Allahabad HC Asks Centre to Find a Fix for Cybercrime Victims Whose Bank Accounts Stay Frozen
The Lucknow Bench impleaded the Home Ministry and told banks to work with the cyber cell after a builder’s accounts stayed frozen for years when fraudsters misused his Aadhaar details.
The Lucknow Bench of the Allahabad High Court has asked the central government to find a way out for people whose bank accounts stay frozen indefinitely after cybercriminals misuse their personal details. A Division Bench of Justice Rajan Roy and Justice Subhash Vidyarthi impleaded the Union of India through the Ministry of Home Affairs and asked the concerned ministries and departments to “come-up with a solution”, LawChakra reported on 12 November.
A builder who could not run his business
The petitioner, a builder, says his troubles began when his son clicked on a link sent by a fraudster and shared the petitioner’s Aadhaar and other details. Those details were later used for further cybercrime and bank fraud. He filed an FIR in 2020, but all his accounts were frozen and he has not been able to carry on his business.
In earlier proceedings, the High Court allowed him to approach UIDAI to get a new Aadhaar and cancel the old one. He was given fresh biometrics and a new mobile number, yet his existing bank accounts remained blocked.
What the court directed
- Assistant Solicitor General SB Pandey accepted notice for the Union and has been told to take instructions and file an affidavit.
- The two banks in the case must contact the cyber cell, find out the status of the pending criminal cases, act in line with the law and make every effort to resolve the matter. One bank, after receiving no instructions from the cyber cell, has already lifted its freeze.
- The petitioner must add the State of Uttar Pradesh (through the Additional Chief Secretary or Principal Secretary, Home), the Commissioner of Police, Lucknow, and the SHO of Vibhuti Khand police station as parties.
The court noted that the problem goes beyond one petitioner: ordinary citizens whose details are misused by cybercriminals can end up with their own accounts frozen with no end date. The case will be listed again after four weeks as a fresh matter.
— Legal Desk
Photo: The High Court of Lucknow – Gomti Nagar by Veera.sj, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Sources
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