New KYC norms for directors make a cell-phone, email & DSC mandatory for directors

Vinod Kothari

corplaw@vinodkothari.com

 

If you ever thought your life will be much better and tranquil without a cellphone on you, and without an email to stay connected, well, you may be right, but you cannot function as a director in companies. This is the fallout of the new DIR-3-KYC norms brought by the MCA[1]. The Rules require every director to file the KYC form by 31st August, 2018, post which the Directors’ Identification number (DIN) granted to the director shall be “de activated”. The Rules also lay that such de-activated DIN shall be re-activated only after the person has filed the KYC form.

One of the mandatory requisites of the new KYC form is that the director shall provide his cellphone number, his email id and file the eForm with his/her own digital signature (DSC). If you thought you may provide the cellphone number and email id of your children, or your assistants, you are mistaken, because the form goes on to say that the cellphone number and the email id shall be of the director himself.

Section 153 of the Companies Act makes it mandatory for any prospective director to apply for DIN. While there is nothing in the statute to say that on de-activation of the DIN, the director will lose his office as such, technically called vacation of office, it will not be surprised, if the Government, in its recent impetus to weed out shell companies and dummy directors, barges ahead and challenge the very directorship of such directors whose DINs stood deactivated.

Result – you cannot be a director, unless you have a cellphone number and email id. Legal experts may argue that being director in companies is basic freedom to carry business, as the right to carry business includes the right to carry it in corporate form as well, and there is nothing in the law of the land to make a cellphone or an email an existential necessity. Therefore, if there is a law that forces a corporate professional to have a personal cellphone number/ email- id, the law needs to be questioned.

Not having a personal cellphone is neither an evidence of laity nor anachronism. Several people use a limited insulation from communications technology as a way of life. There is no basis to contend that such persons are not fit to be corporate directors.

It may be argued that the qualifications of a director and the circumstances in which a director automatically vacates his office are all well defined in the law. De-activation of the DIN is not one of such circumstances. It may also be argued that there is an assurance in the MCA DIN rules that the DIN once granted has lifetime validity, and the question of its de-activation does not arise at all.

In order to file this eForm, all directors (Indian and foreign national) will have to obtain/ have their own email id, mobile number, specify the OTP in the eForm and sign with their own DSC. The consequence of false declaration is that the Director shall be liable under section 448 of the Act and under relevant provisions of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 and any other law as applicable, if any statement in the application is found to be false or any material fact is found to be have been omitted.

The MCA rules come in the wake of the Government’s resolve to weed out shell companies and dummy directors. It is apprehended that the 10-lakh odd companies have lots of directors who are men of straw, even though the requirement for DIN was introduced sometime in 2006.

[1] Insertion of new rule 12A in Companies (Appointment and Qualification of Directors) Rules, 2014 vide MCA notification dated 5th July, 2018

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