Requirements as to capital structure and voting rights and maintenance of registers of beneficial owners of shares
6A. (1) No public company limited by shares having its registered office in
(i) that the capital of the company consists only of ordinary shares each of which have a single face value;
(ii) that, except during any period not exceeding one year allowed by the company for payment of calls on shares, the paid‑up amount is the same for all shares, whether existing or new:
Provided that the conditions specified in this sub‑section shall not apply to a public company which has, before the commencement of the Insurance (Amendment) Act, 1950 (47 of 1950), issued any shares other than ordinary shares each of which has a single face value or any shares paid‑up amount whereof is not the same for all of them for a period of three years from such commencement.
(2) Notwithstanding anything to the contrary contained in any law for the time being in force or in the memorandum or articles of association but subject to the other provisions contained in this section the voting right of every shareholder of any public company as aforesaid shall in all cases be strictly proportionate to the paid‑up amount of the shares held by him.
(3) No public company as aforesaid which carries on life insurance business shall, after the commencement of the Insurance (Amendment) Act, 1950 (47 of 1950), issue any shares other than ordinary shares of the nature specified in sub-section (l).
(4) A public company as aforesaid which carries on life insurance business-
(a) shall maintain, in addition to the register of members to be maintained under the Indian Companies Act, 1913 (7 of 1913~3 a register of shares in which shall be entered the name, occupation and address of the beneficial owner of each share, and shall incorporate therein any change of beneficial owner declared to it within fourteen days from the receipt of such declaration;
(b) shall not register any transfer of its shares
(i) unless, in addition to compliance being made with the provisions of section 34 of the Indian Companies Act, 1913 (7 of 1913), the transferee furnishes a declaration in the prescribed form as to whether he proposes to hold the shares for his own benefit or as a nominee, whether jointly or severally, on behalf of others and in the latter case giving the name, occupation and address of the beneficial owner or owners, and the extent of the beneficial interest of each;
(ii) where, after the transfer, the total paid‑up holding of the transferee in the shares of the company is likely to exceed five per cent. of its paid‑up capital or where the transferee is a banking or an investment company, is likely to exceed two and a half per cent of such paid‑up capital, unless the previous 2[approval of the Authority] has been obtained to the transfer;
(iii) where, the nominal value of the shares intended to be transferred by any individual, firm, group, constituents of a group, or body corporate under the same management, jointly or severally exceeds one per cent of the paid-up equity capital of the insurer, unless the previous approval of the Authority has been obtained for the transfer.
Explanation.- For the purposes of this sub-clause, the expressions “group” and “same management” shall have the same meanings respectively assigned to them in the Monopolies and Restrictive Trade Practices Act, 1969 (54 of 1969);
(5) Every person who has any interest in any share of a company referred to in sub-section (4) which stands in the name of another person in the register of members of the company, shall, within thirty days from the commencement of the Insurance (Amendment) Act, 1950 (47 of l950), or from the date on which he acquires such interest, whichever is later, make a declaration in the prescribed form (which shall be countersigned by the person in whose name the share is registered) to the company declaring his interest in such share, and notwithstanding anything contained in any other law or in any contract to the contrary, a person who fails to make a declaration as aforesaid in respect of any share shall be deemed to have no right or title whatsoever in that share:
Provided that nothing in this sub-section shall affect the right of a person who has an interest in any such share to establish in a court his right thereto, if the person, in whose name the share is registered, refuses to countersign the declaration as required by this sub‑section:
Provided further that where any share, belonging to an individual who has made any such declaration as is referred to in this sub‑section, is held by a company in its name in pursuance of any trust or for the purpose of safe custody or collection or realization of dividend, such individual shall, notwithstanding anything contained in the Indian Companies Act, 1913 (7 of 1913), or in the memorandum or articles of association of the company which has issued the share, be deemed to be the holder of the said share for the purpose of exercising any voting rights under this section to the exclusion of any other person.
(6) If the total paid‑up holding of any person in the shares of a company referred to in sub‑section (1) on the commencement of the Insurance (Amendment) Act 1950 (47 of 1950), exceeds two and a half per cent of its paid-up capital where that person is a banking company or an investment company, or five per cent of its paid‑up capital in any other case, he shall not be entitled to any vote as a shareholder of the company in respect of such excess holding of shares.
(7) Where the total paid‑up holding of any person in the shares of a company referred to sub‑section (1) on the date of the commencement of the Insurance (Amendment) Act, 1950 (47 of 1950), exceeds five per cent of its paid‑up capital where that person is a banking company or an investment company, or ten per cent of its paid‑up capital in any other case, he shall dispose of the excess holding of shares within three years from such commencement or such further period not exceeding two years as may be allowed to him by the Central Government.
