{"id":59863,"date":"2020-06-20T22:27:04","date_gmt":"2020-06-20T16:57:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/?p=59863"},"modified":"2020-06-20T22:27:04","modified_gmt":"2020-06-20T16:57:04","slug":"ministry-of-finance-proposed-an-amendment-of-19-acts-to-decriminalise-dishonour-of-cheque","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/ministry-of-finance-proposed-an-amendment-of-19-acts-to-decriminalise-dishonour-of-cheque","title":{"rendered":"Ministry of Finance proposed an amendment of 19 Acts to decriminalise dishonour of cheque."},"content":{"rendered":"<p><a href=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2020\/06\/decriminalise-dishonour-of-cheque.jpg?ssl=1\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" data-attachment-id=\"59864\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/ministry-of-finance-proposed-an-amendment-of-19-acts-to-decriminalise-dishonour-of-cheque\/decriminalise-dishonour-of-cheque\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2020\/06\/decriminalise-dishonour-of-cheque.jpg?fit=266%2C180&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"266,180\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"decriminalise dishonour of cheque\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2020\/06\/decriminalise-dishonour-of-cheque.jpg?fit=266%2C180&amp;ssl=1\" class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-59864\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2020\/06\/decriminalise-dishonour-of-cheque.jpg?resize=266%2C180&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" width=\"266\" height=\"180\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2020\/06\/decriminalise-dishonour-of-cheque.jpg?w=266&amp;ssl=1 266w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2020\/06\/decriminalise-dishonour-of-cheque.jpg?resize=148%2C100&amp;ssl=1 148w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 266px) 100vw, 266px\" \/><\/a>The government of India has been taking various steps to relieve the economic stress of the businesses caused due to the novel coronavirus, by relaxation of laws. Recently, the Ministry of Finance has proposed an amendment of 19 Acts to decriminalise multiple minor economic offences, including the offence under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881 (\u201cAct\u201d). The core objective of these proposed amendments is stated to help business overcome the economic crisis caused by the novel coronavirus, to promote ease of doing business and also unclog the court system and prisons.<\/p>\n<p>While the intention with which these amendments have been carried out will only remain to be proven with time, it cannot be ignored that a \u201ccheque\u201d is the most commonly \u201cused\u201d and \u201cmisused\u201d negotiable instrument. It is for this reason why the legislature intended to criminalise the dishonour of cheque under Section 138 of Act for insufficiency of funds, etc., in the bank account.<\/p>\n<p>The essence of the Act finds its roots in instilling utmost faith and credibility in these negotiable instruments, making them a suitable option as a credit and payment facility. Keeping this as the guiding force, the Act has been time and again amended to ensure and enhance the faith in negotiable instruments. The criminalisation of writing cheques without a sufficient balance was introduced in India in 1988 by the Act. The said amendment was indeed a step to encourage the culture of use of cheques and to enhance the credibility of the instrument.<\/p>\n<p>The motivation for the amendment was the widespread conundrum of the cheques being dishonoured due to insufficiency of funds or stoppage of payments by the drawer of such cheques. On the other hand, provisions related to summary (speedy) trial were also integrated. Moreover, the offence under the Act was made compoundable; the competent courts to adjudicate upon the cases under the Act were granted more extensive powers to pass an appropriate sentence.<\/p>\n<p>From the key highlights of the Act and its amendments in place, it is clear that the aim of the legislature and rightly so has been consistent with promoting the use of cheques, preventing misuse of cheques and enhancing faith in its credibility as an instrument. However, to the contrary, by the proposed amendment, the Ministry of Finance has sought to decriminalise the dishonour of cheques, which is undoubtedly against the very purpose and principal object of the Act.<\/p>\n<p>The most significant argument, the government is heavily relying upon today to decriminalise the offence of dishonour of cheque is to relieve the economic stress.<\/p>\n<p>The question is whether this move of the government is a considered, calculated and strategised move which will promote the businesses and unclog the courts? Or is it a move which is a hasty, populist and motivated move to cover up the adverse business sentiment given the COVID-19 situation and more of a bid to cover-up the unplanned lockdowns which are the bone of contention for the economic slump. This move appears to do more harm than the intended good for reasons briefly summarised hereinafter.<\/p>\n<p>The proposed amendment is in complete contravention of the object of the Act. The criminal provision is the only deterrent in the minds of the people who otherwise are habituated to abuse the instrument with mala-fide intent. In our country, knowing the snail-paced judicial system and dilapidated civil court functioning on the verge of collapse due to the pendency of suits, it will take decades for the creditor to obtain a decree for recovery of dues. The government\u2019s argument of allowing compounding of such economic offence is without merit, as the Act already has that provision which allows compounding at any stage of the proceeding.