9-18 and so on and so forth.
A company should follow a uniform pattern of numbering for every item of business.
17.4.1 Minutes shall be entered in the Minutes Book within thirty days from the
date of conclusion of the Meeting.
The Minutes of proceedings of each Meeting should be entered in the books maintained for
that purpose within thirty days of the conclusion of the Meeting. [Rule 25(1)(b)(i) of the
Companies (Management and Administration) Rules, 2014]
In case a Meeting is adjourned, the Minutes in respect of the original Meeting as well
as the adjourned Meeting shall be entered in the Minutes Book within thirty days
from the date of the respective Meetings.
The Minutes of an adjourned Meeting, should be entered in the Minutes book within thirty
days of the conclusion of the adjourned Meeting, since an adjourned Meeting is only a
continuation of the original Meeting.
17.4.2 The date of entry of the Minutes in the Minutes Book shall be recorded
by the Company Secretary.
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This may be done by making a note on the first or last page of the respective Minutes. If the
Minutes are maintained in electronic form, the date of entry should be captured in
Timestamp.
17.4.3 Minutes, once entered in the Minutes Book, shall not be altered.
The pasting of Minutes or corrections or modification in the text of Minutes duly entered in
the Minutes Book and signed by the Chairman will tantamount to alteration of Minutes.
17.5.1 Minutes of a General Meeting shall be signed and dated by the Chairman
of the Meeting or in the event of death or inability of that Chairman, by any
Director who was present in the Meeting and duly authorised by the Board for the
purpose, within thirty days of the General Meeting.
While the Minutes of Meetings of the Board have to be entered within thirty days, Minutes of
every General Meeting should not only be entered but should also be signed within thirty
days from the date of the conclusion of the Meeting.
Further, the Minutes of an adjourned Meeting, should be signed within thirty days of the
conclusion of the adjourned Meeting, since an adjourned Meeting is only a continuation of
the original Meeting.
A cursory perusal of this Section 195 of the Act regarding the presumption to be drawn
where Minutes of the company are duly drawn and signed, clearly proves that the
presumption arising in this Section is a rebuttable one by adducing contrary evidence. It is
therefore, important to ensure that the Minutes are signed and kept as stated above in order
to have the benefit of the statutory presumption that such Minutes constitute evidence of the
proceedings recorded therein.
If the Minutes are not recorded or signed within the prescribed period, it is to be presumed
that they have not been properly kept and hence will not be admissible in evidence. [B
Sivaraman and Others v. Egmore Benefit Society Ltd. (1992) 2 Comp L J 218 (Mad)]
The authorisation to sign the Minutes in the event of death or inability of the Chairman, may
be given at a Meeting of the Board or by a Resolution passed by circulation.
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17.5.2 The Chairman shall initial each page of the Minutes, sign the last page and
append to such signature the date on which and the place where he has signed the
Minutes.
Each page of the Minutes should be initialed or signed and the last page of the Minutes or
report in Minutes books shall be dated and signed by the Chairman of the same Meeting
within the aforesaid period of thirty days or in the event of the death or inability of that
Chairman within that period, by a director duly authorised by the Board for the purpose.
[Rule 25(1)(d)(ii) of the Companies (Management and Administration) Rules, 2014]
The place for this purpose should be the city or town where the Minutes are being signed. The
date on which the Minutes are signed should be appended to the signature.
Any blank space in a page between the conclusion of the Minutes and signature of
the Chairman shall be scored out.
The Minutes should be recorded on consecutive pages of the Minutes Book. No blank space
should be left in between the Minutes.
If the Minutes are maintained in electronic form, the Chairman shall sign the
Minutes digitally.
When the Minutes are signed electronically, the place of signing of the Minutes should be
mentioned in the Minutes.
17.6.1 Directors and Members are entitled to inspect the Minutes of all General
Meetings including Resolutions passed by postal ballot.
Minutes of all General Meetings shall be open for inspection by any Member during
business hours of the company, without charge, subject to such reasonable
restrictions as the company may, by its Articles or in General Meeting, impose, so,
however, that not less than two hours in each business day are allowed for
inspection.
The Act empowers only the Members to inspect and take copies of Minutes of General
Meetings. [Section 119 of the Act]
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The right of inspection cannot be denied whatever be the motives of the Member.
[Rameshwarlal Nath v. Calcutta Wheat and Seed Association Ltd. (1938) 8 Comp. Cas. 78
(Cal)]
Besides Members, the Directors of the company are also entitled to inspect the Minutes of
General Meetings in accordance with this paragraph of SS-2.
This Standard would enable the Statutory Auditor or the Internal Auditor or the Secretarial
Auditor or the Company Secretary in Practice or the Cost Auditor, as the case may be, to
discharge their professional duties fairly.
While providing inspection of Minutes Book, the Company Secretary or the official
of the company authorised by the Company Secretary to facilitate inspection shall
take all precautions to ensure that the Minutes Book is not mutilated or in any way
tampered with by the person inspecting.
17.6.2 Extract of the Minutes shall be given only after the Minutes have been duly
signed. However, any Resolution passed at a Meeting may be issued even
pending signing of the Minutes provided the same is certified by the Chairman or
any Director or the Company Secretary.
Only after the Minutes have been signed, any extract of Minutes can be given to any person.
However without waiting for these formalities, certified copies of the Resolutions can always
be issued even earlier once a Resolution is passed provided the same is certified by the
Chairman or any Director or the Company Secretary.
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Many a times, it might be necessary to furnish certified copies of Resolutions or file the same
with authorities for various purposes. Other than ―Ordinary Business‖, it is usual to give a
text of the Resolution proposed to be passed in respect of every item forming part of the
―Special Business‖ as set out in the Notice of a General Meeting. Therefore, when a
Resolution is passed at a General Meeting, a certified extract of such Resolution can be given
without waiting for the Minutes to be signed.
When a Member requests in writing for a copy of any Minutes, which he is entitled
to inspect, the company shall furnish the same within seven working days of receipt
of his request, subject to payment of such fee as may be specified in the Articles of
the company. In case a Member requests for the copy of the Minutes in electronic
form, in respect of any previous General Meetings held during a period immediately
preceding three financial years, the company shall furnish the same on payment of
such fee as prescribed under the Act.
The company should furnish copies of Minutes on payment of fees as prescribed in the
Articles but not exceeding ten rupees per page or part of any page. However, the soft copy of
Minutes of previous General Meeting held during immediately preceding three financial
years be furnished at free of cost. [Rule 26 of the Companies (Management and
Administration) Rules, 2014]
Copies of the Minutes or the extracts thereof as requisitioned by the Member, duly
certified by the Company Secretary or where there is no Company Secretary, an
officer duly authorised by the Board in this behalf, may be provided in physical or
electronic form.
This paragraph underscores the need to preserve the Minutes of all General Meetings
permanently.
126
permanently by the transferee company, notwithstanding that the transferor
company might have been dissolved.
The preservation of Minutes of the merged or amalgamated company would ensure easy
reference to any important decisions taken prior to amalgamation.
18.2 Office copies of Notices, scrutiniser’s report, and related papers shall be
preserved in good order in physical or in electronic form for as long as they
remain current or for eight financial years, whichever is later and may be
destroyed thereafter with the approval of the Board.
Copies of the Notice calling the Meeting, scrutiniser‘s report and other papers, documents,
agreements, approvals, etc. related to the business transacted at the Meeting should be
retained at least for as long as the related subject remains relevant or for eight financial years,
whichever is later.
