New Delhi, Jan 18: The Supreme Court has directed that a plea seeking the formulation of a uniform Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for freezing and de-freezing of bank accounts during cybercrime investigations be placed before Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant for appropriate directions.
A bench of Justices Pankaj Mithal and S.V.N. Bhatti passed the order after the Centre informed the court that a CJI-led bench is already examining similar issues in a suo motu writ petition concerning so called “digital arrests.”
Recording the submission of Additional Solicitor General Anil Kaushik, the bench said the prayers relating to mandatory safeguards in freezing bank accounts overlap with issues under consideration in the ongoing suo motu proceedings. Accordingly, the registry was directed to seek instructions from the CJI and list the matter before the appropriate bench.
Earlier, the apex court had agreed to examine specific prayers in the plea, including a demand that no bank account be frozen without a written, reasoned order and prior intimation to the account holder within 24 hours. The plea also sought strict compliance with Section 106(3) of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) and Section 102(3) of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC), which mandate reporting such actions to the jurisdictional magistrate.
The petitioner has further urged the court to direct the Centre and the Reserve Bank of India to frame a nationwide SOP governing freezing and de-freezing of bank accounts in cybercrime cases, to prevent arbitrary action and ensure procedural fairness.
At the outset, the Centre clarified that it had not frozen the petitioner’s bank accounts, countering allegations of unilateral action without intimation.
The plea was filed by Vivek Varshney through advocate Tushar Manohar Khairnar, alleging that the Cyber Cell of the Tamil Nadu Police arbitrarily froze his bank accounts without prior notice, judicial approval or communication, thereby violating his fundamental rights under Articles 19(1)(g) and 21 of the Constitution.
According to the petition, the freezing of accounts resulted in “complete financial paralysis,” preventing the petitioner from meeting professional and personal obligations, including payment of taxes and essential expenses.
The plea also highlights the absence of a uniform protocol across states, leading to inconsistent practices, prolonged freezing of accounts and deprivation of financial rights without due process. It argues that unless an account holder is proven complicit in a crime, their entire bank account or amounts exceeding the alleged proceeds of crime should not be frozen merely on the basis of a suspicious transaction.
Citing the increasing frequency of such cases, the petitioner has urged the Supreme Court to frame clear guidelines and direct the Ministry of Home Affairs to formulate a standard policy and SOP for cybercrime-related account freezing to protect citizens from unnecessary harassment.