<\/p>\n<p>The direct result of such habituated abuse with malafide intent will reduce the credibility of cheque as an instrument, and a large number of people will refrain from accepting the cheques due to the absence of penal provisions for punishing the defaulters. Lack of deterrent provisions in the law as well will diminish the culture of use of cheques and vitiate its credibility defeating the very purpose and object of the Act.<\/p>\n<p>Decriminalising Section 138 of the Act, will also further add on to the cost of litigation burdening the litigant\u2019s pocket. Currently, to recover the money, the holder of a dishonoured cheque has two remedies under the law viz. to initiate a civil suit and to invoke penal proceedings under the IPC and the Negotiable Instruments Act to seek fine and compensation from the drawer of the cheque. One can claim double the amount of the cheque in the form of a fine and recover his legal dues.<\/p>\n<p>Typically, litigants tend to initiate Section 138 proceedings due to lesser court fee being involved as compared to civil proceedings. Upon decriminalising the dishonour of cheque, the holders of such cheques would now be required to turn to civil courts to get respite. All matters pertaining to the dishonour of cheques will not only burden civil courts but would also take away the right of the holders to recover interim compensation up to 20 percent of the total cheque amount right at the very inception of the trial under Section 143 A.<\/p>\n<p>To sum up the adverse effects, it must be borne in mind that cheques have been widely used as a means of credit rather than a means of payment, mainly by issuing post-dated ones. Decriminalisation of the entire Section138 of Act would pave the way for unscrupulous drawers to avoid penal accountability altogether after issuing the cheque and its consequent dishonour.<\/p>\n<p>Removal of penal provisions from the Act will undoubtedly lead to a reduction of the use of cheques both in the commercial world and personal transactions to a boundless extent. It will also become more difficult in the commercial world to make commitments for future payments and to enforce contracts.<\/p>\n<p>As such it appears that this move of the government through the Ministry of Finance will cause more significant prejudice to the commercial world and will drive away foreign investors from making any investments in the country. If the whole umbrella of prosecution for dishonoured cheques is taken away, the future cheques may thus not remain any more a preferred form of payment for both business and personal transactions breaking down an already broken economy. Thus the move recommended by the proposed amendment may result in a classic example of good intentions gone bad.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The government of India has been taking various steps to relieve the economic stress of the businesses caused due to the novel coronavirus, by relaxation of laws. Recently, the Ministry of Finance has proposed an amendment of 19 Acts to decriminalise multiple minor economic offences, including the offence under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":59864,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[1],"tags":[47115,47114,47116,42860,47117],"class_list":["post-59863","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-top-law-news","tag-amendment-of-19-acts","tag-amendment-of-19-acts-to-decriminalise-dishonour-of-cheque","tag-decriminalise-dishonour-of-cheque","tag-ministry-of-finance","tag-section-138-of-act-for-insufficiency-of-funds"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.4 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Ministry of Finance proposed an amendment of 19 Acts to decriminalise dishonour of cheque. - Legal News India - Supreme Court &amp; High Court Updates<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The government of India has been taking various steps to relieve the economic stress of the businesses caused due to the novel coronavirus, by relaxation - Get the latest legal news from the Supreme Court, High Courts, and government. Essential updates on judgements, acts, and in-depth analysis for lawyers, advocates, and law students in India.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/ministry-of-finance-proposed-an-amendment-of-19-acts-to-decriminalise-dishonour-of-cheque\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Ministry of Finance proposed an amendment of 19 Acts to decriminalise dishonour of cheque. - Legal News India - Supreme Court &amp; High Court Updates\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The government of India has been taking various steps to relieve the economic stress of the businesses caused due to the novel coronavirus, by relaxation - Get the latest legal news from the Supreme Court, High Courts, and government. Essential updates on judgements, acts, and in-depth analysis for lawyers, advocates, and law students in India.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/ministry-of-finance-proposed-an-amendment-of-19-acts-to-decriminalise-dishonour-of-cheque\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Legal News India - Supreme Court &amp; High Court Updates\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/LegalindiaCom\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2020-06-20T16:57:04+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2020\/06\/decriminalise-dishonour-of-cheque.