(8) If, after the expiry of three years or of such further period as may be allowed to any person under sub‑section (7), the total paid up holding of any such person has not been reduced to the limits specified in that sub-section, any shares in excess of the limits specified in that sub‑section shall vest in the Administrator‑General of the State in which the registered office of the company concerned is situate and the Administrator‑General shall take such steps as may be necessary for taking charge of any property which has so vested in him and shall dispose of the said shares and the proceeds thereof in such manner as may be prescribed.
(9) Subject to the other provisions contained in this section, but notwithstanding anything contained in the Indian Companies Act, 1913 (7 of 1913), or in the memorandum or articles of association of any such company as is referred to in sub‑section (1), no such company shall refuse to register the transfer of any shares where the transfer is for the purpose of securing compliance with the provisions of sub‑sections (7) and (8).
(10) The Central Government may, subject to such restrictions as it may think fit to impose, exempt from the operation of sub‑sections (6), (7) and (8) any insurance company, in any case where the total paid‑up holding of such insurance company in the shares of any other insurance company exceeds the limits specified in the said sub‑sections, if the other insurance company is or is to be made a subsidiary company of the insurance company.
(11) The provisions of this section, except those of sub‑sections (7), (8) and (9), shall, on and from the commencement of the Insurance (Amendment) Act, 1968, also apply to insurers carrying on general insurance business subject to the following notifications, namely:-
(i) that references in sub‑sections (1), (3), (5) and (6) to the Insurance (Amendment)
Act, 1950, (47 of 1950), shall be construed as reference to the Insurance (Amendment) Act, 1968; and
(ii) references in sub‑section (10) to sub‑sections (7) and (8) shall be omitted.
Explanation -For the purposes of this section, the holding of a person in the shares of a company shall be deemed to include‑
(i) the total paid‑up holding in such shares held by such person in the name of others; and
(ii) if any shares of the company are held -
(a) by a public limited company, of which such person is a member holding more than ten per cent. of the paid‑up capital, or
(b) by a private limited company, of which such person is a member, or
(c) by a company, of which such person is a managing director, manager, managing agent or in which he has a controlling interest, or
(d) by a firm in which such person is a partner, or
(e) by such person jointly with others,
such part of the total paid‑up holding of the company or firm or of the total joint holding in those shares, as is proportionate to the contribution made by such person to the paid‑up capital of the company, the paid‑up capital of the firm or the joint holding, as the case may be.
Manner of divesting excess shareholding by promoter in certain cases
6AA. (1) No promoter shall at any time hold more than twenty-six per cent or such other percentage as may be prescribed, of the paid-up equity capital in an Indian insurance company:
Provided that in a case where an Indian insurance company begins the business of life insurance, general insurance or re-insurance in which the promoters hold more than twenty-six per cent of the paid-up equity capital or such other excess percentage as may be prescribed, the promoters shall divest in a phased manner the share capital in excess of the twenty-six per cent of the paid-up equity capital or such excess paid-up equity capital as may be prescribed, after a period of ten years from the date of the commencement of the said business by such Indian insurance company or with such period as may be prescribed by the Central Government.
Explanation.- For the removal of doubts, it is hereby declared that nothing contained in the proviso shall apply to the promoters being foreign company, referred to in sub-clause (b) of clause (7A) of section 2.
(2) The manner and procedure for divesting the excess share capital under sub-section (1) shall be specified by the regulations made by the Authority.
Provision for securing compliance with requirements relating to capital structure
6B.(1) For the purpose of enabling any public company carrying on life insurance business to bring its capital structure into conformity with the requirements of section 6A, an officer appointed in this behalf by the Central Government may, notwithstanding anything contained in the Indian Companies Act, 1913 (7 of 1913),—
(a) examine any scheme proposed for the purpose aforesaid by the directors of the company:
Provided that—
(i) the scheme has been placed before a meeting of the shareholders for their opinion and has been forwarded to the officer together with the opinion of the shareholders thereon, and
(ii) the scheme does not involve any diminution of the liability of the shareholders in respect of unpaid‑up share capital;
(b) invite objections and suggestions in respect of the scheme so proposed; and
(c) after considering such objections and suggestions to the scheme so proposed,
sanction it with such modifications as he may consider necessary or desirable.
(2) Any shareholder or other person aggrieved by the decision of the officer sanctioning a scheme under sub‑section (1) may, within ninety days of the date of the order sanctioning the scheme, prefer an appeal to the High Court within whose jurisdiction the registered office of the insurer is situate for the purpose of modifying or correcting any such scheme for the purpose specified in sub‑section (1).
