Finance Bill 2024 proposes significant amendments to the Prohibition of Benami Property Transactions (PBPT) Act, 1988. Section 24 of the Act will be revised to introduce stricter deadlines: benamidars and beneficial owners must now respond to notices within three months, while the Initiating Officer has four months to act on provisional property attachments. The time to draft statements of cases has also been extended to one month. Additionally, a new Section 55A will be inserted, allowing Initiating Officers to offer immunity from prosecution to benamidars who fully disclose details of benami transactions. This immunity is conditional upon complete and truthful disclosure. If a benamidar fails to comply or provides false information, immunity can be revoked, and they may face prosecution and penalties as if no immunity had been granted. These changes, effective from October 1, 2024, aim to enhance enforcement and evidence gathering in benami property cases.
Budget 2024: Amendments to Prohibition of Benami Property Transactions Act, 1988
(A) Amendment of Section 24 of the Prohibition of Benami Property Transactions Act, 1988
Section 24 of the Prohibition of Benami Property Transactions (PBPT) Act, 1988 relates to notice and attachment of property involved in Benami transaction.
2. The existing provisions of sub-section (3) of the said section 24 of PBPT Act do not provide for any time limit for a benamidar to furnish a reply to the notice issued under sub-section (1) or beneficial owner to file submissions on copy of said notice given to him under sub-section (2).
3. It is proposed to insert sub-section (2A) to provide a maximum time limit of three months from the end of the month in which notice is issued under sub-section (1) for the benamidar or the beneficial owner to file their explanations or submissions.
4. The existing provisions of sub-section (3) and sub-section (4) of the said section provide for a time limit of 90 days from the last day of the month in which notice under sub-section (1) is issued for the Initiating Officer to provisionally attach the property or to pass an order for continuing the provisional attachment or revoking the provisional attachment or deciding not to attach the property, as the case may be.
5. It is proposed to amend the said sub-section (3) and sub-section (4) of section 24 of the PBPT Act to increase the said period to four months from the end of the month in which notice under sub-section (1) of the said section is issued.
6. The existing provisions of sub-section (5) of said section 24 allow for a time period of fifteen days from the date of attachment order to the Initiating Officer to draw up a statement of the case and refer it to the Adjudicating Authority.
7. It is proposed to amend the said sub-section to increase the said period to one month from the end of the month in which the order under sub-clause (i) of clause (a), or under sub-clause (i) of clause (b) of sub-section (4) of the said section 24 of the PBPT Act, 1988, has been passed.
8. These amendments will take effect from the 1st day of October, 2024.
(B) Insertion of Section 55A in the Prohibition of Benami Property Transactions Act, 1988
As per section 53(2) of the Prohibition of Benami Property Transactions Act (PBPT) Act, 1988, the offence of benami transaction is punishable with a penalty of rigorous imprisonment for minimum one year to maximum seven years along with fine extending to 25% of the fair market value of the benami property. This penalty is the same for a benamidar or a beneficial owner or any person who abets or induces any person to enter into a benami transaction. Due to same quantum of penalty & prosecution as is imposable in the case of beneficial owner and abettor, benamidars do not come forward to give evidence against the beneficial owner.
2. Further, many benamidars being of poor means and illiterate, imposing on them the same penalty as the beneficial owner of such a benami transaction could be disproportionate in nature. Alternatively, if such benamidars were to become approvers, it would help in gathering clinching evidence and details about benami properties and result in convictions of the beneficial owners, thus strengthening the regime.
3. Furthermore, various other laws of the land provided for a tender of pardon/immunity from prosecution/ reduced penalty in cases where the witness assists in the due process of law.
4. It is thus proposed to insert a new section 55A in the PBPT Act, 1988, to provide that the Initiating Officer may, with a view to obtaining the evidence of the benamidar or any other person as referred to in section 53, other than the beneficial owner, tender to such person immunity from penalty for any offence under section 53, with the previous sanction of the competent authority as referred to in section 55, on condition of his making a full and true disclosure of the whole circumstances relating to the benami transaction. A tender of immunity made to, and accepted by, the person concerned, shall, to the extent to which the immunity extends, render him immune from prosecution for any offence in respect of which the tender was made and from the imposition of any penalty under section 53 of the Act.
5. Further, it is also proposed to provide that if it appears to the Initiating Officer that any person to whom immunity has been tendered under this section has not complied with the condition on which the tender was made or is wilfully concealing anything or is giving false evidence, the Initiating Officer may record a finding to that effect, and thereupon, with the previous sanction of the competent authority as referred to in section 55, the immunity shall be deemed to have been withdrawn, and any such person may be tried for the offence in respect of which the tender of immunity was made or for any other offence of which he appears to have been guilty in connection with the same matter and shall also become liable to the imposition of any penalty under this Act to which he would have otherwise been liable.
6. This amendment will take effect from the 1st day of October, 2024.
[Clause 154]
Extract of Clause 154 of Finance Bill 2024
Clause 154 of the Bill seeks to amend the Prohibition of Benami Property Transactions Act, 1988.