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"266\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"180\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Legal India Admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Legal India Admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"5 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.legalindia.com\\\/news\\\/ministry-of-finance-proposed-an-amendment-of-19-acts-to-decriminalise-dishonour-of-cheque#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.legalindia.com\\\/news\\\/ministry-of-finance-proposed-an-amendment-of-19-acts-to-decriminalise-dishonour-of-cheque\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Legal India Admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.legalindia.com\\\/news\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/0bfdffe9059fb8bb24a86d094609c5ea\"},\"headline\":\"Ministry of Finance proposed an amendment of 19 Acts to decriminalise dishonour of cheque.\",\"datePublished\":\"2020-06-20T16:57:04+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.legalindia.com\\\/news\\\/ministry-of-finance-proposed-an-amendment-of-19-acts-to-decriminalise-dishonour-of-cheque\"},\"wordCount\":1078,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.legalindia.com\\\/news\\\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.legalindia.com\\\/news\\\/ministry-of-finance-proposed-an-amendment-of-19-acts-to-decriminalise-dishonour-of-cheque#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/i0.wp.com\\\/www.legalindia.com\\\/news\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/2\\\/2020\\\/06\\\/decriminalise-dishonour-of-cheque.jpg?fit=266%2C180&ssl=1\",\"keywords\":[\"amendment of 19 Acts\",\"amendment of 19 Acts to decriminalise dishonour of cheque\",\"decriminalise dishonour of cheque\",\"Ministry of Finance\",\"Section 138 of Act for insufficiency of funds\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Top Law News\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.legalindia.com\\\/news\\\/ministry-of-finance-proposed-an-amendment-of-19-acts-to-decriminalise-dishonour-of-cheque#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.legalindia.com\\\/news\\\/ministry-of-finance-proposed-an-amendment-of-19-acts-to-decriminalise-dishonour-of-cheque\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.legalindia.com\\\/news\\\/ministry-of-finance-proposed-an-amendment-of-19-acts-to-decriminalise-dishonour-of-cheque\",\"name\":\"Ministry of Finance proposed an amendment of 19 Acts to decriminalise dishonour of cheque. - Legal News India - Supreme Court &amp; High Court Updates\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.legalindia.com\\\/news\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.legalindia.com\\\/news\\\/ministry-of-finance-proposed-an-amendment-of-19-acts-to-decriminalise-dishonour-of-cheque#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.legalindia.com\\\/news\\\/ministry-of-finance-proposed-an-amendment-of-19-acts-to-decriminalise-dishonour-of-cheque#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/i0.wp.com\\\/www.legalindia.com\\\/news\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/2\\\/2020\\\/06\\\/decriminalise-dishonour-of-cheque.jpg?fit=266%2C180&ssl=1\",\"datePublished\":\"2020-06-20T16:57:04+00:00\",\"description\":\"The government of India has been taking various steps to relieve the economic stress of the businesses caused due to the novel coronavirus, by relaxation - Get the latest legal news from the Supreme Court, High Courts, and government. Essential updates on judgements, acts, and in-depth analysis for lawyers, advocates, and law students in India.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.legalindia.com\\\/news\\\/ministry-of-finance-proposed-an-amendment-of-19-acts-to-decriminalise-dishonour-of-cheque#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.legalindia.com\\\/news\\\/ministry-of-finance-proposed-an-amendment-of-19-acts-to-decriminalise-dishonour-of-cheque\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.legalindia.com\\\/news\\\/ministry-of-finance-proposed-an-amendment-of-19-acts-to-decriminalise-dishonour-of-cheque#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/i0.wp.com\\\/www.legalindia.com\\\/news\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/2\\\/2020\\\/06\\\/decriminalise-dishonour-of-cheque.jpg?fit=266%2C180&ssl=1\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/i0.wp.com\\\/www.legalindia.com\\\/news\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/2\\\/2020\\\/06\\\/decriminalise-dishonour-of-cheque.jpg?fit=266%2C180&ssl=1\",\"width\":266,\"height\":180},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.legalindia.com\\\/news\\\/ministry-of-finance-proposed-an-amendment-of-19-acts-to-decriminalise-dishonour-of-cheque#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.legalindia.com\\\/news\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Top Law News\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.legalindia.com\\\/news\\\/category\\\/top-law-news\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":3,\"name\":\"Ministry of Finance proposed an amendment of 19 Acts to decriminalise dishonour of cheque.\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.legalindia.com\\\/news\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.legalindia.com\\\/news\\\/\",\"name\":\"Legal News India - Supreme Court & High Court Updates\",\"description\":\"Get the latest legal news from the Supreme Court, High Courts, and government. Essential updates on judgements, acts, and in-depth analysis for lawyers, advocates, and law students in India.