(3) The decision of the High Court where an appeal has been preferred to it under sub‑section (2), or of the officer aforesaid where no such appeal has been preferred, shall be final and binding on all the shareholders and other persons concerned.
(4) The provisions of this section shall, on and from the commencement of the Insurance (Amendment) Act, 1968, also apply to insurers carrying on general insurance business.
Conversion of company limited by shares into company limited by guarantee
6C. (1) Where a public company limited by shares carrying on insurance business has passed a special resolution for converting itself into a public company limited by guarantee, it may apply to the Central Government with a scheme for putting the special resolution into effect, including any provision for the alteration of the memorandum or articles of association insofar as it may be necessary for this purpose.
(2) If the Central Government, after giving such notice to any person concerned as it thinks fit, is satisfied-
(a) that the scheme makes suitable provision with respect to the repayment, conversion or liquidation of the paid‑up capital of the company,
(b) that the consent of the creditors to the conversion of the company limited by shares into a company limited by guarantee has been obtained, or that suitable provisions have been made for discharging, determining or securing the debts or claims of such creditors, and
(c) that the scheme is otherwise reasonable, it may sanction the scheme and thereupon the scheme shall become binding on the company and on all the persons concerned.
(3) Against the decision of the Central Government, sanctioning a scheme under sub‑section (2), any person aggrieved thereby may, within ninety days of the date of the order sanctioning the scheme, prefer an appeal to the High Court within whose jurisdiction the registered office of the insurer is situate.
(4) The decision of the High Court where an appeal has been preferred to it under sub‑section (3) or of the Central Government where no such appeal has been preferred, shall be final and binding on all the persons concerned.
(5) Where a scheme has been sanctioned under this section, the company shall file with the Registrar of Companies a certified copy of the scheme as sanctioned, and thereupon the provisions of the Indian Companies Act, 1913 (7 of 1913), relating to companies limited by guarantee shall become applicable to the company.
Deposits
7. (1) Every insurer shall, in respect of the insurance business carried on by him in India, deposit and keep deposited with the Reserve Bank of India in one of the offices in India of the Bank for and on behalf of the Central Government the amount hereafter specified, either in cash or in approved securities estimated at the market value of the securities on the day of deposit, or partly in cash and partly in approved securities so estimated:-
(a) in the case of life insurance business, a sum equivalent to one per cent of his total gross premium written direct in India in any financial year commencing after the 31st day of March, 2000, not exceeding rupees ten crores;
(b) in the case of general insurance business, a sum equivalent to three per cent of his total gross premium written in India, in any financial year commencing after the 31st day of March, 2000, not exceeding rupees ten crores;
(c) in the case of re-insurance business, a sum of rupees twenty crores
Provided that, where the business done or to be done is marine insurance only and relates exclusively to country craft or its cargo or both, the amount to be deposited under this sub-section shall be one hundred thousand rupees only:
Provided further that in respect of an insurer not having a share capital and carrying on only such insurance business as in the opinion of the Central Government is not carried on ordinarily by insurers under separate policies, the Central Government may, by notification under Official Gazette, order that the provisions of this sub‑section shall apply to such insurer with the modification that instead of sum of rupees twenty lakhs or rupees ten lakhs, as the case may be, the deposit to be made by such insurer shall be such amount, being not less than one hundred and fifty thousand rupees, as may be specified in the said order.
(2) Where the insurer is an insurer specified in sub‑clause (c) of clause (9) of Section 2, he shall be deemed to have complied with the provisions of this section as to deposits, if in respect of insurance business carried on by him in India under a standing contract of the nature referred to in sub-clause (c) of clause (9) of section 2 a deposit of an amount one-and-a‑half times that specified in sub-section (1) has been made in the Reserve Bank of India in one of the offices in India of the Bank for and on behalf of the Central Government in cash or approved securities estimated at the market value of the securities on the day of deposit by or on behalf of the underwriters who are members of the Society of Lloyd's with whom he has his standing contract.
(3) Where the deposit to be made by an insurer not carrying on insurance business in India immediately before the commencement of the Insurance (Amendment) Act, 1968, a deposit of rupees ten lakhs shall be made before the application for registration is made, and the provision of clause (ii) of sub‑section (1A) shall apply to such insurer after his registration as they apply to an insurer specified in clause (a) of sub-section (1).
(4) An insurer shall not be registered for any class of insurance business in addition to the class or classes for which is already registered until the full deposit required under sub-section (1) has been made.