Sub-section (2) of section 24 of the said Act provides for any time limit for a benamidar to furnish a reply to the notice issued under sub-section (1) or the beneficial owner to file submissions on copy of said notice given to him under sub-section (2).
It is proposed to insert a new sub-section (2A) in the said section so as to provide a maximum period of three months from the last day of the month in which notice is issued under sub-section (1) for the benamidar or the beneficial owner to file their explanations or submissions.
Sub-section (3) and sub-section (4) of the said section provide for a time limit of ninety days from the last day of the month in which notice under sub-section (1) is issued for the Initiating Officer to provisionally attach the property or to pass an order for continuing the provisional attachment or revoking the provisional attachment or deciding not to attach the property, as the case may be.
It is further proposed to amend the said sub-sections to increase the said time limit from ninety days to four months from the last day of the month in which notice under sub-section (1) is issued.
Sub-section (5) of the said section allows for a time period of fifteen days from the date of attachment order to the Initiating Officer to draw up a statement of the case and refer it to the Adjudicating Authority.
It is also proposed to amend the said sub-section so as to increase the said time limit to one month from the last day of the month in which the order under sub-clause (i) of clause (a), or under sub-clause (i) of clause (b), of sub-section (4) of the said section, has been passed.
It is also proposed to insert a new section 55A in the Prohibition of Benami Property Transactions Act, 1988 relating to power to tender immunity from prosecution.
Sub-section (1) of the proposed new section provides that the Initiating Officer may, with a view to obtaining the evidence of the benamidar or any other person as referred to in section 53, other than the beneficial owner, tender immunity from prosecution under the said section to the benamidar or such other person, with the previous sanction of the competent authority as referred to in section 55, on condition that the benamidar or such other person makes a full and true disclosure of the whole circumstances relating to the benami transaction.
Sub-section (2) of proposed new section provides that the tender of immunity made to, and accepted by, the person benamidar or such other person, shall, to the extent to which the immunity extends, render him immune from prosecution for the offence in respect of which the tender was made and from the imposition of any penalty under section 53.
Sub-section (3) of proposed new section provides that if it appears to the Initiating Officer that any person to whom immunity has been tendered under this section has not complied with the conditions subject to which the tender was made, or is wilfully concealing anything, or is giving false evidence, the Initiating Officer may record a finding to that effect, and with the previous sanction of the competent authority as referred to in section 55, withdraw the immunity so tendered.
Sub-section (4) of the proposed new section provides that any person against whom the immunity tendered is withdrawn in accordance with sub-section (3), may be tried for the offence in respect of which the tender of immunity was made or for any other offence of which he appears to have been guilty in connection with the same transaction and shall also be liable for penalty under this Act to which he would otherwise have been liable.
These amendments will take effect from 1st October, 2024.
***
EXTRACT OF PROPOSED AMENDMENT TO THE PROHIBITION OF BENAMI PROPERTY TRANSACTIONS ACT, 1988
A. Amendment of Act 45 of 1988.
In the Prohibition of Benami Property Transactions Act, 1988, with effect from the 1st day of October, 2024,––
(a) in section 24,––
(i) after sub-section (2), the following sub-section shall be inserted, namely:––
“(2A) The benamidar, to whom a notice has been issued under sub-section (1), or the beneficial owner to whom a copy of such notice has been issued under sub-section (2), shall furnish the explanation or submissions, if any, within the period specified in the said notice or such period as may be extended by the Initiating Officer, not exceeding three months from the end of the month in which the said notice is issued.”;
(ii) in sub-section (3), for the words “ninety days”, the words “four months” shall be substituted;
(iii) in sub-section (4), for the words “ninety days”, the words “four months” shall be substituted;
(iv) in sub-section (5), for the words “fifteen days from the date of the attachment”, the words “one month from the end of the month in which the said order has been passed” shall be substituted;
(b) after section 55, the following section shall be inserted, namely:––
B. Power to tender Immunity from prosecution.
“55A. (1) The Initiating Officer may, with a view to obtaining the evidence of the benamidar or any other person as referred to in section 53, other than the beneficial owner, tender immunity from prosecution for any offence under the said section to the benamidar or such other person, with the previous sanction of the competent authority as referred to in section 55, on the condition that the benamidar or such other person makes a full and true disclosure of the whole circumstances relating to the benami transaction.
(2) The tender of immunity made to, and accepted by, the benamidar or such other person, shall, to the extent to which the immunity extends, render him immune from prosecution for the offence in respect of which the tender was made and from the imposition of any penalty under section 53.
(3) If it appears to the Initiating Officer that any person to whom immunity has been tendered under this section has not complied with the conditions subject to which the tender was made, or is wilfully concealing anything, or is giving false evidence, the Initiating Officer may record a finding to that effect, and with the previous sanction of the competent authority as referred to in section 55, withdraw the immunity tendered.
(4) Any person against whom the immunity tendered is withdrawn in accordance with sub-section (3), may be tried for the offence in respect of which the tender of immunity was made or for any other offence of which he appears to have committed in connection with the same transaction and shall also be liable to any penalty under this Act to which he would otherwise have been liable.”.
