Amit, the director of Smile Ltd., did not attend the meetings of the Board of directors of the company during the last twelve months with the leave of absence. Comment on his status as director.

Section 167 of the Companies Act, 2013 deals with vacation of office of director. Section 167 (1) (b) provides that the office of a director shall become vacant in case he absents himself from all the meetings of the Board of Directors held during a period of twelve months with or without seeking leave of absence of the Board. Hence, in the given case, though Mr. Amit, the Director of the Smile Ltd. has taken the leave of absence from the board, the office of director shall become vacant, as section 167 clearly states that "with or without seeking leave of absence" for the said purpose.