M.B. Sharma, J.-The dispute relates to the dividend amount of Rs. 2 lakhs lying with the Registrar of Joint Stock Companies. Under an order of this Court, dated May 10, 1968, Golcha Properties P. Ltd. was ordered to be wound up. The official liquidator attached to this Court was appointed as official liquidator of the company in liquidation. While the company was in liquidation, first dividend of Rs. 59,652.41, second dividend of Rs. 65,050.81 and a third dividend of Rs. 1,45,457 were declared on February 22, 1973, May 11, 1973, and November 20, 1975, respectively. Out of the aforesaid amount of dividend, a sum of Rs. 2,24,858.29 remained unclaimed. Under the provisions of Sub-section (1) of Section 555 of the Companies Act, 1956 (for short, “the Act”), the official liquidator paid the dividend payable to the shareholders into the public account of India in the Reserve Bank in a separate account which is known as the Companies Liquidation Account.

2. A Company Petition No. 15 of 1979 entitled M.C. Golcha vs. Official Liquidator was filed in this Court on behalf of the management of the company in liquidation and in the light of the scheme sanctioned by this Court on December 15, 1975, and further, in the light of the agreement submitted by the applicant on September 27, 1979, the company went out of liquidation and possession of the two cinemas has been handed over by the official liquidator to the applicant or their nominees. The applicant has now claimed the aforesaid sum of Rs. 2,24,85 8.29 being the amount of dividend which was either not claimed or could not be paid because of non-availability of the claimants.

3. Theground on which the aforesaid amount is claimed by the applicants is that, under the order of this Court, the company was deliquidated with effect from November 2, 1979, and, therefore, it is entitled to the refund of the aforesaid amount. The aforesaid claim of the applicants was contested by the official liquidator as well as by learned Counsel for the Central Government, non-applicant No. 2, that the unclaimed dividend belongs to the creditors of Golcha Pvt. Ltd. which was formerly in liquidation and under the provisions of Section 555 of the Act, more so under its Sub-section (8), the creditors have a right to claim the money lying in the Companies Liquidation Account with the Registrar of Companies for 15 years and thereafter, the money is to be transferred to the general revenue account of the Central Government The amount, therefore, is not liable to be transferred to the present management of the company. It is also the case of the non-petitioners that the company has been in liquidation up to November 2, 1979, and all the provisions of the Act and the Rules are applicable. That apart, in the scheme of compromise as sanctioned by this Court on December 15, 1975, there is no specific provision that the unclaimed dividend would be transferred back to the company after the company goes out of liquidation.

4. A bareperusal of Section 555 of the Act will show that such sums or amounts of unpaid dividends which the liquidator is required to pay into the public account of India in the Reserve Bank of India in a separate account to be known as the Companies Liquidation Account, cannot be returned to the company even after passing of an order of deliquidation. The amount of dividend is payable to the creditors. Thus, the creditors of the company alone are entitled to the payment of the dividend. Under Sub-section (7) of Section 555 of the Act, any person claiming to be entitled to any money paid into the Companies Liquidation Account may apply to the Court for an order for payment thereof and the Court if satisfied that the person claiming is entitled, may make an order for the payment to that person of the sum due, but it can only be done after a notice is served on such officer as the Central Government may appoint in this behalf , calling on that officer to show cause within one month from the date of the s

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