Amendment status not verified — confirm the current text below against the official source.
Definitions.- (1) In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,- (a) “debtor” means a person who receives loan for exorbitant interest; (b) “exorbitant interest” means and includes charging of interest on hourly basis, daily basis, installment basis, monthly basis or in any other form which works out to be an interest at rate more than that fixed by the State Government under section 28 of the Karnataka Money Lenders Act, 1961; (c) "Karnataka Money Lenders Act, 1961" means the Karnataka Money Lenders Act, 1961 (Karnataka Act 12 of 1961); (d) “loan” means an advance of money given to a debtor for exorbitant interest. (2) Words and expressions used but not defined in this Act shall have the meanings assigned to them in the Karnataka Money Lenders Act, 1961. 1[3. Prohibition of charging exorbitant interest and using coercive action.- (1) No person shall charge exorbitant interest on any loan advanced by him. (2) Money Lender shall not use any coercive action either by himself or by his agents or by his family members for recovery of money from the debtor and any form of coercive recovery shall be liable for punishment under the provisions of this Act and empower the Registering Authority to suspend or cancel the Registration of such Money Lender as provided under the provisions of this Act. Explanation: For the purposes of this section, "coercive Action" by a Money Lender against the debtors include the following, namely:- (i) exerting pressure or obstructing or using violence to or insulting or intimidating the debtor or his/her family members, or (ii) persistently following the debtor, his/her family member from place to place or interfering with any property owned or used by him/her or depriving him/her of, or hindering him/her in the use of any such property, or (iii) frequenting the house or other place where the debtor resides or works, or carries on business, or happens to be, with an intension of taking coercive action, or (iv) using the service of private or outsource or external agencies, criminal background to negotiate/urging the debtor to make payment using coercive and undue influence, or (v) Seeking to take forcibly any document from the debtor which entitles the debtor to a benefit under any Government programme.]1