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15. Furnishing of security for registration

(1) The authority competent to grant registration or the assessing authority shall, as a condition to the grant of registration to a dealer or at any time after such grant, require him to furnish in the prescribed manner and within the time specified by such authority, the initial security or such subsequent additional security as may be considered necessary–

(a) for the timely payment of the amount of tax or other sum payable by him under this Act; and

(b) for the safe custody of books of accounts or any other documents required to be maintained under this Act and the rules made there under:

" Provided that no security under this section shall be required to be furnished by a department of the Central Government or the State Government or a public sector undertaking, corporation or company owned or controlled by the Central Government or the State Government."

(2) At the time of grant of obligatory registration to the dealers covered under sub– section (1) or (5) of section 3, the initial security shall be in the form of surety of two dealers registered under this Act, and where the dealer is not in a position to furnish such surety, he shall submit "security in the form of National Saving Certificate or in cash or in the form of three years bank guarantee of a nationalized bank", of the amount of–

"(a) Rs. 10,000/– in case of a small scale manufacturing unit, Rs. 15,000/– in case of a medium scale manufacturing unit and Rs. 25,000/– in case of a large scale manufacturing unit; and

(b) Rs. 10,000/– in cases not covered by clause (a)."

Explanation. – The small–scale or medium–scale or large scale–manufacturing unit shall have the same meaning as assigned to them by the Government of India from time to time.

(3) At the time of grant of voluntary registration under section 12, "the initial security shall be in the form of surety of two dealers registered under this Act, and where the dealer is not in a position to furnish such surety, he shall submit security" "in the form of National Saving Certificate or in cash or in the form of three years bank guarantee of a nationalized bank, of the amount of Rs. 10,000/–."

(4) The amount of security, in case of a dealer who is already registered or deemed to be registered under this Act, may be increased by the assessing authority, for reasons to be recorded in writing, to twenty five percent of the annual tax liability of the immediate preceding year. However, in case of dealers registered in the current year, such increase preceding months or the quarters, as the case may be.

(5) Where the security furnished by a dealer under sub–sections (2) and (4) is in the form of a surety bond and the surety becomes insolvent or dies, the dealer shall, within thirty days of the occurrence of any of the aforesaid events, inform the assessing authority and shall, within ninety days of such occurrence, furnish a fresh surety bond or furnish in a prescribed manner other security for the amount of the surety bond.

(6) The assessing authority may, by order in writing, forfeit the whole or any part of the security furnished by a dealer–

(a) for realising any amount of tax, penalty, interest, erroneously availed input tax credit or any other sum payable by him under this Act; or

(b) for any loss caused to the Government by negligence or wilful default on his part in ensuring the safe custody or proper use of the books of accounts or any other documents required to be maintained under this Act and the rules made there under.

(7) Where as a result of an order of forfeiture under sub–section (6), the security furnished by any dealer is rendered insufficient, he shall make up the deficiency within a period of thirty days from the date of the communication of the said order.

(8) No dealer shall be required to furnish additional security under sub–section (4) and no order of forfeiture of the whole or any part of the security shall be passed against him under sub–section (6) unless he has been afforded an opportunity of being heard.