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Industrial Relations (Central) Rules, 2026 · CHAPTER XII — OFFENCES AND PENALTIES

Rule 38: Manner of composition of offence

Reviewed by Finin2min Editorial Desk · Last reviewed 30 August 2026

Rule 38 — Governs manner of composition of offence and the rights, duties, powers or procedure expressly stated in this rule. Key operative text: (2) The accused to whom the notice is served under sub-rule (1), may send the duly filled up application in Part III of Form XV to the compounding officer electronically and deposit the compounding amount electronically,…

Full notified rule textG.S.R. 342(E), 8 May 2026Source checked: 20 August 2026

Rule status

Industrial Relations (Central) Rules, 2026 were finally notified under G.S.R. 342(E), 8 May 2026. The Central Rules must be read with the Code and any later amendment/corrigendum.

Official Gazette

Open the notified Rules ↗

Finin2min analysis — operative rule mechanics

Operative clauses

(2) The accused to whom the notice is served under sub-rule (1), may send the duly filled up application in Part III of Form XV to the compounding officer electronically and deposit the compounding amount electronically, within fifteen days of the receipt of the notice.
(3) Where the prosecution has already been instituted against the accused in the court of competent jurisdiction, the accused may make an application to such court to allow composition of the offence against him and that court may, after considering the application, allow composition of the offence by the compounding officer in accordance with the provisions of section 89 and procedure specified in this rule.
(4) In case the accused is willing to compound by submitting the application under sub-rule (2), the compounding officer shall compound the offence and–– (a) in case the offence is compounded before the institution of prosecution, no complaint for prosecution shall be instituted against the accused;
(b) in case the offence is compounded pending proceeding under section 85 of the Code, the compounding officer shall inform the composition to the officer referred to in that section, who shall, after such information, close the proceeding in respect of such offence against the accused; and (c) in case the offence is compounded after the institution of prosecution with the permission of the court, the compounding…

Provisos / explanations

No proviso/explanation was separately extracted from this rule.

Thresholds & timelines

(2) The accused to whom the notice is served under sub-rule (1), may send the duly filled up application in Part III of Form XV to the compounding officer electronically and deposit the compounding amount electronically, within fifteen days of the receipt of the notice.

Mapped Code sections

Section 89

Full notified text — Rule 38

English rule text transcribed from the final official 2026 Gazette PDF; layout is normalised for web reading. The Gazette controls.

38. Manner of composition of offence– (1) The officer notified by the Central Government for the purposes of
compounding of offences under sub-section (1) of section 89 (hereinafter referred to as the “compounding officer”)
shall, send a notice to the accused in Form XV through the designated portal of the Ministry of Labour and
Employment.

 (2) The accused to whom the notice is served under sub-rule (1), may send the duly filled up application in Part III of
Form XV to the compounding officer electronically and deposit the compounding amount electronically, within fifteen
days of the receipt of the notice.

(3) Where the prosecution has already been instituted against the accused in the court of competent jurisdiction, the
accused may make an application to such court to allow composition of the offence against him and that court may,
after considering the application, allow composition of the offence by the compounding officer in accordance with the
provisions of section 89 and procedure specified in this rule.

(4) In case the accused is willing to compound by submitting the application under sub-rule (2), the compounding officer
shall compound the offence and––

      (a) in case the offence is compounded before the institution of prosecution, no complaint for prosecution shall
          be instituted against the accused;

      (b) in case the offence is compounded pending proceeding under section 85 of the Code, the compounding officer
          shall inform the composition to the officer referred to in that section, who shall, after such information, close
          the proceeding in respect of such offence against the accused; and

      (c) in case the offence is compounded after the institution of prosecution with the permission of the court, the
          compounding officer shall treat the case as closed and inform the compounding of the offence to the
          competent court by which such composition was allowed and after receiving such information, the court shall
          discharge the accused.

                                                   CHAPTER XIII

                                                 MISCELLANEOUS

Application and evidence

Primary statutory test — (2) The accused to whom the notice is served under sub-rule (1), may send the duly filled up application in Part III of Form XV to the compounding officer electronically and deposit the compounding amount electronically, within fifteen days of the receipt of the notice.
Additional operative limb — (3) Where the prosecution has already been instituted against the accused in the court of competent jurisdiction, the accused may make an application to such court to allow composition of the offence against him and that court may, after considering the application, allow composition of the offence by the compounding officer in accordance with the provisions of section 89 and procedure specified in this rule.
Numerical or timing control — (2) The accused to whom the notice is served under sub-rule (1), may send the duly filled up application in Part III of Form XV to the compounding officer electronically and deposit the compounding amount electronically, within fifteen days of the receipt of the notice.
Code Section mapping — 89. Read the mapped provision together with this text rather than treating the concordance as a substitute for it.
Prescribed-form link recorded in the corpus — XV. Confirm the current notified form/version before filing.
Evidence file — retain facts and records proving the role/status of: Central Government.

Cross-references & prescribed forms

Sections cited/mapped

Section 89

Forms

Worked example

When an event triggers manner of composition of offence, record the trigger date, competent authority, prescribed rule/form, filing or decision step, service/acknowledgement and final outcome. A statutory point to test is: “(2) The accused to whom the notice is served under sub-rule (1), may send the duly filled up application in Part III of Form XV to the compounding officer electronically and deposit the compounding amount electronically, within fifteen days of the receipt of the notice.” Reconcile the mapped Code Section(s) 89. Use the current notified XV where the process requires it.

Illustrative only. Use the exact notified rule, prescribed form and competent authority.

Q&A — Rule 38

What is Rule 38 of the Industrial Relations (Central) Rules, 2026?

What does Rule 38 require or permit?

A principal operative clause extracted from the notified rule is: “(2) The accused to whom the notice is served under sub-rule (1), may send the duly filled up application in Part III of Form XV to the compounding officer electronically and deposit the compounding amount electronically, within fifteen days of the receipt of the notice.” Read it with all sub-rules and provisos below.

Does Rule 38 contain a proviso or explanation?

No standalone proviso or explanation was extracted from this rule text. Check the complete rule below for clause-level conditions.

What deadline, period, percentage or amount appears in Rule 38?

The rule contains this numerical/time expression: “(2) The accused to whom the notice is served under sub-rule (1), may send the duly filled up application in Part III of Form XV to the compounding officer electronically and deposit the compounding amount electronically, within fifteen days of the receipt of the notice.” Apply it only in its notified context.

Which Code sections are linked to Rule 38?

The current concordance maps Rule 38 to Section(s) 89.

Which form is connected with Rule 38?

The current corpus records: XV. Confirm the current notified version before use.

When did Rule 38 come into force?

The final Central Rules were notified as G.S.R. 342(E), 8 May 2026; Rule 1 states that the Rules come into force on publication. Check any later amendment or corrigendum before reliance.

Primary sources

Industrial Relations (Central) Rules, 2026 — official Gazette PDF ↗

Industrial Relations Code, 2020 — India Code ↗

Source check: 20 August 2026.

Jurisdiction note: This is the Central Rule corpus. Check State rules/notifications where the State Government is the appropriate Government and check later Gazette amendments before acting.