17.
| (1) Where for the purpose of ascertaining any information required by him in order to fulfil the duties under this Act, the Registrar may, if he is of opinion that such information is not likely to be furnished to him or apprehends suppression of such information, authorize in writing an officer appointed for the purpose to make search and obtain such information as he may require, and such authorization shall be recorded in the register, kept and maintained for such purpose. |
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| (2) Any officer so specially authorized by the Registrar under subsection (1) for the purpose of ascertaining any information under this Act may, if necessary, be accompanied by a peace officer and may do all or any of the following acts :
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(a) enter and search any building or place where he has reason to believe any books, registers or other documents belonging to any person or firm may be found, and to examine or cause to be examined any such books, registers or documents ; | | |
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(b) make a note or an inventory or take an extract from any book, register or other document that may be found in the course of any search of any building or place ;
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(c) question any person whom he finds in that building or place with regard to any matter relevant to or under this Act and the provisions of the Code of Criminal Procedure Act. No. 15 of 1979, relating to searches shall apply so far as may be to searches under this section ; and
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(d) remove any such books, registers or other documents that may be found in that course of any search of any building or place and issue a receipt therefor to the person from whose custody the same was removed and without delay enter the particulars of such books, registers, or other documents in the register referred to in subsection (1). | | |
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| (3) Any firm or person, corporation, agent, director, officer or employee of such firm or person who fails to furnish any information or to produce any book, record or other document when required so to do by the Registrar or any officer specially authorized in writing by the Registrar, or obstructs or fails to permit to make any examination under the preceding provisions shall be guilty of an offence, unless he proves that the offence was committed without his knowledge, or that he exercised all due diligence to avoid the commission of such offence. Where the person convicted of such offence under this Act is a body corporate, every person who at the time of the commission of the offence was a director or an officer of the body corporate shall be deemed to be guilty of that offence and shall, on conviction after summary trial before a Magistrate, be liable to imprisonment of either description for a term not exceeding twelve months or to a fine not exceeding two thousand rupees or to both such imprisonment and fine. |
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Sri Lanka Consolidated Acts