Corollary has been drawn from Rule 15 of the Companies (Management and Administration)
Rules, 2014 which prescribes a period of eight years for preservation of register of members
etc. and annual return.
Unlike Minutes, these papers explain in detail all the proposals, voting process, results etc.
and hence would enable easy reference to the important decisions taken earlier along with the
rationale for the decisions. Therefore, considering the importance of these papers, prior
approval of the Board is necessary for their destruction. This is also because the Directors are
responsible for devising and ensuring effective operation of proper and adequate systems, and
the need to refer to these papers may arise anytime.
Office copies of Notices, scrutiniser‘s report, and related papers of the transferor
company, as handed over to the transferee company, shall be preserved in good
order in physical or electronic form for as long as they remain current or for eight
financial years, whichever is later and may be destroyed thereafter with the approval
of the Board and permission of the Central Government, where applicable.
The permission of the Central Government for destroying such records has been prescribed in
line with the provisions of Section 239 of the Act, which provides that the books and papers of
a company which has been amalgamated with, or whose shares have been acquired by,
another company shall not be disposed of without the prior permission of the Central
127
Government and before granting such permission, that Government may appoint a person to
examine the books and papers or any of them for the purpose of ascertaining whether they
contain any evidence of the commission of an offence in connection with the promotion or
formation, or the management of the affairs, of the transferor company or its amalgamation or
the acquisition of its shares.
Any record destroyed after 1st July, 2015 require the approval of the Board, even if such
records pertain to a period prior to the applicability of SS-2.
It may be noted that the Board may authorise destruction of such records only after the expiry
of the period specified in this Paragraph of the SS-2.
18.3 Minutes Books shall be kept in the custody of the Company Secretary.
Where there is no Company Secretary, Minutes shall be kept in the custody of any
Director duly authorised for the purpose by the Board.
The Company Secretary or as the case may be, any Director who has been duly authorised for
this purpose should ensure that the Minutes books are under proper locking system and no
person has access to the Minutes without his permission. Minutes maintained in electronic
form should also be kept under proper security system.
Every listed Company shall prepare a report on Annual General Meeting in the
prescribed form, including a confirmation that the Meeting was convened, held
and conducted as per the provisions of the Act.
The report on Annual General Meeting should be prepared in addition to the Minutes of the
Annual General Meeting.
Such report which shall be a fair and correct summary of the proceedings of the
Meeting shall contain:
a) the day, date, time and venue of the Annual General Meeting;
d) confirmation of Quorum;
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e) confirmation with respect to compliance of the Act and Standards with
respect to calling, convening and conducting the Meeting;
f) business transacted at the Meeting and result thereof with a brief summary of
the discussions;
It shall be signed and dated by the Chairman of the Meeting or in case of his inability
to sign, by any two Directors of the company, one of whom shall be the Managing
Director, if there is one and Company Secretary.
Considering that Form No. MGT-15 prescribed by the MCA for this purpose requires all the
aforesaid details to be filled in the form itself and requires the form to be digitally signed by
the Chairman, it would be sufficient, if Form No. MGT-15 is digitally signed by the
Chairman of the Meeting.
Such report shall be filed with the Registrar of Companies within thirty days of the
conclusion of the Annual General Meeting.
20. Disclosure
The Annual Return of a Company shall disclose the date of Annual General
Meeting held during the financial year.
The expression ―Annual Return‖ for the purpose of this Standard should be understood
within the meaning of Section 92 of the Act.
Every company should file with the Registrar of Companies, at the end of every financial
year, an Annual Return, which inter alia, should contain particulars of Meetings of Members
or a class thereof.
This paragraph of the Standard requires all companies to which the Standard is applicable to
make a disclosure in their Annual Return the date of Annual General Meeting held during
the year.
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In addition, Form No. MGT-7 (Format of Annual Return) prescribed by MCA for this
purpose requires all companies to disclose the dates of all General Meetings held during the
financial year, total number of Members entitled to attend the Meeting, and number of
Members who have attended the Meeting along with their total shareholding.
130
Annexure I
Registered Address______________________________
ATTENDANCE SLIP
Name of Joint
Member(s), if any:
I/we certify that I/we am/are member(s)/proxy for the member(s) of the Company.
I/we hereby record my/our presence at the ___(Meeting number) Annual General Meeting
of the Company being held at ___________(Venue address) on ___________(Day & Date)
at _________(time)
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Note (s) : 1. Please sign this attendance slip and hand it over at the Attendance Verification
Counter at the MEETING VENUE.
2. Only shareholders of the Company and/or their Proxy will be allowed to attend the
Meeting.
132
Annexure II
___________________ LIMITED
NOTICE is hereby given that the _______ (Meeting Number) Annual General
Meeting of the Members of ___________ Limited will be held on ________day ,
the 20_ , at am/ p.m. at ________________ (address) to transact the following business:
Ordinary Business:
1. To receive, consider and adopt the standalone and consolidated Financial Statements of
the Company for the financial year ended 31st March, ____ and the Reports of the Board of
Directors and the Auditors.
2. To declare dividend for the financial year ended 31st March, _____.
6. To appoint Statutory Auditors and to determine their remuneration. For this purpose, to
consider and if deemed fit, to pass, with or without modification, the following Resolution as
an Ordinary Resolution:
―RESOLVED THAT pursuant to the provisions of Section 139 and other applicable
provisions if any, of the Companies Act, 2013 and the Rules framed thereunder, as amended
from time to time, M/s.________, Chartered Accountants, (Firm Registration
No._________) be and are hereby appointed as Auditors of the Company to hold office from
the conclusion of this Annual General Meeting till the conclusion of the ____ Annual
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General Meeting of the Company (subject to ratification of their appointment at every
AGM), at a remuneration of Rs. _______/- (Rupees _______ only) for the year _________
and Rs. _____/- (Rupees _______ only) per year for the subsequent __________ years plus
reimbursement of out of pocket expenses and service tax, as applicable.‖
Or
―RESOLVED THAT pursuant to the provisions of Section 139, 142 and other applicable
provisions, if any, of the Companies Act, 2013 read with the Companies (Audit and
Auditors) Rules, 2014 (including any statutory modification(s) or re-enactment thereof, for
the time being in force), M/s. _________________, Chartered Accountants (Registration No.
_________), who were appointed as Statutory Auditor of the Company at _____ Annual
General Meeting to hold office up to the conclusion of _____ Annual General Meeting and
who have confirmed their eligibility to be appointed as Auditors in terms of the provisions of
Section 141 of the Act and the relevant Rules and have offered themselves for re-appointment,
the consent of the Company be and is hereby accorded for their continuance as Statutory
Auditors on such remuneration plus service tax, out-of-pocket, travelling and living
expenses, etc., as may be mutually agreed between the Board of Directors of the Company and
the said Auditors.‖
―RESOLVED FURTHER THAT the Board of Directors of the Company (including its
Committee thereof), be and is hereby authorised to do all such acts, deeds, matters and things
as may be considered necessary, desirable or expedient to give effect to this Resolution.‖
OR
To consider and if deemed fit, to pass the following Resolution as a Special Resolution:
―RESOLVED that pursuant to Section 142 of the Companies Act 2013, and other applicable
provisions, if any, of the Companies Act, 2013, the remuneration of the Statutory Auditors
appointed by Comptroller & Auditor General of India (C & AG) under Section 139(5) of the
said Act, be and is hereby fixed at Rs. ________/- for the year 201_-1_.‖
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Special Business:
To consider, and if thought fit, to pass, with or without modification, the following
Resolution as an Ordinary Resolution:
―RESOLVED THAT Mr. D (DIN _______), who was appointed as an Additional Director
of the Company with effect from _________, 20____ by the Board of Directors of the
Company pursuant to Section 161(1) of the Companies Act, 2013 and the Articles of
Association of the Company and in respect of whom the Company has received a notice in
writing under Section 160 of the Companies Act, 2013 from a member proposing his
candidature for the office of Director, be and is hereby appointed as a Director of the
Company, liable to retire by rotation.‖
Company Secretary
Place : ________
Notes :
1. The explanatory statement pursuant to Section 102 of the Companies Act, 2013,
relating to special business to be transacted at the Meeting is annexed.