(5) Where an insurer who intends to become a member of a group, does not carry on all the classes of insurance business carried on by the other insurers in such group, or, where out of the several insurers who desire to form themselves into a group, any insurer does not carry on all the classes of insurance business carried on by the other insurers who desire to form themselves into the group, such insurer may be registered for that class or those classes of insurance business which is or are carried on by the other insurers of the group or the proposed group, as the case may be, and where any application for registration is made by any such insurer, the Authority may, notwithstanding anything contained in sub‑section (2A) of Section 3 or sub‑section (4), register such insurer for one or more additional classes of insurance, if the following conditions are fulfilled, namely:-
(a) the Authority is satisfied that registration for the proposed one or more additional classes of insurance‑business would qualify the insurer to become number of a group;
(b) agreements have been executed by all the insurers in the group or proposed group, as the case may be, and such agreements in the opinion of the Authority, satisfy the requirements of the Explanation to sub-section (1B); and
(c) the insurer has, after the commencement of the Insurance (Amendment) Act, 1968, made deposit of a sum not less than the total of all the instalments of deposit which he would have been required to make after such commencement till the date of his becoming a member of the group, had he been a member of the group from such commencement.
(6) The Authority shall cancel the registration made in pursuance of the provisions of sub‑section (5), if the insurer referred to therein fails to become, within a period of three months from the date of such registration' a member of the group or proposed group, as the case may be, and, where such registration has been cancelled, the provisions of this Act shall apply to the insurer as if he had not been registered for the class or classes of insurance business in relation to which his registration has been cancelled.
(7) Securities already deposited with the Controller of Currency in compliance with the Indian Life Assurance Companies Act, 1912 (6 of 1912), shall be transferred by him to the Reserve Bank of India and shall, to the extent of their market value as at the date of the commencement of this Act, be deemed to be deposited under this Act, as the instalment or as part of this instalment to be made under the foregoing provisions of this section before the application for registration is made whether any such application is or is not in fact made.
(8) A deposit made in cash shall be held by the Reserve Bank of India to the credit of the insurer and shall except to the extent, if any, to which the cash has been invested in securities under sub‑section (9A), be returnable to the insurer in cash in any case in which under the provisions of this Act a deposit is to be returned; and any interest accruing due and collected on securities deposited under sub‑section (1) or sub‑section (2) shall be paid to the insurer, subject only to deduction of the normal commission chargeable for the realization of interest.
(9) The insurer may at any time replace any securities deposited by him under this section with the Reserve Bank of India either by cash or by other approved securities or partly by cash and partly by other approved securities, provided that such cash, or the value of such other approved securities estimated at the market rates prevailing at the time of replacement, or such cash together with such value, as the case may be, is not less than the value of the securities replaced estimated at the market rates prevailing when they were deposited.
(9A) The Reserve Bank of
(a) sell any securities deposited by him with the Bank under this section and hold the cash realized by such sale as deposit, or
(b) invest in approved securities specified by the insurer the whole or any part of a deposit held by it in cash or the whole or any part of cash received by it on the sale of or on the maturing of securities deposited by the insurer, and hold the securities in which investment is so made as deposit.
and may charge the normal commission on such sale or on such investment.
(9B) where sub-section (9A) applies ‑
(a) if the cash realized by the sale of or on the maturing of the securities (excluding in the former case the interest accrued) falls short of the market value of the securities at the date on which they were deposited with the Bank, the insurer shall make good the deficiency by a further deposit either in cash or in approved securities estimated at the market value of the securities, on the day on which they are deposited, or partly in cash and partly in approved securities so estimated, within a period of two months from the date on which the securities matured or were sold or where the securities matured or were sold before the 21st day of March, 1940, within a period of four months from the commencement of the Insurance (Amendment) Act, 1940 (20 of 1940); and unless he does so the insurer shall be deemed to have failed to comply with the requirements of this section as to deposits; and
(b) if the cash realized by the sale of or on the maturing of the securities (excluding in the former case the interest accrued) exceeds the market value of the securities at the date on which they were deposited with the Bank, the Central Government may, if satisfied that the full amount required to be deposited under sub‑section (1) is in deposit, direct the Reserve Bank to return the excess.
(10) If any part of a deposit made under this section is used in the discharge of any liability of the insurer, the insurer shall deposit such additional sum in cash or approved securities estimated at the market value of the securities on the day of deposit, or partly in cash and partly in such securities, as will make up the amount so used. The insurer shall be deemed to have failed to comply with the requirements of sub‑section (1), unless the deficiency is supplied within a period of two months from the date when the deposit or any part thereof is so used for discharge of liabilities.
