Section 146 : Offences
It shall be an offence under this Act, if,—
(a) any member of a society transfers any property or interest in property in contravention of sub-section (2) of section 47 or any person knowingly acquires, or abets in the acquisition of, such property ; or
(b) any employer and every director, manager, secretary or other officer or agent acting on behalf of such 1[employer who without any sufficient cause fails to pay a co-operative society amount deducted by him from its employee within a period of fourteen days from the date on which such deduction is made, and also any person who,] without sufficient cause, fails to comply with sub-section (2) of section 49 ; or
(c) a committee of a society or an officer or member thereof fails to invest funds of such society in the manner required by section 70 ; or
(d) any person, collecting the share money for a society in formation, does not within a reasonable period deposit the same in the State Co- operative Bank, or a Central Co-operative Bank, or an urban Co-operative Bank, or a postal savings Bank ; or
(e) any person, collecting the share money for a society in formation, makes use of the funds so raised for conducting any business or trading in the name of a society to be registered or otherwise ; or
(e-1) any person, who collects share money or any other sum by misrepresentation to the members or prospective members in the name of the society to be registered, or after registration of a society by such misrepresentation, or otherwise ; or
(e-2) any person knowingly gives a false certificate in whatever form showing that a person is or is not a “ defaulter ” within the meaning of that expression in the Explanation to clause (i) of sub- section (1) of 3[section 73CA] ; or]
(f ) a committee of a society, or an officer or member thereof, fails to comply with the provisions of sub-section (2), 4[(2A),] (3) or (4) of section 75 ; or
(g) 5[a co-operative society or an officer or member thereof wilfully makes a false return or fails to furnish a return under section 75 or 79 of the Act, or furnishes false information or wilfully fails to furnish any information required from him by a person holding an inquiry under section 83, person authorised under section 88 or as required under any provisions of this Act,] any officer or member of a society who is in possession of information, books and records, fails to furnish such information or produce books and papers, or give assistance to a person appointed or authorised by the State Government or the Registrar under section 6[77A, 78, 78A, 81, 83, 84, 88, 89A, 94, 103, or 110A ;] or
(h) any officer or custodian who wilfully fails to hand over custody of books, accounts, documents, records, cash, security and any other property belonging to a co-operative society of which he is an officer or custodian, to an authorised person or, to a person appointed under sections 77A, 78, 78A, 103 or 110A, or any other person appointed under this Act ; or
(h-1) a committee of a society or an officer or member thereof involved in corrupt practices during the election ; or]
(i) a committee of a society with a working capital of fifty thousand rupees or more, or any officer or a member thereof, fails without any reasonable excuse to give any notice, send any return or document, do or allow to be done anything, which the committee, officer or member is by this Act required to give, send, do or allow to be done or comply with orders made under section 79 ; or
(j) 2[any person, wilfully or without any reasonable excuse, disobeys any summons, requisition or lawful written order issued under sections 81, 83, 88, or any other provisions of the Act ; or] a committee of a society or an officer or member thereof wilfully neglects or refuses to do any act, or to furnish any information required for the purposes of this Act by the Registrar, or other person duly authorised by him in writing in this behalf ; or
(k) a committee of a society, or an officer or member thereof, wilfully makes a false return, or furnishes false information, or fails to maintain proper accounts ; or
(l) any officer, member, agent or servant of a society fails to comply with the requirements of sub-section (4) of section 81 ; or
(l-1) the Committee fails to submit audit rectification report to the Registrar and the annual general body meeting as per section 82 ; or]
(m) any officer or a member of a society wilfully fails to comply with any decision, award or order passed under section 4[96] ; or
(n) a member of a society fraudulently disposes of property over which the society has a prior claim, or a member or officer or employee or any person disposes of his property by sale, transfer, mortagage, gift or otherwise, with the fraudulent intention of evading the dues of the society ; or
(o) any officer of a society wilfully recommends, or sanctions for his own personal use or benefit or for the use or benefit of a person in whom he is interested, a loan in the name of any other person ; or
(p) any officer or member of a society destroys, mutilates, tampers with, or otherwise alters, falsifies or secretes or is privy to the destruction, mutilation, alteration, falsification or secreting of any books, papers or securities or makes, or is privy to the making of any false or fraudulent entry in any register, book of account or document belonging to the society ; or
(p-1) in case of non-agricultural co-operative credit society, in addition to above,—
(i) the society violates section 43 or 44 ; or
(ii) the society engages in any form of business other than those referred to in sub-section (1) of section 144-4A ; or
(iii) the society deals in any activity which is prohibited as per the provisions of section 144-6A ; or
(iv) the society does not dispose of the property not required for the society within the stipulated period mentioned in section 144-7A ; or
(v) the society exceeds the limit on administrative and establishment expenses as notified as per section 144-8A ; or
(vi) the society acts contrary to the provisions of section 144- 11A and section 144-12A ; or
(vii) the society fails to comply with the guidelines issued and regulations framed under section 144-22A ; or
(viii) the society fails to contribute towards the Stabilization and Liquidity Support Fund as per the provision of section 144-26A ; or]
(p-2) any officer or past officer or Member or past Member of the Committee of the housing society fails to supply the copies of the documents as provided under sub-section (2) of section 154B-8 ; or]
(q) any officer or member of a society or any person does any act declared by the rules to be an offence.
Explanation.—For the purpose of this section, an officer or a member referred to in the section shall include past officer and past member, as the case may be.
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