4. A person can act as a proxy on behalf of Members not exceeding 50 and holding in the
aggregate not more than ten percent of the total share capital of the Company carrying voting
135
rights. A Member holding more than ten percent of total share capital of the Company
carrying voting rights may appoint a single person as proxy and such person shall not act as
a proxy for any other person or shareholder.
5. During the period beginning 24 hours before the time fixed for the commencement of
Meeting and ending with the conclusion of the Meeting, a Member would be entitled to
inspect the proxies lodged at any time during the business hours of the Company.
7. Members/proxies are requested to bring the attendance slips duly filled in for attending
the Meeting and bring their copies of the Annual Report to the Meeting. Members who hold
shares in dematerialised form are requested to write their client ID and DP ID numbers and
those who hold shares in physical form are requested to write their Folio Number in the
attendance slip for attending the Meeting.
8. All documents referred to in the Notice and accompanying explanatory statement are
open for inspection at the Registered Office of the Company on all working days of the
Company between 11:00 a.m. and 1:00 p.m. upto the date of the Annual General Meeting
and at the venue of the Meeting for the duration of the Meeting.
9. Route-map to the venue of the Meeting is provided at the end of the Notice / Page no.
________ of the Annual Report.
10. The Register of Members and Share Transfer Books will remain closed from
_____________________ (both days inclusive).
11. The dividend on shares, if declared at the Meeting, will be paid within thirty days from
the date of declaration to those Members or their mandatees whose names appear:
(a) as beneficial owners as on record date fixed for this purpose as per the lists to be
furnished by _______ in respect of shares held in electronic form; and
(b) as Members in the Register of Members of the Company after giving effect to
valid share transfers in physical form lodged with the Company on or before
________________ .
136
Pursuant to Section 205A of the Companies Act, 1956 (Section 124 of the Companies Act,
2013, once notified), dividend for the financial year ended 31st March, _______ which
remains unclaimed for a period of seven years, will be transferred to the Investor Education
and Protection Fund of the Central Government. Members who have not encashed their
dividend warrants in respect of the said dividend are requested to make their claim to the
Share Department of the Company at the Registered Office of the Company or to the
Registrars & Share Transfer Agents of the Company at
_________________________________ (address).
12. The Company has already transferred unclaimed dividend declared for the financial
year ended 31st March, _______ and earlier periods to the Investor Education and Protection
Fund. Members who have so far not claimed or collected their dividends for the said period
may claim their dividend from the Registrar of Companies, ________, by submitting an
application in the prescribed form.
13. The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has mandated the submission of
Permanent Account Number (PAN) by every participant in securities market. Members
holding shares in electronic form are, therefore, requested to submit the PAN to their
Depository Participants with whom they are maintaining their demat accounts. Members
holding shares in physical form can submit their PAN details to the Company.
14. Electronic copy of the Annual Report is being sent to all the Members whose email IDs
are registered with the Company/Depository Participant(s) for communication purposes
unless any Member has requested for a hard copy of the same. For Members who have not
registered their email address, physical copy of the Annual Report is being sent in the
permitted mode. Annual Reports is also available in the Financials section on the website of
the Company at www._______.com.
15. Members are requested to notify any change in their address to the Company and
always quote their Folio Number or DP ID and Client ID Numbers in all correspondence
with the Company. In respect of holding in electronic form, Members are requested to notify
any change of address to their Depository Participants.
16. Members holding shares in electronic form may please note that their bank details as
furnished to the respective Depositories will be printed on their dividend warrants as per the
applicable regulations. The Company will not entertain any direct request from such
137
Members for deletion or change of such bank details. Instructions, if any, already given by
Members in respect of shares held in physical form will not be automatically applicable to the
dividend paid on shares in electronic form.
17. Any query relating to financial statements must be sent to the Company‘s Registered
Office at least seven days before the date of the Meeting.
18. With a view to serving the Members better and for administrative convenience, an
attempt would be made to consolidate multiple folios. Members who hold shares in identical
names and in the same order of names in more than one folio are requested to write to the
Company to consolidate their holdings in one folio.
19. Members who still hold share certificates in physical form are advised to dematerialise
their shareholding to avail the benefits of dematerialisation, which include easy liquidity,
since trading is permitted in dematerialised form only, electronic transfer, savings in stamp
duty and elimination of any possibility of loss of documents and bad deliveries.
20. Members can avail of the nomination facility by filing Form SH-13, as prescribed
under Section 72 of the Companies Act, 2013 and Rule 19(1) of the Companies (Share
Capital and Debentures) Rules, 2014, with the Company. Blank forms will be supplied on
request.
21. In accordance with the provisions of Article ______ of the Articles of Association of
the Company, Mr. _____, Mr. _____ and Mr. _______ will retire by rotation at the Annual
General Meeting and, being eligible, offer themselves for re-election. Further, Mr. D was
appointed as an Additional Director and retires at the Annual General Meeting and the
Company has received a notice for his appointment at the Annual General Meeting.
Pursuant to the SEBI (Listing Obligations and Disclosure Requirements) Regulations, 2015,
additional information in respect of Directors seeking election, those retiring by rotation and
seeking reappointment at the Annual General Meeting is given elsewhere in the Annual
Report.
In compliance with provisions of Section 108 of the Companies Act, 2013 and Rule 20 of the
Companies (Management and Administration) Rules, 2014, the Company is pleased to
provide members the facility of exercising their right to vote at the ___ Annual General
138
Meeting (AGM) by electronic means and the business may be transacted through e-Voting
Services provided by the _______ (agency) __________.
The voting period begins on _____, ____________, 201_ at 10:01 hrs. and will end on
________, ___________, 201_ at 17:00 hrs. During this period shareholders‘ of the
Company, holding shares either in physical form or in dematerialised form, as on the cut-off
date of ____________, 201_, may cast their vote electronically. The e-voting module shall be
disabled for voting thereafter.
The Company has signed an agreement with _______ (agency) for facilitating e-voting to
enable the Shareholders to cast their vote electronically. The instructions for shareholders
voting electronically are placed at page no. ____ of the Annual Report.
EXPLANATORY STATEMENT
As required by Section 102 of the Companies Act, 2013, the following explanatory statement
sets out all material facts relating to the business mentioned under Item No. 7 of the
accompanying Notice dated _____________.
Item No. 7
Mr. D who was appointed as an Additional Director of the Company under Section 161(1) of
the Companies Act, 2013 effective ________, _____ holds office up to the date of this Annual
General Meeting, and is eligible for appointment as Director of the Company.
