Procedure before Tribunal and Appellate Tribunal
Section 424 of the Companies Act, 2013 deals with procedure before Tribunal and Appellate Tribunal. The Tribunal and the Appellate Tribunal shall not, while disposing of any proceeding before it or, as the case may be, an appeal before it, be bound by the procedure laid down in the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 (5 of 1908), but shall be guided by the principles of natural justice, and, subject to The Act came into force on 01 Apr 2014.
(1) The Tribunal and the Appellate Tribunal shall not, while disposing of any proceeding before it or, as the case may be, an appeal before it, be bound by the procedure laid down in the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 (5 of 1908), but shall be guided by the principles of natural justice, and, subject to the other provisions of this Act 1[or of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 (31 of 2016)] and of any rules made hereunder, the Tribunal and the Appellate Tribunal shall have power to regulate their own procedure.
(2) The Tribunal and the Appellate Tribunal shall have, for the purposes of discharging their functions under this Act 1[or under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 (31 of 2016)], the same powers as are vested in a civil court under the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 (5 of 1908) while trying a suit in respect of the following matters, namely:--
(a) summoning and enforcing the attendance of any person and examining him on oath;
(b) requiring the discovery and production of documents;
(c) receiving evidence on affidavits;
(d) subject to the provisions of sections 123 and 124 of the Indian Evidence Act,1872 (1 of 1872), requisitioning any public record or document or a copy of such record or document from any office;
(e) issuing commissions for the examination of witnesses or documents;
(f) dismissing a representation for default or deciding it ex parte;
(g) setting aside any order of dismissal of any representation for default or any order passed by it ex parte; and
(h) any other matter which may be prescribed.
(3) Any order made by the Tribunal or the Appellate Tribunal may be enforced by that Tribunal in the same manner as if it were a decree made by a court in a suit pending therein, and it shall be lawful for the Tribunal or the Appellate Tribunal to send for execution of its orders to the court within the local limits of whose jurisdiction,--
(a) in the case of an order against a company, the registered office of the company is situate; or
(b) in the case of an order against any other person, the person concerned voluntarily resides or carries on business or personally works for gain.
(4) All proceedings before the Tribunal or the Appellate Tribunal shall be deemed to be judicial proceedings within the meaning of sections 193 and 228, and for the purposes of section 196 of the Indian Penal Code (45 of 1860), and the Tribunal and the Appellate Tribunal shall be deemed to be civil court for the purposes of section 195 and Chapter XXVI of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (2 of 1974)
Section 424, The Companies Act, 2013 (Act 18 of 2013).
Cross-references
Extracted from the operative text of the enactments themselves. Every destination below exists in our corpus.
This section refers to
- s. 193 Contract by One Person Company
- s. 195 Prohibition on insider trading of securities
- s. 228 Investigation, etc., of foreign companies
- Indian Evidence Act s. 123 Evidence as to affairs of State
- Indian Evidence Act s. 124 Official communications
- Indian Penal Code s. 196 Using evidence known to be false
Related judgements & precedents
These are some judgments that construed this section, and hold precedence value. They hold authority on how to read, interpret and use this section.
-
Devas Multimedia Private Limited v. Antrix Corporation Limited & Anr.
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
Section 271(c) of the Companies Act, 2013 authorises the Tribunal to wind up a company formed for a fraudulent and unlawful purpose or whose affairs are conducted in a fraudulent manner. Where fraud in the formation and conduct of Devas is established on the record, concurrent NCLT/NCLAT winding-up orders stand; the petitioner’s motive, pending ICC/BIT awards, and a plea that winding up is a device to defeat those awards do not immunise a fraudulent company, because a product of fraud is in conflict with public policy.
On this section: Works out, in a contested winding-up, what section 424's direction that the Tribunal be guided by natural justice instead of the Code of Civil Procedure actually requires - and what it does not require, namely cross-examination and advertisement as a matter of course.
-
Kavita Arora vs Leptons Designtek PVT Ltd., Ors.
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
Setting aside the dismissal of an oppression and mismanagement petition on the footing that allegations of forgery and fabrication of company records could only be tried by a civil court, the Court held that the Tribunal has wide powers of inquiry and, reading section 424 with Rule 43 of the NCLT Rules 2016, can summon documents and direct forensic examination of disputed corporate records itself; the matter was remanded to the NCLT for comprehensive adjudication.