Reservation of deposits
8. (1) Any deposit made under section 7 or section 98 shall be deemed to be part of the assets of the insurer but shall not be susceptible of any assignment or charge; nor shall it be available for the discharge of any liability of the insurer other than liabilities arising out of policies of insurance issued by the insurer so long as any such liabilities remain undischarged; nor shall it be liable to attachment in execution of any decree except a decree obtained by a policy‑holder of the insurer in respect of a debt due upon a policy which debt the policy‑holder has failed to realise in any other way.
(2) Where a deposit is made in respect of life insurance business the deposit made in respect thereof shall not be available for discharge of any liability of the insurer other than liabilities arising out of policies of life insurance issued by the insurer.
Refund of deposit
9. Where an insurer has ceased to carry on in India all classes of insurance business, and his liabilities in India in respect of all classes of insurance business have been satisfied or are otherwise provided for, the court may, on the application of the insurer, order the return to the insurer of the deposit made by him under this Act.
Separation of accounts and funds
10. (1) Where the insurer carries on business of more than one of the following classes, namely, life insurance, fire insurance, marine insurance or miscellaneous insurance, he shall keep a separate account of all receipts and payments in respect of each such class of insurances business and where the insurer carries on business of miscellaneous insurance whether alone or in conjunction with business of another class, he shall, unless the Authority waives this requirement in writing, keep a separate account of all receipts and payments in respect of each of such sub‑classes of miscellaneous insurance business as may be prescribed in this behalf:
Provided that no sub‑class of miscellaneous insurance business shall be prescribed under this sub‑section if the insurance business comprised in the sub‑clause consist of insurance contracts which are terminable by the insurer at intervals not exceeding twelve months and under which, if a claim arises, the insurer's liability to pay benefit ceases within one year of the date on which the claim arose.
(2) Where the insurer carries on the business of life insurance all receipts due in respect of such business, shall be carried to and shall form a separate tuna to be called the life insurance fund the assets of which shall, after the expiry of six months from the commencement of the Insurance (Amendment) Act, 1946 (6 of 1946), be kept distinct and separate from all other assets of the insurer and the deposit made by the insurer in respect of life insurance business shall be deemed to be part of the assets of such fund; and every insurer shall, within the time limited in sub‑section (1) of section 15 in regard to the furnishing of the statements and accounts referred to in section 11, furnish to the Authority a statement showing in detail such assets as at the close of every calendar year duly certified by an auditor or by a person qualified to audit under the law of the insurer's country:
Provided that such statement shall, in the case of an insurer to whom section 11 applies, be set out as a part of the balance‑sheet mentioned in clause (a) of sub-section (1) of that section:
Provided further that an insurer may show in such statement all the assets held in his life department, but at the same time showing any deductions on account of general reserves and other liabilities of that department:
Provided also that the Authority may call for a statement similarly certified of such assets as at any other date specified by him to be furnished within a period of three months from the date with reference to which the statement is called for
(2A) No insurer carrying on life insurance business shall be entitled to be registered for any class of insurance business in addition to the class or classes for which he has been already registered unless the Authority is satisfied that the assets of the life insurance fund of the insurer are adequate to meet all his liabilities on policies of life insurance maturing for payment.
(3) The life insurance fund shall be as absolutely the security of the life policy‑holders as though it belonged to an insurer carrying on no other business than life insurance business and shall not be liable for any contracts of the insurer for which it would not have been liable had the business of the insurer been only that of life insurance and shall not be applied directly or indirectly for any purposes other than those of the life insurance business of the insurer.
Accounts and balance‑sheet
11. (1) Every insurer, in the case of an insurer specified in sub-clause (a) (ii) or sub‑clause (b) of clause (9) of section 2 in respect of all insurance business transacted by him, and in the case of any other insurer in respect of the insurance business transacted by him in India, shall at the expiration of each financial year prepare with reference to that year,—
(a) in accordance with regulations contained in part I of the First Schedule, a balance‑sheet in the form set forth in Part II of that Schedule;
(b) in accordance with the regulations contained in part I of the Second Schedule, a profit and loss account in the forms set forth in Part II of that Schedule, except where the insurer carries on business of one class only of the following classes, namely, life insurance, fire insurance or marine insurance and no other business;
(c) in respect of each class or sub‑class of insurance business for which he is required under sub‑section (1) of section 10 to keep a separate account of receipts and payments, a revenue account in accordance with the Regulations, and in the form or forms, set forth in the Third Schedule applicable to that class or sub‑class of insurance business.
