law: Companies Act, 2013 
  217.
  
    Procedure,
  
  powers, etc., of inspectors.
  1.      It shall be the duty
  
  of all officers and other employees and agents including the former officers,
  
  employees and agents of a company which is under investigation in accordance
  
  with the provisions contained in this Chapter, and where the affairs of any
  
  other body corporate or a person are investigated under section 219, of all
  
  officers and other employees and agents including former officers, employees
  
  and agents of such body corporate or a personŚ
  a.     
  
    to
  
  preserve and to produce to an inspector or any person authorised by him in this
  
  behalf all books and papers of, or relating to, the company or, as the case may
  
  be, relating to the other body corporate or the person, which are in their
  
  custody or power; and
  b.    
  
    otherwise
  
  to give to the inspector all assistance in connection with the investigation
  
  which they are reasonably able to give.
  1.     
  2.      The inspector may
  
  require any body corporate, other than a body corporate referred to in
  
  sub-section (1 ), to furnish such information to, or produce such books
  
  and papers before him or any person authorised by him in this behalf as he may
  
  consider necessary, if the furnishing of such information or the production of
  
  such books and papers is relevant or necessary for the purposes of his investigation.
  3.      The inspector shall
  
  not keep in his custody any books and papers produced under sub-section (1 )
  
  or sub-section (2 ) for more than one hundred and eighty days and return
  
  the same to the company, body corporate, firm or individual by whom or on whose
  
  behalf the books and papers were produced:
  Provided
  
  that the books and papers may be called for by the inspector if they are needed
  
  again for a further period of one hundred and eighty days by an order in
  
  writing.
  1.     
  2.     
  3.     
  4.      An inspector may
  
  examine on oathŚ
  a.     
  
    any
  
  of the persons referred to in sub-section (1 ); and
  b.    
  
    with
  
  the prior approval of the Central Government, any other person, in relation to
  
  the affairs of the company, or other body corporate or person, as the case may
  
  be, and for that purpose may require any of those persons to appear before him
  
  personally:
  Provided
  
  that in case of an investigation under section 212, the prior approval of
  
  Director, Serious Fraud Investigation Office shall be sufficient under clause (b ).
  1.     
  2.     
  3.     
  4.     
  5.      Notwithstanding
  
  anything contained in any other law for the time being in force or in any
  
  contract to the contrary, the inspector, being an officer of the Central
  
  Government, making an investigation under this Chapter shall have all the
  
  powers as are vested in a civil court under the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908,
  
  while trying a suit in respect of the following matters, namely:Ś
  a.     
  
    the
  
  discovery and production of books of account and other documents, at such place
  
  and time as may be specified by such person;
  b.    
  
    summoning
  
  and enforcing the attendance of persons and examining them on oath; and
  c.     
  
    inspection
  
  of any books, registers and other documents of the company at any place.
  1.     
  2.     
  3.     
  4.     
  5.     
  6.     
               
  
   i.        
  
    If
  
  any director or officer of the company disobeys the direction issued by the
  
  Registrar or the inspector under this section, the director or the officer
  
  shall be punishable with imprisonment which may extend to one year and with
  
  fine which shall not be less than twenty-five thousand rupees but which may
  
  extend to one lakh rupees.
              
  
   ii.        
  
    If
  
  a director or an officer of the company has been convicted of an offence under
  
  this section, the director or the officer shall, on and from the date on which
  
  he is so convicted, be deemed to have vacated his office as such and on such
  
  vacation of office, shall be disqualified from holding an office in any
  
  company.
  1.     
  2.     
  3.     
  4.     
  5.     
  6.     
  7.      The notes of any
  
  examination under sub-section (4 ) shall be taken down in writing and
  
  shall be read over to, or by, and signed by, the person examined, and may
  
  thereafter be used in evidence against him.
  8.      If any person fails without
  
  reasonable cause or refusesŚ
  a.     
  
    to
  
  produce to an inspector or any person authorised by him in this behalf any book
  
  or paper which is his duty under sub-section (1 ) or sub-section (2 )
  
  to produce;
  b.    
  
    to
  
  furnish any information which is his duty under sub-section (2 ) to
  
  furnish;
  c.     
  
    to
  
  appear before the inspector personally when required to do so under subsection
  
  (4 ) or to answer any question which is put to him by the inspector in
  
  pursuance of that sub-section; or
  d.    
  
    to
  
  sign the notes of any examination referred to in sub-section (7 ), he
  
  shall be punishable with imprisonment for a term which may extend to six months
  
  and with fine which shall not be less than twenty-five thousand rupees but
  
  which may extend to one lakh rupees, and also with a further fine which may extend
  
  to two thousand rupees for every day after the first during which the failure
  
  or refusal continues.
  1.     
  2.     
  3.     
  4.     
  5.     
  6.     
  7.     
  8.     
  9.      The officers of the
  
  Central Government, State Government, police or statutory authority shall
  
  provide assistance to the inspector for the purpose of inspection, inquiry or
  
  investigation, which the inspector may, with the prior approval of the Central
  
  Government, require.
  10.   The Central
  
  Government may enter into an agreement with the Government of a foreign State
  
  for reciprocal arrangements to assist in any inspection, inquiry or
  
  investigation under this Act or under the corresponding law in force in that
  
  State and may, by notification, render the application of this Chapter in
  
  relation to a foreign State with which reciprocal arrangements have been made
  
  subject to such modifications, exceptions, conditions and qualifications as may
  
  be deemed expedient for implementing the agreement with that State.
  11.   Notwithstanding
  
  anything contained in this Act or in the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 if,
  
  in the course of an investigation into the affairs of the company, an
  
  application is made to the competent court in India by the inspector stating
  
  that evidence is, or may be, available in a country or place outside India,
  
  such court may issue a letter of request to a court or an authority in such
  
  country or place, competent to deal with such request, to examine orally, or
  
  otherwise, any person, supposed to be acquainted with the facts and
  
  circumstances of the case, to record his statement made in the course of such
  
  examination and also to require such person or any other person to produce any
  
  document or thing, which may be in his possession pertaining to the case, and
  
  to forward all the evidence so taken or collected or the authenticated copies
  
  thereof or the things so collected to the court in India which had issued such
  
  letter of request:
  Provided
  
  that the letter of request shall be transmitted in such manner as the Central
  
  Government may specify in this behalf:
  Provided
  
  further that every statement recorded or document or thing received under this
  
  sub-section shall be deemed to be the evidence collected during the course of
  
  investigation.
  1.  
  2.  
  3.  
  4.  
  5.  
  6.  
  7.  
  8.  
  9.  
  10.  
  11.  
  12.   Upon receipt of a
  
  letter of request from a court or an authority in a country or place outside
  
  India, competent to issue such letter in that country or place for the
  
  examination of any person or production of any document or thing in relation to
  
  affairs of a company under investigation in that country or place, the Central
  
  Government may, if it thinks fit, forward such letter of request to the court
  
  concerned, which shall thereupon summon the person before it and record his
  
  statement or cause any document or thing to be produced, or send the letter to
  
  any inspector for investigation, who shall thereupon investigate into the
  
  affairs of company in the same manner as the affairs of a company are
  
  investigated under this Act and the inspector shall submit the report to such
  
  court within thirty days or such extended time as the court may allow for
  
  further action:
  Provided
  
  that the evidence taken or collected under this sub-section or authenticated
  
  copies thereof or the things so collected shall be forwarded by the court, to
  
  the Central Government for transmission, in such manner as the Central
  
  Government may deem fit, to the court or the authority in country or place
  
  outside India which had issued the letter of request.