On this section: Treats section 424 as the source of the NCLT's procedural authority to call for and examine documentary evidence, so that disputed or allegedly forged company records need not be relegated to a civil suit.
The holding above is the ratio decidendi as extracted from the judgment by eCourts India, reproduced unaltered — it is a rendering of the court's reasoning, not a substitute for its words. Read the order itself before relying on it.
Judgments citing this section
These may be obiter dicta or a precedent, for you to study. These are the judgments where this section is quoted.
-
… The matters that fall within the jurisdiction of the NCLT, under the Companies Act, 2013, lie scattered all over the Companies Act. Therefore, Sections 420 and 424 of the Companies Act, 2013 indicate in broad terms, merely the procedure to be followed by the NCLT and NCLAT before passing orders. However, there are no separate provisions in the Companies Act, exclusively dealing with the jurisdiction and powers of NCLT. 31. In contrast, Subsections (4) and (5) of Section …
-
… The matters that fall within the jurisdiction of the NCLT, under the Companies Act, 2013, lie scattered all over the Companies Act. Therefore, Sections 420 and 424 of the Companies Act, 2013 indicate in broad terms, merely the procedure to be followed by the NCLT and NCLAT before passing orders. However, there are no separate provisions in the Companies Act, exclusively dealing with the jurisdiction and powers of NCLT. 31. In contrast, Subsections (4) and (5) of Section …
-
… The matters that fall within the jurisdiction of the NCLT, under the Companies Act, 2013, lie scattered all over the Companies Act. Therefore, Sections 420 and 424 of the Companies Act, 2013 indicate in broad terms, merely the procedure to be followed by the NCLT and NCLAT before passing orders. However, there are no separate provisions in the Companies Act, exclusively dealing with the jurisdiction and powers of NCLT. 31. In contrast, Subsections (4) and (5) of Section …
Questions about Section 424
What have the courts held on Section 424 of the Companies Act?
Devas Multimedia Private Limited v. Antrix Corporation Limited & Anr. (17 Jan 2022) is the leading judgment on this section among those set out below: Works out, in a contested winding-up, what section 424's direction that the Tribunal be guided by natural justice instead of the Code of Civil Procedure actually requires - and what it does not require, namely cross-examination and advertisement as a matter of course. Another 1 judgment on this section is set out below, 1 of them from the Supreme Court. They run from 2022 to 2024.
How do I find court cases under Section 424 of the Companies Act?
In judgments and charge sheets this section is written several ways, and each form finds a different set of orders. These search the full text of every order eCourtsIndia holds, best matches first: Companies Act 424, section 424 Companies Act, section 424 of the Companies Act. People searching for it also type companies act 2006 section 424. Each opens the full list of orders on eCourtsIndia, where it can be narrowed by court, year and outcome. 2 reported judgments on this section are set out on this page, beginning with Devas Multimedia Private Limited v. Antrix Corporation Limited & Anr. (17 Jan 2022).
What should I read with Section 424 of the Companies Act, and has it changed?
Its own text turns on section 193 (Contract by One Person Company), section 195 (Prohibition on insider trading of securities), section 228 (Investigation, etc., of foreign companies), Indian Evidence Act 123 (Evidence as to affairs of State), and on 2 further provisions, so none of them can safely be read on its own.
When did Section 424 of the Companies Act come into force?
Section 424 of the Companies Act, cited as Companies Act 424, came into force on 01 Apr 2014, having been enacted on 29 Aug 2013. It is in force as at the date shown on this page.
Other sections of this Act
- 2. Definitions5089 words
- 143. Powers and duties of auditors and auditing standards1867 words
- 230. Power to compromise or make arrangements with creditors and members1432 words
- 232. Merger and amalgamation of companies1416 words
- 149. Company to have Board of Directors1403 words
- 217. Procedure, powers, etc., of inspectors1390 words
Source and method. Compiled from the enactments of Parliament and of the State legislatures as published on India Code, and republished together with commentary and other original matter under section 52(1)(q)(ii) of the Copyright Act, 1957. Structured, cross-referenced and maintained by eCourtsIndia. Text as in force on 16 Oct 2026. This page is not a substitute for legal advice.