(1A) Notwithstanding anything contained in sub-section (1), every insurer, on or after the commencement of the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority Act, 1999, in respect of insurance business transacted by him and in respect of his shareholders’ funds, shall, at the expiration of each financial year, prepare with reference to that year, a balance-sheet, a profit and loss account, a separate account of receipts and payments, a revenue account in accordance with the regulations made by the Authority.
(1B) Every insurer shall keep separate accounts relating to funds of shareholders and policy-holders.
(2) Unless the insurer is a company, as defined in clause (2) of sub‑section (1) of Section 2 of the Indian Companies Act, 1913 (7 of 1913), the accounts and statements referred to in sub‑section (1) shall be signed by the insurer, or in the case of a company by the chairman, if any, and two directors and the principal officer of the company, or in the case of a firm by two partners of the firm, and shall be accompanied by a statement containing the names, descriptions and occupations of, and the directorships held by, the persons in charge of the management of business during the period to which such accounts and statements refer and by a report on the affairs of the business during that period.
(3) Where an insurer carrying on the business of insurance at the commencement of this Act has prepared the balance‑sheet and accounts required by the Indian Life Assurance Companies Act, 1912 (6 of 1912), or has based his accounts upon the financial and not the calendar year, the provisions of this section shall, if the Central Government so directs in any case, apply until the 31st day of December, 1939, as if in sub‑section (1) references to the calendar year were references to the financial year.
Audit
12. The balance‑sheet, profit and loss account, revenue account and profit and loss appropriation account of every insurer, in the case of an insurer specified in sub‑clause (a)(ii) or sub‑clause (b) of clause (9) of section 2 in respect of all insurance business transacted by him, and in the case of any other insurer in respect of the insurance business transacted by him in India, shall, unless they are subject to audit under the Indian Companies Act, 1913 (7 of 1913), be audited annually by an auditor, and the auditor shall in the audit of all such accounts have the powers of, exercise the functions vested in, and discharge the duties and be subject to the liabilities and penalties imposed on, auditors of companies by section 145 of the Indian Companies Act, 1913.
Actuarial report and abstract
13.(1) Every insurer carrying on life insurance business shall, in respect of the life‑insurance business transacted by him in India, and also in the case of an insurer specified in sub‑clause (a) (ii) or sub‑clause (b) of clause (9) of section 2 in respect of all life insurance business transacted by him, every year cause an investigation to be made by an actuary into the financial condition of the life insurance business carried on by him, including a valuation of his liabilities in respect thereto and shall cause an abstract of the report of such actuary to be made in accordance with the regulations contained in Part I of the Fourth Schedule and in conformity with the requirements of Part II of that Schedule:
Provided that the Authority may, having regard to the circumstances any particular insurer, allow him to have the investigation made as at a date not later than two years from the date as at which the previous investigation was made:
Provided further that for an insurer carrying on life insurance business in
(a) the 31st day of December, 1950, or the date of expiration of five years from the date at which the last investigation was made by an actuary before such commencement, whichever is earlier, where the said last investigation was at a date-
(i) before the 31st day of December, 1946, but not more man five years before such commencement, or
(ii) after the 30th day of December, 1946, but before the 31st day of December, 1947, and had disclosed a deficit in the life insurance fund;
(b) the 31st day of December, 1951, where the last investigation by an actuary before such commencement was at a date-
(i) after the 30th day of December, 1946, but before the 31st day of December, 1947, and did not disclose a deficit in the life insurance fund; or
(ii) after the 30th day of December, 1947, but before the 31st day of December, 1948;
(c) the 31st day of December, 1952, where the last investigation by an actuary before such commencement was as at any date after the 30th day of December, 1948, but before the 1st day of January, 1950:
Provided also that for an insurer carrying on life insurance business in
Provided also that, in the case of an insurer who has not caused an investigation to be made by an actuary as at any date prior to such commencement, the date of commencement of life insurance business in India shall, for the purpose of the preceding proviso, be deemed to be the date as at which the last investigation was made by an actuary before such commencement and such investigation shall be deemed to have disclosed no deficit in the life insurance fund:
Provided also that every insurer on or after the commencement of the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority Act, 1999, shall cause an abstract of the report of the actuary to be made in the manner specified by the regulations made by the Authority.
(2) The provisions of sub‑section (1) regarding the making of an abstract shall apply whenever at any other time an investigation into the financial condition of the insurer is made with a view to the distribution of profits or an investigation is made of which the results are made public.
(3) There shall be appended to every such abstract as is referred to in sub-section (1) or sub‑section (2) a certificate signed by the principal officer of the insurer that full and accurate particulars of every policy under which there is a liability either actual or contingent have been furnished to the actuary for the purpose of the investigation.
