Demand notice under section 138 of ni act

Dr. Gupta Sir, the notice has not yet been delivered. It has not been returned or refused. I mean to say that the notice delivery is delayed and the 30 day deadline u/s 138 is fast approaching. We sent the notice a week before, estimating that it will be delivered in time (same state registered post delivery) but still hasn't been delivered.

I am the payee here. The cheque was given to me but bounced fue to insufficient funds 27 days back.

The tracking status shows that the notice is currently in the post office location.

unless it is RETURNED WITH SUITABLE REMARKS BY POST IT HAS TO BE TERATED AS DELIVERED. If it is speedpost  track it online.

Since you will any way hire a lawyer consult him on this further .If Post offcie says party left address you cant do anything about it. In India most worng doers manage to avoid summonsnotices due to corruption and delay process by months.

Under Section 27 of the General Clauses Act If a notice is sent by registered post properly addressed and adequately stamped the requirement of sending notice is satisfied. The drawer of the cheque has to respond within 15 days of receipt of the demand notice. If the drawer pays the amount the case is closed. If the drawer neither pays the amount nor replies the demand notice within 15 days of receipt of the same the cause of action arises. Under Section 142 of the Act the case should be filed within 30 days of cause of action, the case would lapse due to limitation. The payee can wait for a reasonable time after sending the demand notice and file the complaint, say within 45 days of his sending the demand notice. If in the mean time he receive a positice response the case gets closed. If he receives a negative response or no response the case would continue, the drawer would become the accused and he would receive the sommonse from the court. The summonse would say that he has another opportunity to compound the case. If the accused had not received the original demand notice but he was sincere, he would compound the case. If he were not sincere and if he had sufficient reason not to pay the case would proceed. Non-receipt of the original demand notice would be no reason not to pay.

Speed post, tracking etc. are new things and one need not look into those things. The present postal system in India was introduced in India by the British. It was a service provided by His/Her Majesty and had the status of a soverign authority. During those days postage stamps bore the image of the crown just as in the case of coinage and currency notes. In due course philately came and all kinds of commemmorative stamps were introduced. But the sovereign authority of postal system continued. Even today it is a service with sovereign authority. Service stamps still bear the Ashoka emblem. Proof of the receipt issued by the postal department is proof enough.

Sirjee,