Investment in Associated Company and Related Party Transactions

INVESTMENT IN ASSOCIATED COMPANIES / UNDERTAKINGS AND RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS

Section 134 – Provisions as to meetings and votes

134. Provisions as to meetings and votes. —(1) The following provisions shall apply to the general meetings of a company or meetings of a class of members of the company, namely:

(a) notice of the meeting specifying the place and the day and hour of the meeting alongwith a statement of the business to be transacted at the meeting shall be given—

(i) to every member or class of the members of the company as the case may be;

(ii) to every director;

(iii) to any person who is entitled to a share in consequence of the death or bankruptcy of a member, if the company has been notified of his entitlement;

(iv) to the auditors of the company;

in the manner in which notices are required to be served by section 55, but the accidental omission to give notice to, or the non-receipt of notice by, any member shall not invalidate the proceedings at any meeting;

(b) in case of a listed company, if certain members who hold ten percent of the total paid up capital or such other percentage as may be specified, reside in a city, it shall be mentioned in the notice that such members, may demand the company to provide them the facility of video-link for attending the meeting.

(2) For the purposes of sub-section (1), in the case of an annual general meeting, all the businesses to be transacted shall be deemed special, other than—

(a) the consideration of financial statements and the reports of the board and auditors;

(b) the declaration of any dividend;

(c) the election and appointment of directors in place of those retiring; and

(d) the appointment of the auditors and fixation of their remuneration.

(3) Where any special business is to be transacted at a general meeting, there shall be annexed to the notice of the meeting a statement setting out all material facts concerning such business, including, in particular, the nature and extent of the interest, if any, therein of every director, whether directly or indirectly, and, where any item of business consists of the according of an approval to any document by the meeting, the time when and the place where the document may be inspected, shall be specified in the statement.

(4) Members of a company may participate in the meeting personally, through video-link or by proxy.

(5) The chairman of the board, if any, shall preside as chairman at every general meeting of the company, but if there is no such chairman, or if at any meeting he is not present within fifteen minutes after the time appointed for holding the meeting, or is unwilling to act as chairman, any one of the directors present may be elected to be chairman, and if none of the directors is present or is unwilling to act as chairman the members present shall choose one of their member to be the chairman.

(6) In the case of a company having a share capital, every member shall have votes proportionate to the paid-up value of the shares or other securities carrying voting rights held by him according to the entitlement of the class of such shares or securities, as the case may be:

Provided that, at the time of voting, fractional votes shall not be taken into account.

(7) No member holding shares or other securities carrying voting rights shall be debarred from casting his vote, nor shall anything contained in the articles have the effect of so debarring him.

(8) In the case of a company limited by guarantee and having no share capital, every member thereof shall have one vote.

(9) On a poll, votes may be given either personally or through video-link or by proxy or through postal ballot in a manner and subject to the conditions as may be specified.

(10) Notwithstanding anything contained in this Act, the Commission shall have the power to notify any business requiring the approval of the members shall only be transacted through postal ballot for any company or class of companies.

(11) All the requirements of this Act regarding calling of, holding and approval in general meeting, board meeting and election of directors in case of a single member company, shall be deemed complied with; if the decision is recorded in the relevant minutes book and signed by the sole member or sole director as the case may be.

(12) Any contravention or default in complying with requirement of this section shall be an offence liable—

(a) in case of a listed company, to a penalty of level 3 on the standard scale; and

(b) in case of any other company, to a penalty of level 2 on the standard scale.