(4) There shall be appended to every such abstract a statement, in conformity with their requirements of a Part II of the Fifth Schedule and prepared in accordance with the regulations contained in Part I of that Schedule, of the life insurance business in force at the date to which the accounts of the insurer are made up for the purposes of such abstract:
Provided that, if the investigation referred to in sub‑sections (1) and (2) is made annually by any insurer, the statement need not be appended every year but shall be appended at least once in every three years:
Provided further that the statement referred to in sub-section (4) shall be appended in the form and in the manner specified by the regulations made by the Authority
(5) Where an investigation into the financial conditions of an insurer is made as at a date other than the expiration of the year of account, the accounts for the period since the expiration of the last year of account and the balance sheet as at the date at which the investigation is made shall be prepared and audited in the manner provided by this Act.
(6) The provisions of this section relating to the life insurance business shall apply also to any such sub‑class of insurance business included in the class "Miscellaneous Insurance" as may be prescribed under sub-section (1) of section 10; and the Authority may authorize such modifications and variations of the regulations contained in Part I of the Fourth and Fifth Schedules and of the requirements of Part II of those Schedules as may be necessary to facilitate their application to any such sub‑class of insurance business:
Provided that, if the Authority is satisfied that the number and amount of the transactions carried out by an insurer in any such sub‑class of insurance business is so small as to render periodic investigation and valuation unnecessary, he may exempt that insurer from the operation of this sub‑section in respect of that sub‑class of insurance business.
Register of policies and register of claims
14. Every insurer, in the case of an insurer specified in sub‑clause (a)(ii) or sub‑clause (b) of clause (9) of section 2 in respect of all business transacted by him, and in the case of any other insurer in respect of the insurance business transacted by him in India, shall maintain-
(a) a register or record of policies, in which shall be entered, in respect of every policy issued by the insurer, the name and address of the policy-holder, the date when the policy was effected and a record of any transfer, assignment or nomination of which the insurer has notice, and
(b) a register or record of claims, in which shall be entered every claim made together with the date of the claim, the name and address of the claimant and the date on which the claim was discharged, or, in the case of a claim which is rejected, the date of rejection and the grounds there for.
Submission of retunes
15. (1) The audited accounts and statements referred to in section 11 or sub‑section (5) of section 13 and the abstract and statement referred to in section 13 shall be printed, and four copies thereof shall be furnished as returns to the Authority within six months from the end of the period to which they refer:
Provided that the said period of six months shall in the case of insurers having their principal place of business or domicile outside India and in the case of insurers constituted, incorporated or domiciled in India but also carrying on business outside India be extended by three months, and provided further that the Central Government may in any case extend the time allowed by this sub‑section for the furnishing of such returns by a further period not exceeding three months.
(2) Of the four copies so furnished one shall be signed in the case of a company by the chairman and two directors and by the principle officers of the company and, if the company has a managing director or managing agent, by that director or managing agent, in the case of a firm, by two partners of the firm, and, in the case of an insurer being an individual, by the Insurer himself and one shall be signed by the auditor who made the audit or the actuary who made the valuation, as the case may be.
(3) Where the insurer's principal place of business or domicile is outside India, he shall forward to the Authority, along with the documents referred to in section 11, the balance‑sheet, profit and loss account and revenue account and the valuation reports and valuation statements, if any, which the insurer is required to file with the public authority of the country in which the insurer is constituted, incorporated or domiciled, or, where such documents are not required to be filed, a certified statement showing the total assets and liabilities of the insurer at the close of the period covered by the said documents and his total income and expenditure during that period.
Returns by insurers established outside India.
16. (1) Where, by the law of the country in which an insurer, not being an insurer specified in sub‑clause (a)(ii) or sub‑clause (b) of clause (9) of section 2, is constituted, incorporated or domiciled, the insurer is required to prepare and to furnish to a public authority of that country documents of substantially the same nature as the documents required to be furnished as returns in accordance with provisions of section 15, the provisions of sub‑section (2) of this section shall apply to such insurer in lieu of the provisions of sections 11, 12, 13 and 15.
