NANDAKUMAR . vs M/S ECE INDUSTRIES LTD. — Crl.A. No. 1692/2014

Case Summary: Crl.A. No. 001692/2014 Outcome: The Supreme Court allowed the appeals and quashed the criminal complaints. The Court set aside the High Court's December 14, 2012 order and the Metropolitan Magistrate's October 3, 2012 summoning order, finding that independent non-executive directors Nandakumar and others were improperly implicated in a Section 138 Negotiable Instrument Act complaint involving dishonored cheques. The Court held that merely being a director is insufficient for liability; Section 141 requires specific averment that the accused was actively in charge of and responsible for the company's business conduct at the relevant time. The complainant mechanically cited the directors' names without establishing such responsibility, constituting misuse of Section 138. This case analysis is maintained by casestatus.in based on publicly available court records.