The Company has received notice under Section 160 of the Companies Act, 2013 from a
Member signifying her intention to propose the candidature of Mr. D for the office of
Director.
A brief profile of Mr. D, as required to be given pursuant to the SEBI (Listing Obligations
and Disclosure Requirements) Regulations, 2015, has been given elsewhere in this Notice.
Mr. D is not a Director of any other public limited company in India. He is a Member of the
Audit Committee and the Investment Committee of ______. He does not hold any share in
the Company and is not related to any Director or Key Managerial Personnel of the
Company in any way.
The Board of Directors considers it in the interest of the Company to appoint Mr. D as a
Director.
139
By order of the Board of Directors
_____________
Company Secretary
Place :
Date : ____________20_ .
140
Annexure III
_____ LIMITED
NOTICE OF
NOTICE is hereby given that the ______ (Number of the Meeting) Extra Ordinary General
Meeting of the Members of _________ Limited will be held on________ day at
______a.m./p.m. at _____________________ (address) to transact the following special
business:
To consider and, if thought fit, to pass the following Resolution as a Special Resolution:
―RESOLVED that pursuant to Section 13 and other applicable provisions, if any, of the
Companies Act, 2013, and subject to the approval of the Regional Director, the Registered
Office of the Company be shifted from the National Capital Territory of Delhi to the State of
Haryana.
RESOLVED FURTHER that the Board of Directors of the Company be and is hereby
authorised to file the necessary petition(s) before the Regional Director, Northern Region at
Noida for confirmation of the alteration of Clause - II of the Memorandum of Association of
the Company as aforesaid and to carry out all other acts and deeds as are necessary in
connection therewith, including compliance of directions, if any, of the concerned
authorities.‖
To consider and, if thought fit, to pass, with or without modification, the following
Resolution as an Ordinary Resolution:
141
―RESOLVED that pursuant to the provisions of Sections 149, 150(2), 152 and any other
applicable provisions of the Companies Act, 2013 and the rules made there under read with
Schedule IV to the Companies Act, 2013, approval of the Company be and is hereby accorded
for appointment of Mr. E (DIN No.__________), as an Independent Director of the
Company to hold the office for a period of 3 years i.e. up to ___________, ______ AND
THAT by virtue of sub-section (13) of Section 149 of the Companies Act, 2013 he shall not be
liable to retire by rotation.‖
Company Secretary
Place : ________
Date :
Notes :
1. The explanatory statement pursuant to Section 102 of the Companies Act, 2013,
relating to special business to be transacted at the Meeting is annexed.
4. A person can act as a proxy on behalf of Members not exceeding 50 and holding in the
aggregate not more than ten percent of the total share capital of the Company carrying voting
rights. A Member holding more than ten percent of total share capital of the Company
carrying voting rights may appoint a single person as proxy and such person shall not act as
a proxy for any other person or shareholder.
142
5. During the period beginning 24 hours before the time fixed for the commencement of
Meeting and ending with the conclusion of the Meeting, a Member would be entitled to
inspect the proxies lodged at any time during the business hours of the company.
7. Members/proxies are requested to bring the attendance slips duly filled in for attending
the Meeting. Members who hold shares in dematerialised form are requested to write their
client ID and DP ID numbers and those who hold shares in physical form are requested to
write their Folio Number in the attendance slip for attending the Meeting.
8. All documents referred to in the Notice and accompanying explanatory statement are
open for inspection at the Registered Office of the Company on all working days of the
Company between 11:00 a.m. and 1:00 p.m. upto the date of the Annual General Meeting
and at the venue of the Meeting for the duration of the Meeting.
9. Route-map to the venue of the Meeting is provided at the end of the Notice.
10. In compliance with provisions of Section 108 of the Companies Act, 2013 and Rule 20
of the Companies (Management and Administration) Rules, 2014, the Company is pleased to
provide Members with the facility to exercise their right to vote at the ___ General Meeting
(AGM) by electronic means and the business may be transacted through e-Voting Services
provided by ______ (agency).
The voting period begins on _____, ____________, 201_ at 10:01 hrs. and will end on
________, ___________, 201_ at 17:00 hrs. During this period shareholders‘ of the
Company, holding shares either in physical form or in dematerialised form, as on the cut-off
date of ____________, 201_, may cast their vote electronically. The e-voting module shall be
disabled for voting thereafter.
The Company has signed an agreement with ________(agency) for facilitating e-voting to
enable the Shareholders to cast their vote electronically. The instructions for shareholders
voting electronically are placed at the end of the Notice.
143
EXPLANATORY STATEMENT
As required by Section 102 of the Companies Act, 2013, the explanatory statement sets out
all material facts relating to the business mentioned under Item Nos. 1 & 2 of the
accompanying Notice dated ___________.
Item No. 1
The Registered Office of the Company has been situated in ____________since the
incorporation of the Company. The business of the Company has increased manifold since
incorporation and it is expected that such growth trends will be maintained in future.
The employee strength of the Company has also increased manifold and the Company needs
an area of around 50,000 square feet to accommodate the entire staff and to carry out its
growing business activities efficiently. However, expansion at the present location is not
possible and prevailing rents in____________ render it unviable to look for additional
premises in the vicinity of the Registered Office.
The Board of Directors has identified suitable premises at ____________in the State of
Haryana, not very far from the present Registered Office. Acquiring such premises, situated
close to Delhi, is advantageous for the Company to carry on its business more conveniently,
economically and efficiently.
In view of these advantages, the Board of Directors has decided to shift the Registered Office
of the Company from National Capital Territory of Delhi to the State of Haryana subject to
necessary approvals.
In terms of Section 13 of the Companies Act, 2013, approval of the shareholders and the
Regional Director is required for the purpose of shifting the registered office of the Company
from one state to another state.
A copy of the Memorandum of Association is available for inspection at the Registered Office
of the Company on all working days of the Company between 11:00 a.m. and 1:00 p.m. upto
the date of the Meeting and at the venue of the Meeting for the duration of the Meeting.
The Board commends the passing of the Resolution at Item No.1 as a Special Resolution.
None of the Directors and Key Managerial Personnel of the Company or their relatives is
concerned or interested in the proposed Resolution.
144
Item No. 2
The Companies Act, 2013 came into force with effect from 1st April, 2014. Section 149 of the
Companies Act, 2013, provides that every listed public company shall have at least one third
of the total number of directors as independent directors. An Independent Director can be
appointed for any period up to 5 years but can be reappointed for another term of not more
than 5 years by passing a special Resolution. The provisions relating to retirement of
directors by rotation shall not apply to the appointment of independent director.
The Board has undertaken due diligence to determine the eligibility of Mr. E for appointment
as an Independent Director on the Board, based upon his qualification, expertise, track record
integrity etc. and recommends the appointment of Mr. E to the shareholders for a period of
three years, i.e. up to _______.
Other than Mr. E, none of the Directors or Key Managerial Personnel of the Company or
their relatives is concerned or interested in the proposed Resolution.
Company Secretary
Place : ___________
Date : _______________ .
145
Annexure IV
_____ LIMITED
NOTICE is hereby given that the __________ Annual General Meeting of the Company will
be held on _____________________ at __ a.m. /p.m. at the registered office of the company
situated at ___________(address).
