Decide whether the following persons are qualified to be appointed as statutory auditor of the Girija Ltd: Mukesh, a qualified chartered accountant, who has been convicted in the year 2005 by a Court for an offence invol

Provisions of the Companies Act, 2013: Section 141(3)(h) of the Companies Act, 2013, states that a person shall not be eligible for appointment as an auditor if he has been convicted by a court of an offence involving fraud and a period of ten years has not elapsed from the date of such conviction. Application to the given case: Mukesh was convicted in the year 2005 for an offence involving fraud. The current year is 2021 (assuming the exam year). The period elapsed since conviction is 2021 - 2005 = 16 years. Conclusion: Since a period of more than ten years (16 years) has elapsed from the date of conviction, Mukesh is **not disqualified** under Section 141(3)(h) of the Companies Act, 2013. Therefore, he is qualified to be appointed as the statutory auditor of Girija Ltd. (Assuming the appointment of Mukesh, statutory auditor has been done after the year 2015 i.e. after 10 years).