Chapter VI COMMISSIONER OF PAYMENTS

1. (1) The Government shall, for the purpose of disbursing the amount payable under section 7, by notification in the Gazette, appoint a Commissioner of Payments.
2. (2) The Government may appoint such other persons as they may think fit to assist the Commissioner in the exercise of the powers conferred on the Commissioner under this Act.
3. (3) The salaries and allowances of the Commissioner and other persons appointed under this section shall be defrayed out of the Consolidated Fund of the State of Kerala.

1. (1) The Government shall, within sixty days from the appointed day, pay in cash to the Commissioner, for payment to the Company—
   • (a) an amount equal to the amount specified in sub-section (1) of section 7; and
   • (b) an amount equal to the amount of interest determined in accordance with the provisions of sub-section (2) of that section.
2. (2) A deposit account shall be opened by the Government in favour of the Commissioner in the Public Account of the State and any amount paid under this Act to the Commissioner shall be deposited by him to the credit of the said deposit account and the said deposit account shall be operated by the Commissioner.
3. (3) Records shall be maintained by the Commissioner in respect of the undertakings of the Company in relation to which payment has been made to him under this Act.
4. (4) The interest accruing on the amount standing to the credit of the deposit account referred to in sub-section (2) shall be credited to the

Certain powers of the Government or the Government Company.— The Government or the Government Company, as the case may be, shall be entitled to receive, upto the specified date, to the exclusion of all other persons, any money due to the Company in relation to its undertakings which have vested in the Government or the Government Company, and realized after the appointed day, notwithstanding that the realisation pertains to a period prior to the appointed day.

Every person having a claim against the Company with regard to any of the matters specified in the Schedule pertaining to any undertaking owned by it shall prefer such claim before the Commissioner within thirty days from the specified date: Provided that if the Commissioner is satisfied that the claimant was prevented by sufficient cause from preferring the claim within the said period of thirty days, he may entertain the claim within a further period of thirty days, but not thereafter.

1. (1) On receipt of the claims made under section 17, the Commissioner shall examine the claims.
2. (2) After examining the claims with reference to the items specified in the Schedule, the Commissioner shall fix a certain date on or before which every claimant shall file the proof of his claim.
3. (3) Not less than fourteen days’ notice of the date so fixed shall be given by advertisement in one issue of a daily newspaper in the English language having circulation in the major part of the State of Kerala and in one issue of any daily newspaper in the Malayalam language, as the Commissioner may consider suitable, and every such notice shall call upon the claimant to file the proof of his claim with the Commissioner within the time specified in the advertisement.
4. (4) Every claimant who fails to file the proof of his claim within the time specified by the Commissioner shall be excluded from the disbursements made by the Commissioner.
5. (5) The Commissioner shall, after such investigation as may in his opinion, be necessary and after giving the Company an opportunity of refuting the claim and after giving the claimant a reasonable opportunity of being heard, by order in writing, admit or reject the claim in whole or in part: Provided that the Commissioner shall apportion the amount placed at his disposal in case the total admitted claims are found to be in excess of the amount placed at his disposal.

1. (1) The Commissioner shall have the power to regulate his own procedure in all matters arising out of the exercise of his powers and the discharge of his functions under this Act, including the place or places at which he may hold his sittings and shall, for the purpose of making any investigation under this Act, have the same powers as are vested in a civil court under the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 (Central Act 5 of 1908) while trying a suit, in respect of the following matters, namely:—
   • (a) the summoning and enforcing the attendance of any witness and examining him on oath;
   • (b) the discovery and production of any document or other material object producible as evidence;
   • (c) the receipt of evidence on affidavits;
   • (d) the issuing of any commission for the examination of witnesses.
2. (2) Any investigation before the Commissioner shall be deemed to be a judicial proceeding within the meaning of sections 193 and 228 of the Indian Penal Code (Central Act 45 of 1860) and the Commissioner shall be deemed to be a civil court for the purposes of section 195 and Chapter XXVI of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (Central Act 2 of 1974).

A claimant who is dissatisfied with the decision of the Commissioner under section 18 may prefer an appeal against the decision to the principal civil court of original jurisdiction within the local limits of whose jurisdiction the registered office of the Company is situated.

After admitting a claim under this Act, the amount due in respect of such claim shall be paid by the Commissioner to the person or persons to whom such amount is due, and on such payment, the liability of the Government or the Government Company in respect of such claim shall stand discharged.

If, out of the monies paid to him in relation to the undertakings of the Company, there is a balance left after meeting the liabilities as specified in the Schedule, the Commissioner shall remit such balance to the Government.

Where the possession of any machinery, equipment or other property, has vested in the Government or a Government Company under this Act, but such machinery, equipment or other property does not belong to the Company, it shall be lawful for the Government or the Government Company to continue to possess such machinery or equipment or other property on the same terms and conditions under which they were possessed by the Company immediately before the appointed day.

Any money paid to the Commissioner which remains undisbursed or unclaimed on the date immediately preceding the date on which the office of the Commissioner is finally wound up, shall be transferred by the Commissioner, before his office is finally wound up, to the general revenue account of the Government, but a claim to any money so transferred may be preferred to the Government by the person entitled to such payment and shall be dealt with as if such transfer had not been made, and the order, if any, for payment of the claim being treated as an order for the refund of revenue.