Notice of the Meeting setting out the Resolutions proposed to be transacted there at and the
Audited financial statements for the year ended at March 31, 201__, Auditors‘ Report and
Report of the Board of Directors for the year ended on that date, have also been dispatched to
the Members. Notice and the said documents are available at the Company‘s website
www.__________.com and copies of said documents are also available for inspection at the
registered office of the Company on all working days during the business hours up to the date
of Annual General Meeting. The Company has completed dispatch of Annual Report on
_________ __, 201_.
Pursuant to the provisions of Section 108 of the Companies Act, 2013 read with Rule 20 of
the Companies (Management and Administration) Rules, 2014, your Company is pleased to
provide remote e-voting facility to its Members to exercise their right to vote on the
Resolutions proposed to be transacted at the ___ Annual General Meeting. The Company has
arranged remote e-voting facility through _______ at www._____. Notice of the Annual
General Meeting is also available at the _______ (agency‘s) website.
A Member whose name appears in the register of members as on cutoff date i.e.
____________, 201_ only shall be entitled to avail the facility of remote e-voting as well as
voting through physical ballot at the Meeting. Members who cast their vote through remote
e-voting may attend the Meeting but shall not be entitled to cast their vote again.
Any person who becomes Member of the Company after dispatch of the Notice of the Meeting
and holding shares on _____ ___, 201_, if already registered with ____ (agency), can use
146
his/her existing user ID and password otherwise follow the detailed procedure mentioned in
Notice of Meeting available at Company‘s website www.________.com or may obtain the
login ID and password by sending a request at ________ (email ID of agency) or to the
Company‘s Registrar, M/s ___________ at ______@______.com latest by ___ p.m. of
________ __, 201_.
Remote e-voting facility shall commence on __________ ___, 201__ at 10:00 (IST) and will
end on _____ __, 201_ at 05:00 (IST). The remote e-voting will be disabled by ____ (agency)
after the said date and time.
The Company has appointed Mr. _________, Practising Company Secretary as the
scrutiniser to scrutinise the e-voting process in fair and transparent manner.
In case of any queries/grievances relating to e-voting process, the Members may contact at
______ (email ID of agency), Tel: _______ or M/s. ________________., __________(RTA
address) at ____@_____.com, Tel: 011-_______ or at the ________@_______.com Tel: +91
____ _______.
Place : ______________.
Date : _____________ .
147
Annexure V
________ LIMITED
Members are hereby informed that, due to unforeseen and unavoidable circumstances, the
______ Annual General Meeting of the Company, which was scheduled on _____________,
___________________, will now be held on __________________, ______, at _____p.m. at
the Registered Office of the Company, to consider the business mentioned in the Notice dated
______________ which had been sent to Members in connection with the Meeting
originally scheduled to have been held on _______________ .
A Member entitled to attend and vote at the Meeting is entitled to appoint a Proxy
to attend and, on a poll, to vote instead of himself and the Proxy need not be a
Member of the Company. Proxies, in order to be effective, must be received at the
Registered Office of the Company not less than forty-eight hours before the time
fixed for the Meeting.
PQR
Company Secretary
Place : _____________
Date : _________________
Note :
Annexure VI
148
NOTICE IN NEWSPAPERS OF POSTPONEMENT OF ANNUAL
NOTICE
Members are hereby informed that, due to the continuing total suspension of postal services
throughout the country, it has not been possible for the Company to post to the Members the
Notice convening the _____ Annual General Meeting of the Company, which was scheduled
to be held on ____________20___, together with the Financial Statements for the year ended
31st March 20_, within the stipulated time limit prescribed by the Companies Act, 2013.
Accordingly, and in view of the fact that resumption of normal postal service is not likely in
the immediate future, the Board of Directors of the Company has decided to postpone the said
Annual General Meeting, which now is convened on ___________20_. Notice and other
documents, if any, relevant to the re-convened Meeting will be dispatched to Members on
resumption of postal service throughout the country.
A Member entitled to attend and vote at the Meeting is entitled to appoint a Proxy
to attend and, on a poll, to vote instead of himself and the Proxy need not be a
Member of the Company. Proxies, in order to be effective, must be received at the
Registered Office of the Company not less than forty-eight hours before the time
fixed for the Meeting.
PQR
Company Secretary
Place : __________
Date : __________
Note :
149
Annexure VII
NOTICE BY REQUISITIONISTS
NOTICE is hereby given that the persons named below, who are Members of ______
Limited, having its Registered Office at ______________, and who have requisitioned the
convening of an Extra-Ordinary General Meeting of the Company, hereby, in exercise of the
powers and rights conferred by Section 100 of the Companies Act, 2013, give Notice that the
said requisitioned Meeting shall be held on _______________day, the________20__, at
________a.m./p.m. at_______(address) to consider the following proposal:
{OR
for considering and, if thought fit, passing the following Ordinary/ Special Resolution:
Names of requisitionists:
1. __________________
2. __________________
3. __________________
4. __________________
Note :
A Member entitled to attend and vote at the Meeting is entitled to appoint a Proxy
to attend and, on a poll, to vote instead of himself and the Proxy need not be a
Member of the Company. Proxies, in order to be effective, must be received at the
Registered Office of the Company not less than forty-eight hours before the time
fixed for the Meeting.
150
Annexure VIII
NOTICE
______ LIMITED
CIN: ____________
NOTICE is hereby given that, pursuant to a valid requisition under Section 100 of the
Companies Act, 2013, lodged at the Registered Office of the Company by the Members whose
names are annexed hereto, an Extra-Ordinary General Meeting of the Members of the
Company will be held on ________________, the______20_, at a.m./p.m. at the Registered
Office of the Company to consider the following proposal put forth by the requisitionists:
―RESOLVED that
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________‖
The Board of Directors has considered the abovementioned Resolution in its Meeting held on
_______20_ and submits the following observations thereon for the consideration of the
Members:
___________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________
{after stating the observations, it should also be stated whether the Board supports or does not
support the proposal of the requisitionists contained in the aforesaid Resolution.}
Company Secretary
Place : ______________
151
Date : ________ 20_.
Notes :
2. The requisition dated ____________, referred to above, signed by the requisite number of
Members in terms of Section 100 of the Companies Act, 2013, is available for inspection by
any Member at the Registered Office of the Company on any working day of the Company
between the hours of 11:00 a.m. and 1:00 p.m. upto the date of this Extraordinary General
Meeting.
3. All documents referred to in the Notice are open for inspection at the Registered Office of
the Company on all working days of the Company between 11:00 a.m. and 1:00 p.m. upto the
date of the requisitioned Meeting and at the venue of the Meeting for the duration of the
Meeting.
152
Annexure IX
―RESOLVED THAT pursuant to the provisions of Section 100 and other applicable
provisions of the Companies Act, 2013 and rules thereunder and as per the requisition
received from the Members, the Board of Directors hereby authorises calling of an Extra-
Ordinary General Meeting of the Members on [date] at [time] at [venue] (EGM).
RESOLVED FURTHER THAT the draft notice of the EGM and the explanatory statement
and other ancillary documents in connection with the EGM, as placed before the Board, be
and are hereby approved.