(2) The insurer shall, within the time specified in sub‑section (1) of Section 15, furnish to the Authority four certified copies in the English language of every balance‑sheet, account, abstract, report and statement supplied to the public authority referred to in sub‑section (1) of this section, and in addition thereto, four certified copies in the English language of each of the following statements, namely:-
(a) a statement audited by an auditor or by a person duly qualified under the law of the insurer’s country showing the assets held by insurer in India as at the date of any balance-sheet so furnished;
(b) for each class or sub‑class of insurance business for which he is required under sub‑section (1) of section 10 to keep a separate account of receipts and payments, a revenue account for the period covered by any account so furnished, prepared in accordance with the regulations, and in the form or forms, set forth in the Third Schedule applicable to that class or subclass of insurance business and similarly audited, showing separately with respect to business transacted by the insurer in India the details required to be supplied in a revenue account furnished under this clause of this subsection;
(c) a separate abstract of the valuation report in respect of all business transacted in India in each class or sub‑class of insurance business to which section 13 refers, prepared in the manner required by that section; and
(d) a declaration in the prescribed form stating that all amounts received by the insurer directly or indirectly whether from his head office or from any other source outside
Exemption from certain provisions of the Indian Companies Act, 1913
17. Where an insurer, being a company incorporated under the Indian Companies Act, 1913 (7 of 1913), or under the Indian Companies Act, 1882 (6 of 1882), or under the Indian Companies Acts, 1866 (10 of 1866), or under any Act repealed thereby, in any year furnishes his balance‑sheet and accounts, in accordance with the provisions of section 15, he may at the same time send to the Registrar of Companies copies of such balance‑sheet and accounts; and where such copies are so sent it shall not be necessary for the Company to file copies of the balance-sheet and accounts with the Registrar as required by sub‑section (1) of section 134 of the first mentioned Act and such copies so sent shall be chargeable with the same fees and shall be dealt within all respects as if they were filed in accordance with that section.
This Act not to apply to preparation of account, etc., for periods prior to this Act coming into force.
17 A. Nothing in this Act shall apply to the preparation of accounts by an insurer and the audit and submission thereof in respect of any accounting year which has expired prior to the commencement of this Act, and notwithstanding the other provisions of this Act, such accounts shall be prepared, audited and submitted in accordance with the law in force immediately before the commencement of this Act.
Furnishing reports
18. Every insurer shall furnish to the Authority a certified copy of every report on the affairs of the concern which is submitted to the members or policy‑holders of the insurer immediately after its submission to the members or policy‑holders, as the case may be.
Abstract of proceedings of general meetings
19. Every insurer, being a company or body incorporated under any law for the time being in force in India, shall furnish to the Authority a certified copy of the minutes of the proceedings of every general meeting, as entered in the Minutes Book of the insurer within thirty days from the holding of the meeting to which it relates.
Custody and inspection of documents and supply of copies
20. (1) Every return furnished to the Authority or certified copy thereof shall be kept by the Authority and shall be open to inspection; and any person may procure a copy of any such return, or of any part thereof, on payment of a fee of six annas for every hundred words or fractional part thereof required to be copied, any five figures being deemed equivalent to one word.
(2) A printed or certified copy of the accounts, statements and abstract furnished in accordance with the provisions of section 15 or section 16 shall, on the application of any shareholder or policy‑holder made at any time within two years from the date on which the document was so furnished, be supplied to him by the insurer within fourteen days when the insurer is constituted, incorporated or domiciled in India and in any other case within one month of such application.
(3) A copy of the memorandum and articles of association of the insurer, if a company shall on the application of any policy‑holder, be supplied to him by the Insurer on payment of one rupee.
Powers of Controller regarding returns
21. (1) If it appears to the Authority that any return furnished to him under the provisions of this Act is inaccurate or defective in any respect, he may—
(a) require from the insurer such further information, certified if he so directs by an auditor or actuary, as he may consider necessary to correct or supplement such return;
(b) call upon the insurer to submit for his examination at the principal place of business of the insurer in India any book of account, register or other document or to supply any statement which he may specify in a notice served on the insurer for the purpose;
(c) examine any officer of the insurer on oath in relation to the return;
(d) decline to accept any such return unless the inaccuracy has been corrected or the deficiency has been supplied before the expiry of one month from the date on which the requisition asking for correction of the inaccuracy or supply of the deficiency was delivered to the insurer or of such further time as the Authority may specify in the requisition and if he declines to accept any such return, the insurer shall be deemed to have failed to comply with the provisions of section 15 or section 16 or section 28 or section 28A or section 28B or section 64V relating to the furnishing of returns.
(2) The Court may on the application of an insurer and after hearing the Authority cancel any order made by the Authority under clause (`a), (b) or(c) of sub‑section (1) or may direct the acceptance of any return which the Authority has declined to accept, if the insurer satisfies the Court that action of the Authority was in the circumstances unreasonable:
Provided that no application under this subsection shall be entertained unless it is made before the expiration of four months from the time when the Authority made the order or declined to accept the return.