\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.legalindia.com\\\/news\\\/#organization\"},\"alternateName\":\"Legal News India for Advocates, Lawyers & Law Students\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.legalindia.com\\\/news\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.legalindia.com\\\/news\\\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Legal News India: Supreme Court, High Courts & Govt Updates\",\"alternateName\":\"Legal News India for Advocates, Lawyers & Law Students\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.legalindia.com\\\/news\\\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.legalindia.com\\\/news\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/i0.wp.com\\\/www.legalindia.com\\\/news\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/2\\\/2018\\\/05\\\/538552_367793346590451_81997783_n.jpg?fit=250%2C250&ssl=1\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/i0.wp.com\\\/www.legalindia.com\\\/news\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/2\\\/2018\\\/05\\\/538552_367793346590451_81997783_n.jpg?fit=250%2C250&ssl=1\",\"width\":250,\"height\":250,\"caption\":\"Legal News India: Supreme Court, High Courts & Govt Updates\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.legalindia.com\\\/news\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.facebook.com\\\/LegalindiaCom\\\/\",\"https:\\\/\\\/x.com\\\/Legal_india\"]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.legalindia.com\\\/news\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/0bfdffe9059fb8bb24a86d094609c5ea\",\"name\":\"Legal India Admin\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/4faa9d728ed1af3b73d52225c7f12901ac726fe6f7ea0a3348a1d51f3a930987?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/4faa9d728ed1af3b73d52225c7f12901ac726fe6f7ea0a3348a1d51f3a930987?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/4faa9d728ed1af3b73d52225c7f12901ac726fe6f7ea0a3348a1d51f3a930987?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Legal India Admin\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.legalindia.com\",\"https:\\\/\\\/x.com\\\/legaliadmin\"],\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.legalindia.com\\\/news\\\/author\\\/legal-india-admin\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Ministry of Finance proposed an amendment of 19 Acts to decriminalise dishonour of cheque. - Legal News India - Supreme Court &amp; High Court Updates","description":"The government of India has been taking various steps to relieve the economic stress of the businesses caused due to the novel coronavirus, by relaxation - Get the latest legal news from the Supreme Court, High Courts, and government. Essential updates on judgements, acts, and in-depth analysis for lawyers, advocates, and law students in India.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/ministry-of-finance-proposed-an-amendment-of-19-acts-to-decriminalise-dishonour-of-cheque","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Ministry of Finance proposed an amendment of 19 Acts to decriminalise dishonour of cheque. - Legal News India - Supreme Court &amp; High Court Updates","og_description":"The government of India has been taking various steps to relieve the economic stress of the businesses caused due to the novel coronavirus, by relaxation - Get the latest legal news from the Supreme Court, High Courts, and government. Essential updates on judgements, acts, and in-depth analysis for lawyers, advocates, and law students in India.","og_url":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/ministry-of-finance-proposed-an-amendment-of-19-acts-to-decriminalise-dishonour-of-cheque","og_site_name":"Legal News India - Supreme Court &amp; High Court Updates","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/LegalindiaCom\/","article_published_time":"2020-06-20T16:57:04+00:00","og_image":[{"width":266,"height":180,"url":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2020\/06\/decriminalise-dishonour-of-cheque.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Legal India Admin","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Legal India Admin","Est. reading time":"5 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/ministry-of-finance-proposed-an-amendment-of-19-acts-to-decriminalise-dishonour-of-cheque#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/ministry-of-finance-proposed-an-amendment-of-19-acts-to-decriminalise-dishonour-of-cheque"},"author":{"name":"Legal India Admin","@id":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/0bfdffe9059fb8bb24a86d094609c5ea"},"headline":"Ministry of Finance proposed an amendment of 19 Acts to decriminalise dishonour of cheque.","datePublished":"2020-06-20T16:57:04+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/ministry-of-finance-proposed-an-amendment-of-19-acts-to-decriminalise-dishonour-of-cheque"},"wordCount":1078,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/ministry-of-finance-proposed-an-amendment-of-19-acts-to-decriminalise-dishonour-of-cheque#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2020\/06\/decriminalise-dishonour-of-cheque.jpg?fit=266%2C180&ssl=1","keywords":["amendment of 19 Acts","amendment of 19 Acts to decriminalise dishonour of cheque","decriminalise dishonour of cheque","Ministry of Finance","Section 138 of Act for insufficiency of funds"],"articleSection":["Top Law