92. Annual return.
(1) Every company shall prepare a return (hereinafter referred to as the annual
return) in the prescribed form containing the particulars as they stood on the close of the
financial year regarding—
(a) its registered office, principal business activities, particulars of its holding,
subsidiary and associate companies;
(b) its shares, debentures and other securities and shareholding pattern;
(c) its indebtedness;
(d) its members and debenture-holders along with changes therein since the
close of the previous financial year;
(e) its promoters, directors, key managerial personnel along with changes therein
since the close of the previous financial year;
(f) meetings of members or a class thereof, Board and its various committees
along with attendance details;
(g) remuneration of directors and key managerial personnel;
(h) penalty or punishment imposed on the company, its directors or officers and
details of compounding of offences and appeals made against such penalty or
punishment;
(i) matters relating to certification of compliances, disclosures as may be
prescribed;
(j) details, as may be prescribed, in respect of shares held by or on behalf of the
Foreign Institutional Investors indicating their names, addresses, countries of
incorporation, registration and percentage of shareholding held by them; and
(k) such other matters as may be prescribed,
and signed by a director and the company secretary, or where there is no company secretary,
by a company secretary in practice:
Provided that in relation to One Person Company and small company, the annual
return shall be signed by the company secretary, or where there is no company secretary, by
the director of the company.
(2) The annual return, filed by a listed company or, by a company having such paid-up
capital and turnover as may be prescribed, shall be certified by a company secretary in
practice in the prescribed form, stating that the annual return discloses the facts correctly
and adequately and that the company has complied with all the provisions of this Act.
(3) An extract of the annual return in such form as may be prescribed shall form part of
the Board’s report.
(4) Every company shall file with the Registrar a copy of the annual return, within sixty
days from the date on which the annual general meeting is held or where no annual general
meeting is held in any year within sixty days from the date on which the annual general
meeting should have been held together with the statement specifying the reasons for not
holding the annual general meeting, with such fees or additional fees as may be prescribed,
within the time as specified, under section 403.
(5) If a company fails to file its annual return under sub-section (4), before the expiry of
the period specified under section 403 with additional fee, the company shall be punishable
with fine which shall not be less than fifty thousand rupees but which may extend to
five lakhs rupees and every officer of the company who is in default shall be punishable with
imprisonment for a term which may extend to six months or with fine which shall not be less
than fifty thousand rupees but which may extend to five lakh rupees, or with both.
(6) If a company secretary in practice certifies the annual return otherwise than in
conformity with the requirements of this section or the rules made thereunder, he shall be
punishable with fine which shall not be less than fifty thousand rupees but which may
extend to five lakh rupees.