Mentoassociates.com – Legal Articles

Prize chit means any transaction under which a person collects monies in one lump sum or in installments by way of contributions or subscriptions in respect of any savings, mutual benefit, thrift, or any other scheme or arrangement or the income accruing from investment or other use of such monies for all or any of the following purposes, namely:-
(i) giving or awarding periodically or otherwise to a specified number of subscribers as determined by lot, draw or in any other manner, prizes or gifts in cash or in hand, whether or not the recipient of the prize or gift is under a liability to make any further payment in respect  of such scheme or arrangement ;
(ii) refunding to the subscribers or such of them as have not won any prize or gift, the whole part of the subscriptions, contributions or other monies collected, with or without any bonus, premium interest or other advantage by whatever name called, on the termination of the scheme or arrangement, or on or after the expiry of the period stipulated therein, but does not include a conventional chit.

The act bans prize chits and money circulation schemes or enrolment as members or participation therein. If any body indulges in such activities they shall be punishable with imprisonment for a term which may extend to three years, or with fine which may extend to five thousand rupees, or with both.

If an offence under this Act is committed by a Company, every person who, at the time the offence was committed was in charge of and was responsible to the  company for conduct of business of company as well as the company shall be liable for prosecution. The offences punishable under this act shall not be tried by a court inferior to that of a Chief Metropolitan Magistrate. All offences punishable under this act are cognizable offences

A police officer not below the rank of an officer in charge of a Police Station has the power to enter any premises connected with the promotion / conduct of any price chit or money circulation scheme, in contravention of provisions of this act. The Police Officer has also the power to search the said premises and the persons present there. He has the power to take into custody persons found in such premises and produce them before judicial magistrate. The Police Officer has also power to seize things used for such price chits or money circulation schemes.

If a newspaper contains any material connected with any price chit or money circulation scheme, the State Government has the power to forfeit the same.

Nothing contained in this act applies to price chits or money circulation schemes promoted by the Central Government, Company owned by a State Government, Banking Company and Charitable or Educational Institutions notified in this behalf by the State Government.

The copyright Act, 1957 amends and consolidates the Law relating to copyright in India. Copyright shall subsist throughout India for the following classes of works.
a) Original literary, dramatic, musical and artistic works.
b) Cinematograph films,
c) Sound recording
Copyright means the exclusive right to do or authorize the doing of any of the following acts in respects of a work or any substantial part thereof, namely:
a) In the case of literary, dramatic or musical work, not being a computer program:-
1.To reproduce the work in any material form including the storing of it in any medium by electronic means;
2.To issue copies of the work to the public not being copies already in circulation;
3.To perform the work in public, or communicate it to the public;
4.To make any cinematograph or sound recording in respect of the work.
5.To make any translation work;
6.To make any adaptation work;
b) In the case of computer program:-
1.To do any of the acts specified in clause a.
2.To sell or give on commercial, rental or offer for sale or for commercial, rental any copy of the computer program, provided that such commercial rental does not apply in respect of computer program where the programme itself is not the essential object of the rental.

The author of a work shall be the first owner of copyright therein. The owner of the copyright in an existing work or the prospective owner of the copyright in a future work may assign to any person the copyright either wholly or partially provided that in the case of assignment of copyright in any future work the assignment shall take effect only when the work comes into existence. The author of a work may relinquish all or any of the rights comprised in the copyright in the work by giving notice in the prescribed form to the Registrar of copyrights.

Copyright shall subsist in any literary, dramatic, musical or artistic work (other than a photograph) published within the lifetime of the author until sixty years from the beginning of the calendar year next following the year in which the author dies.

In the case of a literary, dramatic, musical or artistic work (other than a photograph) which is published anonymously or pseudonymously, copyright shall subsist until sixty years from the beginning of the calendar year next following the year in which the work is first published.

In the case of a photograph, copyright shall subsist until sixty years from the beginning of the calendar year next following the year in which the photograph is published.

In the case of a cinematographic film, copyright shall subsist until sixty years from the beginning of the calendar year next following the year in which the film is published.

In the case of a sound recording, copyright shall subsist until sixty years from the beginning of the calendar year next following the year in which the sound recording is published.

The profession tax in Karnataka is levied through the ‘Karnataka Tax on Professions, Trades, Callings and Employments Act 1976’, in the state of Karnataka. All taxes levied under the said Act are known as profession tax. The state of Karnataka is empowered to levy and collect the tax on professions, trades, callings and employment. Every person who exercise any profession or calling or is engaged in any trade or holds any appointments (public or private) is liable to pay the profession tax.

People who have attained 65 years of age are exempted from paying profession tax. If the person exercise a profession for a period less than 120 days in an year, then he is not liable to pay profession tax in that year. The liability is on the employer to deduct the tax from the salary or wage of the employ and to pay the tax to the Government.

Every employer who is liable to profession tax shall obtain a certificate of registration from the assessing authority.

Every employer shall furnish to the assessing authority, within 20 days of the expiry of a month, a statement showing the salary and wages of his employees and the profession tax deducted by him during the preceding month. Every such statement shall be accompanied by a treasury challan, in proof of the payment of the full amount of tax due mentioned in the statement.

Every employer who has a registered certificate shall furnish the returns to the assessing authority in the prescribed form within 60 days of the expiry of the year.

If the assessing authority is not satisfied that the return filed by an employer is correct and complete, then the assessing authority has the power to assess the amount of tax payable by the employer and pass necessary orders in this regard. However the assessing authority shall given an opportunity of being heard to the employer before coming to his decision.

If an enrolled person or a registered employer fails, without reasonable cause, to make payment of any of tax within the required time or date, the assessing authority may impose upon him a penalty not exceeding fifty percent of the amount of tax due.

Any person or an employer, who without sufficient cause, fails to comply with any of the provisions of this Act, or the rules framed there under shall, on conviction, be punished with fine up to 5000 rupees .When an offence is committed by a company, every person who at the time the offence was committed, was in charge and was responsible for the company for the conduct of the business of the company shall be deemed to be guilty of the offence.

The assessing authority has the power to permit any person charged with an offence to compound the offence on payment of a sum not exceeding double the amount of the tax. Compounding can be permitted either before or after the institution of the prosecution.

Local authorities are not entitled to levy any tax on professions, trades, callings and employments.