News"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/ministry-of-finance-proposed-an-amendment-of-19-acts-to-decriminalise-dishonour-of-cheque#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/ministry-of-finance-proposed-an-amendment-of-19-acts-to-decriminalise-dishonour-of-cheque","url":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/ministry-of-finance-proposed-an-amendment-of-19-acts-to-decriminalise-dishonour-of-cheque","name":"Ministry of Finance proposed an amendment of 19 Acts to decriminalise dishonour of cheque. - Legal News India - Supreme Court &amp; High Court Updates","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/ministry-of-finance-proposed-an-amendment-of-19-acts-to-decriminalise-dishonour-of-cheque#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/ministry-of-finance-proposed-an-amendment-of-19-acts-to-decriminalise-dishonour-of-cheque#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2020\/06\/decriminalise-dishonour-of-cheque.jpg?fit=266%2C180&ssl=1","datePublished":"2020-06-20T16:57:04+00:00","description":"The government of India has been taking various steps to relieve the economic stress of the businesses caused due to the novel coronavirus, by relaxation - Get the latest legal news from the Supreme Court, High Courts, and government. Essential updates on judgements, acts, and in-depth analysis for lawyers, advocates, and law students in India.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/ministry-of-finance-proposed-an-amendment-of-19-acts-to-decriminalise-dishonour-of-cheque#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/ministry-of-finance-proposed-an-amendment-of-19-acts-to-decriminalise-dishonour-of-cheque"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/ministry-of-finance-proposed-an-amendment-of-19-acts-to-decriminalise-dishonour-of-cheque#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2020\/06\/decriminalise-dishonour-of-cheque.jpg?fit=266%2C180&ssl=1","contentUrl":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2020\/06\/decriminalise-dishonour-of-cheque.jpg?fit=266%2C180&ssl=1","width":266,"height":180},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/ministry-of-finance-proposed-an-amendment-of-19-acts-to-decriminalise-dishonour-of-cheque#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Top Law News","item":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/category\/top-law-news"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"Ministry of Finance proposed an amendment of 19 Acts to decriminalise dishonour of cheque."}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/","name":"Legal News India - Supreme Court & High Court Updates","description":"Get the latest legal news from the Supreme Court, High Courts, and government. Essential updates on judgements, acts, and in-depth analysis for lawyers, advocates, and law students in India.","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/#organization"},"alternateName":"Legal News India for Advocates, Lawyers & Law Students","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/#organization","name":"Legal News India: Supreme Court, High Courts & Govt Updates","alternateName":"Legal News India for Advocates, Lawyers & Law Students","url":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2018\/05\/538552_367793346590451_81997783_n.jpg?fit=250%2C250&ssl=1","contentUrl":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2018\/05\/538552_367793346590451_81997783_n.jpg?fit=250%2C250&ssl=1","width":250,"height":250,"caption":"Legal News India: Supreme Court, High Courts & Govt Updates"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/LegalindiaCom\/","https:\/\/x.com\/Legal_india"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/0bfdffe9059fb8bb24a86d094609c5ea","name":"Legal India Admin","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/4faa9d728ed1af3b73d52225c7f12901ac726fe6f7ea0a3348a1d51f3a930987?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/4faa9d728ed1af3b73d52225c7f12901ac726fe6f7ea0a3348a1d51f3a930987?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/4faa9d728ed1af3b73d52225c7f12901ac726fe6f7ea0a3348a1d51f3a930987?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Legal India Admin"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.legalindia.com","https:\/\/x.com\/legaliadmin"],"url":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/author\/legal-india-admin"}]}},"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2020\/06\/decriminalise-dishonour-of-cheque.jpg?fit=266%2C180&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":59668,"url":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/fm-nirmala-sitharaman-decriminalise-companies-act-violations-involving-minor-defaults","url_meta":{"origin":59863,"position":0},"title":"FM Nirmala Sitharaman : Decriminalise Companies Act violations involving minor defaults","author":"Legal India Admin","date":"May 20, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, while announcing the fifth and the final tranche of the economic stimulus package on Sunday, said that the government will soon move an ordinance to decriminalise Companies Act violations involving minor technical and procedural defaults. The government has decided to drop seven compoundable offences while five\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Corporate Law News&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Corporate Law News","link":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/category\/corporate-law-news"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":45388,"url":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/draft-bill-decriminalise-begging-ready-centre","url_meta":{"origin":59863,"position":1},"title":"Draft