RESOLVED FURTHER THAT any one of the directors and the Company Secretary of the
Company be and are hereby authorised severally to sign and execute the notice and other
relevant documents in connection with the EGM and circulate them to the Members of the
Company and do all such acts, deeds and things as may be necessary in connection with
calling and convening of EGM including appointing scrutinisers and e-voting agencies, if
required.‖
153
Annexure X
Dated: _______
To
The Chairman of the ____ Annual General Meeting of ______ Limited being held on _day,
___________ 20_ at a.m. /p.m. at____________ (address).
We the undersigned, being the holders of an aggregate of ______ equity shares of Rs.10/Re.1/
each of the Company, as per the details set out below against our respective names, demand
that, pursuant to the provisions of Section 109 of the Companies Act, 2013, a poll be taken in
respect of the Resolution proposed at Item No. ___ of the Notice dated _____________ 20___
of the _________ Annual General Meeting of the Company on which the voting is yet to be
taken on a show of hands.
{OR
on which voting on a show of hands has been taken but the result thereof is yet to be
announced
OR
Sr. Name of Member Folio No./ Client ID No. of shares held Signature of
No. No. Members
154
Annexure XI
―I request you to make your demand on the Poll Demand Sheet so that the same can be
verified to ascertain the validity of the demand in terms of the Companies Act, 2013, and the
Articles of Association of the Company.‖
2. After verification of the demand and if the demand is found to be validly made:
―I now order that the Poll on the Resolution in respect of Item No. ______________of the
Notice, on the subject of _____________ be taken and I appoint Mr ____________ and Mr
____________ as the Scrutinisers.
The Poll will commence half an hour after the transaction of all the items on the Agenda for
the Meeting.
The Poll will be held in a part of this Hall and will continue for half an hour or till all the
Members or their valid Proxies or Authorised Representatives present and willing to cast
their votes, have cast their votes, whichever is earlier.
The details of the result of the poll would be displayed on the notice board at the Registered
Office of the Company not later than 11:00 a.m. on _______, ________ It would also be
put up on the website of the Company _______________ under the head
________________.‖
155
Annexure XII
156
ballot papers shall be deposited in a ballot box by the
Members / proxies.
10. (i) The demand for a poll, except on the question of the
election of the Chairman or of any adjournment, shall
not prevent the continuance of a Meeting for the
transaction of any business other than the question on
which a poll has been demanded.
157
13. 109 The Chairman shall regulate the manner of Poll and
declare the results, after completion of the procedures
listed in 6 to 12 above.
Notes :
(a) The Meeting is deemed to continue until the poll has been taken. Appointing a later
day for taking / completing the poll is not an adjournment.
(b) A voter may vote at the poll even though not present when the poll was demanded.
158
Annexure XIII
_______ LIMITED
POLLING RECORD
Item No. of the Notice dated ______ of the Meeting on which the poll was held : _________
S No Particulars Details
2. Address
1.
Date: __________ Initials of Scrutinisers: ___________ {each page should be initialed by the
Scrutinisers and they should sign the last page in full}
159
Annexure XIV
_____ LIMITED
RESULT OF THE POLL HELD AT THE _____ MEETING OF THE COMPANY HELD
ON SEPTEMBER___________
Result : ________________________________________________
CHAIRMAN
Place : __________
Date : __________
Time : __________
160
Annexure XV
1. Alteration of the objects clause of the memorandum and in the case of the
company in existence immediately before the commencement of the Act,
alteration of the main objects of the memorandum.
3. Change in place of registered office outside the local limits of any city, town or
village.
4. Change in objects for which a company has raised money from public through
prospectus and still has any unutilised amount out of the money so raised.
11. Any other Resolution prescribed under any applicable law, rules or
regulations.
161
Annexure XVI
A Date on which the Scrutiniser & Agency are identified Before 1st May
E Date of completion of dispatch of Notice along with postal ballot forms 1st June
and PIN MAILERS
H Last date for receiving postal ballot forms by the Scrutiniser / Last
date of Voting by electronic mode (Thirty days from the date of
1st July
completion of dispatch)
I Date of declaration of the result by the Chairman or any other 9th July
Director authorised by the Board (the same date as has been
mentioned in the Notice).
K Last date for recording the report in the Minutes Book of General 31st July
Meetings
162
Annexure XVII
_______ LIMITED
The Company had, on ________________ dispatched to all the Shareholders, Notice dated
______________ under Section 110 of the Companies Act, 2013, for obtaining the consent of
the Shareholders to the following Ordinary Resolution by means of postal ballot :
―RESOLVED that the consent of the Company be and is hereby accorded pursuant to
Section 180(1)(a) and other applicable provisions of the Companies Act, 2013, to the Board of
Directors of the Company (the Board) to sell, lease or otherwise dispose of at such
consideration and with effect from such date as the Board may think fit, the whole or
substantially the whole of the undertaking of the Company at ____________ engaged in the
business of manufacture of _____________.
RESOLVED FURTHER that the Board be and is hereby authorised to do or cause to be done
all such acts, deeds and other things as may be required or considered necessary or incidental
thereto for giving effect the aforesaid Resolution‖.
The dispatch of Notices and accompanying documents were completed on __________ (date)
to all Members appearing in the records of the Company as on _________ (cut-off date). Mr.
________, was appointed as Scrutiniser on ______________ (date) and ______________
(name of the Agency) was appointed as an Agency on ______________ (date) for providing
and supervising electronic platform for e-voting.
It was mentioned in the said Notice dated ____________ that the postal ballot forms sent
therewith should be returned by the Shareholders duly completed so as to reach the
Scrutiniser on or before ___________. The Notice also indicated the date of commencement
of e-voting as _____________ (Day) _____________ (Date) and the last date of e-voting as
_________________ (Day) ______________ (Date) alongwith the process and manner of
163
voting by electronic mode. The Scrutiniser was required to submit his report to the
Chairman after completion of the Scrutiny.
Mr. ____________ (Scrutiniser) carried out the scrutiny of all the postal ballot forms and
electronic votes received upto the close of working hours on ______________. He submitted
his Report dated _____________ on __________ (date) and the Chairman accepted the said
Report.
The following is the result of the postal ballot as per the Scrutiniser‘s Report:
In view of the foregoing, the Ordinary Resolution set out in the Notice dated __________ has
been therefore duly approved/not approved by the requisite majority of the Shareholders.
Place :______________
Date :______________
_____________________
Chairman
164
Annexure XVIII
3. Mr. C (Director)
Mr. H, Practising Company Secretary, Secretarial Auditor of the Company, was also
present.
CHAIRMAN
{OR
Mr. B was elected Chairman of the Meeting, in terms of Article ____ of the Articles of
Association of the Company}.
The Chairman welcomed the Members and introduced the Directors seated on the dais.
165
The Chairman stated that Mr......…. and Mr………directors, could not attend the Meeting
due to…………… (explain the reason for absence).
Quorum was present at the commencement of the Meeting as well as at the time of
consideration of each item of business.
The following documents / Registers of the Company remained open and accessible for
inspection during the continuance of the AGM:
(a) Financial Statements for the financial year ended 31st March, 2015, including the
Consolidated Financial Statements for the said financial year, and the Reports of the
Board of Directors and the Auditors.
(b) Register of Directors and Key Managerial Personnel and their shareholding.
With the consent of the Members present, the Notice convening the Annual General Meeting
of the Company was taken as read.
The business of the Meeting as per the Notice thereof was thereafter taken up item wise.
The Chairman requested Mr. ______________ to read the Ordinary Resolution for the
adoption of the Financial Statements for the year ended 31st March, 20_____ and Mr.
