¹[23. (1) Whoever contravenes, attempts to contravene or abets the contravention of any of the provisions of this Act or of any rule, direction or order made thereunder, shall notwithstanding anything contained in the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1898, be tried by a Tribunal constituted by section 23A, and shall be punishable with imprisonment for a term which may extend to ²[Seven years] or with fine or with both, and any such Tribunal trying any such contravention may, if it thinks fit, and in addition to any sentence which it may impose for such contravention, direct that any currency, security, gold or silver, or goods or other property in respect of which the contravention has taken place shall be confiscated. (2) Notwithstanding anything contained in the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1898, any offence punishable under this section shall be cognizable for such period as the Government may from time to time, by notification in the official Gazette, declare. (3) A Tribunal shall not take cognizance of any offence punishable under this section and not declared by the Government under the preceding sub-section to be cognizable for the time being, or of an offence punishable under section 54 of the Income-tax Act, 1922, as applied by section 19, except upon complaint in writing made by a person authorised by the Government or the Bangladesh Bank in this behalf: Provided that where any such offence is the contravention of any of the provisions of this Act or any rule, direction or order made thereunder which prohibits the doing of an act without permission and is not declared by the Government under the preceding sub-section to be cognizable for the time being, no such complaint shall be made unless the person accused of the offence has been given an opportunity of showing that he had such permission. (4) Where the person guilty of an offence under this Act is a company or other body corporate every director, manager, secretary and other officer thereof who is knowingly a party to the offence shall also be guilty of the same offence and liable to the same punishment.