(1) The Central Government may, for the purpose of providing speedy trial of 2[offences under this Act, except under section 452], establish or designate as many Special Courts as may be necessary.
(2) A Special Court shall consist of--
(a) a single judge holding office as Session Judge or Additional Session Judge, in case of offences punishable under this Act with imprisonment of two years or more; and
(b) a Metropolitan Magistrate or a Judicial Magistrate of the First Class, in the case of other offences, who shall be appointed by the Central Government with the concurrence of the Chief Justice of the High Court within whose jurisdiction the judge to be appointed is working.]
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1. Subs. by Act 1 of 2018, s. 86, for section 435 (w.e.f.
7-5-2018).
2. Subs. by Act 29 of 2020, s. 60, for "offences under this
Act, by notification" (w.e.f. 22-1-2021).
(1) Notwithstanding anything contained in the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (2 of 1974),--
(a) 1[all offences specified under sub-section (1) of section 435] shall be triable only by the Special Court established for the area in which the registered office of the company in relation to which the offence is committed or where there are more Special Courts than one for such area, by such one of them as may be specified in this behalf by the High Court concerned;
(b) where a person accused of, or suspected of the commission of, an offence under this Act is forwarded to a Magistrate under sub-section (2) or sub-section (2A) of section 167 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (2 of 1974), such Magistrate may authorise the detention of such person in such custody as he thinks fit for a period not exceeding fifteen days in the whole where such Magistrate is a Judicial Magistrate and seven days in the whole where such Magistrate is an Executive Magistrate:
Provided that where such Magistrate considers that the detention of such person upon or before the expiry of the period of detention is unnecessary, he shall order such person to be forwarded to the Special Court having jurisdiction;
(c) the Special Court may exercise, in relation to the person forwarded to it under clause (b), the same power which a Magistrate having jurisdiction to try a case may exercise under section 167 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (2 of 1974) in relation to an accused person who has been forwarded to him under that section; and
(d) a Special Court may, upon
perusal of the police report of the facts constituting an
offence under this Act or upon a complaint in that behalf,
take cognizance of that offence without the accused being
committed to it for trial.
(2) When trying an offence under this Act, a Special Court
may also try an offence other than an offence under this Act
with which the accused may, under the Code of Criminal
Procedure, 1973 (2 of 1974) be charged at the same trial.
(3) Notwithstanding anything contained in the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (2 of 1974), the Special Court may, if it thinks fit, try in a summary way any offence under this Act which is punishable with imprisonment for a term not exceeding three years:
Provided that in the case of any conviction in a summary trial, no sentence of imprisonment for a term exceeding one year shall be passed:
Provided further that when at the commencement of, or in the course of, a summary trial, it appears to the Special Court that the nature of the case is such that the sentence of imprisonment for a term exceeding one year may have to be passed or that it is, for any other reason, undesirable to try the case summarily, the Special Court shall, after hearing the parties, record an order to that effect and thereafter recall any witnesses who may have been examined and proceed to hear or rehear the case in accordance with the procedure for the regular trial.
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1. Subs. by Act 21 of 2015, s. 22, for "all offences under this Act" (w.e.f. 29-5-2015).