Evolution Of Serious Fraud Investigation Office And Its Working

Saurabh Mishra, Chanakya National Law University, Patna

ABSTRACT

This research deals with the evolution and the working of Serious Fraud Investigation Office (SFIO) established under the Ministry of Corporate Affairs of the Government of India as per the provisions of the Companies Act, 2013. The research aims to explain the pressing need for a specialised agency such as the SFIO to deal with the complex corporate frauds which are beyond the capabilities of a regular investigating agency to resolve and make liable the culprits of the economic frauds.

With the globalisation and advancement of the technology, the complexities of the corporate world have also increased. In contrast with the earlier frauds, the scams and malpractices in the corporate world are not just restricted to a particular field, but have several facets which cannot be easily detected. In order to understand the nature of frauds and to fulfil the gaps, specialists from different fields are required to work together. The establishment of the SFIO can be said to be in the right direction which has taken consideration of this issue. SFIO comprises of members who are experts in different fields such as financial sector, capital market, accounting, forensic auditing, taxation, law, information technology, business law, customs, etc.

This study focuses on the power of the SFIO and the procedure followed by it in the investigation of the matters referred to it by the central government. It is necessary to analyse the power and procedure of the agency so that it can be understood whether there is any lacking or there is a need for the enhancement of the functions of the SFIO, so that it can tackle corporate frauds more efficiently.