Sections 11 explained: this guide covers what it means, who it applies to, the step-by-step process, documents required, fees, due dates and penalties in India — so you can stay compliant with confidence and avoid costly mistakes.
Sections 11 to 14 run the Council from day to day. Section 11 lets the Central Government fill a seat the electors fail to fill. Section 12 provides for the President and Vice-President. Section 13 deals with resignations and vacancies. Section 14 fixes the duration of the Council at four years and says what happens when the term ends.
This article is as per the Act as printed in the ICAI edition of 2022 (amended up to the Chartered Accountants, the Cost and Works Accountants and the Company Secretaries (Amendment) Act, 2022). Later amendments and notifications should be checked.
The Council elects a President and a Vice-President, each for one year and not beyond his term on the Council. The President is the Head of the Council, presides at its meetings and sees that its decisions are carried out. A member vacates his seat by resignation, three consecutive absences without sufficient excuse, a fine for misconduct, or removal of his name from the Register under section 20. A Council lasts four years from its first meeting (three years before the 2022 Amendment, in force from 10 May 2022) and carries on until a new one is constituted.
Section 11: nomination in default of election
If any body of persons referred to in section 9 fails to elect any of the members of the Council which it is empowered to elect, the Central Government may nominate a person duly qualified to fill the vacancy. A person so nominated is deemed to be a member of the Council as if he had been duly elected. The section is a safety net: the Council can be fully constituted even if an election yields no result for a seat. The composition of the Council is in section 9.
Section 12: President and Vice-President
12(1): election. The Council at its first meeting elects two of its members to be respectively the President and the Vice-President. Whenever either office becomes vacant, the Council chooses another person. A proviso on the first constitution of the Council, under which a Central Government nominee discharged the functions of the President until one was elected, was omitted in 2022 and is no longer in the section.
12(2): the Head of the Council. The President is the Head of the Council. The word "Head" replaced "Chief Executive Authority" in 2022, in force from 10 May 2022.
Sub-sections (2A) to (2D), all inserted in 2022 and in force from 10 May 2022, set out the working roles:
| Sub-section | Rule |
|---|---|
| (2A) | The President shall preside at the meetings of the Council |
| (2B) | The President and the Vice-President exercise such powers and perform such duties and functions as may be prescribed (in the regulations) |
| (2C) | It is the duty of the President to ensure that the decisions taken by the Council are implemented |
| (2D) | If the office of the President is vacant, or he is absent or unable to act, the Vice-President acts in his place and exercises the powers and duties of the President |
12(3): the term of office. The President or the Vice-President holds office for one year from the date on which he is chosen, but not so as to extend beyond his term of office as a member of the Council. Subject to being a member of the Council at the relevant time, he is eligible for re-election under sub-section (1). The words "under sub-section (1)" were added in 2006.
12(4): after the Council's term ends. On the expiration of the duration of the Council, the President and the Vice-President at that time continue to hold office and discharge such administrative and other duties as may be prescribed, until a new President and Vice-President have been elected and have taken over charge of their duties. The Act does not say what those duties are; they are in the regulations.
A point from section 10 belongs here: a member who is or has been elected President is not eligible for election or nomination to the Council again.
Section 13: resignation and casual vacancies
13(1): resignation. A member of the Council may at any time resign by writing under his hand addressed to the President. The seat becomes vacant when the resignation is notified in the Official Gazette, not on the date of the letter.
13(2): deemed vacation. A member is deemed to have vacated his seat if:
- he is declared by the Council to have been absent without sufficient excuse from three consecutive meetings of the Council;
- he has been found guilty of any professional or other misconduct and awarded a penalty of fine (these words were inserted in 2006); or
- his name is, for any cause, removed from the Register of members under section 20. The words "Register of members" replaced "Register" in 2022.
For the absence ground, the Council has to make a declaration; the member does not lose the seat merely by missing meetings.
13(3): filling a casual vacancy. A casual vacancy is filled by fresh election from the constituency concerned or by nomination by the Central Government, as the case may be. The person so chosen holds office until the dissolution of the Council. A proviso says no election shall be held to fill a casual vacancy occurring within one year prior to the expiration of the Council's duration; such a vacancy may be filled instead by nomination by the Central Government after consultation with the President. The period of one year was six months before the 2006 Amendment Act.
13(4): validity of acts. No act done by the Council shall be called in question merely because of the existence of a vacancy in, or a defect in the constitution of, the Council. This protects decisions already taken.
Section 14: duration and dissolution
14(1). The duration of any Council constituted under the Act is four years from the date of its first meeting, on the expiry of which it stands dissolved and a new Council is constituted in accordance with the Act. "Four years" replaced "three years" in 2022, in force from 10 May 2022.
14(2). Notwithstanding the expiration of the duration, the former Council continues to exercise its functions until a new Council is constituted, and on such constitution the former Council stands dissolved. So there is no gap in which the Institute is without a Council.
A worked example
A Council holds its first meeting in a given month and elects a President and a Vice-President. The President is chosen for one year. In the third year, a member declared by the Council to have been absent without sufficient excuse from three consecutive meetings is deemed to have vacated his seat. If the vacancy arises more than one year before the Council's four-year term ends, it is filled by fresh election from the constituency or by nomination, as the case may be; within the last year it can only be filled by the Central Government's nomination after consulting the President. When the four years end, the former Council carries on until the new one is constituted. If you are involved in a Council governance question, a legal consultation can work through the dates.
Need help with a governance or vacancy question?
Vacancies, resignations and the end of a Council's term turn on dates, notifications and the rules for filling seats. A legal consultation can read sections 11 to 14 with the facts and the current notifications and tell you the position.
Key takeaways
- The Central Government may nominate a qualified person where an electing body fails to elect (section 11).
- The President is the Head of the Council and presides; the Vice-President acts in the President's absence or vacancy (section 12).
- President and Vice-President hold office for one year, within their Council term.
- A member vacates his seat by gazetted resignation, three absences declared by the Council, a fine for misconduct, or removal from the Register under section 20.
- A casual vacancy is filled by election or nomination, with a special rule for the final year.
- The Council lasts four years and the former Council continues until a new one is constituted.
Read next
- Section 9 of the Chartered Accountants Act, 1949: constitution of the Council
- Sections 9A to 10B of the Chartered Accountants Act, 1949: Coordination Committee and Election Tribunal
- Section 15 of the Chartered Accountants Act, 1949: functions of the Council
- Sections 11 to 14 of the Cost Accountants Act, 1959: President, vacancies and duration of the Council
Disclaimer: Based on the Chartered Accountants Act, 1949 as printed in the ICAI edition of 2022 (amended up to Act 12 of 2022), read with S.O. 2184(E) dated 10 May 2022, which brought only part of the 2022 amendments into force, as consulted on 3 October 2026. Regulations, rules, Council guidelines, later amendments and commencement notifications should be checked. This article is general information, not legal advice; check the official text before acting.