Home  /  Prevention of Corruption Act  /  Section 10

Section 10: Person in charge of commercial organisation to be guilty of offence

Prevention of Corruption Act • Official Statutory Text & Practice Guide

Statutory Regulation
Legal Standard
Competent Court / Tribunal
Act 1988
Section 9 All 31 Sections of Prevention of Corruption Act Section 11

Legal Commentary & Landmark Judgments: Section 10

Section 10 imposes vicarious criminal liability upon directors, managers, and officers in charge of a commercial organisation that commits an offence under Section 9.

  • Core Legal Standard: Where an offence under Section 9 has been committed by a commercial organisation.
  • Evidentiary Proof & Admissibility: It is proved that the offence was committed with the consent or connivance of any director, manager, secretary, or other officer of the commercial organisation, such person shall be deemed guilty of the offence.

Section 10 imposes corporate officer liability, holding directors and key executives criminally accountable when commercial organisations engage in public bribery.

The individual officer is punishable with imprisonment for a term which shall not be less than three years but which may extend to seven years, alongside mandatory fine liability.

Key Landmark Precedents:
  • Sunil Bharti Mittal v. CBI (2015) 4 SCC 609: Reiterated that a corporate director cannot be held vicariously liable for corporate crimes unless there is specific statutory provision or active personal complicity/connivance.
  • SMS Pharmaceuticals Ltd. v. Neeta Bhalla (2005) 8 SCC 89: Laid down the principles for determining personal managerial culpability in corporate statutory offences.
Legal Commentary:

Section 10 provides the statutory bridge holding top management personally criminally responsible. Directors cannot hide behind corporate veils; if active connivance or consent in commercial bribery is established, custodial sentences of up to seven years are mandatory.

Section 9 All 31 Sections of Prevention of Corruption Act Section 11