____________ read out the Ordinary Resolution as follows:
―RESOLVED that the Financial Statements of the Company for the year ended 31st March,
________, including Consolidated Financial Statements for the said financial year, along
with the Reports of the Board of Directors and the Auditors, as circulated to the Members
and laid before the Meeting, be and are hereby approved and adopted.‖
After the above Resolution was proposed and seconded, but before it was put to vote, the
Chairman invited Members (other than those present by Proxy) to make observations and
comments, if any, on the Report and financial statements, as well as on the other Resolutions
set out in the Notice convening the Meeting.
166
Some Members made their observations and comments and raised queries on the Annual
Report and Financial Statements and other items set out in the Notice and the Chairman
answered their queries.
Before putting the Resolution to vote, the Chairman reminded the Meeting that Proxies were
not eligible to vote on a show of hands. Thereafter, the Chairman put the Resolution for the
adoption of the Financial Statements, Consolidated Financial Statements and the Reports
thereon to vote as an Ordinary Resolution.
On a show of hands, the Chairman declared the aforesaid Ordinary Resolution carried by the
requisite majority.
2. Declaration of Dividend
―RESOLVED that the dividend @ Rs. ______ on the equity shares of Rs. 10/Re.1/- each,
fully paid-up, be and is hereby declared for payment, to those Members whose names appear
on the Company‘s Register of Members on ____, __________20_".
The Resolution was proposed by Mr. _____________ and seconded by Mr. ____________,
and was put to vote as an Ordinary Resolution.
On a show of hands, the Chairman declared the aforesaid Ordinary Resolution carried
unanimously.
3. Appointment of Director
The following Resolution having been proposed and seconded by the aforementioned two
Members, was put to vote as an Ordinary Resolution:
―RESOLVED that pursuant to Section 152 of the Companies Act, 2013, Mr. A, who retires
by rotation and, being eligible for re-appointment, offers himself for re-appointment, be and
is hereby re-appointed as a Director of the Company and that his period of office be liable to
determination by retirement by rotation.‖
167
On a show of hands, the Chairman declared the aforesaid Ordinary Resolution carried
unanimously.
4. Appointment of Director
The following Resolution having been proposed and seconded by the aforementioned two
Members, was put to vote as an Ordinary Resolution:
―RESOLVED that pursuant to Section 152 of the Companies Act, 2013, Mr. B, who retires
by rotation and, being eligible for re-appointment, offers himself for re-appointment, be and is
hereby re-appointed as a Director of the Company liable to retire by rotation.‖
On a show of hands, the Chairman declared the aforesaid Ordinary Resolution carried
unanimously.
5. Appointment of Director
The following Resolution having been proposed and seconded by the aforementioned two
Members, was put to the vote as an Ordinary Resolution:
―RESOLVED that, pursuant to Section 152 of the Companies Act, 2013, Mr. C, who retires
by rotation and, being eligible for re-appointment, offers himself for re-appointment, be and is
hereby re-appointed as a Director of the liable to retire by rotation.‖
On a show of hands, the Chairman declared the aforesaid Ordinary Resolution carried
unanimously.
6. Appointment of Auditors
The following Resolution having been proposed and seconded by the aforementioned two
Members, was put to vote as an Ordinary Resolution:
168
―RESOLVED THAT pursuant to the provisions of Section 139 and other applicable
provisions if any, of the Companies Act, 2013 and the Rules framed thereunder, as amended
from time to time, M/s.________, Chartered Accountants, (Firm Registration
No._________) be and are hereby appointed as Auditors of the Company to hold office from
the conclusion of this Annual General Meeting till the conclusion of the ____ Annual
General Meeting of the Company (subject to ratification of their appointment at every
AGM), at a remuneration of Rs. _______/- (Rupees _______ only) for the year _________
and Rs. _____/- (Rupees _______ only) per year for the subsequent __________ years plus
reimbursement of out of pocket expenses and service tax, as applicable.‖
On a show of hands, the Chairman declared the aforesaid Ordinary Resolution carried
unanimously.
7. Appointment of Director
The following Resolution having been proposed and seconded by the aforementioned two
Members, was put to vote as an Ordinary Resolution:
―RESOLVED that Mr. D who was appointed as an Additional Director by the Board under
Section 161 of the Companies Act, 2013 and Article ___ of the Articles of Association of the
Company and who holds office only upto the date of this Annual General Meeting and in
respect of whom the Company has received a Notice in writing, under Section 160 of the
Companies Act, 2013, from a Member signifying his intention to propose Mr. D as a
candidate for the office of a Director of the Company, be and is hereby appointed a Director of
the Company liable to retire by rotation.‖
On a show of hands, the Chairman declared the aforesaid Ordinary Resolution carried
unanimously.
169
The following Resolution having been proposed and seconded by the aforementioned two
Members, was put to vote as a Special Resolution:
―RESOLVED that, subject to the provisions of the Securities and Exchange Board of India
(Delisting of Equity Shares) Regulations, 2009, Securities Contracts (Regulation) Act, 1956,
and the Securities and Exchange of Board of India, Act, 1992, and the rules framed
thereunder and other applicable laws, rules and regulations and guidelines and subject to
such other approvals, permissions and sanctions as may be necessary and subject to such
conditions as may be prescribed by the Securities and Exchange Board of India and Stock
Exchanges while granting such approvals, permissions and sanctions, which may be agreed
to by the Board of Directors of the Company, which expression shall be deemed to include any
Committee of the Board for the time being, exercising the powers conferred by the Board, the
consent of the Company be and is hereby accorded to the Board to voluntarily de-list the
equity shares of the Company from _________________ (name of stock exchanges).
―RESOLVED FURTHER that the Board be and is hereby authorised to do all acts, deeds and
things as it may in its absolute discretion deem necessary and appropriate to give effect to the
above Resolution.‖
On a show of hands, the Chairman declared the aforesaid Special Resolution carried with the
requisite majority.
There being no other business to transact, the Meeting closed with a vote of thanks to the
Chair.
_________________
CHAIRMAN
Date : __________
Place: ____________
170
Under each item before proposal and seconding of the Resolutions, we should record as
follows: ―The objective and implications of the Resolution were explained by the Chairman
(or at the request of the Chairman by Mr…….. (designation)‖
The Chairman informed that there were no qualifications, observations or comments or other
remarks, if any, mentioned in the Auditor‘s Report or in the Secretarial Auditor‘s Report.
OR
The Chairman asked the auditors to read the qualifications*/, observations*/ comments*/
other remarks*, mentioned in the Auditor‘s* / Secretarial Auditor‘s* Report.
Attention of the Members present was drawn to the explanations / comments given by the
Board of Directors in their report at page…..para…..
171
Annexure XIX
3. Mr. C (Director)
CHAIRMAN
{OR:
Mr. B was elected Chairman of the Meeting, in terms of Article __ of the Articles of
Association of the Company}
The Chairman welcomed the Members and introduced the Directors seated on the Dias.
The Chairman stated that Mr. .....…. and Mr. ……Directors, could not attend the Meeting
due to…………… (explain the reason for absence).
Quorum was present at the commencement of the Meeting as well as at the time of
consideration of each item of business.
172
With the consent of the Members present, the Notice convening the Extra-Ordinary General
Meeting of the Company was taken as read.
The business of the Meeting, as per the Notice thereof, was thereafter taken up item-wise.
