Corporate Social Responsibility: a Burden Or Benefit?

Abstract

A corporation is incorporated for the purpose of advancement of economy and society. Business largely produces good things in our society. At the same time, it also possesses the potential to cause great harm such as environment degradation, accidents and many more. In between good things and bad things there arise a need to find out the real aim of corporation for this around the world the concept of Corporate Social responsibility (CSR) have been discovered as to the objective of the concept of CSR is deciding where company fit in the social fabric. There is no certain definition of CSR. This uncertainty makes it strenuous for legislators to include CSR in statutes. The current coronavirus pandemic has shown us the social responsibility of the corporations whereby various judicial orders reflect the importance of CSR as the directions were made to the companies and many new regulations were bought by the state to enhance the efficiency of provision. This paper will here analyse the clash of shareholders interest and CSR activities. This paper will further talk with how CSR can be safely sheltered under the company law and the various issues that create hindrance in implementing CSR particularly governance mismanagement of which globalisation of corporations is a big factor and this paper will also analyse the nexus between the main objective of the incorporation that is profit making and CSR. Volume 2 – Issue 1 Journal of Multi-Disciplinary Legal Research ISSN: 2582-9947 In Addition to that this research paper will proceed with a hypothesis that the recent amendment bought in Section 135, Companies Act,2013 and CSR rules are not adequate in addressing the balance between the interest of shareholders and CSR activities merely adding the teeth to the provision will not resolve the main issue but merely end up as a compliance requirement the core objective of CSR as stated by Praveen Malla1 while discussing social contract theory explains the role of corporations as social institutions are not fulfilled. The essence of the balance of interest of Corporations and society lies in the good governance.