penalty and relaxation For PF and ESI cahallan

Penalty under PF Act

Liable to be arrested without warrant being a cognisable offence.
Defaults by employer in paying contributions or inspection/administrative charges attract imprisonment upto 3 years and fines upto Rs.10,000 (S.14).  For any retrospective application, all dues have to be paid by employer with damages upto 100% of arrears.

Penalty under ESI Act

Different punishment have been prescribed for different types of offences in terms of Section 85: (I) (six months imprisonment and fine Rs.5000), (ii) (one year imprisonment and fine), and 85-A: (five years imprisonment and not less to 2 years) and 85-C(2) of the ESI Act, which are self explanatory.  Besides these provisions, action also can be taken under section 406 of the IPC in cases where an employer deducts contributions from the wages of his employees but does not pay the same to the corporation which amounts to criminal breach of trust.

Thanks for the information. Nice post Anjali.