Bill to decriminalise begging ready: Centre","author":"Legal India News","date":"October 20, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"The Ministry of Social Justice has drafted a bill to decriminalise begging and rehabilitate beggars and homeless people, the Centre and AAP government told Delhi High Court today. The submission was made before a bench of Chief Justice G Rohini and Justice Sangita Dhingra Sehgal which directed the ministry to\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Top Law News&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Top Law News","link":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/category\/top-law-news"},"img":{"alt_text":"Draft Bill to decriminalise begging ready: Centre","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2016\/08\/order.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":56323,"url":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/sec-138-ni-act-complaint-not-maintainable-against-trustees-for-dishonour-of-cheque-kerala-high-court","url_meta":{"origin":59863,"position":2},"title":"Sec.138 NI Act &#8211; Complaint Not Maintainable Against Trustees For Dishonour Of Cheque : Kerala High Court","author":"Legal India Admin","date":"June 11, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"New Delhi : The High Court of Kerala has held that no prosecution is possible against a trust and its trustees for dishonour of cheque invoking section 141 of the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881 (\"NI Act\"). Section 141 deals with the liability of companies in case of dishonour of cheques.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Court, Judiciary &amp; Legal System&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Court, Judiciary &amp; Legal System","link":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/category\/court-judiciary-legal-system"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2019\/06\/download-2019-06-11T090244.754.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":13811,"url":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/supreme-court-suggests-fine-in-cheque-bounce-cases","url_meta":{"origin":59863,"position":3},"title":"Supreme Court suggests fine in cheque bounce cases","author":"Legal India Admin","date":"October 16, 2011","format":false,"excerpt":"The Supreme Court has suggested that the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881, could be amended so that a convict in a cheque bounce case is made to pay a fine from which the complainant can be paid a compensation. \u00a0\"One other solution is a further amendment to the act so that\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Banking &amp; Finance Law News&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Banking &amp; Finance Law News","link":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/category\/banking-finance-law-news"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":10566,"url":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/what-is-being-done-to-decriminalise-suicide-court","url_meta":{"origin":59863,"position":4},"title":"What is being done to decriminalise suicide: Court","author":"Legal India Admin","date":"May 12, 2011","format":false,"excerpt":"The Delhi High Court Wednesday asked the central government to list the steps it had taken on a 2008 Law Commission report calling for suicide to be decriminalised. As per the present provisions of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), a person attempting suicide can be punished with a maximum jail\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Top Law News&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Top Law News","link":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/category\/top-law-news"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.legalindia.in\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/05\/Delhi-High-Court2.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":8716,"url":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/lowering-age-of-sex-to-decriminalise-innocent-behaviour","url_meta":{"origin":59863,"position":5},"title":"Lowering age of sex to decriminalise innocent behaviour","author":"Legal India Admin","date":"February 4, 2011","format":false,"excerpt":"India's apex child rights body Friday said that its suggestion to bring down the age of a consensual, non-penetrative sexual act between two children to 12 years was meant to decriminalise 'normal' and 'innocent' behaviour by kids. 'The reason for this formulation is not to promote child sexual promiscuity or\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Top Law News&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Top Law News","link":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/category\/top-law-news"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.legalindia.in\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/02\/National-Commission-for-Protection-of-Child-Rights.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p6H5Bf-fzx","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/59863","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=59863"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/59863\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/59864"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=59863"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=59863"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.legalindia.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=59863"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}