The following Resolution having been proposed and seconded by the aforementioned two
Members was put to vote as a Special Resolution:
―RESOLVED that pursuant to Section 13 and other applicable provisions, if any, of the
Companies Act, 2013, and subject to the approval of the Regional Director, the Registered
Office of the Company be shifted from the National Capital Territory of Delhi to the State of
Haryana.
―RESOLVED FURTHER that the Board of Directors of the Company be and is hereby
authorised to file the necessary petition(s) before the Regional Director, Northern Region at
Noida for confirmation of the alteration of Clause - II of the Memorandum of Association of
the Company as aforesaid and to carry out all other acts and deeds as are necessary in
connection therewith, including compliance of directions, if any, of the concerned
authorities.‖
The Chairman enquired from the Members present if there were any clarifications required
on the same. Since none of the Members required any clarification, the Special Resolution
was put to vote and on a show of hands declared carried by the requisite majority.
The following Resolution having been proposed and seconded respectively by the
aforementioned Members was put to vote as a Special Resolution:
173
―RESOLVED that pursuant to the provisions of Sections 149, (150(2), 152 and any other
applicable provisions of the Companies Act, 2013 and the rules made there under read with
Schedule IV to the Companies Act, 2013, approval of the Company be and is hereby accorded
for appointment of Mr. E (DIN No.__________), as an Independent Director of the
Company to hold the office for a period of 3 years i.e. up to ___________, ______ AND
THAT by virtue of sub-section (13) of Section 149 of the Companies Act, 2013 he shall not be
liable to retire by rotation.‖
The Chairman enquired from the Members present if there were any clarifications required
on the same. Since none of the Members required any clarification, the Ordinary Resolution
was put to vote and on a show of hands declared carried by the requisite majority.
There being no other business to transact the Meeting closed with a vote of thanks to the
Chair.
____________________
CHAIRMAN
Date: ___________
Place: ___________
174
GLOSSARY
―Alter‖ or ―alteration‖ includes the making of additions, omissions and
substitutions [Sub-section (3) of section 2 of Companies Act, 2013]
(ii) any other body corporate (not being a company as defined in this Act), which
the Central Government may, by notification, specify in this behalf.
[Sub-section (11) of Section 2 of the Companies Act, 2013]
―Court‖ means—
(i) the High Court having jurisdiction in relation to the place at which the
registered office of the company concerned is situate, except to the extent to which
jurisdiction has been conferred on any district court or district courts subordinate
to that High Court under sub-clause (ii);
175
(ii) the district court, in cases where the Central Government has, by notification,
empowered any district court to exercise all or any of the jurisdictions conferred
upon the High Court, within the scope of its jurisdiction in respect of a company
whose registered office is situate in the district;
(iii) the Court of Session having jurisdiction to try any offence under this Act or
under any previous company law;
(v) any Metropolitan Magistrate or a Judicial Magistrate of the First Class having
jurisdiction to try any offence under this Act or under any previous company law.
[Sub-section (29) of Section 2 of the Companies Act, 2013]
176
(ii) a profit and loss account, or in the case of a company carrying on any activity
not for profit, an income and expenditure account for the financial year;
(v) any explanatory note annexed to, or forming part of, any document referred to
in sub-clause (i) to sub-clause (iv):
Provided that the financial statement, with respect to One Person Company, small
company and dormant company, may not include the cash flow statement. [Sub-
section (40) of Section 2 of the Companies Act, 2013]
177
directors, amounting to two per cent. or more of its gross turnover or total
income or fifty lakh rupees or such higher amount as may be prescribed,
whichever is lower, during the two immediately preceding financial years or
during the current financial year;
(e) who, neither himself nor any of his relatives—
(i) holds or has held the position of a key managerial personnel or is or has
been employee of the company or its holding, subsidiary or associate
company in any of the three financial years immediately preceding the
financial year in which he is proposed to be appointed;
(ii) is or has been an employee or proprietor or a partner, in any of the three
financial years immediately preceding the financial year in which he is
proposed to be appointed, of—
(A) a firm of auditors or company secretaries in practice or cost auditors of
the company or its holding, subsidiary or associate company; or
(B) any legal or a consulting firm that has or had any transaction with the
company, its holding, subsidiary or associate company amounting to ten
per cent. or more of the gross turnover of such firm;
(iii) holds together with his relatives two per cent. or more of the total voting
power of the company; or
(iv) is a Chief Executive or director, by whatever name called, of any nonprofit
organisation that receives twenty-five per cent. or more of its receipts from the
company, any of its promoters, directors or its holding, subsidiary or associate
company or that holds two per cent. or more of the total voting power of the
company; or
(f) who possesses such other qualifications as may be prescribed.
[Sub-section (6) of Section 149 of the Companies Act, 2013]
―Listed company‖ means a company which has any of its securities listed on
any recognised stock exchange. [Sub-section (52) of Section 2 of the Companies Act,
2013]
178
• "Managing Director" means a director who, by virtue of the articles of a
company or an agreement with the company or a Resolution passed in its general
Meeting, or by its Board of Directors, is entrusted with substantial powers of
management of the affairs of the company and includes a director occupying the
position of managing director, by whatever name called.
(i) the subscriber to the memorandum of the company who shall be deemed to
have agreed to become member of the company, and on its registration, shall be
entered as member in its register of members;
(ii) every other person who agrees in writing to become a member of the company
and whose name is entered in the register of members of the company;
(iii) every person holding shares of the company and whose name is entered as a
beneficial owner in the records of a depository. [Sub-section (55) of Section 2 of
the Companies Act, 2013]
179
―notification‖ means a notification published in the Official Gazette and the
expression ―notify‖ shall be construed accordingly. [Sub-section (58) of Section 2 of
the Companies Act, 2013]
―One Person Company‖ means a company which has only one person as a
member. [Sub-section (62) of Section 2 of the Companies Act, 2013].
―Postal ballot‖ means voting by post or through any electronic mode [Sub-
section (65) of Section 2 of the Companies Act, 2013]
180
(iii) a firm, in which a director, manager or his relative is a partner;
(vi) any body corporate whose board of directors, managing director or manager
is accustomed to act in accordance with the advice, directions or instructions of a
director or manager;
Provided that nothing in sub-clauses (vi) and (vii) shall apply to the advice,
directions or instructions given in a professional capacity;
181
―Remuneration‖ means any money or its equivalent given or passed to any
person for services rendered by him and includes perquisites as defined under the
Income-tax Act, 1961 [Sub-section (78) of Section 2 of the Companies Act, 2013]
―Securities‖ include—
(i) shares, scrips, stocks, bonds, debentures, debenture stock or other marketable
securities of a like nature in or of any incorporated company or other body
corporate;
(ia) derivative;
(ib) units or any other instrument issued by any collective investment scheme to
the investors in such schemes;
(ic) security receipt as defined in clause (zg) of section 2 of the Securitisation and
Reconstruction of Financial Assets and Enforcement of Security Interest Act, 2002;
(id) units or any other such instrument issued to the investors under any mutual
fund scheme;
―Share‖ means a share in the share capital of a company and includes stock
[Sub-section (84) of Section 2 of the Companies Act, 2013]
―Total Share Capital‖, for the purposes of clause (6) and clause (87) of
section 2, means the aggregate of the -
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(b) convertible preference share capital
"total voting power", in relation to any matter, means the total number of
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